Applying and Interpreting Statistics: A Comprehensive Guide(Springer Texts in Statistics)

This book describes the basis, application, and interpretation of statistics, and presents a wide range of univariate and multivariate statistical methodology. In its first edition it has proved popular across all science and technology based disciplines, including the social sciences, and in areas of commerce. It is used both as a reference on statistical methodology for researchers and technicians, and as a textbook with particular appeal for graduate classes containing students of mixed mathematical and statistical background. The book is developed without the use of calculus, although several self-contained sections containing calculus are included to provide additional insight for readers who have a calculus background. Based on the author's "Statistics in Scientific Investigation," the book has been extended substantially in the area of multivariate applications and through the expansion of logistic regression and log linear methodology. It presumes readers have access to a statistical computing package and includes guidance on the application of statistical computing packages. The new edition retains the unique feature of being written from the users' perspective; it connects statistical models and methods to investigative questions and background information, and connects statistical results with interpretations in plain English. In keeping with this approach, methods are grouped by usage rather than by commonality of statistical methodology. Guidance is provided on the choice of appropriate methods. The use of real life examples has been retained and expanded. Using the power of the Internet, expanded reports on the examples are available at a Springer Web site as Word documents. Additionaly, all data sets are available at the Web site as Excel files, and program files and data sets are provided for SAS users and SPSS users. The programs are annotated so users can adapt.

Table of Contents:
1 The Importance of Statistics in an Information-Based World.- 2 Data: The Factual Information.- 3 Statistical Models: The Experimenter’s View.- 4 Comparing Model and Data.- 5 Probability: A Fundamental Tool of Statistics.- 6 Some Widely Used Statistical Models.- 7 Some Important Statistics and Their Sampling Distributions.- 8 Statistical Analysis: The Statistician’s View.- 9 Examining Proportions and Success Rates.- 10 Model and Data Checking.- 11 Questions About the “Average” Value.- 12 Comparing Two Groups, Treatments, or Processes.- 13 Comparative Studies, Surveys, and Designed Experiments.- 14 Comparing More Than Two Treatments or Groups.- 15 Comparing Mean Response When There Are Three or More Treatments.- 16 Comparing Patterns of Response: Frequency Tables.- 17 Studying Relations Between Variables.- 18 Prediction and Estimation: The Role of Explanatory Variables.- 19 Questions About Variability.- 20 Cause and Effect: Statistical Perspectives.- 21 Studying Changes in Response over Time.- A Tables for Some Common Probability Distributions.- A.1 The Normal Distribution.- A.3 The Chi-Squared Distribution.- References.

Review :
From the reviews of the second edition: JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN STATISTICAL ASSOCIATION "The author covers a wide variety of applications. Each method is presented in sufficient depth to allow the reader to understand when the method should be used...I also appreciate the author's tendency to refer reader's to earlier sections or chapters for more foundational materials. In conclusion, I feel that this book would be a useful resource and a good text to use in training graduate-level statistical consultants on how to think about the application of statistics from a user's perspective." STATISTICAL METHODS IN MEDICAL RESEARCH "The layout of the book is quite good...In all things pertaining to format, the author has been consistent...At the end of each example in the book, the report name and name of files holding data and statistical computing programs are provided. As such, even a student of statistics can benefit very much from this book. Although the book is not that big, it contains lots of valuable information. The author has really accomplished showing that statistics should be seen as an integral component of investigation and as a tool for conducting a well-informed post-mortem of data! The author has produces a masterpiece. His book can be used as a reference and as an undergraduate text for a course in statistics for those taking statistics as a service course as well as majors. As a reference manual, it is useful because it contains statistical methods from a wide spectrum starting with univariate statistical methods to multivariate statistical methods. As a student text, it is useful because the design is user friendly and calculus has been played down to some level without loss of direction...To crown it all, the author has achieved what he purposed in his mind. His immense experience in statistical consulting is something to go by. The book itself is a masterpiece and a 'must have' for every practicing statistician." "Statistical practitioners will find this book useful in many ways: as the basis of a short course ... on introductory statistical methods ... as a reference for the practitioner's own use; and as a teaching tool to explain statistical theory and methods to our customers. ... As a textbook, this book will be especially useful as an introduction for undergraduate students who will be taking additional upper-level courses in the experimental sciences or for graduate students with varied foundations in mathematical statistics." (Jay H. Goodman, Technometrics, Vol. 44 (3), 2002)