Research Methods and Statistics in Psychology

The seventh edition of Research Methods and Statistics in Psychology provides students with the most readable and comprehensive survey of research methods, statistical concepts and procedures in psychology today. Assuming no prior knowledge, this bestselling text takes you through every stage of your research project giving advice on planning and conducting studies, analysing data and writing up reports. The book provides clear coverage of experimental, interviewing and observational methods, psychological testing, qualitative methods and analysis and statistical procedures which include nominal level tests, multi-factorial ANOVA designs, multiple regression, log linear analysis, and factor analysis. It features detailed and illustrated SPSS instructions for all these and other procedures, eliminating the need for an extra SPSS textbook. New features to this edition include: Additional coverage of factor analysis and online and modern research methods Expanded coverage of report writing guidelines References updated throughout Presentation updated throughout, to include more figures, tables and full colour to help break up the text Companion website signposted throughout the book to improve student usability Improved and extended web links and further reading associated with every chapter. Each chapter contains a glossary, key terms and newly integrated exercises, ensuring that key concepts are understood. A fully updated companion website (www.routledge.com/cw/coolican) provides additional exercises, testbanks for each chapter, revision flash cards, links to further reading and data for use with SPSS.

Table of Contents:
Part 1 Research Methods and Ethics Chapter 1 Psychology, science and research Chapter 2 Measuring people – variables, samples and the qualitative critique Chapter 3 Experiments and experimental designs in psychology Chapter 4 Validity in psychological research Chapter 5 Quasi-experiments and non-experiments Chapter 6 Observational methods – watching and being with people Chapter 7 Interview methods – asking people direct questions Chapter 8 Psychological tests and measurement scales Chapter 9 Comparison studies – cross-sectional, longitudinal and cross-cultural studies Chapter 10 Qualitative approaches in psychology Chapter 11 Ethical issues in psychological research Part 2 Analysing data and writing reports Chapter 12 Analysing qualitative data Chapter 13 Statistics – organising the data Chapter 14 Graphical representation of data Chapter 15 Frequencies and distributions Chapter 16 Significance testing – was it a real effect? Chapter 17 Testing for differences between two samples Chapter 18 Tests for categorical variables and frequency tables Chapter 19 Correlation Chapter 20 Regression and multiple regression Chapter 21 Factor analysis Chapter 22 Multi-level analysis – differences between more than two conditions (ANOVA) Chapter 23 Multi-factorial ANOVA designs Chapter 24 ANOVA for repeated measures designs Chapter 25 Choosing a significance test for your data Chapter 26 Planning your practical and writing up your report

About the Author :
Hugh Coolican is a recently retired Principal Lecturer in Psychology at Coventry University, now holding the position of Honorary Teaching Fellow. He is also a Chartered Psychologist and an examiner and scrutineer for the International Baccalaureate.

Review :
‘The new edition of this book is a ‘must-have’ for every undergraduate psychology student. The book is clearly written in a concise, readily accessible manner and is broad in scope without compromising on depth of coverage. The book not only encompasses various research methods plus valuable research practical skills such as report writing, it also provides a comprehensive yet easily digestible account of several statistical techniques ranging from t-tests to factor analysis and multiple regression. All-in-all, the book provides excellent coverage of a range of different topics and is essential reading for any psychology student.’ - Dr. Kevin Thomas, Bournemouth University, UK. ‘It is rare to find comprehensive coverage of all the research methods that UK Psychology undergraduates are likely to encounter in one book. Hugh Coolican has achieved just that, providing qualitative, mixed and quantitative methods and analysis, along with thoughtful discussions of these methodologies and the issues surrounding them, in one lucid and digestible text. The interactive style, SPSS analyses, exercises and glossaries make this an engaging read, demystifying concepts that students often find challenging and further supporting them with online materials and a companion website. This is a textbook, manual and reference book in one neat package.’ - Dr. Alison Wadeley, Bath Spa University, UK.