Foundations of Behavioral Statistics: An Insight-Based Approach

With humor, extraordinary clarity, and carefully paced explanations and examples, Bruce Thompson shows readers how to use the latest techniques for interpreting research outcomes as well as how to make statistical decisions that result in better research. Utilizing the general linear model to demonstrate how different statistical methods are related to each other, Thompson integrates a broad array of methods involving only a single dependent variable, ranging from classical and robust location descriptive statistics, through effect sizes, and on through ANOVA, multiple regression, loglinear analysis and logistic regression. Special features include SPSS and Excel demonstrations that offer opportunities, in the book’s datasets and on Thompson’s website, for further exploration of statistical dynamics.

Table of Contents:
Preface 1. Introductory Terms and Concepts Definitions of Some Basic Terms Levels of Scale Some Experimental Design Considerations Some Key Concepts Reflection Problems 2. Location Reasonable Expectations for Statistics Location Concepts Three Classical Location Descriptive Statistics Four Criteria for Evaluating Statistics Two Robust Location Statistics Some Key Concepts Reflection Problems 3. Dispersion Quality of Location Descriptive Statistics Important in Its Own Right Measures of Score Spread Variance Situation-Specific Maximum Dispersion Robust Dispersion Descriptive Statistics Standardized Score World Some Key Concepts Reflection Problems 4. Shape Two Shape Descriptive Statistics Normal Distributions Two Additional Univariate Graphics Some Key Concepts Reflection Problems 5. Bivariate Relationships Pearson's r Three Features of r Three Interpretation Contextual Factors Psychometrics of the Pearson r Spearman's rho Two Other r -Equivalent Correlation Coefficients Bivariate Normality Some Key Concepts Reflection Problems 6. Statistical Significance Sampling Distributions Hypothesis Testing Properties of Sampling Distributions Standard Error/Sampling Error Test Statistics Statistical Precision and Power pCALCULATED Some Key Concepts Reflection Problems 7. Practical Significance Effect Sizes Confidence Intervals Confidence Intervals for Effect Sizes Some Key Concepts Reflection Problems 8. Multiple Regression Analysis: Basic GLM Concepts Purposes of Regression Simple Linear Prediction Case #1: Perfectly Uncorrelated Predictors Case #2: Correlated Predictors, No Suppressor Effects Case #3: Correlated Predictors, Suppressor Effects Present b Weights versus Structure Coefficients A Final Comment on Collinearity Some Key Concepts Reflection Problems 9. A GLM Interpretation Rubric Do I Have Anything? Where Does My Something Originate? Stepwise Methods Invoking Some Alternative Models

About the Author :
Bruce Thompson is Distinguished Professor of Educational Psychology and Distinguished Professor of Library Sciences, Texas A&M University, and Adjunct Professor of Family and Community Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston. He is the coeditor of the teaching, learning, and human development section of the American Educational Research Journal and past editor of Educational and Psychological Measurement, the series Advances in Social Science Methodology, and two other journals. He is the author or editor of 10 books, has written over 175 research articles, and has made contributions that have been influential in promoting greater emphasis on effect size reporting and interpretation, and improved understanding of score reliability.

Review :
'An important contribution to improving data analysis and interpretation methods in the social sciences. This book treats many important topics that are ignored in most statistics books... The Statistical Significance chapter is excellent and one of the crown jewels of this book. This is the kind of understanding of significance testing that we should seek to impart to students and researchers. No other stat book, to my knowledge, has a chapter like this one. This is the direction in which things are moving today.' "- Frank L. Schmidt, College of Business, University of Iowa"" " 'This book would be suited for professional and/or class use. The benefit for professional use is the vast number of resources and references cited throughout. This wealth of seminal works from some of the best minds in the field of statistics would provide professionals with supplemental knowledge and information on many crucial statistical issues that have recently been proposed, debated, challenged, and mandated (APA).'" - Victoria Rodlin, Statistical Consultant (former faculty, Department of Psychology, California State University, Fullerton)"