Sociological Statistics

SOC 314 Sociological Statistics

Fall 2010

Sociological StatisticsSociology 314

Spring 2012Class Meetings: MW 10-11:50

Classroom:KAP 148 & KAP 305(lab)

Professor: Amon Emeka

Office/Hours: KAP 358, Tue & Fri 10-11:30By now you are aware that doing sociology involves describing social phenomenawhether exploitation, segregation, overpopulation, industrialization, acculturation, or fornicationand identifying plausible theories to explain them. Perhaps most importantly, we subject those theories to empirical testing. By observing a single instance in which a theory does or does not pan out we may begin to build a case for or against a particular theory and thereby improve our understanding of how the world works. The most rigorous test of any theory involves replication under many and varied circumstances to see how broadly it can be applied. For this reason, sociologists often desire to examine dozens, hundreds, thousands of instances rather than just examining one. This is a crucial difference between sociology and common sensethe latter is often based on limited and haphazard observation of the social world. Under the best circumstances our sociological observations are systematic, numerous, and representative, but how do we organize and summarize our observations when they run into the thousands or even millions? STATISTICS!

The value of statistics is, of course, not limited to academic pursuits. Public health professionals use statistics to figure what medical programs, practices and technologies have the most far-reaching positive impacts in target populations. Market researchers use statistics to figure out who is buying what, as well as when, where, and why they are buying it. Lawmakers use statistical information to come to conclusions regarding municipal zoning, congressional redistricting, etc. Many of them use the software program SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) to complete their statistical tasks as will we. The non-academic uses of statistics make it one of the most marketable skill sets that sociology majors acquire at USC or anywhere else.

My assumption is that you have some sense of how important statistics are, and my hope is that you will by the end of this term have a sense of how accessible they areso that you may be knowledgeable producers and consumers of sociological statistics.

COURSE OBJECTIVESStudents shall have achieved the following upon successful completion of this course:

1. Demonstrable understanding of the structure and character of statistical data;2. The ability to calculate and interpret measures of central tendency and variability in statistical data;

3. The ability to assess the strength of association between sociological variables;

4. The ability to determine whether observed statistical patterns and associations are generalizable to the larger social world;

5. Basic competence using statistical and database software such as SPSS and Excel and;

6. The ability to identify and carryout statistical analyses that are most appropriate whatever sociological inquiry they may undertake.COURSE REQUIREMENTSTaking Responsibility for your Education. Familiarize yourself with this syllabus. If, after having read this document, you remain unclear regarding what is required and/or expected of you, make it known. You should always know what is going on in the course and there should be no surprises when you receive your final grade. Take all necessary steps to ensure that you understand the statistical problems and solutions you are faced with in this course. Make use of my office hours!Reading. Nearly all of the readings required for this class are found in:Levin, Jack & James A. Fox. 2011. Elementary Statistics in Social Research: The Essentials (3rd Edition). San Francisco: Allyn & Bacon.You should carefully read each chapter before I lecture on it in-class. Doing so will make the lectures much easier to follow. Attendance (30 pts). Of course, all students are expected to attend all lecture and lab sessions. Attendance will be recorded and figured into your grade. Since lectures and labs will be held at different locations and on differing days of the week, be sure to check your syllabus everyday before you head to class. Come to class preparedhaving read the assigned chapter and equipped with your text book and a calculator. THERE IS TO BE NO USE OF PERSONAL ELECTRONICS OF ANY KIND IN THE CLASSROOM ASIDE FROM A CALCULATOR. Violation of this rule will result in zero credit for attendance.Homework (60 pts). As with so many skills, practice makes perfect, when it comes to statistics. Do all required assignments and do problems that are not required! This will allow you to hone your skills at your own pace as well as demonstrate your grasp of the material to the professor and TA in a non-testing situation. (I will show you how to use Microsoft Excel to check your work so you will be able to easily pinpoint any miscalculations you make in your handwritten work). Each of the 3 assignments is worth 20 points and their due dates are listed in the course outline. The value of the assignments is in giving you feedback on your work before you are asked to do it in an exam setting. They must be handwritten neatly, completely, correctly and on time. Homework assignments will be collected in class on the day they are due but will not be counted as late so long they are time-stamped by the sociology office (KAP 352) receptionist and placed in my mailbox by 4:30 that same day.Labs (40 pts). There are nine lab sessions over the course of the semester that will consist of a brief demonstration using SPSS, Excel, and/or PowerPoint and time designated for you to produce brief written reports based on assigned analyses/activities. Lab exercises are worth 5 points each and will hone the skills you need to incorporate statistical analyses into your scholarly work. All labs take place in Kaprielian Hall room 327. Lab assignments are due at the end of the lab period but are not considered late until 4:30 the following day. Be sure to have your lab time-stamped by the sociology office (KAP 352) receptionist before you place it in my mailbox. Study Replication (50 pts). One of the most important functions of social scientists in any society is to gauge change (or stagnation) in that society over time. This being true, it is important that we replicate older studies every so often to see whether and to what extent things have changed since the study was last carried out. In that spirit, each student is required to locate a paper or book chapter whose conclusions rest on General Social Survey data (see http://sda.berkeley.edu/archive.htm for info on and access to these data) and whose publication date is in or BEFORE the year 2000 and replicate the study to the best of his/her ability. Each student will produce a research paper that:

1) summarizes the research questions, research hypotheses, and research findings and conclusions of the original (pre-2000) study,2) discusses problems with the study and/or reasons why the results from that study may or may not be supported when more recent data are analyzed, 3) explains, in detail, how he/she replicated the study (what data, what variables, what recodes, what problems, what statistics, etc.), 4) displays and describes the replication results, 5) concludes by comparing the results of the replication to those from the original study and discussing possible reasons for differences and/or similarities between the two sets of results.Over the course of the semester you will learn about the General Social Survey, 1972-2008 data set and data analysis techniques that will allow you to do all of this. It will not be easy, and I encourage all of you to track down an interesting article soon and start talking to myself and/or Michela Musto about whether a replication of the study is realistic.

The Study Replication must not exceed 2,000 words in length and must be submitted via turnitin AND in hard copy to my mailbox in KAP 352 by 10:00AM on Monday, May 7th.Exams (150 pts). There are three in-class exams that will each account for 50 points of your grade. They will be comprised of conceptual (multiple choice) and computational questions but will not require a great deal of memorization of statistical formulas most relevant formulas will be provided on the exam. It is most important that you know when and how to employ concepts and formulas discussed in lectures and practiced in labs. Exams will also require the use of a calculator with square root and squaring keys. Even when wrong answers are reached partial credited may be granted if you have chosen the appropriate formula and worked through the problem completely. Exams will take place in class (KAP 148) on Wednesday, Feb 9, Wednesday, Mar 23, and Wednesday, Apr 27. There will be no make-up exams.

Post-Exam Credit. You may earn back up to one-third of the points you miss of any of the three exams. If, for example, you score a 35 out of 50 (C-) on the exam, you missed 15 points and can earn up to 5 points back pushing your grade to 50 (B-). To earn these points back you must write a brief paragraph for each question you missed on the exam.

For conceptual/multiple choice questions, you must write a brief paragraph that defines the misunderstood concept on the basis of the textbook or lecture definition and explain how the answer you marked is not in accordance with that definition and how the correct answer is.

For computational questions, you will write a brief paragraph pinpointing any computational mistake(s) you made during the exam and then perform all calculations correctly making sure to show your work. If you chose the wrong formula or statistical procedure you must write a brief paragraph explaining why the formula or procedure you chose is inappropriate and why another in more appropriate then re-do the problem using the correct formula or procedure.

Calculations may be handwritten but all paragraphs (as described above) must be typewritten. You must also clearly number all paragraphs and computations in accordance with the exam question missed. You must submit your paragraphs and computations along with your original exam in class no later than one week after you receive your graded exam.

This is an opportunity to push your exam grade considerably higher, but more importantly it is an opportunity for you the LEARN FROM YOUR MISTAKESone of the most important lessons in school and in life!

Late Work Policy. Late work submitted no more than 24 hours after the deadline will be docked one full grade (10%) and may receive no written feedback. Written assignments submitted more than 24 hours after the deadline listed in the syllabus will receive no more than half credit.

GRADINGAttendance

30 pts

Homework (3 assignments 20 pts each) 60 pts

Labs (8 exercises 5 pts each)

40 ptsStudy Replication

50 pts

Exams (3 exams 50 pts each)

150 pts

TOTAL

330 pts

A302 to 330 pts.

C+256 to 261 pts.A-295 to 301 pts.

C236 to 255 pts.

B+288 to 294 pts.

C-229 to 235 pts.

B 267 to 287 pts.

D+223 to 228 pts.B- 262 to 266 pts.

D196 to 222 pts.COURSE OUTLINEMon, Jan 9Introduction to the Course

KAP 148Wed, Jan 11Statistics: What are they good for?

KAP 148

READING: Ch.1

Mon, Jan 16NO CLASSES Labor Day

Wed, Jan 18LAB #1 Introduction to the General Social Survey

KAP 305

READING: Davis and Smith (1992: 1-26)Mon, Jan 23What is average? Measures of Central Tendency

KAP 148

READING: Ch. 3

Wed, Jan 25Average is Unusual! Measuring Variability

KAP 148

READING: Ch.4Mon, Jan 30LAB #2 Introduction to SPSS

KAP 305

READING: Ch. 2Wed, Feb 1 Exactly How Different Are You? Calculating z

KAP 148

READING: Ch. 5

Fri, Feb 3Homework #1 due at 4:30PM in KAP 352

Mon, Feb 6REVIEW SESSION

KAP 148Wed, Feb 8EXAM I

KAP 148Mon, Feb 13LAB #3 Recoding Variables in SPSS

KAP 305

READING: Data and Methods Section of your chosen studyWed, Feb 15Introduction to Inferential Statistics

KAP 148

READING: Ch. 6

Mon, Feb 20NO CLASSES Presidents Day

Wed, Feb 22Sociologic: How We Set Up the Big Questions

KAP 148

READING: Ch. 7Mon, Feb 27LAB #4 Univariate Displays of Data

KAP 305

READING: Results/Findings Section of your chosen studyWed, Feb 29Identifying Statistically Significant Differences

KAP 148

READING: Ch. 7

Mon, Mar 5Association by design or by chance? Chi-Square

KAP 148

READING: Ch. 9Wed, Mar 7LAB #5 Comparing Means and Distributions in SPSS

KAP 305

Homework #2 due at 4:30PM in KAP 352Mon, Mar 19REVIEW SESSION

KAP 148Wed, Mar 21EXAM II

KAP 148Mon, Mar 26Introduction to Correlation

KAP 148

READING : Chapter 10

Wed, Mar 28Analysis of Variance

KAP 148

READING: Ch. 8Mon, Apr 2LAB #6 Bivariate Displays of Data

KAP 305Wed, Apr 4Predicting Outcomes with Linear Regression

KAP 148

READING: Ch. 11Mon, Apr 9LAB #7 Correlation and ANOVA in SPSS

KAP 305

READING: Ch. 13Wed, Apr 11Finding Net Effects with Multiple Regression

KAP 148

READING: Allison, P. Multiple Regression: A Primer, Ch. 1Mon, Apr 16LAB #8 Multivariate Regression in SPSS

KAP 305

READING: Allison, P. Multiple Regression: A Primer, Ch. 2

Wed, Apr 18LAB #9 Polishing Your Displays of Data

KAP 305

Homework #3 due at 4:30PM in KAP 352Mon, Apr 23REVIEW SESSION

KAP 148Wed, Apr 25EXAM III

KAP 148Mon, May 7Study Replication Due at 10AM

KAP 355

DATES TO REMEMBER:

Jan 19Lab #1 due

Jan 31Lab #2 due

Feb 3Homework #1 due

Feb 6Exam I Review

Feb 8EXAM I

Feb 14Lab #3 due

Feb 28Lab #4 due

Mar 7Homework #2 due

Mar 8Lab #5 due

Mar 19Exam II Review

Mar 21EXAM II

Apr 3Lab #6 due

Apr 10Lab #7 due

Apr 17Lab #8 due

Apr 18Homework #3 due

Apr 19Lab #9 due

Apr 23Exam III Review

Apr 25EXAM III

May 7Study Replication Due

*Syllabus may change at the professors discretion. The calculator does not have to be fancy; it just has to have square (x2) and square root () keys.

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