After completing this course students are able to:
-
summarize the general methodological issues researchers face in implementing empirical research projects, with special emphasis on the social science.
-
explain basic descriptive and inferential statistical procedures, to a level that enables them to go on to more complex methods such as the multivariate analysis methods treated in Methods & Statistics II.
-
critically discuss the limitations of specific research methods, and conduct and analyze a simple experiment.
|
|
|
Methods and Statistics I gives a general introduction to research Methodology and Statistics for the Social Sciences. The methodology introduction includes the logic and design of social research (e.g., operationalization, experimental design, sampling), and some specific techniques (e.g., laboratory research, surveys). The introduction to statistics includes descriptive and inferential statistics, covering measures of central tendency, distributions, association, univariate and bivariate inferential statistics.
Format
This course offers students various study formats:
-
Lectures in which a methodological or statistical subject is discussed. A presentation of the theory is given in this lecture. The application of the theory is the focus of the following meeting of the week.
-
In-class discussions on methodological subjects of scientific papers and in-class activities.
-
In-class discussions of statistical exercises that students prepare at home.
-
Practicals, in which the students learn to use the statistical computer program SPSS.
Students are expected to read the assigned materials, actively participate in class discussions of methodological and statistical problems, and complete the take home exercises.
|
 |
|