Entry requirements
This course builds on the Introduction to Methodology and Statistics, and presupposes the knowledge and skills taught there.
Description
In this course the students’ knowledge of probability theory is refreshed and applied to the statistical tests most frequently used in psychology. The aim is for students to understand the following concepts: sampling distribution; statistical reliability; hypothesis testing; the principles and procedures for the various significance tests. Students learn to select and perform the appropriate test in a given situation.
Course objectives
Students will acquire an understanding of the concepts of sampling distribution, statistical reliability and hypothesis testing, as well as the principles and procedures of the various tests of significance.
Students will be able to select and perform the appropriate test in a given situation.
Students will acquire skills in working with statistical software used for these tests.
A complete list of course objectives for this course is available on Brightspace.
Timetable
For the timetable of this course please refer to MyTimetable
Registration
NOTE As of the academic year 2021-2022, you must register for all courses in uSis. You do this twice a year: once for the courses you want to take in semester 1 and once for the courses you want to take in semester 2.
Registration for courses in the first semester is possible from July. Registration for courses in the first semester is possible from December.
The exact date on which the registration starts will be published on the website of the Student Service Center (SSC). First year Bachelor students as well as premaster students will be registered by the Student Service Center; they do not need to register themselves.
The registration period for all courses closes five calendar days before the start of the course.
Also read the complete registration procedure
Mode of instruction
8 2-hour lectures and 8 2-hour mandatory tutorial sessions.
The lectures
Each course week begins with a lecture to introduce and explain course material. The lectures also cover additional and new topics that are included in the examination. As preparation for the lectures students are required to study the chapters assigned for that week. The lectures primarily focus on course objectives 1 and 2. The lectures can be attended in a lecture hall and via a live stream. The lectures will be made available as Weblectures.
The tutorials
The day after the lecture there is a tutorial session. In preparation for these sessions students have to complete a number of mandatory homework assignments, that will be checked by the teacher at the start. These sessions focus on applying the acquired knowledge in practice. Students also learn to work with IBM SPSS Statistics, a software package for statistical data analysis. The material covered in these work group sessions is also included in the examination. Students are required to bring the exercise book to every session. Attendance is mandatory. The tutorials focus on course objectives 1, 2, and 3.
Assessment method
The assessment consists of two components:
1. A written examination consisting of multiple-choice questions, covering both theory and statistical calculations from the literature, the work group sessions, and the lectures (Course objectives 1 and 2).
2. An SPSS skills test covering the various aspects of students’ skills in working with SPSS as well as in describing and interpreting statistical output (Course objective 3).
The final grade is a weighted average of the examination grade (70%) and the grade for the SPSS skills test (30%).
The Institute of Psychology uses fixed rules for grade calculation and compulsory attendance. It also follows the policy of the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences to systematically check student papers for plagiarism with the help of software. Disciplinary measures will be taken when fraud is detected. Students are expected to be familiar with and understand the implications of these three policies.
Reading list
Howell, D.C. (2014/2021). Statistical Methods for Psychology (Leiden edition). Wadsworth: Cengage Learning. ISBN 978-1-4737-8791-9
Pallant, J. (2020). SPSS Survival Manual. (7th edition) Berkshire: McGraw-Hill. ISBN 978-0-3352-4949-7
IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows (Version 27). Armonk, NY: IBM Corp. [Software, for sale via www.surfspot.nl].
Exercise book Inferential Statistics 2021-2022
Lecture slides (provided via Brightspace)
Contact information
Drs. Sjoerd Huisman
s.m.h.huisman@fsw.leidenuniv.nl
Drs. Kees Verduin (SPSS)
verduin@fsw.leidenuniv.nl