Department of Social & Policy Sciences, Unit Catalogue 2006/07

SP10060 Quantitative methods: Surveys & data analysis

Credits: 6

Level: Certificate

Semester: 2

Assessment: EX 100%

Requisites:

Aims: To introduce students to the main assumptions, concepts and methods of survey methods, sampling, descriptive and inferential statistics and to establish basic competence sufficient for investigative, exploratory data analysis using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS).
Learning Outcomes:
By the end of the unit students are expected to be able to:
* formulate questionnaire questions and conduct small-scale surveys.
* recognise variables according to different levels of measurement.
* standardise scores.
* apply a chi square test in order to explore differences between categorical variables.
* to explore the strength of association between different types of variables.
* to use the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) to apply simple statistical procedures for describing data.
* to use SPSS to perform simple statistical analysis, including procedures for the re-coding of variables, and calculating the chi square test, Pearsons' correlation coefficient and simple regression.
Skills:
Intellectual skills:
* To critically evaluate and assess research and evidence as well as a variety of other information;
* To utilise problem solving skills; Professional Practical skills:
* To effectively and efficiently apply principles of sociological/social policy analysis within a variety of environments. Transferable/Key skills:
* Advanced information and computing technology skills (i.e. SPSS and other forms of computer based data analysis programmes, producing tables, spreadsheets, graphs and charts, statistical tests).
* Statistical analysis of bivariate and multivariate relationships between variables.
* Team and group working skills.
* To solve problems in a variety of situations. Knowledge outcomes: Sociology and Soc/HRM:
* Knowledge of the current developments in practice and research in a European and world context. Knowledge outcomes: SPA and Sociology and Social Policy:
* Knowledge of techniques for the evaluation of policy outcomes.
* Knowledge of the main sources of data about social welfare and a critical approach to the use of these. Knowledge outcomes: Social Sciences:
* Understanding of how to apply knowledge and concepts from across various social sciences disciplines.
* Knowledge of the main sources of data about social issues and a critical approach to their use. Knowledge outcomes: Social Work and Applied Social Studies:
* Understanding of how to apply knowledge and concepts from across various social sciences disciplines.
* Knowledge of the main sources of data about social issues and a critical approach to their use.
Content:
Basic principles of surveys, construction of questionnaires and sampling; Basic descriptive statistics and Graphical Representation of Quantitative Data; Measures of central tendency and variability; Introduction to the Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS); The normal distribution and z-scores; Tests of associations: An overview of tests for Nominal, Ordinal and Interval/Ratio variables; Introduction to inferential statistics; Estimates, Hypothesis testing and Predictions; Tests of significance for Nominal variables (the chi-square test), Correlation and simple regression.

University | Catalogues for 2006/07