Description
Left Coast Press Inc The 5 Things You Need To Know About Statistics Quantification In Ethnographic Research 2015 Edition by William W Dressler
The 5 Things You Need to Know about Statistics provides an accessible introduction to statistical thinking for anthropologists and other social scientists who feel some mixture of dread and loathing when it comes to quantification and data analysis. It is not so much an introduction to statistics as a primer on how to think statistically in order to do precise ethnographic studies. Readers will be empowered by the realization that statistics is not an arcane, enigmatical science but a set of tools for learning about the world in which we live. Unlike other books on statistics for beginners, this book-guides readers through the underlying logic of the major statistical methods before applying those methods in interpreting ethnographic research, thus emphasizing understanding of quantitative methods;-uses a single data set in explaining each method, allowing readers to grasp how different methods offer varying interpretations of the data;-discusses increasingly complex techniques in plain, easy-to-understand language intended for beginning students.;-covers five central ideas: central tendency, dispersion, Chi-square, ANOVA, correlation;-shows readers how to use these quantitative statistical methods in doing real-life ethnographic fieldwork. Preface Introduction Section I: The 5 Things You Need to Know about Statistics Chapter 1: Measures of Central Tendency Chapter 2: Measures of Dispersion Chapter 3: The Logic of Statistical Significance Testing: Chi-square Chapter 4: The Logic of Statistical Significance Testing: Analysis of Variance Chapter 5: The Logic of the Correlation Coefficient Section II: A Meditation on Quantification in Anthropology Chapter 6: Some Additional Thoughts on the 5 Things You Need to Know about Statistics Chapter 7: Three Analyses Extending the Concept of Correlation Chapter 8: Integrating Quantitative Research into Anthropological Research Design Chapter 9: Best of Luck! Appendix I: Variable Information Appendix II: Data References Index