Leslie B Cohen

Psychology 418-Spring 2010
Statistics and Methods in Psychology

Unique #s:    43815, 43820    Instructor:     Dr. Les Cohen
Time:        T, Th  9:30 -11:00    Office:     SEA 4.238
Room:          NOA 1.116    Office Hrs:     T, Th 8:00 - 9:15, by appt.

TA#1:  Wendy Smith         TA #2:  Grant Baldwin

Lab:   W 9:00 - 11:00, SEA 2.122    Lab   W 9:00 - 11:00, SEA 2.124
Office:             Office:    
Office Hrs:        Office Hrs:   
Email: wlsmith@mail.utexas.edu    Email: baldwingc@mail.utexas.edu                           
Required Reading:  

(Jackson)  Jackson, S. L. (2009). Research Methods and Statistics: A Critical Thinking Approach  (3rd Edition).  Belmont, CA, Thomson/Wadsworth

Caution: The Psychology Department will drop all students who do not meet the following prerequisites: PSY 301 with a C or better; Math 302 or a higher--level mathematics course; and a major in Psychology.

Course Requirements:

1. Papers:   Two papers are required for the course.  Each paper should be approximately 10 typewritten, double-spaced pages.  Since the course fulfills a "substantial writing requirement", your papers will be evaluated for both content and clarity of style, and you will receive helpful feedback so that your writing will improve.  The style of each paper should conform to APA guidelines as described in Jackson.  More details will be provided soon.

2.    Exams:  There will be three one-hour examinations.  Each will contain a number of multiple choice and a few short answer questions, and each exam will cover 1/3 of the course.  A few questions will require some calculations, so an inexpensive calculator (with a square root key) will be necessary.

3.    Helpful Hint: Attend all classes and labs!  At least 75% of the material on the exams will be covered in these classes!  Much of that material will be an extension of the information presented in Jackson and will not be in the book per se, but you are still required to learn it.

4. Homework:  In addition to the papers and examinations there will be weekly homework problems.  Most of these problems will be given out in your lab each Tuesday to be turned in and discussed the following Tuesday.  Some will be illustrations of statistical methods or design problems that have been discussed during the week.  Others will be more directly related to the research projects you will be conducting for the class. Many homework assignments will also involve some writing.  Homework assignments must be picked up and turned in at the appropriate time or they will not receive full credit.

5.  Policies:  Students who miss an examination without making prior arrangements will be given a zero for that exam.  Late papers will be accepted but will be graded more stringently than those turned in on time.  Cheating on exams, plagiarism, or unauthorized tutoring on papers will result in an F for the course. The University of Texas at Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities.  For more information, contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259, 471-4641 TTY.

6. Grading:  Grading will not be on a curve so it is theoretically possible for everyone to receive an A.  It is possible to earn a total of 100 points.  The points for each requirement and grade distributions are shown below:

1st Paper     20     A      = 92  - 100   (90-91 =A-)
2nd Paper     25    B     = 82  - 87    (80-81 = B-; 88-89=B+)
1st Exam     15        C    = 72  - 77    (70-71 = C-; 78-79=C+)
2nd Exam     15        D    = 62  - 67    (60-61 = D-; 68-69=D+)
3rd Exam     15        F    = below 60
Homework     10
          In addition, students will have the opportunity to earn 1 to 2 extra credit points for a good (or great) oral presentation to the class.  Note:  The oral report is your fudge factor.  There will be no changing of grades if your total number of points comes “close”, but does not reach the next highest grade.


Psychology 418
SPRING 2010


Course Outline


DATES            TOPICS            READING
 

 1/19 - 1/21        Introduction/Nature of Science            Jackson, Ch. 1       

1/26 - 1/28        Getting Started on Research            Jackson, Ch. 2   

 2/2- 2/4            Understanding Variables            Jackson, Ch. 3

 2/9 - 2/11        Descriptive Methods & Surveys            Jackson, Ch. 4   

2/16 - 2/18        Writing a Paper                Jackson, Ch. 14*

 2/18            FIRST EXAMINATION

2/23 – 2/25        Centers, Variations, Z-scores             Jackson, Ch. 5

3/2 - 3/4            Correlations                Jackson, Ch. 6

3/9 - 3/11          Probability                 Class Notes
                       
3/9        PRESENTATION OF GROUP EXPERIMENT 1

3/11            FIRST PAPER DUE

3/15 - 3/20        SPRING BREAK

3/23 - 3/25        Hypothesis Testing                Jackson, Ch. 7

3/30 - 4/1        Experimental Designs                Jackson, Ch. 8

4/1            SECOND EXAMINATION

4/6 - 4/8            One and Two Sample Designs            Jackson, Ch.  9

413 - 4/15        One Way Anovas                Jackson, Ch. 10

4/20- 4/22        Factorial Designs                Jackson, Ch. 11

4/27 - 4/29         Chi Square Statistic, etc.             Jackson, Ch. 13

5/4 – 5/6            Quasi Experimental Designs            Jackson, Ch. 12*

5/4 - 5/6        PRESENTATION OF GROUP EXPERIMENT 2           


 5/7            SECOND PAPER DUE

 5/13            THIRD EXAMINATION (9:00 - 11:00 AM)



*Chapters 12 and 14 will be discussed mainly in Lab meetings

Seminars in Cognitive and Perceptual Systems. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

Seminars in Cognitive and Perceptual Systems. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.

Students may not enroll in Psychology 418 more than twice. Survey of statistics, including central tendency, variability and inference, and scientific methodology used in psychological research. Three lecture hours and two discussion hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Psychology 301 with a grade of at least C, a major in psychology, and credit for one of the following: Mathematics 302, 303D, 305G, 408C, 408D, 408K (or 308K), 408L (or 308L), 408M (or 308M), 316.