Quantitative Data Analysis for Social Scientists

Most introductions to the techniques of statistical analysis concentrate on the often complex statistical formulae involved. Many students find these formulae daunting, yet in practice computers are increasingly used to perform the same calculations in seconds. "Quantitative data analysis for social scientists" is designed as a non-technical guide, introducing students to the most widely used computer package for analyzing quantitative data. This is the statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS), whose most recently released versions for both mainframe computers and IBM-compatible personal computers are here employed. The authors assume no previous familiarity with either statistics or computing, and take the reader step-by-step through each of the techniques for which the SPSS can be used. Specific techniques covered include - correlation, simple and multiple regression, multivariate analysis of variance and covariance and factor analysis. Each technique is illustrated by sets of data through which the reader can work, and tested again at the end of each chapter. Answers to the exercises are provided at the end of the book.