Descriptive & Inferential Statistics in SPSS

Course leader

Dr James Houston

Target group

No prior knowledge of SPSS or statistical analysis is required. The course is ideally suited to participants who have, or whose organisations may have, quantitative data but are unsure of how to analyse it or are unsure of how to get the most information out of their data.

Course aim

This two-day short-course is designed for researchers who have little or no experience using statistical software such as SPSS or who may need a refresher course on methods of dealing with quantitative data. The course is ideally suited to participants who have, or whose organisations may have, quantitative data but are unsure of how to analyse it or are unsure of how to get the most information out of their data. The rationale underlying this short-course is to promote evidence-based decision making through exploiting data. Participants will be made aware of how they can answer research questions using various types of data and various types of analyses. The short-course begins with an introduction to the SPSS interface, detailing the many features available in this statistical software. We will also show participants how to get data into SPSS from various sources, including databases such as excel. The short-course will to introduce and develop knowledge of statistical analysis, with specific reference to hypothesis testing; statistical concepts and techniques; selecting an appropriate statistical technique; the application of statistical software to data analysis; and the production and interpretation of statistical and graphical output. The short-course will use lectures to provide a clear understanding of the logic underlying the use of statistical techniques and procedures. However, a greater amount of time will be devoted to giving participants experience of hands-on use of SPSS. At the end of each day participants will be given the opportunity to discuss any data they might have, particularly in terms of selecting and applying an appropriate form of analysis or questions they might have about conducting research in general.