Understanding and Using Advanced Statistics is a comprehensive, practical guide for postgraduate students advising how and when to use more advanced statistical methods. Perfect for students without a mathematical background, the authors refresh important basics such as descriptive statistics and research design as well as introducing essential upper-level techniques to cater for the advanced student. Key Features: - Comprehensive guide informing how to use a range of advanced statistical methods such as MANOVA, path analysis and logistical regression; - Inter-disciplinary: ideal for students studying upper level statistical methods in any subject across the social sciences; - Practical guide: case studies, further reading, key terms explained in order to help the non-mathematically orientated student get ahead with their research. Building on undergraduate statistical grounding, Understanding and Using Advanced Statistics provides the upper-level researcher with the knowledge of what advanced statistics do, how they should be used, and what their output means.

The spread of sophisticated computer packages and the machinery on which to run them has meant that procedures which were previously only available to experienced researchers with access to expensive machines and research students can now be carried out in a few seconds by almost every undergraduate. Understanding and Using Advanced Statistics provides the basis for gaining an understanding of what these analytic procedures do, when they should be used, and what the results provided signify. This comprehensive textbook guides students and researchers through the transition from simple statistics to more complex procedures with accessible language and illustration. Each chapter covers a separate statistical method and provides: An outline of the technique Examples of the types of question it answers An explanation of the information that can be gleaned from the results Examples from published literature of how the technique has been used in a range of disciplines Frequently asked questions A comprehensive chapter summary Suggestions for further reading A glossary of key terms As statistical techniques become increasingly common and the understanding of these becomes ever more essential, Understanding and Using Advanced Statistics is an essential guide for all students and researchers throughout the social sciences.

SPSS for Windows is the most widely used computer package for analyzing quantitative data. In a clear, readable, non-technical style, this book teaches beginners how to use the program, input and manipulate data, use descriptive analyses and inferential techniques, including: t-tests, analysis of variance, correlation and regression, nonparametric techniques, and reliability analysis and factor analysis.

The author provides an overview of statistical analysis, and then shows in a simple step-by-step method how to set up an SPSS file in order to run an analysis as well as how to graph and display data. He explains how to use SPSS for all the main statistical approaches you would expect to find in an introductory statistics course.

The book is written for users of Versions 6 and 6.1, but will be equally valuable to users of later versions.