IntroductiontoPsychology-WebHosting.doc

STUDY GUIDE Psychology 230: STATISTICS Unit I: Descriptive Statistics Lesson I-1: Statistics, Science, and Observations (CH.1, p.4) Populations and Samples (CH.1, pp.4-10) Objectives: a) Distinguish between a population and a sample. b) Distinguish between descriptive statistics and inferential statistic Key terms: statistics population sample parameter statistic data descriptive statistics inferential statistics sampling error Lesson I-2: Data Structures, Research Methods, and Statistics (CH.1, pp.10-18) Objectives: a) Identify two methods for obtaining observations and investigating relationships among variables. b) Discuss the relationship of the independent and dependent variables. c) Distinguish between the experimental and control conditions. Key terms: variable constant correlational method experimental method independent variable dependent variable control condition experimental condition quasi-independent variable Lesson I-3: Variables and Measurement (CH.1, pp.18-24) Objectives: a) Give examples of discrete and continuous variables. b) Give examples of each of the four scales of measurement. Key terms: construct operational definition discrete variable continuous variable real limits nominal scale ordinal scale interval scale ratio scale Lesson I-4: Statistical Notation (CH.1, pp.24-27) Objectives: a) Work through Problems 19 and 21 (p.34). [Please Note: All answers to problems listed in these objectives can be found in your book. These are not “assigned” problems and should not be turned in. There are no assignments in this class. Your grade is based only on the exams.] Key terms: ( (the Greek letter sigma) N Lesson I-5: Overview (CH.2, p.37) Frequency Distribution Tables (CH.2, pp.36-43) Objectives: a) Explain the meaning of the following equation: (f = N. b) Work through Problem 1 on p.66. c) Identify four basic rules for constructing a frequenc