PSYC 2317: Statistical Methods for Psychology

• Professor: Thomas J. Faulkenberry, Ph.D
• Office: Math 301
• Office hours: TBA
• Email: faulkenberry@tarleton.edu
• Website: http://tomfaulkenberry.github.io
• Phone: 254-968-9816

Statistical methods are the primary tool for research in psychology. They are what allow us as researchers to make consistent, data-driven decisions. As such, this is an extremely important course and one that I take very seriously as your professor. The topics we will cover this semester will include descriptive statistics (how we describe data) and inferential statistics (how we make decisions about data). Specifically, this includes central tendency, variability, the distinction between populations and samples, parameter estimation, and hypothesis testing (both classical and Bayesian).

• Primary textbook: Faulkenberry, T. J. (2022). Psychological Statistics: The Basics, published by Routledge. A link to purchase on Amazon is here
  • Note - this is a reasonably short and inexpensive book, and can usually be had for around $25. The small commission I make on book sales goes back to support the development and maintenance of the free web-based software tools that we use during the semester. Trust me, I am not "profiting" from book sales. If it feels weird that I am requiring you to buy my book, I understand. However, I hope you'll also realize the value of being taught by the same person who wrote your book!
• Optional reference book: For reference, I recommend our book Learning Statistics with JASP: A Tutorial for Psychology Students and Other Beginners by Navarro, Foxcroft, and Faulkenberry (2019), which is a textbook that can be downloaded (for free!) from www.learnstatswithjasp.com.
• Online statistical calculator: throughout the semester, we will use the PsyStat calculator developed over the past few years by me and my former student Keelyn Brennan (now a Ph.D. student at the University of Oklahoma). The calculator can be accessed (for free!) on any computer or mobile device at https://tomfaulkenberry.shinyapps.io/psystat
• Statistical software: Later in the course, we will also learn to use the JASP statistical software package; this can be downloaded (you guessed it – for free!) from www.jasp-stats.com

1. Identify variables under study (including independent and dependent variables)
2. Choose appropriate measures of descriptive statistics
3. Select and perform appropriate inferential statistics
4. Draw appropriate statistical conclusions from results of analyses

This course will be delivered in an online format. The basic structure of each week is as follows:

• early in the week, you will watch an introductory video lecture (given by me) explaining the week's topic and take a short quiz to assess your understanding. This quiz will always be due on Tuesday night at 11:59 pm. Quizzes will be multiple choice and will be graded automatically.
• after you finish the introductory video lecture and quiz, you will then be ready to work the week's homework set. To assist with this work, I will publish a video that shows me working and talking through the solutions to a set of practice problems similar to those you'll be working on in the homework set.
• after you watch the practice video, you'll be ready to finish up the week's homework set. These homework sets will always be due on Sunday night at 11:59 pm. Homeworks will be graded during the following week. Note, the labor required to grade homework problems is not insignificant, so I ask that you give me a week to get these grades and feedback posted. Rarely should I ever need to take longer than a week to get things graded.
• three times during the semester, we will pause the typical weekly schedule and have an exam.

More details on the quizzes, homework, and exams are given below.

• Exam 1 (100 pts)
• Exam 2 (100 pts)
• Exam 3 (100 pts)
• Weekly quizzes (100 pts)
• Homework exercises (100 pts)
• Total = 500 points

Grades will be assigned based on the percentage of points you accumulate out of these 500 points. I will use the standard grading scale of A=90%, B=80%, etc.

Email is the primary means of official communication for this course. If you have questions about the course, always feel free to send me an email at faulkenberry@tarleton.edu. I only ask that you adhere to two guidelines:

• please include the course number (PSYC 2317) in the subject line. For example, one good way to do this is: Subject: [PSYC 2317] Question about Exam 2
• please use proper email etiquette. Include a salutation (e.g., Dear Dr. Faulkenberry), complete sentences, and a closing (e.g., "Regards, Your Name"). You might be surprised how many times I get an email from a nondescript email address with no indication from WHOM the email was sent!

Note, I will send periodic class announcements via Canvas messaging. However, I ask that you send your questions by email instead of Canvas messaging.

Cheating, plagiarism, or doing work for another person who will receive academic credit is impermissible. This includes the use of unauthorized books, notebooks, or other sources in order to secure or give help during an examination, the unauthorized copying of examinations, assignments, reports, or term papers, or the presentation of unacknowledged material as if it were the own work. Disciplinary action may be taken beyond the academic discipline administered by the faculty member who teaches the course in which the cheating took place. Consult the following links for further information on academic conduct.

• Student Judicial Affairs: https://www.tarleton.edu/judicial/academicconduct.html
• Student Handbook: https://www.tarleton.edu/studentrules/code-of-student-conduct.html

Tarleton State University is committed to complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act (www.ada.gov) and other applicable laws. If you are a student with a disability seeking accommodation for this course, please contact the Office of Disability Resources at 254.968.9400, disability@tarleton.edu, or visit https://www.tarleton.edu/drt/.