Part 1: ANCOVA in SPSS

undefinedEarlier this week, you practiced using ANCOVA models with SPSS and, ideally, used the Collaboration Lab to ask, answer, and otherwise address any questions you had. In this Assignment, you apply what you learned to answer a social research question using ANCOVA. Hopefully, you are not yet tired of comparing means!

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To prepare

• Review the datasets provided.
• Construct a research question based on one of those datasets.
• Pay attention to the assumptions of this test, and ask, “Does it make sense to interpret the mean of this dependent variable?”

The Assignment

Use SPSS to answer the research question you constructed. Write an analysis in APA format, including title page, references, and an appendix, that includes your data output and addresses each of the tasks listed below. The content should be 2–3 pages, including setup of the assignment, results, and interpretation of results. Your SPSS output should be included as an appendix.

1. What is the null hypothesis for your question?
2. What research design(s) would align with this question?
3. What dependent variable was used and how is it measured?
4. What independent variable is used and how is it measured?
5. What is your covariate?
6. What is the answer to your research question?
7. What are the possible implications of social change?

Early in your Assignment, when you relate which dataset you analyzed, please include the mean of the following variables. If you are using the Afrobarometer Dataset, report the mean of Q1 (Age). If you are using the General Social Survey Dataset, report the mean of Age. If you are using the HS Long Survey Dataset, report the mean of X1SES. See pages 713 and 714 in your Warner textbook for an excellent APA-compliant write-up of an ANCOVA.

Part 2: Article Critique

undefinedThe practice of quantitative research not only involves statistical calculations and formulas but also involves the understanding of statistical techniques related to real-world applications. You might not become a quantitative researcher nor use statistical methods in your profession but as a consumer, citizen, and scholar-practitioner, it will be important for you to become a critical the consumer of research, which will empower you to read, interpret, and evaluate the strength of claims made in scholarly material and daily news.

For this Assignment, you will critically evaluate a scholarly article related to ANCOVA.

To prepare

• Review the Article Critique Assignment Guide in the Walden Library, listed in the Week 2 Learning Resources.
• Search the Walden Library for a quantitative article that applies ANCOVA.

The Assignment

Write a 2- to 3-page critique of the research you found in the Walden Library that includes responses to the following prompts:

• Why did the authors select ANCOVA in the research?
• Do you think this test was the most appropriate choice? Why or why not?
• Did the authors display the results in a figure or table?
• Does the results table stand alone? In other words, are you able to interpret the study from it? Why or why not?

Learning Resources

Required Readings

Warner, R. M. (2013). Applied statistics: From bivariate through multivariate techniques (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.

• Chapter 17, “Analysis of Covariance” (pp. 688–725)

This chapter equips you with the information to needed to assess nonequivalent comparison groups—a phenomenon often encountered in q

uasi-experimental research (and in Walden capstone studies).

Datasets

In this course, your instructor will provide you with one dataset (Guided Sample Dataset: Statistics Anxiety) that will be used in several of the tutorial videos. You are encouraged to reproduce the analyses performed in the video using this dataset so you can compare your answers and check your understanding of how to do each analysis in SPSS. You will also be provided with three large datasets for you to use in application of the statistics you’re learning each week. The Statistics Anxiety dataset is not for use in your weekly Assignments. Your instructor may also recommend using a different dataset from the ones we have provided here, which is fine. Your instructor will share these datasets in the Doc Sharing section of the classroom and as an Announcement.

In this course, your instructor will provide you with one dataset (Guided Sample Dataset: Statistics Anxiety) that will be used in several of the tutorial videos. You are encouraged to reproduce the analyses performed in the video using this dataset so you can compare your answers and check your understanding of how to do each analysis in SPSS. You will also be provided with three large datasets for you to use in application of the statistics you’re learning each week. The Statistics Anxiety dataset is not for use in your weekly Assignments. Your instructor may also recommend using a different dataset from the ones we have provided here, which is fine. Your instructor will share these datasets in the Doc Sharing section of the classroom and as an Announcement.

Required Media

Laureate Education (Producer). (2017h). Introduction to analysis of covariance [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

 

Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 2 minutes.

 

Begin each week of the course by viewing the Weekly Introduction video, in which experienced statistics Instructors, Dr. Matt Jones and Dr. Annie Pezalla, provide context for new learning, explain statistical methods in easy-to-understand language, and describe the learning activities you will need to complete.

 

Laureate Education (Producer). (2017c). ANCOVA [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

 

Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 7 minutes 15 seconds.

 

This video provides step-by-step instructions that explain how to perform the statistical test required in Assignment 1.

 

RSCH 8260 Walden University Analysis of Covariance Article Critique