In this class we will explore statistical techniques for analyzing social science data, with specific applications to nutrition, food policy, agriculture and the environment. Although it is necessary to teach some theory, this course is meant to be practical and user oriented. The primary goal here is to learn how to analyze data in ways that will be useful in your academic and professional careers, both in conducting your own work and critically assessing the work and claims of others.
For most students, this course is the first part of a year-long sequence. This is a first semester graduate course in statistics that is required for students in the AFE, FANPP, and NICBC programs. This one-semester course will provide students with an introductory level understanding of social science statistics concepts and methodologies, and how and why they are applied. Topics will include data gathering, experimental design, probability, descriptive statistics, graphical displays, hypothesis testing, nonparametric tests, analysis of variance, correlation, and simple linear regression. A distinctive feature of this course is its focus on methods that can be used with observational data, which frequently arise in the social sciences.
Instructor: Anastasia Marshak
