Conclusion

As stated earlier, this appendix is intended to serve as a starting point for choosing appropriate statistics. You can use the preceding tables to identify procedures that might be appropriate for your research design. It is then up to you, however, to learn more about the assumptions associated with the statistic (e.g., whether it requires data drawn from a normal population, whether it requires independent observations). These tables, when used in conjunction with the “Assumptions” sections included in the earlier chapters of this text, should help you find the right statistical procedure for analyzing the types of data that are most frequently encountered in social science research.