rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.

com age 1

Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA)
Some background
AnCvA can be exLended Lo lnclude one or more conLlnuous varlables LhaL predlcL Lhe ouLcome (or dependenL
varlable). ConLlnuous varlables such as Lhese, LhaL are noL parL of Lhe maln experlmenLal manlpulaLlon buL have an
lnfluence on Lhe dependenL varlable, are known as covotlotes and Lhey can be lncluded ln an AnCvA analysls. lor
example, ln Lhe vlagra example from lleld (2013), we mlghL expecL Lhere Lo be oLher Lhlngs LhaL lnfluence a person's
llbldo oLher Lhan vlagra. Some posslble lnfluences on llbldo mlghL be Lhe llbldo of Lhe parLlclpanL's sexual parLner
(afLer all 'lL Lakes Lwo Lo Lango'), oLher medlcaLlon LhaL suppresses llbldo (such as anLldepressanLs), and faLlgue. lf
Lhese varlables are measured, Lhen lL ls posslble Lo conLrol for Lhe lnfluence Lhey have on Lhe dependenL varlable by
lncludlng Lhem ln Lhe model. WhaL, ln effecL, happens ls LhaL we carry ouL a hlerarchlcal regresslon ln whlch our
dependenL varlable ls Lhe ouLcome, and Lhe covarlaLe ls enLered ln Lhe flrsL block. ln a second block, our experlmenLal
manlpulaLlons are enLered (ln Lhe form of whaL are called uummy varlables). So, we end up seelng whaL effecL an
lndependenL varlable has oftet Lhe effecL of Lhe covarlaLe. lleld (2013) explalns Lhe slmllarlLy beLween AnCvA and
regresslon and Lhls ls useful readlng Lo undersLand how AnCCvA works.
1he purpose of lncludlng covarlaLes ln AnCvA ls Lwo-fold:
1. 1o teJoce wltblo-qtoop ettot votlooce: ln AnCvA we assess Lhe effecL of an experlmenL by comparlng Lhe
amounL of varlablllLy ln Lhe daLa LhaL Lhe experlmenL can explaln, agalnsL Lhe varlablllLy LhaL lL cannoL explaln.
lf we can explaln some of Lhls 'unexplalned' varlance (55
k
) ln Lerms of covarlaLes, Lhen we reduce Lhe error
varlance, allowlng us Lo more accuraLely assess Lhe effecL of Lhe experlmenLal manlpulaLlon (55
M
).
2. llmlootloo of coofoooJs: ln any experlmenL, Lhere may be unmeasured varlables LhaL confound Lhe resulLs
(l.e. a varlable LhaL varles sysLemaLlcally wlLh Lhe experlmenLal manlpulaLlon). lf any varlables are known Lo
lnfluence Lhe dependenL varlable belng measured, Lhen AnCCvA ls ldeally sulLed Lo remove Lhe blas of Lhese
varlables. Cnce a posslble confoundlng varlable has been ldenLlfled, lL can be measured and enLered lnLo Lhe
analysls as a covarlaLe.
The Example
lmaglne LhaL Lhe researcher who conducLed Lhe vlagra sLudy ln lleld (2013) suddenly reallzed LhaL Lhe llbldo of Lhe
parLlclpanLs' sexual parLners would effecL LhaL parLlclpanL's own llbldo (especlally because Lhe measure of llbldo was
behavloural). 1herefore, Lhe researcher repeaLed Lhe sLudy on a dlfferenL seL of parLlclpanLs, buL Look a measure of
Lhe parLner's llbldo. 1he parLner's llbldo was measured ln Lerms of how ofLen Lhey Lrled Lo lnlLlaLe sexual conLacL.
Assumptions in ANCOVA
AnCCvA has Lhe same assumpLlons as any llnear model (see your handouL on blas) excepL LhaL Lhere are Lwo
lmporLanL addlLlonal conslderaLlons: (1) lndependence of Lhe covarlaLe and LreaLmenL effecL, and (2) homogenelLy of
regresslon slopes. 1he flrsL one baslcally means LhaL Lhe covarlaLe should noL be dlfferenL across Lhe groups ln Lhe
analysls (ln oLher words, lf you dld an AnCvA or t-LesL uslng Lhe groups as Lhe lndependenL varlable and Lhe covarlaLe
as Lhe ouLcome, Lhls analysls should be non-slgnlflcanL). 1hls assumpLlon ls qulLe lnvolved so all l'll say ls read my book
chapLer for more lnformaLlon, or read Mlller and Chapman (2001).
When an AnCCvA ls conducLed we look aL Lhe overall relaLlonshlp beLween Lhe ouLcome (dependenL varlable) and
Lhe covarlaLe: we flL a regresslon llne Lo Lhe enLlre daLa seL, lgnorlng Lo whlch group a person belongs. ln flLLlng Lhls
overall model we, Lherefore, assume LhaL Lhls overall relaLlonshlp ls Lrue for all groups of parLlclpanLs. lor example, lf
Lhere's a poslLlve relaLlonshlp beLween Lhe covarlaLe and Lhe ouLcome ln one group, we assume LhaL Lhere ls a
poslLlve relaLlonshlp ln all of Lhe oLher groups Loo. lf, however, Lhe relaLlonshlp beLween Lhe ouLcome (dependenL
varlable) and covarlaLe dlffers across Lhe groups Lhen Lhe overall regresslon model ls lnaccuraLe (lL does noL represenL
all of Lhe groups). 1hls assumpLlon ls very lmporLanL and ls called Lhe assumpLlon of !"#"$%&%'() "+ ,%$,%--'"&
-."/%-. 1he besL way Lo Lhlnk of Lhls assumpLlon ls Lo lmaglne ploLLlng a scaLLerploL for each experlmenLal condlLlon

rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 2

wlLh Lhe covarlaLe on one axls and Lhe ouLcome on Lhe oLher. lf you Lhen calculaLed, and drew, Lhe regresslon llne for
each of Lhese scaLLerploLs you should flnd LhaL Lhe regresslon llnes look more or less Lhe same (l.e. Lhe values of b ln
each group should be equal).
llgure 1 shows scaLLerploLs LhaL dlsplay Lhe relaLlonshlp beLween parLner's llbldo (Lhe covarlaLe) and Lhe ouLcome
(parLlclpanL's llbldo) for each of Lhe Lhree experlmenLal condlLlons (dlfferenL colours and symbols). Lach symbol
represenLs Lhe daLa from a parLlcular parLlclpanL, and Lhe Lype of symbol Lells us Lhe group (clrcles = placebo, Lrlangles
= low dose, squares = hlgh dose). 1he llnes are Lhe regresslon slopes for Lhe parLlcular group, Lhey summarlse Lhe
relaLlonshlp beLween llbldo and parLner's llbldo shown by Lhe doLs (blue = placebo group, green = low-dose group, red
= hlgh-dose group). lL should be clear LhaL Lhere ls a poslLlve relaLlonshlp (Lhe regresslon llne slopes upwards from lefL
Lo rlghL) beLween parLner's llbldo and parLlclpanL's llbldo ln boLh Lhe placebo and low-dose condlLlons. ln facL, Lhe
slopes of Lhe llnes for Lhese Lwo groups (blue and green) are very slmllar, showlng LhaL Lhe relaLlonshlp beLween llbldo
and parLner's llbldo ls very slmllar ln Lhese Lwo groups. 1hls slLuaLlon ls an example of homogenelLy of regresslon
slopes (Lhe regresslon slopes ln Lhe Lwo groups are slmllar). Powever, ln Lhe hlgh-dose condlLlon Lhere appears Lo be
no relaLlonshlp aL all beLween parLlclpanL's llbldo and LhaL of Lhelr parLner (Lhe squares are falrly randomly scaLLered
and Lhe regresslon llne ls very flaL and shows a sllghLly negaLlve relaLlonshlp). 1he slope of Lhls llne ls very dlfferenL Lo
Lhe oLher Lwo, and Lhls dlfference glves us cause Lo doubL wheLher Lhere ls homogenelLy of regresslon slopes (because
Lhe relaLlonshlp beLween parLlclpanL's llbldo and LhaL of Lhelr parLner ls dlfferenL ln Lhe hlgh-dose group Lo Lhe oLher
Lwo groups). We'll have a look how Lo LesL Lhls assumpLlon laLer.


llgure 10 ScaLLerploL of Llbldo agalnsL arLner's llbldo for each of Lhe experlmenLal condlLlons
ANCOVA on SPSS
Entering Data
1he daLa for Lhls example are ln 1able 1, whlch shows Lhe parLlclpanL's llbldo and Lhelr parLner's llbldo. 1he mean
llbldo (and 5u ln brackeLs) of Lhe parLlclpanLs' llbldo scores are ln 1able 2. ln essence, Lhe daLa should be lald ouL ln Lhe
uaLa LdlLor as Lhey are 1able 1. WlLhouL Lhe covarlaLe, Lhe deslgn ls slmply a one-way lndependenL deslgn, so we
would enLer Lhese daLa uslng a codlng varlable for Lhe lndependenL varlable, and scores on Lhe dependenL varlable
wlll go ln a dlfferenL column. All LhaL changes ls LhaL we have an exLra column for Lhe covarlaLe scores.

! CovarlaLes are enLered lnLo Lhe SSS daLa edlLor ln a new column (each covarlaLe should have
lLs own column).
! CovarlaLes can be added Lo any of Lhe dlfferenL AnCvAs we have covered on Lhls course!
o When a covarlaLe ls added Lhe analysls ls called analysls of covarlance (so, for
example, you could have a Lwo-way repeaLed measures Analysls of Covarlance, or a
Lhree way mlxed AnCCvA).

rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 3

1able 1: uaLa from vlagraCov.sav
1"-% 23,('4'/3&(5-
6'7'8"
23,(&%,5-
6'7'8"
lacebo 3 4
2 1
3 3
2 1
2 2
2 2
7 7
2 4
4 3
Low uose 7 3
3 3
3 1
4 2
4 2
7 6
3 4
4 2
Plgh uose 9 1
2 3
6 3
3 4
4 3
4 3
4 2
6 0
4 1
6 3
2 0
8 1
3 0
So, creaLe a codlng varlable called 8"-% and use Lhe lobels opLlon Lo deflne value labels (e.g. 1 = placebo, 2 = low
dose, 3 = hlgh dose). 1here were nlne parLlclpanLs ln Lhe placebo condlLlon, so you need Lo enLer 9 values of 1 lnLo Lhls
column (so LhaL Lhe flrsL 9 rows conLaln Lhe value 1), followed by elghL values of 2 Lo represenL Lhe people ln Lhe low
dose group, and followed by LhlrLeen values of 3 Lo represenL Lhe people ln Lhe hlgh dose group. AL Lhls polnL, you
should have one column wlLh 30 rows of daLa enLered. nexL, creaLe a second varlable called .'7'8" and enLer Lhe 30
scores LhaL correspond Lo Lhe parLlclpanL's llbldo. llnally, creaLe a Lhlrd varlable called parLner, use Lhe lobels opLlon
Lo glve Lhls varlable a more descrlpLlve LlLle of 'parLner's llbldo'. 1hen, enLer Lhe 30 scores LhaL correspond Lo Lhe
parLner's llbldo.
1able 2: Means (and sLandard devlaLlons) from vlagraCovarlaLe.sav
1"-% 23,('4'/3&(5-
6'7'8"
23,(&%,5-
6'7'8"
2.34%7" 3.22 (1.79) 3.44 (2.07)
6"9 1"-% 4.88 (1.46) 3.12 (1.73)
:'$! 1"-% 4.83 (2.12) 2.00 (1.63)

rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 4

Main Analysis
MosL of Lhe Ceoetol lloeot MoJel (CLM) procedures ln SSS conLaln Lhe faclllLy Lo lnclude one or more covarlaLes. lor
deslgns LhaL don'L lnvolve repeaLed measures lL ls easlesL Lo conducL AnCCvA vla Lhe CLM uolvotlote procedure. 1o
access Lhe maln dlalog box selecL (see llgure 2). 1he maln dlalog box ls
slmllar Lo LhaL for one-way AnCvA, excepL LhaL Lhere ls a space Lo speclfy covarlaLes. SelecL 6'7'8" and drag Lhls
varlable Lo Lhe box labelled uepeoJeot votloble or cllck on . SelecL 1"-% and drag lL Lo Lhe box labelled llxeJ
loctot(s) and Lhen selecL 23,(&%,;6'7'8" and drag lL Lo Lhe box labelled covotlote(s).

llgure 2: Maln dlalog box for CLM unlvarlaLe
Contrasts and Other Options
1here are varlous dlalog boxes LhaL can be accessed from Lhe maln dlalog box. 1he flrsL Lhlng Lo noLlce ls LhaL lf a
covarlaLe ls selecLed, Lhe posL hoc LesLs are dlsabled (you cannoL access Lhls dlalog box). osL hoc LesLs are noL
deslgned for slLuaLlons ln whlch a covarlaLe ls speclfled, however, some comparlsons can sLlll be done uslng conLrasLs.

llgure 3: CpLlons for sLandard conLrasLs ln CLM unlvarlaLe
Cllck on Lo access Lhe coottosts dlalog box. 1hls dlalog box ls dlfferenL Lo Lhe one we meL for AnCvA ln LhaL
you cannoL enLer codes Lo speclfy parLlcular conLrasLs. lnsLead, you can speclfy one of several sLandard conLrasLs.
1hese sLandard conLrasLs were llsLed ln my book. ln Lhls example, Lhere was a placebo conLrol condlLlon (coded as Lhe
flrsL group), so a senslble seL of conLrasLs would be slmple conLrasLs comparlng each experlmenLal group wlLh Lhe
conLrol. 1o selecL a Lype of conLrasL cllck on Lo access a drop-down llsL of posslble conLrasLs. SelecL a
Lype of conLrasL (ln Lhls case 5lmple) from Lhls llsL and Lhe llsL wlll auLomaLlcally dlsappear. lor slmple conLrasLs you

rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 3

have Lhe opLlon of speclfylng a reference caLegory (whlch ls Lhe caLegory agalnsL whlch all oLher groups are
compared). 8y defaulL Lhe reference caLegory ls Lhe lasL caLegory: because ln Lhls case Lhe conLrol group was Lhe flrsL
caLegory (assumlng LhaL you coded placebo as 1) we need Lo change Lhls opLlon by selecLlng . When you have
selecLed a new conLrasL opLlon, you musL cllck on Lo reglsLer Lhls change. 1he flnal dlalog box should look llke
llgure 3. Cllck on Lo reLurn Lo Lhe maln dlalog box.

llgure 4: Optloos dlalog box for CLM unlvarlaLe
AnoLher way Lo geL post boc LesLs ls by cllcklng on Lo access Lhe optloos dlalog box (see llgure 4). 1o speclfy
post boc LesLs, selecL Lhe lndependenL varlable (ln Lhls case 1"-%) from Lhe box labelled stlmoteJ Motqlool Meoos.
loctot(s) ooJ loctot lotetoctloos and drag lL Lo Lhe box labelled ulsploy Meoos fot or cllck on . Cnce a varlable has
been Lransferred, Lhe box labelled compote molo effects becomes acLlve and you should selecL Lhls opLlon (
). lf Lhls opLlon ls selecLed, Lhe box labelled cooflJeoce lotetvol oJjostmeot becomes acLlve and you
can cllck on Lo see a cholce of Lhree ad[usLmenL levels. 1he defaulL ls Lo have no ad[usLmenL and
slmply perform a 1ukey LSu post boc LesL (Lhls opLlon ls noL recommended), Lhe second ls Lo ask for a 8onferronl
correcLlon (recommended), Lhe flnal opLlon ls Lo have a <'83= 4",,%4('"&. 1he Sldak correcLlon ls slmllar Lo Lhe
8onferronl correcLlon buL ls less conservaLlve and so should be selecLed lf you are concerned abouL Lhe loss of power
assoclaLed wlLh 8onferronl correcLed values. lor Lhls example use Lhe Sldak correcLlon (we
wlll use 8onferronl laLer ln Lhe book). As well as produclng post boc LesLs for Lhe 1"-%
varlable, placlng 8"-% ln Lhe ulsploy Meoos fot box wlll creaLe a Lable of esLlmaLed marglnal
means for Lhls varlable. 1hese means provlde an esLlmaLe of Lhe oJjosteJ group means (l.e.
Lhe means ad[usLed for Lhe effecL of Lhe covarlaLe). When you have selecLed Lhe opLlons requlred, cllck on Lo
reLurn Lo Lhe maln dlalog box.
As wlLh one-way AnCvA, Lhe maln dlalog box has a buLLon. SelecLlng Lhls opLlon wlll booLsLrap confldence
lnLervals around Lhe esLlmaLed marglnal means, parameLer esLlmaLes and posL hoc LesLs, buL noL Lhe maln l LesL. 1hls
can be useful so selecL Lhe opLlons ln llgure 3. Cllck on ln Lhe maln dlalog box Lo run Lhe analysls.


rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 6


llgure 3: 8ootsttop dlalog box
Output from ANCOVA
Main Analysis
CuLpuL 1 shows (for lllusLraLlve purposes) Lhe AnCvA Lable for Lhese daLa when Lhe covarlaLe ls noL lncluded. lL ls
clear from Lhe slgnlflcance value LhaL Lhere are no dlfferences ln llbldo beLween Lhe Lhree groups, Lherefore vlagra
seems Lo have no slgnlflcanL effecL on llbldo.

CuLpuL 1
CuLpuL 2 shows Lhe resulLs of Levene's LesL when parLner's llbldo ls lncluded ln Lhe model as a covarlaLe. Levene's LesL
ls slgnlflcanL, lndlcaLlng LhaL Lhe group varlances are noL equal (hence Lhe assumpLlon of homogenelLy of varlance ls
llkley been vlolaLed). Powever, Levene's LesL ls noL necessarlly Lhe besL way Lo [udge wheLher varlances are unequal
enough Lo cause problems (see your handouL from week 2 or lleld, 2013 chapLer 3). We saw ln week 2 LhaL a good
double check ls Lo look aL Lhe varlance raLlo
1
. 1he varlance raLlo for Lhese daLa ls 4.49/2.13 = 2.11. 1hls value ls greaLer
Lhan 2 lndlcaLlng LhaL our varlances are probably heLerogeneous! We saw lasL Lerm LhaL we could Lry Lo Lransform our
daLa Lo correcL Lhls problem (have a go lf you're feellng keen), buL for Lhe Llme belng don'L worry Loo much abouL Lhe
dlfferences ln varlances.

1
8emlnder 1: Lhe varlance raLlo ls Lhe largesL varlance dlvlded by Lhe smallesL and should be less Lhan abouL 2. ?ou
can geL Lhese varlances by squarlng Lhe 5us ln 1able 1.

rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 7


CuLpuL 2
CuLpuL 3 shows Lhe AnCvA Lable wlLh Lhe covarlaLe lncluded. Compare Lhls Lo Lhe summary Lable when Lhe covarlaLe
was noL lncluded. 1he formaL of Lhe AnCvA Lable ls largely Lhe same as wlLhouL Lhe covarlaLe, excepL LhaL Lhere ls an
addlLlonal row of lnformaLlon abouL Lhe covarlaLe (/3,(&%,). Looklng flrsL aL Lhe slgnlflcance values, lL ls clear LhaL Lhe
covarlaLe slgnlflcanLly predlcLs Lhe dependenL varlable, because Lhe slgnlflcance value ls less Lhan .03. 1herefore, Lhe
person's llbldo ls lnfluenced by Lhelr parLner's llbldo. WhaL's more lnLeresLlng ls LhaL when Lhe effecL of parLner's
llbldo ls removed, Lhe effecL of vlagra becomes slgnlflcanL (p ls .027 whlch ls less Lhan .03). 1he amounL of varlaLlon
accounLed for by Lhe model (SS
M
) has lncreased Lo 31.92 unlLs (correcLed model) of whlch vlagra accounLs for 23.19
unlLs. MosL lmporLanL, Lhe large amounL of varlaLlon ln llbldo LhaL ls accounLed for by Lhe covarlaLe has meanL LhaL Lhe
unexplalned varlance (SS
8
) has been reduced Lo 79.03 unlLs. noLlce LhaL SS
1
has noL changed, all LhaL has changed ls
how LhaL LoLal varlaLlon ls explalned.
1hls example lllusLraLes how AnCCvA can help us Lo exerL sLrlcLer experlmenLal conLrol by Laklng accounL of
confoundlng varlables Lo glve us a 'purer' measure of effecL of Lhe experlmenLal manlpulaLlon. WlLhouL Laklng accounL
of Lhe llbldo of Lhe parLlclpanLs' parLners we would have concluded LhaL vlagra had no effecL on llbldo, yeL clearly lL
does. Looklng back aL Lhe group means from 1able 1:e 1 lL seems preLLy clear LhaL Lhe slgnlflcanL AnCvA reflecLs a
dlfference beLween Lhe placebo group and Lhe Lwo experlmenLal groups (because Lhe low and hlgh dose group have
very slmllar means whereas Lhe placebo group have a lower mean). Powever, we need Lo check Lhe conLrasLs Lo verlfy
Lhls concluslon.

CuLpuL 3

We can reporL Lhe maln effecL of uose ln AA formaL as:
! 1here was a slgnlflcanL effecL of vlagra on levels of llbldo afLer conLrolllng for Lhe effecL of
parLner's llbldo, l(2, 26) = 4.14, p = .027.
Contrasts
CuLpuL 4 shows Lhe resulL of Lhe conLrasL analysls speclfled ln llgure 3 and compares level 2 (low dose) agalnsL level 1
(placebo) as a flrsL comparlson, and level 3 (hlgh dose) agalnsL level 1 (placebo) as a second comparlson. 1hese
conLrasLs are conslsLenL wlLh whaL was speclfled: all groups are compared Lo Lhe flrsL group. 1he group dlfferences are
dlsplayed: a dlfference value, sLandard error, slgnlflcance value and 93 confldence lnLerval. 1hese resulLs show LhaL
boLh Lhe low-dose group (conLrasL 1, p = .043) and hlgh-dose group (conLrasL 2, p = .010) had slgnlflcanLly dlfferenL
llbldos Lhan Lhe placebo group.
1hese conLrasLs Lell us LhaL Lhere were group dlfferences, buL Lo lnLerpreL Lhem we need Lo know Lhe means. We
produced Lhe means ln 1able 2 so surely we can [usL look aL Lhese values? AcLually we can'L because Lhese group
means have noL been ad[usLed for Lhe effecL of Lhe covarlaLe. 1hese orlglnal means Lell us noLhlng abouL Lhe group
dlfferences reflecLed by Lhe slgnlflcanL AnCCvA. CuLpuL 3 glves Lhe ad[usLed values of Lhe group means and lL ls Lhese

rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 8

values LhaL should be used for lnLerpreLaLlon (Lhls ls Lhe maln reason for selecLlng Lhe ulsploy Meoos fot opLlon). lrom
Lhese ad[usLed means you can see LhaL llbldo lncreased across Lhe Lhree doses.

CuLpuL 4

CuLpuL 3

We can reporL Lhese conLrasLs ln AA formaL as:
! lanned conLrasLs revealed LhaL havlng a hlgh, p = .010, 93 Cl [0.38, 3.88], and low, p = .043,
93 Cl [0.04, 3.33], dose of vlagra slgnlflcanLly lncreased llbldo compared Lo havlng a placebo.
Post Hoc Tests
CuLpuL 6 shows Lhe resulLs of Lhe Sldak correcLed post boc comparlsons LhaL were requesLed as parL of Lhe optloos
dlalog box. 1he boLLom Lable shows Lhe booLsLrapped slgnlflcance and confldence lnLervals for Lhese LesLs and
because Lhese wlll be robusL we'll lnLerpreL Lhls Lable (agaln, remember, your values wlll dlffer because of how
booLsLrapplng works). 1here ls a slgnlflcanL dlfference beLween Lhe placebo group and boLh Lhe low (p = .003) and
hlgh (p = .021) dose groups. 1he hlgh and low-dose groups dld noL slgnlflcanLly dlffer (p = .36). lL ls lnLeresLlng LhaL Lhe
slgnlflcanL dlfference beLween Lhe low-dose and placebo groups when booLsLrapped (p = .003) ls noL presenL for Lhe
normal posL hoc LesLs (p = .130). 1hls could reflecL properLles of Lhe daLa LhaL have blased Lhe non-robusL verslon of
Lhe posL hoc LesL.
Interpreting the Covariate
Cne way Lo dlscover Lhe effecL of Lhe covarlaLe ls slmply Lo draw a scaLLerploL of Lhe covarlaLe agalnsL Lhe ouLcome.
1he resulLlng scaLLerploL for Lhese daLa shows LhaL Lhe effecL of covarlaLe ls LhaL as parLner's llbldo lncreases, so does
Lhe parLlclpanL's llbldo (as shown by Lhe slope of Lhe regresslon llne).

We can reporL Lhe effecL of Lhe covarlaLe ln AA formaL as:
! 1he covarlaLe, parLner's llbldo, was slgnlflcanLly relaLed Lo Lhe parLlclpanL's llbldo, l(1, 26) =
4.96, p = .033.

rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 9


CuLpuL 6

llgure 6: ScaLLerploL of parLlclpanLs' llbldo scores agalnsL Lhose of Lhelr parLner
Testing the Assumption of Homogeneity of Regression
Slopes
1o LesL Lhe assumpLlon of homogenelLy of regresslon slopes we need Lo rerun Lhe AnCCvA buL Lhls Llme use a
cusLomlzed model. Access Lhe maln dlalog box as before and place Lhe varlables ln Lhe same boxes as before (so Lhe
flnlshed box should look llke llgure 2). 1o cusLomlze Lhe model we need Lo access Lhe model dlalog box by cllcklng on
. 1o cusLomlze your model, selecL Lo acLlvaLe Lhe dlalog box (llgure 7). 1he varlables speclfled ln Lhe
maln dlalog box are llsLed on Lhe lefL-hand slde. 1o LesL Lhe assumpLlon of homogenelLy of regresslon slopes, we need

rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 10

Lo speclfy a model LhaL lncludes Lhe lnLeracLlon beLween Lhe covarlaLe and lndependenL varlable. Pence, Lo begln wlLh
you should selecL 1"-% and 23,(&%,;6'7'8" (you can selecL boLh of Lhem aL Lhe same Llme by holdlng down cttl). 1hen,
cllck on Lhe drop-down menu and change lL Lo . Pavlng selecLed Lhls, cllck on Lo move Lhe maln effecLs of
1"-% and 23,(&%,;6'7'8" Lo Lhe box labelled MoJel. nexL we need Lo speclfy Lhe lnLeracLlon Lerm. 1o do Lhls, selecL
1"-% and 23,(&%,;6'7'8" slmulLaneously (by holdlng down Lhe cttl key whlle you cllck on Lhe Lwo varlables), Lhen
selecL ln Lhe drop-down llsL and cllck on . 1hls acLlon moves Lhe lnLeracLlon of 1"-% and 23,(&%,;6'7'8"
Lo Lhe box labelled MoJel. 1he flnlshed dlalog box should look llke llgure 7. Pavlng speclfled our Lwo maln effecLs and
Lhe lnLeracLlon Lerm, cllck on Lo reLurn Lo Lhe maln dlalog box and Lhen cllck on Lo run Lhe analysls.

llgure 7: CLM unlvarlaLe moJel dlalog box
SSS CuLpuL 6 shows Lhe maln summary Lable for Lhe AnCCvA uslng only Lhe lnLeracLlon Lerm. Look aL Lhe
slgnlflcance value of Lhe covarlaLe by dependenL varlable lnLeracLlon (8"-%>/3,(&%,), lf Lhls effecL ls slgnlflcanL Lhen
Lhe assumpLlon of homogenelLy of regresslon slopes has been broken. 1he effecL here ls slgnlflcanL (p = .028),
Lherefore Lhe assumpLlon ls noL Lenable. AlLhough Lhls flndlng ls noL surprlslng glven Lhe paLLern of relaLlonshlps
shown ln llgure 1 lL does ralse concern abouL Lhe maln analysls. 1hls example lllusLraLes why lL ls lmporLanL Lo LesL
assumpLlons and noL Lo [usL bllndly accepL Lhe resulLs of an analysls.

CuLpuL 7
Guided Example
A few years back l was sLalked. ?ou'd Lhlnk Lhey could have found someone a blL more lnLeresLlng Lo sLalk, buL
apparenLly Llmes were hard. lL could have been a loL worse Lhan lL was, buL lL wasn'L parLlcularly pleasanL. l lmaglned a

rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 11

world ln whlch a psychologlsL Lrled Lwo dlfferenL Lheraples on dlfferenL groups of sLalkers (23 sLalkers ln each group-
Lhls varlable ls called ?,"@/). 1o Lhe flrsL group of sLalkers he gave whaL he Lermed cruel-Lo-be-klnd Lherapy (every
Llme Lhe sLalkers followed hlm around, or senL hlm a leLLer, Lhe psychologlsL aLLacked Lhem wlLh a caLLle prod). 1he
second Lherapy was psychodyshamlc Lherapy, ln whlch sLalkers were hypnoLlsed and regressed lnLo Lhelr chlldhood Lo
dlscuss Lhelr penls (or lack of penls), Lhelr faLher's penls, Lhelr dog's penls, Lhe sevenLh penls of a sevenLh penls and
any oLher penls LhaL sprang Lo mlnd. 1he psychologlsL measured Lhe number of hours ln Lhe week LhaL Lhe sLalker
spenL sLalklng Lhelr prey boLh before (-(3.=A) and afLer (-(3.=B) LreaLmenL. Analyse Lhe effecL of Lherapy on sLalklng
behavlour afLer Lherapy, covarylng for Lhe amounL of sLalklng behavlour before Lherapy.
Cruel Lo be klnd 1herapy sychodyshamlc 1herapy
lnlLlal SLalklng SLalklng AfLer 1herapy lnlLlal SLalklng SLalklng AfLer 1herapy
47 11 32 47
30 18 33 47
31 34 34 30
32 40 37 33
33 30 38 36
37 34 60 36
37 33 61 61
60 38 61 61
63 39 62 61
66 60 63 61
68 61 66 62
72 61 66 62
72 62 66 62
73 63 71 64
73 64 71 64
77 63 72 64
79 63 73 70
83 78 77 74
62 33 80 78
71 63 87 78
33 32 73 62
64 80 37 71
79 33 39 33
73 70 46 46
60 61 89 79


! LnLer Lhe daLa lnLo SSS. (PlnL: 1he daLa should noL be enLered as Lhey are ln Lhe Lable
above).
! Save Lhe daLa onLo a dlsk ln a flle called -(3.=%,C-3D.
! ConducL Lhe approprlaLe analysls Lo see wheLher Lhe Lwo Lheraples had a slgnlflcanL

rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 12

effecL on sLalklng behavlour when conLrolllng for Lhe person's general Lendency Lo
sLalk.
WhaL ls/are Lhe lndependenL varlable(s) and how many levels do Lhey have?
E"@, F&-9%,0
WhaL ls Lhe dependenL varlable?
E"@, F&-9%,0
WhaL ls Lhe covarlaLe?
E"@, F&-9%,0
WhaL analysls have you performed?
E"@, F&-9%,0

Pas Lhe assumpLlon of homogenelLy of varlance been meL? (CuoLe relevanL sLaLlsLlcs ln AA
formaL).
E"@, F&-9%,0

8eporL Lhe effecL of 'Lherapy' ln AA formaL. ls Lhls effecL slgnlflcanL and how would you
lnLerpreL lL?
E"@, F&-9%,0

rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 13


8eporL Lhe effecL of 'lnlLlal sLalklng' ln AA formaL. ls Lhls effecL slgnlflcanL and how would you
lnLerpreL lL?
E"@, F&-9%,0
Some answers Lo Lhls quesLlon can be found on Lhe companlon webslLe of my book.
Unguided Example
A markeLlng manager was lnLeresLed ln Lhe LherapeuLlc beneflL of cerLaln sofL drlnks for curlng hangovers. Pe Look 13
people ouL on Lhe Lown one nlghL and goL Lhem drunk. 1he nexL mornlng as Lhey awoke, dehydraLed and feellng as
Lhough Lhey'd llcked a camel's sandy feeL clean wlLh Lhelr Longue, he gave flve of Lhem waLer Lo drlnk, flve of Lhem
Lucozade (a very nlce glucose-based uk drlnk) and Lhe remalnlng flve a leadlng brand of cola (Lhls varlable ls called
8,'&=). Pe measured how well Lhey felL (on a scale from 0 = l feel llke deaLh Lo 10 = l feel really full of beans and
healLhy) Lwo hours laLer (Lhls varlable ls called 9%..). Pe measured how 8,@&= Lhe person goL Lhe nlghL before on a
scale of 0 = as sober as a nun Lo 10 = flapplng abouL llke a haddock ouL of waLer on Lhe floor ln a puddle of Lhelr own
vomlL.
WaLer Lucozade Cola
G%.. 1,@&= G%.. 1,@&= G%.. 1,@&=
3 3 3 6 3 2
3 3 4 6 6 3
6 2 6 4 6 2
6 1 8 2 6 3
3 7 6 3 6 2


! LnLer Lhe daLa lnLo SSS. (PlnL: 1he daLa should noL be enLered as Lhey are ln Lhe Lable
above).
! Save Lhe daLa onLo a dlsk ln a flle called :3&$"D%,H@,%C-3D.

rof. Andy lleld, 2012 www.Jlscovetloqstotlstlcs.com age 14

! ConducL Lhe approprlaLe analysls Lo see wheLher Lhe drlnks dlffer ln Lhelr ablllLy Lo
conLrol hangovers when conLrolllng for how much was drunk Lhe nlghL before.
Some answers Lo Lhls quesLlon can be found on Lhe companlon webslLe of my book.
Multiple Choice Questions

CompleLe Lhe mulLlple cholce quesLlons for H!3/(%, AA on Lhe companlon webslLe Lo lleld
(2009): hLLp://www.uk.sagepub.com/fleld3e/MCC.hLm. lf you geL any wrong, re-read Lhls
handouL (or lleld, 2009, ChapLer 11, lleld, 2013, ChapLer 12) and do Lhem agaln unLll you geL
Lhem all correcL.

References
lleld, A. . (2013). ulscoverlng sLaLlsLlcs uslng l8M SSS SLaLlsLlcs: And sex and drugs and rock 'n' roll (4Lh ed.). London:
Sage.
Mlller, C. A., & Chapman, !. . (2001). MlsundersLandlng analysls of covarlance. !ournal of Abnormal sychology,
110(1), 40-48. dol: uol 10.1037//0021-843x.110.1.40
1hls handouL conLalns maLerlal from:
lleld, A. . (2013). ulscovetloq stotlstlcs osloq 5l55. ooJ sex ooJ Jtoqs ooJ tock o toll (4tb Jltloo). London: Sage.
1hls maLerlal ls copyrlghL Andy lleld (2000, 2003, 2009, 2013).