Module 1: Statistics and the Research Process
meaningful manner
Research - is the process of investigating,
revisiting, discovering or interpreting a concept
in order to enhance understanding of it.
“Research is the lifeblood of Psychology
Statistics - is the processing of collected data in
research
Psychologists develop theories and conduct
psychological research to answer questions
about behavior and mental processes; these
answers can impact individuals and society.
is the process of:
• collecting
• organizing
• presenting,
• analyzing, and
• interpreting data.
Ex: You want to conduct a study whether the
frequency of sharing Facebook / Instagram
stories in social media affects the feeling of
belongingness in the society of a teenager. This
is a research study.
In order to answer this research study, you need
to ask number of teenager on how frequent do
they share FB/IG stories in a day. Also, using an
instrument, you will measure their
belongingness in the society. This is Statistics.
Two Branches of Statistical Methods
Descriptive Statistics - deals with the collection
and presentation of data and the summarizing of
values that describe the groups’ characteristics.
Inferential Statistics - deals with the
predictions and inferences based on the analysis
and interpretation of the result of the
information gathered by the statistician.
Descriptive
 Concerned with describing the target
population
 Organize and present the data in a
 Describe the data which is already
known
For instance, you found out that the average
number of FB/IG story your classmates share in
a day is 3 – this result is a descriptive statistics
since you simply summarized the data you have
collected.
Inferential
 Make inferences from the sample and
generalize them to the population
 Compares, test, and predicts future
outcomes
 Tries to make conclusions about the
population that is beyond the data
available
For instance, based in the data gathered, you
concluded that the average number of FB/IG
story a second year college student share in a
day is 3 – this becomes an inferential statistics
since the data you have collected from a small
group of people leads you to draw inferences
about a larger group of people.
Types of Variables
What is a variable?
• Defined as the attribute that describes a person,
place, thing, or phenomenon.
• The value of a variable can “vary” from one
entity to another.
Example: The number of Facebook/Instagram
stories uploaded in a day is a variable of the
study. The answers of the respondents may
“vary” because they could give an answer such
as 1, 2, 3, 4, or any counting number.
Quantitative Variables - Variables that are
classified according to numerical characteristics.
Examples:
• The number of FB/IG stories shared in a day.
• The average score of students who took a 50-
item quiz.

Qualitative Variables - Variables that are
classified according to categories or any non-
numerical characteristics. Examples:
• The kind of FB/IG stories shared in a day.
• The descriptive grade (e.g. outstanding, very
good, fair, etc.) given in a 50-item quiz results.
Discrete Variables - Variables that can be
obtained by counting
Examples:
• The number of FB/IG stories shared in a day.
Continuous Variables - Variables that can be
obtained by measuring
Examples:
• Amount of time spent in using social media in
a day.
Independent Variables - Sometimes called as
the predictor, is a variable that can be
manipulated in an experiment.
Dependent Variables - Sometimes called as the
outcome, is a variable that measures the effect of
the independent variable.
Example: In a research experiment, you want to
know whether longer study hours produces high
scores in a test of an elementary student. Since
study hours can be manipulated in the study, this
becomes the independent variable. On the
other hand, test scores, as the result of the time
spent in studying, is the dependent variable
Manifest Variables - Variables that can be
directly measured or observed.
Example: Gender, a person can right away give
the answer upon asking his/her gender.
Latent Variables - Variables that cannot be
directly measured and needs a manifest variable
assigned to it as an indicator.
Example: Self-esteem, no single item can
directly measure one’s self esteem. A
questionnaire should first be developed to
measure it.
Mediator Variables - Can be regarded as
responsible for the relationship of two variables.
Moderator Variable - Variable that changes the
character of the relationship between two
variable.
Example: In a research study, a direct
relationship was found between workload and
drinking habits of a male employee. To deepen
the study, a mediator variable, stress in the
working environment, was introduced to further
verify that stress from working environment is
the reason why workload and drinking habits of
a male employee are related. On the other hand,
the workload of an employee may vary
depending on his position in work. Position in
work is a moderator variable since the degree of
relationship of workload and drinking habits
may affect when this variable is introduced.
Scale of Measurement
Nominal – used to classify qualitative variables
Ordinal – measures the variable using rank
Interval – numbers used in measurement stand
for approximately equal amounts of what is
being measured
Ratio – has an absolute zero point, meaning that
the value of zero on the variable indicates a
complete absences of the variable.
Properties of Scale of Measurement
Identity – each value has an unique meaning
Magnitude – values have an ordered
relationship to one another
Equal Intervals – scale units along the scale are
equal to one another
A minimum value of zero – has a true zero
point, below which no values exist
Module 2: Sampling Techniques
Population - refers to the entire collection of
events in which you are interested in.
Sample - Refers to a subset of a population.
Example… You want to conduct a study about
BS Psychology students in Angeles City –
Population
However, due to some limitations, you can only
cater BS Psychology students at the City
College of Angeles – Sample
Parameter - Refers to the characteristic that
summarized the data of a population.
Statistics - Refers to the data that describes a
sample. - The term statistics is synonymous to
the concept of estimate.
In order to answer the research questions, there
is a need to select a sample if the population you
consider is large enough.
Sampling Techniques - refers to the different
procedures we can use to properly select the
sample from the population.
Probability Sampling
• Every person in the population has equal
chances of being selected
• Results are more likely to accurately represent
the population
Non-probability Sampling
• Not all individuals in the population has a
chance of being selected
• Used when there is no complete population list
available
Probability Sampling Techniques
1. Simple Random Sampling - Every
member’s name of the population are included
in a list (may be manual or automated), and
samples are chosen randomly.
2. Systematic Random Sampling - Members of
the population are put in some order (may be
alphabetical); a starting point is selected at
random, and every kth member is selected to be
in the sample.

3. Stratified Random Sampling - The
population is split into strata (plural of stratum)
or class. To well-represent every strata in
population, members from each group are
chosen randomly.
4. Cluster Sampling - Population is divided into
groups, called cluster. Then, random selection of
cluster is done to choose the sample of the study.
S 3. Quota Sampling - Nonprobability technique
5. Multistage (cluster) Sampling - This is a
combination of cluster sampling and stratified
random sampling. Sample are chosen by
repeatedly doing cluster sampling until your
reach the desired number. Stratified random
sampling may be the last step of this method.
Non-probability Sampling Techniques
1. Convenience Sampling - The samples are
selected because they are accessible to the
researcher; they are chosen simply because they
are easy to recruit.
Example: You need teacher participants for your
study. You visit the faculty room and all
teachers available at that moment will serve as
your participants.
2. Judgmental Sampling - Also known as
purposive sampling, subjects are chosen to be
part of the sample with a specific purpose in
mind. The researcher identifies a criteria of the
sample because he/she believes that some
subjects are more fit for the research compared
to other individuals.
Example: You conduct a study about leadership
skills of a student. You know that in a class, the
most active leader is the president; hence, you
only choose the class presidents of every class to
be your participants.
of stratified random sampling, the researcher
ensures equal or proportionate representation of
subjects depending on which trait is considered
as basis of the quota.
Example: You need 30 participants for your
study about CCA students. To meet this, you
choose 10 students from each institute.
4. Snowball Sampling - The researcher asks the
initial subject to identify another potential
subject who also meets the criteria of the
research.
Example: You are conducting a study about the
lifestyle of homeless people. It may be difficult
to obtain a list of homeless individuals in a city.
However, you could find a few homeless
individuals and then ask them to recruit more
individuals they know who are homeless to be
involved in the study.
A sampling error is the difference between
measurements from a sample and corresponding
measurements from the respective population. It
is caused by the fact that the sample does not
perfectly represent the population.
A non-sampling error is the result of poor
sample design, sloppy data collection, faulty
measuring instruments, bias in questionnaires,
and so on. Note: Sampling errors do not
represent mistakes! They are simply the
consequence of using samples instead of
populations.
However, be alert to non-sampling errors, which
may sometimes occur inadvertently.
Module 3: Methods of Collecting and Presenting
Data
Methods of Data Collection
Interview Method
✓ One of the most common data collection
method.
✓ Used when the respondents are limited only.
✓ Used when in-depth information from the
respondents is needed. If not, used in
combination with other methods.
✓ Can be structured (sequence of questions is
pre-defined), semi-structured (free to alter the
sequence of questions), or unstructured (use of
open ended instruments).
✓ Can be used inductively, to generate new
hypothesis or theory by studying issue in a
particular conflict or postconflict.
✓ Can be used deductively, to investigate
whether a theory based on findings from studies
at the societal or national level are applicable at
the grassroots, individual level.
✓ The success of this method heavily relies on
the interviewer. He/she must be well prepared
and mastered the skill of listening.
✓ Preparation for interview involves the
following steps:
▪ reading up on secondary sources
▪ selecting and reaching interviewees
▪ formulating draft set of interview questions
▪ making contact and planning meetings with
local enterprise and expertise
▪ preparing the practicalities of the trip itself
The design of a good interview should compose
the following:
✓ Introduction: Introducing yourself, thanking
the interviewee, describing the aim of the study
✓ Initial questions: questions on background are
useful for warm-up
✓ Mid-interview: questions move to more
indepth and more intellectually demanding
questions
✓ Closing the interview: advisable to have some
questions to round off the interview, asking the
interview if there are clarifications, thanking the
interviewee
Questionnaire Method
✓ List of well-defined questions written on
paper, which can be personally administered by
the researcher, or thru online or email.
✓ Used to quantitatively evaluate subjective
data.
✓ Survey is a general form term used to describe
the collection of information but is often used
interchangeably with questionnaire.
✓ Respondents should be given the content,
sponsorship, and purpose of the survey so that
they may make an informed judgment about
whether they wish to participate
✓ Any assurances, such as confidentiality or
anonymity, must also be kept by the researcher.
Can have the following format:
✓ Recall type (age, sex, civil status, etc.)
✓ Recognition type (dichotomous, multiple
choice, multiple response)
✓ Free response type (use of open ended
question)
✓ Rating scale (requires the respondent to assign
a value to a rated object)
Steps in conducting a Survey:
1. Determine the population and sample: use of
appropriate sampling techniques is important. 2.
Decide on the type of survey: this depends on
your available resources and the accessibility of
your respondents.
3. Design the survey questions: ensure the
validity and reliability of the questionnaire.
4. Distribute the survey and collect responses.
5. Analyze the survey results: you may clean the
data by removing incomplete or incorrectly
completed responses.
6. Write up the survey results.
Empirical Observation Method
✓ Method of obtaining data by using the five
senses.
✓ Made under precisely defined conditions, in a
systematic and objective manner, and with
careful record keeping.
✓ The primary goal is to describe behavior.
✓ Observers may consider time sampling and/or
situation sampling.
▪ Time sampling refers to choosing time
intervals for making observations either
systematically or randomly.
▪ Situation sampling involves studying
behavior in different locations under
different circumstances and conditions.
Test Method
✓ Unlike in questionnaire, this method usually
used standardized test because of its validity and
reliability. Example of these are aptitude test, IQ
test, achievement test.
Presentation of Data
✓ In writing a research paper, we follow
different formats in presenting data. There are
three main “Schools of Style” used to properly
format an academic paper. The most common is
the American Psychological Association (APA)
style. The two other styles are the Modern
Language Association (MLA) and Chicago
Manual of Style (CMS)
✓ On the other hand, collected data may be
presented in the following forms: ▪ Textual form
– commonly used in presenting qualitative data.
In quantitative data, used in combination with
the other forms – to discuss the highlights of the
text/graph, and not to repeat what is already
presented. ▪ Tabular graph – commonly used in
presenting quantitative data. Table number and
title are important parts of this form.
✓ On the other hand, collected data may be
presented in the following forms: ▪ Graphical
form – just like tables, is used for visual
presentation in showing patterns and
relationships. Example of common graphs used
are bar graph (for comparison), line graph (to
show trend over time), pie graph (comparison of
part to a whole), pictograph (to summarize
quantity), box and whisker plot )for comparing
distributions), scatter diagram (to show
relationships), etc.
Module 4: Measures of Central Tendency:
Mode, Median, and Mean
Measures of Central Tendency (MCT) - A
statistical measure that determines a single score
that defines its center of the distribution is the
central tendency. This aims to determine the
most typical or usual score in a distribution.
Mean (Arithmetic Mean)
✓ The arithmetic mean or arithmetic average is
defined as the sum of the values of the variables
divided by the number of observations.
✓ It is the most common measure of central
tendency. It is simply the sum of the scores
divided by the numbers of scores.
✓ It is used for statistical analysis and test
differences
✓ Can be easily affected by outliers
✓ Cannot be used with qualitative data
Mean (Weighted Mean)
Weighted mean/average is an average resulting
from the multiplication of each component by a
factor reflecting its importance.
Median
✓ Arrange the data in either ascending or
descending order, then get the middle score
✓ Middle value of the set data
✓ Position of the middle score: 𝑛+1 2
✓ If the number of items in a data set is even,
get the average of the two middle value
✓ It is not affected by outliers
✓ Best MCT to use when the distribution is
skewed
✓ Only describes how many values lie above or
below the median
✓ Less reliable than the mean in statistical
analysis and test of difference
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Mode
✓ Most frequent value / majority
✓ Unimodal, bimodal, trimodal, multimodal,
nonmodal
✓ Can be easily obtained by observation
✓ Can be used with qualitative and quantitative
variables
✓ Unaffected by outliers
✓ Sometimes, the value does not really define
the data
✓ Sometimes, it is not present in the data
(nonmodal)
✓ Least reliable among MCT, hence, it is not
used for further statistical treatment
Module 5: Measures of Position
Measures of Position
✓ Used to describe the position of a data value
in relation to the rest of the data.
✓ To evaluate the relative position when
interested in comparing performance and
knowing a ranking.
Three Positional Measures
✓Quartiles
✓Deciles
✓Percentiles
Quartile
 It divides the distribution into four
equal parts.
✓ 𝑄1 (lower quartile) divides the distribution
into lower 25% and above 70%.
✓ 𝑄2(median) divides the distribution into half.
✓ 𝑄3(upper quartile) divides the distribution
into lower 75% and above 25%.

Decile
✓ It divides the distribution into ten equal parts.
Percentile
✓ It divides the distribution into hundred equal
parts.
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Module 6: Measures of Dispersion
Measures of Dispersion
✓ Together with the measure of central
tendency, measure of dispersion gives a clearer
description of a distribution.
✓ Also called as measure of variability, it
describes how spread out the distribution is.
✓ In other words, it describes the homogeneity
of the distribution.
✓ The lower the value of the measure of
dispersion, the more homogeneous the
distribution is.
✓ Take for example the two groups of students,
whose grades in Statistics are given below:
Group A: 75, 83, 89, 92, 95
Group B: 85, 87, 89, 86, 87
Suppose we use mean, being the most reliable
MCT, as the basis of comparison. Which group
performs better in Statistics?
𝑥 of A = 86.8
𝑥 of B = 86.8
Getting the same mean, we would conclude that
the groups performed equally. However,
analyzing the individual scores, you would
notice that in Group A, two students scored 75
and 95, two different level of intelligence.
Unlike in Group B, the grades of the students
fall within 85-89, all at the above average
intelligence. This what measure of dispersion
Group A being more scattered while Group B
being more homogeneous.
Range
✓ Easiest to obtain, but it is the least reliable.
✓ R = Highest Value – Lowest Value
Interquartile Range
✓ Removes the possible outliers in the data set.
✓ IQR = 3rd quartile – 1st quartile
Variance
✓ Second most reliable measure of dispersion.
✓ 𝜎 2 = σ(𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒−𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛) 2 𝑁−1
Standard Deviation
✓ Most reliable measure of dispersion and is
usually used together with the mean
✓ 𝜎 = 𝑣𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑛𝑐e(square root symbol)
Module 7: Normal Distribution
The Normal Curve
A normal curve is a shape of a distribution that
has the following characteristics:
✓ Bell-shaped
✓ The mean, median, and mode are all equal
and are located at the center of the distribution
✓ Unimodal
✓ The curve is symmetric to the mean
✓ Continuous
✓ Asymptotic
In a normal curve, the mean is located at the
center with zero standard deviation. To the
right are positive standard deviation (these are
in terms of z-scores which will be further
explained later), and to the left are negative
SDs, both usually written from 1 to 3.
Non-normal Distributions
Modality - Refers to the number of peaks (or
modes) in a distribution.
Skewness - Refers to the asymmetry of the
distribution.
Kurtosis - Refers to the relative concentration
of scores in the center, the upper and lower
ends (tails), and the shoulders (between the
center and the tails) of a distribution.
Normal vs. Modality
Normal - A normal distribution is unimodal or
has one major peak only.
Non-normal - Non-normal distributions could be
non-modal, bimodal, trimodal, etc.
Normal vs. Skewness
Normal - A normal distribution is symmetric to
the mean.
Skewed Distribution - Skewed distributions are
asymmetrical, could be leaning to the left or to
the right of the distribution
✓ In a normal distribution, the mean, median
and mode are equal and are located at the
center – majority of the scores are at the
center. Mean = Median = Mode
✓ In a negatively skewed distribution, the mean
is less than the median, and the median is less
than the mode. Majority of the scores are the
higher values. Mean < Median < Mode
✓ In a positively skewed distribution, the mean
is greater than the median, and the median is
greater than the mode. Majority of the scores
are the lower values. Mean > Media > Mode
Normal vs. Kurtosis

Normal - The tail of a normal distribution are

neither too thick of too thin, and there are
neither too many or too few scores
concentrated in the center. It is called
mesokurtic.
Non-normal Distribution - If scores in a normal
distribution move from both the center and the
tails into the shoulders, the curve becomes
flatter and is called platykurtic; while if scores
from the shoulders move into both the center
and the tails, the curve becomes more peaked
with thicker tails and is called leptokurtic.

Z-score
z-score is the score you see in a normal curve. It
states the number of standard deviations the
actual score is above or below the mean (0 SD).
If the actual score is above the mean, the z-
score is positive; otherwise, negative.
To convert an actual (or raw score) score to z-
score, we use the formula:
s