Statistics and Methodology Resources at Penn State
Many important advances in the social sciences are grounded in innovations in research design and analysis. This page provides a listing of research methods resources available to Penn State social and behavior scientists.
Social Science Research Institute (SSRI)
Centers and Departments
Interest Groups
Graduate/Pre- and Post-Doctoral Opportunities
Lectures and Workshops
Statistics and Methodology Courses
Social Science Research Institute (SSRI)
Social Science Research Institute (SSRI)
Susan McHale, Director
Survey Research Center (SRC)
Kurt Johnson, Director
The Survey Research Center offers expertise and assistance to Penn State faculty and administrative units in survey design, sampling, and data collection; survey data management; data entry; and data analysis.
Geographic Information Analysis (GIA)
Stephen Matthews, Director
The GIA Core facilitates use of geospatial data in the social sciences through expert advice in the application of GIA methods and techniques; mapping/cartography; geocoding/address-matching; contextual database creation/ecological data sets; geospatial data archive/management; geospatial data acquisition; spatial statistics and custom programming; and GIS training.
Centers and Departments
HHD Methodology Consulting Center
College of Health and Human Development and the Social Science Research Institute
Michael J. Rovine, Director
This center provides free consultation to social science researchers in the areas of statistics, research design, and measurement for faculty, staff and graduate students in the College of Health and Human Development and for social science faculty researchers. With support from the SSRI, free consultation is available to social science faculty.
The Methodology Center
College of Health and Human Development
Linda Collins, Director
This interdisciplinary center includes faculty, research associates, post-docs, and students from several academic disciplines and focuses on the advancement and dissemination of statistical methodology related to research on the prevention and treatment of problem behaviors. The center offers brown bag sessions. (See Lectures and Workshops)
Statistical Consulting Center (SCC)
Eberly College of Science
Durland Shumway, Director
The Statistical Consulting Center in the Eberly College of Science offers educational and statistical services via a team of faculty, staff, graduate students, and undergraduate students from Statistics, Computer Science/Engineering, and Management Science/Information Systems.
Department of Public Health Sciences (PHS)
Penn State College of Medicine
The Department of Public Health Sciences provides services in several areas of academic research and research support. Consulting request forms are available at each link.
PHS Biostatistics Division
Faculty members in this division assist with NIH-funded, multi-center clinical trials and observational studies.
PHS Division of Health Services Research
Faculty members in this division conduct research on the organization, financing, delivery, and quality of health care services, and are expert in the design of health surveys and analysis of large data sets.
PHS Data Management Services
Data management services staff aid in the collection, processing, and management of clinical research data as well as providing data management services for many clinical research projects across the University.
Interest Groups
Developmental Systems Group (DSG)
Department of Human Development and Family Studies
College of Health and Human Development
This group aims to stimulate, coordinate, support, and disseminate research and teaching about system thinking in the study of development, in particular developmental science. The DSG intends to introduce new dynamic modeling techniques adapted from advanced mathematical systems theory and engineering for applications in developmental science.
Human Developmental Neuroscience Initiative (HDNI)
SSRI and Colleges of Health and Human Development and the Liberal Arts
This initiative's goal is to foster a collaborative intellectual climate for cross-disciplinary research in human developmental neuroscience.
Qualitative Research Interest Group (QUIG)
(web site under development)
College of the Liberal Arts
QUIG is a developing interdisciplinary resource for faculty, research
associates, post-docs, and students that aims to support qualitative
research endeavors at Penn State by providing resources, networking,
education/advocacy, and multidisciplinary research team development.
Quantitative Social Science Initiative (QuaSSI)
SSRI and College of the Liberal Arts
QuaSSI seeks to promote the development of an interdisciplinary community of Penn State faculty, students, and other researchers interested in the improvement and application of quantitative techniques and tools in social science research and training.
Graduate/Pre- and Post-Doctoral Opportunities
NICHD Predoctoral Interdisciplinary Training in Demography
Population Research Institute
This NICHD-funded traineeship program supports interdisciplinary demography education for predoctoral students in Penn State's Graduate Program in Demography and Population Research Institute.
NICHD Postdoctoral Training in Family Demography and Individual Development
Population Research Institute
This NICHD-funded postdoctoral fellowship in Family Demography and Individual Development is oriented toward a postdoctoral research apprenticeship in two areas: (1) family demography, and (2) life course development processes and outcomes.
Prevention and Methodology Training (PAMT) Program
Prevention Research Center
College of Health and Human Development
Ed Smith, Training Director
This collaborative effort involves two well-established research centers at Penn State: the Prevention Research Center and the Methodology Center. The program's purpose is to train pre- and post-doctoral students in the integration of prevention and statistical methodology.
Lectures and Workshops
Clifford Clogg Memorial Lecture Series
Methodology Center Summer Institute
College of Health and Human Development
Methodology Center Brown Bag Seminar Series
PRI Summer Methodology Workshops
Survey Research Center
Periodically, the Survey Research Center offers workshops on research or data collection topics. Its educational resources link provides access to past workshops, other informational materials, and related links that may lead to useful resources.
Statistics and Methodology Courses
College of Agricultural Sciences
Agricultural Economics
AG EC 510 (AEREC 510) Econometrics I (3) General linear model, multicollinearity, specification error, autocorrelation, heteroskedasticity, restricted least squares, functional form, dummy variables, limited dependent variables. Prerequisite: ECON 490 or STAT 462 or STAT 501
AG EC 511 (AEREC 511) Econometrics II (3) Stochastic regressors, distributed lag models, pooling cross-section and time-series data, simultaneous equation models. Prerequisite: AG EC 510
AG EC 525 (AEREC 525) Research Methods in Rural Social Sciences (3) Scientific method in planning and conducting research. Prerequisite: 9 credits in social sciences
AG EC 527 (AEREC 527) Quantitative Methods I (3) Quantitative techniques applied to agricultural economic issues. Prerequisite: ECON 502
AG EC 533 (CEDEV533; AEREC 533) Rural Development Research Methods and Topics (3) Advanced theories and methods for rural economic development research. Prerequisite: AG EC 502, AG EC 511, ECON 521
Rural Sociology
R SOC 573 Methods of Survey Data Analysis (3) Use of multivariate procedures in the analysis of survey data in the rural social sciences. Prerequisite: AG 400
College of Earth and Mineral Sciences
Geography
GEOG 557 Geographic Information Systems (3) Principles and use of geographic information systems; emphasis is on practical use of GIS as a research methodology for geographic data handling and geographic analysis
GEOG 586 Geographical Information Analysis (3) Choosing and applying analytical methods for geospatial data, including point pattern analysis, interpolation, surface analysis, overlay analysis, and spatial autocorrelation. Prerequisite: GEOG 485 or GEOG 486 or GEOG 487
College of Education
Curriculum and Instruction
C I 502 Qualitative Research in Curriculum and Instruction I (3) Presentation of theoretical and practical issues related to designing and proposing qualitative research concerning curriculum, teaching and/or learning. Prerequisite: admission to a doctoral program
C I 503 Qualitative Research in Curriculum and Instruction II (3) Considers forms of qualitative data, data analyses, procedures to generate data relationships, interpretation, and presentation of data. Prerequisite: C I 502
Education Leadership Program
EDLDR 586 (EDTHP 586; HI ED 586) Qualitative Methods in Educational Research (3) Exploration of the theoretical framework undergirding qualitative research and its attendant practices and techniques
EDLDR 588 (EDTHP 588; HI ED 588) Qualitative Methods in Educational Research II (3) Advanced study of methods involved in executing and analyzing qualitative research in education. Prerequisite: EDLDR 586
Instructional Systems
INSYS 574 Applied Qualitative Research for Work Practice, Innovation, and Systems Design (3) Investigates qualitative research paradigms and methodologies; develops skills in use of ethnographic methods in work practice, innovation and systems design. Prerequisite: any introductory research design course or with instructor permission, for example: ADTED 550
College of Health and Human Development
Biobehavioral Health
BBH 505 Behavioral Health Research Strategies (3) Research strategies in behavioral health investigations are examined. Designs and data analytic models relevant to biobehavioral research are included. Prerequisite: coursework in research design and/or introductory statistics
Health Policy and Administration
HPA 561 Introduction to Research Design in Health Services Research (3) Review and critical analysis of state-of-the-art health services research methods
HPA 564 Research Methods in Health Services Research (3) Review and critical analysis of state-of-the-art health services research methods. Prerequisite: HPA 561, HPA 562, HPA 563
Human Development and Family Studies
Announcement: Spring 2010 One-Credit Courses in Methodology (.pdf document)
HD FS 505 Assessment in Human Development (3) Overview of methods and procedures used for the assessment of families and the development of individuals across the lifespan. Prerequisite: at least one course in measurement, test construction, or assessment
HD FS 516 Methods of Research in Human Development (3) Review of basic research methods and statistics as applied to human development and family studies
HD FS 517 Multivariate Study of Change and Human Development (3) Models of development and change derived from empirical research utilizing multivariate research design and procedures. Prerequisite: at least three statistics courses including correlation and regression analysis
HD FS 519 Methods of Statistical Analysis in Human Development (3) An overview of basic statistical concepts, models, and methods for the analysis of development and change. Prerequisite: H DEV 516, introductory statistics
HD FS 521 Qualitative Methods in Human Development and Family Studies (3) Introduction to interdisciplinary qualitative methods, principles and theory of interpretation, methodologies, data collection and analysis
HD FS 523 Strategies for Data Analysis in Developmental Research (3) provides the skills necessary to confront the data analytic issues presented in the Human Development and Family Studies methodology core curriculum. Prerequisite: HD FS 519 or STAT 501
HD FS 526 (PSY 526) Measurement in Human Development (3) Principles and methods for assessment of human developmental processes across the life span. Prerequisite: EDPSY 450 or PSYCH 404; HD FS 519
HD FS 528 (PSY 528) Observational Methodologies for Development (3) Design and application of observational methods in developmental research. Prerequisite: graduate student standing in HD FS or psychology
HD FS 536 (PSY 536) Research Methods in Developmental Processes (3) Methodological issues in research on varying stages of development across the individual life span. Prerequisite: 6 credits in individual development or psychology and a course in statistics
HD FS 597A Latent Class Analysis for Cross-sectional and Repeated Measures Data (1) Goal is to help students gain the background and skills to be able to address interesting research questions using latent class and latent transition analysis. Prerequisites are three semesters of graduate-level statistics for the social and behavioral sciences, or three semesters of graduate-level statistics and a demonstrated interest in the social and behavioral sciences
HD FS 597C fMRI Data Analysis (3) presents an introduction for social science students to connectivity analysis of fMRI time series based on structural equation and vector autoregression modeling techniques. Special topics include mixed modeling and state space modeling of fMRI time series, and Granger causality for connectivity maps
HD FS 597E fMRI Data Analysis (3) Formal courses given on a topical or special interest subject which may be offered infrequently; several different topics may be taught in one year or term.
Spring 2010:
Instructor: Dr. Peter Molenaar
Lectures: Thursday 9:00-12:00 am, Henderson S221
Purpose of the Course: To build up a thorough understanding of statistical models used in the analysis of multivariate fMRI, EEG and MEG time series.
View syllabus
HD FS 597F Emerging Methodologies for Indentifying Subgroups (1) Course will compare and contrast established and emerging methods able to identify population subgroups that may be meaningful in the planning of targeted behavioral interventions. Prerequisites are two semesters of graduate-level statistics for the social and behavioral sciences or two semesters of graduate-level statistics and a demonstrated interest in the social and behavioral sciences.
Kinesiology
KINES 530 Experimental Design and Methodology in Kinesiology (3) Research techniques, including methods, research design, techniques for data collection, as applied to relevant problems in Kinesiology. Prerequisite: 3-credit 400-level statistics course
Nursing
NURS 585 Qualitative Methods in Health Research (3) Provides an overview of advanced qualitative research methodologies useful in the conduct of social and behavioral health research. Prerequisite: Master of Science degree
NURS 586 Quantitative Methods in Nursing Research (3) An overview of advanced methodological considerations specific to quantitative research in nursing
College of Information Sciences and Technology
IST 501 Integrative Theories and Methods of the Information Sciences and Technology (3) An integrative treatment of research and theories on how technologies are used to meet information needs at multiple levels of analysis
IST 503 Foundations for IST Research (3) Study of major methodological, normative, and theoretical issues in philosophy of science related to research in information sciences and technology. Concurrent: IST 501
IST 541 Qualitative Research in Information Sciences and Technology (3) Assists IST researchers in their efforts to learn about and employ appropriate qualitative methods in their research. Prerequisite: IST 501
College of the Liberal Arts
Anthropology
ANTH 458 Ethnographic Field Methods (3) Analysis of ethnographic methods used in studying different cultures. Prerequisite: ANTH 045
ANTH 509 Research Design in Anthropological Fieldwork (3) A survey of research design, sampling strategies, potential biases, confounding problems, and the limits of inference in anthropological fieldwork. Prerequisite: STAT 451
ANTH 561 Field Methods in Anthropology (3 - 9) Supervised laboratory research, utilizing materials from physical anthropology or archaeology or cultural anthropology
ANTH 562 Laboratory Methods in Anthropology (3 - 9) Supervised laboratory research, utilizing materials from physical anthropology or archaeology or cultural anthropology
ANTH 579 (SOC 579) Spatial Demography (3) This graduate course will expose students to spatial analysis tools and analytical methods applied to demographic research. Prerequisite: Graduate course in statistics, i.e., SOC 574 or ANTH 509
Communication Arts, and Sciences
CAS 561 Quantitative Research Methods (3) This course is intended for graduate students who want an understanding of the quantitative methodology and research design. Prerequisite: CAS 403
CAS 562 Qualitative Research Methods (3) Qualitative approaches to investigating human experience using tools such as interviewing and observation
CAS 597E: Quantitative Methods for Handling Data Interdependence (3) all introduces students to quantitative methods addressing interdependence, such as meta-analysis, dyadic analysis, and social network analysis
Economics
ECON 490 Introduction to Econometrics (3) Use of simple and multiple regression models in measuring and testing economic relationships. Problems including multicollinearity, hetroskedasticity, and serial correlation. Prerequisite: MATH 110, ECON 390
ECON 510 Econometrics I (3) General linear model, multicollinearity, specification error, autocorrelation, heteroskedasticity, restricted least squares, functional form, dummy variables, limited dependent variables. Prerequisite: ECON 501 or STAT 462 or STAT 501
ECON 511 (AG EC 511) Econometrics II (3) Stochastic regressors, distributed lag models, pooling cross-section and time- series data, simultaneous equation models. Prerequisite: ECON 510, AG EC 510
Psychology
PSY 515 Advanced Statistics in Psychology and Education (3) Correlation theory and methods, discriminant analysis, and factor analysis; applications to mental test theory. Prerequisite: PSYCH 400 or EDPSY 506
PSY 517 Advanced Social Psychology (3) Problems of theory and of research methods with emphasis on persisting issues relevant to contemporary developments in social psychology. Prerequisite: PSYCH 420; PSYCH 200 or STAT 200
PSY 526 (HD FS 526) Measurement in Human Development (3) Principles and methods for assessment of human developmental processes across the life span. Prerequisite: EDPSY 450 or PSYCH 404; HD FS 519
PSY 527 Statistical Inference and Experimental Design (3) Probability theory, sampling distributions, analysis of variance and covariance, analysis of trend, nonparametric statistics, experimental design. Prerequisite: PSYCH 400 or EDPSY 506
PSY 528 (HD FS 528) Observational Methodologies for Development (3) Design and application of observational methods in developmental research. Prerequisite: graduate student standing in HD FS or psychology
PSY 536 (HD FS 536) Research Methods in Developmental Processes (3) Methodological issues in research on varying stages of development across the individual life-span. Prerequisite: 6 credits in individual development or psychology and a course in statistics
PSY 543 Research Design in Clinical Psychology (3) Experimental and quasi-experimental designs, methodological problems, and techniques of experimental control in clinical psychology research. Prerequisite: 3 credits of statistics
PSY 583 Designing Research in Social Psychology (3) Designs and procedures useful in social psychology and cognate disciplines; quasiexperimental designs and analysis, field experimentation, validity of inferences. Prerequisite: 3 credits of 500-level statistics
Sociology
SOC 513 Sociological Research Methods (3) Critical review of methodological issues; research designs; analysis and interpretation of findings
SOC 514 Research Design and Data Collection Methods (3) Chief techniques for collecting data in social research: interviews and questionnaires, laboratory and field observation, unobtrusive measures. Prerequisite: SOC 513 or equivalent course in research methods
SOC 515 (CLJ 515) Research Methods in Criminology and Deviance (3) Review of methodological issues; design and conduct of research; analysis and interpretation of findings; ethical and policy issues
SOC 518 (PL SC 518) Survey Methods I: Survey Design (3) Research design for social, behavioral and health surveys
SOC 519 (PL SC 519) Survey Methods II: Analysis of Survey Data (3) Intermediate course on the statistical analysis of survey data: topics include weighting, complex surveys, missing data, and contextual analysis. Prerequisite: PL SC 503 or SOC 575
SOC 520 (R SOC 520 ) Applied Sociological and Policy Research (3) A survey of the conceptual and methodological issues in applied sociology and policy research conducted by sociologists. Prerequisite: SOC 573
SOC 573 Demographic Techniques (3) Survey of demographic research methods; demographic data; measures of health, mortality, fertility, and migration; life tables, population projections. (required of all candidates). Prerequisite: STAT 200
SOC 574 Statistical Methods for Social Research (3) Basic concepts of statistics; linear regression; computer software; analysis of social surveys; causal inferences from nonexperimental data. Prerequisite: 3 credits in statistics and 3 credits in research methods
SOC 575 Statistical Models for Nonexperimental Research (3) Causal models for quantitative and qualitative data; path analysis and structural equations; logistic regression; duration models. Prerequisite: SOC 574
SOC 576 Applied Mathematical Demography (3) Survey of mathematical models used in the study of population growth; survivorship; fertility, migration, stability, kinship, labor force projections. Prerequisite: ANTH 408 or SOC 473; calculus
SOC 577 Techniques of Event History Modeling (3) In-depth review of survival analysis methods for the analysis of change in discrete dependent variables. Prerequisite: SOC 575
SOC 579 Spatial Demography (3) Spatial analysis tools applied to demographic research, including issues in the collection, integration, manipulation, visualization, and analysis of both primary and secondary demographic data sources in GIS. Prerequisite: Graduate course in statistics, e.g. SOC 574 or ANTH 509
Eberly College of Science
Statistics
STAT 501 Regression Methods (3) Analysis of research data through simple and multiple regression and correlation; polynomial models; indicator variables; step-wise, piece-wise, and logistic regression. Prerequisite: STAT 500 or equivalent; matrix algebra
STAT 502 Analysis of Variance and Design of Experiments (3) Analysis of variance and design concepts; factorial, nested, and unbalanced data; ANCOVA; blocked, Latin square, split-plot, repeated measures designs. Prerequisite: STAT 462 or STAT 501
STAT 503 Design of Experiments (3) Design principles; optimality; confounding in split-plot, repeated measures, fractional factorial, response surface, and balanced/partially balanced incomplete block designs. Prerequisite: STAT 462 or STAT 501; STAT 502
STAT 504 Analysis of Discrete Data (3) Models for frequency arrays; goodness-of-fit tests; two-, three-, and higher- way tables; latent and logistic models. Prerequisite: STAT 460 or STAT 502 or STAT 516; matrix algebra
STAT 505 Applied Multivariate Statistical Analysis (3) Analysis of multivariate data; T2-tests; particle correlation; discrimination; MANOVA; cluster analysis; regression; growth curves; factor analysis; principal components; canonical correlations. Prerequisite: MATH 441, STAT 501, STAT 502
STAT 506 Sampling Theory and Methods (3) Theory and application of sampling from finite populations. Prerequisite: calculus; 3 credits in statistics
STAT 507 Epidemiologic Research Methods (3) Research and quantitative methods for analysis of epidemiologic observational studies. Non-randomized, intervention studies for human health, and disease treatment. Prerequisite: STAT 250 or equivalent
STAT 508 Applied Statistical Distribution Theory (3) Analysis of data involving non-normal families of distributions; model building and selection, parameterizations, inferential algorithms, transformations, simulations, displays, interpretations. Prerequisite: STAT 401 or STAT 409
STAT 509 Design and Analysis of Clinical Trials (3) An introduction to the design and statistical analysis of randomized and observational studies in biomedical research. Prerequisite: STAT 500
STAT 510 Applied Time Series Analysis (3) Identification of models for empirical data collected over time. Use of models in forecasting. Prerequisite: STAT 462 or STAT 501 or STAT 511
STAT 511 Regression Analysis and Modeling (3) Multiple regression methodology using matrix notation; linear, polynomial, and nonlinear models; indicator variables; AOV models; piece-wise regression, autocorrelation; residual analyses. Prerequisite: STAT 500 or equivalent; matrix algebra; calculus
STAT 512 Design and Analysis of Experiments (3) AOV, unbalanced, nested factors; CRD, RCBD, Latin squares, split-plot, and repeated measures; incomplete block, fractional factorial, response surface designs; confounding. Prerequisite: STAT 511
STAT 524 Econometrics (3) Stochastic models and statistical methods in ecological problems; population dynamics, spatial patterns in populations of one, two, or more species. Prerequisite: STAT 414 or STAT 418
STAT 527 Quantitative Ecology (3) Introduction to quantitative population and community ecology, with emphasis on problems, concepts, and methods using mathematical, statistical, and computational analysis. Prerequisite: STAT 409, BIOL 210
STAT 565 Multivariate Analysis (3) Theoretical treatment of methods for analyzing multivariate data, including Hotelling's T2, MANOVA, discrimination, principal components, and canonical analysis. Prerequisite: STAT 505, STAT 551
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