Ch. 9 Question

How should we decide when to use a regular t-test formula and a standard error of the difference between the means t-test formula? My biggest worry is that on the exam I will not know if I am using the right formula for the problems.

Ch. 8 Question

Well, I am starting to feel really confused. When do we know when we should use a z-test or a t-test? Are there any words we need to look out for that will give it away?

-Lisa

Ch. 7 Review

Hi Professor Curtis-

I just finished reading ch. 7 and doing the ch. 7 homework as well.

It all seems pretty straight forward to me, so I am just going to review the main points that I found most important to my understanding of the chapter.

In this chapter, we were introduced to calculating the standard error of the mean which is found by taking the standard deviation of the sample population and dividing it by the square root of N.

We were also introduced to doing confidence intervals of 95% (1.96) and 99% (2.58) of the population.

I also learned that according to central limit theorem, as sample size increases, the sampling distribution of the mean approaches a normal distribution. So, the larger a sample size, the more normal the shape of the distribution will be (to an even bell curve shape).

Finally, I learned the difference between simple random sampling method and nonrandom sampling method- and their important relevance to the results. In a simple random sample, each member of the population has an equal chance of being selected for the sample, and each one is independent of the selection of each other. This results in a fair and accurate sample from the population. On the contrary, nonrandom sampling method does not have an accurate sample from the population, because the sample does not guarantee a random selection, so you cannot define the population that such a sample represents. Nonrandom sampling methods are thus scientifically useless.


:)

-Lisa

A Little About Me :)

What is your name?

-Lisa Talavera

What is your favorite psychology class so far and why? (list course name not

number)?

-Psychology of Emotion, because emotions can be difficult to understand and this class offers much insight into their understanding.

Of the classes you could have taken why are you taking this class? Be specific.

-Specifically, I have to... ;)

Any special thoughts on what you want to get out of this class?

-A better understanding of the statistics used for psychology studies.

What have you liked/disliked about statistics to this point in your life (this can be high school, other statistic courses or any encounter you have had with statistics)

-I have liked that statistics are straight forward and easy to understand most of the time, in comparison with trigonometry which can be extremely confusing and frustrating.

Other interests, besides this program?

-I want to be an art therapist. I love painting, life-drawing, and I will soon be sculpting!

Tell me about the worst teacher you ever had. What did s/he do that you didn’t like? (Please do not give any identifying information about the person.)

-She copied her lectures onto the chalkboard and ran through them verbatum without any clear explanations and became offended when people asked questions which deterred them from asking questions.

Tell me about the best teacher you ever had. What did s/he do that you liked? (Please do not give any identifying information about the person.)

-She gave thorough examples, answered all students questions clearly with good realistic examples.

How do you learn statistics best? Visual examples? Exercises? Talking to class mates? Something else?

-I learn statistics best by practicing and with visual exampls as well.

Anything else you want to tell me?

-I want to go to NYU Steinhardt for gradschool for the M.A. in art therapy program.