UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. — Beginning Sept. 26, the Research Informatics and Publishing department at Penn State University Libraries will offer four workshops on statistical data analysis. These workshops will provide an introduction to data analysis planning as well as an overview of two statistical software applications — Minitab and SPSS — available to the Penn State community that are commonly used for quantitative data analysis.

The workshops are free and open to Penn State undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, faculty and staff.

All workshops will be held virtually via Zoom, and recordings will be shared with registered participants.

Advance registration is required for each workshop; registration and details are provided at the links below.

If you have questions or need more information, contact Research Informatics and Publishing at repub@psu.edu.

Workshop schedule

Data Analysis Planning — Sept. 26, 2–4 p.m.

Many researchers have a specific question they would like to ask concerning their data but no idea of how they will answer this question with quantitative analysis until after their data is collected. This leaves them with fewer options. Attendees will learn basic concepts for creating a data analysis plan according to best practices, how to determine appropriate sample size, how to run power analysis, and which statistical tests best suit their research question.

Quantitative Methods for Undergraduate Students — Oct. 3, 1–2:30 p.m.

This workshop introduces concepts such as descriptive vs. inferential statistics, running exploratory data analysis, testing data for normality, and parametric vs. non-parametric data analysis. Participants will learn about different statistical methods for exploring and analyzing their data.

Introduction to SPSS — Oct. 17, 2–4 p.m.

This session will provide introductory knowledge on how to use SPSS for quantitative statistical analysis, with demonstrations using a practice dataset. Participants will learn how to access SPSS and navigate the software interface by inputting different types of data, specifying variables and conducting exploratory data analysis and some basic statistical tests. No previous SPSS experience is required.

Introduction to Minitab — Oct. 24, 2–4 p.m.

This session will provide a general overview of using Minitab for quantitative statistical analysis, with demonstrations using a practice dataset. Participants will learn how to access Minitab and navigate the software interface, inputting different types of data, specifying and transforming variables and conducting exploratory data analysis and some basic statistical tests. No previous Minitab experience is required.