Statistics for People Who (Think They) Hate Statistics

by Neil J. Salkind

Written for people who want to learn or brush-up on the basics of statistics but question their abilities, this book offers a step-by-step introduction to the topic. The book begins with an introduction to the language of statistics and then covers descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. Throughout, the author offers - Difficulty Rating Index for each chapter′s material - Tips for doing and thinking about a statistical technique - Top tens for everything from the best ways to create a graph to the most effective techniques for data collection - Steps that break techniques down into a clear sequence of procedures - SPSS tips for executing each major statistical technique - Practice exercises at the end of each chapter, followed by worked out solutions. The book concludes with a statistical software sampler and a description of the best Internet sites for statistical information and data resources. Readers also have access to a website for downloading data that they can use to practice additional exercises from the book. Students and researchers will appreciate the book′s unhurried pace and thorough, friendly presentation.

Genres: Nonfiction, Textbooks, School, Education, Academic, Psychology, Mathematics

408 pages, Paperback

First published April 11, 2000

Reviews

[Terra · Rating 2 out of 5]

well now I know, i definitely hate statistics.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A F**king lifesaver for mathematically challenged psych majors.

[Felicia · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am (trying to) read this book for my very last class, Analytical Methods, in my MPA program. If I can successfully slog through this book, and regurgitate enough of it to be understood at at least a B level, I will be diplomaed.

I HATE this book. I hate administration. I hate statistics and taking things that are interesting and reducing them to mathematical formulas and representing them with greek and roman letters. I live in the Bay Area now and I want to be exploring this grand new place and instead I lug this dead albatross of a book around with me everywhere I go and sometimes sit down with it and fall asleep. Ugh. Why didn't I enroll in clown school?

[Ed Barton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've now completed some 21 credit hours of stats between grad and undergrad - and this is the best, most approachable textbook I have ever used. Will you be a statistician after reading and using this book? Nope. But, you will have enough of a working knowledge of statistics to conduct basic research, interpret statistical information and methods at a basic level, and as an added bonus, get three chapters of useful resources and tools. Written in a very non-textbook way, it is what the undergrad or high school student required to take stats should get in their intro course. A great intro text.

[Petty Lisbon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book because I wanted to learn some new skills and was not disappointed. I appreciated that they mentioned Excel in the title because let's be real, that's what most of us were looking for. I've taken Stats before and didn't have the best time in it but this book made me vaguely understand everything. It was low key annoying if you don't practice on a computer while reading it but that's there in the title. The author was casual enough in his tone and gave a lot of free resources at the end which was helpful. I appreciated that he seemed to respect the social sciences.

[Lisa J.olsen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think the only people who really think statistics in more than OK, is either a math teacher or a mathematician.

[Alissa Kowalski]

I still don’t get it 😌

[Gissele Sosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Actually really helpful textbook. Helped me significantly in getting a grasp on the content of my course!

[Julia Hoeve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oui j’essaye de renta le challenge good reads

[Bob · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a book largely aimed at undergraduate college students taking statistics for the first time. While one can appreciate the author's intent to add levity to an otherwise dull subject, sometimes he crosses the line and is condescending. He sets the knowledge bar too low. The most helpful aspect of the book is that it has an easy to understand chart which helps you decide which statistical test to run in various situations.

[Bailey Jones · Rating 2 out of 5]

still hate statistics, but just a little bit less.

[Andrew Vrana · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a lot easier to read than most textbooks. The author at least tries to be funny and a little bit interesting. I guess if statistics or math in general just aren't your thing then you'll hate reading the textbook no matter what. But for those of us freaks of nature who actually kind of like math but find academic reading thoroughly boring, this is pretty good and clearly explains everything.

[JOSEFINA CORPREW · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Masterful Work!

Besides being extremely student centered and user friendly, the authors poured their heart and soul into this work. It's far more than merely an excellent text book. These guys get it when it comes to combining teaching, effort, and empathy in order to achieve student learning. They left no stone unturned and stamped their signatures upon enduring excellence!

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

I never thought I would read a statistics book. However, when you're in a doctoral program, statistical analysis books become a part of your repertoire. Surprisingly, this book lives up to its title. It truly does make statistical concepts easier to grasp and understand. I enjoyed working through the material.

[Mark Attew · Rating 4 out of 5]

An easy read for the graduate student with some (but not much) exposure to statistics. Good tutorials on using Excel for data analysis although you'll need to go elsewhere if you're going to use SPSS.

[Jean]

Read it for a grad course as a required text, I had to supplement it with scholarly work to have deeper understanding. Fine for those who don't need a medium to deep dive.

[Robert Lyon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is based on the 5th edition.

Pretty good intro to statistics especially if you just want an good overview of the basics.

One thing i would say is that this book is written directly to undergraduates taking their 1st class in statistics. The author makes references to the reader being a student multiple times in the text, which feels kind of weird. I feel like it would have been better just to assume the reader is a statistics beginner rather than a subset of undergrads.

I'd recommend this book if you are really starting from no knowledge of statistics, however i am also reading "Fundamental Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences" by David C. Howell and i feel that it is a much more well rounded book.

[Sanaa · Rating 3 out of 5]

الكتاب عبارة عن مقدمة مبسطة للمفاهيم الأساسية في الإحصاء، مثل
الوسط، الوسيط، والانحراف المعياري
مفهومي الصدق والثبات (Reliability and Validity)
كيفية صياغة الفرضيات في البحث
مقاييس تتبع التوزيع الطبيعي (Bell Curve)
ومقاييس لا تتبع هذا التوزيع

قرأت هذا الكتاب لأتجاوز مشاعري السلبية تجاه الإحصاء، خاصةً أنني رسبت في هذه المادة سابقًا في الجامعة، الكتاب كان خفيف ومناسب للمبتدئين، وركز على شرح الأساسيات بطريقة صحيحة ومبسطة، بحيث يساعدك في بناء قاعدة قوية إذا كنت مهتم بالاحصاء
أكثر شيء مفيد في الكتاب هو التمارين الموجودة في نهاية كل قسم والتي تساعدك في اختبار فهمك للمحتوى

أنصح به لأي شخص يشعر أن الإحصاء صعب أو عنده رهبة منه

[(a)lyss(a) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fairly helpful book that breaks down some statistical concepts.

As someone who doesn't have a background in statistics I appreciate that the chapters are largely in layterms and each variable is labeled for the presented equations. That being said there sometimes isn't a lot of explanation or examples of what an equation is used for or what a concept is.

This book has been helpful in collaboration with other stats books.

[Krys · Rating 4 out of 5]

Five stars for providing readers with an engaging introduction to statistics; I will likely use this when teaching. Minus one star for neglecting to include a disclaimer; nothing while learning about statistics will teach an individual how to properly calculate ingredient substitutions in recipes for delicious baked goods.

[Nikki McArthur · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great job for introducing and brushing up on stats. Most everything is easy to follow with solid examples, steps and real world application. The humor is much appreciated and comes off as genuine. I appreciated the rating system in difficulty as a light hearted way to plan ahead for how much time I would need to muddle through the material

[Lia]

It was well-written for the most part, but my online edition, through Pearson/VitalSource, was riddled with editing errors like answers in the answer key that didn't even match the question from the Practice sections, or a section that would just end mid-sentence. It was a bit of a mess, that way. I don't recommend Pearson for textbooks, at all. I always have a bad experience with their products.

[Stef · Rating 2 out of 5]

You know what? I still hate statistics!

This book was utilized in an undergraduate Statistics for Food/Agriculture course. Combined with a poor quality professor and terribly uninspired lectures, this book confirmed I DO hate statistics.

[Ame Hernández · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first stats book that actally made me like stats! I had always struggled and found statistics an abstract and difficult subject. This book helped me understand them and even enjoy them! It only has the basics though, but totally worth a read!

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I used this as a reference book recommended by one of my professors as supplemental reading for a doctoral level nursing inferential statistics class. I found the explanations to be too basic to meet my needs and some statistical terms/concepts I was looking for weren't even listed in the index.

[Kaleb · Rating 5 out of 5]

For me this was a simple way to get introduced into the complex world of statistics. Although I didn’t get to use SPSS, I was able to understand the concepts of each chapter without too much confusion. I got an A in the class.

[Gretchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this book to help me in a graduate class. Reading it was super helpful and it was easy to understand. I also liked how it referenced SPSS and not Excel.

[Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have to read a book about statistics this is the one to read. Very understandable and entertaining.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for an advanced degree, useful for class purposes.

[Jessa Bame · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was grateful my teacher chose this book. It wasn't always as clear as I needed it to be but it made the class better and I actually passed instead of failing like I was afraid of.