An introduction to selected quantitative techniques widely used in psychological research and practice, including applications of statistical techniques in the design and analysis of experiments and surveys, and in psychological measurement.

 

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. Conduct and interpret descriptive statistics, correlation, regression, t-tests and ANOVA.  
2. Select appropriate data analysis strategies for common research designs in psychology. 
3. Communicate the results of quantitative psychological research accurately.
4. Critically evaluate psychological research according to the quality of research methods, appropriateness of analyses and conclusions. 
5. Identify biases that limit the conclusions of psychological research, including cultural biases and assumptions.

Research-Led Teaching

NA

Field Trips

NA

Additional Course Costs

NA

Examination Material or equipment

• Calculator (non-programmable)
• One A4 page with notes on both sides
• Scribble Paper x 2

Required Resources

• Software: In this course, we will teach you how to analyse data using a statistical software program called JASP. JASP is free to download here: https://jasp-stats.org/download/
• There is a free textbook associated with this software: Learning Statistics with JASP: A Tutorial for Psychology Students and Other Beginners by Danielle J. Navarro, David R. Foxcroft, and Thomas J. Faulkenberry. It is free to download here: https://learnstatswithjasp.com/
• Readings and materials will be provided on Wattle.

Recommended Resources

Recommended student system requirements 

Whether you are on campus or studying online, there are a variety of online resources and activities including:

• video material, similar to YouTube, for lectures and other instruction
• two-way video conferencing for interactive learning
• email and other messaging tools for communication
• interactive web apps for formative and collaborative activities
• print and photo/scan for handwritten work and drawings
• home-based assessment.

ANU outlines recommended student system requirements to ensure you are able to participate fully in your learning. Other information is also available about the various Learning Platforms you may use.

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• Students will receive feedback from tutors on the practice exercises completed during labs.
• Students will receive feedback on the assessed lab exercises via Wattle after all students have completed the assessment.
• Students will receive feedback on the written assignment.

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). The feedback given in these surveys is anonymous and provides the Colleges, University Education Committee and Academic Board with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement. The Surveys and Evaluation website provides more information on student surveys at ANU and reports on the feedback provided on ANU courses.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	Sampling and measurement
2	Welcome and introduction to research
3	Descriptives and graphing	Lab 1
4	Significance testing 1	Lab 2
5	Significance testing 2	Lab 3
6	Correlation and regression	Lab 4
7	T-tests 1
8	T-tests 2	Lab 5
9	ANOVA 1	Lab 6
10	ANOVA 2	Lab 7
11	Statistics, research, and meta-science	Lab 8
12	Review

Tutorial Registration

ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Learning Outcomes
Lab exercises	35 %	1,2,4
Written Assessment	25 %	1,3,4,5
End-of-semester examination	40 %	1,2,3,4

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Misconduct Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Special Assessment Consideration Policy and General Information
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website Students may choose not to submit assessment items through Turnitin. In this instance you will be required to submit, alongside the assessment item itself, hard copies of all references included in the assessment item.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Participation

The University has returned to on campus only delivery for in person courses.

Students are expected to attend lectures and contribute to discussions. In addition to lectures, attendance and participation in laboratories/practical's is crucial to successful completion of your course. The School of Medicine and Psychology considers the laboratory/practical components to be an integral part of each course. Laboratory/practical classes may supplement and consolidate material covered in lectures and/or they may introduce entirely new material pertinent to the objectives of the course.

Examination(s)

The final examination for this course will be administered in-person during the semester 1 final examination period. Students must be on campus to attend the exam. Information about the scheduling of the examination will be posted by the University at http://www.anu.edu.au/students/program-administration/assessments-exams/examination-timetable

The final examination is a hurdle requirement. A Pass mark (50% or greater) is required in the final examination before the course can be passed as a whole.

Those failing to achieve this, but who otherwise have an overall grade of 45% or better, will be offered the opportunity to sit, and pass, a further (supplementary) invigilated examination.

Students achieving a passing grade (50% or better) in that supplementary invigilated examination will be eligible to pass the course overall, but their final recorded course mark will be 50%. 

Assessment Task 1

Lab exercises

Students will work through assessed lab exercises worth 35% of the total course grade. There are eight quizzes throughout the semester (completed on the course Wattle site during Quiz sessions). The final grade for the lab exercise component will be determined by the weighted average of marks for the best seven of the eight lab exercises.

Value: 35%

Due Date: Lab exercises will open at 8 AM on Thursday of each lab week, and close (i.e., are due no later than) 5 PM the following Wednesday. 

Assessment Task 2

Written Assessment

Students will complete a writing assignment (i.e., essay) in which they will compare a claim in popular media against published empirical research in peer-reviewed journals on that topic. The assignment will have a minimum word count of 750 words and a maximum word count of 1000 words. Additional details, including the timeline and rubric, for this assessment will be announced on the course Wattle site.

Value: 25%

Due Date: 11 April 2025 @ 5:00 pm.

Assessment Task 3

End-of-semester examination

The end-of-semester (final) examination covers the entire course.

The final examination for this course will be administered in-person during the semester 1 final examination period. Students must be on campus to attend the exam.

Information about the scheduling of the examination will be posted by the University at http://www.anu.edu.au/students/program-administration/assessments-exams/examination-timetable

The final examination is a hurdle requirement. A Pass mark (50% or greater) is required in the final examination before the course can be passed as a whole.

Those failing to achieve this, but who otherwise have an overall grade of 45% or better, will be offered the opportunity to sit, and pass, a further (supplementary) invigilated examination.

Students achieving a passing grade (50% or better) in that supplementary invigilated examination will be eligible to pass the course overall, but their final recorded course mark will be 50%. 

Value: 40%

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of our culture as a community of scholars. At its heart, academic integrity is about behaving ethically. This means that all members of the community commit to honest and responsible scholarly practice and to upholding these values with respect and fairness. The Australian National University commits to embedding the values of academic integrity in our teaching and learning. We ensure that all members of our community understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. The ANU expects staff and students to uphold high standards of academic integrity and act ethically and honestly, to ensure the quality and value of the qualification that you will graduate with. The University has policies and procedures in place to promote academic integrity and manage academic misconduct. Visit the following Academic honesty & plagiarism website for more information about academic integrity and what the ANU considers academic misconduct. The ANU offers a number of services to assist students with their assignments, examinations, and other learning activities. The Academic Skills and Learning Centre offers a number of workshops and seminars that you may find useful for your studies.

Online Submission

You will be required to electronically sign a declaration as part of the submission of your assignment. Please keep a copy of the assignment for your records.

Unless an exemption has been approved by the Associate Dean (Education) a submission must be through Turnitin.

Hardcopy Submission

For some forms of assessment (handwritten assignments, art works, laboratory notes, etc.) hard copy submission is appropriate when approved by the Associate Dean (Education). Hard copy submissions must utilise the Assignment Cover Sheet. Please keep a copy of tasks completed for your records.

Late Submission

Individual assessment tasks may or may not allow for late submission. Policy regarding late submission is detailed below:

No late submission of Assessment Task 1 (Lab Exercises) without an extension after the due date will be permitted. If the assessment task is not submitted by the due date, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Assessment Task 2 (Written Assessment)

Late submission of assessment tasks without an extension are penalised at the rate of 5% of the possible marks available per working day or part thereof.

Late submission of assessment tasks is not accepted after 10 working days after the due date, or on or after the date specified in the course outline for the return of the assessment item.

Referencing Requirements

Accepted academic practice for referencing sources that you use in presentations can be found via the links on the Wattle site, under the file named “ANU and College Policies, Program Information, Student Support Services and Assessment”. Alternatively, you can seek help through the Students Learning Development website.

Returning Assignments

Assignments that have been submitted on time will be marked and available to download from the Turnitin link on Wattle, approximately three weeks after the due date. The exact return date will be posted on Wattle.

Late assignments (even those with formal extensions) will not be marked within this timeframe; our priority will be to mark the assignments that were handed in on time. We will aim to get the late assignments back before the end of semester. Marking of the late reports will commence once all on-time Laboratory Reports have been marked and returned.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure The Course Convener may grant extensions for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Resubmission of Assignments

Resubmission of assignments not permitted.

Re-marking Policy

From the time, your assignment is available on Wattle; you have 10 working days in which to request a formal re-mark.

1. If you have any questions about the assessment of a submitted piece of work, or wish to have some of the comments clarified, email your questions to the course functional email account, this is on Wattle.
2. If you think, your assignment deserves a higher mark:  It is your responsibility to outline in writing why, in your opinion, the original mark does not reflect the true worth of the work.  Submit your request by email to the functional email account.
3. If the Course Convener agrees to a remark of your work, and as a result, the mark is altered, and you accept this change, then the procedure ends, and you will not be eligible for any further re-marking of this work.
4. If you remain unhappy with the outcome, you can formally request a re-mark by an independent marker by sending your request to the functional email account for this course. 
5. The mark awarded by the independent marker for your assessment will become your final mark regardless, if it is higher, lower or the same as your original mark.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information. In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service — including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy. If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes. Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Diversity and inclusion for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills and Learning Centre supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling Centre promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents undergraduate and ANU College students
• PARSA supports and represents postgraduate and research students