Edward Brent

Sociology

216C Sociology

882-9172

BrentE@Missouri.edu

Required Book

Wilkinson, Leland, Grant Blank, and Chreistian Gruber. Desktop Data Analysis with SYSTAT. Prentice Hall, 1996.

Requirements 

50% Term project. Students will work individually to either analyze a data set appropriately using one or more of the techniques discussed in class, or develop a pedagogical paper providing advice and relevant information regarding how to use a technique, its basic assumptions, when it can be used, the steps in the technique, a discussion of the literature regarding the technique, and advice on interpreting results. These projects will be presented to class members and defended in final oral presentations. 

ADA

Notice

If you have special needs addressed by the Americans with Disabilities Act please notify the Sociology Department secretary (882-8331, 109 Sociology). Reasonable efforts will be made to accommodate your needs.

Academic

Notice

Please note that you are expected to follow University regulations as expressed in the Rules and Regulations of the University of Missouri regarding academic integrity. Any suspected cheating or plagiarism will be dealt with severely as required by University of Missouri regulations. If you are uncertain about what plagiarism or cheating include, speak to the course instructor.

Class

Attendance

Students are expected to attend all class sessions. Students are responsible for any announcements made during class. Any work the student cannot complete because they miss a class is their responsibility. Students are responsible for announcements, assignments, and quizzes that take place when they are not in class.

A Plan, Not A Promise

All requirements and activities described in this syllabus are plans for this course. The content, dates, and even the requirements of the course may be changed at the instructor's discretion.

Schedule

DATE

TOPIC & READING

ASSIGNMENT

OVERVIEW

Jan 11

Organization of course, introduction, schedule, handout syllabus. Overview of course content

Jan 13

CLASSIFICATION, TYPOLOGIES, SMALLEST SPACE ANALYSIS 

Overview of typologies and typology construction: typology construction concepts, property space, simple and partial order, monothetic/polythetic Extended example from anthropological databank (Udy). Readings: Kruskal & Wish, DDA23, DDA21

Assign student project 

Jan 18

Measures of association and agreement: issues, which measures to use, objects vs variables. Smallest space analysis (nonmetric multidimensional scaling); metrics, distance, and spatial representations. 

Jan 20

Specifying smallest space analysis. 

Jan 25

Interpreting smallest space analysis. Extended example of smallest space analysis: Facet analysis interpretations of smallest space analysis, results: examples of circumplex in class, exercise with potential circumplex interpretation. 

Jan 27

Discuss student exercise, summarize, overview. Discuss design of this expert system module 

Exercises due

Feb 1

CLUSTER ANALYSIS  … Introduction to Cluster Analysis: Kinds of cluster analysis; hierarchical vs nonhierarchical; single linkage, average linkage, Ward's, complete linkage. Readings: Aldendorfer & Blashfield SPSS/X, C5, DDA19

Assign student exercise 

Feb 3

Specifying A Cluster Analysis: Facet analysis interpretations of smallest space analysis, results: examples of circumplex in class, exercise with potential circumplex interpreation 

Witches Data File</

Feb 8

Interpreting Cluster Analysis: Example from the literature, dendograms, Wroclaw diagrams, etc.  Readings: Fleishman, John A., "Types of Political Attitude Structure: Results of a Cluster Analysis," Public Opinion Quarterly. 1986, 50(3), 371-386. 

Parisym.sps   SYMPARIS.sav 
Note:  The symparis.sav file is not a simple text file.  You may need to get it using FTP.

Feb 10 

Discuss student exercises, summarize, overview. Discuss design of this expert system module

Exercises due 

Feb 15

FACTOR ANALYSIS  … Introduction to Factor Analysis: principal components vs iterated communalities, rotations, oblique vs orthogonal axes, R vs Q; exercises, SAS or SPSS-X Readings: Kim & Mueller, SPSS/X, C4, DDA20

Assign Student Exercise

Feb 17

Specifying a Factor Analysis: Issues: reliability Factor examples, discuss printouts 

Feb 22

Interpreting Factor Analysis: Readings: Sykes, Richard E. and Edward E. Brent, Policing: A Social Behaviorist Perspective. New Brunswick, NJ:Rutgers University Press, 1983, 31-48. 

Feb 24

Discuss student exercises, summarize, overview. Discuss design of this expert system module 

Exercises due 

Feb 29

Introduction to Log-Linear Models: discussion of multidimensional contingency tables; odds ratio, logic of the process. Readings: Knoke & Burke, SPSS/X, C8,9, DDA3

Assign student exercise. 

Mar 2

Specifying log-linear models using SPSS: How to specify a log-linear model in SPSS/PC+ or SPSS/X; alternative strategies for fitting models, classroom exercise.

Mar 7

Extended example of use of log-linear models: Social interaction among police and civilians. Readings: Brent, Edward E. and Richard E. Sykes, "A Mathematical Model of Symbolic Interaction Between Police and Suspects," Behavioral Science 1979, 24:388-402. 

Mar 9

Discuss student exercises, summarize, overview. Discuss design of this expert system module 

Exercises due 

Mar 14

ADDITIONAL SHORT TOPICS  …Power Analysis and Sample Size. Readings: Ex-Sample

Mar 16

Data Graphics. Readings: DDA24

Mar 21

Transformations. Readings: DDA22

Mar 23

Regression on Categorical Dependent Variables. Readings: DDA14 

SPRING BREAK

Apr 4

Classification, Discriminant Analysis, And Canonical Correlation  Introduction and logic. Readings: DDA15

Apr 6

Specifying the analyses.

Apr 11

Extended example .

Apr 13

Oral presentations of student projects 

Apr 18

Oral presentations of student projects

Apr 20

Oral presentations of student projects

Apr 25

Oral presentations of student projects

Apr 27

Oral presentations of student projects