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Virtual CNR

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To better serve our faculty and students, in particular those residing greater distances from campus, the CNR has created a “Virtual CNR” in an effort to aid faculty and student research with a variety of statistical tools and resources. Available 24/7, the Virtual CNR is a reference tool to access self-service help for statistical and research methods.

SPSS Tutorials

Reference materials that provide step-by-step instructions on how to perform various statistical procedures in SPSS.

How to Open or Enter Data in SPSS
How to Recode Variables in SPSS
Descriptive Statistics
Correlation
Independent-groups t test
Dependent-groups t test
Chi-square
Basic Linear Regression
Stepwise Multiple Regression
Hierarchical Multiple Regression
Nonlinear Regression
Logistic Regression
F test/ANOVA
Factorial ANOVA
ANCOVA
MANOVA and MANCOVA
Profile Analysis
Repeated Measures ANOVA
Canonical Correlation
Discriminant Function Analysis
Survival Analysis
Factor Analysis
Cluster Analysis

Need more help? Try these SPSS online movie tutorials from:
Texas A&M University
UCLA

Power Analysis

Tools to help you determine the right sample size to maximize your chances of achieving statistically significant results. Can also be used after the fact, to determine how much statistical power a given study had.

Option 1: U of Iowa Site
Option 2: Harvard University Site
Palm Application (Palm OS application to calculate sample sizes)
How to use the University of Iowa power calculators
Power analysis application from Vanderbilt University

Survey Research

Use these tools to conduct basic survey research. The "Survey Monkey" tool lets you create free online surveys (up to 10 questions and 100 respondents) that you can customize to your specifications. Larger-scale surveys with more options can be set up for a modest fee. The site automatically tabulates frequency counts for responses.

Using the Internet for Survey Research – step 1: free text on Internet research
Sample Size Calculator — step 2: calculate target N for a representative sample
CNR Documentation: How to Use the Sample Size Calculator
Survey Design Tips — step 3: online text to help you design survey questions
“Survey Monkey” Online Survey Tool — step 4: set up an online survey
Designing Effective Surveys — tutorial on how to create an effective survey, types of questions, etc.
Using Surveys for Clinical Research – Dr. Paul Cook’s article on psychometric issues

Structural Equation Modeling

Reference information for two SEM applications. You can also download free student versions of both programs to try: the student versions have limits on the number of cases that can be analyzed and the number of variables you can include in your model. The full versions of both programs are available in the CNR Computer Lab.

Student Version of AMOS - free download
How to Use AMOS
Student Version of LISREL - free download
How to Use LISREL
Sobel Test for Mediation – online calculator to test the significance of indirect effects in SEM or regression

Multilevel Modeling

Reference information for the MLM application available in the CNR Computer Lab. You can also download a free student version of the same software, which is limited to 5 effects, 7200 level-1 observations, and 350 level-2 observations, but which is otherwise the same as the full version available in the CNR lab.

Student Version of HLM — free download
How to Use HLM 6.0 for Repeated-Measures Data
How to Use HLM 6.0 for Clustered Data
MLM Techniques — description of alternate ways to perform MLM
Center for Multilevel Modeling — resource site for MLM
MLM glossary — definitions of terms for MLM
Power Analysis for MLM — PinT program calculates standard errors
Effective sample size calculator for MLM

Data Formatting and Missing Data

Traditional approaches to missing data — dropping cases with missing data or filling in the mean score for other participants on that item — promote error in analyses. Download free tools to deal with missing data more appropriately. Some programs available in the CNR Computer Lab (LISREL and AMOS) also have built-in capabilities to handle missing data. SPSS has a commercial add-on product for missing data analysis, but this is not available in the SPSS basic package used at the College of Nursing.

Option 1: NORM Multiple Imputation — free program
CNR Documentation: How to Use NORM
Option 2: AMOS — can be used to export data based on MLE
Option 3: Mx Maximum Likelihood Estimation — free program
How to Format Data for Analysis
Guide to Using Data Transformations

Meta-Analysis

Tools and calculators for performing meta-analytic literature reviews. The MetaWin program is a spreadsheet-based meta-analysis package that is available in the CNR computer lab. You can download a free trial version here (limited to 15 studies in your review).

Meta-Analysis Calculators — basic meta-analysis calculator. Requires MS Excel
CNR Documentation: How to Use the Meta-Analysis Calculators
MetaWin Program – free trial version; full program is available in the CNR lab
CNR Documentation: How to Use MetaWin
Compare Correlations – quick calculation of p-value for the difference between 2 r's
Online Meta-Analysis Calculator – web-based tool gives individual effect sizes and average ES across studies

Qualitative Research

Resource material and tools for conducting qualitative studies and using Atlas-Ti.

How to Use Atlas-Ti — the CNR's brief guide to get started with Atlas-Ti
Atlas-Ti listserv — search the archives of a user listserv for answers
Inter-Coder Reliability in Qualitative Studies — instructions and software links
EZText — download a free simple text coding program from the CDC
Transcriber — a free tool for playing back and transcribing sound files
Forum on Qualitative Social Research — qualitative discussion board

Research Design

Tools to help you plan your next study, and to choose the appropriate statistical tests.

Program Evaluation – March 2007 presentation at Rocky Mountain EBP Conference
The Research Methods Knowledge Base for social science research
Research Fables - explain basic research concepts.
    "Snow White and the Seven Threats to Validity" is particularly good.
CONSORT – the CONSORT statement on reporting randomized clinical trials
         a)  STROBE – Guideline for Epidemiology Studies
         b)  PRISMA – Guideline for Meta-Analyses
         c)  STARD – Guideline for Diagnostic Studies
TREND – the TREND statement on reporting non-randomized designs
Treatment Fidelity Checklist – to show correct implementation of interventions
Community-Based Research Training – curriculum on participatory research
Checklist for CBPR – study design for participatory research
Choosing the Right Statistical Test - includes syntax in SAS, SPSS, & Stata
Categorizing Study Designs – how should you describe the design of your study
Study Design for Program Evaluation – Dr. Paul Cook’s article on improving methodological quality in program evaluation work

Evidence-Based Practice

How to read and interpret research articles. (Also see the reference materials in the section on Research Design).

EBP Glossary - terms used in EBP for nursing, from the U. of Arizona
Answers to Statistical and Research Questions for Clinicians
How to Read a Medical Journal Article - how to read a research article
User's Guides to Evidence-Based Practice - how to evaluate research
National Guideline Clearinghouse – clinical practice guidelines resource
BMJ Clinical Evidence Site – research-based recommendations by diagnosis
PICOT form – online tool for formulating "PICOT" questions
SQUIRE Guideline for Reporting Quality Improvement Projects
Training Modules for Evidence-Based Behavioral Interventions
Single-Subject Trends – a statistical program to evaluate the significance of changes in a patient’s status over time

Online Calculators

Calculators allow you to perform common statistical tests by entering data into a web interface.

p-Value Calculator (Stanford University) - get exact values instead of "p < .05"
Calculating Cohen's d from t-test results
R Commander– free downloadable graphical interface for statistical analysis
Bonferroni Calculator - correction that takes into account correlated outcomes
SkewKurt Calculator - calculates skewness and kurtosis stats
VassarStats Online Statistical Calculators (Vassar University)
StatPages.net - an extensive links page of online statistical tools and resources

Online Reference Shelf

Access free online training materials about topics in statistics and research. Some of these may be useful in teaching about statistics and research methods.

StatSoft Online Textbook - Includes “statistics advisor” to choose tests
HyperStat Online Textbook
StatsDirect Online Textbook
Prism Guide to Interpreting Statistical Results
Glossary of Research Terms from AHRQ
HipEstat – Spanish-language online statistics textbook
Online Multivariate Statistics Text - advanced/graduate-level statistical topics
Online Statistics Dictionary
Rice University Virtual Stats Lab - interactive tutorials
Comparison of Statistics Packages - compares SPSS, SAS, and Stata
SPSS FAQ - answers to frequently asked questions about SPSS
SPSS Syntax Examples - syntax for common procedures in SPSS
SAS Syntax Examples - syntax for common procedures in SAS
CTSPedia – Statistics for Clinical and Translational Research
Statistics Toolkit – quick reference sheet on the assumptions of common statistical tests
Statistics for the Terrified - September 2008 presentation to Quantitative Methods course

Didn’t find your answer here? Try the print resources available in the CNR lab

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University of Colorado College of Nursing

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