What accounts for who votes and their choice of candidate? Do
politicians make policy based on constituency interests or their
own
ideologies? Would universal health insurance improve the health
of
the poor? Policy makers and academic researchers use statistics to
answer these questions. However, the validity of their
conclusions
depends upon underlying assumptions and correct application of
statistical methods. This course introduces the basics of applied
statistics to students who have had little previous exposure to
the
subject. Topics will include causal inference, descriptive
inference,
survey analysis, and probability theory.
Download the
syllabus.