SigmaAnalytics & Tech

Describing data

Table 1, charts nobody's embarrassed by, and the normality check that decides what test comes next.

Beginner3 modules1h 30m of videoCertificate

3 modules from the SPSS & Research Methods curriculum. Covers descriptive statistics, presentation-ready charts, and the normality checks that decide your next move.

What you'll learn

By the end of this course

  • Build a Table 1 and choose the right descriptive statistics for each variable type
  • Make charts in SPSS that don't look like default SPSS output
  • Check whether your data meets the normality assumption, and know what to do if it doesn't

About this course

Describing data is the short bridge between having a clean dataset and running your first real test. It covers the summary table every paper needs, charts that don't look like default SPSS output, and the normality check that tells you whether a parametric test is even on the table.

Three modules, about an hour and a half total. Descriptive statistics and Table 1 is the entry point; charts and normality checks both build directly on it.

This track picks up right where Data preparation and Research foundations leave off — it assumes clean data and a working grasp of variable types, not raw data straight out of a survey tool.

Who it's for

  • Anyone who's cleaned their dataset and needs to describe it before testing anything
  • People whose SPSS charts so far all look like SPSS charts
  • Researchers who need to know if their data can take a parametric test before they run one

What you'll need

  • Variables and levels of measurement (Track A) and clean data (Track B) — this track assumes both are already done
  • Access to SPSS

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