Empirical Research: Statistical Software & Instruction

Statistical Software

Websites

Books

Journals

Articles

There are a variety of software packages available for use in statistical analysis.  Below, we list some resources that will assist the beginner.

STATA:

Stata is a general multi-purpose statistical software package, often used in empirical legal studies.   The most up-to-date version is Stata 15.

• The Stata website includes information on Stata's features, resources available to users and training courses.
• There is a Stata Blog including product announcements and tips. 
• UCLA Academic Technology Services has created some very useful resources on Stata including:
  • The Stata Starter Kit
  • Notes from an introductory class on Stata 15
  • FAQs about Stata 
  • Regression with Stata
  • An introduction to programming with Stata
  • A guide on choosing the correct statistical test for a given situation 
  
  

SPSS:

SPSS is a popular statistical software package amongst social science researchers.  The most up-to-date version is SPSS v. 25.  SPSS v.25 is available at Fordham University Computing Centers.

• The SPSS website provides information on training opportunities.
• UCLA Academic Technology Services has created some very useful resources on SPSS including: 
• An Introduction to SPSS 
• Graphics with SPSS
• Regression with SPSS
• Texas A&M University's Statistics Department has some short tutorials on SPSS

SAS:

SAS is strong in data management and the analysis of variance (ANOVA). It has a reputation for being challenging to use.  The most up-to-date version is SAS v. 9.4. 

• The SAS website.  
• UCLA Academic Technology Services has created some very useful resources on SAS including:  
• Introduction to SAS with notes and movies 
• Graphics using SAS 
• Regression with SAS 
• Introduction to SAS from the University of Texas.

Back to Top

• What Statistical Test do I Use? A quick guide from UCLA's Insitute for Digital Research and Education that helps you to determine what statistical test to use, depending on the type of variables you are working with.

• Duke Law's Empirical Training Page offers some mini-classes on certain aspects of empirical research such as coding and surveys.

• UCLA's Academic Technology Services offers a number of instructional resources on using different statistical software

• Access to the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) is available through Fordham University.  ICPSR offers  teaching modules on topics such as analysis and interpretation of data and literature reviews.  There are also webinars on a variety of topics.

• Data Management Plans: Stanford's website provides guidance for the creation of a data management plan (DMP), which describes, among other things, the data you will acquire and how you will analyze, store, share, and preserve your data.   DMP Online, a tool developed by the UK Digital Curation Centre, also provides templates for DMPs.

Back to Top

• Acock, Alan C. A Gentle Introduction to Stata, 3rd ed.  College Station, Texas: Stata Press, 2010. QA276.45 S73 A36 2010 
• Cody, Ron. SAS Statistics by Example.  Cary, NC: SAS Pub., 2011.  Available online through Fordham University Libraries
• Hamilton, Lawrence C. Statistics with Stata: Updated for Version 12. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning, 2013.  Available online through Fordham University Libraries. 
• Kulas, John T. SPSS Essentials: Managing and Analyzing Social Sciences Data.  San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 2009.  Available through Fordham University Libraries.
• Long, J. Scott. The Workflow of Data Analysis Using Stata. College Station, Texas: Stata Press, 2009. QA276.45 .S73 L66 2009

• Marques de Sa, J.P.  Applied Statistics: using SPSS, STATISTICA, MATLAB and R, 2nd ed. New York: Springer, 2007.  

Back to Top

• The Journal of Statistical Software is a free on-line journal containing articles, book and software reviews.   
• Journal of Official Statistics: published by the national statistical office of Sweden, this open access journal publishes articles on collection, processing and analysis of statistics.
• Journal of Applied Statistics: articles on the use of statistics in a wide range of disciplines including business, computing, economics, medicine and education. This journal can be accessed through Fordham University Library.

• Journal of Time Series Analysis: publishes peer-reviewed articles on both theory and applications, as well as communications on theoretical developments.  Available through Fordham University Library.

• Probability and Statistics: publishes original research and survey papers in the area of probability and statistics.  Fields covered include finance and econometrics.
• The Stata Journal: publishes articles about statistics, data analysis, and using and teaching Stata.

Back to Top

• Alan Acock, "SAS, Stata, SPSS: A Comparison" in 67 Journal of Marriage and Family 1093 (November 2005).

• K Pearson, "On the criterion that a given system of deviations from the probable in the case of a correlated system of variables is such that it can be reasonably supposed to have arisen from random sampling" in 50 Philosophical Magazine Series 5 157-175 (1900).

Back to Top