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A Step-By-Step Introduction to Statistics for Business
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A Step-By-Step Introduction to Statistics for Business

Second Edition
Additional resources:


December 2018 | 496 pages | SAGE Publications Ltd

A clear and concise introduction to statistics for business and management students, demonstrating how important statistics are in the business decision-making process and covering everything from conducting a survey and collecting data, to summarizing statistical data, and presenting findings.

Each chapter features a real-world business situation and accompanying dataset, the reader is then encouraged to identify the correct statistical concept in the chapter and solve the problem outlined. Offering students a chance to use the newly learned theory in a practical way.

New to the second edition:

  • A “Review of Essential Mathematics” prologue, featuring tests and further links to help students refresh their knowledge of the core mathematical concepts used to calculate basic statistics.
  • Updated screenshots on using IBM SPSS and Excel.
  • A “Statistics in the Real World” feature included at the end of each chapter, demonstrating how statistics are applied in real-world business settings and research, accompanied by reflective questions.
  • Updated case studies, examples and diagrams, illustrating key points and helping to reinforce learning.

The book is accompanied by free online resources including step-by-step video tutorials on how to use Excel and IBM SPSS, datasets and worked solutions, an Instructors’ Manual, Testbank, and PowerPoint presentation slides for lecturers.

Essential reading for business students wanting to know how to use statistics in a business setting.

 
Prologue: Review of Essential Mathematics
 
Part 1. Descriptive Statistics
 
Chapter 1. The Language of Statistics
 
Chapter 2. Working with Numbers and Data Display
 
Chapter 3. Central Tendency and Variability
 
Chapter 4. Probability Distributions
 
Chapter 5. Sampling Distributions
 
Part 2. Inferential Statistics
 
Chapter 6. Estimation and Confidence Intervals
 
Chapter 7. Hypothesis Testing
 
Chapter 8. z-Tests and One-Sample t-Tests
 
Chapter 9. Paired- and Independent-Samples t-Test
 
Chapter 10. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)
 
Chapter 11. Chi-Squared (x2) Tests of Fit
 
Chapter 12. Correlation and Regression
 
Part 3 Wrap-Up
 
Chapter 13. Matching Statistical Tests to Business Problems
 
A1. z-Table
 
A2. t-Table
 
A3. F-Table (cx = 0.5)
 
A4. F-Table (cx = .01)
 
A5. X2-Table (chi-squared)
 
B1. Inferential Test Reference Table
 
B2. Inferential Test Decision Tree
 
C. Glossary
 
D. Statistical Notation and Formulas
 
E. Enabling Excel’s Data Analysis Add-In

Supplements

Click for online resources

Student resources:

  • Data Skill Challenges
  • Datasets
  • Glossary Flashcards
  • ‘Stats in the Real World’ Weblinks
  • ‘Test Yourself’ Answers
  • Tutorial Videos

Lecturer resources:

  • Instructor’s Manual
  • PowerPoints slides
  • Lecturer Testbank
  • Test Questions and
  • Figures and Tables


Richard N. Landers has written an excellent text. Put simply, A Step-by-Step Guide to Statistics for Business needs to be core reading for all students undertaking statistics as part of a Business or Management programme. Landers writes in an accessible and easy-to-follow style, which leads the reader from basic numeracy to inferential statistics.


David Gilding
Lifelong Learning Centre, University of Leeds

This book is good for students who want to study statistics at the beginner's level. The only thing is when i saw the name of the book called step-by-step, i thought this book would be structured across the whole process of empirical quantitative research. It turns out that it doesn't refer to step-by-step for research design but step-by-step for using SPSS to run tests. It could be me with limited English language understanding.

Dr Yujie Hu
Faculty of Business, Leeds University
August 23, 2019

IT'S A VERY GOOD BOOK FOR THE STUDENTS ON INTRODUCTORY LEVEL.

Dr YISHUANG XU
School of Planning and Landscape, Manchester University
September 9, 2019

The course will be suspended to be re-introduced due to COVID. Nevertheless, it was well written and explained about the statistical concept and suggested as a reference.

Dr Noriko Cable
Dept of Epidemiology & Public Health, University College London
May 6, 2020

I am using it for the first time, so we have only gotten to chapter 3. So far a FABULOUS book with excellent support resources!

Professor Kai-Markus Mueller
Faculty of Business and Management, Furtwangen University of Applied Sciences
October 9, 2019

A useful introduction for non-specialists in maths/stats. Very clear 'step by step': the title says it..!

Professor Colin McCulloch
International Finance and Management, Pyongyang University of Science And Technology
September 5, 2019

Sample Materials & Chapters

Chapter 4: Probability Distributions