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Essential Statistics for Public Managers and Policy Analysts
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Essential Statistics for Public Managers and Policy Analysts

Fourth Edition

Other Titles in:
Public Management

January 2017 | 368 pages | CQ Press

Known for its brevity and student-friendly approach, Essential Statistics for Public Managers and Policy Analysts remains one of the most popular introductory books on statistics for public policy and public administration students, using carefully selected examples tailored specifically for them. The Fourth Edition continues to offer a conceptual understanding of statistics that can be applied readily to the real-life challenges of public administrators and policy analysts. The book provides examples from the areas of human resources management, organizational behavior, budgeting, and public policy to illustrate how public administrators interact with and analyze data.

The text may be paired with the workbook Exercising Essential Statistics, Fourth Edition to help students apply each statistical technique introduced in the text. Click here to see more information about the workbook. Use bundle ISBN: 978-1-5063-7366-9.
 

Available with Perusall—an eBook that makes it easier to prepare for class
Perusall is an award-winning eBook platform featuring social annotation tools that allow students and instructors to collaboratively mark up and discuss their SAGE textbook. Backed by research and supported by technological innovations developed at Harvard University, this process of learning through collaborative annotation keeps your students engaged and makes teaching easier and more effective. Learn more.

 
Tables, Figures, and Boxes
 
Preface
 
Acknowledgments
 
Statistics Roadmap
 
Section I: Introduction
 
Chapter 1 Why Statistics for Public Managers and Policy Analysts?
Chapter Objectives

 
Role of Data in Public Management

 
Competency and Proficiency

 
Ethics in Data Analysis and Research

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Section II: Research Methods
 
Chapter 2 Research Design
Chapter Objectives

 
Introducing Variables and Their Relationships

 
Program Evaluation

 
A Bit More: Extending through Quasi-experimental Design

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Chapter 3 Conceptualization and Measurement
Chapter Objectives

 
Measurement Levels and Scales

 
Conceptualization

 
Operationalization

 
Index Variables

 
Measurement Validity

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Chapter 4 Measuring and Managing Performance: Present and Future
Chapter Objectives

 
Performance Measurement

 
Managing Performance

 
Efficiency, Effectiveness, and a Bit More

 
Peering Into the Future: Forecasting

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Chapter 5 Data Collection
Chapter Objectives

 
Sources of Data

 
Sampling

 
Data Input

 
Putting It Together

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Section III: Descriptive Statistics
 
Chapter 6 Central Tendency
Chapter Objectives

 
The Mean

 
The Median

 
The Mode

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
Appendix 6.1: Using Grouped Data

 
 
Chapter 7 Measures of Dispersion
Chapter Objectives

 
Frequency Distributions

 
Standard Deviation

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
Appendix 7.1: Boxplots

 
 
Chapter 8 Contingency Tables
Chapter Objectives

 
Contingency Tables

 
Relationship and Direction

 
Pivot Tables

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Chapter 9 Getting Results
Chapter Objectives

 
Analysis of Outputs and Outcomes

 
Analysis of Efficiency and Effectiveness

 
Analysis of Equity

 
Quality-of-Life Analysis

 
A Bit of Forecasting, Too

 
Some Cautions in Analysis and Presentation

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
Appendix 9.1: Forecasting with Periodic Effects

 
 
Section IV: Inferential Statistics
 
Chapter 10 Introducing Inference: Estimation from Samples
Chapter Objectives

 
From Sample to Population

 
Statistical Estimation of Population Parameters

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Chapter 11 Hypothesis Testing with Chi-Square
Chapter Objectives

 
What Is Chi-Square?

 
Hypothesis Testing

 
The Goodness-of-Fit Test

 
A Nonparametric Alternative

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
Appendix 11.1: Rival Hypotheses: Adding a Control Variable

 
Appendix 11.2: Some Nonparametric Tests for Specific Situations

 
 
Chapter 12 The T-Test
Chapter Objectives

 
T-Tests for Independent Samples

 
Two T-Test Variations

 
Nonparametric Alternatives to T-Tests

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Chapter 13 Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)
Chapter Objectives

 
Analysis of Variance

 
A Nonparametric Alternative

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Chapter 14 Simple Regression
Chapter Objectives

 
Simple Regression

 
Pearson’s Correlation Coefficient

 
Spearman’s Rank Correlation Coefficient

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Chapter 15 Multiple Regression
Chapter Objectives

 
Model Specification

 
A Working Example

 
Further Statistics

 
Use of Nominal Variables

 
Testing Assumptions

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Section V: Further Statistics
 
Chapter 16 Logistic and Time Series Regression
Chapter Objectives

 
The Logistic Model

 
A Working Example

 
Time Series in Multiple Regression

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Chapter 17 Survey of Other Techniques
Chapter Objectives

 
Path Analysis

 
Statistical Forecasting

 
Survival Analysis

 
Factor Analysis

 
Summary

 
Key Terms

 
 
Appendixes
 
A: Normal Distribution
 
B: Chi-Square (c2) Distribution
 
C: T-Test Distribution
 
D: Durbin-Watson Distribution
 
E: F-Test Distribution
 
Glossary
 
Index
 
About the Authors

Supplements

Instructor Site

Password-protected Instructor Resources include the following:

  • Sample course syllabi for semester and quarter courses provide suggested models for structuring one’s course.
  • A set of all the graphics from the text, including all of the maps, tables, and figures, in PowerPoint, .pdf, and .jpg formats for class presentations.
  • Microsoft® Word test bank, is available containing multiple choice, true/false, short answer, and essay questions for each chapter. The test bank provides you with a diverse range of pre-written options as well as the opportunity for editing any question and/or inserting your own personalized questions to effectively assess students’ progress and understanding.
  • Editable, chapter-specific Microsoft® PowerPoint® slides offer you complete flexibility in easily creating a multimedia presentation for your course. Highlight essential content and features.
  • And much more!

affordability, conciseness, relevance to professional work.

Mr Gwen Urey
Urban/Regional Planning Dept, Cal State Polytechnic-Pomona
August 8, 2019

Sample Materials & Chapters

Chapter 1

Chapter 11


For instructors

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