Course Description 

Anthropological, psychological, political, social, and economic arguments and knowledge frequently depend on the use of numerical data. An anthropologist might examine how population differences in genes explain population differences in health outcomes; a psychologist might hypothesize that I.Q. is attributable to environmental or genetic factors; a politician might claim that handgun control legislation will reduce crime; a sociologist might assert that social mobility is more limited in the United States than in other countries, and an economist might declare that globalization lowers the incomes of U.S. workers. How can we evaluate these issues and arguments? Using examples from anthropology, psychology, sociology, political science, and economics, students will examine how social science methods and statistics help us understand the social world. The goal is to become critical consumers of quantitative material that appears in scholarship, the media, and everyday life.  

This course has two primary goals: (1) to provide students with analytical tools that will help them to understand how political scientists do research, and (2) to improve students’ ability to pose and answer research questions on their own.  

Course Learning Goals  

• Understand quantitative models that describe real-world phenomena and recognize limitations of those models;  
• Perform simple mathematical computations associated with a quantitative model and make conclusions based on the results;  
• Program statistical software to perform basic data analysis;  
• Recognize, use, and appreciate mathematical thinking for solving problems that are part of everyday life;  
• Understand the various sources of uncertainty and error in empirical data;  
• Retrieve, organize, and analyze data associated with a quantitative model; and  
• Communicate logical arguments and their conclusions.