Power Analysis

This two-hour short course will introduce students to the concept of power analysis (also known as power calculations), type I and II errors, and how to do power analysis for T test, correlation and analysis of variance. Students should not expect to learn complex power analysis for structural equation modeling, multilevel modeling (the SSRMC offers individual courses on both) in this introductory course (Stata currently does not have commands for these analyses). This course aims to provide an easy and intuitive rationale behind the technique, as well as hands-on practice in how to perform power analysis in Stata.

Power analysis is an important skill for anyone doing statistical research; it is particularly useful when writing a grant proposal, and is sometimes required by funders. It involves calculating the number of observations required to undertake a given statistical analysis. If a sample is too small, significant associations may not be detectable, even though they may be present in the population from which the sample is drawn. Power analysis is useful when:

• You plan to collect data for research, and want to calculate how many subjects are needed
• You need to plan how much time and/or money to allow for a research project
• Your face budget constraints in your research, and need to establish whether the research is feasible
• You are writing a grant proposal which asks for a power calculation

The course is designed to be easily accessible to students at all levels. However, in order to use power analysis, students would need to be familiar with statistical techniques at least up to the level of FiAS and preferably beyond.

Number of sessions: 1

This module is not assessed.

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