A Step-by-Step Guide to SPSS for Sport and Exercise Studies
2002; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; Volume: 34; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1097/00005768-200201000-00030
ISSN1530-0315
Autores Tópico(s)Physical Education and Pedagogy
ResumoA Step-by-Step Guide to SPSS for Sport and Exercise Studies Author: Ntoumanis, Nikos , Bibliographic Data: (ISBN: 0-415-24978-3, Taylor & Francis Inc., 2001, $27.95. Imprint: Routledge.) 253 pages, soft cover. Subjects: Sports Medicine, Biostatistics , Reviewed by: Matthew J. Robinson, EdD , (University of Delaware) DESCRIPTION: This book offers a basic understanding of the SPSS statistical program and how it can be used within the discipline of sport and exercise study. It demonstrates how SPSS can be used to carry out statistical tests commonly used in the field and how to use the various features of SPSS to analyze and report data. PURPOSE: The purpose is to fill a clear gap in the literature by providing an SPSS guide with sport and exercise-specific examples. It is intended for sport and exercise study students with only a basic understanding of statistics and does not claim to be a comprehensive guide to SPSS. These objectives are worthy, and the book would serve its purpose if it was used as a companion text in a sport and exercise study research methodology or statistics course, for it would enable the professor to require students to use SPSS to complete assignments and projects that would require data analysis and reporting. The book meets the author’s objective in that the examples are applicable to the discipline and therefore easier to understand for the reader. AUDIENCE: According to the author, the book is written for students in the field who are being introduced to statistics. I think the book also is useful for anyone already in the field who uses the SPSS program. I can see the book as one that a researcher keeps near his or her computer and refers to in order to answer questions, clarify directions, or assist in determining the most effective utilization of SPSS. The author appears to be a credible authority based on the fact he obviously has used SPSS in his research and has a strong academic and research background in sport and exercise study. FEATURES: The book introduces SPSS as a statistical program and shows how one can use it in terms of data entry and handling. The book also presents an overview of the statistical tests SPSS can complete and how the results can be presented in tables, charts, and graphs. It does an effective job of offering the steps to follow in order to use the SPSS program and presents good screen shots of how data and graphs and charts appear within the package. The index and table of contents are both effective in assisting the reader find relevant material. There are times where the author makes references to a figure or dialog box that is located several pages away, which could prove frustrating to a reader. Perhaps this could be addressed by using a bigger size page so that the tables and figure can be closer in the text. ASSESSMENT: This is a worthwhile contribution to the literature that will prove useful to students as well as aspiring researchers just being introduced to the SPSS statistical program. The fact that sport and exercise examples are used make it more useful to the user than the SPSS guides or statistics books that use examples from outside the discipline. It should be noted that the author uses version 10 of SPSS, commenting that the book would be applicable for version 7 and up. If the SPSS program would change significantly in future versions, the book could become outdated. SCORE: Weighted Numerical Score: 91 - ****
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