The value of variance is emphasized, and the element of design, frequently not adequately understood, is clarified to underscore the importance of variance to the researcher. Two analytic methods, analysis of variance (ANOVA) and multiple regression, are discussed in terms of how each uses/applies variance. Advantages and major difficulties with…

A growing controversy surrounds the strict interpretation of statistical significance tests in social research. Statistical significance tests fail in particular to provide estimates for the stability of research results. Methods that do provide such estimates are known as invariance or cross-validation procedures. Invariance analysis is largely…

A dichotomous dependent variable is used to determine a combination of variables that will predict group membership. Dichotomous variables are frequently encountered in multiple regression analysis. However, several textbooks question the appropriateness of using multiple regression analysis when analyzing dichotomous dependent variables. The…

Data from the areas of job satisfaction and job stress are used to illustrate the following points: (1) that measurements can be arranged conceptually along a continuum from the specific to the global (or general); (2) that scales can be constructed which represent different levels of generality, within the same content area; (3) that such scales…