Eco 72
 
 

Introduction to
Statistics

Professor Tavis Barr
 

Syllabus






Textbook: McClave, Benson and Sincich, Statistics for Business and Economics. Textbook is recommended only; the course will be based on online slide material.


  1. Introduction to Working with Data (MB&S Chapter 1)

    • Sample vs. Population Data
    • Descriptive vs. Inferential Statistics
    • Discrete and Continuous Variables
    • Category, Ordered, and Quantitative Variables
    • Course Outline and Requirements

  2. Measures of Central Tendency (MB&S Ch. 2)

    • Mean: Advantages and Disadvantages
    • Median: Advantages and Disadvantages
    • Mode: Advantages and Disadvantages

  3. Measures of Dispersion (MB&S Ch. 2)

    • Range: Advantages and Disadvantages
    • Mean Absolute Deviation: Advantages and Disadvantages
    • Variance: Advantages and Disadvantages
    • Standard Deviation; Rule of Thumb; Chebyshev's Theorem
    • Inter-Quartile Range
    • Skewness

  4. Probability Theory (MB&S Ch. 3)

    • Review of Set Theory
    • Probability Functions and the Laws of Probability
    • <>Rules:
      • <>Combined Probability and Mutually Exclusive Events
      • <>Conditional Probability and Independence
      • <>Joint Probability
        • <>
    • Combinations and Permutations

  5. Discrete Random Variables (MB&S Ch. 4)
    • Random Variables as Functions
    • Mean, Variance, Median, Mode
      of a Random Variable
    • The Binomial Distribution
    • The Poisson Distribution

  6. Continuous Random Variables and the Normal Distribution (MB&S Ch. 5)

    • The PDF and the CDF
    • The Standard Normal Distribution
    • The General Normal Distribution
    • Normal Approximation to the Binomial

  7. The Central Limit Theorem (MB&S Ch. 6)
    • The Law of Large Numbers
    • The Central Limit Theorem
    • Unknown Population Variance

  8. Confidence Intervals (MB&S Ch. 7)
    • Large-Sample Mean
    • Small-Sample Mean
    • Sample Proportion

  9. One-Sample Hypothesis Tests (MB&S Ch. 8)
    • Large-Sample Mean
    • Small Sample Mean
    • Sample Proportion

  10. Two-Sample Hypothesis Tests (MB&S Ch. 9)
    • Independent Sample Means
    • Paired Dependent Samples
    • Independent Sample Proportions

  11. Univariate Linear Regression

    • Covariance and Correlation
    • Testing for Zero Correlation
    • The Regression Coefficient and its Interpretations
    • Quantifying Relationships: R-Squared, Hypothesis Testing