Course content

This course gives an introduction to basic concepts and main principles of statistical analyses of empirical data, in addition to theory and application of descriptive measures and analytical methods often used within medical research. The course covers statistical methods for comparing groups with respect to mean values of a continuous variable (T-tests and one-way ANOVA - ANnalysis Of VAriance, alternative non-parametric methods), values of a categorical variable (Chi-square and McNemar’test), and methods for evaluation of linear association between two continuous variables (correlation and simple linear regression analysis). A single measure for quantification of the association between two categorical variables (odds ratio) and methods for evaluation of degree of agreement (equality) in measurements (Kappa coefficient, Bland-Altman plots) are also part of the syllabus of this course.

Learning outcome

Knowledge

After successful completion of this course the student should

• understand the main principles of statistical analyses of empirical data
• have achieved theoretical knowledge about statistical methods covered by this course

Skills

After successful completion of this course the student should be able to

• choose the most appropriate statistical method in view of scientific question of interest, study design and characteristics of the empirical data
• perform statistical analyses of data by means of a statistical program package
• interpret, describe and present results from statistical data analyses

General competence

After completion of this course the student should have

• achieved sufficient theoretical knowledge and practical skills to be able to perform the statistical analyses of data and report results in relation to own research work

Learning methods and activities

Lectures and exercises, including technical work with data analyses (by means of SPSS or STATA). The work with data analyses includes both guided sessions and homework.

Compulsory assignments

• Approved exercises

Recommended previous knowledge

No previous knowledge in medical statistics is needed for this course, but we recommend to complete this course before moving on to courses that cover more advanced statistical methods.

Course materials

Rosner, B: "Fundamentals of Biostatistics", 8th ed. 2015 (might be changed)