Estimation and Confidence Intervals
To complete this assignment, you will need to use SPSS for Windows to analyze the data from the 2006 General Social Survey. (SPSS is available in Anspach 251, at the Woldt computer lab, and in the library.) The data for the assignment are in the big file GSS2006.sav.
1. What is the sampling error (or margin of error) assuming 95% confidence for the 2006 General Social Survey. The N=4,510. (When you do not know p, assume it is .50.)
2. What is the sampling error (or margin of error) assuming 99% confidence for the 2006 General Social Survey. The N=4,510. (When you do not know p, assume it is .50.)
3. Now, calculate the mean number of hours that respondents spend on the Internet in a week. The variable's NAME is simply WWWHRS. What is the number of hours that the typical American adult in 2006 spends on the Internet per week?
4. What is the standard error for number of hours spent on the Internet in a week? Either calculate this by hand or have SPSS do it!
5. What is the confidence interval, assuming a 95% confidence level, for the average number of hours that American adults spend on the Internet in a week in 2006 ?
6. Summarize in English what this confidence interval tells you about the average number of hours that the population of American adults spends on the Internet in a week in 2006.
7. Now, find a dependent variable that interests you and turn it into a nominal variable with only two categories. Your variable may already be like this!! If NOT, then recode your dependent variable so that it has two and only two categories. Create a Frequency and Percentage Distribution for this recoded variable (with two and only two categories). Give the table a complete title and add the source.
8. What is the margin of error (the sampling error) assuming a 95% confidence level for your recoded dependent variable? (Note: You need to compute the standard error in order to create the margin of error.)
9. Summarize in English what this confidence interval tells you about the population of American adults in terms of your dependent variable.
10. Now, find one independent variable (that might affect your dependent variable) and turn it into a nominal variable with only two categories. Your variable may already be like this!! If NOT, then recode this independent variable so that it has two and only two categories. Create a Frequency and Percentage Distribution for this recoded variable (with two and only two categories). Give the table a complete title and add the source.
11. What is the confidence interval assuming 99% confidence for your recoded independent variable?
12. Summarize in English what this confidence interval tells you about the population of American adults in terms of your independent variable.
The final three questions are from your textbook, Chapter 8
13. Question 2 on page 262: part a, part b, and part c.
14. Question 10, on page 264.
15. Question 14, on page 265: part a and part b
This assignment is due on Tuesday, November 3.