SPSS Companion to Political Analysis

This popular companion volume gets students using actual political data, and working with a software tool that fittingly prepares them for future political science courses. A no-nonsense introduction to SPSS, the workbook utilizes over 110 screen shots to provide step-by-step instruction and advice on using the statistics program most utilized by today's political scientists. With updated customized datasets, this workbook equips students to analyze real political science research. The second edition has been updated for SPSS 12.0 and 13.0, but also accommodates users of 11.0 and student versions.

The CD-ROM includes five datasets: Two individual-level survey datasets (the 2000 National Election Study and the 2002 General Social Survey, scaled down for the classroom), two datasets containing aggregate-level variables (on the fifty states and on 114 nations of the world), and a dataset that measures partisanship, voting behavior, and ideology of members of the United States Senate. Each chapter contains several guided examples using the datasets and concludes with comprehensive, practical exercises providing students the opportunity to apply their new skills to substantive political issues.

Philip H. Pollock III received a PhD from the University of Minnesota and is professor of political science at the University of Central Florida. He has taught courses in research methods at the undergraduate and graduate levels for over twenty-five years. His main research interests are American public opinion, voting behavior, and interest groups. His recent research has been on the effectiveness of Internet-based teaching. His research has appeared in the American Journal of Political Science, Social Science Quarterly, British Journal of Political Science, and the Journal of Political Science Education. Pollock is also the co-author of a book on the role of political action committees in congressional elections.