Understanding Statistics: A Guide for I/O Psychologists and Human Resource Professionals

Written by Michael Aamodt, this primer is designed to provide I/O psychologists and human resource professionals with a brief guide to understanding the statistics they encounter in journal articles, technical reports and conference papers. Major topics covered include statistics that describe data, statistics that test differences between groups, understanding correlation and regression, meta-analysis, factor analysis, and conducting simple analyses with Microsoft Excel.

Michael G. Aamodt (M.A., Ph.D., University of Arkansas) is a Professor Emeritus of industrial/organizational psychology at Radford University in Radford, Virginia. Currently a principal consultant at DCI Consulting Group, he continues to teach a course each semester to fulfill his love of teaching. An award-winning teacher, Mike has taught courses in employee selection, job analysis, compensation, employee training and development, organizational psychology, organizational influence, organizational politics, and forensic psychology. He has published over 50 articles in professional journals and presented many papers at professional conferences. His fast-paced and humorous presentation style makes him a frequently requested speaker. He is the author of APPLIED INDUSTRIAL/ORGANIZATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY (7th Edition), RESEARCH IN LAW ENFORCEMENT SELECTION, I/O PSYCHOLOGY IN ACTION, UNDERSTANDING STATISTICS IN I/O PSYCHOLOGY, and HUMAN RELATIONS IN BUSINESS. He serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, Applied H.R.M. Research, and Criminal Justice and Behavior, and is an active member in such organizations as SIOP, SHRM, IPAC, and the Society for Police and Criminal Psychology. As a trainer and consultant, Mike has helped many organizations deal with such issues as employee selection, performance evaluation, downsizing, organizational change, compensation, and motivation. He is considered one of the nation's experts in police psychology.