Intro to Stats

Question 1

What is the research process? (8 steps)

Answer 1

1. identify the problem
2. evaluate the literature
3. create hypotheses
4. research design
5. describe population
6. data collection
7. data analysis
8. report writing

Question 2

Hypothesis

Answer 2

a proposition or statement whose truth or falsity is capable of being tested

Question 2

define models

Answer 2

a means of simplifying reality so that relationships between variables can be more clearly studied

Question 3

define laws

Answer 3

mathematical statement that describes how something happens under specific conditions and can predict what will happen if those conditions are met

Question 4

define theories

Answer 4

something answers why and it has been tested repeatedly and has so far always been true

Question 5

qualitative data definition

Answer 5

why people do what they do

Question 6

quantitative data definition

Answer 6

facts and frequencies

Question 7

what are the special considerations for spatial data?

Answer 7

• issues of scale
• boundary problem
• spatial sampling procedures
• spatial autocorrelation

Question 8

what are common issues of scale?

Answer 8

MAUP, UGCoP, Ecological Fallacy

Question 9

what is the most common spatial error?

Answer 9

Issues of scale

Question 10

define modifiable areal unit problem (MAUP)

Answer 10

arises when spatial data is aggregated into different aereal unit, which can lead to variations in statistical results depending on the scale or zoning scheme used
- two issues: scale and/or zoning problem

Question 11

what is the scale problem?

Answer 11

occurs when the size of the spatial units changes
- aggregating data at different scales can lead to different analytical results

Question 12

what is the zoning problem?

Answer 12

• arises when boundaries of the spatial units are modified
• different ways of dividing the same area into zones can lead to different analytical outcomes

Question 13

what is the Uncertain Geographic Context Problem (UGCoP)?

Answer 13

when the geographic context is used to study the relationship between environmental exposures and health outcomes is not well-defined or varies

Question 14

what is contextual uncertainty?

Answer 14

geographic context is often assumed to be a fixed area but the relevant context for individuals can vary greatly (e.g. areas chosen for analysis may not accurately reflect where individuals interact with their environment)

Question 15

what is temporal dynamics?

Answer 15

relevant geographic context can change over time

Question 16

what is individual variability?

Answer 16

different individuals might experience their environments differently

Question 17

what is ecological fallacy?

Answer 17

where assumptions about individuals are incorrectly made based on aggregate data

Question 18

what is aggregation bias?

Answer 18

aggregate data masks individual variations

Question 19

what can occur with aggregation bias? give an example

Answer 19

1. loss of detail
2. homogenization of data
   example: A study aggregates income data at the neighborhood level to analyze economic disparities. The resulting average income may not reflect the true economic diversity within the neighborhood. High-income households might skew the average, masking the presence of low-income households.

Question 20

what are incorrect inferences? give an example

Answer 20

• drawing connections about individual behaviors or attributes based on group-level statistics leads to potentially misleading and incorrect conclusions
• based on the high average income in a neighborhood, one might assume that every resident is wealthy, ignoring presence of low-income individuals

Question 21

what are possible solutions to ecological fallacy?

Answer 21

• individual data collection
• multilevel model
• robustness check (different levels of aggregation)

Question 22

contextual uncertainty, temporal dynamics, individual variability, and ecological fallacy all fall under what spatial problem?

Answer 22

UGCoP

Question 23

what is the boundary problem?

Answer 23

the issues that arise when defining and analyzing spatial data across arbitrary borders or boundaries

Question 24

what are edge effects?

Answer 24

occur when the boundaries of the study area affect the analysis of spatial data (data near the edges may be influenced by factors outside the study area

Question 25

what is an example of edge effects?

Answer 25

species distributions near the boundary of a protected area might be affected by land use practices outside the boundary, skewing population estimates

Question 26

what are artificial boundaries? give an example

Answer 26

- human-made lines that may not correspond to natural or social phenomena - example: socio-economic data collected by administrative units like census tracts may not align with actual community boundaries, leading to misleading conclusions about social patterns

Question 27

what are possible solutions to the boundary problem?

Answer 27

- buffer zone - spatial smoothing spatial hierarchical mode

Question 28

what is spatial autocorrelation

Answer 28

the correlation of a variable with itself through space. measures how much nearby or neighboring locations resemble each other

Question 29

positive spatial autocorrelation

Answer 29

occurs when similar values cluster together in space - e.g. high property values clustered in affluent neighborhoods

Question 30

negative spatial autocorrelation

Answer 30

occurs when dissimilar values are found near each other - e.g. industrial areas with high pollution levels next to residential areas with low pollution levels

Question 31

what does no spatial autocorrelation mean?

Answer 31

when the spatial distribution of values is random, showing no discernible pattern