UNAIR NEWS – Institute for Innovation, Journal Development, Publishing and Intellectual Property Rights (LIPJPHKI) Universitas Airlangga (UNAIR) held a webinar on Thursday, March 9, 2023. The webinar, “ Essentials of Statistics for Researchers, “was held online via Airmeet.

“Statistics is a key element of every journal. When we discuss journal submissions, we look at the experimental designs to find out whether the statistics are correct, whether the researchers have explored the data as a whole, and whether the methods used are correct,” said Dr. Jacob Wickham as the guest speaker when opening the webinar.

He also explained that statistics is a quantitative understanding of a phenomenon. Statistical data, he continued, can be obtained through statistical analysis. The statistical analysis aims to estimate conclusions and classify the obtained data. Furthermore, the speaker also conveyed several ways of measuring data, including nominal scales, ordinal scales, interval scales, and ratio scales.

“In reality, data measurement is based on qualitative or quantitative methods,” explained the Managing Editor of The Journal Integrative Zoology.

He added that understanding and describing data distribution can be done by summarizing the data using tables, graphs, histograms, and scatter plots. Then, this step is followed by a selection of the appropriate data interval.

“After the visualization process is complete, it is followed by the data checking,” he said.

The process, he continued, includes checking the normality and homoscedasticity of the data, forming hypotheses, determining the significance level, and calculating probability values. He also emphasized avoiding the interpretation of data findings based on significant or non-significant only.

“Because all research involves opportunity risk. You have to be careful because not all correlation means causation,” he added.

Furthermore, the speaker revealed that good research objectivity includes participants, exposure/intervention, comparison, results, and time. According to him, it is also essential to choose a statistical test and understand the visualization of the distribution of research data.

“If you want to determine the parameters in research, then it is important to calculate probability values. The research question must also be clear to ensure the statistical test follows the logic. Use precise data measurements to increase the accuracy and precision of your research,” he concluded.

Author: Widiasih Fatmarani

Editor: Nuri Hermawan