SPSS; Multiple regression
Before you begin the assignment:
Read Chapter 8 in your Discovering Statistics Using IBM SPSS Statistics
Review the video tutorial for an overview of conducting multiple regression in SPSS.
Access and open the Popularity SPSS data set.
An overview of the data set:
This data set represents hypothetical data from a study that examined how well some core personality traits predict a person’s level of popularity. Personality was measured using the “Big 5,” which is a very commonly used measure of personality. In fact, a Big 5 personality scale was included in the Module Two discussion.
Here is some more information about the variables in this hypothetical data set:
Number: This is the ID number of the participant
Sex: Participants’ sex, with “1” standing for male and “2” standing for female
Age: College year of the participant, with “1” standing for freshman, “2” standing for sophomore, etc.
Popularity: Popularity measured with a questionnaire that could range from 0 to 100, with higher numbers indicating more popularity
Extroversion: A Big 5 trait indicating level of sociability. Scores range from 1 to 5, with high numbers indicating extroverted and low numbers indicating introverted
Agreeableness: A Big 5 trait indicating level of interpersonal warmth and friendliness. Scores range from 1 to 5, with high numbers indicating warmth and low numbers indicating coldness towards others
Conscientiousness: A Big 5 trait indicating level of self-control and responsibility. Scores range from 1 to 5, with high numbers indicating high conscientiousness and low numbers indicating low conscientiousness
Neuroticism: A Big 5 trait indicating level of anxiety and emotional stability. Scores range from 1 to 5, with high numbers indicating high neuroticism and low numbers indicating low neuroticism
Openness: A Big 5 trait indicating level of willingness to try new things and creativity. Scores range from 1 to 5, with high numbers indicating high open-mindedness and low numbers indicating closed-mindedness
Questions:
1) Describe in your own words what type of research situations call for a researcher to use a multiple regression analysis.
2a) Run a basic correlation of matrix for the Popularity, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Neuroticism, and Openness variables.
2b) Based on these results, which personality variables are significantly correlated with Popularity?
3a) Conduct a multiple regression analysis using Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Neuroticism, and Openness as predictors of Popularity.
3b) Which variables are significant predictors of Popularity? Compare and contrast the results from the multiple regression analysis to the basic correlation results from question 2b.
3c) What is the R-squared of this model, and what does it tell us about how well this model predicts Popularity?
3d) Write the results of the multiple regression in APA style. For help, refer to the Regression section in this Reporting Statistics document.
