Statistics for the Social Sciences A General Linear Model Approach

The chapter on visual models discusses basic ways that scientists create visual representations of their data, including charts and graphs, in order to understand their data better. Like all models, visual models are a simplified version of reality. Two of the visual models discussed in this chapter are the frequency table and histogram. The histogram, in particular, is useful in the shape of the distribution of data, skewness, kurtosis, and the number of peaks. Other visual models in the social sciences include frequency polygons, bar graphs, stem-and-leaf plots, line graphs, pie charts, and scatterplots. All of these visual models help researchers understand their data in different ways, though none is perfect for all situations. Modern technology has resulted in the creation of new ways to visualize data. These methods are more complex, but they provide data analysts with new insights into their data. The incorporation of geographic data, animations, and interactive tools give people more options than ever existed in previous eras.