Sport Statistics

Aims:
This subject aims to provide students with the statistical knowledge and skills to support their concurrent and future studies and to teach students advance procedures available in the statistical package SPSS for windows. Students will develop the capacity to carry out and report independent statistical investigations, together with an awareness of the assumptions and limitations involved with the generalisation of results of such investigations. In particular this subject guides students through the key statistical techniques used to evaluate performance, predictions and statistical analyses relating to sport. Real-life sport examples will be used to illustrate relevant statistical concepts and methods.

 

Learning Objectives:
After successfully completing this unit, you should be able to:

• Understand basic concepts in probability and the definition of probability as it applies to random events and uncertain evidence in sport.

• Apply and compare different monitoring and forecasting techniques in the context of sports performance.

• Understand the use of cluster analysis in the sporting context

• Be able to deal with missing and censored data in a sporting context and know how to analyse such data.

• Construct and use relevant scales for modelling and clustering purposes.

Learning and Teaching Methods:
Weekly lectures (2 hour), labs (2 hours) and independent study oronline equivalent.

 

Sports examples will be used to illustrate the usefulness of important statistical methods in this context. This will be done in lectures, computer labs and in all the assessment tasks including the exam.

 

Assessment tasks will be designed using sports data to ensure that students can:-

• Make a clear statement of the objectives of a study

• Specify and classify the variables of interest in a study according to their level of measurement

• Choose and conduct an appropriate statistical analysis using SPSS software

• Use the outcomes of the data analysis to answer the research question

• State the limitations of a study

• Suggest directions for further investigations as a result of a study

• Write a research report

Quizzes (25%),
Test (25%),

Examination (50%)

The graduate attributes which relate to this unit help to produce graduates who:

Are capable in their chosen professional areas

Students will attain statistical knowledge and skills that will support their professional careers. This will include abilities in critical enquiry and report writing, an awareness of the relationship between statistical theory and practice and an appreciation of the strengths and limitations of statistical models.

 

Are adaptable and manage change
Statistical and research skills are an integral part of studies in the social sciences and other disciplines. Such skills enable students to investigate problems and issues of their own choosing as well as those covered in this subject.

  

Are aware of environments

Using appropriate research designs and technology will be an important part of this subject and will assist students to develop a socially responsible awareness of the role of research in society. The development of statistical and research skills will contribute to students being able to critically evaluate the implications of research on economic, social or environmental planning and policy decisions.

• Module 1: Probability Theory in Sport

• Module 2: Monitoring and Forecasting Performance in Sport

• Module 3: Handling missing and censored data in a sport/exercise context

• Module 4: Constructing and Using Relevant Scales for Clustering and Modelling Purposes