Detective Work on Statistics Street: Teaching Statistics through Humorous Analogy

Abstract

Undergraduate students routinely react to the statistics component of a psychology course with trepidation. This paper reports the outcome of an initiative designed to increase students' comprehension and enjoyment of statistics. The analogy of police detective work was used to illuminate the process of statistical reasoning, distributed to students in the form of a handout written in a non-technical, humorous style. In Study 1, feedback from 129 students, enrolled in either the second or third year of a psychology degree, was examined systematically to determine in what ways this innovative approach enhanced student understanding. In Study 2, performance of 318 students on course assignments associated with the handout was examined. Results showed significant improvements in performance for those who had received the handout, as compared to those who had not. These outcomes provide empirical support for the arguments of a growing number of textbook authors who advocate the use of non-traditional approaches to the teaching of statistics at the undergraduate level.