Statistical Rules of Thumb (Wiley Series in Probability and Statistics) [Paperback]

Gerald van Belle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 22, 2002 | ISBN-10: 0471402273 | ISBN-13: 978-0471402275 | Edition: 1st

Statistics-in one handy reference

Not even the most brilliant statistician can instantly recall every rule and concept that forms the daily bread of statistical work. For every practitioner and student without a photographic memory, here is an eminently practical, easy-to-use, concise sourcebook that puts a broad range of topics instantly at your fingertips.

Sensibly organized for quick reference, Statistical Rules of Thumb compiles simple rules that are widely applicable, robust, and elegant, and that capture key statistical concepts. Explaining the justification for each rule, this handbook also conveys the various possibilities that statisticians must think of when designing and conducting a study or analyzing its data. It provides a framework for considering such aspects of statistical work as:
* Randomness and statistical models
* Sample size
* Covariation
* Epidemiology
* Environmental studies
* Designing, conducting, and analyzing studies
* Words, tables, and graphs
* Consulting


Handy and reliable, this all-in-one reference should be the trusted companion of every statistician.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Good scientists learn early on not to do everything by the book. Respected statistician Gerald Van Belle has compiled the unpublished wisdom of his profession in the invaluable Statistical Rules of Thumb. Those mathematicians involved in statistical work will applaud its clarity and organization, while other scientists will find their experimental design and analysis vastly improved by its suggestions. Each of the 99 rules has a brief introduction, a simple statement of the rule, illustrations, theoretical underpinnings, and extensions. Topics covered include covariation, design, consultation, epidemiology, and data representation. Van Belle is providing Web support for this ongoing project, so we can expect to see even greater breadth and refinement as it develops. --Rob Lightner

Review

"…Gerald van Bell not only has the keys, he also shares them in a wonderfully written little book called--what else?--'Statistical Rules of Thumb'." (College Board AP Central, Teachers' Resources)

"This book documents a substantial selection of …[good practices] wisdom." (Journal of Biopharmaceutical Statistics, 2004)

"...effective in moving statistics from the 'text book' into the 'real world'...text is clear and well-written..." (Mathematics Today, Vol 40(4), August 2004)

"...can be highly recommended to everybody who applied statistics or deals with statistical applications..." (Statistical Papers, Vol. 45(1), Jan 2004)

"...well written and presented...kind of book one can happily dip into and find something of interest..." (Royal Statistical Society, Vol 157(1), 2004)

"A strength of this book is the attempt to provide a justification for each rule." (Journal of Official Statistics, June 2003)

"...great reading...a thought-provoking book...strongly encourage statisticians and researchers to have Statistical Rules of Thumb handy..." (The American Statistician, Vol. 57, No. 2, May 2003)

"...enjoyable and...worthwhile reading for practitioners, consultants, and applied academic statisticians..." (Technometrics, Vol. 45, No. 1, February 2003)

"It is a pleasure to recommend this remarkable book to one and all. For a beginner it is a treasure trove; for an experienced person it can provide new ideas on how better to pursue the subject of applied statistics." (Journal of Quality Technology, Vol. 35, No. 1, January 2003)

"...a welcome addition to the statistical literature..." (Zentralblatt Math, Vol.1011, No.11, 2003)

"...a realistic book that challenges the way that students look at the issues involved with using statistics..." (Short Book Reviews, December 2002)

"...this quick-access guide is intended for the wide audience of students and researchers who deal with statistic in their...work." (SciTech Book News, Vol. 26, No. 2, June 2002)

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 248 pages
• Publisher: Wiley-Interscience; 1st edition (March 22, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471402273
• ISBN-13: 978-0471402275
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,365,250 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb!, September 27, 2002

By 

Harvey Motulsky (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Statistical Rules of Thumb (Wiley Series in Probability and Statistics) (Paperback)

What a great idea. Rather than write a comprehensive text, Dr. VanBelle writes about a large number of statistical topics, focussing on areas that are confusing, or frequently misunderstood. Some of his "rules of thumbs" are approximate formulae for doing quick (but approximate) analyses. Most are more general advice, based on decades of consulting. Topics range from designing studies to making graphs, but most are about data analysis. Something for everyone in a well-written book.

40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Book - though not for the uninitiated, January 9, 2003

By 

"biostatnerd" (Boston, MA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Statistical Rules of Thumb (Wiley Series in Probability and Statistics) (Paperback)

Excellent reference for statisticians. Only two complaints:
1) In many instances, wording is not clear - you have to really pick sentences apart to figure out what the author meant.
2) Reasons for a particular rule sometimes leave you wanting. But at least you're introduced to the concept and can look elsewhere for assistance in understanding.

Also, the title might lead some non-statisticans to think that they can pick this book up and learn how to plug and chug in all sorts of situations. This is not the case.

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great idea, great reference book, January 23, 2008

By 

Michael R. Chernick "statman31147" (Holland PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Statistical Rules of Thumb (Wiley Series in Probability and Statistics) (Paperback)

Gerald van Belle is a biostatistician and professor at the University of Washington. He has coauthored an excellent text on biostatistics with Lloyd Fisher. In this delightful and clearly written text van Belle provides 99 rules of thumb based on his vast experience as a consultant and researcher in statistics and biostatistics. For a statistician or a student of statistics along with the term "rule of thumb" one thinks of the three sigma rule or the use of range divided by sample size as a quick estimate of standard error of the mean. But this text is much more than a compilation of such simple rules. Professor van Belle organizes the book into topical chapters on sample size determination, covariation, epidemiology, environmental studies, design, conduct and analysis of experiments, tables and graphics, and consulting. Each rule is put into proper context and is justified with mathemetical theorems or empirical evidence.
Some of the rules are more like guidance for proper approaches to problems. For example in reviewing the basics in chapter 1 van Belle discusses the linear model in terms of the key assumptions of independence, equal variance and normality. The rule of thumb in section 1.4 states that assumptions should be considered in the order (1) independence, (2) equal variance and (3) normality. Van Belle explains this order by showing that the inferences are far more sensitive to violations in the independence assumption than in either the assumption of equal variance or the assumption of normality. As a statistician, I am aware of the sensitivity to correlation and the fact that variances need to differ by a factor of nearly four before results are seriously affected. Also when the data do not fit the normal distribution we have the nonparametric alternatives based on ranks. Nevertheless,in practice it is easiest and routine to test normality first, variances second and correlation becomes an afterthought. In some situations this may be okay since we may have good reason to believe that the observations were generated independently. But the rule is a good practical guidance. If you question all three assumptions it makes sense to test them in the order van Belle is suggesting.

Other practical advice of this type include the following rules of thumb:
1. Start with the Poisson to model incidence or prevalence.
2. Begin with the exponential model for time to event data.
3. Begin with two exponentials to compare two survival distributions.
4. Begin with the lognormal distribution in environmental studies.

These rules are not meant to suggest that simple models always work or even that they work in the majority of case. It is just that it is best to start simple and let the analysis and diagnostics tell you when more complicated models are needed.

This book will be a great guide for statistical practitioners and a terrific reference for professional and consulting statisticians. The references suppoting the rules are as valuable as the rules themselves.