ECN3971, STATISTICS APPLIED TO ECONOMICS I

Dr. ALI R. MOSHTAGH

2371 COLEMAN HALL

(217) 581 - 2916

DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS

amoshtagh@eiu.edu

OFFICE HOURS: 9:00 - 10:00 am MWF, 8:30 - 9:20 TR

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

Measures of central tendency and dispersion, statistical distributions, regression, and hypothesis testing with applications to economics.

I. INTRODUCTION

• What is Statistics
• The Role of Statistics in Business Decision Making
• Basic Concepts of Statistics

II. DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS

• Discrete and Continuous Variables
• Measures of Central Tendency and Variability
• Uses of Descriptive Statistics
• Using Microsoft® Excel

III. DATA SUMMARIZATION

• Frequency Distributions
• Graphical Description of Grouped Data
• Correlation and Covariance
• Simple Linear Regression

IV. INTRODUCTION TO PROBABILITY DISTRIBUTIONS

• Sample Space and Events
• Methods of Assigning Probablities
• Probability Rules
  • Example
• Counting Techniques

V. DISCRETE PROBABILITY DISTRIBUTIONS

• Probability Distributions and Expected Values
• The Binomial Distribution
• The Hypergeometric Distribution
• The Poisson Distribution

VI. CONTINUOUS PROBABILITY DISTRIBUTIONS

• Properties of Continuous Variable Distributions
• The Uniform Distribution
• The Normal Distribution
• The Standard Normal Distribution
• The Normal Distribution Approximation for Binomial Distribution

VII. SAMPLING DISTRIBUTIONS

• Simple Random Sampling and Related Sampling Methods
• Sampling Distribution of the Sample Mean
• The Central Limit Theorem
• Sampling Distribution of a Sample Proportion
• Sampling Distribution of the Sample Variance

VIII. ESTIMATION

• Confidence Intervals for the Mean: Population Variance Known
• Confidence Intervals for the Mean: Population Variance Unknown
• Choosing the Sample Size
• Confidence Intervals for the Population Proportion
• Confidence Intervals for the Differences Between Means of Two Normal Populations
• Confidence Intervals for the Differences Between Two Population Proportions

IX. HYPOTHESIS TESTING

• Procedures for Hypothesis Testing
• Tests of the Mean of a Normal Distribution
• Tests for the Population Proportion
• Tests of the Variance of a Normal Distribution
• Tests for the Difference Between Two Population Means
• Testing of the Equality of the Variances Between Two Normally Distributed Populations
• Assessing the Power of a Test

X. REGRESSION AND CORRELATION

• Correlation Analysis
• The Simple Linear Regression Model
• Least Squares Corfficient Estimators
• Coefficient of Determination, R-Squared
• Prediction

 GRADE POLICY:

Your grades will be based on the accumulated total of your scores on the following:

• EXAM ONE: Mon., 17 February, 2014
• EXAM TWO: Wed., 26 March, 2014

FINAL EXAM = 100 Points

• FINAL EXAM: Tuesday, May 6, 2014, 12:30 pm - 2:30 pm

TOTAL = 350 Points

GRADING SCALE:

The following grading scale will be used to assign letter grades for the course:

• A: 90% of 350 points or more
• B: 80% to 89.99% of 350 points
• C: 70% to 79.99% of 350 points
• D: 60% to 69.99% of 350 points
• F: Below 60% of 350 points

NOTE 1:

No EXAM grade will be eliminated. No EXAM will be made up unless arrangements have been made PRIOR TO THE SCHEDULED EXAM DATE. Late assignments will NOT be accepted.

NOTE 2:

If you have a documented disability and wish to receive academic accommodations, please contact the Coordinator of the Office of Disability Services (581-6583) as soon as possible.

NOTE 3:

"Each faculty member has the authority to establish the conditions for student cell phone use in his/her classroom. These conditions are at the discretion of the faculty member, but will provide that a university-initiated campus security text message can be received and disseminated to those in the classroom in a timly manner." Eastern position on cell phones in classrooms.

TEXTBOOKS:

Statistics for Business and Economics by Paul Newbold, William Carlson and Betty Thorne, Sixth Edition, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, 2007, http://www.prenhall.com/newbold

EVEN YOU CAN LEARN STATISTICS - A GUIDE FOR EVERYONE WHO HAS BEEN AFRAID OF STATISTICS by David M. Levine and David F. Stephan, Second Edition, Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as FT Press, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, 2010.

YOU MUST BRING YOUR BOOKS TO CLASS. PLEASE!

SPECIAL DATES IN THE SPRING TERM 2014 CALENDAR

Classes Begin: January 13, 2014

M.L. King's Brithday Observance-No Classes: January 20

Last Day to Drop a Course With No Grade: January 27

W for Course Withdrawal Beings: January 28

Lincoln's Birthday Observance-No Classes: February 14

Mid Term: March 6

Spring Recess: March 10 - 14

Last Day to Withdraw from a Course or University with W: April 4

Final Examinations: May 5 - 9

Deadline to Return Books/TRS/No Fine 3 p.m. May 9