ABSTRACT

This chapter discusses the basic concepts in applied statistics applicable to the analysis of quantitative data derived from sports coaching research. Sample data are typically described using two statistics: a statistic that describes the average person and a statistic that describes the variability around this average. Diagnostics are used to check that the statistical test is a useful one with respect to the accuracy of the results. The chapter states that the main purpose of applied statistics is to examine and summarize the variability in data. The applied statistical techniques are employed in published research to analyze quantitative data in the science of sports coaching. Questionnaires, interviews, and observational analyses are methods of data collection consistently utilized within research. Quantitative analysis of data derived from questionnaires can use descriptive statistics to report specific information on the sample from which the data were derived.