Objectives
This assessment addresses Unit Learning Outcomes 1, 2 & 3

€¢ Discriminate the most appropriate descriptive and inferential statistics to use in a given health context
,
€¢ Analyse health data using statistical software and interrogate the test assumptions, and

€¢ Interpret and communicate the results of computer-generated statistical analyses.

Task
Your task is to answer a set of research questions using the
supplied data set
(malaria data set.sav’). Details about the study generating the data, and the data coding manual are provided in a separate document which should be read in conjunction with this assessment outline.
.In your analytical report you are required to answer each of the
following research questions:

1. Is there a difference in haemoglobin concentration at enrolment between women with detectable peripheral malaria parasites and those without detectable parasites?
2. Is mother’s haemoglobin concentration at delivery related to the presence of malaria parasites in her placenta?
3. Do the women’s haemoglobin concentrations change between enrolment and delivery?
4. Based on the enrolment data, is there any evidence that malaria has a seasonal pattern in Burkina Faso?
5. Is there an association between having an adverse birth outcome and having hemozoin present in the placenta?
6. Is there a relationship between infant birth weight and the time of year that the infant was born? Use quarters to describe time of year (eg, January €“March, April €“June, July €“September, October €“December).
7. Is there an association between infant birth weight and week of amenorrhea at delivery? If so, how well does week of amenorrhea at delivery predict infant birth weight and what is the predicted birth weight for an infant born at 40 weeks gestation?
8. Do mother’s age or haemoglobin concentration at enrolment influence infant birth weight, after adjusting for weeks of amenorrhea at delivery?

In addition to the above questions, you are required to develop one question of your own that you can test and answer using the provided data. This should be referred to in your report as Question 9.

For each research question you are required to:
1. State the question
2. Develop a clear analysis plan that will allow you to answer the question
3. Implement the analysis plan using SPSS and report all relevant output. If you need to
modify or create new variables to implement the plan then you should describe these
new / modified variables and how they were calculated.
4. Interpret the results of the analysis
5. Write a summary paragraph describing the question, the data and the results. Graphics
should be incorporated if relevant.

Formatting and word limits
Your report should contain a title page clearly identifying the unit code, your name and student
number. You should also indicate the word count for each section of your report as specified
below.
Each research question should be treated as a separate section in your report and it is expected
that you will use appropriate headings within each section.
You are not required to provide a formal introduction, or search any literature or provide
references in your analytical report.

The report must:
1) use 12 pt font,
2) have minimum of 1.5 line spacing, and
3) have page margins no smaller than 2cm.
It is expected the report will be well written using professional language and be free from
grammatical and spelling errors.
The report should be no longer than 2,000 words excluding the analysis plans and SPSS output.
The word count (excluding the analysis plan and SPSS output) for each section should be stated
on the title page of the report.

Marking criteria
The analytical report will be marked against 4 criteria:
1. Knowledge (30%)
2. Application of knowledge and skills to perform required statistical analysis (20%)
3. Interpretation of results (30%)
4. Quality and structure of written report (20%)
The elements of each criteria are clearly outlined in the attached criteria marking sheet. Please
ensure you review the criteria prior to submitting your assessment.

Feedback
Feedback will be provided via the criteria marking sheet and written comments on the
assessment.