Category Archives: IRWS Courses 2021

Multi-level Modelling with R

Institution: see Organisers & Supporters

Programme of study: International Research Workshop

Lecturer: Dr. Daniel Lüdecke (UKE Hamburg)

Date: see Workshop Programme

Max. number of participants: 20

Credit Points: 5 CP for participating in the whole IRWS

Language of instruction: English

Contents: The course teaches how to fit multilevel regression models with the statistical programming language R. First, simple (generalized) linear regression models are introduced to show important basic principles of modelling, like simple regression, interaction terms, non-linear relationships between predictors and outcome (polynomial and spline terms). Later, the application of these principles in a multilevel framework is demonstrated. Furthermore, graphical representation of complex mixed models is covered that help communicate complicated models in a simple way even for a broad audience that is less familiar with such modelling techniques. Successful participation requires basic knowledge of regression modelling techniques. Students are encouraged to bring their own laptops with the free software R (www.r-project.org/) and RStudio (www.rstudio.com/) installed. All source code to run the examples is provided in preparation for the course.

Requirements: Basic knowledge of regression modelling (familiarity with terms like dependent and independent variables, linear and logistic regression, estimate, …)

Recommended readings:

  • Harrison, X. A., Donaldson, L., Correa-Cano, M. E., Evans, J., Fisher, D. N., Goodwin, C. E. D., … Inger, R. (2018). A brief introduction to mixed-effects modelling and multi-model inference in ecology. PeerJ, 6, e4794. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.4794
  • Bolker, B. M., Brooks, M. E., Clark, C. J., Geange, S. W., Poulsen, J. R., Stevens, M. H. H., & White, J.-S. S. (2009). Generalized linear mixed models: a practical guide for ecology and evolution. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 24(3), 127–135. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2008.10.008

Required R packages:

  • Modelling: lme4, glmmTMB, GLMMadaptive
  • Visualization: ggeffects, sjPlot, see
  • Summaries and Statistics: parameters, effectsize
  • Model Quality: performance
  • Data preparation: sjmisc, dplyr, tidyr

Run install.packages(c(“lme4”, “glmmTMB”, “parameters”, “performance”, “effectsize”, “see”, “GLMMadaptive”, “ggeffects”, “sjPlot”, “sjmisc”, “dplyr”, “tidyr”), dependencies = TRUE) to install the relevant packages.

You have to register for the International Research Workshop to participate in this course.

Data Analysis with R

Institution: see Organisers & Supporters

Programme of study: International Research Workshop

Lecturer: Dr. Marco Lehmann (UKE Hamburg)

Date: see Workshop Programme

Max. number of participants: 20

Credit Points: 5 CP for participating in the whole IRWS

Language of instruction: English

Contents: The course introduces the programming language R used for statistical analyses. The beginning of each lecture comes with a demonstration of programming and statistical functions that will be elaborated on in the course of study. The students will then practice with many statistical examples. In addition to statistical functions, the course will introduce the definition of R as a programming language and its syntax rules. Students will further learn to use R’s scripting capabilities. Successful participation requires basic knowledge of descriptive and inferential statistics. The students are encouraged to bring their own laptops with the free software R (www.r-project.org/) and RStudio (www.rstudio.com/) installed.

A requirement of students: Basic knowledge in descriptive and inferential statistics is recommended.

Recommended literature and pre-readings:

  • Matloff, N. (2011). The Art of R Programming: A Tour of Statistical Software Design. No Starch Press.
  • Wollschläger, Daniel (2012). Grundlagen der Datenauswertung mit R (2. Aufl.). Berlin: Springer.

You have to register for the International Research Workshop to participate in this course.

Case Study Research

Institution: see Organisers & Supporters

Programme of study: International Research Workshop

Lecturer: PD Dr. Kamil Marcinkiewicz (University of Hamburg)

Date: see Workshop Programme

Max. number of participants: 20

Credit Points: 5 CP for participating in the whole IRWS

Language of instruction: English

Contents: Case study research is frequently applied in the social sciences. It is particularly popular among political scientists, especially those specialising in area studies. The ubiquity of the case study research contrasts with the scarcity of theoretical reflection on its core methodological aspects. Also, the benefits of comparative analyses are often underestimated. In this course, participants will have an opportunity to learn more about what case study research is, what are its weakness and strengths and how should we go about the core question in designing a case study: a selection of cases. The course combines lectures with practical exercises and discussion of students’ projects.

A requirement of students: Please bring your laptop computer.

Recommended literature and pre-readings:

  • Gerring, J. (2007). Case Study Research: Principles and Practices (pp. 17-63). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • George, A. L., & Bennett, A. (2005). Case Studies and Theory Development in the Social Sciences (pp. 1-34). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
  • Rueschemeyer, D. (2003). Can One or a Few Cases Yield Theoretical Gains? In J. Mahoney and D. Rueschemeyer (Eds.), Comparative Historical Analysis in the Social Sciences (pp. 305-337) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Hall, P.A. (2008). Systematic Process Analysis: When and How to Use it. European Political Science, 7(3), 304-317.

You have to register for the International Research Workshop to participate in this course.