Quantitative Psychology (new)

Overview ↓
Qualifications ↓
Program of study ↓
Colloquia and lectures ↓
Faculty ↓
Affiliated faculty ↓
Area contacts ↓

For more detailed information about program requirements and expectations, view the program handbook.

Quantitative Psychology Program Handbook →

Overview

Students in the Quantitative Psychology graduate program study the processes of mathematically modeling and quantitatively assessing psychological phenomena. The program prepares students for an academic career or for a research career in the private sector. Quantitative psychology is as much a way of thinking about psychological questions as it is a field of study involving specific research methods, and students develop expertise that spans the traditional field of psychology. They do basic work in statistical and data analysis methods, as well as in mathematical modeling and quantitative methods. Advanced work focuses on topics such as the mathematical modeling of psychological phenomena, or in the most current techniques of measurement and data analysis, such as item response theory and covariance structure modeling. Students also develop a sophisticated foundation in research design and quantitative methods that will be highly useful in designing substantive research studies and analyzing data.

The Quantitative Psychology program has two main emphases. Students may focus on either or pursue interdisciplinary study:

Psychometric methods. Specific topics include measurement, scaling, and multivariate quantitative methods, such as factor analysis and covariance structure modeling.
Mathematical psychology. Specific topics include axiomatic, algebraic, and stochastic modeling in fields such as decision making, judgment, and categorization.

Concentration option

Ohio State graduate students who are not enrolled in the Quantitative Psychology graduate program have the opportunity to complete a 3-course concentration in quantitative psychology. Upon completing the concentration, students are able to apply advanced quantitative methods to behavioral data. Methods include Bayesian statistics, mediation and moderation, factor analysis, structural equation modeling, multilevel modeling, longitudinal data analysis, and item response theory. Learn more →

Qualifications

Graduate work in quantitative psychology requires mathematical and statistical expertise. Students should have a strong background in these areas and are encouraged to supplement their psychology studies with courses in mathematics and statistics.

Program of study

The Quantitative Psychology graduate program is flexible. Students develop an individualized study program that fits their goals and leads to the PhD degree in four to five years. During the first two years, students fulfill the requirements of a Master's degree by completing coursework in a major and minor field of study and producing collaborative research with their faculty advisers. This includes a Master's thesis. Students devote their remaining years of study to expanding their expertise, developing independent research projects, and completing their doctoral dissertations.

Coursework

What core courses should be highlighted here?

Outside of core curricular requirements, coursework depends on students' background and interests. What are some other examples of classes (non-core) we can list?

Research

Active research participation is central to the Quantitative Psychology graduate program, and students have many opportunities to work either collaboratively or independently. They choose a faculty advisor early and work closely with this individual on projects of mutual interest. They are also encouraged to develop collaborative research interests with other faculty and fellow students. Activities associated with teaching or research assistantships provide additional valuable experience. Anything else we should say about the quantitative research program?

Facilities

The Quantitative Psychology program offices and laboratories of the program are housed in Lazenby Hall, located centrally on The Ohio State University Columbus campus. Facilities include a central computer laboratory with microcomputers, which researchers use for data analysis, word processing, and other research-related activities. In addition, individual faculty have computer laboratories designed to support their own research programs. Students also have access to the university's extensive and powerful system of mainframe computers.

Consulting

The Department of Psychology offers statistical consulting services to faculty and graduate students in topics such as research design, data analysis, presentation of results, and software selection. Requests may be submitted by email. Although the consultant position is not currently filled, quantitative psychology faculty review submitted requests and make resource recommendations.

Colloquia and lectures

Colloquium Series

The Quantitative Psychology graduate program regularly features presentations by area students and faculty. It also invites both Ohio State and external guest speakers from allied disciplines (e.g., Education, Statistics, and Linguistics) to present on contemporary quantitative methodologies. Additionally, colloquia often involve discussions of quantitative issues in research and recently published articles.

In recent years, the program has participated in a monthly online joint quantitative brownbag series, whose purpose is to facilitate connection and discussion among students and faculty in graduate programs on topics of interest to a breadth of research topics in quantitative methodology. This is a collaborative series organized with several other institutions across the nation, including the University of Notre Dame, University of Maryland, College Park, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Virginia, Vanderbilt University, and University of South Carolina.

Robert Wherry Speaker Series

The annual Robert Wherry Speaker Series honors the memory of former department chair Robert J. Wherry, Sr., who was a prominent researcher and educator in industrial/organizational and quantitative psychology. These lectures focus on methodological issues in psychological research. Learn more →