Thesis statistical analysis in SPSS, R or Excel

Which statistical test to use in your thesis, and how to report it

Statistical analysis is where many empirical theses slow down. The data sits in a spreadsheet exported from an online form, the methodology promises to verify the hypotheses, and it is not obvious whether that means a t-test, a chi-square test, a correlation or a regression. The right choice depends on the type of variables, the size of the sample and how the hypotheses are worded, not on which test looks most impressive.

We start by cleaning the data: incomplete responses, inconsistent coding and outliers are dealt with before any test is run, and each decision is recorded so that you can describe it in the thesis. Then we agree an analysis plan that lists which test answers which hypothesis, and only after that run the calculations.

Results are presented in the form Polish theses typically use: numbered tables and charts with a source line such as “Źródło: opracowanie własne”, test statistics with p-values, and a paragraph of interpretation under each result. The software follows your department’s preference. SPSS is common in the social sciences, but R or Excel can handle many analyses.

If your sample turns out smaller than planned, we tell you which tests are still defensible and how to describe the limitation, rather than forcing a method the data cannot support. That conversation is much easier to have before the committee raises the same point.