A basic understanding of statistics is an important piece of social work practice, informing the ability of social workers to interpret and evaluate existing research and to conduct evaluations of programs in their agencies. This article gives an overview of basic statistical concepts of variables, central tendency, and correlation versus causation to give social workers a preliminary foundation to critically evaluate and utilize basic research. The basic statistics in the study “Relationship Between the Five Facets of Mindfulness on Mood and Substance Use Relapse” by Temme and Wang (2018) are unpacked as a way to bring to life the statistical concepts discussed throughout the article.
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