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Quick calculators and planning utilities for research and analysis.

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Sample size sanity check

Rules of thumb by analysis type — regression, factor analysis, SEM, group comparison — to check whether your planned sample is in the right range.

Regression: at least 10–15 cases per predictor, more for small expected effects.
Exploratory factor analysis: 5–10 cases per item, and rarely fewer than 150 in total.
PLS-SEM: use an inverse square root power calculation, not the old ten-times rule.
Group comparison: run a power analysis in G*Power against your expected effect size.
Qualitative interviews: patterns usually stabilise between 15 and 25 within one segment.

Get a power analysis run properly

Which software should I use?

A short decision path across SPSS, R, Python, Stata, SmartPLS, AMOS and NVivo based on what your project actually needs.

Department expects SPSS output and the analysis is standard — use SPSS.
The analysis will be re-run on updated data, or cleaning is heavy — use R or Python.
Panel data, survey weights or econometrics — use Stata.
Theory testing with reflective constructs and a decent sample — AMOS, Mplus or lavaan.
Prediction, formative constructs or a complex model — SmartPLS.
Interview or focus-group analysis at volume — NVivo, MAXQDA or ATLAS.ti.

R vs RStudio explained

Reference style quick guide

The distinguishing features of APA 7, Harvard, Vancouver, MLA, Chicago, IEEE and OSCOLA, so you can tell at a glance which one a document is using.

APA 7: author–date in text, title case for headings, DOIs as full URLs.
Harvard: author–date, but the exact punctuation varies by institution — check yours.
Vancouver: numbered in order of appearance, common in medicine and health.
MLA: author–page in text, Works Cited list, common in humanities.
Chicago: notes and bibliography, or author–date, depending on discipline.
IEEE: bracketed numbers, standard across engineering and computing.
OSCOLA: footnote-based legal citation, minimal punctuation.

Referencing support

Similarity report reading order

The order to work through a Turnitin report so the percentage stops being frightening and starts being useful.

Ignore the headline percentage entirely, for now.
Exclude the bibliography and quoted material using the report filters.
Set a minimum match length of about ten words.
Open the largest single source first and classify it.
Work down the list, deciding for each: expected, citation fix, or genuine rewrite.

Full interpretation guide

Next step

Tell us what you are working on

Send the brief, the deadline and anything you already have. You will get a reference number straight away and a considered reply, usually within one working day.

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