Empirical research in gerontology, psychology, education, and neuroscience is increasingly dependent on the use of statistical tools to design experiments, verify measurement instruments, test hypotheses, and interpret models. As these tools become more advanced, training in the appropriate use of quantitative methodology becomes both more important and more specialized. The present proposal addresses this problem by increasing the number of opportunities for exposure to advanced quantitative methods available to researchers in the social sciences. An annual conference and workshop will be held at the University of Notre Dame in which top scholars in quantitative methodology will present a series of talks focused around either a central unifying methodological theme or targeted for a particular audience of substantive research in the behavioral sciences. The present proposal covers the second year in this series: Dynamical Systems Data Analysis. The sessions will present practical techniques for the analysis of experimental data from a dynamical systems perspective with the purpose that attendees may immediately use their acquired knowledge to improve the quality of their sponsored research and improve the experimental designs within proposals for sponsored research.
