Teaching the Relevance of Statistics Through Consumer-Oriented Research

Students in a small experimental design class obtained information about statistical and research applications concerning a variety of products advertised by different companies. The resulting data were perceived to have several advantages for the students: (a) it made collecting and interpreting data more interesting and less mysterious, (b) it helped them to understand how research design and statistics are used in real-life situations, and (c) it helped them to make more discerning judgments about advertisers' claims for their products.