Marilyn S. Ahl, Ph.D.

Marilyn S. Ahl, Ph.D. provides statistical consulting for master’s theses, doctoral dissertations and course projects in healthcare/public health, clinical/social psychology and education. Assistance with survey design, database development, statistical analysis and data presentation are included in her services. Formerly a research analyst at the Harvard School of Public Health, she has analyzed longitudinal data in the areas of substance use, social service programs and alcohol and drug policies. She is proficient in the SPSS for Windows statistical package and in creating graphic and tabular data presentations. Her areas of expertise include: ANOVA (factorial and repeated-measures), MANOVA, t-tests, categorical data analysis (Chi-square), multiple regression, factor analysis, reliability analysis (Cronbach’s alpha) and power analysis. She received her Ph.D. in developmental psychology from Wayne State University in 2001, where she taught courses in developmental psychology and was awarded a training grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. When consulting with students, she helps them develop clear, workable hypotheses, decide which statistical methods to use in analyzing their data and correctly interpret their results, while allaying the anxieties that some students experience when working with statistics.

SCOPE:

Statistical consulting, social sciences, education, survey design, data management, statistical analysis, human services management, alcohol and drug policy, public health, datasets, longitudinal data, SPSS, statistical graphics, statistical charts and graphs, tabular forms for presentations, data, ANOVA (repeated measures), Factorial ANOVA (2x2), MANOVA, post-hoc comparison tests, Tukey’s, SNK, t-tests, categorical data analysis, Chi-square, multiple regression, logistic regression, factor analysis, power analysis, reliability (Cronbach’s alpha), developmental psychology, hypotheses, research questions, data analysis, statistics, SPSS database for windows, statistics graphs

FEEDBACK

"Saved me lots of time trying to figure out how to use software. Very timely and efficient, helped me out in a pinch! A big help in using SPSS - provided help so that I could replicate processes and procedures myself in the future. Very helpful in moving SPSS tables to Word." Jeff Podoshen, PhD Student, Temple University

"Dr. Ahl was AWESOME! I had completed most of the stats work for my dissertation by myself without help from faculty, but I used some techniques that my committee members were not familiar with, so I really needed a stats pro to check my work and suggest corrections and alternate methods. Dr. Ahl did this, and she did it very quickly – even during the holiday season! I have recommended her to colleagues, and even though I have completed my Ph.D. and have obtained an academic job, I will not hesitate to use her for similar complex statistical advice. She saved me a ton of time! Money well spent!!!" (Contact info upon request)

PROGRAM EVALUATION EXPERTISE

Instrument and protocol selection and design for traditional (paper) and online administrations.

Database construction and management, including quality assurance and data integrity.

Familiarity with experimental and quasi-experimental research designs, including multivariate analysis of longitudinal data.

Technical assistance to human service and educational organizations in implementing program evaluations and analyzing and interpreting outcomes data.

Production of evaluation summaries, reports, graphics, presentations and papers for publication.

EDUCATION 

Ph.D. -- Developmental Psychology - Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan - May, 2001

M.A. -- Psychology - Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts - January, 1997

STATISTICS COURSES

ICSPR Program in Quantitative Methods: Introduction to HLM - University of Michigan at Ann Arbor

Advanced Multivariate Statistics (Doctoral Program) – Wayne State University

One-year Masters’ Level Statistics (Masters’ Program) – Brandeis University

COLLEGE COURSES TAUGHT

Human Development/Developmental Psychology, Wayne State University – 3 Years

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Statistics Tutor/Consultant, 2002 - present

Work with graduate students/undergraduates on masters’ theses, dissertations, statistics examinations, and homework problems in basic and intermediate statistics; SPSS programming, database creation and statistical analytic procedures

Program Evaluation Consultant - Wayside Youth & Family Support Network, Framingham, MA, 2002 - present

Responsible for design and implementation of a longitudinal program evaluation assessing outcomes and benefits of a residential treatment program for adolescents. Responsibility for instrument design in consultation with program staff and academic partners. Produced training manuals and instrument administration guidelines for data collectors. Constructed SPSS database, developed data analytic strategies and analyzed preliminary data.

HARVARD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH – Boston, MA

Research Analyst, College Alcohol Study, 2001 – 2002

Analyzed longitudinal data from the College Alcohol Study, investigating correlates of binge drinking, underage drinking and alcohol and substance-related harms in the context of a “heavy drinking college culture”. Examined attitudes toward drinking, peer relationships and variables related to drinking environments on college campuses.

HELLER SCHOOL FOR SOCIAL WELFARE POLICY, BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY - Waltham, MA

Research Associate, Center for Children and Families, 1996 – 1997*

Evaluated mental health services programs for children and youth for the MSPCC. Responsibilities included: Management of database creation and data entry. Conducted data analysis. Prepared reports and presentation of findings to Project Connect staff, Massachusetts DSS officials and members of the community.

* Between September, 1997 and May, 2001 was enrolled in doctoral program at Wayne State University.

PUBLICATIONS

Wechsler, H., Seibring, M., Liu, I., & Ahl, M. S. (Journal of American College Health, Vol. 52, No. 4). Colleges respond to student binge drinking: reducing student demand or limiting access.

Wechsler, H. & Ahl, M.S. (In review). Straight up: The drinking life of traditional college students

Cross, T., Martell, D., McDonald, E. & Ahl, M.S. (1997) The criminal justice system and child placement in child sex abuse cases. Child Maltreatment, (4), (1), 32 – 45

Cross,T., Saxe, L., & Ahl, M. (1997). Evaluating the mental health services program

for youth. TABrief of the Technical Assistance Center for the Evaluation of Children’s Mental Health Programs, (Judge Baker Children’s Center) pp. 7 – 10.

Cross, T., & Ahl, M. (1997). An evaluation of child behavioral and educational outcomes: The Gifford School Case Review Study Report. 

PRESENTATIONS

Ahl, M.S. (2001, April). Profiles of Adolescent Substance Users and Their Relationship to Longitudinal Patterns of Substance Use. Poster presented at the biennial conference of the Society for Research on Child Development, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Ahl, M.S. (2000, April). How Person Factors Shape Vulnerability to the Impact of Parenting on Adolescent Problem Behaviors. Poster presented at the biennial conference of the Society for Research on Adolescence, Chicago, Illinois.

Ahl, M.S. & Birkhead, S. (1996, February). The one-year follow-up evaluation study of Project Connect mental health services program for children. Paper presented at a conference sponsored by Project Connect/Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, Quincy, Massachusetts