
ONLINE Introduction to Multilevel Modelling
This Advance Quantitative Methods workshop is open to all ESRC and non-ESRC funded Social Sciences PhD students within the WRDTP partner universities.
Multilevel models (MLMs) allow researchers to use data that has a multilevel structure, such as pupils within schools, individuals within neighbourhoods, or longitudinal panel data where observations are nested within individuals. A failure to take account of such structures can lead to results that are not only biased or anticonservative, but also missing important aspects of the societal processes they are trying to uncover. This course will build on standard single level regression models to provide an introduction to 2-level multilevel models, that can be used in a range of disciplines across the social sciences and beyond.
Given the short length of the course, we will not cover all aspects of multilevel models. However, participants will gain experience using relatively simple multilevel models, and be pointed to resources for more complex models.
- Learn how to implement multilevel models for data with two levels and a continuous Y variable. This will include random intercept models, and random slopes models, that allow the effect of a variable to vary across higher- level units
- Learn how to use the MLwiN software to implement multilevel models
- Learn how to produce a range of plots to visualise multilevel effects
Prerequisites
Participants must have a good understanding of multiple regression modelling and inferential statistics, especially regression intercepts and slopes, standard errors, t-ratios, residuals, and the concepts of variance and co-variance. No experience of multilevel modelling, or MLwiN, is expected. As a check, participants should be comfortable with completing module 3 of the LEMMA online course that can be found here: https://www.cmm.bris.ac.uk/lemma
Workshop organiser/ leader

There are 30 places available on this training workshop
Please direct any queries related to this workshop to smi@sheffield.ac.uk
PLEASE NOTE: Students are responsible for arranging travel to and from this Advance Quantiative Methods Training session. The WRDTP cannot reimburse travel costs to this session.
Hourly Schedule
Programme
- 9.00am - 9.30am
- Registration
- Coffee/ tea
- 9.30am - 10.15am
- Lecture: Multilevel modelling
- The concepts and the alternatives
- 10.15am - 11.00am
- Lecture: Running simple multilevel models
- Null model; random intercepts; higher level predictors; concepts: VPC, variance, residuals etc.
- 11.00am - 12.30pm
- Practical: MLwiN, Random Intercepts, Higher level predictors
- Coefficients and Standard errors; Caterpillar Plot; Varying line plot; Calculate the VPC
- 12.30pm - 1.30pm
- Lunch
- 1.30pm - 2.30pm
- Lecture: Random slopes
- 2.30pm - 3.30pm
- Practical: Random slopes
- Caterpillar plots; Varying line plot; Model comparison
- 3.30pm - 4.00pm
- Comofrt break
- 4.00pm - 4.30pm
- Lecture: Variance functions
- 4.30pm - 5.00pm
- Practical: Variance functions
- Variance function plots
- 5.00pm - 5.30pm
- Wrap up and 'homework'
- Level 1 complex variance; cross level interactions; categorical X; non-continuous Y; MCMC; non-nested structures; other software; other resources (LEMMA practicals)