SINFA!

 

The particular activities and deliverables for which the statistician collaborator takes responsibility are negotiated in each project. These may involve the statistician in any or all project activities from planning through final report or publication. Alternatively, the statistician may remain somewhat more distant from ongoing project activity, acting more as a technical advisor who is available to answer questions that might arise.

 

This is an appropriate level of involvement when, for example, a researcher feels comfortable with his ability to design the study and/or carry out the data analysis and needs help only with specific choices. A statistical advisor may be consulted at every stage of the study, from design to reporting, or may be needed only at one time.

 

You may view the assembled personnel who work on your project as a team. One context where this occurs is when the statistician is an employee in your organization. In this situation, the statistician is a team member, to whom you may delegate the aspects of the project that appear to fall within her area of expertise.

 

Regardless of the particular role you assign to a statistician, she will take on certain responsibilities as a matter of course. She will evaluate the project and any requests you make from the viewpoint of a technical expert, and may see issues or problems that are not obvious to you. So even in the role of team member, a statistician is likely to offer advice on procedures and interpretation of results. She also has a code of professional ethics (see Section V), which can affect how she responds to a situation.