Bayesian Mixed-Effects Models Workshop
University of Reading
August 31st – September 2nd, 2022
We are happy to announce the Bayesian mixed-effects models workshop, taking place at the University of Reading from August 31st – September 2nd, 2022.
The workshop will be led by Dr João Veríssimo (University of Lisbon) and will consist of two sessions each day (9.30am – 12.30am, 2.00pm – 5.00pm). More information about the workshop can be found below. Please check back for updates as we will be updating this information as we get closer to the workshop.
Venue, Travel and Accommodation
This workshop is part of the Implementing advanced quantitative methods in linguistics research project, funded by the British Academy.
Although the workshop will be taking place in a computer lab, please bring your own laptop with you to work from. Please ensure you have the latest versions of R and RStudio installed. You will also need to have the following R packages installed:
lme4
brms (version 2.17.0)
ggdist
ggeffects
If you have any difficulty installing R/RStudio or any of the required packages, please contact the workshop organisers before the workshop and we will see if we can help.
Workshop attendees should have a good understanding of mixed-effects models, but no prior experience with Bayesian statistics is assumed. Attendees should read the following introduction to Bayesian analysis before the workshop.
Vasishth, S., Nicenboim, B., Beckman, M. Fangfang, L. and Kong, E., (2018). Bayesian data analysis in the phonetic sciences: A tutorial introduction. Journal of Phonetics, 71, 147-161.
Day 1: Introduction to Bayesian Principles (31/08/2022)
Session 1 (9.30am – 12.30pm)
Parameters, priors and posteriors
Session 2 (2.00pm – 5.00pm)
Bayesian estimation and credible intervals
Day 2: Bayesian Mixed-Effects Models (01/09/2022)
Session 1 (9.30am – 12.30pm)
Fixed and random effects
Choosing a distributional family
Session 2 (2.00pm – 5.00pm)
Model diagnostics: Do we have a good model?Model comparison and cross-validation
Day 3: Bayesian Hypothesis Testing (02/09/2022)
Session 1 (9.30am – 12.30pm)
Bayes factors
Session 2 (2.00pm – 5.00pm)
Categorical models: Binomial and ordinal outcomes
Venue, Travel and Accommodation
Venue
The workshop will be taking place in the School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences at the University of Reading. This is Building 56 on the campus map (grid reference C6), or alternatively find it here on google maps.
Travelling to the University
The university is well served by local bus links. From the town centre, it is easiest to take either the 17 or (X)4 bus to the ‘Three Tuns’ stop. This stops just outside the Earley Gate entrance to the university (see campus map grid reference B7) and is only a short walk to the workshop venue. Bus number 19a from town also stops by the Earley Gate entrance, but is less frequent.
Alternatively, from the town centre, the number 21 bus also stops at the university, but on the other side of campus (see campus map grid reference C3). You would then need to walk across campus to the workshop venue. Buses 3, 8 and 9 also stop just outside the other side of campus, by the Shinfield Road entrance (campus map grid reference C2).
Travelling to Reading
Reading has excellent rail links from various destinations in the UK. Trains from London come from either London Paddington or London Waterloo. Trains from London Paddington take 20-30 minutes to get to Reading town centre. From there, you can take a local bus to campus. Alternatively, you can take the slower train from London Waterloo – Reading and get off at Earley station. The workshop venue is about a 20 minute walk from Earley station along Wokingham Road.
For those travelling from further afield, the closest airport is London Heathrow. Railair provide a coach service from the airport to Reading town centre, stopping at Reading train station.
Accommodation
On-campus accommodation can be booked via the Cedars Hotel website. Reading town centre also has various other accommodation options, which you can book via your preferred travel booking website.
The workshop is funded by the British Academy.
