Introduction to simulations and power analysis in R – Educational resources for teaching Open Research to novices

Introduction to simulations and power analysis in R

---
title: "Introduction to simulations and power analysis in R"
---

> Explore experiments before running them.

[Click here to see the materials in full screen](simulations-slides.qmd)

```{=html}
<iframe class="slide-deck" src="simulations-slides.html" height="420" width="747" style="border: 1px solid #2e3846;"></iframe>
```

## About these materials

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## Citation statement
Please cite these materials as: Sharma, T., Ihle, M., & Von Grebmer Zu Wolfsthurn, S. (2026). *Introduction to simulations and power analysis in R* [Quarto slides]. [LMU Open Science Center](https://www.osc.lmu.de/). [https://lmu-osc.github.io/teaching-material-for-novices/open-research-tools/simulations](https://lmu-osc.github.io/teaching-material-for-novices/open-research-tools/simulations)
:::

**Welcome!** This workshop is intended to **introduce** the **principles and practical use of simulations** in research using **R**. Learners will first get familiar with **what simulations are** and **why they are widely used** in scientific research, including how they help researchers explore statistical behavior, test assumptions, and design studies before collecting real data. The workshop will also **introduce power analysis**, explaining how to **determine appropriate sample sizes** for experiments. Through a subsequent self-paced practical tutorial, learners will work through the **full simulation workflow in R**, including generating random data, repeating simulations, and analyzing results.

### Who are these materials for?

- **Educators** in higher education with or without familiarity with open research planning to **teach open research** to **novices**
- **Self-learners** with no or limited familiarity with open research planning to **develop and build** up on their open research skills

### Prerequisites

<div style="font-size: 0.8em;">
| Prerequisite   |  Description  | Link/Where to find it   |
|------------|------------|------------|
| R and RStudio installed | Latest versions of both R and RStudio | [Download RStudio](https://posit.co/download/rstudio-desktop/) |
| R basics | e.g., how to select a value in a data frame, how to create a vector | [OSC tutorial link](https://lmu-osc.github.io/introduction-to-R/) |
| Familiarity with basic statistical concepts | e.g., hypothesis testing, descriptive statistics, data analysis | [Cheatsheet Link](assets/cheatsheet.pdf) |
</div>

### Learning objectives

At the end of this session, you or your learners will be able to ...

- **Understand** the concept of simulations
- **Explain** the purpose of simulations in research
- **Summarize** how simulations support hypothesis testing and experimentation
- **Perform** the simulation process in the context of a fictional experiment
- **Understand** the concept of power analysis
- **Explain** the purpose of power analysis in research
- **Summarize** how power analysis supports hypothesis testing and experimentation
- Successfully **perform** a simulation in R

## Download materials

Access the self-paced tutorial here: [https://lmu-osc.github.io/Introduction-Simulations-in-R/](https://lmu-osc.github.io/Introduction-Simulations-in-R/).

### Export slides

You can export these slides as MS PowerPoint (.pptx - *in progress*) or pdf by clicking below. Note that basic formatting will be applied to the PowerPoint file.

<!-- download as pdf button -->
<a href="simulations-slides.pdf"
   download="simulations-slides.pdf"
   class="btn btn-primary">
  Download slides as PDF
</a>

### Supplementary files

<div style="display: flex; gap: 1rem;">
  <a href="assets/statistics-cheatsheet.pdf"
     download="statistics-cheatsheet.pdf"
     class="btn btn-primary"
     style="flex: 1; text-align: center;">
    Download the activity sheet
  </a>
</div>

## Contributors and licence details

**Creator**: Sharma, Tejaswini (![](images/ORCID-iD_icon_16x16.png){fig-alt="orcid logo"}[0009-0000-0305-9751](https://orcid.org/0009-0000-0305-9751))

**Consultant**: Ihle, Malika (![](images/ORCID-iD_icon_16x16.png){fig-alt="orcid logo"}[0000-0002-3242-5981](https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3242-5981))

**Reviewer**: Von Grebmer zu Wolfsthurn, Sarah (![](images/ORCID-iD_icon_16x16.png){fig-alt="orcid logo"}[0000-0002-6413-3895](https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6413-3895))

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<p style="text-align:center;">
  <img src="images/cc-by-sa.png" 
  alt="Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 SA"
  style="width:160px;" />
</p>

<div style="background-color: #f0f0f0; padding: 0.05em; border-radius: 2px; font-size: 0.8em;">
This work was originally created by [Malika Ihle](https://www.osc.lmu.de/people/people/malika-ihle.html) based on materials from [Joel Pick](https://joelpick.github.io/), [Hadley Wickham](https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/19077330/simulation-hadley-wickham), and [Kevin Hallgren](https://www.tqmp.org/RegularArticles/vol09-2/p043/), with contributions from [James Smith](https://github.com/worcjamessmith).
This current work by Tejaswini Sharma, Malika Ihle and Sarah von Grebmer zu Wolfsthurn is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International SA License](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en) (CC-BY-SA 4.0). Code snippets are dedicated to the public domain and licensed under a [Creative Commons Universal License](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) (CC0 1.0).
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