Exam 1 Sample Questions

Naydene read about the Whorf (1940/1956) theory of linguistic relativity which suggests that language shapes thoughts. She wants to find out about more recent work and finds "Language, Learning, and Color Perception" (Ozgen, 2004), a review article in this area. Which of the following quotations from the article is the argument in this article? 1. "Some African languages provide a good opportunity for the cross-cultural study of color categorical perception." 2. "Further evidence for language effects has recently come from a study comparing speakers of English and Berinmo, a language spoken in Papua New Guinea." 3. "Because color categories are created by language, if the linguistic relativity hypothesis is true, categorical perception should be a function of the perceiver's language." 4. "Research in neuroscience and psychophysics shows that the brain is a plastic, adaptive organ that is ever changing to meet the demands of the environment."

"Because color categories are created by language, if the linguistic relativity hypothesis is true, categorical perception should be a function of the perceiver's language." Reading with a Purpose: Chapters and Review Articles—The argument is the purpose of the article—the author's stance on the issue.

Naydene read about the Whorf (1940/1956) theory of linguistic relativity which suggests that language shapes thoughts. She wants to find out about more recent work and finds "Language, Learning, and Color Perception" (Ozgen, 2004), a review article in this area. With further searching on different data bases she finds several more articles that seem to be on this topic. Which of these is from a journal? 1. "Do English and Mandarin speakers think about time differently?" by Boroditsky, Fuhrman; & McCormick, Cognition, Jan 2011, Vol. 118, Issue 1, pp126-132. 2. "How Language Shapes Thought" by Lera Boroditsky, Scientific American, Feb 2011, Vol. 304, Issue 2, pp 62-65. 3. "What's in a Word?" by Sharon Begley, Newsweek; 7/20/2009, Vol. 154, Issue 3, p 31. 4. "Lost In Translation" by Lera Boroditsky, Wall Street Journal, 7/23/2010, p W3.

"Do English and Mandarin speakers think about time differently?" by Boroditsky, Fuhrman; & McCormick, Cognition, Jan 2011, Vol. 118, Issue 1, pp126-132. Finding Research in Other Places—The only one of these publications that is a peer-reviewed scientific source is Cognition; the other sources are journalism.

Naydene read about the Whorf (1940/1956) theory of linguistic relativity which suggests that language shapes thoughts. She wants to find out about more recent work and finds "Language, Learning, and Color Perception" (Ozgen, 2004), a review article in this area. Which of the following is evidence in this article? 1. "How would we see the rainbow if our language did not have these particular color names?" 2. "Languages differ in the parts of the color spectrum for which they have names." 3. "So, to get back to my original example, it is just possible that what you see when you look at the rainbow actually depends on the language you speak." 4. "Exploiting the difference between Turkish and English, my colleagues and I asked Turkish and English speakers to rate the similarity between pairs of colors."

"Exploiting the difference between Turkish and English, my colleagues and I asked Turkish and English speakers to rate the similarity between pairs of colors." Reading with a Purpose: Chapters and Review Articles—The evidence is the research that the author reviews.

As part of an assignment for his Introduction to Psychology class, Gilbert has to read a journal article, summarize it, and compare it to what is reported in his textbook. Gilbert selects the article: "Effects of Severe Daily Events on Mood," Stone & Neale (1984). After he finds the article on PsycINFO, he starts to read it. Which section should he read first? 1. Abstract 2. Introduction 3. Results 4. Discussion

Abstract Reading with a Purpose: Empirical Journal Articles—The first step in reading with a purpose is to read the abstract, an overview of the article.

As part of an assignment for his Introduction to Psychology class, Gilbert has to read a journal article, summarize it, and compare it to what is reported in his textbook. Gilbert selects the article: "Effects of Severe Daily Events on Mood," Stone & Neale (1984). What is the correct order of sections in this article? 1. Introduction, Discussion, Method, Results, Abstract, Reference list 2. Abstract, Introduction, Results, Method, Discussion, Reference list 3. Abstract, Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion, Reference list 4. Abstract, Method, Results, Introduction, Discussion, Reference list

Abstract, Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion, Reference list What You Will Find in an Empirical Journal Article—Most journal articles contain these sections in the order recommended by the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.

In a study of a new drug for asthma, a researcher finds that the group receiving the drug is doing much better than the control group, whose members are receiving a placebo. Which principle of the Belmont Report requires the researcher to also give the control group the opportunity to receive the new drug? 1. Informed Consent 2. Justice 3. Beneficence 4. Respect for Persons

Beneficence The Principle of Beneficence—To conform to the principle of beneficence, researchers must ensure participants' well-being and may not withhold treatments that are known to be beneficial to study participants.

Professor Kwan studies violence and designs a study of the effects of video game violence on children. From schools near his university, two groups of low-income Hispanic children are assigned to play either a violent or non-violent video game two hours each evening for a month. The children's teachers are asked to assess changes in behavior. Some children have committed crimes after regularly playing violent video games. Which part of APA Ethical Standard 8 was violated when the researcher didn't consider this possible connection to crimes in planning the study? 1. Integrity 2. Justice 3. Respect for People's Rights and Dignity 4. Beneficence and Nonmaleficence

Beneficence and Nonmaleficence The Principle of Beneficence—The principle of beneficence requires that the researcher consider risks and benefits before beginning a study. This study could pose a risk to the children based on previous studies.

Professor Hammond studies ethical behavior and designs a study to examine the amount of cheating at her school. At the beginning of class each day, she passes around a chart showing the dates of the class meetings, with boxes for students to initial if present. She photocopies the sheet after each class so that she can find if any students initial for days in the past that they were absent. She takes points off of the final grades of those who initialed for other days. What standard of Ethical Standard 8 does taking the points off violate? 1. Debriefing 2. Institutional Approval 3. Client/Patient, Student, and Subordinate Research Participants 4. Reporting Research Results

Client/Patient, Student, and Subordinate Research Participants Ethical Standard 8 of the American Psychological Association—When psychologists conduct research with students, they should protect them from adverse consequences of participation.

What does it mean to say the research is probabilistic? 1. There is a high likelihood that the research is valid. 2. The research predicts all possible results. 3. Conclusions are meant to explain a certain proportion of possible cases. 4. You must reject the conclusions if you are able to find a case that is an exception.

Conclusions are meant to explain a certain proportion of possible cases. "But My Experience is Different"—In behavioral research, inferences are not expected to explain all cases all the time.

Professor Nakum designs a memory experiment to test the effect of word familiarity on memory. Three lists of words are created: common words, uncommon words, and made-up words. Participants study one of the lists of 30 words for 5 minutes, do math problems for 5 minutes, then write all the words they recall from the list. Their score is the number of words correctly recalled. His colleague questioned how his lists were made. What validity is being challenged? 1. internal 2. construct 3. external 4. statistical

Construct Other Validities to Interrogate in Causal Claim—The colleague is asking how commonness of words was measured. Was some sort of standard familiarity scale used?

Professor Hammond studies ethical behavior and designs a study to examine the amount of cheating at her school. At the beginning of class each day, she passes around a chart showing the dates of the class meetings, with boxes for students to initial if present. Without telling the students she is doing so, she photocopies the sheet after each class so that she can find if any students initial for days in the past that they were absent. She recognizes that some students will be upset about the study, but feels that it will be a good lesson. Which standard of Ethical Standard 8 does this violate? 1. Deception 2. Debriefing 3. Fabrication of Data 4. Reporting Research Results

Deception Deception (Standard 8.07)—Psychologists do not deceive prospective participants about research that is expected to cause severe emotional distress.

Professor Silva is a clinical psychologist who teaches a course in abnormal psychology at the university. He maintains a clinical practice and several of his current students are his clients. Which of the APA's Five General Principles does this violate? 1. Integrity 2. Fidelity and Responsibility 3. Justice 4. Respect for People's Rights and Dignity

Fidelity and Responsibility Five General Ethical Principles—This principle is concerned with establishing relationships of trust and accepting responsibility for professional behavior. Having multiple relationships with the students (therapist and teacher) could result in impairment of the psychologist's objectivity.

Mary Beth is running an experiment and wants to make sure she has randomly assigned her 40 participants to the two conditions. Which of the following methods of forming groups would give her random assignment? 1. Assign the first 20 to show up to the first group and the second 20 to the second group. 2. Post two sign-up sheets: 9 A.M. for the first group and 2 P.M. for the second group. 3. Participants with names in the first half of the alphabet are in the first group; the second half of the alphabet are in the second group. 4. Flip a coin as each participant arrives: heads indicates assignment to the first group, tails indicates assignment to the second group.

Flip a coin as each participant arrives: heads indicates assignment to the first group, tails indicates assignment to the second group. Experiments Can Test Causal Claims—Groups formed based on arrival time, time preference, or part of the alphabet may differ systematically in other ways.

There is a strong positive association between years of education and income. The mean income for American adults in 2005 was $32,000 and the average number of years of education was 12. Mr. Lopez has 16 years of education. What would you predict about his income? 1. The best estimate would be the mean income of $32,000. 2. His income is probably higher than $32,000. 3. His income is probably lower than $32,000. 4. There isn't enough information to make a prediction.

His income is probably higher than $32,000. Making Predictions Based on Associations—Since Mr. Lopez has more schooling than average, based on the positive association you would expect his income to be higher than average.

In most experiments, tradeoffs are made between validities because it is not possible to achieve all four at once. What is the most common tradeoff? 1. Increased internal validity results in decreased external validity. 2. Increased construct validity results in decreased statistical validity. 3. Increased statistical validity results in decreased internal validity. 4. Increased external validity results in decreased statistical validity.

Increased internal validity results in decreased external validity. Producers of Information: Prioritizing Validities—Experiments are studies designed to show causality, which depends on internal validity. In order to emphasize causality, the generalizability of the results is reduced.

Professor Hammond studies ethical behavior and designs a study to examine the amount of cheating at her school. At the beginning of class each day, she passes around a chart showing the dates of the class meetings, with boxes for students to initial if present. She photocopies the sheet after each class so that she can find if any students initial for days in the past that they were absent. The students are not aware that they were participating in the study until the end of the quarter. What standard of Ethical Standard 8 does this violate? 1. Institutional Approval 2. Offering Inducements for Research Participation 3. Client/Patient, Student, and Subordinate Research Participants 4. Informed Consent to Research

Informed Consent to Research Informed Consent (Standard 8.02)—Professor Hammond never explained the study to the participants before it started and they had no opportunity to decide whether to participate.

Professor Hammond studies ethical behavior and designs a study to examine the amount of cheating at her school. At the beginning of class each day, she passes around a chart showing the dates of the class meetings, with boxes for students to initial if present. She photocopies the sheet after each class so that she can find if any students initial for days in the past that they were absent. She waits for interesting results before writing a proposal for the IRB. Which standard of Ethical Standard 8 of the APA does waiting to propose the study violate? 1. Offering Inducements for Research Participation 2. Institutional Approval 3. Informed Consent for Recording Voices and Images in Research 4. Debriefing

Institutional Approval Institutional Approval (Standard 8.01)—Institutional approval must be obtained prior to conducting research.

Which two principles are included in the APA Ethical Principles and not in the Belmont Report? 1. Integrity; Fidelity and Responsibility 2. Justice; Beneficence and Nonmaleficence 3. Justice; Respect for People's Rights and Dignity 4. Respect for People's Rights and Dignity; Beneficence and Nonmaleficence

Integrity; Fidelity and Responsibility Table 4.1 Comparison of the Belmont Report's Basic Principles and the APA's Five General Principles—While the names are slightly different, beneficence, justice and respect for persons are shared and integrity and fidelity and responsibility are only in the APA's Principles.

A recent headline read, "School Lunches Make Kids Fat." The article cited a study comparing children at two schools. The school with the lower obesity rate had few children who ate school lunches. The other school had a greater percentage of obese children and most of these children ate school lunches. No mention was made that many of the children who eat school lunches are low-income children who receive free lunches. Poverty is a major factor in obesity. What role does poverty play in this study? 1. It is an independent variable. 2. It is a confound. 3. It is a dependent variable. 4. It is a false alarm.

It is a confound. Interrogating Causal Claims—Poverty covaries with school lunch consumption and may be an alternative explanation for the obesity.

A survey of married women employed outside the home included the question "Does your spouse bother to help you around the house?" What is the problem with this question? 1. The person writing the question was overconfident of the answer. 2. It is an example of confirmatory hypothesis testing. 3. It reflects the present/present bias. 4. It is cherry-picking the evidence.

It is an example of confirmatory hypothesis testing. Asking Biased Questions—This question is phrased in such a way that it reveals that the survey designer is hypothesizing that spouses do not help working women enough.

Which of the following is not a characteristic of a good theory? 1. It is proven. 2. It is falsifiable. 3. It is parsimonious. 4. It is supported by data.

It is proven. What Makes a Good Theory?—Researchers never say they have proved their theories.

Seligman (1975, 1991) identified the behavior of caged dogs who could not escape electrical shocks as learned helplessness. Quan thinks this may apply to computer use. He believes that failure in using a new program will make a person less willing to try another program. He tests this by giving people 30 minutes to use either a user-friendly program or a complicated program. He then gives them a different program and records how long they try to use it. People who had the difficult program give up more quickly. What type of writing is used in reporting his findings in the newspaper? 1. Journal 2. peer-reviewed 3. Journalism 4. parsimonious

Journalism The Journal-to-Journalism Cycle—A newspaper, like a magazine, uses journalism.

Which principle from the Belmont Report and the APA's Ethical Principles do animal rights activists draw upon to argue against the use of animals in experiments? 1. Respect for Persons 2. Beneficence 3. Integrity 4. Justice

Justice Attitudes of Animal Rights Groups—The argument is that the principle of justice requires that the research participants be drawn from the population that will benefit from the research; using animals in research for the benefit of humans violates this principle.

In order to study a sample of participants from only one ethnic group, researchers must first demonstrate that the problem being studied is especially prevalent in that ethnic group. This is an application of which principle from the Belmont Report? 1. Respect for Persons 2. Beneficence 3. Special Protection 4. Justice

Justice The Principle of Justice—The principle of justice requires a fair balance between people who participate in research and the people who benefit from it.

As part of an assignment for his Introduction to Psychology class, Gilbert has to read a journal article, summarize it, and compare it to what is reported in his textbook. Gilbert selects the article: "Effects of Severe Daily Events on Mood," Stone & Neale (1984). If Gilbert wanted to repeat the study, which section would he consult? 1. Introduction 2. Method 3. Results 4. Discussion

Method What You Will Find in an Empirical Journal Article—An ideal Method section will contain enough detail that you can repeat the study without contacting the authors.

Professor Kwan studies violence and designs a study of the effects of video game violence on children. From schools near his university, two groups of low-income Hispanic children are assigned to play either a violent or non-violent video game two hours each evening for a month. The children's teachers are asked to assess changes in behavior. Which of the Belmont Report Principles is violated by his choice of participants? 1. Principle of Respect for Persons 2. Principle of Justice 3. Principle of Beneficence 4. Principle of Integrity

Principle of Justice The Principle of Justice—Using low-income Hispanic children means this one group bears an undue burden of risk. All children stand to benefit from the results, not just this group.

Which of the following claims is not causal? 1. Ice applied to twisted ankles prevents swelling. 2. Barefoot running reduces injury risk. 3. New lung cancer drug increases survival. 4. Red meat is linked to cancer in the colon.

Red meat is linked to cancer in the colon. Table 3.2, Causal Claims—"Is linked" is an associative claim.

Professor Kwan studies violence and designs a study of the effects of video game violence on children. From schools near his university, two groups of low-income Hispanic children are assigned to play either a violent or non-violent video game two hours each evening for a month. The children's teachers are asked to assess changes in behavior. Data analysis shows no effect of game type, but Professor Kwan knows that several children didn't follow the procedure so he makes up data for them and then shows a significant effect. Which part of APA Ethical Standard 8 did the data violate? 1. Reporting of Research Results 2. Plagiarism 3. Sharing Research Data for Verification 4. Deception In Research

Reporting of Research Results Research Misconduct—Professor Kwan engaged in data fabrication by creating data for some of the subjects.

Professor Kwan studies violence and designs a study of the effects of video game violence on children. From schools near his university, two groups of low-income Hispanic children are assigned to play either a violent or non-violent video game two hours each evening for a month. The children's teachers are asked to assess changes in behavior. To assure good participation, the participants are offered a chance to win a family trip to a major theme park. Which of the APA's Five General Principles is violated by this incentive? 1. Beneficence and Nonmaleficence 2. Fidelity and Responsibility 3. Respect for People's Rights and Dignity 4. Justice

Respect for People's Rights and Dignity The Principle of Respect for Persons—Children are entitled to special protection as they are unable to give autonomous consent and the incentive is so attractive it is coercive.

In which cycle do scientists take ideas from current events presented in the popular media as inspiration for research? 1. The Theory-Data Cycle 2. The Basic-Applied Research Cycle 3. The Peer-Review Cycle 4. The Journal-to-Journalism Cycle

The Journal-to-Journalism Cycle The Journal-to-Journalism Cycle—While this cycle more commonly goes from Journal to Journalism, the popular media can also provide ideas for research.

After studying a proposal by Tversky and Koehler (1994) that probabilities assigned to events vary based on descriptions of the events, Franchesca designs a study to examine how pairs of lab partners perceive their relative contribution to joint projects. She predicts that students who detail of their own contributions, then estimate their percentage of the total project will have higher estimates than students who detail the contributions made by their lab partner before estimating their own percentage contribution. She collects data and finds this is supported. In which cycle does Franchesca write up her experiment and submit it to a journal? 1. The Theory-Data Cycle 2. The Basic-Applied Research Cycle 3. The Peer Review Cycle 4. The Journal-to-Journalism Cycle

The Peer Review Cycle The Peer-Review Cycle—She is starting the process of telling the scientific world about her findings.

After studying a proposal by Tversky and Koehler (1994) that the probabilities assigned to events vary based on descriptions of the events, Franchesca designs a study to examine how pairs of lab partners perceive their relative contribution to joint projects. She predicts that students who detail their own contributions then estimate their percentage of the total project will have higher estimates than students who detail the contributions made by their lab partner before estimating their own percentage contribution. She collects data and finds this is supported. Which cycle is this? 1. The Theory-Data Cycle 2. The Basic-Applied Research Cycle 3. The Peer-Review Cycle 4. The Journal-to-Journalism Cycle

The Theory-Data Cycle Her findings add further support to the theory.

Which cycle is most similar to what you do when you take systematic steps to solve a problem? 1. The Theory-Data Cycle 2. The Basic-Applied Research Cycle 3. The Peer-Review Cycle 4. The Journal to-Journalism Cycle

The Theory-Data Cycle The Theory-Data Cycle—When you solve a problem, you typically make a prediction about the problem and the source of the problem, test your prediction, and either change your prediction if it is wrong, or solve it if your prediction is correct.

Which of the following criteria is not required for a causal claim? 1. The correlation between the cause variable and outcome variable is zero. 2. The cause variables and outcome variable are correlated. 3. The causal variable came first and the outcome variable came later. 4. There is no other explanation for the relationship.

The correlation between the cause variable and outcome variable is zero. Causal Claims—In the case that the correlation is zero, a causal claim cannot be made.

Which of these is not a characteristic of an edited book? 1. It is a collection of chapters on a common topic. 2. Each chapter is written by a different contributor. 3. Chapters typically are summaries of sets of research. 4. The peer-review process for edited books is more rigorous than for that of a journal.

The peer-review process for edited books is more rigorous than for that of a journal. Chapters in Edited Books—While the editor of the book is careful to select only experts to write chapters, the peer-review process is not as rigorous as that of a journal.

A school district decides to compare a new math textbook and the math textbook currently in use for fourth grade. They assign the fourth graders to two classes. The teacher of one class uses the old book and the teacher of the other class uses the new book. They compare the average scores of the two classes on a mathematics standardized test at the end of the year to determine the better book. Which of the following is not a likely confound of this study? 1. The teachers have different teaching skills. 2. Mathematics instruction does not only come from the textbook. 3. The standardized test is graded incorrectly. 4. The teachers have different amounts of experience using the books.

The standardized test is graded incorrectly. Experience is Confounded—While it could happen that the grading is incorrect, this is not a problem caused by changing more than one variable at a time.

Which of the following is not one of the categories of ethical violations illustrated by the Tuskegee Syphilis Study? 1. There was a failure to obtain approval from the Institutional Review Board before beginning the study. 2. The participants were not treated respectfully. 3. A disadvantaged group was targeted. 4. The participants were harmed.

There was a failure to obtain approval from the Institutional Review Board before beginning the study. The Tuskegee Syphilis Study: An Example of Three Major Ethics Violations—The study was started in 1932, long before Instructional Review Boards came into existence in 1974-1976.

Which characteristic sets scientific journals apart from magazines? 1. They have multiple contributors. 2. They are peer-reviewed. 3. They have editors. 4. They come out periodically, usually once a month.

They are peer-reviewed. The Peer-Review Cycle—While a magazine has an editor, articles and information aren't subject to scrutiny by experts in the field before publication.

Which of the following is not a reason to be skeptical of the advice of authorities? 1. They may have systematically and objectively compared different conditions. 2. They might cherry-pick the evidence to support their own position. 3. They may base their advice on their own experience and intuition. 4. The research cited by the authority may be unreliable.

They may have systematically and objectively compared different conditions. Trusting Authorities on the Subject—Authorities may be actually basing their advice on empirical evidence, in which case they may be worth listening to.

Which of the following is a positive feature of wikis? 1. They may not include references. 2. They provide quick, easy-to-read facts. 3. They are not comprehensive in their coverage. 4. The self-correcting feature does not always work, so errors can remain.

They provide quick, easy-to-read facts. Finding Research on Wikis—While wikis can be useful for quick information, they are not completely reliable for research.

Which of these is not a consequence of being overconfident of our ideas? 1. Doing so gives us more trust in our (often faulty) reasoning. 2. Doing so makes it difficult to initiate the theory-data cycle. 3. We appear to others to be less credible than we are. 4. We mistake our confidence for evidence of truth in our beliefs.

We appear to others to be less credible than we are. Being Overconfident—People actually perceive confident people as being more credible even though they are often no more accurate.

In reading an empirical journal article, what are the two questions you should be asking as you read? 1. What is the argument? What is the evidence to support the argument? 2. Why was this research done? Were there any significant findings? 3. How reputable is (are) the author(s)? Did the findings include support for the hypotheses? 4. How does this research relate to other research? What are ways to extend this research further?

What is the argument? What is the evidence to support the argument? Reading With a Purpose: Empirical Journal Articles—You are looking for the author's thesis and the evidence that supports it.

A headline in the newspaper claimed that school lunches make children fat. The article said that a recent study published in a prominent journal had come to this conclusion. After reading this, Sora wanted to apply what she was learning in her research methods class by interrogating the information. Which of the following questions would be the least useful for her to ask? 1. How was this study conducted? 2. Which journal did it appear in? 3. Who were the peer-reviewers of the article and what were their qualifications? 4. What type of data was gathered to reach the conclusion?

Who were the peer-reviewers of the article and what were their qualifications? Why the Consumer Role is Important—The peer-reviewers are kept anonymous as part of the review process.

It has been reported that half of Americans show road rage. Which group of 1,000 participants should be studied to give the greatest external validity? 1. students from Intro to Psych courses who are earning extra credit 2. a cross-section of American drivers representing men and women; people from the city, suburbs, and farms; of all ages 3. young men from ages 20 to 30; since they are the group most frequently charged with road rage, they should be the focus 4. a random sample of people from a Los Angeles telephone book

a cross-section of American drivers representing men and women; people from the city, suburbs, and farms; of all ages Interrogating Frequency Claims—The other choices represent only specific subsets of Americans.

Seligman (1975, 1991) identified the behavior of caged dogs who could not escape electrical shocks as learned helplessness. Quan thinks this may apply to computer use. He believes that failure in using a new program will make a person less willing to try another program. He tests this by giving people 30 minutes to use either a user-friendly program or a complicated program. He then gives them a different program and records how long they try to use it. People who had the difficult program give up more quickly. What is Quan's prediction about trying another program? 1. a theory 2. a hypothesis 3. a guess 4. a law

a hypothesis The Theory-Data Cycle—He is hypothesizing when he makes his prediction.

After studying a proposal by Tversky and Koehler (1994) that the probabilities assigned to events vary based on descriptions of the events, Franchesca designs a study to examine how pairs of lab partners perceive their relative contribution to joint projects. She predicts that students who detail of their own contributions then estimate their percentage of the total project will have higher estimates than students who detail the contributions made by their lab partner before estimating their own percentage contribution. She collects data and finds this is supported. What is Franchesca's prediction about the estimates by the lab partners? 1. a law 2. a theory 3. a hypothesis 4. a model

a hypothesis The Theory-Data Cycle—She is hypothesizing when she makes her prediction.

Reading the news on the Internet, Johan comes across the headline, "When Stress is Increased, Men Rush Ahead, Women More Cautious." (This headline is based on a study conducted by Lighthall et al., 2011.) In this study, men and women were asked to perform a decision task as many times as possible in a set period, in a stressed or unstressed condition. In the unstressed condition, men and women performed similarly. However, with stress the number of decision tasks performed by men increased while the number performed by women decreased. The number of decision tasks performed was an example of what? 1. a constant 2. a level of a variable 3. a manipulated variable 4. a measured variable

a measured variable Measured Versus Manipulated Variables—The number of decision tasks performed is measured.

Seligman (1975, 1991) identified the behavior of caged dogs who could not escape electrical shocks as learned helplessness. Quan thinks this may apply to computer use. He believes that failure in using a new program will make a person less willing to try another program. He tests this by giving people 30 minutes to use either a user-friendly program or a complicated program. He then gives them a different program and records how long they try to use it. People who had the difficult program give up more quickly. What is learned helplessness? 1. a theory 2. a hypothesis 3. a collection of data 4. a doctrine

a theory The Theory-Data Cycle—Seligman's work is a theory as it is supported by data, is falsifiable, and is parsimonious.

After studying a proposal by Tversky and Koehler (1994) that the probabilities assigned to events vary based on descriptions of the events, Franchesca designs a study to examine how pairs of lab partners perceive their relative contribution to joint projects. She predicts that students who detail of their own contributions then estimate their percentage of the total project will have higher estimates than students who detail the contributions made by their lab partner before estimating their own percentage contribution. She collects data and finds this is supported. What is the statement of Tversky and Koehler's proposal? 1. a law 2. a theory 3. a hypothesis 4. a guess

a theory The Theory-Data Cycle—This proposal is actually called Support Theory.

Which of the following is a source of empirical evidence? 1. a thermometer 2. a logical argument 3. an expert opinion 4. common sense

a thermometer The Theory-Data Cycle—Only the thermometer could be used to produce empirical data.

Which of these skills will probably not be part of research that a student would do as part of a lab course in psychology? 1. interpret results from graph 2. accurately summarize responses to a questionnaire 3. randomly assign people to groups 4. administer facilitated communication

administer facilitated communication Why the Producer Role is Important—Facilitated communication is treatment that requires extensive training and has not been scientifically demonstrated to be effective.

In research, a confound is: 1. an alternative explanation for an outcome that comes about because more than one thing changed at the same time. 2. a result that leaves the researcher puzzled. 3. an instance when the actual outcome is contrary to the probabilistic prediction. 4. the difficulty we experience in thinking of counter-examples to our beliefs.

an alternative explanation for an outcome that comes about because more than one thing changed at the same time. Experience is Confounded—When more than one thing changes simultaneously, you can never be sure which one is the cause of an outcome.

To base one's conclusions on systematic observations is to be _____________. 1. an empiricist 2. a rationalist 3. a pragmatist 4. a realist

an empiricist Psychology Is a Way of Thinking—As empiricists, psychologists know what they know because they have conducted studies on people and animals acting in natural environments or in specially designed situations.

Pariya has noticed that in all her classes, the students who major in biology tend to ask more questions than students who major in other areas. Which type of claim is this? 1. causal 2. association 3. frequency 4. anecdotal

anecdotal Frequency Claims—This claim is anecdotal since Pariya has not systematically studied this.

Which of the following types of data do not raise issues concerning confidentiality? 1. photographs of participants 2. handwriting samples from participants 3. participants' dates of birth 4. answers to a completely anonymous questionnaire

answers to a completely anonymous questionnaire Informed Consent (Standard 8.02)—Any records that might allow an individual's data to be identified must be protected.

What type of research is done with a practical problem in mind? 1. applied research 2. Basic 3. Exploratory 4. translational

applied research The Basic-Applied Research Cycle—Basic research is intended to enhance the general body of knowledge and translational research bridges between basic research and applications, while applied research starts out with a particular problem in mind.

Following a study using deception, how does the researcher attempt to restore an honest relationship with the participant? 1. by apologizing to the participant and offering monetary compensation for any discomfort or stress 2. by debriefing each participant in a structured conversation 3. by reassuring the participant that all names and identifiers will be removed from the data 4. by giving each participant a written description of the study's goals and hypotheses along with references for further reading

by debriefing each participant in a structured conversation Debriefing (Standard 8.08) —The researcher must describe the nature of the deception, explain why it was necessary, and explain the importance of the research.

In a developmental psychology class, Trina learned about Baumarind's (1971, 1991) work on parenting styles. She recognized that her parents used an authoritarian style of parenting, as did all her relatives. Since that was the style of parenting she planned to use, she researched the advantages to that style, while ignoring any disadvantages to it. What is the term for what she was doing? 1. cherry-picking the evidence 2. confirmatory hypothesis testing 3. showing a self-serving bias 4. creating a good story

cherry-picking the evidence Cherry-Picking the Evidence—She only looked for information that supported her belief that authoritarian parenting was the best style, instead of looking at other information.

If researchers suggest that participants who do not participate in a research study will suffer negative consequences, it is: 1. autonomy. 2. coercion. 3. failing to provide special protection. 4. a debriefing failure.

coercion. The Principle of Respect for Persons—As part of treating a participant as an autonomous agent, a researcher may not use pressure to elicit participation.

The term used in psychology for a person who is an actor playing a specific role for an experimenter is: 1. imposter 2. confederate 3. stooge 4. accomplice

confederate Controlled Research is Better than Experience—While all these terms are somewhat related, "confederate" is the one used in psychology research.

Seligman (1975, 1991) identified the behavior of caged dogs who could not escape electrical shocks as learned helplessness. Quan thinks this may apply to computer use. He believes that failure in using a new program will make a person less willing to try another program. He tests this by giving people 30 minutes to use either a user-friendly program or a complicated program. He then gives them a different program and records how long they try to use it. People who had the difficult program give up more quickly. What is the time Quan measured for people trying the second program? 1. the prediction 2. proof of his idea 3. a production 4. data

data Theory, Prediction, and Data—These are his set of observations to check his predictions.

When an experimenter actively lies to a participant, this is: 1. deception through commission. 2. a clear violation of the APA principles. 3. deception through omission. 4. a violation of federal guidelines.

deception through commission Deception (Standard 8.07)—Both the APA principles and federal guidelines allow the use of deception under certain circumstances. Deception by commission is the purposeful misleading of participants.

Dimitri is interested in studying the effects of sleep deprivation on short-term memory. Which of the following is an empirical approach? 1. gather and summarize the journal articles that address this question 2. design and execute a study which measures short-term memory function following different sleepless time periods 3. consult the professor on his campus who has published many journal articles on this subject 4. make strong logical arguments about these effects, based on the journal literature

design and execute a study which measures short-term memory function following different sleepless time periods Theory, Prediction, and Data—Empiricism involves collecting data to develop, support, or challenge a theory.

Which of the following is not part of interrogating information? 1. evaluating the information based on the answers to questions you ask about it 2. asking the right questions 3. expanding the scope of the information 4. finding the answers to your questions

expanding the scope of the information Why the Consumer Role is Important—A researcher may conduct additional research in the area, but that would be as a producer, not as a consumer.

Reading the news on the Internet, Johan comes across the headline, "When Stress is Increased, Men Rush Ahead, Women More Cautious." (This headline is based on a study conducted by Lighthall et al., 2011.) In this study, men and women were asked to perform a decision task as many times as possible in a set period, in a stressed or unstressed condition. In the unstressed condition, men and women performed similarly. However, with stress the number of decision tasks performed by men increased while the number performed by women decreased. Which of the following is not an operational definition of stress? 1. feelings of anxiousness and pressure 2. a measurement of the amount of a "fight or flight" hormone in saliva 3. responses to a standardized stress questionnaire 4. length of time a participant submerges one hand in ice water

feelings of anxiousness and pressure From Conceptual Variable to Operational Definition—"Feelings of anxiousness and pressure" is a conceptual definition and is not operationalized.

Which of these is not one of the three main validities you should interrogate when an association claim is made? 1. statistical 2. external 3. internal 4. construct

internal Interrogating Association Claims—Association claims are not asserting causality so internal validity is not relevant to interrogate. Internal validity is relevant when you assert that one variable causes another to change.

Professor Nakum designs a memory experiment to test the effect of word familiarity on memory. Three lists of words are created: common words, uncommon words, and made-up words. Participants study one of the lists of 30 words for 5 minutes, do math problems for 5 minutes, then write all the words they recall from the list. Their score is the number of words correctly recalled. Statistical tests show no difference between the real word scores, but a large difference in the score for made-up words. What validity should be interrogated in the claim "Word Familiarity Helps Memory?" 1. internal 2. construct 3. external 4. statistical

internal When Causal Claims are a Mistake—The result is based on the difference between words and made-up words, not familiarity of words. These made-up words may systematically differ in other ways from the real words.

Professor Nakum designs a memory experiment to test the effect of word familiarity on memory. Three lists of words are created: common words, uncommon words, and made-up words. Participants are randomly assigned to study one of the lists of 30 words for 5 minutes, do math problems for 5 minutes, then write all the words they recall from the list. Their score is the number of words correctly recalled. The use of random assignment of participants increases which of the following? 1. the temporal precedence of the study 2. the strength of association of the study 3. internal validity of the study 4. external validity of the study

internal validity of the study Experiments Can Test Causal Claims—Random assignment controlled for possible alternative explanations.

The Department of Motor Vehicles has had a complaint that some of the people who administer the road test pass a much higher percentage of the people they test than other test administrators. What type of reliability is being questioned here? 1. interrater reliability 2. internal reliability 3. test-retest reliability 4. external reliability

interrater reliability Three Types of Reliability—This is a question of whether two observers would have similar findings and the complaint is asserting that they wouldn't, thus it is an interrater reliability question.

When new data requires that a theory become more complicated, the theory _______________. 1. is immediately discarded 2. is less parsimonious 3. Is considered to be falsified 4. is disproved

is less parsimonious What Makes a Good Theory—Theories should show parsimony but can be modified to accommodate the data.

Which of the following is not needed by a participant in order to give informed consent to participate in a research study? 1. knowledge of the participants in the study 2. knowledge of the research study 3. knowledge of the risks of the study 4. knowledge of the benefits of the study

knowledge of the participants in the study The Principle of Respect for Persons —Informed consent requires that participants agree to participate after being told about the study and its risks and benefits.

Which of the following is not a place that psychological scientists publish their research? 1. journals 2. magazines 3. chapters in edited books 4. full-length books

magazines Consulting Scientific Sources: Journal Articles, Chapters, and Books—Magazines are written for the general public by journalists who typically write about the research of a psychological scientist as part of the journal-to-journalism cycle.

Which of the following is probably not a producer of research information? 1. biochemist 2. marriage and family counselor 3. systems analyst 4. economist

marriage and family counselor Information Producers, Information Consumers—While it is possible for a marriage and family counselor to be a producer of research, it isn't common.

What is a quantitative technique used in some review articles that combines the results of many studies and gives a number that summarizes the magnitude of a relationship? 1. macro-analytical procedure 2. analysis of variance 3. meta-analysis 4. hybrid scaling

meta-analysis Journal Articles—Meta-analysis combines the results of many studies and summarizes the results in the effect size.

It has been reported that half of Americans show road rage. Which of the following operational definitions of road rage has the strongest construct validity? 1. self-reported frequency of the feeling of being angry while driving 2. score on an aggressive driving inventory 3. official criminal behavior reports involving using a car as a weapon 4. reports by family members on their observations of each other's driving

official criminal behavior reports involving using a car as a weapon Interrogating Frequency Claims—While the other choices may reflect people's desire be perceived as good people, the reports would reflect actual behavior.

As part of an assignment for his Introduction to Psychology class, Gilbert has to read a journal article, summarize it, and compare it to what is reported in his textbook. Gilbert selects the article: "Effects of Severe Daily Events on Mood," Stone & Neale (1984). Gilbert doesn't have access to his university library from home. Where else on the Internet would he be most likely to find this article for free? 1. on Wikipedia 2. on the wiki for psychology, www.psychwiki.com 3. by searching on Google for "color perception" 4. on the home pages of Stone and Neale and by looking on Google Scholar

on the home pages of Stone and Neale and by looking on Google Scholar Alternatives to PsycINFO—Many journal articles are linked to Google Scholar and many authors list their publications, including abstracts or full articles, on their home pages.

Which of the following groups are not recognized in the Belmont Report as entitled to special protection? 1. children 2. people with intellectual or developmental disabilities 3. prisoners 4. paid participants

paid participants The Principle of Respect for Persons—While the Belmont Report does recognize that undue influence would occur if there was an incentive too attractive to refuse, it does not include paid participants as a special group.

What type of research misconduct involves representing the ideas or words of others as one's own? 1. plagiarism 2. obfuscation 3. suppression 4. data falsification

plagiarism Research Misconduct—Plagiarism is a form of stealing and occurs when a person takes credit for another person's intellectual property.

Professor Lee believes that the students who do extra credit assignments are usually on the brink of failing. She checks this by graphing the average exam grade against the number of extra credit points for each student. She is surprised to find that the students with the highest exam grades also have the most extra credit points. What type of association is this? 1. curvilinear 2. negative 3. positive 4. causal

positive Association Claims—The higher the grade, the more extra credit points is a positive association.

Pavlina believes that people in black cars are much more likely to speed than people in other colored cars. She is probably the victim of what tendency? 1. the pop-up principle 2. present/present bias 3. cherry-picking evidence 4. being overconfident

present/present bias Present/Present Bias—She probably notices all the black cars that speed, but fails to notice the other cars that speed or the black cars that don't speed.

Which of the following is not a common way that journalists misrepresent science when they write about it for a popular audience? 1. choosing a sensational story over an important one 2. exaggerating the strength of the findings 3. recalculating and correcting the published statistics 4. leaving out essential details to make a better story

recalculating and correcting the published statistics The Journal-to-Journalism Cycle—Journalists make scientific research more accessible to the public. They tend to simplify the work, not change the statistics.

Which of the following is not one of the "three R's" provided by the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals? 1. reduction 2. replacement 3. restoration 4. refinement

restoration Animal Research (Standard 8.09)—The "three R's" concern finding alternatives to animals in research (replacement), a minimization of animal distress (refinement), and finding a way to use the fewest animals possible (reduction).

Which of the following is probably a producer, as well as a consumer, of research information? 1. nurse 2. human resources manager 3. social worker 4. statistician

statistician Information Producers, Information Consumers—A statistician often works at analyzing data which would be a vocation of a producer of research.

Which of the following is not a form of "thinking the easy way?" 1. coming to a conclusion just because it "makes sense" 2. noticing the instances that occur when we expect them to 3. focusing on the instances that come to mind quickly 4. testing your hunches through systematic, empirical observations

testing your hunches through systematic, empirical observations Thinking the Easy Way—Only one that is an application of scientific principles.

Obesity and exercise have a negative association. In order to assert that lack of exercise causes obesity, what must be shown? 1. that thinness and exercise have a positive relationship 2. that there are no obese people who exercise 3. that there are no thin people who do not exercise 4. that the lack of exercise came before the obesity

that the lack of exercise came before the obesity Three Rules for Causation—This is the temporal precedence rule for causation. It is possible that because of the difficulty in exercising, obese people stop exercising after becoming obese.

Which of the following is not a layer of guidance for a researcher at a university? 1. federal laws 2. institutional policies 3. the Geneva Conventions 4. abstract ethical guidelines

the Geneva Conventions The Belmont Report: Principles and Applications —The Geneva Conventions concern treatment of victims of wars, whereas the other choices apply to researchers at a university.

Reading the news on the Internet, Johan comes across the headline, "When Stress is Increased, Men Rush Ahead, Women More Cautious." (This headline is based on a study conducted by Lighthall et al., 2011.) In this study, men and women were asked to perform a decision task as many times as possible in a set period, in a stressed or unstressed condition. In the unstressed condition, men and women performed similarly. However, with stress the number of decision tasks performed by men increased while the number performed by women decreased. Which of the following is a variable in this study? 1. the decision task type 2. the length of the set period 3. the amount of stress 4. the cause of the stress

the amount of stress Variables—The amount of stress is varied between stressed and unstressed.

Reading the news on the Internet, Johan comes across the headline, "When Stress is Increased, Men Rush Ahead, Women More Cautious." (This headline is based on a study conducted by Lighthall et al., 2011.) In this study, men and women were asked to perform a decision task as many times as possible in a set period, in a stressed or unstressed condition. In the unstressed condition, men and women performed similarly. However, with stress the number of decision tasks performed by men increased while the number performed by women decreased. Which of the following is a constant in this study? 1. the amount of time to perform the decision task 2. sex of the participants 3. stress of the participants 4. number of times the decision task was performed

the amount of time to perform the decision task Constant—The time period is set. All the other choices vary in the study.

The formal term that states that things that easily come to mind tend to guide our thinking is: 1. representativeness heuristic. 2. the confirmation bias. 3. the present/present bias. 4. the availability heuristic.

the availability heuristic. The Pop-Up Principle—Tversky & Kahneman proposed that people judge the frequency of an event by relevant instances they easily remember and called this the availability heuristic.

What is the name for the measured variable in an experiment? 1. the constant 2. the testing variable 3. the independent variable 4. the dependent variable

the dependent variable Experiments Can Test Causal Claims—In an experiment, the experimenter manipulates one variable, the independent variable, and measures the other, the dependent variable.

Professor Nakum designs a memory experiment to test the effect of word familiarity on memory. Three lists of words are created: common words, uncommon words, and made-up words. Participants study one of the lists of 30 words for 5 minutes, do math problems for 5 minutes, then write all the words they recall from the list. Their score is the number of words correctly recalled. Which of the following is a dependent variable in this study? 1. the type of word list 2. the time spent studying the list 3. the length of the list studied 4. the number of words correctly recalled

the number of words correctly recalled Experiments Can Test Causal Claims—The number of words recalled is what is being measured.

After two students from his school commit suicide, Marcelino thinks that the most likely cause of death in teenagers is suicide. What type of bias is affecting in his thinking? 1. the present/present bias 2. confirmatory hypothesis testing 3. the Barnum effect 4. the pop-up principle

the pop-up principle The Pop-Up Principle—For Marcelino, these suicides are vivid, recent, and more memorable than other causes of death.

Which of the following is not a required member of any institutional review board (IRB)? 1. a scientist 2. a community member with no ties to the institution 3. the scientist whose research is under review 4. someone with academic interests outside the sciences

the scientist whose research is under review Institutional Review Boards (Standard 8.01)—The IRB is intended to offer a neutral, multiperspective judgment on each study's ethicality, and scientists are unable to offer neutral assessments of their own work.

Which of the following are two ethical issues raised by Milgram's studies of obedience? 1. the pain of the electrical shocks experienced by the learners and the stress experienced by the teachers 2. the stress experienced by the teachers and the lasting effects of the study on the teachers 3. the distress felt by the experimenter who had to order the teacher to shock the learner and the pain of the electric shocks experienced by the learners 4. targeting of a disadvantaged group and the disrespectful treatment of participants

the stress experienced by the teachers and the lasting effects of the study on the teachers The Milgram Studies: An Example of the Ethical Balance—The two big issues were that the participants showed signs of great stress and they may have suffered aftereffects that weren't addressed.

Professor Nakum designs a memory experiment to test the effect of word familiarity on memory. Three lists of words are created: common words, uncommon words, and made-up words. Participants study one of the lists of 30 words for 5 minutes, do math problems for 5 minutes, then write all the words they recall from the list. Their score is the number of words correctly recalled. Which of the following is an independent variable in this study? 1. the type of word list 2. the time spent studying the list 3. the length of the list studied 4. the number of words correctly recalled

the type of word list Experiments Can Test Causal Claims—The type of word list is what is being manipulated.

A statement, or set of statements, that describes general principles about how variables relate to one another is a ________________. 1. prediction 2. hypothesis 3. set of observations 4. theory

theory Theory, Prediction, and Data—This is the definition of theory.

Hilda is studying the effects of major natural disasters on people living nearby. She finds that many of the victims are depressed and show stress-related symptoms. She cannot conclude that the natural disasters caused the depression and stress-related symptoms because: 1. there is no comparison group. 2. she doesn't have a theory. 3. she hasn't done enough background research. 4. she is relying on intuition.

there is no comparison group. Compared to What?—While the nearby people may show these symptoms, she has no way to know if others, who didn't experience the natural disasters, are also depressed and showing stress-related symptoms.

Reading the news on the Internet, Johan comes across the headline, "When Stress is Increased, Men Rush Ahead, Women More Cautious." (This headline is based on a study conducted by Lighthall et al., 2011.) In this study, men and women were asked to perform a decision task as many times as possible in a set period, in a stressed or unstressed condition. In the unstressed condition, men and women performed similarly. However, with stress the number of decision tasks performed by men increased while the number performed by women decreased. How many variables are mentioned in this study? 1. two 2. three 3. four 4. five

three Variables—Men and women, stressed and unstressed, and the number of decision tasks performed are all variables.

After reading about Harlow's contact comfort theory, Dr. Borden wonders if touch and cuddling would speed weight gain in premature babies in the neonatal intensive care unit. He designs a study to test this idea. What type of research is Dr. Borden's study? 1. basic 2. predictive 3. translational 4. applied

translational The Basic-Applied Research Cycle—Since Dr. Borden's research is connecting Harlow's basic research to an application, it is translational.

Phuong is conducting an experiment on proofreading. One group proofreads by reading silently, a second group proofreads by reading aloud, and a third group proofreads by reading the passage silently backward. The number of errors found and time taken to complete the proofreading are recorded. What are the variables in this study? 1. type of proofreading, number of errors, and time to complete the task 2. reading silently, reading aloud, or reading silently backward 3. number of errors 4. time to complete the task and number of errors

type of proofreading, number of errors, and time to complete the task Variables—There are three variables in this study. The three types of proofreading technique are silent, aloud, and backward.