BRM - Chapter 3

empirical testing

examining a research hypothesis against reality using data.

hypothesis

formal statement of an unproven proposition that is empirically testable.

"Employees dressed professionally will perform better than those dressed casually" is an example of a _____.

hypothesis

abstract level

in theory development, the level of knowledge expressing a concept that exists only as an idea or a quality apart from an object.

If all the trees a person has seen in his life have been green and therefore he concludes that all trees are green, which type of reasoning is he using?

inductive reasoning

The logical process of establishing a general proposition on the basis of observation of particular facts is known as _____.

inductive reasoning

variable

is an empirical assessment of a concept

empirical level

level of knowledge that is verifiable by experience or observation.

ladder of abstraction

organization of concepts in sequence from the most concrete and individual to the most general.

What is the LAST step in the application of the scientific method?

proposal of an explanation of the phenomenon and statement of new problems raised by the research

prpositions

statements explaining the logical linkage among certain concepts by asserting a universal connection between concepts.

A formal, logical explanation of some events that includes descriptions of how things relate to one another is called a(n) _____.

theory

2 purpose of theory are:

understanding and predicting

variable

Anything that may assume different numerical values is considered a(n) _____.

empirical level

At what level do we "experience" reality?

_____ is the logical process of deriving a conclusion about a specific instance based on a known general premise or something known to be true.

Deductive reasoning

latent construct

Empathy is a concept that is not directly observable or measurable but is measured through other measures, such as an individual's thoughts and behaviors toward others. This is an example of a(n) _____.

concept

Self-efficacy, which is a generalized idea about how humans perceive their own abilities, is an example of a(n) _____.

ladder of abstraction

The organization of concepts in sequence from the most concrete and individual to the most general is called the _____.

operationalizing

The process of identifying the actual measurement scales to assess the variables of interest is called _____.

empirical

When a researcher collects data to test the hypothesis that consumers will be more satisfied if a business offers compensation after the consumer complains, we say that _____ testing is being conducted.

supported

When the data from an empirical study are consistent with a research hypothesis, we say that the hypothesis is _____.

proposition

Which of the following is a statement explaining the logical linkage among certain concepts by asserting a universal connection between concepts?

concept

Which of the following is considered the basic unit for theory development?

empirical testing

Which of the following means that something has been examined against reality using data?

latent construct

a concept that is not directly observable or measurable, but can be estimated through proxy measures.

concept (or construct)

a generalized idea about a class of objects that has been given a name; an abstraction of reality that is the basic unit for theory development.

In theory development, which of the following is the level of knowledge expressing a concept that exists only as an idea or a quality apart from an object?

abstract level

Which of the following is a step involved in the application of the scientific method?

all of these choices

latent construct

A concept that is not directly observable or measurable but can be estimated through proxy measures is called a(n) _____.

Theory

A formal, logical explanation of some events that includes prediction of how things relate to one another.

scientific method

A researcher is testing the hypothesis stating a positive relationship between business owners' level of risk tolerance and the insurance coverage for the business. To test this, the researcher uses a set of prescribed procedures for establishing and connecting theoretical statements about these two constructs, for analyzing empirical evidence gathered through surveys, and for predicting future behavior. This researcher is following the _____.

construct

A(n) ____ is a generalized idea about a class of objects that has been given a name.

theory

Psychologists explain that humans' better recall of information that is presented visually compared to information presented verbally is due to the fact that the information is stored both visually and verbally. Because it is stored using this dual-coding process, it is easier to retrieve from memory. This formal logical explanation of this phenomenon is an example of a(n) _____.