MIdterm CJ research Methods

When information is gathered by researchers and there are no identifying characteristics allowing the researchers to match up results to individual subjects, this illustrates _____.

Anonymity

The final stage of the research process is _____.

Application

Your college has implemented a new policy on campus regarding underage drinking. You want to evaluate its effects. The purpose of your research is _____.

Application

Validity is "the approximate truth of an inference". Here the emphasis is on:

Approximate

When we trust the judgments of people who have special training, such as a doctor or a lawyer, we are accepting their _____.

Authority

You observe police activity in your city for one week, and then you describe what you observed. What type of study have you performed?

Descriptive

Determining whether a program designed to reduce burglary actually had the intended effect is an example of _____.

Evaluation

When we attempt to answer questions about why something happens the purpose of our research is _____.

Explanation

Casual human inquiry is a more rigorous way of investigation than probability and causality.

False

Confidentiality and anonymity mean the same thing, so they can be used interchangeably.

False

Deception of subjects is never appropriate.

False

Ecological fallacy refers to the dangers of making assertions about large groups as the units of analysis based upon examination of individuals.

False

Ethical considerations in research are always evident.

False

In all cases, participation as a subject in research is voluntary.

False

In grounded theory, observations may not contribute to theory development.

False

Non-Government organizations that conduct research involving human subjects need not establish review committees known as institutional review boards

False

Research projects known as longitudinal studies are designed to permit observations over a short period of time.

False

There are several errors in human personal inquiry, such as overgeneralization, inaccurate observation, replication, and selective observation.

False

We live in a world of two realities; agreement and empirical.

False

In an examination of violent crime among the most populous nations in the world, the United States ranks very high along with England, France, and Australia. The chance of being raped is higher in France than in the United States. What units of analysis are being used?

Groups

A survey distributed on a college campus discovered that males support the death penalty in greater numbers than do females. The units of analysis in this case would be _____.

Individuals

Criminal justice research is organized around two basic activities: measurement and _____.

Interpretation

Which of the following is an example of a panel study?

National Crime Victimization Survey

The keystone of inquiry is _____.

Observation

Units of analysis are typically also the units of __________.

Observation

Whereas people often observe inaccurately, science avoids such errors by making ______ a careful and deliberate activity

Observation

Data analysis looks for patterns in what is ____________.

Observed

Which of the following is not included in the "CRAAP Test?"

Policy

Which of the following statements is NOT accurate?

Researchers do not need to respond to court orders.

A _______is the most appropriate method for studying both general concern and fear for personal safety

Survey

When we rely on the "truths" of our culture we are accepting knowledge derived from the majority. This is acceptance of _____.

Traditions

A major midwestern university does annual surveys of its alumni. These surveys are designed to gauge the attitudes that alumni hold about the university, its academic programs, and the major team sports. These surveys have been an annual event for the last two decades and represent which type of study?

Trend study

A scientific realist approach to examining mechanisms in context bridges idiographic and nomothetic approaches to causation.

True

As a rule, possible harm to subjects may be justified when the potential benefits of the study outweigh the possible harm.

True

As you review the research literature, you should make note of how other researchers approached the problem, and consider whether the same designs will meet your research objective

True

Criminal justice research sometimes yields mistaken results, and we are wise to accept research findings with caution even if they come from experts.

True

Cross-sectional studies are those based on observations made at one time.

True

Each of us is born into and inherits a culture made up, in part, of firmly accepted knowledge about the workings of the world.

True

Explanatory scientific research centers on the notion of cause and effect.

True

Four purposes of research are exploration, description, explanation, and application.

True

Harm to research subjects may be justified if the potential benefits of the study outweigh the harm.

True

Individuals may be units of analysis in criminal justice research.

True

Individuals must be allowed to make their own decisions about participation in research.

True

Making observations in a more deliberate way helps to reduce error.

True

Most explanatory social research uses a probabilistic model of causation.

True

Selective observation is a danger of overgeneralization.

True

Social science involves three fundamental aspects: theory, data collection, and data analysis.

True

The benefits and burdens of participating in research should be distributed fairly.

True

The existence of exceptions does not support the existence of regularities.

True

The research goal of voluntary participation may be impossible to follow.

True

When scientists consider whether causal statements are true or false, they are concerned with the validity of causal inference.

True

Which of the examples below would create an ethical dilemma when doing applied research that is evaluative in nature?

Upon review of a juvenile probation department, researchers found that contact sheets, which are designed to keep track of both phone and personal interactions between the officer and the juvenile, in one probation officer's files were all dated June 15th.

Which of the following would not be a unit of analysis?

Variables

A local university is hosting the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) for a large group of prospective law students. Since there is such a large group taking the test, some professors of sociology from the local university decide to administer a questionnaire to the group asking their ideas on teenage sexual promiscuity. The professors informed the group about their research project. They assured them that their identity will not be disclosed and all information gathered will remain confidential. Which ethical consideration was not considered?

Voluntary participation

Things we consider real because we've been told they are real is which type of reality?

agreement reality

Traditional beliefs about patrol effectiveness, response time, and detective work are examples of _____.

agreement reality

The value of institutional review boards includes which of the following?

all of the above

Which of the following is an example of research where there was potential harm to the researcher?

all of the above

Which of the following is not a key ethical issue addressed by informed consent?

allowing police officers to use excessive force.

A group of researchers from an urban institute want to employ some target hardening techniques in their area. Which of the following might they expect?

an increase in crime in surrounding areas

Which of the following is a technique that works well when interviewing subjects about topics that may be emotionally or psychologically challenging?

asking the subject to respond to questions on a laptop computer

Which of the following would serve as an example of a cross sectional study?

both Uniform Crime Reports and the 2000 U.S. census

The relationship between attributes and variables lies at the heart of

both description and explanation in science

Marvin Wolfgang's study of males born in Philadelphia in 1945 was an attempt to measure delinquency by following those males from their 10th birthday until they were 18. This is an example of what type of study?

cohort study

The word ethical means:

conforming to the standards of conduct of a given profession or group

Ethical issues surrounding the prison simulation include all of the following except ________.

consent forms were signed

The researcher can lessen the potential for harm when doing research by _____.

considering which study design to use with regard to its potential for harm

Which of the following would serve as a "snapshot" of a phenomenon at one point in time?

cross-sectional study

Which of the following are social artifacts?

editorials in the New York Times

What are the two major types of applied research?

evaluate specific programs and policy analysis

We live in a world of two realities: _____.

experiential and agreement

Things we know from direct experience are a direct result of which type of reality?

experiential reality

Reporting why some people believe that police are doing a good job while other people do not is an example of _____.

explanatory research

What are the four purposes of research?

exploration, description, explanation, application

Which of the following represents voluntary participation?

full disclosure of research purpose with informed consent

Criminal justice research has the potential for all but which of the following?

harm to the reader of the research

A scientific realist approach to examining mechanisms in context bridges

idiographic and nomothetic approaches to causation

During observation, if you choose to follow "the exception that proves the rule," an idea that doesn't make any sense, you have made which error?

illogical reasoning

When attempting to make sure that what you are looking at is what you intended to look at, you avoid _____.

inaccurate observation

Having trouble reconciling general patterns of attitudes and actions with individual exceptions the research personally knows of is termed the __________?

individualistic fallacy

One objective of this book is to help future criminal justice professionals become _____.

informed consumers of research

Which of the following is necessary for establishing informed consent of research subjects?

informing subjects about the possible risks and side effects of the research

One way social science differs from our casual day-to-day inquiry is that _____.

it is a conscious activity

According to federal regulations, which of the following represents special populations that need attention in the field of criminal justice?

juvenile delinquents

An assertion must have both _________ and _________ support.

logical and empirical

Scientists must have which two types of support before they will agree on the reality of something?

logical and empirical

Which of the following would not be an example of organizations as units of analysis?

measurement levels

Which of the following would be an example of social artifacts as units of analysis?

newspaper editorials

In order to protect juvenile delinquents since they are a special population, researchers should do all of the following except _____.

offer the juvenile delinquents money to participate

If a cross-sectional study can be likened to a "snapshot," and a trend study to a "slide show," then which of the following is most like a "motion picture?"

panel study

What type of study attempts to account for errors in drawing a sample by measuring the same people on two or more occasions?

panel study

Which of the following is not an accurate description of the simulated prison project?

participants were allowed to leave the simulation periodically so that emotions did not run too high

Most criminal justice professionals routinely review which type of data?

performance reports and statistical tabulations

A promise of anonymity is unlikely to be extended in which of the following techniques?

personal interviews

An interview with victims of domestic violence designed to measure their reluctance to report their victimization to the police may result in _____.

physical harm

Social regularities represent _____.

probabilistic patterns

Justice organizations are increasingly using techniques of ______ to study patterns of cases and devise appropriate responses.

problem analysis

When assessing the potential for harm, the researcher should _____.

proceed when the benefit outweighs the harm

Which of the following is not essential in maintaining confidentiality in field or survey interviews?

put the master file on the computer so that you do not leave paper copies of the file laying around

With respect to causation, _____.

research explains most aspects of life

Which of the following are not exempt from IRB review under federal guidelines?

research that uses living subjects

If you have concluded that a particular pattern exists and have developed a general understanding of why, you may be tempted to ignore facts in the future that don't fit. If you do, you have just made what error?

selective observation

Three broad distinctions underlie many of the variations of scientific research. Which is of the following is one not of these distinctions?

social and cultural artifacts

In the following research conclusion, what units of analysis are being used? "An enormous variation of deviant activities was represented in a sample of 1,485 news items. We categorized these deviant activities into five general types of analysis: violence, economic, political, ideological/cultural and diversionary."

social artifacts

Violence in children's programming is a major research endeavor that requires counting the number of violent acts in Saturday morning cartoons for an entire year. The units of analysis being used for this project are _____.

social artifacts

Attempts to guard against harm to the participants in the simulated prison were accomplished by all but which of the following?

telling the participants in advance about all the potential harm

After careful study of the relationship between the economy and arson, the conclusion was drawn that when the economy is poor and unemployment is high, the arson rates go up. The researcher concluded that unemployed people are more likely to commit arson than are those who are employed. What error was just committed?

the ecological fallacy

Scientific theory deals with

the logical aspect of science

If a researcher uses only those subjects who volunteer for a study, then which of the following may result?

the results could not be generalized to a larger group of people

Haney, Banks, and Zimbardo designed a simulated prison to measure _____.

the situational hypothesis

Three major aspects of the overall scientific enterprise are _____.

theory, data collection, data analysis

Which of the following represent criteria for causality?

there is a correlation between the cause and the effect

Researchers may face legal liability when _____.

they become participants in the criminal activity they are observing

Which of the following comes closest to the purpose of an institutional review board?

to give guidance on reducing potential harm to subjects

Which of the following is not a purpose of institutional review boards?

to make sure that grant money is spent appropriately

Which of the following would allow a researcher to measure change in a general population over time?

trend study

When we say something is valid, we make a judgment about the extent to which relevant evidence supports that inference as being _____.

true or correct

The foremost ethical issue addressed by institutional review boards is _____.

voluntary participation