Research Methods Chapter 1: Introduction, Acquiring Knowledge, and the Scientific Method
What kind of reasoning uses a few specific observations to produce a general hypothesis?
Inductive reasoning
The method of faith is...
a variant of the method of authority in which people have unquestioning trust in the authority figure and, therefore, accept information from the authority without doubt or challenge.
A hypothesis is a __________ statement and a prediction is a __________ statement.
general; specific
The rational method, or rationalism...
seeks answers by the use of logical reasoning.
In a true experimental research the researcher's biases and beliefs do not influence the outcome of the study.
True
True or False: Deductive reasoning uses a general hypothesis or premise to generate a prediction about specific observations.
True
True or False: If the individuals are human, they are called participants. Nonhumans are called subjects.
True
Which of the following was NOT one of the nonscientific approaches covered in this class?
the method of affirmation
Deduction, or deductive reasoning...
uses a general statement as the basis for reaching a conclusion about specific examples.
The empirical method, or empiricism...
uses observation or direct sensory experience to obtain knowledge.
The methods of acquiring knowledge are...
ways in which a person can know things or discover answers to questions.
Which of the following is a distinction between science and pseudoscience?
All of the other options are differences between science and pseudoscience.
Which of the following is not a step that describes the research process?
Change your hypothesis when necessary to fit your results
The scientific process is ________, involving both inductive and deductive reasoning.
Circular
True or False: Quantitative research is based on making observations that are summarized and interpreted in narrative reports.
False
True or False: the scientific method is a linear process that moves directly from a beginning to an end. This is what makes the scientific method a reliable tool to find the answers to the research question(s) of interest.
False
Which method of knowing is being used by a student who believes that his performance on tests is influenced by wearing a lucky hat?
The method of tenacity
True or False: Predictions generated from a hypothesis must be testable.
True
In the method of authority...
a person relies on information or answers from an expert in the subject area.
An argument is...
a set of premise statements that are logically combined to yield a conclusion.
Qualitative research is...
based on making observations that are summarized and interpreted in a narrative report.
Peer reviewers ________.
help ensure quality control in reporting scientific findings
Induction, or inductive reasoning, involves...
using a relatively small set of specific observations as the basis for forming a general statement about a larger set of possible observations.
Which of the following is the best description of the scientific method?
A circular process that leads to a tentative answer
Which of the following is NOT a step of the research process?
Adjust the original research question to align with the results of the study
Which of the following is typical of quantitative research?
All of the above.
True or False: A qualitative researcher interested in studying depression would probably develop a test to measure depression for each participant and then compute an average score to describe the amount of depression for different subgroups of adolescents.
False
True or False: Induction, or inductive reasoning, involves using a large set of observations as the basis for forming a general statement about a smaller set of possible observations.
False
True or False: Inductive reasoning requires many observations to generate a general hypothesis.
False
True or False: One of the strengths of the empirical method is that it provides an easy, direct way to answer questions. It is safe to place confidence in our own observations.
False
Which of the following is NOT one of the three important principles of the scientific method?
It is efficient
Which method of knowing is used when you find the address and phone number of a restaurant by googling the name of the restaurant?
Method of authority
A restaurant chef tried replacing rice with pasta in one of her recipes to see what would happen. Which method of acquiring knowledge is she using?
Method of empiricism
Last year Tim and his friend Jack were both too short to ride the roller coaster. Jack went to the park this year and was tall enough to ride. Tim knows that he is taller than Jack, so he knows that he will be able to ride the roller coaster as well. Which method of knowing is Tim using?
Rational method
What is meant by saying that "science is objective"?
Scientific answers are obtained without influence by the researcher's biases or beliefs.
True or False: The methods of tenacity, intuition, and authority are satisfactory for answering some questions, especially if you need an answer quickly and there are no serious consequences for accepting a wrong answer. However, these are uncritical techniques and unfit to answer questions that are more consequential and life changing.
True
True or False: We use our hypothesis as a universal premise statement and then determine the conclusions or predictions that must logically follow if the hypothesis is true.
True
The scientific method is...
a method of acquiring knowledge that uses observations to develop a hypothesis, and then uses the hypothesis to make logical predictions that can be empirically tested by making additional, systematic observations.
In the context of science, a hypothesis is...
a statement that describes or explains a relationship between or among variables. A hypothesis is not a final answer but rather a proposal to be tested and evaluated.
Quantitative research is...
based on measuring variables for individual participants to obtain scores, usually numerical values, which are submitted to statistical analysis for summary and interpretation.
Variables are...
characteristics or conditions that change or have different values for different individuals. For example, the weather, the economy, and your state of health can change from day to day. Also, two people can be different in terms of personality, intelligence, age, gender, self-esteem, height, weight, and so on.
In logical reasoning, premise statements...
describe facts or assumptions that are presumed to be true.
The first step in the research process is...
identifying a topic area and searching the literature to find a research question.
In the method of tenacity...
information is accepted as true because it has always been believed or because superstition supports it.
In the method of intuition...
information is accepted on the basis of a hunch or "gut feeling."
The individuals who take part in research studies are called _______ if they are human and ________ if they are nonhuman.
participants...subjects
A researcher conducts a study in which 50 college students are assigned to different treatments and tested. In the study, the students are called
research participants.
Scientific knowledge is advanced through a process known as ________.
the scientific method
