RMP Exam 1

Your friend Gaby loves reading articles about psychology studies in her monthly women's magazine. Which of the following would you tell her?

"Be careful about reading those articles because they may not present findings accurately."

Which of the following is an association claim?

"Owning a dog is related to higher life satisfaction."

Which of the following best describes a confounding variable?

A variable that affects the outcome being measured as well as, or instead of, the independent variable.

Which of the following is true of the difference between basic and applied research?

Basic and applied research have different goals.

You read a news article about a recent scientific study titled, "New Drug Reduces OCD Symptoms in Mice." To evaluate whether the title's claim is supported, you should do which of the following?

Check whether the authors established the three criteria for a causal claim.

Sally proposes the idea that one's sexual history prior to marriage may be linked to whether one ends up getting divorced. This best represents which step of the scientific method?

Forming a Hypothesis

All of the following are drawbacks to non-experimental studies, EXCEPT which one?

It cannot be determined whether one variable caused a change in the other.

Should you stop hugging your dog? In 250 photos of people hugging their dogs, 82% of the dogs showed signs of stress (Coren, 2016). Which question would best help you evaluate the validity of this argument?

Knowing how many dogs that were not being hugged showed stress signs

A study was designed to test the effects of science fiction movies on participants' belief in the supernatural. A scale was designed to measure the degree that a subject believes in the supernatural on a 1-7 Likert-type Scale (high scores indicate high levels of belief). Fifty-seven subjects, selected via random digit dialing (RDD) responded to the scale before and after watching Avatar, a popular science fiction movie. Which of the choices is the operationalization of the independent variable?

Random digit dialing?

Which of the following is true of the distinction between scientific journals and popular magazines?

Scientific journal articles are peer-reviewed; popular magazine articles are not.

What is the purpose of a control condition?

Show up relationships between predictor variables.

Which of the following is true of variables?

Some variables can be either manipulated or measured.

A researcher observes that more muggings tend to occur during hot weather. Which of the following is true?

This is a positive correlation that does not demonstrate causation.

A person planning to open a coffee house for college students hires an organizational psychologist as a consultant. The coffee house owner wants to know if her customers will drink more coffee depending on the ambience of the coffee house. To test this, the psychologist sets up three similar rooms, each with its own theme (Tropical; Old Library; or New York Café ) then arranges to have thirty students spend an afternoon in each room while being allowed to drink all the coffee they like. (The order in which they sit in the rooms is counterbalanced.) The amount each participant drinks is recorded for each of the three themes. Which of the choices is the operationalization of the independent variable?

Tropical, Old Library, New York Café

RESEARCH STUDY 3.5: Jenny reads the following headline on an online article: "If You're Sexist, People Will Think You're Racist, and Vice Versa." (This headline is based on a study conducted by Sanchez and colleagues, 2017.) This study found that members of stigmatized groups are threatened by prejudice directed at other stigmatized groups. Their results showed that White women can feel threatened by racism, men of color feel threatened by sexism, and that these perceptions made participants expect unfair treatment. The results of this study can be generalized to which of the following groups?

White women and men of color

A predictor variable is another name for what?

a measured variable

RESEARCH STUDY 3.1: Anderson is reading his morning paper and sees the following headline: "Men Should Avoid Rock Music When Playing Board Games." (This headline is based on a study conducted by Fancourt, Burton, & Williamon, 2016.) In the study, men and women played the game "Operation" when listening to different types of music. Male participants performed worse when listening to AC/DC than when listening to Mozart, but female participants' performance did not differ based on music. In this study, the researchers recorded how many errors participants committed. This is an example of which of the following?

a measured variable

James is asked about the best way to study for an exam. He responds that the best way to study is by making flashcards. He easily thinks of all the times he used flashcards and got an A. However, he fails to take into consideration all the times he got an A and did not use flashcards and the times he used flashcards and did not do well. His faulty thinking is an example of

a present/present bias.

What is the key difference between a true experiment and a quasi-experiment?

a quasi-experiment doesn't have random assignment.

Which of the following is an example of basic research?

an experimental psychologist who examines people's ability to perceive a "sweet" taste

What is the tendency to look for information that supports one's own belief called?

confirmation bias.

In an experiment, the independent variable is always ___.

controlled by researcher

What is a collection of information also called?

data set

What type of statistics involves collecting, organizing, and summarizing data?

descriptive

A knowledge of statistics helps us make decisions based on what kind of evidence?

empirical

A common goal in statistics is to do what?

generalize results from a sample to a population

Which variable does an experimenter manipulate when conducting experimental research?

independent variable

What type of statistics employs the use of sample data that is used to infer information about the population?

inferential statistics

When researchers conduct an experiment comparing two different treatment conditions, they are likely to be more concerned with ________ validity than ________ validity.

internal; external

Dr. Stewart is an editor of a psychology journal. She wants to ensure that reviewers give honest reviews of the papers they are asked to read. Which of the following could she do to increase the likelihood of honest feedback?

make sure the peer reviewers are anonymous

Independent variable is to dependent variable as _____ is to _____.

manipulate; measure

The term empirical describes measurements that are based on:

objectively quantifiable observations

Which of the following could be an independent variable in a causal claim?

one manipulated

Scientists often say that more data are needed to draw conclusions about the accuracy of new theories and are reluctant to accept new claims without empirical support. What scientific norm does this illustrate?

organized skepticism

What is the best way to balance characteristics about participants that can lead to alternative explanations for findings?

random assignment

You read research that found that first-born children tend to have higher IQs than their siblings. However, you typically earn higher grades than your older brother. Scientists might explain this discrepancy by saying that

research is probabilistic

What is the small subset of the population from whom you collect data called?

sample

A common finding in the study of aggression is that exposure to television is associated with increased aggressive behavior in children. You are curious as to whether peer pressure is really to blame (peer pressure encourages you to watch television and peer pressure encourages you to be aggressive). You are questioning which of the following criteria of causation?

the criterion of temporal precedence

A common finding in the study of aggression is that exposure to television is associated with increased aggressive behavior in children. You know this relationship may not be causal because you are not sure which occurred first: watching television or being aggressive. You are questioning which of the following rules of causation?

the criterion of temporal precedence

RESEARCH STUDY 3.1: Anderson is reading his morning paper and sees the following headline: "Men Should Avoid Rock Music When Playing Board Games." (This headline is based on a study conducted by Fancourt, Burton, & Williamon, 2016.) In the study, men and women played the game "Operation" when listening to different types of music. Male participants performed worse when listening to AC/DC than when listening to Mozart, but female participants' performance did not differ based on music. Which of the following is a variable in this study?

the gender of the participant

Jenna wants to learn whether men or women are better drivers. To determine this, she decides that she will measure driving ability by examining the number of automobile accidents people have been involved in as a driver. What is the number of accidents the basis of?

the operational definition of driving ability

RESEARCH STUDY 3.1: Anderson is reading his morning paper and sees the following headline: "Men Should Avoid Rock Music When Playing Board Games." (This headline is based on a study conducted by Fancourt, Burton, & Williamon, 2016.) In the study, men and women played the game "Operation" when listening to different types of music. Male participants performed worse when listening to AC/DC than when listening to Mozart, but female participants' performance did not differ based on music. Which of the following is a constant in this study?

the type of game

How are inferential statistics most often used?

to make inferences from the sample to the population

Why are participants randomly assigned to experimental and control groups in psychology research?

to make the two groups as similar as possible in all major characteristics

Statistics describes a set of ______ that are used for describing, organizing, and interpreting information.

tools and techniques

A person planning to open a coffee house for college students hires an organizational psychologist as a consultant. The coffee house owner wants to know if her customers will drink more coffee depending on the ambience of the coffee house. To test this, the psychologist sets up three similar rooms, each with its own theme (Tropical; Old Library; or New York Café ) then arranges to have thirty students spend an afternoon in each room while being allowed to drink all the coffee they like. (The order in which they sit in the rooms is counterbalanced.) The amount each participant drinks is recorded for each of the three themes. Which of the choices is the dependent variable?

tropical, old library and ny cafe

Determine if the following statement is completely true or false exactly as it is written:

tru

RESEARCH STUDY 3.1: Anderson is reading his morning paper and sees the following headline: "Men Should Avoid Rock Music When Playing Board Games." (This headline is based on a study conducted by Fancourt, Burton, & Williamon, 2016.) In the study, men and women played the game "Operation" when listening to different types of music. Male participants performed worse when listening to AC/DC than when listening to Mozart, but female participants' performance did not differ based on music. How many measured variables are included in this study?

two