Psych 311 Exam 1 Study Guide

fill in the missing values for A and B in this frequency distribution table: intervals: frequency: 6.0-6.6 12 5.3-5.9 7 4.6-5.2 B 3.9-4.5 10 A-3.8 8 50 a) A = 3.2, B = 13 b) A = 3.1, B = 14 c) A = 3.3, B = 13 d) there is not enough information to complete this table

a) A = 3.2, B = 13

a researcher records the number of children at a local school from single-, divorced-, and married-parent homes. this frequency data would be best displayed as a... a) bar chart b) frequency polygon c) histogram d) ogive

a) bar chart

based on the following graphical summary display, what research design was used to record and analyze these data? a) correlational b) experimental c) quasi-experimental d) either B or C

a) correlational

each of the following are interval scale measurements, except a) duration of sleep (in hours) b) marital satisfaction ratings on a 5-point rating scale c) the latitude and longitude of birth for those suffering from schizophrenia d) the body temperature (in degrees Fahrenheit) increase during exercise

a) duration of sleep (in hours)

interval scales of measurement a) have equidistant scales b) have a true zero c) both A and B

a) have equidistant scales

a graphical display for grouped frequency distributions with continuous data is called a a) histogram b) bar chart c) pie chart d) scatter gram

a) histogram

procedures that allow researchers to infer or generalize observations made with samples to the larger population from which they were selected best describes a) inferential statistics b) sample statistics c) descriptive statistics d) population parameters

a) inferential statistics

the correct order of operations in math, is: a) parentheses, roots, exponents, multiplication, division, addition, and subtraction b) addition, subtraction, parentheses, roots, exponents, multiplication, and division c) parentheses, roots, multiplication, division, addition, subtraction, and exponents d) exponents, multiplication, division, parentheses, roots, addition, and subtraction

a) parentheses, roots, exponents, multiplication, division, addition, and subtraction

a psychologist reviews her notes for all her patients and determines that on average her patients complete therapy in 24 days. the average time to complete therapy among all her patients is called a(n) a) population parameter b) sample statistic c) inferential statistic d) time trial

a) population parameter

Bar charts are a lot like histograms, except a) the bars displayed in the graph do not touch b) the bar chart summarizes quantitative data c) the bar chart summarizes continuous data d) all of the above

a) the bars displayed in the graph do not touch

a student scores in the 80th percentile on an exam. what does this mean in comparison to all other students? a) the student scored higher than 80% of all others who took the exam b) the student scored worse than 80% of all others who took the exam c) of all those who took the exam, only 80% of them completed it d) the student who scored the same grade on the exam 80% of the time

a) the student scored higher than 80% of all others who took the exam

a percentile point is... a) the value of a score on a measurement scale below which a specified percentage of scores in a distribution fall b) a summary display that distributes the sum of percentages across a series of intervals c) an interval with no defined upper or lower boundary d) the range of values contained in each interval of a grouped frequency distribution

a) the value of a score on a measurement scale below which a specified percentage of scores in a distribution fall

which of the following research designs is used to determine the causes of behavior that help to explain why the behavior occurs? a) correlational b) experimental c) quasi-experimental d) all of the above

b) experimental

the range of scores in each interval of a grouped frequency distribution is called the a) simple frequency b) interval width c) real range d) grouped data

b) interval width

in the stem-and-leaf display, each number to the right of the vertical line is referred to as a ________; the numbers to the left of the vertical line are called the __________. a) stem; leaf b) leaf; stem c) digit; place d) place; digit

b) leaf; stem

a consultant ranks the five most needed areas of improvement for a local business. what scale of measurement are the rankings? a) nominal b) ordinal c) interval d) ratio

b) ordinal

to construct a pie chart, first distribute the data as a) cumulative percentages b) relative percentages c) cumulative frequencies d) cumulative relative percentages

b) relative percentages

a characteristic (usually numeric) that describes a sample is called a a) sample b) sample statistic c) population d) population parameter

b) sample statistic

a researcher distributes frequencies into the following intervals: 3-6, 7-10, 11-15, 16-18, 19-22, and 23-26. what is wrong with this frequency distribution? a) the interval width is too small b) the interval width is unequal c) the first class interval does not begin at 0 d) one interval is an open class

b) the interval width is unequal

a researcher reports that "the average shopper in the sample (n = 12) purchased $65.00 worth of items (u = $65.00) during a busy shopping day." what mistake was made in this citation? a) none; this citation is written appropriately b) the sample mean is written using the wrong notation c) the sample size is written using the wrong notation d) both B and C

b) the sample mean is written using the wrong notation

a researcher reports that 12 persons in a sample of 60 reported getting between 4 and 6 hours of sleep per night. what is the relative percentage for this interval? a) 24% b) 22% c) 20% d) there is not enough information to answer this question

c) 20%

the following is a simple frequency distribution table. if we convert this frequency distribution to relative percentages, which of the following gives the corresponding percentages in each interval listed from the top down? a) 20%, 33%, 50%, 67%, 100% b) 0.2, 0.13, 0.17, 0.33, 0.17 c) 20%, 13%, 17%, 33%, 17% d) 6, 10, 15, 25, 30

c) 20%, 13%, 17%, 33%, 17%

a researcher wants to determine how many participants will take less than 24 seconds to complete a cognitive performance task. if he constructs a frequency distribution for these data, what type of distribution would be most appropriate to answer his question? a) a simple frequency distribution b) a relative frequency distribution c) a cumulative frequency distribution from the bottom up d) a cumulative frequency distribution from the top down

c) a cumulative frequency distribution from the bottom up

__________ is the variable that is believed to change in the presence of the independent variable. a) independent variable b) quasi-independent variable c) dependent variable

c) dependent variable

the scale of measurement a researcher uses a) depends on whether a sample or population is being studied b) depends on whether the researcher wants to only report descriptive statistics or also report inferential statistics c) determines the type of inferential statistics that can be done d) must be able to measure continuous variables

c) determines the type of inferential statistics that can be done

statistical analysis allows researchers to a) collect data b) claim that an observation is scientific c) evaluate scientific observation d) study physical phenomena but not behavior

c) evaluate scientific observation

the three steps for constructing a simple frequency distribution are a) find the observed range, find the interval width, and construct the frequency distribution b) find the real range, count the scores, and construct the frequency distribution c) find the real range, find the interval width, and construct the frequency distribution d) all of the above

c) find the real range, find the interval width, and construct the frequency distribution

which of the following requires the calculation of a real range? a) frequency distributions for categorical b) frequency distributions for ungrouped data c) frequency distributions for grouped data d) frequency distributions that do not use real data

c) frequency distributions for grouped data

three key elements of control that allow researchers to draw cause-and-effect conclusions are a) randomization, manipulation, and variation b) assignment, manipulation, and comparison/control c) randomization, manipulation, and comparison/control d) randomization, condition, and comparison/control

c) randomization, manipulation, and comparison/control

state the problem with this simple frequency distribution: intervals: frequency: 8-10 4 6-8 7 4-6 3 2-4 6 0-2 a) the interval width is too small b) the interval width is unequal c) the class intervals overlap d) the number of intervals is too small

c) the class intervals overlap

you are interested in measuring the construct, reinforcement. which of the following measures for this construct is quantitative and continuous? a) the number of rewards received b) the type of reward (food, money) c) the size of a reward in grams d) the rating on a scale from 1 (not reinforcing) to 7 (very reinforcing)

c) the size of a reward in grams

what is the percentile point at the 80th percentile in the following distribution? frequency: percentile rank: 9-11 100% 6-8 80% 3-5 40% 0-2 20% a) 2 b) 6 c) 7 d) 8

d) 8

a researcher distributes frequencies into the following classes: absent, tardy, present. what type of data are distributed? a) nominal data b) qualitative data c) ungrouped data d) all of the above

d) all of the above

a simple frequency distribution a) can be used to summarize grouped data b) can be used to summarize ungrouped data c) summarizes the frequency of scores in a given category or range d) all of the above

d) all of the above

descriptive statistics are procedures used to a) summarize a set of scores or observations b) organize a set of scores or observations c) make sense of a set of scores or observations d) all of the above

d) all of the above

when cumulating frequencies from the top down, the data are discussed in terms of a) greater than b) at or above c) at least d) all of the above

d) all of the above

which of the following is a type of graphical displays used to summarize quantitative, continuous data? a) histogram b) frequency polygon c) ogive d) all of the above

d) all of the above

qualitative data varies by _________; quantitative data varies by _________. a) level; value b) value; level c) amount; class d) class; amount

d) class; amount

a therapist observes the spouses are more likely to forgive their patterns for lying to them if they find out the truth from their spouse and not a third party. in this example, the dependent variable is: a) the number of partners b) the spouse c) lying d) forgiveness

d) forgiveness

a researcher distributes frequencies into the following intervals: 1-10, 11-20, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, and 51 and above. what is wrong with this frequency distribution? a) the interval width is too small b) the interval width is unequal c) the class intervals overlap d) one interval is an open class

d) one interval is an open class

a characteristic (usually numeric) that describes a population is called a a) sample b) sample statistic c) population d) population parameter

d) population parameter

a researcher compares the amount of college debt (in dollars) that undergraduate students incur up to their four-year degree. college debt is on what scale of measurement? a) nominal b) ordinal c) interval d) ratio

d) ratio

you are interested in measuring the construct, work expertise. which of the following measures for this construct is quantitative and discrete? a) the total time in hours spent working at a company b) the job title a person holds in a company c) the percent of correct responses on a work expertise survey d) the number of employees that work under an employee

d) the number of employees that work under an employee

which of the following measures of attraction is an example of a ratio scale measurement? a) a rating of attraction from most attractive to least attractive b) a 6-point rating scale from 1 (attractive) to 6 (unattractive) c) the status of the relationship (acquaintance, dating, married) d) the physical proximity (in feet and inches) between two romantic partners

d) the physical proximity (in feet and inches) between two romantic partners