research methods part 2

17. When doing field research which group would most likely have a sample obtained from snowball sampling?

Active drug dealers

Experiments examine the effect of ______.

An independent variable on a dependent variable

Which of the following research questions is best suited for survey research?

Are men ever sexually harassed at work?

20. When using any type of qualitative methods, what is the best way to go about gathering data ______.

Be as unobtrusive as possible with video and voice recording devices

18. Which of the following would be an appropriate topic to use content analysis for?

Changing media coverage of local elections

The variable age coded as number of years old would be considered what kind of variable?

Continuous

Which of the following is goal for the researcher who is implementing a classical experiment?

Control the independent variable

21. A researcher examines projected costs of a study on court ordered rehabilitation and compares it to the expected program effectiveness. The researcher is conducting what type of evaluation?

Cost-effectiveness analysis

Of the following research topics, which is best suited for survey research?

Current political climate in the country

Of the following, which question is best for survey research?

Do you believe crime in your neighborhood is high?

Which of the following is an example of a question that uses a double negative?

Do you find it possible or impossible that the majority of lower class teenagers have used drugs?

12. A researcher is conducting face-to-face interview with drug users who reside in treatment centers, which would be the best way to present themselves when conducting the interviews?

Dress in casual, but neat clothing, and use the slang of the subculture when conducting the interview.

Which of the following would be considered a negative item in a survey?

Drugs such as heroine should not be legalized?

19. What is the relationship between evaluation research and validity?

Evaluation research tends to be specific so external validity is less relevant

19. Which of the following topics would not be appropriate to use a content analysis for?

Explanatory study of the difference between male and female ACT scores

A researcher collected data on an individuals' age by having the respondent select a category (18-29, 30-39, 40-49, etc.) The research would be able to determine the mean age of the respondents.

False

Of the following populations, which one would be least likely to have cluster sampling used to select the sample?

Inmates in the local county jail

20. In evaluation research which of the following would be the best way to achieve objectivity?

Involve multiple stakeholders from the start

"What is your opinion on the new face mask and social distancing policies on campus?" The problem with this survey question is ______.

It is a double-barreled question

Women from a mid-sized city were randomly chosen to participate in a telephone survey. One question asked was: "How many times have you been a victim of domestic violence?" The response choices were: Never, 1-2 times, 3-4 times, 5-6 times, 5 or more times? This question suffers from ______.

Making response choice mutually exclusive

21. A researcher wants to study migrant farmworkers in the southwest and how they move from one job to another. In order to obtain data, the researcher begins as a overt observer. After many months of following the farmworkers, the researcher begins to interview the farmworkers to better understand some aspects. This is an example of using ______.

Mixed-method research

When the researcher uses matching in a true experiment, they are _____.

Pairing individuals in one group with individuals in another group based on characteristics

Mail surveys compared to interviews has the advantage of ______.

Producing more complete questionnaires

Which of the following is not true about organizing questions for questionnaires?

Questions should only include closed-ended questions and not open-ended questions

Classical experiments can do what to guard against most internal validity threats?

Randomly assign participants to the experimental and control groups

11. Which of the following is the most acceptable use of recording devices while conducting face-to-face interviews?

Recording devices should be used when the respondent is aware of them and gives consent for the device to be used

A local school is administering a study focusing on parents' concerns including bullying and abstinence only education. The survey results should be generalizable to the entire population in the community, but the funds to conduct the study are limited. Which type of survey would best suited for this research?

Self-reported mail questionnaires

In general, mail survey research can be ______.

Stronger on reliability and weaker on validity

External validity in an experimental design refers to ______.

The ability to generalize the findings to other populations

Which of the following research topics is best suited for a before-and-after research design?

The effect of a new medication on individuals' depression levels

13. A researcher is analyzing an after-school reading program that is funded by the federal government and implemented by the local school districts. Trained reading instructors are hired and books, curriculum, and other supplies are bought. The program is serving one hundred children from the school that scored below grade level on the reading test administered. The reading instructors meet with the children 2 days a week for an hour and a half each day. The program runs for 4 months. At the end of program, the reading instructors administer the same test the students in the program took before to find out whether their scores had improved. The findings indicated that the children who attended every after-school session found the largest improvements in reading scores and were on or beyond grade level. Which of the following is an output?

The length of time the program ran

A rural community was asked in a survey if they believed the local police and government were responsible for the increase in crime. The response choices were agree or disagree. What problem does this question encounter?

The question is a double-barreled question

Which topic is best suited for survey research?

Their perception of crime in their neighborhood

If a researcher is using a 95% confidence interval, which of the following is true?

Two standard errors in each direction will account for 95% of all the sample means

In general, surveys conducted by telephone research can be ______.

Weaker on reliability and stronger on validity

13. Which of the following is true for the interviewer when conducting face-to-face interviews?

active, unbiased listener

14. A researcher is analyzing an after-school reading program that is funded by the federal government and implemented by the local school districts. Trained reading instructors are hired and books, curriculum, and other supplies are bought. The program is serving one hundred children from the school that scored below grade level on the reading test administered. The reading instructors meet with the children 2 days a week for an hour and a half each day. The program runs for 4 months. At the end of program, the reading instructors administer the same test the students in the program took before to find out whether their scores had improved. The findings indicated that the children who attended every after-school session found the largest improvements in reading scores and were on or beyond grade level. Which of the following is an input?

after school reading books

A researcher is examining reading scores for children who attended an after-school program. The researcher found that the children who attended the program scored significantly higher on the posttest than the control group. What results is the researcher examining?

between group difference

"Should concern teachers be allowed to carry guns in the school?" Is an example of what kind of question?

bias worded question

A group of high school students were asked to a college placement test. The researcher then randomly assigned the students to the experimental or control group. Those in the experimental group were required to attend test prep classes during the school day. After 2 months, both groups were administered the same placement test. What type of research design in this?

classical experiment design

For a researcher who wants to use probability sampling techniques but cannot obtain an accurate sampling frame, which type of sample should be utilized?

cluster

A student shows a test that they believe was unfair to the students to several professors. After looking at the test, all of the professors conclude that the test was fair. Which approach to validation did the student use?

content validation

Students' were asked if they had ever been a victim of a crime at school. If they answered yes they were, then they were asked which crime they had been a victim of. The first question is an example of ______.

contigency question

16. If a researcher is participating with the group they are studying but makes it clear that they are undertaking research would be a(n) ______.

covert participant

If a probation officer checks their clients' self-reports of drug use with their urine or blood tests, the probation officer is using ______.

criterion validity

Which type of research design would use a survey of an individual's fear of crime in their neighborhood and analyzes across different neighborhoods?

cross sectional

The variable race is coded as (1) white, (2) Black, (3) Hispanic, (4) Asian, and (5) all other races. This variable would be considered ______.

discrete

"Do you support students taking more sociology and criminal justice courses?" This is an example of what kind of question?

double-barelled

When conclusions are drawn about individual-level processes from group-level data, the researcher is making a(n) ______.

ecological fallacy

A researcher is studying female prisons and their attitudes of the services they are receiving while in prison. The researcher puts together a list of all females incarcerated in the United States to select from. The female prisoners interviewed by the researcher represents the ______.

elements

10. When parties involved use the best evidence of program merit and is used then to design or redesign programs, this is known as ______.

evidence based practices

11. Stakeholders are interested in knowing whether a community policing initiative helps reduce juvenile gang affiliation in their city. A researcher gather the data for the measures that the different stakeholders are interested in for the programs that have already implemented. What type of research would this be?

evidence based research

If a researcher borrows questions from a prior study, if the results from both are similar, this has established some level of ______.

external validity

1. A case study would look at the entire social context among a few common individuals while focus groups look at a large group of individuals.

false

2. Evaluation research is an applied approach to gathering data that are then used to use the evidence to form policy.

false

2. Notes should be written immediately after completing a qualitative, face-to-face interview.

false

3. Applied research is only evaluative.

false

3. Using a structure interview questionnaire allows for the researcher to probe participants about their answers.

false

4. If subjects change their behavior when they know they are being study, they are demonstrating socially desirable behavior.

false

4. Inputs include the number of clients served, the services the clients received, and the amount of time the clients spent receiving the services.

false

5. Content analysis can be exploratory, descriptive, and explanatory as a methodology.

false

7. An outcome evaluation would be the correct design to use whether the researcher and stakeholders want to know whether a program is operating as it was originally designed to run.

false

8. The implications of theory are tested through evaluation research methods.

false

8. When designing a mixed method approach, the field research or case study would produce more reliable data than the survey portion of the research.

false

A control group, random assignment, and a posttest are all required for a before-and-after design.

false

A larger sample size will always be better than a smaller sample size.

false

A questionnaire with closed-ended question is more reliable than interviews.

false

A researcher is studying the drug habits of ex-cons in a midsize city. Those selected for the study is considered the population.

false

A researcher is studying the impact of attending a pre-K program on the academic achievement in elementary school. The researcher will analyze whether those who attended the pre-K program had reading and math skills in elementary school than those who did not. A true experiment would be the best design to use for this study.

false

A simple random sample separates the population in groups based on certain characteristics and then select randomly from those groups.

false

Interviews are generally weaker on validity and stronger on reliability.

false

Leading questions are ones that ask more than one question within a single questions.

false

Mailed surveys would be the best method for gathering data on prisoners.

false

Statistically significant differences means that there is no variation between the experimental and control groups.

false

Telephone surveys are a better method than mailed surveys in terms of affordability and the ability to reach people who are geographically diverse.

false

The time dimension does not influence the reliability or validity of a study's findings.

false

9. Which type of research uses direct observation to gather data?

field research

A researcher is studying juvenile delinquency in a suburban area. The research randomly selected juveniles from the area and asked them in the questionnaire if they had ever been involved in a crime. The answer choices were yes or no. The researcher then followed up with the question: What type of crime? The first question is an example of a(n) ______.

filter question

10. The type of research that has a directed discussion with a small group is called a(n) ______.

focus group

14. Asking questions to a group of about 10 domestic violence advocates about the barriers they face while trying to help their clients is an example of ______.

focus group

17. A part of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 was the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. State welfare agents are interested in understanding whether this welfare reform worked to reduce the number of families receiving public assistance. A researcher was hired to analyze the data over time to see whether the policy actually reduced those on government assistance. This is an example of which type of evaluation?

impact analysis

12. A researcher is analyzing an after-school reading program that is funded by the federal government and implemented by the local school districts. Trained reading instructors are hired and books, curriculum, and other supplies are bought. The program is serving one hundred children from the school that scored below grade level on the reading test administered. The reading instructors meet with the children two days a week for an hour and a half each day. The program runs for 4 months. At the end of program, the reading instructors administer the same test the students in the program took before to find out if their scores had improved. The findings indicated that the children who attended every after-school session found the largest improvements in reading scores and were on or beyond grade level. Which of the following is an outcome?

improved reading scores

As sample sizes ______, obtaining a statistics that is closer to the true population parameter

increase; increase

A graduate student was interested in understanding whether there would be a reduction in unlawful breaking and entering of vehicles in parking decks on campus if cameras were placed throughout the parking structure and monitored 24 hr a day. The graduate student looked at the police department's records of all the parking decks on campus prior to the installation and then 6 months after the installation. Which research design was the graduate student employing?

interrupted time series design

A researcher wants to better understand the challenges rural domestic violence advocates face when working with clients of domestic violence. The survey is semi-structured with open-ended questions and the advocates are from different geographic area.

interview

Which of the following would be the most advantageous for a national survey that includes several questions with complex skip patterns that do not deal with personal or intimate topics?

interview

A researcher observes and examines the behavior of high school dropouts on several occasions to measure the frequency of their marijuana use. Later, it turns out that the observer's ratings have a minimal association with each other. This indicates a problem with ______.

intra observer reliability

Students' were asked about their experience with crime at school. One of the questions asked was, "How safe do you feel when you are at school?" The answer choices included: a great deal, some, not much, none. What is the type of responses are which type?

likert-type

When examing individuals fear of crime in a mid-sized town, over time a researcher finds a significant difference before and after a mass shooting. Which of the following source of internal validity occurred?

local history

15. When a researcher uses a focus group to gain a better understanding of college students drinking behavior to aid in the development of a quetionnaire that will be email to a random sample of all the college students registered for classes is and example of ______.

mixed methods

An initial sampling of states is made for a research project studying children and health outcomes. After the initial sampling the researcher selects four counties from each of the states selected. What type of sampling would this be considered?

multistage cluster sampling

18. Juvenile probation officers are assessing the impact of a new program that will be run by probation officers who will work in tandem with the youth, social service programs, and the community to decrease violence among young offenders. The researcher evaluates the programs and found that those who receive more family support and services from the community are less likely to recidivate with a violent offense. Prior to implementing the program, the probation officers conducted an in-depth assessment to understand what the youth need to be successful post-release. This part of the evaluation is a ______.

needs assessment

A questionnaire was designed to assess high school students' thoughts about their experience with crime at school. The question asked was "How unsafe do you feel at school?" The answer choices included Very Afraid, Somewhat Afraid, Somewhat Unafraid, Very Unafraid. What is the problem with this question?

negative question

Party Identification (Democrat, Republican, etc.) is an example of which kind of variable?

nominal

A researcher wants to explore if court ordered substance abuse treatment for drug users has an effect on recidivism for drug-related crimes. The researcher identifies individuals who were arrested for drug crimes. Those who were court ordered to participate in a drug treatment program were used as the experimental group while those who were not assigned to the drug treatment program were the control group. Which type of experimental design was utilized by the researcher?

non equivalent control group

To assess the impact of domestic violence on children, a researcher selected adults whose names appear in the child social services department as being victims or living in homes with domestic violence. The researcher then selects adults who were not victims of domestic violence. Which research design is being utilized by the researcher?

non equivalent group design

A researcher wants to understand how poverty affects crime rates. The researcher measures poverty as the percentage of individuals who have income under the federal poverty line. This is an example of a researcher ______ poverty.

operationalizing

A researcher is collecting age of respondent. The researcher coded the variable as 1 = 19 years or younger 2 = 20-29 3 = 30-39 4 = 40-49 5 = 50-59 6 = 60-69 7 = 70-79 8= 80+ What is the level of measurement?7. If a researcher is using closed-ended surveys along with focus groups to understand individual's perception of crime on campus, this would be considered a mixed-method approach to research.

ordinal

16. A researcher is conducting research in an area of economic distress on how juveniles and their families used different social and economic resources. The question the researcher sought to answer was: Did juveniles who come from families that used available social services become more delinquent than juveniles whose families did not use available social services? What type of evaluation was the researcher conducting?

outcome

A researcher wanted to explore whether juveniles who entered the criminal justice system entered the criminal justice system as adults. The researcher chose a group of juveniles who were released from the juvenile criminal justice system in a midsized city and did a follow up with their behaviors every other year for the next 10 years. What type of research design did the researcher employ?

panel

Sampling that allows a researcher to make statistical generalizations to the population is known as ______.

probability sampling

If the topic of study is rare, surveying individuals with a rare genetic disease, that using probability sampling would be unlikely to include individuals with that rare condition, which of the following sampling techniques should the researcher use?

purposive sampling

For a survey that was conducted on college students' study habits, a student may answer a question differently than on another day. What type of error would this be considered?

random error

Income measured in dollars is an example of which kind of variable?

ratio

High school seniors who reside in a rural area are given a questionnaire pertaining to their frequency of drinking and driving. The students answer the series of questions in a consistent manner, however, the police records examined reveal that driving and driving is much more common than indicated by the answers given to the questionnaire. This suggests that the measure of the frequency of drinking and driving is ______.

reliable but not valid

The National Crime Victimization Survey is administered every year and each housing unit remains in the sample for 3 years. Which type of research design would this be considered?

repeat cross sectional

A researcher uses a survey to investigate the reading habits of 250 adolescents who reside in a large midwestern city. The researcher plans to make generalizations about the reading habits of all American adolescents based on the results of the survey. The 250 adolescents are an example of a ______.

sample

A researcher is studying female prisons and their attitudes of the services they are receiving while in prison. The researcher puts together a list of all females incarcerated in the United States to select from. The list of females in prison represents the______.

sampling frame

When all units in the population are available and small enough to include in the study, _____.

sampling is not necessary

What can researcher build into questionnaires to aid in the content validity?

scale questions

A researcher is studying elementary school children and their use of electronics to understand the relationship between electronic use and academic achievement. For this study the unit of observation would be ______.

school children

An experimental study found that children who attended an after-school reading program increased their standardized reading scores more than those who did not attend the program. The conclusions indicated that future studies should also include how much help the students were receiving at home, since it may be that parents who signed their children up at school could be more willing to help the child at home. The researcher's suggestion for future research reflects ______.

selection bias

A researcher identifies 10 individuals and asks them to identify and recruit 10 more subjects, and then asks those recruits to recruit 10 more subjects. This type of sampling is an example of ______.

snowball sampling

15. A small community hires a researcher to implement and evaluate a drug prevention program that has been implemented by the local police department and funded by a federal agency. After conducting the research, the findings show that there is some impact on the community. Which of the following would not be a stakeholder in this evaluation?

state government

A researcher has obtained a list of all registered voters in a city with a total of 54,000. To obtain a representative sample the researcher wants to sample 1,500 voters and selects every 36th element, the research is using ______.

systematic sampling

What type of error would occur if there is a pattern of males not answering a question regarding violence used against their significant partner?

systemic error

A researcher conducts a study and then conducts the study a second time and achieves very similar results. This study has ______.`

test retest reliability

1. Evaluation research allows for data to be collected so that need, program implementation, program effectiveness, and costs of the program can be analyzed.

true

5. It is best to negotiate a working relationship among the stakeholders before the evaluation process begins.

true

6. Clients who are participating in substance abuse program and voluntary join the program could be both a stakeholder and an input.

true

6. Content analysis can be a methodology as well as a way to analyze quantitative and qualitative data.

true

7. If a researcher is using closed-ended surveys along with focus groups to understand individual's perception of crime on campus, this would be considered a mixed-method approach to research.

true

9. External validity may be less relevant for evaluation research because the results do not necessarily have to be generalized to a larger population.

true

A research wants to analyze whether a drug treatment program works on those who are court ordered to attend. A true experiment would be the best type of research design to study this topic.

true

A researcher is conducting a project on an exercise programs. At the end of the study the researcher compares the participants on several measures related to increase physical fitness and body composition. This type of researcher would be considered a quasi-experimental design.

true

A researcher who collects data at the ratio level would be able to collapse the data into categories to make an ordinal-level measure.

true

A self-administered questionnaire would be the best type of survey research for studying sexual activity among young adults.

true

A stratified sampling results in a greater degree of representativeness and decreases the probable sampling error.

true

Cluster sampling can lead to less accurate results since each cluster can increase the chance of sampling error.

true

External validity refers to the ability of the researcher to generalize across different populations and settings.

true

If a researcher is studying individuals' answers to a survey, the individuals are known as the unit of analysis.

true

In mixed-method model a researcher may use a self-administered survey with a follow up interview.

true

Quasi-experiments differ from true experiments in that true experiments randomly assign participants to experimental and control groups.

true

Research studies that include many different concepts and variables would need a larger sample size than a research project that aims to just describe the data with relatively few variables.

true

The peak of the normal curve is equal to the population mean.

true

The questions that follow the filter question are contingency questions.

true

The random effects of an environment are minimized when subjects are randomly assigned to the experimental or control groups which in turn lowers the risk of having a problem with statistical conclusion validity.

true

When a probability sampling method is used, researchers can generalized from the observed cases to the larger population.

true

When a researchers confuse their units of analysis and the unit of observation, they may be prone to committing the ecological fallacy.

true

A researcher uses a survey to investigate the reading habits of 250 adolescents who reside in a large midwestern city. The researcher plans to make generalizations about the reading habits of all American adolescents based on the results of the survey. The entire group of adolescents is an example of a ______.

unit of analysis

A researcher at a large university is examining the relationship between substance abuse and religiosity. The researcher is drawing the sample from the college campus that they work at and has access to student email. The researcher would like to draw a sample of 400 students from the student population. Which survey type would be best suited for this study?

web survey

A researcher is to design a survey measuring the attitudes towards vaccines. This researcher needs to develop a reliable report on individuals' support for and fear of vaccines very quickly. Which survey type should the researcher use?

web survey