Ap Psych Midterm #1

Why would the median, rather than the mean, be the appropriate measure of central tendency in determining housing values in a particular community? A) The median is useful for measuring how much values deviate from one another. B) The median is minimally affected by extreme scores. C) The median is best used to sort values into groups. D) The median allows you to examine the gap between the lowest and highest value. E) The median allows you to generalize from representative samples to the general population.

B

The specialist most likely to have a medical degree is a(n) A) clinical psychologist. B) industrial-organizational psychologist. C) developmental psychologist. D) psychiatrist. E) biological psychologist.

D

A researcher interested in investigating the attitudes or opinions of a large sample of people is most likely to use which research method? A) survey B) correlation C) experiment D) case study E) naturalistic observation

A

In a group of five individuals, two report annual incomes of $10,000, and the other three report incomes of $14,000, $15,000, and $31,000, respectively. The mode of this group's distribution of annual incomes is A) $10,000. B) $15,000. C) $16,000. D) $31,000. E) $80,000.

A

To study the development of relationships, Dr. Rajiv carefully observed and recorded patterns of verbal and nonverbal behaviors among boys and girls in the school yard. Which research method did Dr. Rajiv employ? A) naturalistic observation B) replication C) the survey D) the case study E) experimentation

A

Which of the following correlation coefficients expresses the weakest degree of relationship between two variables? A) -0.12 B) +1.00 C) -0.99 D) +0.25 E) -0.50

A

Which of the following correlations between self-esteem and body weight would enable you to most accurately predict body weight from knowledge of level of self-esteem? A) +0.60 B) +0.01 C) -0.10 D) -0.06 E) 0.00

A

A hypothesis is a(n) A) observable relationship between specific independent and dependent variables. B) testable prediction that gives direction to research. C) set of principles that organizes observations and explains newly discovered facts. D) unprovable assumption about the unobservable processes that underlie psychological functioning. E) statement of procedures used to define research variables.

B

A research method in which an investigator manipulates factors that potentially produce a particular behavior is called a(n) A) survey. B) experiment. C) case study. D) naturalistic observation. E) correlational method.

B

Professor Woo noticed that the distribution of students' scores on her last biology test had an extremely small standard deviation. This indicates that the A) test was given to a very small class of students. B) students' scores tended to be very similar to one another. C) mean test score was lower than the median score. D) students generally performed very well on the test. E) test was a poor measure of the students' knowledge.

B

Researchers use experiments rather than other research methods in order to distinguish between A) facts and theories. B) causes and effects. C) case studies and surveys. D) random samples and representative samples. E) hypotheses and operational definitions.

B

The biggest danger of relying on case-study evidence is that it A) is based on naturalistic observation. B) may be unrepresentative of what is generally true. C) overestimates the importance of operational definitions. D) leads us to underestimate the causal relationships between events. E) relies mostly on correlational rather than causational evidence.

B

To understand the unusual behavior of an adult client, a clinical psychologist carefully investigates the client's current life situation and his physical, social-cultural, and educational history. Which research method has the psychologist used? A) the survey B) the case study C) experimentation D) naturalistic observation E) correlation

B

A correlation coefficient is a measure of the A) difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution. B) average squared deviation of scores from a sample mean. C) direction and strength of the relationship between two variables. D) statistical significance of a difference between two sample means. E) frequency of scores at each level of some measure.

C

A researcher who publishes the results of a case study might be most worried about violating which ethical principle of human experimentation? A) informed consent B) protection from harm C) confidentiality D) debriefing E) coercion

C

Clinical psychologists specialize in A) constructing surveys. B) animal research. C) providing therapy to troubled people. D) providing drugs to treat behavioral disorders. E) treating patients in clinical settings.

C

If the correlation between the physical weight and reading ability of children is +0.85, this would indicate that A) there is very little statistical relationship between weight and reading ability among children. B) low body weight has a negative effect on the reading abilities of children. C) better reading ability is associated with greater physical weight among children. D) body weight has no causal influence on the reading abilities of children. E) weight is a causal variable dependent on reading ability.

C

Replication involves A) the selection of random samples. B) perceiving order in random events. C) repeating an earlier research study. D) rejecting ideas that cannot be scientifically tested. E) overestimating the extent to which others share our views.

C

The IQ scores of the five members of the Duluth family are 100, 82, 104, 96, and 118. For this distribution of scores, the range is A) 6. B) 14. C) 36. D) 48. E) 100.

C

The first psychological laboratory was established by A) William James. B) John Watson. C) Wilhelm Wundt. D) Sigmund Freud. E) Jean Piaget.

C

Which of the following defines ethical principles that should guide human experimentation? A) control group, random sampling, random assignment B) case study, naturalistic observation, survey C) informed consent, protection from harm, confidentiality, debriefing D) volunteer participants only, no deception, incentives for participation E) effect size, statistical significance, measures of central tendency, variation

C

Which of the following is true for those assigned to the experimental group in an experiment? A) The experimenter exerts the greatest influence on participants' behavior. B) The research participants are exposed to all the different hypotheses. C) The experimental group receives the experimental treatment D) The experimental group does not receive the experimental treatment E) The operational definition is not applied to their variables.

C

A researcher interested in proving a causal relationship between two variables should choose which research method? A) correlation B) survey C) naturalistic observation D) experiment E) case study

D

A researcher who deceives participants about the goals of the research needs to fully inform them of the true nature of the study later, according to which ethical principle of human experimentation? A) informed consent B) protection from harm C) confidentiality D) debriefing E) coercion

D

A specification of how a researcher measures a research variable is known as a(n) A) standard deviation. B) control condition. C) replication. D) operational definition. E) observation.

D

Both the researchers and the participants in a memory study are ignorant about which participants have actually received a potentially memory-enhancing drug and which have received a placebo. This investigation involves the use of A) naturalistic observation. B) the hindsight bias. C) random sampling. D) the double-blind procedure. E) replication.

D

In the hypothesis "Students who study a list of terms in the morning, just after waking up, will recall more terms than students who study the list just before falling asleep," what is the independent variable? A) list of terms B) memorization C) time of day D) number of terms remembered E) students

D

The arithmetic average of a distribution of scores is the A) mode. B) median. C) standard deviation. D) mean. E) range.

D

The relief of pain following the ingestion of an inert substance that is presumed to have medicinal benefits illustrates A) random assignment. B) the hindsight bias. C) the double-blind effect. D) the placebo effect. E) illusory correlation.

D

Which of the following is true for those assigned to a control group? A) The experimenter exerts the greatest influence on participants' behavior. B) The research participants are exposed to all the different experimental treatments. C) The research participants are exposed to the most favorable levels of experimental treatment. D) The experimental treatment is absent. E) The operational definition is not applied to their variables.

D

A majority of respondents in a national survey agreed that "classroom prayer should not be allowed in public schools." Only 33 percent of respondents in a similar survey agreed that "classroom prayer in public schools should be banned." These divergent findings best illustrate the importance of A) operational definition. B) the hindsight bias. C) overconfidence. D) random assignment. E) wording effects.

E

During the past year, Zara and Ivan each read 2 books, but George read 9, Ali read 12, and Marsha read 25. The median number of books read by these individuals was A) 2. B) 50. C) 10. D) 12. E) 9.

E

If a result is statistically significant, this means that the A) results of the test are positively correlated with another factor. B) participants received scores above the 50 percentile. C) results of the research have practical significance. D) scores were 1 standard deviation from the mean. E) psychologist accepts a 5 percent likelihood that the results occurred by chance.

E

In a distribution of test scores, which measure of central tendency would likely be the most affected by a couple of extremely high scores? A) median B) range C) mode D) standard deviation E) mean

E

In an experiment designed to study the effectiveness of a new drug, research participants who receive a placebo are participating in the ________ condition. A) dependent variable B) correlational C) experimental D) replication E) control

E

In order to learn about the political attitudes of all students enrolled at Arizona State University, Professor Marlow randomly selected 800 of these students to complete a questionnaire. In this instance, all the students enrolled at Arizona State University are considered to be a(n) A) independent variable. B) representative sample. C) control. D) dependent variable. E) population.

E

To assess reactions to a proposed tuition hike at her college, Ariana sent a questionnaire to every fifteenth person in the college registrar's alphabetical listing of all currently enrolled students. Ariana employed the technique of A) random assignment. B) naturalistic observation. C) replication. D) correlation. E) random sampling.

E

To study the effects of noise on worker productivity, researchers have one group of subjects work in a noisy room and a second group work in a quiet room. To ensure that any differences in the productivity of the two groups actually result from the different noise levels to which the groups are exposed, the researchers would use A) the case study. B) correlational measurement. C) naturalistic observation. D) replication. E) random assignment.

E

Which procedure helps to ensure that the participants in a survey are representative of a larger population? A) random assignment B) replication C) correlation D) naturalistic observation E) random sampling

E