Chapter 2. Research Methods: Thinking Critically With Psychological Science; Practice Test

To describe the behavior of animals in their native habitats, researchers are most likely to make use of a. survey research. b. the double-blind procedure. c. random assignment. d. experimental methods. e. naturalistic observation.

e. naturalistic observation.

Which two questions exemplify the scientific attitude? a. What do you mean? How do you know? b. Who believes you? What are their qualifications? c. How common is this answer? How many people agree? d. Is this an established truth? How long has it been considered fact? e. Which truths does this agree with? Which truths does it contradict?

a. What do you mean? How do you know?

The belief that weather conditions signal the onset of arthritis pain best illustrates a. an illusory correlation. b. operational definition. c. the hindsight bias. d. overconfidence. e. random sampling.

a. an illusory correlation.

To determine whether a research finding is statistically significant, researchers a. compare the means of the control group and experimental group. b. survey other researchers to ensure the hypothesis is significant. c. perform detailed case studies to validate findings. d. confirm correlational evidence with empirical findings. e. convert positive correlations to negative ones.

a. compare the means of the control group and experimental group.

When Mr. Adams calculated his students' algebra test scores, he noticed that two students had extremely low scores. Which measure of central tendency is affected most by the scores of these two students? a. mean b. standard deviation c. mode d. median e. range

a. mean

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. naturalistic observation

The scientific attitude of humility is most likely to be undermined by a. overconfidence. b. correlational evidence. c. random assignment. d. operational definitions. e. naturalistic observation.

a. overconfidence.

Thinking that she had outperformed most of her classmates, Glenda was surprised to receive just an average grade on her psychology test. Glenda's experience best illustrates a. overconfidence. b. the hindsight bias. c. the placebo effect. d. negative correlation. e. illusory correlation.

a. overconfidence.

To assess the effect of televised violence on aggression, researchers plan to expose one group of children to violent movie scenes and another group to nonviolent scenes. To reduce the chance that the children in one group have more aggressive personalities than those in the other group, the researchers should make use of a. random assignment. b. the double-blind procedure. c. naturalistic observations. d. operational definitions. e. replication.

a. random assignment.

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. survey

According to Emily's grandfather, Adolf Hitler's obvious emotional instability made it clear from the beginning days of his international conflicts that Germany would inevitably lose World War II. The grandfather's claim best illustrates a. the hindsight bias. b. illusory correlation. c. overconfidence. d. an illusion of control. e. random sampling.

a. the hindsight bias.

Which research method would be most appropriate for investigating the relationship between the religious beliefs of Americans and their attitudes toward abortion? a. the survey b. naturalistic observation c. the case study d. experimentation e. random assignment

a. the survey

Professor Trinh contends that parents and children have similar levels of intelligence largely because they share common genes. His idea is best described as a(n) a. theory. b. replication. c. naturalistic observation. d. illusory correlation. e. hindsight bias.

a. theory.

Which of the following correlation coefficients expresses the strongest degree of relationship between two variables? a. +0.10 b. -0.67 c. 0.00 d. -0.10 e. +0.59

b. -0.67

For which of the following distributions of scores would the median most clearly be a more appropriate measure of central tendency than the mean? a. 9, 8, 9, 8, 7 b. 10, 22, 8, 9, 6 c. 12, 6, 8, 5, 4 d. 12, 15, 12, 9, 12 e. 23, 7, 3, 27, 16

b. 10, 22, 8, 9, 6

Study hours Test grades 4 75 5 85 3 70 6 70 7 75 1 45 2 60 7 90 1 35 7 100 Based on the information provided in the chart above, which scatterplot best represents the relationship between study hours and test grades. (In the scatterplots below, the x-axis is hours of study and the y-axis is test grades.) a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. 4 e. 5

b. 2

Why are researchers so careful about drawing conclusions regarding statistical significance? a. Statistical significance determines which research method should be used for a hypothesis. b. They want to make sure an observed difference isn't due to chance. c. Statistical significance is primarily a subjective decision, so researchers need to be more careful. d. They need to make sure the results are important. e. Statistical significance is used in case studies, not experiments, so researchers do not have a control group to rely on.

b. They want to make sure an observed difference isn't due to chance.

To determine whether the strength of people's self-esteem is related to their income levels, researchers would most likely make use of a. case studies. b. correlational research. c. experimentation. d. naturalistic observation. e. double-blind.

b. correlational research.

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. may be unrepresentative of what is generally true.

To compare the pace of life in different countries, investigators measured the speed with which postal clerks completed a simple request. This best illustrates the use of a research method known as a. the case study. b. naturalistic observation. c. random assignment. d. the double-blind procedure. e. the survey.

b. naturalistic observation.

A smaller survey attempts to make generalizations to a larger group. That group is called a. control condition. b. population. c. case study. d. independent variable. e. survey.

b. population.

Dr. Donelian wants to reduce his students' perception that psychological experiments merely document the obvious. His best strategy would be to ask the students to a. describe how experimental hypotheses were derived from basic psychological principles. b. predict the outcomes of experiments before they are told the actual results. c. explain the outcomes of experiments after they are told the actual results. d. personally engage in naturalistic observation. e. survey students living on campus

b. predict the outcomes of experiments before they are told the actual results.

What do researchers call a difference between the means of experimental and control groups when they know the averages are reliable and the difference between the groups is unlikely due to random chance or extraneous variables? a. operationally defined b. statistically significant c. normal curve d. standard deviation e. experimental group

b. statistically significant

Professor Teruya 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. students' scores tended to be very similar to one another.

Formulating testable hypotheses before conducting research is most directly useful for restraining a thinking error known as a. random sampling. b. the hindsight bias. c. overconfidence. d. illusory correlation. e. random assignment.

b. the hindsight bias.

Surveys indicate that people are much less likely to support "welfare" than "aid to the needy." These somewhat paradoxical survey results best illustrate the importance of a. random sampling. b. wording effects. c. the placebo effect. d. naturalistic observation. e. hindsight bias.

b. wording effects.

During the past month, Henri and Sylvia each ate 10 candy bars, while Jerry ate 8, Tricia ate 6, and Tahli ate only 1. The mean number of candy bars eaten by these individuals was a. 3. b. 5. c. 7. d. 8. e. 10.

c. 7.

Mr. and Mrs. Berry have five children aged 2, 3, 7, 9, and 9. The median age of the Berry children is a. 3. b. 6. c. 7. d. 8. e. 9.

c. 7.

Coach Thornton attended a clinic to improve her basketball coaching skills. Afterward, she randomly assigned her seventh-grade players to two groups: Group 1 will be coached by the new method and Group 2 will be coached by the old method. She then measured their performance at one team practice to judge the effectiveness of the new coaching method. Which of the following might affect the statistical significance of his study? a. Approval from an Institutional Review Board (IRB. was not obtained before beginning his study. b. To determine the effectiveness of the new method, Coach Thornton must first find the median score of each group. c. By testing only two groups, Coach Thornton 's sample size may be too small and unrepresentative. d. Coach Thornton should wait until next year to test the incoming freshman because his sample was biased. e. A third variable, such as height, might affect the relationship between the two variables.

c. By testing only two groups, Coach Thornton 's sample size may be too small and unrepresentative.

Psychologists' personal values and goals a. are carefully tested by means of observation and experimentation. b. lead them to avoid experiments involving human participants. c. can bias their observations and interpretations. d. have very little influence on the process of scientific observation. e. affect their work only if they are different from the norm.

c. can bias their observations and interpretations.

In 1848, Phineas Gage, a railroad construction foreman, survived when an explosion drove an iron rod through his head damaging the functioning of the frontal lobes. This instance provided evidence that the frontal lobe plays a role in personality and behavior. Researchers have continued to study Gage's brain to better understand this link. Which research method is being used? a. experimentation b. correlation c. case study d. naturalistic observation e. survey

c. case study

To discover the extent to which economic status can be used to predict political preferences, researchers are most likely to use a. the case study approach. b. naturalistic observation. c. correlational measures. d. experimental research. e. random assignment.

c. correlational measures.

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. direction and strength of the relationship between two variables.

To exercise maximum control over the factors they are interested in studying, researchers engage in a. case studies. b. correlational research. c. experimentation. d. replication. e. surveys.

c. experimentation.

When we see certain outcomes as obvious based on what has occurred, we may be experiencing a. empiricism. b. critical thinking. c. hindsight bias. d. overconfidence. e. humility.

c. hindsight bias.

The explanatory power of a scientific theory is most closely linked to its capacity to generate testable a. assumptions. b. correlations. c. inferences. d. variables. e. hypotheses.

c. inferences.

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. informed consent, protection from harm, confidentiality, debriefing

Psychologists who carefully watch the behavior of chimpanzee societies in the jungle are using a research method known as a. the survey. b. experimentation. c. naturalistic observation. d. the case study. e. random sampling.

c. naturalistic observation.

Political officials who have no doubt that their own economic and military predictions will come true most clearly demonstrate a. illusory correlation. b. random sampling. c. overconfidence. d. the placebo effect. e. operational definition.

c. overconfidence.

In a study of the effects of alcohol consumption, some participants drank a nonalcoholic beverage that actually smelled and tasted like alcohol. This nonalcoholic drink was a a. dependent variable. b. replication. c. placebo. d. random sample. e. double blind.

c. placebo.

Which technique most clearly minimizes the likelihood that any outcome differences between the experimental and control conditions can be attributed to age or personality differences in research participants? a. replication b. statistical measurement c. random assignment d. operational definitions e. the double-blind procedure

c. random assignment

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. repeating an earlier research study.

Nimin has volunteered to participate in an experiment evaluating the effectiveness of aspirin. Neither he nor the experimenters know whether the pills he takes during the experiment contain aspirin or are merely placebos. The investigators are apparently making use of a. naturalistic observation. b. illusory correlation. c. the double-blind procedure. d. random sampling. e. the overconfidence effect.

c. the double-blind procedure.

Alexandra is told that research supports the value of cosmetic surgery for boosting self-esteem. Belinda is told that the esteem-enhancing value of cosmetic surgery has been refuted by research. Both women would consider the findings to be common sense. This best illustrates the power of a. random sampling. b. overconfidence. c. the hindsight bias. d. illusory correlation. e. the double-blind procedure.

c. the hindsight bias.

Professor Smith told one class that alcohol consumption has been found to increase sexual desire. He informed another class that alcohol consumption has been found to reduce sexual appetite. The fact that neither class was surprised by the information they received best illustrates the power of a. overconfidence. b. replication. c. the hindsight bias. d. the double-blind procedure. e. the placebo effect.

c. the hindsight bias.

Which of the following correlations between annual income and education level would best enable you to predict annual income on the basis of level of education? a. +0.05 b. -0.01 c. +0.10 d. +0.50 e. -0.001

d. +0.50

For which of the following distributions of scores would the median most clearly be a more appropriate measure of central tendency than the mean? a. 16, 28, 4, 8, 24 b. 9, 6, 9, 12, 9 c. 8, 9, 12, 10, 16 d. 6, 18, 4, 5, 2 e. 3, 4, 3, 4, 2

d. 6, 18, 4, 5, 2

What is the primary limitation of the case study research method? a. It is not an empirical method. b. The case study is not part of the scientific method. c. Random sampling must be used to ensure representative findings. d. Individual cases can be misleading and result in false generalizations. e. Correlational findings from case studies cannot be interpreted as causal.

d. Individual cases can be misleading and result in false generalizations.

Researchers are interested in studying the impact of drugs on human fetuses. In this case, why would a correlational study be more appropriate than an experiment? a. because cause and effect can only be determined by a correlational study b. because correlational studies allow you to observe behavior in non-artificial environments c. because researchers using correlational studies may generalize to the population from an atypical case d. because participants could not be ethically assigned to an experimental or control condition e. because correlational studies permit researchers to estimate the reported behaviors of a whole population

d. because participants could not be ethically assigned to an experimental or control condition

In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that schools must be desegregated, meaning Black and White children must attend the same schools instead of being separated. In its decision, the Court cited the expert testimony of two psychologists, illustrating the negative impact of such separation on Black children. This example illustrates that psychology a. is nothing more than common sense and intuition. b. can be used to manipulate people. c. tries to decide what our goals should be. d. can help people understand some of our world's great problems. e. is becoming dangerously powerful.

d. can help people understand some of our world's great problems.

In which research method do we study one exceptional individual in depth and try to carefully draw conclusions about others based on the evidence? a. naturalistic observation b. experimentation c. hindsight bias d. case study e. random sampling

d. case study

A soft drink company recently invested in a new advertising campaign to increase sales. Which of the following would allow executives to best judge the results of their latest commercials? a. compute the range based on the highest monthly sales this year with the lowest sales of last year b. compare the mean sales of soft drinks with that of their major competitor c. compute the mode to determine which soft drinks have the highest sales d. compare the means of sales before and after the beginning of the new campaign to determine statistical significance e. compute the median of sales for each of their product lines, then compare

d. compare the means of sales before and after the beginning of the new campaign to determine statistical significance

To provide a baseline against which they can evaluate the effects of a specific treatment, experimenters make use of a(n) a. dependent variable. b. random sample. c. independent variable. d. control condition. e. experimental condition.

d. control condition.

Which of the following statistical measures is most helpful for indicating the extent to which high school grades predict college grades? a. standard deviation b. mean c. median d. correlation coefficient e. range

d. correlation coefficient

The American Psychological Association and British Psychological Society have developed ethical principles urging investigators to a. avoid the use of monetary incentives in recruiting people to participate in research. b. forewarn potential research participants of the exact hypotheses that the research will test. c. avoid the manipulation of independent variables in research involving human participants. d. explain the research to the participants after the study has been completed. e. increase the difficulty level of research endeavors while maintaining validity.

d. explain the research to the participants after the study has been completed.

Knowing the difference between an experimental condition and a control condition is most relevant to understanding the nature of a. correlations. b. random sampling. c. replication. d. independent variables. e. hindsight bias.

d. independent variables.

Which measure of central tendency would a baseball manager be most likely to rely on in picking a pinch hitter in a tie game? a. median b. mode c. range d. mean e. standard deviation

d. mean

The process of replication is most likely to be facilitated by a. the hindsight bias. b. overconfidence. c. illusory correlation. d. operational definitions. e. the placebo effect.

d. operational definitions.

What technique do researchers use to reduce the impact of confounding variables? a. hindsight bias b. naturalistic observation c. scatterplots d. random assignment e. measures of central tendency

d. random assignment

Which measure of variation is most affected by extreme scores? a. mean b. mode c. standard deviation d. range e. median

d. range

Evelyn wants to know how consistent her bowling scores have been during the past season. Which of the following measures would be most relevant to this specific concern? a. mean b. median c. scatterplot d. standard deviation e. correlation coefficient

d. standard deviation

Seven members of a boys' club reported the following individual earnings from their sale of cookies: $2, $9, $8, $10, $4, $9, and $7. In this distribution of individual earnings a. the median is greater than the mean and greater than the mode. b. the median is less than the mean and less than the mode. c. the median is greater than the mean and less than the mode. d. the median is less than the mean and greater than the mode. e. the median is equal to the mean and equal to the mode.

d. the median is less than the mean and greater than the mode.

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. the placebo effect.

Hindsight bias, overconfidence, and our tendency to perceive patterns in random events push us to overvalue a. The empirical approach b. Random sampling c. The placebo effect d. Operational definitions e. Common sense

e. Common sense

According to Professor Alrahami, we like people who like us because their affection for us boosts our own self-esteem as one part of a larger work on attraction. His idea is an example of a. naturalistic observation. b. illusory correlation. c. hindsight bias. d. replication. e. a theory.

e. a theory.

In 1953, H.M. underwent surgery to control his seizures. Doctors removed tissue from the hippocampus. As a result H.M.'s memory was severely impaired. Psychologists studied H.M.'s memory function until his death in 2008. Which research method did the psychologists utilize in this situation? a. naturalistic observation b. correlation c. survey d. experimentation e. case study

e. case study

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. mean

The King James Version of the Bible was completed when William Shakespeare was 46 years old. In Psalm 46 of this translation, the forty-sixth word is "shake," and the forty-sixth word from the end is "spear." Before concluding that the biblical translators were trying to be humorous with these specific word placements, you would be best advised to recognize the danger of a. considering these facts as statistically significant. b. randomly sampling biblical passages. c. generalizing from extreme examples. d. assuming that most people share your opinions. e. perceiving order in coincidental events.

e. perceiving order in coincidental events.

In a drug treatment study, participants given a pill containing no actual drug are receiving a(n) a. random sample. b. experimental treatment. c. double-blind. d. replication. e. placebo.

e. placebo.

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. population.

Hypotheses are best described as a. assumptions. b. replications. c. explanations. d. confirmations. e. predictions.

e. predictions.

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. random sampling.

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. there is less than a 5 percent likelihood that the results occurred by chance.

e. there is less than a 5 percent likelihood that the results occurred by chance.

The hindsight bias leads people to perceive research findings as a. invalid. b. unpredictable. c. inexplicable. d. unreplicable. e. unsurprising.

e. unsurprising.

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. wording effects.