intro psych Ch 2
Which of the following correlation coefficients is the weakest?
.08
In the last five basketball games he has played, Juan shot 1, 2, 3, 4, and 4 free-throw shots during the game. The mode number of shots is ____.
4
Psychologists usually accept a difference as statistically different when there is a less than ____ percent probability that the difference is a product of chance.
5
Students in Dr. Hernandez's class score 65, 68, 72, 72, 81, 90, and 92 on the first exam. Here, the median is ____.
72
If student scores on the first quiz are 2, 6, 7, 7, 9, and 10, then the range is ____.
8
Which of the following characteristics relates to positive correlation?
A correlation in which variables tend to change values in the same direction
Which of the following characteristics relates to variance?
A measure based on the average deviation of a set of scores from their group mean
Which of the following characteristics relates to the double-blind technique?
A procedure that controls experimenter bias and participant bias by preventing experimenters and participants from knowing which participants have been assigned to particular conditions
Which of the following characteristics relates to debriefing?
A procedure, after the completion of a research study, that informs participants of the purpose of the study and aims to remove any physical or psychological distress caused by participation
What is meant by standard deviation?
A statistic representing the degree of dispersion of a set of scores around their mean
What is meant by meta-analysis?
A technique that combines the results of many similar studies to determine the effect size of a particular kind of independent variable
What is an independent variable?
A variable manipulated by the experimenter to determine its effect on another, dependent, variable
Which of the following characteristics relates to a dependent variable?
A variable showing the effect of the independent variable
What is a variable?
An event, behavior, condition, or characteristic that has two or more values
What is a placebo?
An inactive substance that might induce some of the effects of the drug for which it has been substituted
A large number of college students volunteered for Dr. Locke's study on study skills. One half of the volunteers will be undergoing extra training to improve their study skills; the other half will use the equivalent time to do a quiet study session. How can Dr. Locke best ensure that participant variables such as age, current GPA, and sleep patterns do not affect the outcome of the study?
By using random assignment of participants to conditions
The _____ statistic compares the difference between the mean scores of each group and the distribution of scores (using the standard deviation) within each group. In other words, group differences are considered relative to individual differences.
Cohen's d
According to Harold Kelley, what is the relationship between common sense and scientific knowledge?
Common sense may inspire scientific research even though it cannot substitute for it.
A television "Health Editor" reports that eating lots of broccoli and cauliflower lowers the risk of certain cancers. As a critical thinker your first question should be the following:
Is this claim based on scientifically evaluated empirical data?
Why is it so difficult for researchers to accurately predict the behavior of a particular person or animal in a scientific study?
It is impossible to know all the factors influencing an individual at a particular time.
________ are established by giving a test to samples of hundreds or thousands of people who are representative of the people for whom the test is designed.
Norms
The correlation coefficient is also called ____.
Pearson's r
Why is replication important in the scientific method?
Repetition permits greater confidence that the findings are accurate.
Which of the following characteristics relates to determinism?
The assumption that every event has physical, potentially measurable, causes
For a particular study, Dr. Jones wants to compare "good students" with "poor students" on some factor. To be classified as a "good student" the participant's GPA must be above 3.5. To be classified as a "poor student" the participant's GPA must be below 2.5. Thus, Dr. Jones has ____.
The correct answer is: used measurement to operationally define important characteristics
What is meant by reliability?
The extent to which a test gives consistent results
Which of the following characteristics relates to validity?
The extent to which a test measures what it is supposed to measure
Which of the following characteristics relates to internal validity?
The extent to which changes in a dependent variable can be attributed to one or more independent variables rather than to a confounding variable
Which of the following characteristics relates to the median measure of central tendency?
The middle score in a set of scores that have been ordered from lowest to highest
What is meant by naturalistic observation?
The recording of the behavior of people or animals in their natural environments, with little or no intervention by the researcher
What is meant by replication?
The repetition of a research study, usually with some alterations in its methods or setting, to determine whether the principles derived from that study hold up under similar circumstances
Which of the following characteristics relates to random sampling?
The selection of a sample from a population so that each member of the population has an equal chance of being included
Which of the following characteristics relates to ethology?
The study of animal behavior in the natural environment
A researcher calculates a correlation coefficient of .21 between the number of software programs on students' home computers and college GPA. What does this communicate about the relationship between these two factors?
There is a relatively weak relationship between the number of programs on home computers and college GPAs.
Which statement accurately describes the position of extreme animal rights' advocates?
They insist that no laboratory research of any kind be carried out with animals.
Why are researchers concerned about the use of volunteer participants?
Those who volunteer may or may not be representative of people in general.
Researchers observe a positive correlation between the number of churches and the number of bars in a city. Although it is possible that there is a causal relationship between these two variables, it is more likely that ____.
a third variable (e.g., population) causes the relationship between the variables
Students in elementary school and high school participated in a study regarding the effects of watching violent TV on aggression. The elementary school kids watched 10 hours of violent TV and the high school students watched no hours of violent TV. What is a confounding variable in this study?
age of the students
Scientists, and therefore psychologists, tend to be determinists; that is, they believe that ____.
all events have physical, and ultimately knowable causes
A social researcher compares the covers of two weekly magazines published over the previous five years to see how many entertainment, sports, or political figures appeared on their respective covers during this period. This is an example of ____.
archival research
A weakness of naturalistic observation is that it ____.
cannot reveal the causes of a behavior
Which of the following refers to an in-depth study of an individual?
case study
In an experiment, independent variable is to dependent variable as ____.
cause is to effect
A student researcher is involved in a study in which one group receives a memory enhancing pill, while the other group receives a placebo. To improve the accuracy of the findings, it would be best for the researcher ____.
coefficient of correlation
Which of the following refers to a variable whose unwanted effect on the dependent variable might be confused with that of the independent variable?
confounding variable
When you drink a warm glass of milk before bedtime in the hope that it will help you fall asleep, you are demonstrating which goal of research?
control
The ________ provides a standard of comparison for the experimental group.
control group
To use deception ethically in a study, a researcher must ____.
convince an Institutional Review Board that the study's value justifies deception
What name is given to the degree of relationship between two or more variables?
correlation
What term describes research that studies the degree of relationship between two or more variables?
correlational research
The purpose of the classic Rosenthal and Fode (1963) study involving "bright" and "dull" rats was to ____.
demonstrate how an experimenter's expectations could influence the outcome of a study
What name is given to research that involves the recording of behaviors that have been observed systematically?
descriptive research
In a report to the president of your college, the admissions director calculates the average high school GPA for the recently admitted freshman class. He also calculates the range of SAT scores and the mean "number of years since last attended college" for older, returning students. The director is using ____.
descriptive statistics
What term is used for statistics that summarize research data?
descriptive statistics
We gather several hundred studies that compare the effectiveness of work group led by men and by women. If we find that the difference (d) is .21 in favor of male leaders, we can say the ____.
effect size is a small one
Dr. Lee studies the social and sexual behavior of squirrels in a large park. Dr. Nguyen studies the communication and hunting behavior of river dolphins. These researchers are ____.
ethologists
Which of the following refers to participants in an experiment who are exposed to the experimental condition of interest?
experimental group
To determine whether there is a causal relationship between variables, scientists use the ______.
experimental method
What name is given to research that manipulates one or more variables, while controlling other factors, to determine the effects on one or more other variables?
experimental method
The ultimate goal of the research enterprise is to _____ the cause of behavior.
explain
Which of the following refers to the extent to which the results of a research study can be generalized to other people, animals, or settings?
external validity
What name is given to an experiment that is conducted in real-life as opposed to laboratory settings?
field experiment
Shaunda notices that most of her married friends have ended up getting divorced. As a result, she predicts that most marriages end in divorce. She has just ____.
formed a hypothesis
After conducting hundreds of research studies on what leads students to select particular college majors, Dr. Khan summarizes and explains the results in a way that allows other scientists to derive additional hypotheses. In other words, Dr. Khan has ____.
formulated a theory
A human factors psychologist is testing whether the noise of a particular machine causes irritability and decreased performance. Research participants sign a statement that explains the nature of the study and that there might be discomfort during the procedure. Their signature indicates that they understand the nature of the study and agree to participate. Those who sign the statement ____.
have given informed consent
A social service agency uses a test to measure job applicants' "interpersonal ability." Individuals who score high on this test tend to make the most effective social workers. In other words, this test has ____.
high predictive validity
There is a strong positive correlation between SAT scores and ultimate college GPA. In other words, ____.
higher SAT scores are associated with higher college GPAs
What name is given to a testable prediction about the relationship between two or more events or characteristics?
hypothesis
Overall, naturalistic observation will provide more accurate findings ____.
if the researchers are unobtrusive
An analysis of the "hot hands" of basketball players in the National Basketball Association ____.
indicated that research evidence can disprove common sense
A researcher asks two groups of students to fast after midnight. The next morning the researcher gives a caffeine pill to one group and a neutral pill to the other and then gives both groups a problem solving task. Here the independent variable is ____.
ingestion of caffeine or a neutral pill
The experimenter must also ensure the ________ of the experiment by controlling any extraneous factors whose effects on the dependent variable might be confused with those of the independent variable in order to show a cause-and-effect relationship.
internal validity
One reason psychologists prefer animal subjects over human participants is that ____.
it is easier to control confounding variables in animal subjects
A weakness of the case study method is its ____.
lack of generalizability
Which of the following refers to the arithmetic average of a set of scores?
mean
What name is given to a statistic that represents the "typical" score in a set of scores?
measure of central tendency
What term describes the degree of dispersion in a set of scores?
measure of variability
Which of the following refers to a correlation in which variables tend to change values in opposite directions?
negative correlation
A researcher studying college students finds that the more hours students devote to watching television, the lower they score on a test of creativity. These variables are most accurately described as ____.
negatively correlated
What name is given to a score that is based on the test performances of large numbers of participants and used as a standard for assessing the performances of test takers?
norm
A student researcher is involved in a study in which one group receives a memory enhancing pill, while the other group receives a placebo. To improve the accuracy of the findings, it would be best for the researcher ____.
not to know which group was the experimental group, and not to know which pill was which
Dr. Martinez is systematic in her observations. That is, she ____.
notes only what is relevant to her research hypothesis
A stage performer appears able to reveal the contents of sealed envelopes and certain personal facts about members of the audience. Watching the show, a psychologist is likely to adopt an attitude of ____
open-minded skepticism
Which of the following refers to the definition of behaviors or qualities in terms of the procedures used to measure or produce them?
operational definition
What name is given to the tendency of people who know they are participants in a study to behave differently than they normally would?
participant bias
Participant bias results from ____.
participants behaving differently because they know they are in a study
Which of the following refers to a formal sample of a person's behavior, whether written or performed?
psychological test
What term describes the assignment of participants to experimental and control conditions so that each participant is as likely to be assigned to one condition as to another?
random assignment
What name is given to a statistic representing the difference between the highest and lowest scores in a set of scores?
range
Maria and Isadore take the Test of Marital Compatibility several times. Their first score is 99 ("Made for Each
reliability
Maria and Isadore take the Test of Marital Compatibility several times. Their first score is 99 ("Made for Each Other"). The second time their score is 24 ("Run, Don't Walk Out of the Relationship"). This test lacks
reliability
According to your textbook, the final step in the scientific method is ____.
replicating the study
What name is given to a group of participants selected from a population?
sample
What term describes a source of knowledge based on the assumption that knowledge comes from the objective, systematic observation and measurement of particular variables and the events they affect?
scientific method
Which of the following refers to an attitude that doubts all claims not supported by solid research?
skepticism
The most common measure of variability that psychologists report using is the ____.
standard deviation
What term describes a procedure ensuring that a test is administered and scored in a consistent manner?
standardization
What name is given to a low probability (usually less than 5 percent) that the results of a research study are due to chance factors rather than to the independent variable?
statistical significance
To determine if the data collected supports a hypothesis, a researcher makes use of ____.
statistical techniques
Professor Patel records student scores on the first psychology examination of the semester. She calculates the mean and median scores for the class, as well as the standard deviation. Her calculations serve to ____.
summarize the performance of the class as a whole
Professor A believes that, with proper instruction, beginning psychology students can develop original and testable hypotheses. Professor B believes that no matter the type or level of instruction, beginning psychology students cannot originate good hypotheses. At the end of every semester, Professor A has several students running good experiments, while Professor B has none. This example demonstrates ____.
the Pygmalion effect
The tendency for research participants to behave or perform the way an experimenter expects them to is called ____.
the self-fulfilling prophecy
In one study, the experimental group is given a standard healthy breakfast each morning. The control group skips breakfast. At the end of each class day, both groups are tested to see how much they retained of what was taught that day. The experimental group is found to retain significantly more material compared to the control group. To evaluate the external validity of this finding,
the study should be replicated
In most psychological research, hypotheses are derived from ____.
theories
What term describes an integrated set of statements that summarizes and explains research findings and from which research hypotheses can be derived?
theory
The best way to evaluate the external validity of a study is ____.
through replication
Animal welfare advocates would permit laboratory research with animals provided ____.
treatment was humane and the research had great potential value
For a particular study, Dr. Jones wants to compare "good students" with "poor students" on some factor. To be classified as a "good student" the participant's GPA must be above 3.5. To be classified as a "poor student" the participant's GPA must be below 2.5. Thus, Dr. Jones has ____.
used measurement to operationally define important characteristics
In the classic Rosenthal and Fode (1963) study of experimenter expectancies and laboratory rat behavior, the independent variable was ____.
what the experimenter believed about the maze-learning ability of his or her lab rat
A researcher wonders about the external validity of his or her research. In other words the researcher is concerned about ____.
whether or not the findings apply to other human groups
