Exam 1 Philosophy and Research

Which of the following demonstrates the strongest correlation coefficient?

-.72

Valdez conducted a meta-analysis on the effects of instructional interventions that benefit study strategies of middle school children. In his study he reported a relatively small effect of the interventions. Which of the following is a potential effect size from Valdez's study?

.21

Which of the following CANNOT be a correlation coefficient?

1

According to your text, the fewest number of participants required for a correlation study is

30

What is the most important advantage of using a database (e.g., ERIC) over an internet search (e.g., Google)?

A database is organized by humans using subject headings.

Of the following, which is most likely an example of a correlational study?

A study that examines organizational variables that predict retention of special education teachers

According to your text, which of the following is the most accurate statement regarding ethical considerations in research studies?

All studies involve ethical considerations.

Of the following, which is likely a peer-reviewed source for an instructional design study?

An article in a scholarly journalAn article in a scholarly journal

Which of the following is an example of a researchable problem?

Are there differences in achievement test scores between those homeschooled for part of the day or not at all in a certain school district?

Which of the following is the best example of a researchable problem?

Are there differences in the amount of time spent reading in classrooms of non-native speakers?

Which of the following is an example of a causal-comparative question?

Are there gender differences in the effectiveness of computer-based simulations?

When can a research participant choose to withdraw from a research study?

At any time

Some researchers have complained that most of the research that has been conducted with the benefits of animation for student learning has been done on college students enrolled in introductory courses at large research institutions. Assuming this is TRUE what does this problem illustrate?

Convenience sampling

Melanie is conducting a survey for her thesis that examines administrative policies in middle schools that are intended to decrease bullying. After developing her survey and piloting the instrument with a small group, she then administers the instrument to a sample of 2,300 middle school administrators. Which of the following survey research designs best describes Melanie's study?

Cross-sectional

If you were to set a priority on searching one database for your educational literature review for a study, what database would you search?

ERIC

Of the following, which is an example of a type of qualitative research?

Ethnographic

Identify the independent variable in the following hypothesis: Children who are given a free breakfast at school perform better on achievement tests and are more motivated for school than are those children who are not given breakfast.

Free breakfast

Glenda's study addresses a current topic in education, case libraries. Glenda is concerned about her sources. Although the studies come from peer-reviewed journals, none of them have methodology sections and it appears they include prominent researchers' opinions. What is likely Glenda's concern?

Her sources are secondary references.

IRB stands for

Institutional Review Board

Most hospitals, colleges, and universities have a review group, usually called the Human Subjects Review Committee or the

Institutional Review Board.

Which of the following is an example of a correlational study?

Is there a relationship between student achievement and homework completion?

Of the following which is NOT a characteristic of a good hypothesis statement?

It is supported by everyday experiences and intuition.

Vernard needs to access only primary sources for his research methods class proposal. Which of the following should Vernard consult?

Journal of Educational Psychology

Lexx needs primary sources for her research proposal. Which of the following will she likely select?

Journal of Experimental Education

Which of the following is a common criticism of meta-analysis?

Meta-analysis often includes poorly-designed studies.

Which of the following populations cannot give informed consent?

Minors

Which act authorized the creation of the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research?

National Research Act of 1974

Of the following, which is an overriding rule of research ethics as noted in your text?

Obtain informed consent

Jane administers a survey to a sample of individuals graduating from college and repeats the survey with those same individuals each year for four years. What type of survey has she used?

Panel

Makayla is interested in researching early childhood reading programs for children with preschool special education. Which of the following keywords would be best for Makayla to use first in her database search?

Preschool reading

Rudo is interested in researching leadership styles of elementary principals in rural districts. Which of the following keywords would be best for him to use in a database search?

Principles Leadership Styles

Chanya needs to start a library search to examine her research topic "A comparison of two types of problem-based learning strategies in postsecondary school biological science classes." Which of the following keywords will Chanya likely select in her initial search?

Problem-based learning

When in need of ethical guidance, where should a researcher first look?

Professional organizations

According to your text, what is the best way to organize the report of the literature?

Provide a meaningful summary of the studies related to main problems.

One difference between qualitative and quantitative research is that:

Quantitative researchers state hypothesis prior to beginning the study.

Survey data are often collected via which of the following?

Questionnaires

A large marketing firm has decided to do a study that describes the needs of practicing teachers regarding instructional materials. The vice-president wants data from 400 practicing teachers. Shawna, a researcher with the firm, sends a mass mailing and when 400 surveys are returned she analyzes the data. Shawna is best illustrating which sampling strategy?

Quota sampling

Which of the following is considered an ability variable?

Scholastic aptitude

Nala wants to determine if providing awards for science fair winners increases or decreases participation by average students. She thinks that by promoting science as a competition some children may decide not to participate. To address this question, Nala identifies two types of schools in her district, schools that provide awards or schools that do not. She compares the participation rate of students in her two groups. Given Nala's study, what is the independent variable?

School type

Jose is interested in researching English as a second language classes in large middle schools in the Midwest United States. Which of the following keywords would Jose likely use in a database search?

Second language instruction

Of the following, which is the sample technique most often used in survey research?

Stratified

Given the following design, identify the most probable example of the study from the descriptions below.

Susan compares self-esteem levels of children who are in ability grouped versus non-ability grouped classrooms.

Which of the following is a type of random sampling?

Systematic

The federal government has enacted laws to protect research participants. These laws include

The National Research Act.

When reporting the literature review, what should come last, just prior to the statement of hypothesis?

The references most related to your problem

Of the following which is NOT part of a research problem statement?

The significance of the study

Of the following which characteristics of a potential source might be the most concerning?

The source was found in a non-refereed journal.

Jane is conducting a study at a small liberal arts school on the East Coast that addresses the reasons why male college students are less likely to graduate within a four-year time frame than are female students. She would like her study to generalize to all of the college student population in the United States. Given Jane's study which of the following is the accessible population?

The students at the school from which the participants were sampled

Which of the following is indicative of most survey research?

This method relies on tests and questionnaires.

Of the following, which is a quantitative research problem?

This study tests the effects of a new alternative education program on students' self-esteem.

A census survey is

a survey of the full population.

The group that the researcher would ideally like to generalize findings to is referred to as

a target population.

An organized body of concepts, generalizations, and principles defines

a theory.

One similarity between causal-comparative and experimental research is that both

attempt to establish cause-effect relationships.

One similarity between causal-comparative and correlational research is that both

can be treated as a type of descriptive research.

Joyce read a study that reported students' age was correlated r = -.68 with classroom management referrals. This correlation indicates as age increases

classroom management referrals are more likely to decrease.

Basic researchers collect data primarily to

develop theories.

Correlational research is concerned with

examining relationships among variables.

Experimental research differs from causal-comparative research in that

experimental research controls the selection of participants from a single pool and divides them into groups while causal-comparative research does not.

Action research is used to

find and solve educators problems.

The first step in probability sampling is to:

identify the population.

Developing generalizations from a limited number of related observations or experiences is referred to as

inductive reasoning.

The process through which a participant agrees to participate in research of their own free will and is informed of their rights as a participant is known as obtaining

informed consent.

Jack just read an interesting study regarding middle school children's use of computer animated simulations to learn introductory chemistry. Although he is a physics professor he wants to see if the benefits of simulations are also found in college physics learners. Jack's research topic is best described as a study that

is a replication.

According to your text, one reason researchers should annotate sources is because

it includes why a source is important for your research.

Computing the statistical significance of a correlation requires the

level of confidence and sample size.

Based upon your textbook's discussion, overview sources, such as handbooks in a particular area of research can best assist you in

narrowing a topic you are considering for further research.

In a research study, deception refers to

not conveying the true nature of the research study in which participants have consented.

A cross sectional survey design compared to cohort design differs in that cross sectional surveys collect data

once compared to multiple times in a cohort.

A Pearson r correlation is best used for data that are expressed as

only continuous.

The most basic and important ethical issue in research is the

protection of participants.

Abby is conducting research on the perceived role of arts within medium-sized suburban communities. She wants to survey people with an affinity for some from of the arts. She goes to a local theatre production of The Music Man to recruit participants. Abby is illustrating

purposive sampling.

Case Study is a method employed by

qualitative researchers.

The advantages of a telephone survey data collection include

quick data collection.

Ida is a teacher who is interested in other teachers' opinions of full day versus part day kindergarten programs. Ida's study can best be described as a

sample survey.

Ken randomly selected 75 students to participate in his study and then randomly assigned them to one of three conditions. When he examined his groups he found he had very unequal gender by condition. Ken's samples illustrate

sampling error.

Jim is doing a computer literature search for a motivation study. He has identified the keywords he will use. The next step he will conduct is to

select a database he will search.

The first step in selecting a research problem is

selecting a problem related to your interest and expertise.

According to your text the first step in applying the scientific method is

selecting and defining a research problem.

Chyna is conducting a study with college students reading science texts that explores the role of interest apart from knowledge as articulated in Patricia Alexander's Model of Domain Learning. Chyna's research problem is best described as a study that

tests theory.

One of the primary benefits of interview survey methods is

that the return rate is usually high.

The following are characteristic of a good research problem EXCEPT

the problem investigates what individuals should do.

The review of the literature includes

the research problem of the study.

The first step in conducting a literature search is

to identify keywords related to the research.

One drawback of initial research problems is that they are often

too broad.

The method of knowing that relies on making decisions based upon the way things have always been done is

tradition

Don studies high school seniors' concerns about world events during their postsecondary experiences. He surveys the entire senior class statewide. Every year, for eight years, he surveys the senior class that year. Don is using a ________ type of survey.

trend

The annotating process is conducted

with the most recent references first.

Which of the following is the best advantage of cross-sectional survey designs?

Data are provided more quickly than longitudinal designs.

Of the following, which is most likely a survey research question?

Do parents believe that the new middle school science club is worth the funds the district spent?

Sarah is really excited about her research problem. There are many homeschoolers in her state, and she wants to research if homeschoolers should hire professional educators to assist them with curriculum development. Of the following, which is the most important concern with Sarah's research problem as currently developed?

It is not researchable.

The college dean asked Meg to conduct a study to survey one-half of the college students regarding their opinions of change in course offerings. Which nonrandom sampling approach is Meg likely to use?

Quota sampling

Sanai needs to review a secondary source to introduce her to the topic of her study on the effects of cooperative learning. Which of the following will she likely select?

Review of Educational Research

Kevin's analysis indicated that in his dataset SES was correlated r = .25 with absenteeism. This indicates that

SES is weakly correlated with absenteeism.

Francisco is studying young children's color preferences by age. He is interested in comparing three-, four-, and five-year-old children's color preferences. He is reluctant to use simple random sampling because he wants to assure that he has comparable numbers of children at each age. Which quantitative sampling strategy is the approach for Francisco to use?

Stratified sampling

Of the following, which is the best example of a qualitative research problem?

The goal of this study is to describe experiences of transgendered adolescents.

Of the following, which is a quantitative research problem?

The purpose of this study is to compare the grades of students who go to office hours and those who do not.

In an ERIC search, the following research label described a potential source: ED52881. Given this label, what is one conclusion that can be drawn about the source?

The reference may be a secondary source.

Of the following, which is most likely to be an independent variable in a causal-comparative study?

Type of instructional treatment administered

Of the following, which is an example of a survey research question?

What are the participants' opinions regarding effective instruction?

Derrick is conducting a stratified sampling procedure. His target sample is 250 from a population of 489 high school algebra students within a particular district. He wants to ensure he has the appropriate representation of students from each ability level. Next he will

classify all members of the population as members of the subgroups.

Joe is the director of middle school science education for the state and is interested in differences between teaching science content in thematic units or by teaching the content in the units as presented in the students' text. He randomly selects classrooms in the state to participate. This best illustrates

cluster sampling.

The ________ survey consists of the same group but different samples from that population surveyed over time.

cohort

Jill is a history teacher interested in whether differences exist in motivation to study history between students who are taught concepts sequentially through time and those who are taught concepts by geographic region. Jill's research problem is best described as a study that

comes from personal experiences.

When a researcher knows the identity of a participant but does NOT disclose this identity, then the data are considered to be

confidential

Ms. Wang's study addresses the reasons that parents report for sending their children to dance lessons. She has defined her research problem, reviewed the literature, and stated her questions. The next step in Ms. Wang's study is to

create her research instrument.

Bonnie is conducting a study on the social skills of those children who have identified speech and language needs. She selects children who have Individual Education Plans for speech and language only and not any other educational exceptionalities. Bonnie is illustrating

criterion sampling.

Seth sends out a survey to all parents and teachers in the district to gather opinions about local school safety. Seth's study is an example of ________ survey research.

cross-sectional

The two primary survey research designs are

cross-sectional and longitudinal.

Low reliability of variables

decreases the chance of finding significant relationships.

To operationalize a variable means to ________ the variable.

define

According to the text, the review of literature is important early in a qualitative study because it

demonstrates assumptions of the research questions.

The first step of annotating is to

determine the article's relevancy.

To evaluate a source the first step is to

determine whether it is relevant to your research problem.

Causal-comparative and experimental research both

examine differences between groups.

Correlational studies are used primarily to

examine relationships among quantifiable variables.

Jacki is conducting a study that examines the effects of multivitamins on common cold symptoms. She hopes to generalize her findings to the school-age population of children in a specified region in her state. The population of children is 9,000. She is going to conduct a survey and decides to sample 7,000 children. Regarding Jacki's sample we know that

it is substantially too big.

In simple random sampling, after the researcher has determined the desired sample size, the next step is to

list all members of the population.

Shrinkage refers to

lowered accuracy in a prediction equation when it is applied to a new sample.

Evaluation researchers collect data primarily to

make decisions about programs.

The most common descriptive statistic used in causal-comparative research as a measure of central tendency is the

mean

Qi's analysis indicated that for those students who took calculus in high school and then introductory calculus in the first year of university, grades were correlated r = .45. This indicates that high school grades and university grades are

moderately related.

The philosophical assumption that addresses the nature of reality is referred to as

ontology

One major way qualitative research differs from quantitative research is that qualitative researchers

personally engage in the research process.

Sean knows a lot about racial tensions in public schools. He wants to conduct a quantitative study that examines the current state of affairs in public schools. He contacts two school districts that he identified; one has a history of problems and one does not. He randomly selects students from these schools to participate in his study. Sean used

purposive sampling.

If all participants in a given sample have an equal and independent chance of being selected for a study it is said that the sample has been selected

randomly

Suzanne reported a correlation between reading ability and math grades of r = .90 in the first grade. This correlation indicates that in Suzanne's study

reading ability is strongly related to math grades.

The first step of the scientific method is to

recognize and identify a topic to be studied.

Attenuation refers to

reduction of correlation coefficients when measures have low reliability.

Research studies are primarily built on trust between

researchers and participants.

In a prediction study of low achieving students academic motivation, Hillary was surprised that achievement scores were not a significant predictor of motivation. Hillary's analysis is most likely is displaying

restriction of range.

After identifying a topic, survey researchers next

review the literature.

Participants identified as those from whom to seek information is the definition of

sample

Data collection for types of correlation studies is generally

shorter than most types of quantitative research.

Ken is conducting a qualitative study for the university regarding the institutional variables that racial and ethnic minority doctoral students face in completing their degrees. He feels he needs to interview about 35 graduates. He interviews a small initial sample identified though formal complaints filed regarding the issue. He then asks each of those he interviews to identify any additional participants they can think of and then interviews those individuals until he has reached his sample size. Ken is best illustrating?

snowball sampling.

The most common descriptive statistic used in causal-comparative research as a measure of spread around the mean is the

standard deviation.

According to your text, one particular challenge of survey studies is that

survey studies often suffer from lack of participant response.

Sophia needs to conduct a survey for the Alumni Association. She takes the list of all the alumni and calls every 10th name on the list. Sophia is best illustrating

systematic sampling.

Read the following hypothesis: Middle school students in an urban school who are trained in discussion techniques perform better on written tests of persuasive essays than those students who are not trained in discussion techniques. The independent variable in the stated hypothesis is

training in discussion techniques.

As a researcher you are interested in self-reported changes in interest in music in the senior population. You will collect data at the time of retirement and select a new sample of individuals at the time of retirement each year for five years. This type of research can be classified best as a(n)

trend survey.

A Phi coefficient is used for

true dichotomous level data.

Correlation studies must include

two or more quantifiable variables.

A strong negative correlation coefficient indicates that

two variables are inversely related.

One strength of causal-comparative studies, in comparison to experimental studies, is that causal-comparative studies can examine ________ while experimental studies cannot.

variables that should not be manipulated

The correlation that Kim found in her study between math self-efficacy and enrollment in advanced mathematics was r = .25. Her correlation can be described as

weak