Midterm Exam

What are two reasons that a researcher might decide to make something a control variable instead of an independent variable?

1) it can't be manipulated 2) presence changes the cause-and-effect relationship of the independent and dependent variables

How does a control variable differ from an independent variable? Give an example of each.

1) it can't be manipulated (sex, age) 2) presence changes the cause-and-effect relationship of the independent and dependent variables 3) factor that could possibly influence the results

In which part of the method section should you expect to find information about statistical tests used? a. Participants c. Procedures b. Instruments d. Design and analysis

Design and analysis

Describe how the Boolean operators "and" and "or" function to provide an optimal number of pertinent literature sources.

broadens the search, can be narrowed by adding words

The variable of interest in a study question or one that must be controlled is an ____ variable. a. dependent c. categorical b. independent d. moderator

categorical

Which is not a characteristic of research: a. replicable c. empirical b. reductive d. disorderly

disorderly

A good beginning point in a literature search for the student with a very limited knowledge about a topic is a. Psychological Abstracts c. Dissertation Abstracts International b. encyclopedias, textbooks, and reviews d. current issues of several journals

encyclopedias, textbooks, and reviews

Which of the major types of research will not be covered in lecture, but Dr. Knudson suggested reading about in the text? a. epidemiologic c. descriptive b. qualitative d. analytical

epidemiologic

The generalizability of the results pertains to what kind of validity? a. external c. construct b. internal d. logical

external validity

Which of the following is not an important purpose for reviewing the literature? a. identifying and defining the problem b. formulating the null hypothesis c. developing the method d. developing the research hypothesis

formulating the null hypothesis

The extent to which the results of a study can be attributed to the treatments used in the study is the definition of what kind of validity? a. criterion c. content b. internal d. external

internal validity

Good repeatability must be ensured by the _____ section of a research report? a. introduction c. results b. methods d. discussion

methods

The research question is equivalent to the thesis/dissertation section: a. review of literature c. introduction b. problem statement d. delimitations

problem statement

Codified theories/explanations of the nature of reality based on experimental data created by communities of scholars is: a. wisdom c. knowledge b. information d. research

research

A researcher predicts that there will be a positive relationship between attitude scores and grade point average. This is an example of a a. limitation c. null hypothesis b. research hypothesis d. basic assumption

research hypothesis

Currently the easiest "S" in a search of the literature is: a. sifting c. synthesis b. sorting d. searching

searching

According to the American Psychological Association, when a graduate student submits his or her thesis or dissertation for publication jointly with the major professor, the first author should be a. the student c. the one who developed the idea for the study b. the major professor d. whomever submits the study for publication

the student

Research is:

to determine how things are as compared to how they might be