Research Methods Chapter 1-3

Which of the following represents a strong negative correlation?

-0.9

Which of the following is the best description of the scientific method?

A circular process that leads to a tentative answer

Which of the following is a brief summary of a psychology article?

Abstract

Which of the following is NOT a step of the research process?

Adjust the original research question to align with the results of the study

What questions should you ask when reading an introduction to a research article?

All of the above.

Which of the following is typical of quantitative research?

All of the above.

Which of the following is a distinction between science and pseudoscience?

All of the other options are differences between science and pseudoscience.

Which of the following is a disadvantage of using an operational definition?

All of the other options are disadvantages.

How would research studies that are intended to answer practical problems be classified?

Applied research

A researcher is intrigued by an explanation of children's problem-solving strategies found in a journal article and develops a research study to determine whether the article's ideas are correct. How would this study be classified?

Basic research

Counting the number of times a third-grade student leaves his or her seat without permission during a 30-minute observation period is an example of using what modality of measurement?

Behavioral

Which of the following is not a step that describes the research process?

Change your hypothesis when necessary to fit your results

The scientific process is ________, involving both inductive and deductive reasoning.

Circular

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of a good hypothesis?

Concise

What term is used for a variable that cannot be observed or measured directly but is useful for describing and explaining behavior?

Construct

________ means that there is a relationship between two or more variables.

Correlation

In a ________ study, both the researchers and the participants are unaware of the group assignments.

Double-blind

Researchers are conducting a study where they have concerns that the participant's beliefs and the experimenter's beliefs may skew the results. Therefore, they chose to conduct a ________ study.

Double-blind

Which of the following operational definitions of variables would have the properties of magnitude, equal intervals, and a true zero?

Driving speed measured in miles per hour.

Both primary and secondary sources play important roles in the literature search process. However secondary sources are far more superior when providing accurate accounts of the research that was conducted.

False

It is wise to start a literature review with a recently published primary source in the content area appropriate for your idea and then work your way into a secondary source.

False

True False: Using the title of the article as your first basis for screening out irrelevant material may lead you to discard publications that might be directly relevant or interesting. Hence it is not a wise decision to make an assessment about the relevance of an articles on its title.

False

True or False: A qualitative researcher interested in studying depression would probably develop a test to measure depression for each participant and then compute an average score to describe the amount of depression for different subgroups of adolescents.

False

True or False: Induction, or inductive reasoning, involves using a large set of observations as the basis for forming a general statement about a smaller set of possible observations.

False

True or False: Inductive reasoning requires many observations to generate a general hypothesis.

False

True or False: One of the strengths of the empirical method is that it provides an easy, direct way to answer questions. It is safe to place confidence in our own observations.

False

True or False: Planning and conducting research is an efficient and relatively straight forward process. This is what makes research a preferred method for discovering the answers to complex questions.

False

True or False: Quantitative research is based on making observations that are summarized and interpreted in narrative reports.

False

True or False: the scientific method is a linear process that moves directly from a beginning to an end. This is what makes the scientific method a reliable tool to find the answers to the research question(s) of interest.

False

Identifying research topics can be a difficult process. However, research topics can actually be discovered all around us. Which of the following is not a strategy discussed in our class to help identify a topic area of research?

Illnesses and medical needs

What kind of reasoning uses a few specific observations to produce a general hypothesis?

Inductive reasoning

What is typically included in the introduction section of a research article?

It describes the overall purpose and rationale of the research.

Which of the following is NOT one of the three important principles of the scientific method?

It is efficient

What is typically included in the method section of a research article?

It provides the details of the methodology used in the study.

One of the major points discussed in this class is that research ideas do not develop in isolation or simply pop up out of the blue. First we need to get up to speed with conversations regarding our research topic of interest. This procedure is often referred to as a(n)

Listening Tour

Which of the following accurately describes the relationship between validity and reliability?

Measurement cannot be valid unless it is reliable.

Which method of knowing is used when you find the address and phone number of a restaurant by googling the name of the restaurant?

Method of authority

A restaurant chef tried replacing rice with pasta in one of her recipes to see what would happen. Which method of acquiring knowledge is she using?

Method of empiricism

What level of measurement would be used if participants were asked to choose their favorite picture from a set of seven?

Nominal

Your local police force wants to install cameras that can "catch" drivers who run red lights. They choose a busy intersection, install a test camera, and determine whether each car stops safely or "runs" the light. Choose the correct scale of measurement.

Nominal

A(n) ________ is a description of how the researchers will measure the variables of interest.

Operational definition

An elementary school teacher separates students into high, medium, and low reading skill groups. What scale of measurement is being used to create the groups?

Ordinal

Every 10 years, the federal government sponsors a national survey of health and health practices . One question in the survey asks participants to rate their overall health using a 5-point rating scale. What is the scale of measurement used for this question?

Ordinal

The order in which participants complete a task is an example of what level of measurement?

Ordinal

Using a PET scan to measure brain activity while participants solve mathematics problems is an example of using what modality of measurement?

Physiological

Research results indicate that the more time individuals spend watching educational television programs as preschool children, the higher their high school grades will be. What kind of relationship exists between educational TV and high school grades?

Positive

After measuring a set of individuals, a researcher finds that Bob's score is three times greater than Jane's score. What scale of measurement is being used?

Ratio

Number of cigarettes smoked per day is a(n)____________ measure of smoking.

Ratio

School administrators sponsor a study of bullying on elementary school playgrounds. Trained observers record the number of incidents of aggression that occur during consecutive 10-minute periods. Aggression is measured on which of the following scales of measurement?

Ratio

Last year Tim and his friend Jack were both too short to ride the roller coaster. Jack went to the park this year and was tall enough to ride. Tim knows that he is taller than Jack, so he knows that he will be able to ride the roller coaster as well. Which method of knowing is Tim using?

Rational method

________ refers to the ability to consistently produce a given result.

Reliability

A ________ is a graphical view of the strength and direction of a correlation.

Scatterplot

What is meant by saying that "science is objective"?

Scientific answers are obtained without influence by the researcher's biases or beliefs.

The many different external expressions of a construct are traditionally classified into three categories that also define three different types, or modalities, of measurement. The three categories discussed in this class are...

Self-report, physiological, and behavioral.

Why is an artifact like experimenter bias a threat to the validity of measurement?

The measurements may be distorted by the artifact.

Which method of knowing is being used by a student who believes that his performance on tests is influenced by wearing a lucky hat?

The method of tenacity

Why is the range effect known as a "ceiling effect" a problem for researchers?

The scores are already so high that there is no chance of measuring improvement.

What additional information is obtained by measuring on an interval scale compared to an ordinal scale?

The size of the differences

How many articles form a good foundation for developing a new research idea?

There are no set rules for how many articles form a good foundation.

One hundred introductory psychology students are surveyed about their intended majors. The results indicate that more women than men intend to pursue a psychology major, whereas more men than women intend to pursue a history major. What do these results indicate?

There is a relationship between gender and intended major.

Which of the following would be a danger of relying upon a primary source?

There is no danger because you can rely on primary sources for accurate information.

Which of the following is not a good example of a research hypothesis?

There is no relationship between fatigue and reaction time.

Maria and Alejandro have been asked to design a study investigating happiness across the lifespan. They decide their study will involve going to the mall and asking people of a variety of ages if they are happy or unhappy. What is the most serious flaw of this design?

They have not defined happiness or how it will be measured.

Which of the following describes participants taking on the negativistic subject role?

They try to act so that their data are in contrast to the hypothesis.

Which of the following is usually the initial factor for determining whether a specific article is relevant to your research question?

Title

What is the goal of an operational definition?

To provide a definition and a method for measuring a hypothetical construct

In a true experimental research the researcher's biases and beliefs do not influence the outcome of the study.

True

True or False. If the purpose of the measurement is obvious, the participants in a research study can see exactly what is being measured and may adjust their answers to produce a better image of themselves. For this reason, researchers often try to disguise the true purpose of measurement devices such as questionnaires, deliberately trying to conceal the variables that they are trying to measure.

True

True or False: A primary source is a firsthand report in which the authors describe their own observations. Typically, a primary source is a research report, published in a scientific journal or periodical, in which the authors describe their own research study, including why the research was done, how the study was conducted, what results were found, and how those results were interpreted.

True

True or False: Deductive reasoning uses a general hypothesis or premise to generate a prediction about specific observations.

True

True or False: If the individuals are human, they are called participants. Nonhumans are called subjects.

True

True or False: It is common to begin a literature search with only a general idea for a research topic. A researcher must narrow down the general idea to a specific research question.

True

True or False: Predictions generated from a hypothesis must be testable.

True

True or False: The methods of tenacity, intuition, and authority are satisfactory for answering some questions, especially if you need an answer quickly and there are no serious consequences for accepting a wrong answer. However, these are uncritical techniques and unfit to answer questions that are more consequential and life changing.

True

True or False: Usually, it is best to measure a cluster of related behaviors rather than rely on a single indicator.

True

True or False: We use our hypothesis as a universal premise statement and then determine the conclusions or predictions that must logically follow if the hypothesis is true.

True

When error is large, reliability is low, and when error is small, reliability is high.

True

For which of the following questions would the scientific method be an appropriate method for seeking an answer.

What conditions promote student learning in an elementary classroom?

A secondary source is...

a description or summary of another person's work. A secondary source is written by someone who did not participate in the research or observations being discussed.

A primary source is...

a firsthand report of observations or research results written by the individual(s) who actually conducted the research and made the observations.

The scientific method is...

a method of acquiring knowledge that uses observations to develop a hypothesis, and then uses the hypothesis to make logical predictions that can be empirically tested by making additional, systematic observations.

In the method of authority...

a person relies on information or answers from an expert in the subject area.

A field setting is...

a place that the participant or subject perceives as a natural environment.

An operational definition is...

a procedure for indirectly measuring and defining a variable that cannot be observed or measured directly.

An argument is...

a set of premise statements that are logically combined to yield a conclusion.

In the behavioral sciences, a theory is...

a set of statements about the mechanisms underlying a particular behavior.

In the context of science, a hypothesis is...

a statement that describes or explains a relationship between or among variables. A hypothesis is not a final answer but rather a proposal to be tested and evaluated.

On a graph of a correlation coefficient, points falling near to a straight sloped line indicate ________.

a strong correlation

The method of faith is...

a variant of the method of authority in which people have unquestioning trust in the authority figure and, therefore, accept information from the authority without doubt or challenge.

Face validity is...

an unscientific form of validity demonstrated when a measurement procedure superficially appears to measure what it claims to measure.

Demand characteristics refer to...

any of the potential cues or features of a study that (1) suggest to the participants what the purpose and hypothesis is and (2) influence the participants to respond or behave in a certain way.

A laboratory is...

any setting that is obviously devoted to the discipline of science. It can be any room or any space that the subject or participant perceives as artificial.

Qualitative research is...

based on making observations that are summarized and interpreted in a narrative report.

Quantitative research is...

based on measuring variables for individual participants to obtain scores, usually numerical values, which are submitted to statistical analysis for summary and interpretation.

The possible range for a correlation coefficient is ________.

between -1 and +1

A research study is double-blind if...

both the researcher and the participants are unaware of the predicted outcome.

While shopping, you observe the behavior of adolescents at the mall and get some ideas about what may be causing the behavior. This is an example of getting research ideas from

casual observation.

Variables are...

characteristics or conditions that change or have different values for different individuals. For example, the weather, the economy, and your state of health can change from day to day. Also, two people can be different in terms of personality, intelligence, age, gender, self-esteem, height, weight, and so on.

Convergent validity is...

demonstrated by a strong relationship between the scores obtained from two (or more) different methods of measuring the same construct.

Divergent validity is...

demonstrated by showing little or no relationship between the measurements of two different constructs.

Concurrent validity is...

demonstrated when scores obtained from a new measure are directly related to scores obtained from an established measure of the same variable.

In logical reasoning, premise statements...

describe facts or assumptions that are presumed to be true.

A hypothesis is a __________ statement and a prediction is a __________ statement.

general; specific

Peer reviewers ________.

help ensure quality control in reporting scientific findings

An intelligence test yields the same results when administered on three separate occasions. However, the test's results are more strongly correlated with hours spent doing homework than they are with other standardized intelligence tests. This test has________ reliability and ________ validity.

high; low

Constructs are...

hypothetical attributes or mechanisms that help explain and predict behavior in a theory.

The first step in the research process is...

identifying a topic area and searching the literature to find a research question.

In the method of tenacity...

information is accepted as true because it has always been believed or because superstition supports it.

In the method of intuition...

information is accepted on the basis of a hunch or "gut feeling."

Applied research is...

intended to answer practical questions or solve practical problems.

________ assesses the consistency of observations by different observers.

inter-rater reliability

Split-half reliability is...

obtained by splitting the items on a questionnaire or test in half, computing a separate score for each half, and then calculating the degree of consistency between the two scores for a group of participants.

A testable hypothesis is...

one for which all of the variables, events, and individuals can be defined and observed.

A refutable hypothesis is...

one that can be demonstrated to be false. That is, it is possible for the outcome to be different from the prediction.

A negative correlation means ________.

one variable decreases as the other increases

Reactivity occurs when...

participants modify their natural behavior in response to the fact that they are participating in a research study or the knowledge that they are being measured.

The individuals who take part in research studies are called _______ if they are human and ________ if they are nonhuman.

participants...subjects

A research study reports that participants who scored high on a new test measuring selfesteem made eye contact during an interview, whereas participants who scored low on the test avoided eye contact. Assuming that more eye contact is associated with higher self-esteem, what kind of validity is being demonstrated?

predictive

The purpose of your literature review is to...

provide the elements needed for an introduction to your own research study.

A researcher conducts a study in which 50 college students are assigned to different treatments and tested. In the study, the students are called

research participants.

The rational method, or rationalism...

seeks answers by the use of logical reasoning.

Which type of reliability would provide an index of the stability of a variable?

test-retest reliability

A ceiling effect is...

the clustering of scores at the high end of a measurement scale, allowing little or no possibility of increases in value.

Inter-rater reliability is...

the degree of agreement between two observers who simultaneously record measurements of the behaviors.

The validity of a measurement procedure is...

the degree to which the measurement process measures the variable that it claims to measure.

Experimenter bias occurs when...

the measurements obtained in a study are influenced by the experimenter's expectations or personal beliefs regarding the outcome of the study.

Which of the following was NOT one of the nonscientific approaches covered in this class?

the method of affirmation

A research study is single-blind if...

the researcher does not know the predicted outcome.

Scientific knowledge is advanced through a process known as ________.

the scientific method

Construct validity requires that...

the scores obtained from a measurement procedure behave exactly the same as the variable itself. Construct validity is based on many research studies that use the same measurement procedure and grows gradually as each new study contributes more evidence.

Deduction, or deductive reasoning...

uses a general statement as the basis for reaching a conclusion about specific examples.

The empirical method, or empiricism...

uses observation or direct sensory experience to obtain knowledge.

Induction, or inductive reasoning, involves...

using a relatively small set of specific observations as the basis for forming a general statement about a larger set of possible observations.

The methods of acquiring knowledge are...

ways in which a person can know things or discover answers to questions.