AP Psych Ch1 Study Guide Pt1

A psychologist studies the play behavior of third-grade children by watching groups during recess at school. Which type of research is being used? experimentation naturalistic observation case study correlation

naturalistic observation

To ensure that other researchers can repeat their work, psychologists use: control groups. operational definitions. random assignment. double-blind procedures.

operational defnition

Juwan eagerly opened an online trading account, believing that his market savvy would allow him to pick stocks that would make him a rich day trader. This belief best illustrates: overconfidence illusory correlation. hindsight bias. the false consensus effect.

overconfidence

One reason researchers base their findings on representative samples is to avoid the false consensus effect, which refers to our tendency to: underestimate errors in our judgment. make all of the above reasoning errors. overestimate the extent to which others share our belief. falsely perceive a relationship between two events when none exists.

overestimate the extent to which others share our belief.

Theories are defined as: principles that help to organize, predict, and explain facts. testable propositions. statistical indexes. factors that may change in response to manipulation.

principles that help to organize, predict, and explain facts.

To say that "psychology is a science" means that: psychological research should be free of value judgments. psychologists study only observable behaviors. psychologists study thoughts and actions with an attitude of skepticism and derive their conclusions from direct observations. all of the above are true.

psychologists study thoughts and actions with an attitude of skepticism and derive their conclusions from direct observations.

Well-done surveys measure attitudes in a representative subset, or ________, of an entire group, or ________. random sample; population control group; experimental group population; random sample experimental group; control group

random sample; population

Which of the following best describes the hindsight bias? Events seem more predictable before they have occurred. Events seem more predictable after they have occurred. A person's intuition is usually not correct. A person's intuition is usually correct.

Events seem more predictable after they have occurred.

A professor constructs a questionnaire to determine how students at the university feel about nuclear disarmament. Which of the following techniques should be used in order to survey a random sample of the student body? From an alphabetical listing of all students, every tenth (or fifteenth, e.g.) student should be asked to complete the questionnaire. Only students living on campus should be asked to complete the questionnaire. Every student should be sent the questionnaire. Only students majoring in psychology should be asked to complete the questionnaire.

From an alphabetical listing of all students, every tenth (or fifteenth, e.g.) student should be asked to complete the questionnaire.

If height and body weight are positively correlated, which of the following is true? Knowing a person's height, one can predict his or her weight. As height increases, weight decreases. There is a cause-effect relationship between height and weight. All of the above are true.

Knowing a person's height, one can predict his or her weight.

Which of the following is true, according to the text? Because laboratory experiments are artificial, any principles discovered cannot be applied to everyday behaviors. Psychology has few ties to other disciplines. No psychological theory can be considered a good one until it produces testable predictions. Psychology's theories reflect common sense

No psychological theory can be considered a good one until it produces testable predictions.

If eating saturated fat and the likelihood of contracting cancer are positively correlated, which of the following is true? Saturated fat causes cancer. A separate factor links the consumption of saturated fat to cancer. People who are prone to develop cancer prefer foods containing saturated fat. None of the above is necessarily true.

None of the above is necessarily true.

Which of the following is not a basic research strategy used by psychologists? experimentation replication description correlation

replication

The scientific attitude of humility is based on the idea that: simple explanations of behavior make better theories than do complex explanations. researchers must evaluate new ideas and theories objectively rather than accept them blindly. researchers must be prepared to reject their own ideas in the face of conflicting evidence. scientific theories must be testable.

researchers must be prepared to reject their own ideas in the face of conflicting evidence.

After detailed study of a gunshot wound victim, a psychologist concludes that the brain region destroyed is likely to be important for memory functions. Which research strategy did the psychologist use to deduce this? a survey correlation the case study experimentation

the case study

You decide to test your belief that men drink more soft drinks than women by finding out whether more soft drinks are consumed per day in the men's dorm than in the women's dorm. Your belief is a(n) ________, and your research prediction is a(n) ________. hypothesis; theory independent variable; dependent variable theory; hypothesis dependent variable; independent variable

theory; hypothesis

Your roommate is conducting a survey to learn how many hours the typical college student studies each day. She plans to pass out her questionnaire to the members of her sorority. You point out that her findings will be flawed because: she has not specified a dependent variable. the sample will probably not be representative of the population of interest. she has not specified an independent variable. all of the above reasons.

the sample will probably not be representative of the population of interest.

Which type of research would allow you to determine whether students' college grades accurately predict later income? experimentation case study correlation naturalistic observation

correlation

A researcher was interested in determining whether her students' test performance could be predicted from their proximity to the front of the classroom. So she matched her students' scores on a math test with their seating position. This study is an example of: naturalistic observation. experimentation a survey. correlational research.

correlational research

The scientific attitude of skepticism is based on the belief that: people are rarely candid in revealing their thoughts. ideas need to be tested against observable evidence. the scientist's intuition about behavior is usually correct. mental processes can't be studied objectively.

ideas need to be tested against observable evidence.