Final Exam Study Guide Spring 2003 FAMR 380
The final exam is worth 65 points, but will have about 72
questions /points possible.
======================================================
STUDY THESE CONCEPTS !
Descriptive statistics
Measures of center
Measures of spread/variability
Measures of association / correlation
Inferential statistics
Statistical significance
Hypothesis testing
Parametric and non-parametric tests
Internal validity
External validity
Experimental research
Non-experimental / Correlational research
Quasi-experimental research
Independent variables
Dependent
Confounding variables
Sampling
Probability vs. Non-probability
Random
Scale of measurement
Reliability
Review reading assignments, class notes, powerpoint presentations & handouts.
==========================================================
About 72 of the following questions will be on your final exam. The final exam is worth 65
points. Most of the questions are multiple choice, although there are several short answer
questions.
Please select the one best answer to the multiple choice questions.
1.
Knowledge of research methods may be useful in
A.
understanding and evaluating research results reported in the media.
B.
many occupations.
C.
conducting research.
D.
all of the above
2.
Which one of the following scales of measurement lacks numeric properties?
A.
nominal
B.
ordinal C.
interval
D.
ratio
3.
___________________ is the process of locating, obtaining, reading, and evaluating the research
literature in your area of interest.
4.
______________ guarantees to not disclose any data in individual form, even if you know
which participants completed which surveys. The researcher knows what the person said,
but ethical principles require the researcher to not tell anyone ever. Data are reported in
group form only.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Double blind
Confidentiality
Experimenter bias
Anonymity
5.
A teacher writes the results of a test on the board. Seven students received A's, 10 students
received B's, 18 students received C's, 4 students received D's, and 1 student received an F. In
statistical terms, this is a
A. measure of central tendency.
B. measure of variability.
C. frequency distribution.
D. correlation table.
6.
Which one of the following would be an appropriate measure of central tendency to summarize
ordinal data?
A. mean
B. median
C. correlation
D. any one of the above would be appropriate
7.
An automobile repair shop reports that half of the automobiles they repair have a resale
value below $8,000. In this example, the $8,000 represents which measure of central
tendency?
A. mean
C. median
8.
A teacher writes the results of a test on the board7 students received A's, 10 students
received B's, 18 students received C's, 4 students received D's, and 1 student received an F.
The grade of C would represent which measure of central tendency?
A. mean
C. median
9.
B. median
D. all of the above
Which one of the following measures how much scores differ from each other?
A. mean
C. standard deviation
11.
B. mode
D. standard deviation
Which one of the following would be an appropriate measure of central tendency to
summarize interval data?
A. mean
C. mode
10.
B. mode
D. standard deviation
B. median
D. central tendency
The range and the standard deviation are both
A. measures of variability.
B. descriptive statistics.
C. useful ways to summarize data.
D. all of the above
12.
The standard deviation would be an appropriate measure of variability only if the variable
is measured on a(n) _____ scale.
A. nominal
C. interval
13.
All correlation coefficients
A. are positive.
C. range from –1.00 to +1.00.
14.
B. ordinal
D. all of the above
B. are negative.
D. use ordinal data.
A negative value of r means that
A. there is no relationship between the two variables.
B. those who score high on one variable tend to score low on the other.
C. those who score high on one variable tend to score high on the other.
D. there was a mistake in calculating the value of r.
15. __________ does not equal causation.
16. _____________ guarantees that there will be no way for the participants’ names to be
associated with their answers or their survey. The researcher does not know whose
responses are from which person.
A.
B.
C.
D.
17.
Double blind
Confidentiality
Experimenter bias
Anonymity
What is the difference between descriptive and inferential statistics? Descriptive statistics
________, whereas inferential statistics ________.
A. use ratio data; use nominal data
B. use nominal data; use ratio data
C. summarize data; determine the probability that results are due to chance
D. determine the probability that results are due to chance; summarize data
18.
Inferential statistics allow us to arrive at conclusions about the _____ on the basis of _____
data.
A. population; sample
B. sample; population
C. independent variable; dependent variable
D. dependent variable; independent variable
19. _______________ We seek evidence that confirms our view of the world and we may not
look for conflicting results.
A.
B.
C.
D.
20.
Confirmation bias
Pilot test
Placebo effect
Test-retest reliability
The statement that the independent variable had no effect or there is no difference between the
variables or groups is called the ________ hypothesis.
A. null
C. practical
B. research
D. significant
21.
The null hypothesis is rejected whenever
A. past studies prove it to be wrong.
B. there is a low probability that the obtained results could be due to random error.
C. there is a high probability that the obtained results could be due to random error.
D. the researcher is convinced that the variable is ineffective in causing changes in
behavior.
22.
Results are generally said to be statistically significant when there is a ________
probability of occurring if the population means are actually equal.
A. high
C. specifiable
23.
B. low
D. none of the above
If we say we have statistically significant results, we mean the results are
A. very important.
B. meaningless.
C. likely to be due to chance differences between the groups.
D. likely to be due to true differences between the groups.
24.
How does sample size affect determinations of statistical significance? The ________ the
sample, the ________.
A. larger; greater probability that the variable has an effect
B. smaller; greater probability that the variable has an effect
C. larger; the more confident you can be in your decision to reject or retain the null
hypothesis
D. smaller; the more confident you can be in your decision to reject or retain the null
hypothesis
25.
Your lab group must choose a significance test to determine if the mean scores of two
groups are significantly different. The appropriate test is
A. t-test.
C. Chi-square.
26.
A.
B.
C.
D.
27.
B. Mann-Whitney U.
D. analysis of variance.
Chi square is a
non-parametric test
compares the frequencies in each cell
is used with nominal data
all of the above
A nonsignificant result may be caused by a
A. low sample size.
B.
C.
D.
E.
very cautious significance level.
weak manipulation of independent variables.
true null hypothesis.
all of the above
28.
The t-test is used for which type of data?
A. nominal
C. interval
29.
B. ordinal
D. all of the above
With correlational research, your main interest is to
uncover clear causal connections between variables.
re-create the real world as closely as possible in the laboratory.
find out whether two or more variables covary and to establish the direction of any
observed relationship.
D.
all of the above
A.
B.
C.
A.
B.
C.
D.
30.
The main difference between non-experimental/correlational and experimental
research is that in experimental research you
do not manipulate independent variables.
measure more than one dependent variable.
do not manipulate more than two independent variables.
manipulate independent variables and look for changes in the dependent variable.
31.
A.
B.
C.
D.
In an experiment, internal validity means
that changes in your independent variable caused observed changes in your dependent
variable.
that most extraneous variables have not been identified and controlled.
the independent variable is strongly manipulated
none of the above
32. A researcher studied the effectiveness of two different approaches that small groups use in
making decisions. The researcher randomly assigned 20 groups of two participants to use a
cooperative approach and 20 groups of two people to use a competitive approach. The
researcher measured the degree of satisfaction with the final decision that each group
member reported after the group had reached its final decision. The members of the groups
who used the cooperative approach reported more satisfaction than did those who used the
competitive approach.
What is the research design used in this study?
A. Experimental
B. Correlational
C. Quasi-experimental
D. Cross-sectional
33. A problem with self-report measures is that
A.
you cannot be certain that subjects are giving accurate accounts of events.
B.
they are difficult to administer.
C.
they tend to confuse subjects.
D.
all of the above
34. The “representativeness” of a given sample refers to the degree to which the
_______________ exhibits the same distribution characteristics as the ___________.
A. sample…elements
B. sampling frame…population
C. elements…sample
D. population…parameter
E. sample…population
35. In ________ sampling, each member of the population has an equal chance of appearing in
your sample.
A.
stratified B. cluster C. matched D. simple random
36.
37.
A hypothesis is
A. A statement that defines how a variable is measured
B. A tentative statement of expected relations between variables
C. A theory
D. A fact
You conduct a quasi-experiment to assess the impact of raising the speed limit from 55 to 65
miles per hour. You find that there are more accidents in the six-month period following the
change than in the six months before the change. Although it is tempting to say that raising the
speed limit caused higher accident rates, you must be careful because
A.
you did not actually manipulate an independent variable.
B.
drivers may have exceeded the 65-mile-per-hour speed limit.
C.
other variables (for example, cheaper gasoline or season of the year during which the
change was instituted) may also be affecting accident rates.
D.
none of the above
38. To ensure internal validity of a pretest–posttest study, you must
A.
include a large sample of subjects.
B.
include a control group that is not exposed to your treatment.
C.
conduct your research in your subjects' natural environment.
D.
all of the above
39.
Which research design best allows one to say that one variable caused a change
in the other variable?
A. correlational B. quasi-experimental C. experimental D. either a or b
40.
that:
A.
B.
C.
D.
The results of the study support the hypothesis.
The study proves the hypothesis to be true.
The study proves the hypothesis to be false.
The results of the study are null in regard to the hypothesis.
41.
A.
B.
C.
D.
42.
When the results of a study are consistent with one's hypothesis it is correct to say
In the reference section of an APA-style manuscript, you list
any articles or books you read, whether or not they were cited in the text.
any articles you thought about reading, as well as those you actually read.
only those articles and books actually cited in the body of your manuscript.
all articles relevant to your research topic, whether or not you cited them in the body
of your manuscript.
A researcher wants to know whether college students start saving more money for postcollege life as they near the end of the college careers. The researcher surveys a
random sample of 1,000 undergraduate students enrolled in 100 different four-year
colleges. Each student was asked to report (a) how many credits he or she had
earned towards their degree and (b) how much money he or she put into a savings
account, CD, money market or other investment each month. The researcher plans to
use statistical techniques to determine whether the number of credits earned predicts
the monthly mount of money saved. This is an example of a __________ study.
A. Qualitative
B. Descriptive
C. Correlational
D. Experimental
43.
Another group of students was interested in whether consumers preferred butter or
margarine. Half the subjects were given butter to taste first and half were given
margarine to taste first. Why did the student researchers counter-balance the
presentation of the food samples?
A. Because not counter-balancing would be unethical.
B. To control for any possible confounds between preference and the order in which
samples were presented.
C. To manipulate the subject variable.
D. There was no important research reason, the students complicated their
experiment needlessly.
44. When two individuals observe the same behaviors at the same time,
independently code and score them, and evaluate their percent agreement, this yields
a measure of ______________.
A. External validity
B. Alternate or parallel forms reliability
C. Inter-rater reliability
D. Concurrent validity
E. All of the above
45.
You would do the following to increase ________________ .
Don’t measure something with one item only.
Write clear, well_written questions on survey
Standardize survey administration procedures
Treat all participants alike
Create testing situation free of distractions
Write clear instructions
Enter survey data carefully to avoid errors
46. Which of the following should be most influential in acceptance of claims made by others?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Whether or not the individual is an authority in the area.
The claim is based on the person's opinion or belief.
Whether or not there is scientific evidence to support or refute the claim.
Whether or not scientific terms are used to substantiate the claims
47. Please list if the following probability levels are statistically significant or not
.001 ________
.18 ________
.5 ________
.04 _________
48.
An operational definition refers to
A. the specific method used to measure or manipulate a variable.
B. a measure of the reliability of a variable.
C. the only possible way of measuring a variable.
D. all of the above
49. Ice cream sales increase when daily temperatures rise. This is an example of a ____
relationship.
A. positive
B. negative
C. curvilinear
D. zero
50. When the results of a study can be generalized to other populations and settings, the
study is said to have _______ validity.
A. inferential
B. external
C. internal
D. reliable
51. Categorizing automobiles as American made or foreign made would be an example of
a(n) _____ scale.
A. nominal
B. ordinal
C. interval
D. ratio
52. What two problems arise when interpreting results obtained using the nonexperimental
method?
A.
B.
C.
D.
second-variable problem and third-variable problem
third-variable problem and direction of cause and effect
direction of cause and effect and second-variable problem
none of the above
53. Suppose a study shows there is a strong, positive relationship between learning
disabilities in children and presence of food allergies. If this is so, we may conclude
that
A. if a child overcomes his or her disabilities, the food allergies should disappear.
B. if the allergy-related foods are removed from a child's diet, the disabilities should
disappear.
C. a child diagnosed as having a learning disability is very likely to have food
allergies.
D. a child diagnosed as having a learning disability is not likely to have food allergies.
54. Variables are said to be ________if their effects cannot be separated.
A.
extraneous B. confused C. confounded D. none of the above
55. Which one of the following represents a critical difference between the nonexperimental
and experimental methods?
A. Nonexperimental methods involve operational definitions; experimental methods do
not.
B. Experimental methods involve operational definitions; nonexperimental methods do
not.
C. Nonexperimental methods involve the manipulation of variables; experimental
methods do not.
D. Experimental methods involve the manipulation of variables; nonexperimental
methods do not.
56.
A measure is valid if it
produces data that are repeatable.
measures what you intend it to measure.
produces data that agree with your hypotheses.
produces data that make sense.
A.
B.
C.
D.
57.
In which section of the research report would you describe the practical application of
the research results?
A. introduction
C. results
58.
B. method
D. discussion
A(n) ________ measure produces similar results when administered under identical
conditions.
A.
valid B. accurate C. continuous D. reliable
59.
A.
B.
C.
D.
According to ethical guidelines for research, information obtained about a
research participant during a study
is open to review by the Human Subjects Committee.
should remain confidential if possible.
is confidential unless otherwise agreed to by the subject.
is public information.
60. Dr. Kramer found that the average number of miles driven decreases as the price of
gasoline increases. This relationship can best be described as a _______
relationship.
A. positive
C. curvilinear
B. negative
D. zero
61. Experimental control is accomplished by
A.
B.
C.
D.
treating participants in all groups alike except for the independent variable.
using a control group as a standard to measure against.
using careful operational definitions.
paying attention to the sensitivities of the participants.
62. By using random assignment, the researcher ensures that
A. one group is different from the other.
B. participants are manipulated at random.
C. any extraneous variable is just as likely to affect one group as it is to affect the
other.
D. all of the above
63. Which one of the following statements would be appropriate for the method section of
a research report?
A. Past research shows men generally talk more than women.
B. For men the average time talking was 10.7 minutes; for women the average was 7.4
minutes.
C. While the three men and three women discussed the issue, the experimenter
measured time spent talking by starting and stopping stopwatches.
D. Contrary to popular belief, in groups of mixed gender, men talk more than women,
interrupt more than women, and are more likely to direct discussion topics.
64. A statistically significant difference between sample means leads us to
A.
accept that the observed differences between sample means were not due to
chance.
B.
conclude that the means represent a single underlying population.
C.
accept that the observed differences were due mainly to chance fluctuations in the
data.
D.
none of the above
65.
A.
B.
C.
D.
A measure is reliable if it
results in similar scores for the same person.
contains a large amount of true score.
contains little measurement error.
all of the above
66. Every test score is thought to have two components. In a score from a reliable test,
which component should be relatively low?
A. validity
C. true score
B. reliability
D. measurement error
67. In general, a probability level of ________ has been established as the minimum
criterion for statistical significance.
A.
5 B. 1 C. .05 D. .01
68. You are constructing a test of knowledge of research methods. In doing so, you use your
textbook for this class to devise 100 true-false questions on various aspects of
research methods. Without conducting any research, you can be most certain of
the ____ validity of this test.
A. construct
C. criterion
B. face
D. divergent
69. Face validity refers to whether or not the measure
A.
B.
C.
D.
yields the same score for the same participant across different circumstances.
correlates positively with other measures of the same variable.
correlates negatively with other measures of the same variable.
appears to measure what it is supposed to measure.
70. When a measure relates consistently to other measures of the same concept it shows
____ validity.
A. convergent
B. divergent
C. face
D. internal
71. When increases in the values of one variable are associated with increases in the values
of a second variable, what type of relationship is present?
A. positive
C. negative
B. no relationship
D. curvilinear
72. A food critic rates restaurants according to the quality of food, service, and atmosphere.
She assigns four forks for excellent, three for good, two for fair, and one for poor. This
measure is an example of a(n) _____ scale.
A. nominal
B. ordinal
C. interval
D. ratio
73. What is a major distinction between quantitative and qualitative descriptive methods?
Quantitative techniques use ____, whereas qualitative techniques involve _____.
A.
B.
C.
D.
correlational methods; experimental methods
experimental methods; correlational methods
numerical descriptions; verbal descriptions
verbal descriptions; numerical descriptions
74. A person who tries to present himself or herself in a positive way on a questionnaire is
showing a ________ response set.
A. social psychological
C. social acquiescence
B. social desirability
D. none of the above
75. _____ indicates the amount of deviation in results obtained from a sample compared to
the true population value.
A. Reliability
C. Confidence interval
B. Validity
D. Sampling error
76. Probability sampling techniques are most important for
A.
B.
C.
D.
generalization of results to a population.
selecting participants for experiments.
obtaining significant results.
internal validity.
77. Which one of the following is a probability sampling technique?
A. simple random sampling
C. haphazard/convenience sampling
B. quota sampling
D. matched random assignment
78. A researcher investigated the relationship between test length and grades in a Western
Civilization course. After randomly assigning students to groups, she found that
students who took longer exams received better grades than did students who took
shorter exams. The independent variable was
A. test grades.
B.
gender of the students.
C. class size.
D.
length of test.
79. In the above question, the dependent variable was
A.
C.
test grades.
gender of the students.
B.
D.
class size.
length of test.
80. In general, the lower the response rate for a survey, the
A.
B.
C.
D.
more likely biases exist to distort the findings.
less likely biases exist to distort the findings.
more confidence one has in generalizing the results.
more confidence one has that respondents are telling the truth.
81. Closed-ended questions
A.
B.
C.
D.
give a fixed number of response alternatives.
are difficult to code.
give more information than open-ended questions.
are a good way to find out what people think.
82. Open-ended questions are more _____ than close-ended questions.
A.
B.
C.
D.
time consuming to code
expensive to analyze
useful when one needs to know what people are thinking
all of the above
83. When a confound is discovered in an experiment
A.
B.
C.
D.
internal validity can be assumed.
external validity can be assumed.
internal validity is challenged.
external validity is challenged.
84. When a confounding variable is present in an experiment, one cannot tell whether the
results were due to the
A.
B.
C.
D.
independent variable or the dependent variable.
independent variable or the confounding variable.
dependent variable or the interval variable.
dependent variable or the participant variable.
85. Matched pairs random assignment is used when
A. it is too expensive to use simple random assignment.
B. an investigator wants to "match" participants on two variables.
C. a researcher wants to ensure that independent groups are equivalent on some
participant characteristic.
D. a nonexperimental design restricts the population of participants.
86. A researcher has children watch 30 minutes of violent television and then measures
their aggressiveness. The researcher concludes that television violence causes
aggressiveness. A problem here is that
A. there is no control group.
B. the aggression measure is unreliable.
C. the researcher should have had the children watch at least 60 minutes of violent
television.
D. all of the above
87. A researcher pretests a group of participants to determine their attitudes toward the use
of alternative energy sources to replace crude oil. The researcher then initiates a
program to convince them that they should invest in such alternatives. During this time
the price of gasoline rises $.50 per gallon. At the end of the program, the researcher
retests and finds that the participants are much more positive in their attitudes. What
threat to internal validity most likely accounts for this change?
A. history
C. testing
E. statistical regression
B. maturation
D. instrument decay
88. A researcher wants to examine the effect of room temperature on task performance. She
places one group of participants in a room that is 54°F, a second group in a room that is
72°F, and a third in a room that is 90°F. She then measures the amount of time it takes
each group to complete an identical task. This design would best represent a(n)
_______ design.
A. independent groups
C. cross-sectional
B. repeated measures
D. random time series
89. Random assignment of half of the participants to group one and the other half to group
two is an example of
A.
B.
C.
D.
matched random assignment.
simple random assignment.
simple random sampling.
repeated measures.
90. A ________ journal contains articles in which reference citations are provided. It is
published by a professional organization and written by a researcher.
A.
scholarly B. substantive news/general interest C. popular D.
sensational
91.
A.
B.
C.
D.
A basic strategy for conducting library research involves
finding research articles relevant to your research interest.
using the reference sections for articles you read to track down other articles.
using the databases and indexes on the library’s webpage to identify current
articles.
all of the above
92. Responses by participants to interviews and questionnaires are _______ measures.
A. behavioral
C. self-report
B. valid
D. physiological
93. Experimenter bias effects can occur when the experimenter
A.
B.
C.
D.
unintentionally treats participants differently.
must interpret participant behaviors when recording the dependent variable.
knows the participants' group assignments.
all of the above
94. What is the advantage of the pretest in the nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest
design?
A. The pretest accustoms the participants to the procedures of the study.
B. Participants who experience a pretest generally score higher on a posttest.
C. When groups are not equivalent, we can look at changes from pretest to posttest
scores.
D. If the pretest scores are different, we can stop the study immediately without
wasting time or money continuing the study.
95. A restaurant company is interested in examining the effect of increasing the price of
hamburgers on their sales. During the first six months of the year they measure the
number of hamburgers sold each day. They then increase the price and record the
number of hamburgers sold each day for the last six months of the year. What type of
design is used in this study?
A.
B.
C.
D.
non-experimental
quasi-experimental
experimental
correlational
96. What is the difference between true experimental designs and quasi-experimental
designs?
A. True experimental designs use random assignment, whereas quasi-experimental
designs do not.
B. True experimental designs use control groups, whereas quasi-experimental designs
do not.
C. Quasi-experimental designs use random assignment, whereas experimental designs
do not.
D. Quasi-experimental designs use control groups, whereas experimental designs do
not.
97. The hypothesis stating that sample means are drawn from the same population is the
________ hypothesis.
A.
alternative B. equivalence C. sampling error D. null
98. The degree to which your research results extend beyond your study and can be
generalized to other populations and settings refers to
A.
internal validity. B. external validity. C. general validity. D. none of the
above
99.
What is the range of probability?
___ to ____
100.
What are the measures of center?
101.
What are the measures of spread / variability?
102.
From which scale(s) of measurement data can frequency distributions be compiled?
103.
Which scale of measurement data can be used with parametric statistical tests?
104.
Which specific test of significance do you use with two nominal variables?
105. What is the range of correlations? _______________
106. Closer to which numbers would indicate a strong correlation? ____________
107. Closer to which number would indicate no correlation? __________
108. Which test would you use to compare means between two groups?
109. The larger the standard deviation the ____________
A.
More
B.
Less
variability there is among the scores.
110. In the expression p = .05. , the p stands for _________________
111. In the expression p = .21 , the .21 indicates _____________________________________
112.
An investigator wants to see whether packaging information affects the way people rate
breakfast cereal. The same cereal is put in three packages: (a) a brown box that says, "To
start your day off with a smile"; (b) a yellow box that says, "For extra energy all day"; and (c)
a white box that says, "Fortified with B complex and iron." In this study the
A.
B.
C.
D.
kind of cereal is confounded with color of the box.
package information is confounded with color of the box.
package information is confounded with kind of cereal.
package information is confounded with color blindness.
113. A sporting goods manufacturer wants to know if youthful consumers prefer sleeping bags
filled with polyester or down. The manufacturer arranges for boy scout and girl scout troops
in a nearby county to volunteer to test sleeping bags for all camping events held in the year
2002. Each participating boy scout will be given a down-filled bag and each participating
girl scout will be given a polyester-filled bag. At the end of the year, all participants will be
surveyed and asked to rate how much they liked the sleeping bag they were given. In this
example, the type of sleeping bag is a/an _________ variable.
A. Independent
B. Dependent
C. Subject
D. Confounding
114.
In the sleeping bag example given above, the rating of how much each scout likes the
sleeping bag is a/an __________ variable.
A. Independent
B. Dependent
C. Subject
D. Confounding Independent
115. What variables are confounded in this study? ____________
A. down-filled and polyester-filled sleeping bags
B. male and female
C. gender and type of sleeping bag
D. scouts and the manufacturer
116. The time to be concerned about internal validity is
A.when you conduct your statistical tests. C.
B.during the design phase of your research. D.
117.
after you have run your study.
all of the above
The external validity of a given study result refers to its:
A. truthfulness
B. ability to measure the underlying construct accurately
C. generalizability
D. all of the above
E. none of the above
118.
Your research methods instructor asks you to distribute a survey on beach activities to
a sample of college students. To save time, you go to the cafeteria and distribute
the surveys among the students who are there. This sampling method is called
________ sampling.
A. simple random
C. cluster
B. B. convenience/ haphazard
D. D. quota
119. After completing a study of the effects of high density (apartment) living versus singlefamily living on the well-being of families, you have found that the two samples have
different mean levels of well-being. Thus, you do a test of significance. Your test of
significance determines how likely it is that the observed difference in means is due just to
___________________________.
120. The ________ of a correlation coefficient tells you about the direction of a
relationship, whereas the ________ tells you about the degree of association.
A. magnitude; sign B. value; magnitude C. sign; magnitude D. none of the
above
121.
What are three things you do to read a journal article of a research study critically?
122. Dr. Ames conducts a correlational study of the relationship between maternal age and
attachment. He finds that the two variables are significantly related. Dr. Ames can safely
conclude that the two variables are
A. causally related.
B. causally related but the direction of causality is not clear.
C. related in some way, but no causal inference should be made.
D. none of the above
A.
B.
123. The third-variable problem means that
a correlational study with fewer than three variables is invalid.
if two predictor variables are shown to be important predictors of the value of the
criterion variable, then there is probably a third important predictor variable as
well.
C.
D.
in a correlational study there may be a third, unmeasured variable that actually
causes changes in the other variables.
none of the above
124. When you cannot manipulate independent variables or want to observe
naturally occurring variables, the strategy of choice is a(n).
A.
experimental strategy. B. simulation. C. correlational strategy. D. none of
the above
125.
A group of marketing students wanted to investigate attitudes toward TV
advertising among American college students. To do this, they obtained a list of all
students enrolled in Marketing 101 and chose a random sample of 100 out of the 400
students enrolled in this class. Each of the 100 students was asked: "Do you agree or
disagree that having commercials on TV is a fair price to pay for being able to watch
TV?" Of the 100 students in the sample, 82 said they "agreed." The researchers
announced the results of the study by saying "82% of American college students are
in favor of TV commercials." a) What is the population in this example? b) Present
two different reasons why the announced result is misleading.
126.
The term ________ refers to the degree to which your research design
evaluates the hypotheses that it was intended to evaluate.
A.
internal validity B. external validity C. internal consistency D. reliability
A.
128.
A)
B)
C)
D)
130.
A.
B.
C.
D.
127. Scores that lie far from the others in a distribution are called
deviants. B. distant scores. C. outlaws. D. outliers.
A distribution contains the following scores: 1,2,2,3,2,5,4,1,4,3. Its mean is
A. 2. 5. B. 2. 7. C. 2. D. 4.
129. In a distribution with an even number of scores, the median is determined by
finding the most frequent score in the top half of the distribution and averaging it
with the most frequent score in the bottom half of the distribution.
finding the arithmetic average of the entire distribution and dividing it in half.
averaging the middle pair of scores.
finding the most frequent score.
A limitation of the median is that it
is difficult to calculate.
does not take into account the magnitudes of the scores above and below it.
cannot be used with interval data.
all of the above
131. The measure of center that takes the most information into account is the
A. median. B. mode. C. standard deviation. D. mean.
132. A sample consisting of participants who are not representative of the
population is a(n) ________ sample.
A. biased B. nonrandom C. stratified D. unbalanced
133.
For data measured on a interval scale, you would use the _____ as measure of spread.
A) standard deviation B) range C) frequency D) all of the above
134.
A set of mutually exclusive categories, together with a count of the number of data
values falling into each category, is termed a
A)
sorted list.
B) cumulative distribution.
C)
frequency distribution.
D) scatterplot.
135. The most popular measure of spread is the
A) standard deviation. B) variance. C) interquartile range.
136. The two categories of statistics are
A) Inferential and nonparametric C)
B) Parametric and correlational
D) range.
Descriptive and inferential
D) Inferential and convenience
137.
The probability that an observed difference between means is due to chance
refers to ________ significance.
A)
practical B) internal C) statistical D) external
138. A probability level of ________ has been established as the minimum
criterion for statistical significance.
A)
.5 B) 1 C) .05 D) .1
Instructions for items #.... 139 - 142
Please indicate whether each statement from the introduction section of a research report is
A
a research question,
B a hypothesis,
C a statement about the “problem” related to a research topic,
D a justification of the importance of a study.
139. _____ To our knowledge, this is the first study of cohabitation to include observed marital
behavior and objective information about dyadic processes related to marital development.
140. _____ Is premarital cohabitation related to marital communication?
141. _____ Spouses with multiple cohabitation experiences will demonstrate the least adaptive
behavior compared to couples with a single or no cohabitation experience.
142. _____ One of the most dramatic demographic changes in the last 40 years is the increase in
cohabitation. In 1996, there were approximately 4 million unmarried opposite-sex couples
living together, seven times that of 1970 (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1998).
143. When the results of an experiment are consistent with a prediction developed from a
theory, we conclude that the theory is
A.
B.
C.
D.
proven true.
supported by the results.
less likely to be true.
neither supported nor challenged by the results.
144.
Which section of a research article includes a description of what was done in
the past and why the present study is being conducted?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
abstract
introduction
method
results
discussion
145. Which section of a research article summarizes the hypothesis, procedure, and results,
usually in 150 words or less?
A. abstract
C. method
B. introduction
D. results
146. Which section of a research article includes a description of exactly how the study was
designed and conducted?
A. introduction
C. results
B. method
D. discussion
147. Which section of a research article includes a description of the findings using
statistical language?
A. abstract
C. method
B.
D.
introduction
results
E. discussion
148. Which section of a research article includes an interpretation and alternative
explanations for the findings?
A. introduction
C. results
B. method
D. discussion
149. An operational definition of the variable "anxiety" might be
A.
B.
C.
D.
a physiological measure of sweating.
the score on the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale.
the number of "um's" and "ah's" in a person's speech.
all of the above
150. Two researchers tested the hypothesis that college students' grades and happiness are
related. One researcher operationally defined happiness as the number of hours spent at
leisure activities. The other researcher defined happiness as the amount of achievement
one feels as measured on a 10-point scale. Which of the following statements is
accurate?
A. Because their hypotheses are identical, the two researchers should obtain similar results.
B.
The only valid definition is the number of hours spent at leisure activities
because it is the only objective measure.
C. The difference in operational definitions of happiness could lead to quite different
results.
D. Only the study that measured happiness through achievement can prove that
happiness is caused by good grades.
151. Which is NOT a random way of choosing a sample of 10 people from a
population of 100?
A.
B.
C.
D.
drawing lots
using a table of random numbers
asking for 10 volunteers
picking 10 names from a jar containing all 100 names
152.
A design that has two conditions with different participants in each condition
is a(n) ______ design.
A. independent groups
C.
longitudinal
B.
D.
repeated measures
random time series
153.
Circle which is correct – accept or reject and true or false
True state
Data results are by chance
(Null is True or False?)
Data indicates something
significant is happening
(Null is true or false?)
There is nothing happening here
except chance variation
(accept or reject the null?)
No error
Type II error
Data indicates something
significant is happening (accept
or reject the null?)
Type I error
No error
Your decision