Research Methods
Exam 2 Practice
Questions
Chapters 6 & 7 review
Variables
1. Which type of variable is created by the
experimenter and is not affected by
anything else that happens in the
experiment?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
dependent
Independent
extraneous
social
personality
Variables
2. Two measures used in the water maze
are escape latency and the number of
crosses through the former platform
location on a probe test. What are the
levels or scales of measurement
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Nominal, ordinal
Ordinal, interval
Interval, ratio
Ratio, interval
None of the above
Operational Definitions
3. An operational definition of a variable
differs from a dictionary definition in what
way(s)?
A. provides procedures to follow to produce values of the
variable
B. tells how to produce different levels of the variable
C. provides information on how to quantify the variable
D. provides information on how to measure the variable
E. All of the above
Reliability
4. Which of the following is not a type of
reliability described in Ch. 7?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
Test-retest
Inter-item
Inter-rater
Intra-rater
Cross-cultural
D and E
Reliability
5. Which of the following is a type of Interitem reliability?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Split-decision
Split-pea
Split-ends
Cronback’s alpha
Both C and D
Validity
6. Reliability is to validity as __________.
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Variability is to stability
Independence is to dependence
Consistency is to accuracy
Dependability is to generalization
Both C and D
Validity
7. Internal is to external validity as
__________.
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Correlation is to causation
Cause/effect is to generalization
Generalization is to cause/effect
Causation is to obliteration
Both C and D
What kind of validity?
8. A test of anxiety (open field) is used to
predict performance on another test of
anxiety (elevated plus maze).
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
face
content
concurrent
predictive
construct
What kind of validity?
9. The fact that rats have learned place
information is confirmed by how long it
takes them to escape onto the goal
platform in the water maze.
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
face
content
concurrent
predictive
construct
What kind of validity?
10. Two measures of anxiety that are very
similar (plus and zero maze) are used
simultaneously to determine _______
validity.
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
face
content
concurrent
predictive
construct
What kind of validity?
11. Although the water maze place task is
thought of as a good measure of ‘cognitive
mapping’ it can be influenced by
manipulations that affect sensorimotor
function.
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
face
content
concurrent
predictive
construct
Answers
1. B, Independent
2. D, Ratio, interval
3. E, all of the above
4. F, D and E
5. D, Cronbach’s alpha
6. C, Consistency is to accuracy
7. B, Cause/effect is to generalization
8. D, predictive
9. A, face and B, content
10.C, concurrent
11.D, construct and B, content
Threats to internal validity








History (one group tested together)
Maturation (boredom or fatigue)
Testing (previous administration of a test)
Instrumentation (feature of the measuring instrument
changes)
Statistical regression (subjects assigned to conditions
based on extreme scores)
Selection (no random assignment)
Subject mortality (subjects drop out)
Selection interactions (if subjects were not randomly
assigned to groups a selection threat could interact with
any of the others threats that may have affected one
group but not others)
What type of threat?
Richard B did not set up the HVS tracking
system parameters properly such that the
signal became weak or was lost whenever
rats swam in the SE part of the maze.
History, Maturation ,Testing, Statistical regression ,
Selection, Subject mortality, Selection interactions
Instrumentation
What type of threat?
Kaity K wanted to be thorough and included
several measures of anxiety in her study
that took subjects 3 hours to complete.
Some subjects were so tired by the 3rd
hour that they began marking answers
without reading the questions.
History, Maturation ,Testing, Statistical regression ,
Selection, Subject mortality, Selection interactions
Maturation
What type of threat?
As Kaity K ignored the complaints of her
subjects, stating that the testing session
was too long, several subjects decided to
ignore the rest of her study and left before
testing was complete.
History, Maturation ,Testing, Statistical regression ,
Selection, Subject mortality, Selection interactions
Subject mortality
What type of threat?
Because Barb’s study requires a certain
level of lighting while subjects take a test,
she decides to test all of her subjects in
the high intensity light condition at the
same time in the testing room.
History, Maturation ,Testing, Statistical regression ,
Selection, Subject mortality, Selection interactions
History
What type of threat?
Joe B. waits outside the 7-11 and hands out
flyers describing his experiment for
research methods and asking for
participants.
History, Maturation ,Testing, Statistical regression ,
Selection, Subject mortality, Selection interactions
Selection
What type of threat?
In the selective breeding study to create
maze bright and maze dull rats, only those
that scored in the upper or lower 20% of a
large group distribution of individuals
tested on a maze task were bred over
several generations.
History, Maturation ,Testing, Statistical regression ,
Selection, Subject mortality, Selection interactions
Statistical regression
What type of threat?
In a drug study, the first 15 rats out of 30
total were scheduled to receive the
experimental treatment because it wasn’t
practical to change between compounds
loaded in the infusion pump.
History, Maturation ,Testing, Statistical regression ,
Selection, Subject mortality, Selection interactions
Selection interaction
Chapter 6
12. ____________ statements are always
true.
A. Analytic
B. Contradictory
C. Synthetic
D. All of the above
Chapter 6
13. O’Keefe and Nadel’s theory of
hippocampal function stimulated a lot of
research. This shows their experimental
work based on the theory was
__________.
A. Deductive
C. inductive
B. Fruitful
D. synthetic
Chapter 6
14. Which of the following research methods
does not typically include a hypothesis?
A. case study
C. correlation
B. experiment
D. Ex post facto
Chapter 7
15. __________ operational definitions
explain the meaning of independent
variables.
A. Experimental
B. Hypothetical
C. Independent
D. Measured
Chapter 7
16. Having two individuals score the
dependent measure provides
____________________.
A. Interitem reliability
B. Interrater reliability
C.Interindividual reliability
D.Interrater validity
Chapter 7
17. Comparing two measures of
anxiety at the same time would yield
a measure of __________ validity.
A.Construct
B.Content
C.Concurrent
D.Predictive
E.Face
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
Answers
A
B
A
A
B
C