AP Psychology Chapter 2 Test
Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
____
1. Slender women are considered especially beautiful in one country; in another country, stout women
are seen as particularly attractive. In both countries, however, women perceived as very beautiful
receive preferential treatment. This best illustrates that ________ often underlie cultural differences.
a. negative correlations
b. common psychological processes
c. gender differences
d. unconscious preferences
e. genetic dissimilarities
____
2. To minimize the extent to which outcome differences between experimental and control conditions
can be attributed to placebo effects, researchers make use of
a. random sampling.
b. the double-blind procedure.
c. random assignment.
d. operational definitions.
e. replication.
____
3. Professor Ambra was skeptical about the accuracy of recently reported research on sleep deprivation.
Which process would best enable her to assess the reliability of these findings?
a. naturalistic observation
b. replication
c. random sampling
d. the case study
e. standard deviation
____
4. Which of the following is most likely to inhibit critical thinking?
a. operational definitions
b. overconfidence
c. random assignment
d. naturalistic observation
e. the double-blind procedure
____
5. Examining correlational evidence to determine what further research would be needed to establish a
causal relationship is an example of ________ thinking?
a. correlational
b. experimental
c. naturalistic
d. critical
e. hindsight
____
6. Professor Delano suggests that because people are especially attracted to those who are good-
looking, handsome men will be more successful than average-looking men in getting a job. The
professor's prediction regarding employment success is an example of
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
the hindsight bias.
the placebo effect.
a hypothesis.
illusory correlation.
an operational definition.
____
7. The process of replication is most likely to be facilitated by
a. the hindsight bias.
b. overconfidence.
c. illusory correlation.
d. operational definitions.
e. the placebo effect.
____
8. A majority of respondents in a national survey agreed that “classroom prayer should not be allowed
in public schools.” Only 33 percent of respondents in a similar survey agreed that “classroom prayer
in public schools should be banned. ” These divergent findings best illustrate the importance of
a. operational definition.
b. the hindsight bias.
c. overconfidence.
d. random assignment.
e. wording effects.
____
9. In a drug treatment study, participants given a pill containing no actual drug are receiving a(n)
a. random sample.
b. experimental treatment.
c. double-blind.
d. replication.
e. placebo.
____ 10. Hypotheses are best described as
a. assumptions.
b. replications.
c. explanations.
d. confirmations.
e. predictions.
____ 11. The relief of pain following the ingestion of an inert substance that is presumed to have medicinal
benefits illustrates
a. random assignment.
b. the hindsight bias.
c. the double-blind effect.
d. the placebo effect.
e. illusory correlation.
____ 12. Professional psychological associations require researchers to
a. study animals only in their natural environment.
b. obtain informed consent before using any animals as subjects in research.
c. justify the use of animals in research before an Institutional Review Board (IRB. .
d. minimize infection, illness, and pain in animal subjects.
e. protect only cats, dogs, and primates, not mice or rats, from unnecessary pain.
____ 13. What does the effect size of research findings tell you that statistical significance does not?
a. whether or not the result is due to random factors or the experimental treatment
b. if the independent variable had an impact on the dependent variable
c. if the confounding variables influenced the result of the study
d. the magnitude of the finding
e. validity of the results
____ 14. Which of the following scatterplots represents the weakest relationship?
(Drawings 1-4 taken from www.stat.auckland. ac. nz/~teachers/2003/regression/classnotesfilledin.doc)
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
1
2
3
4
5
____ 15. When you question whether anecdotal evidence can be generalized to all people, you are applying
a. overconfidence.
b. the placebo effect.
c. the hindsight bias.
d. random assignment.
e. critical thinking.
____ 16. Bar graphs allow researchers to
a. compare groups.
b. generalize from samples.
c. demonstrate significance.
d. visualize correlation.
e. avoid bias.
____ 17. In a study of the effects of alcohol consumption, some participants drank a nonalcoholic beverage
that actually smelled and tasted like alcohol. This nonalcoholic drink was a
a. dependent variable.
b. replication.
c. placebo.
d. random sample.
e. double blind.
____ 18. For which of the following distributions of scores would the median most clearly be a more
appropriate measure of central tendency than the mean?
a. 9, 8, 9, 8, 7
b. 10, 22, 8, 9, 6
c. 12, 6, 8, 5, 4
d. 12, 15, 12, 9, 12
e. 23, 7, 3, 27, 16
____ 19. Correlational research is most useful for purposes of
a. explanation.
b. prediction.
c. control.
d. replication.
e. experimentation.
____ 20. For which of the following distributions of scores would the median most clearly be a more
appropriate measure of central tendency than the mean?
a. 16, 28, 4, 8, 24
b. 9, 6, 9, 12, 9
c. 8, 9, 12, 10, 16
d. 6, 18, 4, 5, 2
e. 3, 4, 3, 4, 2
____ 21. To determine whether a research finding is statistically significant, researchers
a. compare the means of the control group and experimental group.
b. survey other researchers to ensure the hypothesis is significant.
c. perform detailed case studies to validate findings.
d. confirm correlational evidence with empirical findings.
e. convert positive correlations to negative ones.
____ 22. A soft drink company recently invested in a new advertising campaign to increase sales. Which of
the following would allow executives to best judge the results of their latest commercials?
a. compute the range based on the highest monthly sales this year with the lowest
sales of last year
b. compare the mean sales of soft drinks with that of their major competitor
c. compute the mode to determine which soft drinks have the highest sales
d. compare the means of sales before and after the beginning of the new campaign to
determine statistical significance
e. compute the median of sales for each of their product lines, then compare
____ 23. Random sampling is to ________ as random assignment is to ________.
a. correlational studies; case studies
b. surveys; experiments
c. illusory correlation; control group
d. replication; correlation
e. description; prediction
____ 24. Alexandra is told that research supports the value of cosmetic surgery for boosting self-esteem.
Belinda is told that the esteem-enhancing value of cosmetic surgery has been refuted by research.
Both women would consider the findings to be common sense. This best illustrates the power of
a. random sampling.
b. overconfidence.
c. the hindsight bias.
d. illusory correlation.
e. the double-blind procedure.
____ 25. Why are researchers careful to use large, representative samples in their studies?
a. The general public perceives these kinds of samples to be more scientific.
b. Policymakers demand larger, more representative sample sizes for political
reasons.
c. Statistical methods only work for larger sample sizes.
d. It is more profitable to work with larger samples.
e. Larger, representative sample sizes help ensure reliable and valid results.
____ 26. According to Professor Fayad, we like people who like us because their affection for us boosts our
own self-esteem. His idea is an example of
a. naturalistic observation.
b. illusory correlation.
c. hindsight bias.
d. replication.
e. a theory.
____ 27. The sequential occurrence of two highly unusual events is most likely to contribute to
a. random sampling.
b. the hindsight bias.
c. the placebo effect.
d. an illusory correlation.
e. overconfidence.
____ 28. To assess reactions to a proposed tuition hike at her college, Ariana sent a questionnaire to every
fifteenth person in the college registrar's alphabetical listing of all currently enrolled students. Ariana
employed the technique of
a. random assignment.
b. naturalistic observation.
c. replication.
d. correlation.
e. random sampling.
____ 29. Following the scientific discovery that a specific brain structure is significantly larger in violent
individuals than in those who are nonviolent, a news headline announced: “Enlarged Brain Structure
Triggers Violent Acts.” The headline writer should most clearly be warned about the dangers of
a. perceiving illusory correlations.
b. explaining events in hindsight.
c. confusing correlation with causation.
d. generalizing from unrepresentative samples.
e. discerning order in random events.
____ 30. Researchers are interested in studying the relationship between poor prenatal nutrition and early
cognitive development. Because of ethical concerns, which research method would be most
appropriate for researchers to use?
a. survey
b. case study
c. experimentation
d. correlational
e. naturalistic observation
____ 31. The most commonly reported measure of central tendency is the
a. mode.
b. mean.
c. normal distribution.
d. median.
e. standard deviation.
____ 32. The complete set of cases from which samples may be drawn is called a(n)
a. control condition.
b. population.
c. case study.
d. independent variable.
e. survey.
____ 33. What do scientists call an explanation that organizes observations and predicts future behaviors or
events?
a. hypothesis
b. theory
c. critical thinking
d. operational definition
e. replication
____ 34. The belief that weather conditions signal the onset of arthritis pain best illustrates
a. an illusory correlation.
b. operational definition.
c. the hindsight bias.
d. overconfidence.
e. random sampling.
____ 35. Which technique most clearly minimizes the likelihood that any outcome differences between the
experimental and control conditions can be attributed to age or personality differences in research
participants?
a. replication
b. statistical measurement
c. random assignment
d. operational definitions
e. the double-blind procedure
____ 36. To assess the effect of televised violence on aggression, researchers plan to expose one group of
children to violent movie scenes and another group to nonviolent scenes. To reduce the chance that
the children in one group have more aggressive personalities than those in the other group, the
researchers should make use of
a. random assignment.
b. the double-blind procedure.
c. naturalistic observations.
d. operational definitions.
e. replication.
____ 37. In which research method do we study one exceptional individual in depth and try to carefully draw
conclusions about others based on the evidence?
a. naturalistic observation
b. experimentation
c. hindsight bias
d. case study
e. random sampling
____ 38. Surveys indicate that people are much less likely to support “welfare” than “aid to the needy.” These
somewhat paradoxical survey results best illustrate the importance of
a. random sampling.
b. wording effects.
c. the placebo effect.
d. naturalistic observation.
e. hindsight bias.
____ 39. The biggest danger of relying on case-study evidence is that it
a. is based on naturalistic observation.
b. may be unrepresentative of what is generally true.
c. overestimates the importance of operational definitions.
d. leads us to underestimate the causal relationships between events.
e. relies mostly on correlational rather than causational evidence.
____ 40. The scientific attitude of humility is most likely to be undermined by
a. the hindsight bias.
b. correlational evidence.
c. random assignment.
d. operational definitions.
e. naturalistic observation.
____ 41. To learn about the TV viewing habits of all the children attending Oakbridge School, Professor
DeVries randomly selected and interviewed 50 of the school's students. In this instance, all the
children attending the school are considered to be a(n)
a. population.
b. representative sample.
c. independent variable.
d. control condition.
e. dependent variable.
____ 42. According to Emily's grandfather, Adolf Hitler's obvious emotional instability made it clear from the
beginning days of his international conflicts that Germany would inevitably lose World War II. The
grandfather's claim best illustrates
a. the hindsight bias.
b. illusory correlation.
c. overconfidence.
d. an illusion of control.
e. random sampling.
____ 43. Formulating testable hypotheses before conducting research is most directly useful for restraining a thinking
error known as
a. random sampling.
b. the hindsight bias.
c. overconfidence.
d. illusory correlation.
e. random assignment.
____ 44. Which research method would be most appropriate for investigating the relationship between the
religious beliefs of Americans and their attitudes toward abortion?
a. the survey
b. naturalistic observation
c. the case study
d. experimentation
e. random assignment
____ 45. Which technique involves repeating the essence of an earlier research study with different
participants and in different circumstances?
a. replication
b. correlational research
c. random sampling
d. naturalistic observation
e. the double-blind procedure
____ 46. To study the development of relationships, Dr. Rajiv carefully observed and recorded patterns of
verbal and nonverbal behaviors among boys and girls in the school yard. Which research method did
Dr. Rajiv employ?
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
naturalistic observation
replication
the survey
the case study
experimentation
____ 47. The range is
a. a total population from which samples may be drawn.
b. the difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution.
c. the most commonly used measure of variation.
d. the average deviation of scores from the mean.
e. the most frequently occurring score in a distribution of scores.
____ 48. Which of the following is true for those assigned to the experimental group in an experiment?
a. The experimenter exerts the greatest influence on participants' behavior.
b. The research participants are exposed to all the different hypotheses.
c. The experimental group receives the experimental treatment
d. The experimental group does not receive the experimental treatment
e. The operational definition is not applied to their variables.
____ 49. To study the effects of noise on worker productivity, researchers have one group of subjects work in
a noisy room and a second group work in a quiet room. To ensure that any differences in the
productivity of the two groups actually result from the different noise levels to which the groups are
exposed, the researchers would use
a. the case study.
b. correlational measurement.
c. naturalistic observation.
d. replication.
e. random assignment.
____ 50. What technique do researchers use to reduce the impact of confounding variables?
a. hindsight bias
b. naturalistic observation
c. scatterplots
d. random assignment
e. measures of central tendency