Test bank for the psychologist as detective an introduction to conducting research in psychology 6th

Test Bank for The Psychologist as Detective: An Introduction to Conducting Research in Psych

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CHAPTER 4: NONEXPERIMENTAL METHODS: DESCRIPTIVE METHODS, CORRELATIONAL STUDIES, EX POST FACTO STUDIES, SURVEYS AND QUESTIONNAIRES, SAMPLING, AND BASIC RESEARCH STRATEGIES Activities/Assignments Naturalistic Observation. Beins (1999) describes an activity to show students how difficult naturalistic observation can be. Two students are taken into the hallway during class and told to count the number of fidgets they observe in their classmates (their classmates will be imagining themselves covered with insects in order to increase fidgeting). Beins reports that the student observers typically come up with radically different numbers, which illustrates the importance of operational definitions, training of observers, etc.

Beins, B. C. (1999). Counting fidgets: Teaching the complexity of naturalistic observation. In L. T. Benjamin, B. F. Nodine, R. M. Ernst, & C. B. Broeker (Eds.), Activities handbook for the teaching of psychology, Vol. 4 (pp. 53-56).

Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Observational and Archival Research. Kerber (1983) describes four different research projects designed to engage students in the research process. Two of those projects could be used in this chapter. One is an observational study involving pairs of students observing student drinking behavior in a bar environment. The other is an archival study in which student pairs view commercials and code the sex of the main characters as well as characteristics related to sex stereotypes. According to Kerber, these projects help students learn about ethics, operational definitions, coding, interobserver reliability, experimenter bias, and sampling.

Kerber, K. W. (1983). Beyond experimentation: Research projects for a laboratory course in psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 10, 236-239.

Observational Methods. Zeren and Makosky (1986) report an activity designed to help students understand time sampling, event sampling, and trait ratings. The instructor tapes a half-hour of a television show. Small groups of students get together to decide what variables they are interested in examining (e.g., attraction, aggression, prejudice) as well as how to operationally define those variables and how to successfully use time sampling, event sampling, or trait ratings. Class discussion afterward centers on interobserver reliability, operational definitions, and strengths and weaknesses of the three sampling techniques.

Zeren, A. S., & Makosky, V. P. (1986). Teaching observational methods: Time sampling, event sampling, and trait rating techniques. Teaching of Psychology, 13, 80-82.

Observational Methods. Herringer (2000) describes an observational activity in which students contrast behaviors by Captain Kirk from Star Trek and Captain Picard from Star Trek: The Next Generation. Pairs of students initially view an episode of each show and take notes on the captains’ personality differences (e.g., Kirk is more talkative than Picard). The students then

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generate a testable hypothesis and discuss ways to operationally define their variable of interest (e.g., number of words spoken). They then view a new episode of each show and code the behavior. Students calculate interobserver reliability, analyze their data, and write a report.

According to Herringer, students evaluate the exercise very positively, often stating that it was their favorite part of the course.

Herringer, L. G. (2000). The two captains: A research exercise using Star Trek. Teaching of Psychology, 27, 50-51.

Interobserver Reliability. Becker (1999) describes an activity in which students view a 10minute videotape (animal or human behavior) and record the occurrence of six behaviors.

Students engage in time sampling, observing for 15-second intervals. Students then calculate interobserver reliability and discuss ways to increase reliability (e.g., training, clear operational definitions).

Becker, A. H. (1999). Discovering the relationship between operational definitions and interobserver reliability. In L. T. Benjamin, B. F. Nodine, R. M. Ernst, & C. B. Broeker (Eds.), Activities handbook for the teaching of psychology, Vol. 4 (pp. 5763). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Correlational Research. The following link from Jonathan Mueller’s Resources for Teaching Social Psychology website contains an exercise developed by Julie Wright. It helps students to better understand why it is a mistake to draw causal conclusions from correlational data.

Students also get practice thinking of experimental alternatives to correlational research as well as considering the ethics of experimentally manipulating certain variables. http://jonathan.mueller.faculty.noctrl.edu/crow/Causalityexercises.doc Questionnaire Wording. Madson (2005) describes an activity in which students administer two versions of a questionnaire, each with slightly different wordings of the questions (the questions are provided in the article). Students are able to see how question wording can change the meaning of a question and thus how people respond to it. Madson reports that students enjoyed the exercise and learned a great deal about the difficulty of writing good survey items.

Madson, L. (2005). Demonstrating the importance of question wording on surveys.

Teaching of Psychology, 32, 40-43.

Questionnaire Instructions. Gordon (1987) describes an activity designed to show students that modifying instructions on surveys can alter peoples’ responses. Students are randomly assigned to fill out one of two surveys entitled “Dental Hygiene Behaviors.” The questions are identical, but the instructions are worded differently. One version contains standard instructions, and the other elaborates on the instructions to emphasize the importance of answering honestly and accurately. Gordon found that students who read the longer instructions exhibited less socially desirable responding regarding dental hygiene than students who read the shorter instructions.

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Gordon, R. A. (1987). Social desirability bias: A demonstration and technique for its reduction. Teaching of Psychology, 14, 40-42.

Article Review. The Article Review for Chapter 5 is by Herek and Capitanio (1996). The researchers were interested in determining if contact with gay men and lesbians was associated with more favorable attitudes toward them. They conducted a longitudinal national telephone survey and found that more contact and closer contact were related to favorable attitudes.

Herek, G. M., & Capitanio, J. P. (1996). “Some of my best friends”: Intergroup contact, concealable stigma, and heterosexuals’ attitudes toward gay men and lesbians.

Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22, 412-424.

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Chapter 4: Nonexperimental Methods: Descriptive Methods, Correlational Studies, Ex Post Facto Studies, Surveys and Questionnaires, Sampling, and Basic Research Strategies Article Review Read the following article and answer the questions that follow: Herek, G. M., & Capitanio, J. P. (1996). “Some of my best friends”: Intergroup contact, concealable stigma, and heterosexuals’ attitudes toward gay men and lesbians.

Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22, 412-424.

1. According to your text, “You find a research idea when you identify a gap in the current knowledge base…” (p. 14). What was the gap in the knowledge base, according to the authors?

ANSWER: Past research on this topic has used primarily convenience sampling.

Some studies used probability sampling; however, some of the questions lacked validity and reliability. Furthermore, past researchers failed to assess whether any respondents were gay men, lesbians, or bisexuals. Finally, attitudes toward lesbians have not been assessed using probability samples.

2. The criteria for being included as a participant in the study was as follows: (a) have a telephone, (b) be 18 years of age or older, (c) live in the contiguous 48 states, and (d) speak English. Do you think the authors obtained a random sample of such individuals?

Why or why not?

ANSWER: The response rate was 70.1%, which means that there might’ve been some bias in the sampling (e.g., perhaps people with weak opinions on the topic were less likely to complete the survey). However, a 70% response rate is considered pretty good.

3. What kind of survey is used in this study: descriptive or analytic? How do you know?

ANSWER: This is an analytic survey. The researchers measured several variables and determined how those variables were related to each other (e.g., how does contact with gay men and lesbians affect attitudes toward gay men and lesbians?).

4. The overarching purpose of this research was to assess whether having contact with gay men and lesbians affected attitudes toward gay men and lesbians. Why is this an ex post facto study?

ANSWER: The researcher cannot manipulate this particular IV (contact versus no contact), which makes it an ex post facto study.

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5. The researchers chose to do telephone surveys for this research. Describe some advantages to this approach.

ANSWER: (1) relatively good response rate, (2) easy to get participants from across the country, (3) safer for interviewers than personal interviews 6. What are some disadvantages to doing telephone interviewing?

ANSWER: (1) potentially biased sample (e.g., if people are not home or screen their calls), (2) researcher is unable to evaluate nonverbal behavior of participants 7. Would this research be classified as single-strata, cross-sectional, or longitudinal? How do you know?

ANSWER: This research is longitudinal; the researchers assessed respondents at two time periods.

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Test Bank Multiple Choice 1. How does qualitative research differ from other nonexperimental research, such as descriptive research methods, correlational studies, and surveys? a. Qualitative research is more likely to involve statistics. b. Qualitative research is less narrow. c. Qualitative research is more well regarded by scientists in general. d. All of the above.

ANSWER: b (p. 63) 2. Descriptive research methods a. involve manipulation of one independent variable. b. involve manipulation of two independent variables. c. do not involve manipulation of an independent variable. d. are used to assess causality.

ANSWER: c (p. 63) 3. Research methods that do not involve the manipulation of any variables are called a. inferential research methods. b. descriptive research methods. c. one-factor analysis of variance. d. two-factor analysis of variance.

ANSWER: b (p. 63) 4. Dana conducts a study in which she compares the graffiti on the walls of male and female restrooms. Dana has conducted an a. archival study. b. experiment. c. ex post facto study. d. ethnography.

ANSWER: a (p. 63) 5. When researchers answer their research questions by using data recorded by other individuals, it is called a(n) a. experiment. b. naturalistic observation. c. participant observation. d. archival study.

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6. Salhany and Roig (2004) analyzed course catalogues found on the Internet in order to examine differences in academic misconduct policies across different universities. They conducted a(n) a. naturalistic observation. b. participant observation. c. archival study. d. ex post facto study.

ANSWER: c (p. 64) 7. Archival data can be found a. in libraries. b. online. c. in real life. d. All of the above.

ANSWER: d (p. 64) 8. Selective deposit refers to a. omissions from archival data that are not under the control of the researcher. b. a research method that does not involve the manipulation of an independent variable. c. the finding that participants respond differently when they know they are being observed. d. Research conducted in a natural setting.

ANSWER: a (p. 65) 9. Which of the following is NOT a potential problem associated with archival research? a. The records may not be a representative sample. b. The records may be incomplete. c. The researcher has no control over how the data were originally collected. d. It is usually difficult to obtain IRB approval for archival research.

ANSWER: d (pp. 64-65) 10. With archival research, a. we can make statements about causality under most circumstances. b. we can make statements about causality when the researcher has exhibited tight control over the variables. c. we can make statements about causality when the researcher has examined only one variable instead of several. d. we cannot make statements about causality.

ANSWER: d (p. 65)

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11. Leslie and Charlie observe children on a playground and note instances of aggression displayed by the children. They have engaged in what kind of research? a. participant observation b. naturalistic observation c. ethnography d. case study ANSWER: b (p. 65) 12. What is the goal of naturalistic observation? a. To describe behavior as it occurs in a natural setting b. To describe the variables that are present and the relations among them c. To understand cause-and-effect relationships d. Both (a) and (b) ANSWER: d (p. 66) 13. What is one potential problem associated with the naturalistic observation method? a. The setting is very artificial. b. There are a limited number of independent variables that can be manipulated. c. The presence of a researcher may alter participants’ behavior. d. Because the researcher is also a participant, he/she may lose objectivity.

ANSWER: c (p. 66) 14. Participants sometimes respond differently when they know they are being observed.

This is referred to as a. reactance. b. selective deposit. c. reliability. d. selective coding.

ANSWER: a (p. 66) 15. Participants in the Hawthorne study increased their productivity regardless of whether conditions were optimal or inferior. The reason for this increased productivity was attributed to a. interobserver reliability. b. reactance. c. time sampling. d. selective deposit.

ANSWER: b (p. 66) 16. Another name for reactance is a. the Hawthorne effect.

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b. situation sampling. c. interobserver reliability. d. pilot testing.

ANSWER: a (p. 66) 17. Which of the following is an advantage associated with naturalistic observation? a. The researcher is also a participant and so can gather more in-depth information. b. Statements about causality are possible using naturalistic observation. c. It is easy to manipulate independent variables using naturalistic observation. d. Naturalistic observation may be the only way to examine certain types of variables.

ANSWER: d (p. 67) 18. ____________ sampling refers to making observations at different time periods. a. Situation b. Time c. Event d. Participant ANSWER: b (p. 68) 19. ____________ sampling refers to observing the same behavior in different situations. a. Situation b. Time c. Event d. Participant ANSWER: a (p. 68) 20. Jasper is conducting an observational study of children’s aggressive behavior on playgrounds, and he decides to observe aggressive behavior at five different playgrounds.

Jasper has engaged in __________ sampling. a. situation b. time c. qualitative d. participant ANSWER: a (p. 68) 21. Abby is conducting an observational study of walking speed by college students between classes. She observes behavior at two time periods in the morning, two in the afternoon, and two in the evening. Abby has engaged in ___________ sampling. a. situation b. time

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c. qualitative d. participant ANSWER: b (p. 68) 22. One advantage of situation sampling is that a. it allows the researcher to be both an observer and a participant. b. researchers can get in-depth information on one individual. c. there is increased generalizability. d. it eliminates the need for independent variables.

ANSWER: c (p. 68) 23. Why should observational research involve two or more observers? a. One observer may miss or overlook something. b. Observers may disagree with each other over what was observed or how it should be categorized. c. Both (a) and (b) are correct. d. None of the above.

ANSWER: c (p. 69) 24. The extent to which observers in an observational study agree is referred to as a. interobserver validity. b. grounded theory. c. interobserver reliability. d. open coding.

ANSWER: c (p. 69) 25. Joe and Sam are coders in an observational study on sex stereotyping in television commercials. When they have finished collecting their data, they should calculate a. time sampling validity. b. interobserver validity. c. time sampling reliability. d. interobserver reliability.

ANSWER: d (p. 69) 26. Which of the following is NOT a reason why interobserver reliability might be low? a. Observers were not given clear, precise definitions. b. The behavior in question can be interpreted by observers in different ways. c. The observers are fatigued or bored. d. All of the above are reasons why interobserver reliability might be low.

ANSWER: d (p. 69)

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27. What is a good rule regarding how often observers should agree with each other when conducting observational research? a. 50% agreement b. 65% agreement c. 85% agreement d. 100% agreement ANSWER: c (p. 70) 28. In __________ research, the researcher examines the relationship between two variables. a. archival b. systematic c. correlational d. qualitative ANSWER: c (p. 70) 29. Of the following research methods, which is likely the most rigorous in terms of control and statistical analysis? a. Archival research b. Naturalistic observation c. Qualitative research d. Correlational research ANSWER: d (p. 70) 30. “As the amount of exercising decreases, weight increases.” This statement represents a _________ correlation. a. zero b. positive c. negative d. curvilinear ANSWER: c (p. 70) 31. If there is a positive correlation between number of hours spent studying and exam grades, then the _____ time people spend studying, the _____ their exam grades. a. more; lower b. more; higher c. less; higher d. None of the above.

ANSWER: b (p. 70) 32. Researchers use correlations to

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a. b. c. d.

understand cause-and-effect relationships. make predictions. understand the axial coding process.

All of the above.

ANSWER: b (p. 70)

33. If there is a ______ correlation, then the two variables are not related. a. positive b. negative c. zero d. curvilinear ANSWER: c (p. 71) 34. Bess conducts a study in which she measures self-esteem and grade point average in a sample of 50 college students. She hypothesizes that higher self-esteem will be associated with higher grade point average. This research approach is best described as _________ research. a. archival b. correlational c. grounded theory d. ethnographic ANSWER: b (p. 70) 35. James conducts a study on the number of churches and amount of crime and finds a strong positive relationship between the two (in other words, the more churches there are in a location, the more crime there is). What should James conclude? a. Churches cause crime; therefore, cities should attempt to reduce the number of churches. b. Committing a crime causes people to go to church more in an effort to atone for their sins. c. High population density causes both churches and crime to increase in any geographical location. d. None of the above; it is not appropriate to make causal claims based on correlational data.

ANSWER: d (p. 71) 36. What does “ex post facto” mean? a. before the study b. after the study c. past due d. after the fact

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ANSWER: d (p. 73) 37. When the variables to be studied are selected after they have occurred, the research study is called a. manipulated. b. positively correlated. c. ex post facto. d. experimental.

ANSWER: c (p. 74) 38. Jack conducts a study in which he compares men and women in terms of locus of control.

Jack has conducted a(n) a. experimental study. b. ex post facto study. c. archival study. d. case study.

ANSWER: b (p. 74) 39. The defining characteristic of an ex post facto study is that a. an independent variable has been manipulated. b. only one person has been selected to be a participant. c. the variables to be studied are selected after the fact. d. observation occurs in a laboratory instead of a natural setting.

ANSWER: c (p. 74) 40. Keisha constructs a survey to determine what percentage of students at her school have experienced a violent crime. Keisha is using a(n) _________ survey. a. analytic b. descriptive c. pilot d. demographic ANSWER: b (p. 75) 41. If you would like to determine the percentage of the population that engages in a particular behavior, you would use a(n) _________ survey. a. analytic b. descriptive c. pilot d. demographic ANSWER: b (p. 75)

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42. Brad develops a survey to examine the extent to which self-esteem is related to alcohol abuse. Brad is using a(n) ________ survey. a. analytic b. descriptive c. pilot d. demographic ANSWER: a (p. 75) 43. If you would like to determine how variables are related, you would use a(n) ________ survey. a. analytic b. descriptive c. pilot d. demographic ANSWER: a (p. 75) 44. Preliminary testing that is done prior to the completion of a research project is known as __________ testing. a. descriptive b. pilot c. analytic d. Likert ANSWER: b (p. 75) 45. Shaundra gave her new survey to 10 participants to get their reactions to the questions.

She then made modifications to the survey and gave it to a larger sample. Shaundra has engaged in a. archival research. b. observational research. c. random sampling. d. pilot testing.

ANSWER: d (p. 76) 46. What should come first when developing a survey or questionnaire? a. Identify the type of questions to use. b. Develop instructions for the survey. c. Decide what type of instrument to use. d. Determine the relevant demographic data to be collected.

ANSWER: c (p. 76) 47. Which of the following is NOT one of the steps in developing a good survey?

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a. b. c. d.

Identify the types of questions to use.

Pilot test the items.

Develop instructions for the survey.

Write the items; make sure they are lengthy in order to examine multiple issues at once.

ANSWER: d (p. 76)

48. Suppose a survey contains the following item: “I am shy when around people I don’t know well.”

1 Not at all

2 Not very

3 Slightly

4 Fairly

5 Very much

What kind of question is this? a. b. c. d.

Multiple choice Forced alternative Likert-type scale Open-ended ANSWER: c (p. 77)

49. If on a survey a respondent must select between two alternative responses, it is referred to as a(n) ____________ question. a. open-ended b. multiple choice c. Likert-type scale d. forced alternative ANSWER: d (p. 76) 50. Suppose a survey contains the following item: “Explain in words your opinion on the death penalty.” This question represents a(n) a. Likert-type scale question. b. multiple choice question. c. open-ended question. d. forced alternative question.

ANSWER: c (p. 77) 51. Which of the following types of questions allows the researcher to calculate an average or mean response? a. open-ended b. yes-no

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c. Likert-type scale d. forced alternative ANSWER: c (p. 77) 52. Which of the following types of questions allows the researcher to code responses? a. open-ended b. yes-no c. Likert-type scale d. forced alternative ANSWER: a (p. 77) 53. Which of the following is one of the guidelines for writing good survey questions? a. Questions should use familiar vocabulary. b. Questions should be lengthy so that participants will be able to understand them better. c. Questions should be above the reading level of the individuals you intend to test. d. All of the above.

ANSWER: a (p. 77) 54. Which of the following represents the BEST way to word this question? a. “Do you agree that wealthy professional athletes are overpaid?” b. “Do you agree that professional athletes are overpaid?” c. “Do you disagree that professional athletes are overpaid?” d. “Do you believe that professional athletes are overpaid?”

ANSWER: d (p. 78) 55. “What is your age?” This question falls under the category of ________ data. a. demographic b. Likert-type scale c. analytic d. split-half ANSWER: a (p. 78) 56. Which of the following is an advantage of mail surveys? a. Mail surveys have a very high response rate compared to other kinds of surveys. b. Mail surveys can target a particular individual in the household whereas other kinds of surveys cannot. c. Mail surveys can be sent to a large number of people. d. All of the above are advantages of mail surveys.

ANSWER: c (p. 78)

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57. Which of the following is NOT a disadvantage of mail surveys? a. The researcher cannot be sure who actually fills out the survey. b. Response rates are usually low. c. Researchers cannot send out a large number of surveys. d. Participants may not answer questions in the order in which they appear on the survey.

ANSWER: c (p. 79) 58. Which of the following is NOT a strategy to increase the response rate of mail surveys? a. Include a prepaid envelope for the return of the completed survey. b. Send a replacement survey if you have not heard from a participant within 2-3 weeks. c. The cover letter should give very little information about the study in order to make the survey shorter. d. Include a statement about the confidentiality of responses.

ANSWER: c (p. 79) 59. Dale wants to ensure that he has a high response rate for his survey. Which method would be best? a. Mail survey b. Personal interview c. Telephone interview d. Demographic interview ANSWER: b (p. 79) 60. All of the following are advantages of personal interviews EXCEPT: a. There is a high response rate. b. The researcher can ensure that the questions are answered in the correct order. c. The researcher can answer questions for the respondents. d. Data collection is usually very fast compared to other methods.

ANSWER: d (p. 79) 61. All of the following are disadvantages of personal interviews EXCEPT: a. Personal interviews involve a great deal of time. b. There is a possibility of interviewer bias. c. There is a possibility of danger to the interviewer. d. There is a low response rate.

ANSWER: d (p. 80) 62. Which of the following is an advantage of telephone interviews? a. It is easy to create a random sample.

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b. The response rate for telephone interviews is higher than the response rate for personal interviews. c. There is virtually no possibility of a biased sample because the vast majority of people in the U.S. have telephones of some kind. d. All of the above are advantages of telephone interviews.

ANSWER: a (p. 80) 63. All of the following are disadvantages of telephone interviews EXCEPT: a. Many people screen or block calls from people whom they do not know. b. The researcher is more likely to obtain a biased sample using a telephone survey than a mail survey. c. The researcher cannot examine nonverbal behavior of the respondent. d. It is more difficult to establish rapport over the telephone than in personal interviews.

ANSWER: b (p. 80) 64. ________ refers to the extent to which a test measures what it is supposed to measure. a. Test-retest reliability b. Interrater reliability c. Split-half reliability d. Validity ANSWER: d (p. 81) 65. Veronica intended to develop a test to measure locus of control, but it actually measures self-esteem. Veronica’s test has low a. test-retest reliability. b. validity. c. interrater reliability. d. split-half reliability.

ANSWER: b (p. 81) 66. Researchers often use a panel of judges to assess the _______ validity of their test items. a. criterion b. concurrent c. content d. split-half ANSWER: c (p. 81) 67. The extent to which test items actually represent the type of material they are supposed to represent refers to ___________ validity. a. criterion

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b. content c. concurrent d. interrater ANSWER: b (p. 81) 68. ____________ reliability measures agreement between judges on a test item, whereas ____________ reliability measures agreement between observers of behavior. a. Interrater; interobserver b. Interobserver; interrater c. Interrater; interrater d. Interobserver; interobserver ANSWER: a (p. 81) 69. Interrater reliability is used to determine the __________ validity of a test or inventory. a. concurrent b. content c. criterion d. test-retest ANSWER: b (p. 81) 70. Kimberly’s new depression scale correlates positively with psychologists’ ratings of their patients’ depression. Kimberly’s depression scale shows high a. criterion validity. b. concurrent validity. c. split-half reliability. d. interrater reliability.

ANSWER: b (p. 81) 71. The degree to which the score on a test or inventory corresponds with another measure of the designated trait is known as _________ validity. a. test-retest b. concurrent c. content d. criterion ANSWER: b (p. 81) 72. Researchers have found that SAT scores predict first-semester grade point average. This demonstrates _________ validity. a. criterion b. concurrent c. content

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d. split-half ANSWER: a (p. 81) 73. _________ validity is established by comparing the score on a test with future score on another test. a. Criterion b. Concurrent c. Content d. Split-half ANSWER: a (p. 81) 74. __________ refers to the extent to which a test exhibits consistency. a. Concurrent validity b. Criterion validity c. Content validity d. Reliability ANSWER: d (p. 82) 75. Latoya develops a new scale to measure beliefs in extraterrestrials. She gives her new scale to 100 people twice, two months apart. She finds that in general, people who believe in extraterrestrials at Time 1 also believe in extraterrestrials at Time 2. Latoya’s scale exhibits good a. concurrent validity. b. content validity. c. test-retest reliability. d. split-half reliability.

ANSWER: c (p. 82) 76. Researchers give a test to participants on two separate occasions in order to assess a. concurrent validity. b. criterion validity. c. split-half reliability. d. test-retest reliability.

ANSWER: d (p. 82) 77. What is the main drawback with test-retest reliability? a. There are usually not enough items to reliably assess test-retest reliability. b. It is difficult to find another test that also measures the same trait of interest. c. Participants may remember the questions and answers the second time the test is administered. d. It is difficult to achieve high interrater reliability.

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ANSWER: c (p. 82) 78. History effects are associated with a. split-half reliability. b. criterion validity. c. test-retest reliability. d. content validity.

ANSWER: c (p. 82) 79. If a researcher is concerned about history effects, she should use _________ reliability instead of ________ reliability. a. test-retest; split-half b. split-half; test-retest c. criterion; test-retest d. split-half; criterion ANSWER: b (p. 82) 80. To determine ________ reliability, a researcher divides a test into two subtests and compares the scores made on the two halves. a. test-retest b. split-half c. criterion d. content ANSWER: b (p. 82) 81. Ken develops a new scale to measure extraversion. In order to assess reliability, he divides his scale into even and odd numbered items and assesses the degree of correspondence between the two groups. Ken has used the ________ technique. a. criterion b. test-retest c. split-half d. interrater ANSWER: c (p. 82) 82. Cathy must take a test in order to be able to practice medicine. What kind of test is Kathy most likely to take? a. personality test b. aptitude test c. achievement test d. demographic test

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ANSWER: c (p. 83) 83. ________ tests are designed to evaluate an individual’s level of mastery or competence. a. Personality b. Aptitude c. Achievement d. Demographic ANSWER: c (p. 83) 84. The GRE is an example of a(n) ________ test. a. personality b. aptitude c. achievement d. demographic ANSWER: b (p. 83) 85. ________ tests are designed to assess an individual’s potential ability or skill in a particular job. a. Personality b. Aptitude c. Achievement d. Demographic ANSWER: b (p. 83) 86. ________ tests are designed to measure a specific aspect of the individual’s motivational state or interpersonal capability. a. Personality b. Aptitude c. Achievement d. Demographic ANSWER: a (p. 83) 87. Madeleine has developed a new scale to measure conscientiousness. This scale would best be described as a(n) a. achievement test. b. personality inventory. c. aptitude test. d. stratified test.

ANSWER: b (p. 83) 88. The complete set of individuals we wish to examine is called the _______.

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a. b. c. d.

sample stratified sample random sample population ANSWER: d (p. 84)

89. A _________ is a subset of the ____________. a. population; sample b. population; random sample c. sample; population d. None of the above.

ANSWER: c (p. 84) 90. If every member of the population has an equal likelihood of being included in the study, the researcher has obtained a _________ sample. a. cohort b. random c. convenience d. demographic ANSWER: b (p. 84) 91. Which of the following is a good strategy to increase the representativeness of a sample? a. Use random sampling without replacement. b. Use convenience sampling. c. Decrease the sample size. d. Increase the sample size.

ANSWER: d (p. 85) 92. Once chosen, a score, event, or participant cannot be returned to the population to be selected again. This technique is referred to as a. random sampling without replacement. b. random sampling with replacement. c. stratified random sampling. d. convenience sampling.

ANSWER: a (p. 84) 93. Once chosen, a score, event, or participant can be returned to the population to be selected again. This technique is referred to as a. random sampling without replacement. b. random sampling with replacement. c. stratified random sampling.

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d. convenience sampling.

ANSWER: b (p. 84) 94. Janice wishes to ensure that she has equal numbers of freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors in her sample. She separates the population into subpopulations according to class rank and draws random samples from each subpopulation. Janice has engaged in ___________ sampling. a. convenience b. replacement c. stratified random d. non-random ANSWER: c (p. 85) 95. In order to successfully utilize stratified random sampling, the researcher would need to a. have considerable knowledge of the population. b. track the participants over a period of time. c. utilize random sampling without replacement. d. All of the above.

ANSWER: a (p. 85) 96. Nigel is interested in studying the exercise habits of inner-city children. He administers his survey once to a random sample of inner-city children. What kind of research strategy has Nigel used? a. Cross-sectional approach b. Longitudinal approach c. Single-strata approach d. Split-half approach ANSWER: c (p. 86) 97. __________ research involves the comparison of two or more groups of participants during the same time span. a. Single-strata b. Longitudinal c. Random d. Cross-sectional ANSWER: d (p. 86) 98. Nyla compares the voting preferences of 20-year-olds and 40-year-olds at a single point in time. Nyla has done ________ research. a. longitudinal b. cross-sectional

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c. single-strata d. case study ANSWER: b (p. 86) 99. Cliff administers his “Closeness with Family” questionnaire to a sample of children when they are 9 years old and then again when they turn 15. Cliff has done ________ research. a. longitudinal b. cross-sectional c. single-strata d. case study ANSWER: a (p. 86) 100.

Obtaining research data from the same group of participants over an extended period of time is referred to as ___________ research. a. longitudinal b. cross-sectional c. single-strata d. case study ANSWER: a (p. 86) 101. a. b. c. d.

A group of individuals born during the same time period is known as a stratum. pilot group. stratified random sample. cohort.

ANSWER: d (p. 86)

Short Answer/Essay 1. Distinguish between the nonexperimental methods described in this chapter (e.g., archival research, ex post facto research, survey research) and the qualitative research described in the previous chapter.

2. What are the distinguishing characteristics of descriptive research methods? Give some examples.

3. Define archival research and give some examples.

4. Describe three potential problems associated with archival research.

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Test Bank for The Psychologist as Detective: An Introduction to Conducting Research in Psych

5. What is naturalistic observation? Give an example and describe the strengths and weaknesses of this method.

6. Describe the Hawthorne effect, including the research study from which it got its name.

7. Describe the differences between time sampling and situation sampling. Why are time sampling and situation sampling needed, and what are the advantages to using these techniques?

8. Define interobserver reliability and list some ways to increase interobserver reliability.

9. Describe correlational research and give an example of a positive correlation, a negative correlation, and a zero correlation.

10. What is an ex post facto study? Give an example.

11. Distinguish between a descriptive survey and an analytic survey.

12. What is pilot testing and why is it necessary?

13. Briefly describe the six steps in developing a good survey.

14. Briefly describe four different types of questions that can appear on a survey.

15. Describe the advantages and disadvantages associated with mail surveys.

16. Describe some strategies that can raise the response rate for mail surveys.

17. Describe the advantages and disadvantages associated with personal interviews.

18. Describe the advantages and disadvantages associated with telephone interviews.

19. Distinguish between content validity, concurrent validity, and criterion validity. Give an example of each.

20. Distinguish between split-half reliability and test-retest reliability. What are two problems associated with test-retest reliability?

21. What are the differences among achievement tests, aptitude tests, and personality tests?

22. What is stratified random sampling and when would a researcher use it? Give an example.

23. Distinguish among the single-strata approach, cross-sectional research, and longitudinal research, and give an example of each.

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