Chapter 12: Causality

Test Bank

Multiple Choice

1. What does the term ''All else equal” refer to, in the context of a causal relationship?

A. cases with similar characteristics on all variables but one

B. observational data for the same context at different times

C. cases with the same outcome value for a variable

D. observations with zero values for all independent variables

Learning Objective: 12-1: Define causality and why it is important in quantitative research.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Causality defined

Difficulty Level: Medium

2. Which factor must be assessed in order to declare an association between two variables as causal?

A. confounding bias

B. reverse causalty

C. internal validity

D. correlation

Learning Objective: 12-1: Define causality and why it is important in quantitative research.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Association Does Not Equal Causation

Difficulty Level: Easy

3. If an association between two variables is determined to be causal, which two criteria could be used to strengthen the validity of that determination?

A. empirical association and mechanism

B. mechanism and doseresponse

C. nonspuriousness and time order

D. time order and doseresponse

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Criteria for Assessing Causality

Difficulty Level: Easy

4. In a study, it was found that a 1-unit change in a variable X caused a 3.2 unit change in variable Y. What is this phenomenon termed as?

A. unary association

B. ternary association

C. noncausal association

D. empirical association

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Empirical Association

Difficulty Level: Medium

5. What is the name given to the technique of combining results of several studies to arrive at a summary of findings?

A. confounding bias

B. meta-analysis

C. ceteris paribus

D. macro assessment

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Empirical Association

Difficulty Level: Easy

6. To confirm causality, a researcher analyzes the data to verify that any change in an independent variable occurs prior to a corresponding change in the outcome variable. What is this type of verification called?

A. empirical analysis

B. longitudinal study

C. time order

D. reverse causation

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Time Order

Difficulty Level: Easy

7. A research study found that what was hypothesized as the dependent variable, had value changes prior to corresponding changes in an associated variable, originally taken as an independent variable. What is the term given to such a finding?

A. empirical order

B. reverse causation

C. causal order

D. directional factor

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Time Order

Difficulty Level: Easy

8. A cosmetics company observed that retail sales of a particular product fell in three consecutive years after a 5% price increase in 2016. The company did not study any other factors that could have affected sales, and, decided to reduce prices by 3%, going forward. What is this type of conclusion or deduction termed in research studies?

A. sample bias

B. post-hoc fallacy

C. inflated causality

D. temporal error

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Time order

Difficulty Level: Medium

9. Which type of study is appropriate for determining the time order between two variables?

A. cross-sectional

B. multivariate

C. repeated cross-sectional

D. longitudinal

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Study Design and Time Order

Difficulty Level: Medium

10. A study observed a positive association between number of insurance claims and income of the insured. On further analysis, it was found that the age of the insured had a strong positive association with income and helped explain the variation in the number of claims. What term is used to define the association between claims and income?

A. spurious

B. nonspurious

C. temporal order

D. causal order

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Nonspuriousness

Difficulty Level: Medium

11. In the example given in question 10, what term is used to refer to the age variable?

A. response bias

B. spurious unit

C. confounding factor

D. interaction level

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Nonspuriousness

Difficulty Level: Medium

12. What is a “mechanism”, in the context of causal relationships?

A. an environmental condition that may affect association

B. a process that explains a cause-and-effect relationship

C. research steps taken to understand an association

D. empirical method for verifying cause-and-effect relationship

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Mechanism

Difficulty Level: Easy

13. What is a dose-response? Choose the best answer

A. a positive response to a specific dose in medical studies

B. a presence or absence of an outcome after a stimulus

C. a change in a predictor variable for the same outcome

D. a variation in size of the response with size of a predictor

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Doseresponse

Difficulty Level: Medium

14. What is an alternative term often used for experimental studies?

A. randomized controlled trials

B. medical trials

C. treatment trials

D. panel controlled trials

Learning Objective: 12-3: Understand the design features of true experiments.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Experimental Studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

15. Why is there a control group in clinical trials?

A. in order to control for interaction effects between predictors

B. to assess how response varies between treatment and no treatment

C. to vary the size or magnitude of the independent variable

D. to distinguish between the type of treatment given to participants

Learning Objective: 12-3: Understand the design features of true experiments.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Experimental Studies

Difficulty Level: Medium

16. In an experimental study, the 36 participants of the study were arbitrarily placed into two equal groups of 18 participants each. What is this type of placement known as?

A. random sampling

B. cluster sampling

C. random assignment

D. stratification

Learning Objective: 12-3: Understand the design features of true experiments.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Randomization Into Treatment and Control Groups

Difficulty Level: Easy

17. What is pretest measurement”?

A. measurement of the outcome prior to an intervention

B. value of the response at the time of the experiment

C. valuation of all variables before an experiment

D. verifying accuracy of the outcome value prior to analysis

Learning Objective: 12-3: Understand the design features of true experiments.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Pre/Post Measurement

Difficulty Level: Easy

18. The participants of the study mentioned in question 16 are not informed whether they are being placed in the treatment or in the control group. What term is used to identify this type of study?

A. double-blinded

B. nonblinded

C. placebo blinded

D. single-blinded

Learning Objective: 12-3: Understand the design features of true experiments.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Blinding

Difficulty Level: Easy

19. What does 'placebo effect' mean in the context of experimental studies?

A. no variation in the outcome with treatment

B. change in outcome without any treatment

C. no change in response after treatment

D. no change in response with a placebo

Learning Objective: 12-3: Understand the design features of true experiments.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Blinding

Difficulty Level: Medium

20. What are the primary components of a research experiment? Choose the best answer.

A. Random assignment to treatment and control groups; posttest measurement

b. Medical test in a laboratory; repeated trials of the test

c. Test a new theory or experiment; repeated tests on the theory

d. Cross-sectional study; treatment and control conditions

Learning Objective: 12-3: Understand the design features of true experiments.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Colloquial versus research meaning of “experiment”

Difficulty Level: Medium

21. What is the primary difference between an observational and an experimental study?

A. the former does not do random assignment

B. the latter does not define a hypothesis

C. the former does not have groups in the study

D. the latter is done for clinical trials

Learning Objective: 12-4: State the differences between experimental and observational studies, and how those differences affect internal validity.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Observational studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

22. Why does an observational study have a greater risk of selection bias than an experimental study?

A. it does not do random sampling in every case

B. posttest measurement is not done by the study

C. There is no random assignment of an independent variable.

D. it may have missing or incomplete data

Learning Objective: 12-4: State the differences between experimental and observational studies, and how those differences affect internal validity.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Variation in the independent variable

Difficulty Level: Medium

23. How could a longitudinal observational study ensure 'time order'?

A. value the outcome before the predictor variable

B. measure the predictor and outcome at the same time

C. sort the data by ascending time for the outcome

D. measure the predictor before the outcome

Learning Objective: 12-4: State the differences between experimental and observational studies, and how those differences affect internal validity.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Time order

Difficulty Level: Medium

24. What type of a study is a 'Natural Experiment'?

A. cross-sectional

B. observational

C. randomized

D. experimental

Learning Objective: 12-4: State the differences between experimental and observational studies, and how those differences affect internal validity.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Time Order

Difficulty Level: Easy

25. What does the term “nonequivalent groups” refer to?

A. treatment and control groups of unequal size

B. one group being weighted more than the other

C. difference in groups due to factors other than the predictor

D. comparison group containing more predictor variables

Learning Objective: 12-4: State the differences between experimental and observational studies, and how those differences affect internal validity.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Other Threats to Internal Validity

Difficulty Level: Medium

True/False

1. Random assignment in experimental studies help reduce the effect of any confounders in the study.

Learning Objective: 12-5: Recognize confounding and how it can be addressed in quantitative research.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Randomize to Remove Confounders

Difficulty Level: Easy

2. Designing a quasi-experiment in observational studies works as well as a randomized experimental study.

Learning Objective: 12-5: Recognize confounding and how it can be addressed in quantitative research.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Measure and Take Into Account Potential Confounders

Difficulty Level: Medium

3. Random sampling is often used in designing a study to ensure internal validity.

Learning Objective: 12-6: Describe the difference between random sampling and random assignment, and how those processes affect different aspects of study validity.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Distinction Between Random Sampling and Random Assignment

Difficulty Level: Easy

4. A sample survey of voting trends in Florida's mid-term election results would have high external validity but may have low internal validity.

Learning Objective: 12-6: Describe the difference between random sampling and random assignment, and how those processes affect different aspects of study validity.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Distinction Between Random Sampling and Random Assignment

Difficulty Level: Medium

5. A study showing a strong correlation between a dependent and independent variable, but with the presence of some bias, has good internal validity overall.

Learning Objective: 12-7: Identify ways that internal validity affects interpretation of quantitative research results.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Implications of Causality For Quantitative Research

Difficulty Level: Medium

6. A causal relationship is one where a change in the response variable causes a corresponding change in a predictor variable, keeping all other variables constant.

Learning Objective: 12-1: Define causality and why it is important in quantitative research.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Causality Defined

Difficulty Level: Easy

7. An association which is subsequently shown to have reverse causation, implies changing the dependent to be an independent variable.

Learning Objective: 12-1: Define causality and why it is important in quantitative research.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Association Does Not Equal Causation

Difficulty Level: Medium

8. A study on customer retention in the hospitality industry, found retention to be significantly associated with geographic location of the customer. This association was shown to be empirical by the study. Hence, the relationship between location and retention was causal in nature.

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Criteria for Assessing Causality

Difficulty Level: Hard

9. Consistency of association refers to an association between two variables that has been observed in several different samples, and, in different study designs.

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Empirical Association

Difficulty Level: Easy

10. The criteria of time order is satisfied when the independent variable occurs before the response variable.

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Time Order

Difficulty Level: Easy

Short Answer

1. With the help of an example, explain “reverse causation” between two variables.

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Time Order

Difficulty Level: Medium

2. A study found that drivers who resided in Trenton, New Jersey, were more prone to car accidents than other drivers in the state. The study did not look at several other characteristics of the driver, such as destination, location of the accident, and, age of driver, among others. What is this type of conclusion made by the study called, and why? Explain your answer.

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Time Order

Difficulty Level: Medium

3. What is a confounding factor in the context of spurious relationships? Explain with an example.

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Nonspuriousness

Difficulty Level: Easy

4. Once causality is established by assessing the three primary criteria for presence of the phenomenon, which two additional criteria help in strengthening the case for causality? Explain the process for applying these two criteria.

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Mechanism

Difficulty Level: Medium

5. Provide an example of an experimental study. Identify the treatment and control groups of the study.

Learning Objective: 12-3: Understand the design features of true experiments.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Experimental Studies

Difficulty Level: Hard

6. Distinguish between random assignment and random sampling. Illustrate with an example.

Learning Objective: 12-6: Describe the difference between random sampling and random assignment, and how those processes affect different aspects of study validity.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Distinction Between Random Sampling and Random Assignment

Difficulty Level: Medium

7. What is “postmeasurement” in the context of an experimental study? Explain with an example.

Learning Objective: 12-3: Understand the design features of true experiments.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Pre/Post Measurement

Difficulty Level: Medium

8. How is an observational study different from an experimental study? Illustrate with an example.

Learning Objective: 12-4: State the differences between experimental and observational studies, and how those differences affect internal validity.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Observational Studies

Difficulty Level: Hard

9. Discuss how random assignment removes or greatly reduces confounding bias.

Learning Objective: 12-5: Recognize confounding and how it can be addressed in quantitative research.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Randomize to Remove Confounders

Difficulty Level: Medium

10. What is a quasi-experiment? Explain this type of research design with an example.

Learning Objective: 12-5: Recognize confounding and how it can be addressed in quantitative research.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Measure and Take Into Account Potential Confounders

Difficulty Level: Hard

Essay

1. Design an observational study on a topic of your choice. Make sure that there are at least 2 independent variables in the study. Alternatively, you may use a study you designed for the essay questions in prior chapters, if appropriate. Discuss what steps you would take to assess the internal validity of a causal relationship between the outcome and one of the independent variables. Explain the reasoning for your assessment process.

Learning Objective: 12-2: List the criteria used to assess whether an association can be interpreted as cause-and-effect.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Criteria for Assessing Causality

Difficulty Level: Hard

2. Design an experimental study on a topic of your choice, with at least two independent variables. Explain the process you would use to assess the internal validity of a causal relationship between the outcome and one of the independent variables. How does this process compare, in terms of complexity, with the process you used in question 1?

Learning Objective: 12-3: Understand the design features of true experiments.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Experimental Studies

Difficulty Level: Hard

3. Discuss the importance of ensuring internal validity in research studies. What are the implications if internal validity of a causal relationship cannot be confirmed in a research study?

Learning Objective: 12-7: Identify ways that internal validity affects interpretation of quantitative research results.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Implications of Causality For Quantitative Research

Difficulty Level: Medium