Chapter 1: The Science, Society, and Social Research

Test Bank

Multiple Choice

1. The everyday error that involves choosing to look at things that are in line with our own preferences or beliefs is called ______.

A. overgeneralization

B. selective observation

C. inaccurate observation

D. resistance to change

Difficulty Level: Medium

2. The everyday error that involves the reluctance to reevaluate ideas in light of new information comes from all of the following sources except ______.

A. excessive devotion to tradition

B. ego-based commitments

C. uncritical agreement with authority

D. thinking we have seen something that is not true

Difficulty Level: Medium

3. Legitimate motives for social research may include all of the following EXCEPT ______.

A. to assist in making government decisions

B. to test academic theories

C. for personal reasons

D. all of these are legitimate motives for social research

Difficulty Level: Medium

4. Social science reduces the likelihood of overgeneralization by ______.

A. using systematic procedures for selecting individuals to study that are representative for the groups to which we hope to generalize

B. using explicit criteria for establishing causality

C. requiring systematic measurement and sampling

D. using empirical evidence

Difficulty Level: Medium

5. Descriptive research ______.

A. defines and illustrates social phenomena

B. investigates social phenomena without expectations

C. identifies causes and effects of social phenomena

D. determines effect of a social program

Difficulty Level: Easy

6. As average income of a neighborhood increased, violent crime rate decreased. This information is an example of which kind of social research?

A. descriptive

B. exploratory

C. explanatory

D. evaluation

Difficulty Level: Hard

7. Researcher X has proposed a project in which she will interview several immigrants from other countries to find out why they chose to move to the United States. This study is an example of which kind of social research?

A. descriptive

B. exploratory

C. explanatory

D. evaluation

Difficulty Level: Hard

8. When the state approved stronger penalties for drunk driving, including the automatic suspension of driving privileges, the number of highway deaths related to drunk driving decreased. This observation suggests which kind of social research?

A. descriptive

B. exploratory

C. explanatory

D. evaluation

Difficulty Level: Hard

9. In a field experiment to observe altruistic behavior, an observer records the number of people who stopped to hold the door for a student on crutches. She reports that seven people volunteered to assist the young man, when in fact there were only five. She has made an error called ______.

A. overgeneralization

B. selective observation

C. illogical reasoning

D. inaccurate observation

Difficulty Level: Hard

10. Mindy was recording the number of customers that visited a particular store from 2 to 4 p.m. When a large group entered at once, she accidentally recorded 8 customers instead of the 10 who entered. This is an example of what type of error in everyday observation?

A. selective observation

B. overgeneralization

C. inaccurate observation

D. illogical reasoning

Difficulty Level: Hard

11. Both explanatory and evaluation research studies are concerned with the causes and effects of social phenomena. The difference between them is that evaluation research focuses on the ______.

A. effect of particular policies or programs

B. meanings that people give their actions

C. description of the social phenomena of interest

D. consideration of the impact of social context

Difficulty Level: Medium

12. Qualitative methods are most often used for ______ type of research.

A. descriptive

B. exploratory

C. explanatory

D. evaluation

Difficulty Level: Medium

13. In a blog about jury duty, an everyday observer made which of the following errors of overgeneralization?

A. The justice system is not color blind.

B. Most people dislike jury duty.

C. Most people lie to get out of jury duty.

D. Most judges are insensitive to why people can't serve on a jury.

Difficulty Level: Easy

14. A method of research that assumes an external, objective reality, but also acknowledges the complexity of reality and the limitations and biases of the scientists who study it is known as ______.

A. postposivism

B. positivism

C. feminist research

D. an "insider" perspective

Difficulty Level: Easy

15. An everyday observer states: "What was good enough for my grandfather is good enough for me!" This is an example of what type of error of everyday logic?

A. excessive devotion to tradition

B. selective observation

C. inaccurate observation

D. ego-based commitment

Difficulty Level: Medium

16. ______ is an example of pseudoscience.

A. Astrology

B. Astronomy

C. Sociology

D. Social Science

Difficulty Level: Medium

17. The effort to figure out what the world is like and why it works as it does is known as ______.

A. applied Research

B. social science

C. basic science

D. overgeneralization

Difficulty Level: Easy

18. Mayor Politico requests an assessment of how people use city parks: who uses the parks, what activities are conducted in the parks, and when do they use the parks. The Mayor has asked for which type of research to be conducted.

A. descriptive

B. explanatory

C. evaluation

D. qualitative

Difficulty Level: Hard

19. Evaluation research and other social research motivated by practical concerns is called ______.

A. overgeneralization

B. basic science

C. applied research

D. social science

Difficulty Level: Easy

20. Errors in everyday observations and reasoning include all of the following EXCEPT ______.

A. testing hypotheses

B. selective observation

C. illogical reasoning

D. overgeneralization

Difficulty Level: Medium

21. Explanatory research ______.

A. defines and illustrates social phenomena

B. investigates social phenomena without expectations

C. identifies causes and effects of social phenomena

D. determines effect of a social program

Difficulty Level: Medium

22. Claims presented so that they appear scientific even though they lack supporting evidence and plausibility are known as ______.

A. sociology

B. psychology

C. inaccurate observation

D. pseudoscience

Difficulty Level: Easy

23. The belief that there is a reality apart from our own perception of it, that it can be understood through observation, and that it follows general laws is known as ______.

A. positivism

B. objectivism

C. interpretivist

D. postpositivism

Difficulty Level: Easy

24. What is the motivation for conducting evaluation research?

A. government policies and programs

B. academic questions about theory

C. personal motivations

D. internet usage

Difficulty Level: Medium

25. The everyday error that involves unjustifiably concluding that what is true for some cases is true for all cases is called ______

A. overgeneralization

B. selective observation

C. inaccurate observation

D. illogical reasoning

Difficulty Level: Easy

26. Quantitative methods generally present findings as ______

A. percents and other statistics

B. focus groups

C. quotations

D. executive summaries

Difficulty Level: Medium

27. Qualitative research methods are used most commonly in which type of research?

A. descriptive

B. explanatory

C. exploratory

D. evaluation

Difficulty Level: Hard

28. Which of the following is true about intersubjective agreements?

A. They are required in applied research.

B. They are often upheld as a more reasonable goal for science than a certainty about an objective reality.

C. They are the basis of the positivist approach.

D. They prevent errors in reasoning.

Difficulty Level: Medium

29. The belief that reality is socially constructed and that the goal of social scientists is to understand what meanings people give to that reality is called ______.

A. constructivist paradigm

B. interpretivism

C. postpositivism

D. intersubjective agreement

Difficulty Level: Easy

30. Dr. Smith is studying the effect of violent music on young teenagers. In order to collect data, she distributes surveys to a local public school, each with the same set of questions. She did this in order to reduce the risk of ______.

A. illogical reasoning

B. resistance to change

C. selective observation

D. overgeneralization

Difficulty Level: Hard

True/False

1. Selective observation occurs when people conclude that what is true for some cases is true for all cases.

Difficulty Level: Easy

2. Illogical reasoning occurs when researchers prematurely jump to conclusions on the basis of invalid assumptions.

Difficulty Level: Easy

3. Social science is defined as the use of scientific methods to investigate individuals, societies, and social processes.

Difficulty Level: Easy

4. If we allow new research to call into question our preexisting beliefs, we are practicing an excessive devotion to tradition.

Difficulty Level: Medium

5. Exploratory research identifies the causes and effects of social phenomena.

Difficulty Level: Easy

6. Unlike in natural sciences, social sciences face special issues in data collection because the subjects can intentionally mislead the researcher.

Difficulty Level: Medium

7. Descriptive research tests a relationship between variables.

Difficulty Level: Easy

8. The belief that there is an objective reality that exists apart from our perception of it, and that we can and should study it, is called Positivism.

Difficulty Level: Easy

9. Intersubjective agreement refers to an agreement between scientists about the nature of reality.

Difficulty Level: Easy

10. The belief that there is an empirical reality, but that our understanding of it is limited by its complexity and by the biases and limitations of researchers is called Postpositivism.

Difficulty Level: Easy

11. Basic science is the effort to figure out what the world is like and why it works as it does.

Difficulty Level: Easy

12. Descriptive research is evaluation research and other social research which is motivated by practical concerns.

Difficulty Level: Medium

13. Quantitative methods use numerical data which is presented as percentages and other statistics in order to summarize relationships among different variables.

Difficulty Level: Easy

14. A researcher who conducts a survey with 200 participants and then does in-depth interviews with 40 of these participants is using mixed methods research.

Difficulty Level: Hard

15.Applied research relies on the scientific method just as basic research does.

Difficulty Level: Medium

16. In order to decrease the likelihood of overgeneralizing, a researcher should have a clear definition of the population of interest in his or her study.

Difficulty Level: Easy

17. Most social science research is motivated by personal gains only.

Difficulty Level: Easy

18. In-depth interviews with each participant with the same set of questions helps reduce the risk for selective or inaccurate observation.

Difficulty Level: Medium

19. Qualitative methodology is most often driven by exploratory research.

Difficulty Level: Medium

20. Pseudoscience claims are often easily identifiable, making these statements unbelievable to the general public.

Difficulty Level: Easy

Essay Questions

1. Consider the research conducted on Internet use and other forms of social relations, as described in Chapter 1. Which conclusions are most consistent with your own casual observations about social relations in the United States? List three of your own observations that are either consistent with or contradict conclusions found in the text. Describe how you might propose descriptive research to test whether your observations hold up to scientific criteria. In addition, be specific about the types of errors in everyday reasoning that might apply to your casual observations.

Difficulty Level: Hard

2. Briefly describe the examples given in Chapter 1 that demonstrate the four types of social research. Consider the strengths and weaknesses of each. Given that the social phenomenon of Internet use is a complex one, what sorts of conclusions can you reach about social relations and Internet use from these studies? Propose three additional studies about Internet use and social relations in which you focus on weak points or controversial conclusions found in the research presented in Chapter 1. Be explicit about how those studies will improve social science knowledge about this phenomenon.

Difficulty Level: Hard

3. Which of the errors in scientific reasoning are the most difficult for social science to overcome? Review each of the four and evaluate the relative difficulties they create. Answer in terms of a specific research area, such as understanding homelessness, crime, or adaptations to communities or work organizations.

Difficulty Level: Hard

4. Motives for social research are sometimes complementary and sometimes conflicting. List three motives for social research and write a one-sentence definition of each. Imagine that you direct a government criminal justice agency. What might motivate you to conduct research on the impact of your parole policies? How might the motives for research conflict?

Difficulty Level: Hard

5. Using the examples on Internet use and social relations found in Chapter 1, define and describe the difference between quantitative and qualitative methods in social research. How did the researchers' choice of qualitative or quantitative methods strengthen their conclusions? Weaken them? Propose another study of Internet use in which you build on one of the previous studies but using triangulated methods.

Difficulty Level: Hard

6. Social researchers undertake research for various reasons. If you were going to propose research on student success in university settings, describe potential sets of motives from each of the following perspectives: personal interest, policy guidance/program management, academic concerns.

Difficulty Level: Hard

7. You are working for a community development organization in a city with high rates of unemployment, poverty, high school attrition, and juvenile delinquency. Your organization wants to begin an afternoon computer training program for young people. Explain how descriptive, exploratory, explanatory, and evaluation research can all be used to help start and later maintain this program.

Difficulty Level: Hard

8. What special problems do the social sciences face, in comparison with natural sciences, such as physics or biology? How do social scientists attempt to deal with those problems?

Difficulty Level: Medium

9. Explain how individual studies are part of the larger process of creating social scientific knowledge. Consider why research must evaluate previous research and why researchers should expect to have their studies critically evaluated.

Difficulty Level: Hard

10. Identify and describe the four common errors in reasoning. What can researchers do to their studies in order to reduce the risk of running into these errors?

Difficulty Level: Medium