Chapter 2: Identifying a Topic, a Purpose, and a Research Question

Test Bank

Multiple Choice

1. ______ is a recursive process, or a never-ending continuous loop.

a. Knowledge

b. Science

c. Research

d. Data

2. According to Walter Wallace’s Wheel of Science, the easiest way to explain the scientific process is to have it begin with ______.

a. hypotheses

b. observation

c. theory

d. research design

3. A set of inter-related propositions, assumptions, and definitions describes ______.

a. observations

b. research design

c. external generalizations

d. criminological theory

4. Statements about expected relationships between variables are called ______.

a. theories

b. analyses

c. hypotheses

d. questions

5. After a research question and hypotheses have been established, what is the next step on the Wheel of Science?

a. research design

b. observation

c. external generalizations

d. analysis and findings

6. Which of the following lists the recommended order of the scientific process, according to the Wheel of Science?

a. hypotheses, theory, observation, research design, analysis and findings, and empirical generalizations

b. theory, hypotheses, research design, observation, analysis and findings, and empirical generalizations

c. theory, research design, hypotheses, observation, analysis and findings, and empirical generalizations

d. hypotheses, research design, theory, observation, analysis and findings, and empirical generalizations

7. Choosing your research methodology is a segment of which of the following steps in the scientific process?

a. theory

b. observations

c. research design

d. hypotheses

8. A productive approach to identifying a research topic, and subsequent research question, is to utilize which of the following sources?

a. listening

b. published research

c. data

d. internet

9. Brunson’s research on disadvantaged male youth and police relations was developed by ______.

a. reading the published literature

b. working on research projects with professors

c. listening to colleagues at conferences

d. collecting data

10. Melde and his collaborators focused on which of the following?

a. youth and police relations

b. gangs

c. victim reporting

d. hot spots

11. Data can be formed and measured in many ways, with the exception of ______.

a. words

b. illustrations

c. questions

d. actions

12. A set of statements explaining a phenomenon is also known as a(n) ______.

a. observation

b. hypotheses

c. theory

d. generalization

13. Which of the following sources led to Dodge’s idea to conduct research on prostitution stings and Santo’s research on hot spots?

a. viewing

b. personal experience

c. listening

d. reading

14. Which of the following types of research can identify characteristics that are unimportant and not worthy of future consideration?

a. exploratory

b. descriptive

c. explanatory

d. evaluation

15. The purpose of exploratory research is to answer which of the following set of questions?

a. “What is it?”, “How is it done?”, or “Where is it?”

b. “What is it?”, “What are it’s characteristics?”, or “What does it look like?”

c. “Why is it?”, “How is it?”, “What is the effect of it?”, “What causes it?”, or “What predicts it?”

d. “Is a program needed”, “Who uses the program”, “Is the program effective”

16. The prostitution research Dodge conducted with female undercover police officers acting as decoys is ______research.

a. evaluation

b. explanatory

c. exploratory

d. descriptive

17. Brunson’s work on youth and police relations is which type of research?

a. exploratory

b. explanatory

c. evaluation

d. descriptive

18. Which of the following type of research has a specific focus seeking to provide detailed understanding of topics?

a. explanatory

b. exploratory

c. evaluation

d. descriptive

19. ______ research identifies characteristics related to a topic, and those factors that impact, cause, influences or even predict that topic’s outcome.

a. Exploratory

b. Explanatory

c. Evaluation

d. Descriptive

20. Zaykowski’s research about accessing victim services is considered to fall under which of the following types of research?

a. exploratory

b. explanatory

c. evaluation

d. descriptive

21. ______ is research that gathers objective criteria that helps determine the need, implementation, or product of a program based on systematic assessment.

a. Descriptive research

b. Explanatory research

c. Evaluation research

d. Exploratory research

22. An example of evaluation research is ______.

a. Santos’ hot spot research

b. Cuevas’s research on Latino teen dating violence

c. Zaykowski’s research about accessing victim services

d. Brunson’s research on youth and police relations

23. Cuevas’s research on Latino teen dating violence falls under which types of research?

a. explanatory and descriptive

b. exploratory and evaluation

c. descriptive and evaluation

d. evaluation and explanatory

24. Santos’ research on hot spots is an example of which types of research?

a. explanatory and descriptive

b. exploratory and evaluation

c. descriptive and evaluation

d. evaluation and experimental

25. All of the following are characteristics of a strong research question with the exception of ______.

a. providing broad interpretations

b. offering boundaries

c. clear language

d. guides the remainder of the research

26. Which of the following is the sequence of steps for constructing a research question?

a. Pick a topic, narrow the topic, pick a purpose, construct a research question, evaluate the research question, and refine the research question.

b. Pick a topic, pick a purpose, narrow the topic, construct a research question, evaluate the research question, and refine the research question.

c. Pick a topic, construct a research question, pick a purpose, narrow the topic, evaluate the research question, refine the research question.

d. Pick a topic, narrow the topic, pick a purpose, construct a research question, refine the research question, and evaluate the research question.

27. The final step in constructing a research question is ______.

a. evaluating the research question

b. refining the research question

c. narrowing the topic

d. picking a purpose

28. The first step in constructing a research question is ______.

a. narrowing the topic

b. constructing a research question

c. picking a purpose

d. picking a topic

29. All of the following terms are synonyms used to describe the purpose of research in the research question with the exception of ______.

a. determine

b. identify

c. examine

d. acquire

30. A statement that implies a research question must contain a ______ such as, “examine,” “explain,” “investigate,” or “describe.”

a. verb

b. noun

c. adjective

d. adverb

31. When evaluating the research question for being practical and useful, all of the following questions help determine evaluative criteria EXCEPT ______.

a. Is the question too short?

b. Is the question interesting?

c. Is the question too broad?

d. Is the question too narrow?

32. The work by Cuevas and colleagues that focused on teenaged Latino dating violence was guided by the following questions with the exception of ______.

a. What are the rates of dating violence by victim gender?

b. What is the risk of experiencing dating violence over time?

c. What cultural factors (e.g., immigrant status, familial support) are associated with dating violence over time?

d. Do socioeconomic factors play a part in dating violence victimization?

33. Conducting research generally takes about ______ times longer than expected.

a. 1.5

b. 2.5

c. 3.5

d. 4.5

34. Based on the core principles of ethical research, why was Milgram’s teacher/learner study found to be unethical?

a. lacked guidance

b. lacked beneficence

c. lacked autonomy

d. lacked randomized sample

35. Milgram’s teacher/learner study inflicted which of the following types of harm on its participants?

a. psychological and emotional

b. physical and psychological

c. emotional and financial

d. financial and social

36. Subpart A, or the Common Rule of the Federal Policy for the Protections of Human Subjects, outlines the fundamental procedures for human subject research and ______.

a. additional protections for prisoners

b. additional protections for pregnant women, neonates, and fetuses

c. informed consent

d. registration requirements for Institutional Review Board committees

37. Institutional Review Board committees must be diverse in which of the following areas?

a. demographics, areas of expertise, and affiliations with institutions

b. demographics, geographical area, and affiliations with institutions

c. areas of expertise, socioeconomic status, and geographical area

d. areas of expertise, affiliations with institutions, and socioeconomic status

38. Dr. Albert Kligman conducted human subject experiments on ______, in which the vulnerable population clearly did not give voluntary consent.

a. children

b. pregnant women

c. prisoners

d. fetuses and neonates

39. Which of the following subparts of the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects outlines requirements to ensure additional protections for pregnant women, neonates, and fetuses?

a. subpart A

b. subpart B

c. subpart C

d. subpart D

40. According to the Common Rule, the unaffiliated party of an IRB committee is a(n) ______.

a. scientist

b. participant

c. educator

d. community member

41. The Common Rule defines ______ as a systematic investigation or examination that will contribute to generalizable knowledge.

a. methods

b. research

c. science

d. knowledge

42. Which of the following subparts of the Department of Health and Human Services regulations include vulnerable populations?

a. subparts B, C, D

b. subparts A, B, D

c. subparts C, D, E

d. subparts B, C, E

43. Which of the following is NOT considered a vulnerable population, per HHS regulations?

a. pregnant women

b. children

c. prisoners

d. individuals with mental illness

44. The research of Chisolm and Farfel impacted which of the following vulnerable populations?

a. pregnant women

b. children

c. prisoners

d. human fetuses and neonates

45. The National Crime Victimization Survey or HHS regulations has identified all of the following as vulnerable populations with the exception of ______.

a. minorities

b. the elderly

c. individuals with mental illness

d. veterans

1. Empirically based research answers testable questions raised by new ideas.

2. External generalizations provide a set of inter-related propositions, assumptions, and definitions about how the world works, or how the people living in it are expected to behave.

3. Compiling and arranging the order of current knowledge about a topic describes the research process.

4. A good research topic drives your intellectual curiosity, is fun to learn about, and makes you excited to investigate.

5. Codebooks identify every variable or characteristic available in the data and how it is measured, and contain hundreds or thousands of variables found in the data set.

6. Descriptive research is the best approach when little or nothing is known about a topic.

7. Research can fall under more than one category, for example it can be both explanatory and descriptive in order to deepen understanding of the chosen topic.

8. “How can the science program be improved for grade school students?” is an example of descriptive research.

9. In describing the purpose of research, investigators use synonyms as descriptors; for example words like, “determine,” “investigate,” “examine,” and “influence” can be indicate the context of the purpose.

10. Feasibility is generally not important when answering a research question.

11. If research had one purpose, that purpose would be to increase empirical knowledge and understanding about a topic

12. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services provides guidance for how to conduct behavioral science research involving human subjects.

13. The core principle of justice stipulates that researches should do no harm (or to minimize harm to the greatest extent possible) to study participants.

14. The Common Rule of the Federal Policy for the Protections of Human Subjects includes the framework for IRBs, informed consent, and all fundamental procedures for how to ethically conduct human subject research.

15. IRB committees generally consist of individuals and professionals that are affiliated with the same institution.

16. IRB committees must have diversity in terms of member areas of expertise.

17. Human research involving cadavers is exempt from review under the Common Rule because cadavers, as human subjects, are not living individuals.

18. An individual can withdraw their consent from a study at any time during an experiment.

19. Subpart B of the Federal Policy for the Protections of Human Subjects ensures additional protections for cadavers.

20. Subpart B of HHS regulations does not include ex-prisoners as a vulnerable population.

21. Assent requirements for children cannot be waived.

22. A child can assent to participate in research as long as they understand what participation entails, and that it will most likely benefit them.

23. Expedited IRB research includes the use of existing data, documents, or records from which identifying subjects of a study is not possible.

24. The National Institutes of Health offers training courses on how to protect human subjects in research.

25. A human subject is defined as a living individual.

1. Identify and discuss Walter Wallace’s scientific process, depicted in the wheel of science.

2. Identify possible sources of inspiration for a research topic, and discuss why they can be inspiring.

3. Identify and discuss the four purposes/goals of research.

4. What are the various initial research methods that help you narrow, or focus your research topic?

5. Discuss the importance of a research question and why it is necessary.

6. Identify and discuss the various ways that a research question could be evaluated. Why is it important to evaluate your research question?

7. Identify and discuss the various parts and subparts of the Federal Policy for the Protections of Human Subjects. What are the aspects of ethics that each subpart addresses, and why should they be considered when you are developing your research?

8. Which subpart of HHS regulation includes research related to prisoners? Identify and discuss the four categories of research allowed with prisoners. Why are each of these categories important to understand when considering vulnerable populations?

9. What are the types of consent that can be given in order to allow a child to participate in a study, and why is protecting children so important? Are there any circumstances under which consent can be waived? Which subpart of HHS regulations protects children?

10. What are the three types of reviews conducted by IRBs? Why are each of these types of reviews conducted?

1. Identify the steps on and the direction of the Walter Wallace’s Wheel of Science cycle. Why is starting with theory easier than any of the other processes?

2. Some information gathering, such as compiling and reordering current knowledge, can be referred to as research, but it is only a part of conducting research. Based on all of the steps that you have learned about that go into refining your research question, are these activities research? Why or why not? What is real research?

3. Conducting research comes with its fair share of pitfalls. Identify and discuss the pitfalls mentioned in Chapter 2. What can be done to avoid pitfalls?

4. Ethical considerations must be taken when constructing a research question. Identify and discuss the three core principles mentioned in the text. Why are these considerations important?

5. Veterans are not considered a vulnerable population per the HHS regulations and the NCVS. Do you believe that they should be included in the regulations? Why or why not?