Chapter 16: Summarizing and Reporting

Test Bank

Multiple Choice

1. Front matter refers to______.

A. the section of an applied research report that includes an executive summary, abstract, and table of contents

B. the section of an applied research report that may include appendixes, tables, and the research instrument(s)

C. the introduction and literature review in an academic journal article

D. a research proposal

Difficulty Level: Medium

2. To be ethical, what should a researcher not do when reporting research results?

A. thank staff who made major contributions

B. acknowledge the sponsors of the research

C. acknowledge researcher participants by name

D. provide an honest accounting of how the research was carried out

Difficulty Level: Medium

3. How can you ease the burden of report writing?

A. draw on the research proposal and on project notes

B. use a word processing program on a computer to facilitate reorganizing and editing

C. seek criticism from friends, teachers, and other research consumers before turning in the final product

D. all of these

Difficulty Level: Medium

4. Which is not a recommendation for a research poster presented in the chapter?

A. completely fill the poster

B. place results on the right side of the poster

C. use bullets

D. use a font large enough for reading 3–6 feet away.

Difficulty Level: Medium

5. Which of the following is an example of back matter in an applied research report?

A. an appendix

B. a conclusion section

C. an executive summary

D. a findings section

Difficulty Level: Hard

6. It makes sense to use graphic displays in a research report because they ______.

A. call attention to important aspects of the findings

B. are easy to make

C. involve the use of complicated software

D. are an option with all statistical software

Difficulty Level: Medium

7. An executive summary ______.

A. is contained in an appendix

B. is the same as an abstract

C. excludes graphs

D. lists the study’s main findings

Difficulty Level: Easy

8. An applied research report provides all of the following except ______.

A. a broad descriptive overview of the findings

B. insight about a journal article

C. more specific information about a research project than a journal article

D. only those statistics useful for the specific hypothesis tests

Difficulty Level: Easy

9. Which of the following is not a recommendation about PowerPoint presentations from this chapter?

A. give your slides a title that clearly explains what you are talking about

B. do not spend too much time on each slide (5 minutes maximum)

C. do not use too many words on one slide (7 words × 7 rows max)

D. use bullet points for each separate point

Difficulty Level: Medium

10. Which of the following is not true about graphic displays?

A. They will help draw attention to important aspects of your findings.

B. use them liberally in a report

C. They make findings accessible to a wide audience.

D. They will simplify interpretation of basic patterns.

Difficulty Level: Medium

11. A typical academic journal article begin with ______.

A. an introduction

B. an abstract

C. a literature review

D. an executive summary

Difficulty Level: Medium

12. Applied research reports begin with ______.

A. an introduction

B. an abstract

C. a literature review

D. an executive summary

Difficulty Level: Medium

13. Who said, “Controversy is news, to which careful empirical findings cannot be compared.”

A. Peter Rossi

B. William Julius Wilson

C. Russell K. Schutt

D. Andy Kirk

Difficulty Level: Easy

14. Which is not a recommendation for a research poster presented in the chapter?

A. completely fill the poster.

B. no more than 15 lines per page.

C. text is usually better than visuals.

D. use a font large enough for reading 3–6 feet away.

Difficulty Level: Medium

15. An applied research report will typically ______.

A. focus on answering a particular research question

B. describe a wide range of study findings

C. be peer-reviewed

D. all of these

Difficulty Level: Medium

16. Understanding is most likely to be achieved in a data display when it is ______.

A. trustworthy

B. accessible

C. elegant

D. all of these

Difficulty Level: Easy

17. The goal of research is not just to discover something but also to ______.

A. measure it

B. communicate it to others

C. operationalize it

D. understand its context

Difficulty Level: Easy

18. Academic journal articles contain all of the following sections except ______.

A. introduction

B. executive summary

C. sample and measures

D. results

Difficulty Level: Hard

19. In an applied research report, in which section do you include copies of the instruments used?

A. the introductory statement

B. the findings section

C. the discussion section

D. the appendix

Difficulty Level: Hard

20. Experienced writers suggest all of the following except:

A. leave final editing to the last minute

B. don't expect to write a polished draft in a linear fashion

C. leave enough time for dead ends and revisions

D. ask others to review and react to what you have written

Difficulty Level: Easy

21. After you have completed a draft of a research report, which of the following techniques will help you improve your organization?

A. construct a reverse outline

B. seek constructive criticism from others

C. use a word processing program to facilitate reorganizing

D. all of these

Difficulty Level: Easy

22. Which of the following is an example of front matter in an applied research report?

A. an appendix

B. a bibliography

C. an executive summary

D. a findings section

Difficulty Level: Hard

23. Outlining the sections in an already written draft of a paper or report to improve its organization in the next draft is known as ______.

A. outlining

B. reverse outlining

C. data visualization

D. report visualization

Difficulty Level: Easy

24. Reports on mixed-method projects should ______.

A. have an executive summary

B. include subsections in the methods section that introduce each method

C. be published as a journal article

D. not be included in a meta-analysis

Difficulty Level: Hard

25. Qualitative research reports differ from quantitative research reports in that ______.

A. each section is enriched with the holistic and reflexive approach of qualitative projects

B. the introduction should include background about the development of the researcher’s interest in the topic

C. the methodology section should describe how the researcher gained access to the setting

D. the findings section presents quotes and observations about the research participants

Difficulty Level: Medium

26. In academic journal articles, who reviews reports to suggest whether they should be published?

A. a professional editor

B. anonymous experts

C. a panel of experts

D. the research sponsor

Difficulty Level: Easy

27. Which of the following is a bad idea when reporting your research through the media?

A. use technical language

B. focus on issues of national concern

C. focus on issues high on the public agenda

D. present a well-organized argument

Difficulty Level: Hard

28. Which of the following is not good, ethical practice when reporting on research?

A. using graphs to overstate your conclusions

B. acknowledge the sponsor of your research

C. thank staff who made major contributions

D. maintain a full record of the project

Difficulty Level: Hard

29. Presenting, as one's own, the ideas or words of others for academic evaluation without proper acknowledgment is called ______.

A. stealing

B. lying

C. cheating

D. plagiarism

Difficulty Level: Easy

30. William Julius Wilson urged the following principles for engaging the public through the media except ______.

A. focus on issues of national concern

B. focus on issues that are high on the public agenda

C. use technical language

D. present the big picture whereby the arguments are organized

Difficulty Level: Medium

31. One of the major differences between an applied research report and a journal article is that ______.

A. a research report is only for the academic world, whereas a journal article is public

B. a research report has a methods section and a journal article does not

C. an applied research report must focus on answering a particular research question

D. a journal article must focus on answering a particular research question

Difficulty Level: Hard

32. Writers can ease the burden of report writing by ______.

A. drawing on the research proposal

B. drawing on project notes

C. using a word processing program

D. all of these

Difficulty Level: Easy

33. Which of the following is not a benefit of journal article review stated in Chapter 16:

A. knowing who will review the journal article so that it is accepted on the first submission

B. identification of areas in need of improvement

C. getting feedback from people who know the field well

D. having a paper looked at by many different types of experts

Difficulty Level: Medium

34. Which of the following is not a section in an applied report?

A. explanations

B. introduction

C. methodology

D. summary

Difficulty Level: Medium

35. “Chart Builder” can be used to show ______.

A. a bivariate association

B. a three-variable chart

C. associations of variables

D. all of these

Difficulty Level: Easy

True/False

1. SPSS has a function known as “Chart Builder.”

Difficulty Level: Easy

2. Using the “Transform” tab is a way to start to use “Chart builder.”

Difficulty Level: Easy

3. Outlining the sections in an already written draft of a paper improves its organization in the next draft.

Difficulty Level: Easy

4. Applied research reports are written for a different audience from the professional social scientists and students who read academic journals.

Difficulty Level: Easy

5. Applied research reports usually begin with an executive summary.

Difficulty Level: Easy

6. Reverse outlining refers to outlining the sections in an already written draft of a paper or report to improve its organization in the next draft.

Difficulty Level: Easy

7. Graphs and visuals are usually better than plain text on research posters.

Difficulty Level: Easy

8. An applied research report should be more technical and focused than a journal article.

Difficulty Level: Easy

9. Academic journal articles are usually reviewed by anonymous experts in the field prior to publication.

Difficulty Level: Easy

10. The back matter of an applied research report should not include tables that are not used directly in the report or a copy of the research instrument.

Difficulty Level: Medium

11. Writing an applied research report is perhaps the toughest form of writing because they are submitted to several experts in the field for careful review.

Difficulty Level: Easy

12. Plagiarism is an increasingly common problem on college campuses.

Difficulty Level: Easy

13. When students are more motivated to improve their understanding of the subject matter than “ace” exams, the likelihood of plagiarism is reduced.

Difficulty Level: Easy

14. An executive summary is contained in the back matter of an applied report.

Difficulty Level: Easy

15. “Chart Builder” can be used to display a bivariate association.

Difficulty Level: Easy

Essay

1. What are front matter and back matter and how do they differ from journal articles to applied research reports.

Difficulty Level: Hard

2. In what situations should social scientists seek to publish their findings in the popular media? How should findings be written for the popular media?

Difficulty Level: Medium

3. Define plagiarism. What constitutes plagiarism? How can researchers actively avoid plagiarism?

Difficulty Level: Medium

4. Explain the difference between front matter in an applied report and an abstract in a journal article.

Difficulty Level: Medium

5. Why would a researcher use “Chart Builder?”

Difficulty Level: Easy

6. Explain the structure of an applied research report. What are the different sections and what should be included in those sections?

Difficulty Level: Hard

7. Explain the importance of good writing in reporting research. How is revision part of this process?

Difficulty Level: Medium

8. How might an applied research report differ from a journal article? Explain the differences, while describing the content of report sections that differ between these two types of writing.

Difficulty Level: Hard

Difficulty Level: Easy

10. List at least five ethical guidelines to follow when writing a research report. Explain the importance of each.

Difficulty Level: Hard