Test Bank Answers Ch.4 Scientific Method & Research Designs

Test Bank

Chapter 4: How Psychologists Use the Scientific Method: Data Collection Techniques and Research Designs

Multiple Choice

1. Ruling out alternative explanations for results increases the ______ validity.

a. subjective

b. objective

c. external

d. internal

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: How Psychologists Use the Scientific Method

Difficulty Level: Easy

2. Of the following, ______ is a not a good operational definition for “hunger.”

a. number of times someone’s stomach makes an audible rumble in 2 hours

b. general feeling of emptiness in one’s stomach

c. number of minutes since someone last ate any food

d. blood sugar levels

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Data Collection Techniques

Difficulty Level: Medium

3. Observing behaviors as they occur in an individual’s natural environment uses the ______ observation technique.

a. naturalistic

b. survey

c. systematic

d. archival

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Naturalistic Observation

Difficulty Level: Easy

4. Videotaping individuals at work to look for off-task behaviors is an example of ______ observation technique.

a. naturalistic

b. survey

c. systematic

d. archival

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Naturalistic Observation

Difficulty Level: Medium

5. Asking individuals to respond to questions or rate items according to their attitudes or behaviors uses the ______ observation technique.

a. naturalistic

b. survey

c. systematic

d. archival

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Surveys/Questionnaires

Difficulty Level: Easy

6. Asking individuals to rate how often each of 20 items related to depression symptoms occurs in their daily lives is an example of ______ observation technique.

a. naturalistic

b. survey

c. systematic

d. archival

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Surveys/Questionnaires

Difficulty Level: Medium

7. Asking individuals to complete a task under controlled conditions uses the ______ observation technique.

a. naturalistic

b. survey

c. systematic

d. archival

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Systematic Observation

Difficulty Level: Easy

8. Measuring how quickly individuals can perform a scrambled sentence task is an example of ______ observation technique.

a. naturalistic

b. survey

c. systematic

d. archival

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Systematic Observation

Difficulty Level: Medium

9. Looking up records of behaviors that have already occurred uses the ______ observation technique.

a. naturalistic

b. survey

c. systematic

d. archival

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.1: Compare different ways to observe behavior in a research study

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Using Archival Data

Difficulty Level: Easy

10. Using records of car crashes where individuals were not wearing seatbelts to measure use of seatbelt behavior is an example of ______ observation technique.

a. naturalistic

b. survey

c. systematic

d. archival

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Using Archival Data

Difficulty Level: Medium

11. The research design that allows researchers to gain a lot of descriptive information about a single individual or institution is a(n) ______.

a. experiment

b. quasi-experiment

c. case study

d. correlational study

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Case Studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

12. Studies of the amnesiac H.M. used the ______ research design.

a. experimental

b. quasi-experimental

c. case study

d. correlational

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Case Studies

Difficulty Level: Medium

13. The research design that allows researchers to answer descriptive and predictive questions about the relationship between different measured variables is a(n) ______.

a. experiment

b. quasi-experiment

c. case study

d. correlational study

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Correlational Studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

14. A researcher who examines the relationship between individuals’ tooth flossing frequency and the incidence of heart disease in these individuals is using the ______ research design.

a. experimental

b. quasi-experimental

c. case study

d. correlational

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Correlational Studies

Difficulty Level: Medium

15. The research design that allows researchers to answer causal questions about manipulated and measured variables is a(n) ______.

a. experiment

b. quasi-experiment

c. case study

d. correlational study

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Experiments

Difficulty Level: Easy

16. A researcher who examines the causal relationship between amount of exercise (randomly assigned as 30 minutes per day or none) and memory abilities is using the ______ research design.

a. experimental

b. quasi-experimental

c. case study

d. correlational

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Experiments

Difficulty Level: Medium

17. The research design that allows researchers to compare groups of individuals on a measured variable based on characteristics of the individuals is a(n) ______.

a. experiment

b. quasi-experiment

c. case study

d. correlational study

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Quasi-Experiments

Difficulty Level: Easy

18. A researcher who examines the difference in anxiety level between individuals who smoke and those who do not smoke is using the ______ research design.

a. experimental

b. quasi-experimental

c. case study

d. correlational

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Quasi-Experiments

Difficulty Level: Medium

19. A study is conducted to examine the effect of instruction type on test scores. Participants in the study are asked to complete a simple math test with either time limit instructions (i.e., the participants are told they must complete the test within 3 minutes) or no time limit instructions (i.e., the participants are not given a time limit for the test). Participants are randomly assigned to one of the instruction types. The independent variable in this study is ______.

a. time limit instructions

b. no time limit instructions

c. instruction type

d. not present (i.e., there is no independent variable in this study)

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Experiments

Difficulty Level: Hard

20. For the instruction type study in the above question (19), the dependent variable is ______.

a. test scores

b. time limit instructions

c. instruction type

d. there is no dependent variable in this study

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Experiments

Difficulty Level: Hard

21. The degree to which the behavior observed in the study is realistic, would occur naturally, and can be generalized beyond the boundaries of the study to other individuals and situations is ______ validity.

a. external

b. internal

c. subjective

d. objective

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: How Psychologists Use the Scientific Method

Difficulty Level: Easy

22. Making sure observers are categorizing behaviors the same way increases ______.

a. external validity

b. internal validity

c. subjective validity

d. reliability

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: How Psychologists Use the Scientific Method

Difficulty Level: Easy

23. A measure of the degree to which different observers rate behaviors in similar ways is called ______.

a. inter-rater validity

b. inter-rater reliability

c. subjective validity

d. subjective reliability

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Naturalistic Observation

Difficulty Level: Easy

24. When surveys are used, participants are often asked to use a response scale (e.g., 1 to 5 or 1 to 7) or response category (e.g., often, sometimes, not very often, never) that matches how they feel about a behavior or how likely they are to exhibit the behavior. This is called a(n) ______ response scale.

a. closed-ended

b. open-ended

c. ambiguous

d. behavior

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Surveys/Questionnaires

Difficulty Level: Medium

25. Participants who want to portray themselves more positively to the researcher and intentionally respond in a way that achieves that goal biases the results of a survey and is called ______.

a. peer pressure

b. social appeal

c. social pressure

d. social desirability

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Surveys/Questionnaires

Difficulty Level: Easy

26. Inter-rater reliability is also known as ______.

a. inter-observer

b. inter-person

c. inter-participant

d. inter-researcher

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Naturalistic Observation

Difficulty Level: Easy

27. Non-numerical participant responses are considered ______.

a. quantitative data

b. qualitative data

c. non-numerical data

d. invalid data

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Surveys/Questionnaires

Difficulty Level: Easy

28. Numerical data is considered to be ______.

a. quantitative data

b. qualitative data

c. non-numerical data

d. invalid data

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Surveys/Questionnaires

Difficulty Level: Easy

29. The primary disadvantage of using surveys to collect data is that ______.

a. the observations are considered self-reports

b. survey research cannot be published in peer-reviewed journals

c. survey research is not considered to be prestigious

d. survey research used open-ended questions

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Surveys/Questionnaires

Difficulty Level: Easy

30. Systematic observations are often collected in a ______.

a. laboratory setting

b. participant’s homes

c. school

d. church

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Systematic Observation

Difficulty Level: Easy

31. The Beck Anxiety Inventory is an example of ______ research.

a. experimental

b. survey

c. case study

d. correlational

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Surveys/Questionnaires

Difficulty Level: Easy

32. Disadvantages of using archival data include all but ______.

a. the researcher has no control over the circumstances under which the data are collected

b. the researcher has no control on the sampling technique used

c. the researcher has no control on the measures used to observe behavior

d. few resources are needed

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Using Archival Data

Difficulty Level: Easy

33. A ______ relationship indicates that as values on one variable increase, the values on the other variable decrease.

a. positive

b. negative

c. stable

d. invalid

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Correlational Studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

34. A ______ relationship means that the values on the variables change in the same direction (up and down) at the same time.

a. positive

b. negative

c. stable

d. invalid

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Correlational Studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

35. A graph showing the relationship between two dependent variables for a group of individuals is called a ______.

a. dependent graph

b. relational graph

c. scatterplot graph

d. plot-scatter graph

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Correlational Studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

36. The presence of extraneous factors in a study that affect the dependent variable and can decrease the internal validity of the study is the ______ variable problem.

a. predicator

b. outcome

c. third

d. negative

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Correlational Studies

Difficulty Level: Medium

37. A ______ design is an experiment conducted with one or a few participants to better understand the behavior of those individuals.

a. case study

b. small-n

c. limited correlational study

d. factorial study

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Case Studies

Difficulty Level: Medium

38. ______ indicates that a survey measures the behavior it is designed to measure.

a. Deductive reasoning

b. Construct validity

c. Inter-rater validity

d. Cross-tabulation validity

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Validity and Reliability

Difficulty Level: Easy

True/False

1. Some of the observation techniques and research designs that psychologists use tend to allow for higher external validity than others.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: How Psychologists Use the Scientific Method

Difficulty Level: Easy

2. To increase the internal validity of a study, a researcher controls for extraneous factors that can affect the observations.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: How Psychologists Use the Scientific Method

Difficulty Level: Easy

3. An operational definition is a definition of a concrete concept that makes it abstract for the purpose of the research study.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Data Collection Techniques

Difficulty Level: Easy

4. Analyzing the data from a closed-ended response scale would also require the development of a coding scheme because the responses are qualitative rather than quantitative.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Naturalistic Observation

Difficulty Level: Easy

5. Using a validated survey typically gives a researcher observations of behavior that are a step ahead of the other techniques discussed because the validity and reliability of a survey will already have been tested and the survey revised (if necessary) to maximize its accuracy.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Surveys/Questionnaires

Difficulty Level: Easy

6. The Beck Depression Inventory II and Beck Anxiety Inventory are two commonly used surveys in psychological research on mood.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Surveys/Questionnaires

Difficulty Level: Easy

7. Due to their exploratory nature, case studies never focus on rare or unusual cases.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Case Studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

8. If a predictive relationship is examined, the variable that is used to make the prediction is called the outcome variable, and the variable that is being predicted is called the predictor variable.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Correlational Studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

9. A negative relationship indicates that as values on one variable increase, the values on the other variable decrease.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Correlational Studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

10. In a scatterplot, one variable is placed on the x-axis, and the other variable is placed on the r-axis.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Correlational Studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

11. The third-variable problem is the reason researchers cannot determine causation from correlational studies.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Correlational Studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

12. The primary difference between case studies and small-n designs is the goal of the researcher.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Case Studies

Difficulty Level: Easy

13. Archival Analysis is a data collection technique that involves analysis of preexisting data.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Using Archival Data

Difficulty Level: Easy

14. Naturalistic observations have the highest level of external validity amongst the data collection techniques.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Validity and Reliability

Difficulty Level: Medium

15. Corporations may also make archival data sets available to researchers who wish to study workplace behaviors such as work productivity.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Using Archival Data

Difficulty Level: Easy

Essay

1. Describe what archival data research analysis is briefly. Include an example and explain why this analysis is considered time-consuming.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Using Archival Data

Difficulty Level: Medium

2. Discuss the goal of case study research and briefly describe what one would look like.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Case Studies

Difficulty Level: Medium

3. Describe an experiment that tests the effect of amount of caffeine consumption on work productivity. Be sure to label the independent and dependent variables in the study and include your operational definition for “work productivity.”

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.3: Connect ways to observe behavior with research designs they can be used with

REF: Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Experiments

Difficulty Level: Hard

4. What is the difference between an experiment and a quasi-experiment?

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.1: Compare different ways to observe behavior in a research study

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Experiments

Difficulty Level: Medium

5. Explain why use of the naturalistic observation technique is likely to increase the external validity of a study.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Naturalistic Observation

Difficulty Level: Medium

6. Explain why use of the systematic observation technique is likely to increase the internal validity of a study.

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.4: Evaluate internal and external validity of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Systematic Observation

Difficulty Level: Medium

7. What aspects of an experiment allow tests of causal relationships between variables in experimental studies?

KEY: Learning Objective: 4.2: Understand the goals of different research designs

REF: Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Experiments

Difficulty Level: Medium