Test Bank Chapter 8 Population Issues Who We Study Matters!

CHAPTER 8: Population Issues: Who We Study Matters!

True/False Questions

1. Technically, a population consists of the observations or scores of the people, rather than the people themselves.

2. In a research study, if the obtained mean of the observations is close to the population parameter, then in one sense the sample is considered representative of the target population.

3. In a research study, if the null hypothesis is rejected in favor of the alternative hypothesis, then the conclusion is that the mean of scores of treated persons is in general lower than the mean of scores of untreated persons.

4. The first step in the selection of participants for a research study is to create a participant pool.

5. In the context of establishing validity in the absence of random sample selection, the "good enough" principle stipulates that nonrandom samples can have characteristics such that generalization to a certain population is reasonable.

6. Ponterotto and Casas stated that "Knowing the ethnic make-up and mean ages of one’s sample is sufficient in assessing result generalizability."

7. In a one-tailed statistical test, a researcher reserves the option of rejecting the null hypothesis in either direction.

8. In a research study, the most difficult factor to specify in any determination of power is the size of the true effect.

9. If an examination across populations reveals that the causal factors are similar, then the efficacy of interventions would be similar.

10. The cross-national cultural competence (CNCC) model stresses that all individuals from a similar background have the same level of cultural competencies.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Identify the theory that provides the foundation for understanding the process and the implications of selecting participants for a particular study.

1. Control theory
2. Grounded theory
3. Sampling theory
4. Critical theory

2. Technically, a(n) _____ is a subset of the target population.

1. population frame
2. sample
3. effect size
4. observation

3. Which of the following is true of a biased sample?

1. It systematically differs from the target population in some way.
2. It is a sample in which each observation in a target population has an equal chance of being selected.
3. It is representative of a target population.
4. It refers to a sample in which participants receive less desirable treatment.

4. Identify a true statement with regard to a random sample.

1. It is selected in such a way that all observations in a target population do not have an equal chance of being selected.
2. It comprises those individuals who are known to the researcher.
3. It does not guarantee that the sample will be representative of a target population.
4. It involves systematic bias in certain cases.

5. Samuel wants to conduct a study to find out the anxiety levels of college students who are regular drinkers. He goes to different U.S. colleges to get a list of college students who are interested in volunteering for his study. Which step of participant selection is Samuel most likely engaged in?

1. Defining the target population
2. Creating the participant pool
3. Selecting participants
4. Determining the credibility of the participants

6. Holland's theory of vocational types proposes that individuals’ career choices are linked with their personality types. To examine this theory, a sample with a wide spectrum of career focuses and personality types would be ideal. Which of the following samples of populations would be most suited to test this theory?

1. Retired officers from the military
2. Doctors serving in a community hospital
3. Undergraduate university students across different majors
4. Social workers in a children's home

7. Karen is interested in studying the prevalence of suicidal ideation in her clients who are suffering from schizophrenia. She selects a random sample from the list of clients she had treated in the previous year. Although she engages in the random selection of participants, when she begins to analyze her data, she realizes that the clients in her sample are generally younger than those who did not participate in the study. This finding:

1. impacts the generalizability of the results to all her clients who are suffering from schizophrenia.
2. indicates that instead of random sampling, she chose participants in an orderly way from the target population.
3. confirms the systematical similarity of Karen’s sample to the population.
4. shows that each observation in the population has an equal chance of being selected.

8. Statistical power of a study depends on:

1. the beta level.
2. the functionality of the statistical test.
3. the number of participants.
4. the size of the stimulus.

9. Which of the following is a true statement about determining sample size in a study?

1. The probability that the sample is representative of the target population increases with the increase in sample size.
2. Rules of thumb about sample sizes are highly accurate and help researchers decide the sample size.
3. As the number of participants in an experiment increases, the researchers are better able to detect the effect.
4. The effect size must be stipulated after the sample size is stipulated.

10. In the context of the use of factorial designs to study external validity, an _____ indicates that the levels of the independent variable interact with the person variable to produce different outcomes.

1. intervention effect
2. interaction effect
3. interrelation effect
4. interdependence effect