Research Methods
In order to yield information that is generalizable to the population from which it was drawn, a sample must be:
a. made up of at least 30 members of the population
b. as large as possible
c. normally distributed
d. representative of the population
e. made up of at least 50 percent of the members of the population
d. representative of the population
The area of the brain stem that is important in controlling breathing is the
a. suprachiasmatic nucleus
b. cerebellum
c. limbic system
d. Medulla
e. hippocampus
d. Medulla
Process by which our sensory receptors receive stimulus energies from the environment.
a. sensation
b. perception
c. Absolute threshold
d. Just noticeable difference
e. Parallel process theory
a. sensation
Madeline wants her son to be well-behaved when they go to church. For every five minutes he sits still, she gives him a piece of candy. What type of learning is Madeline employing?
Operant conditioning
Classical conditioning
Observational learning
One-trial learning
Higher-order learning
Operant conditioning
Which of the following is considered the most basic of needs?
Physical safety
Belonging to a community
Procreation
Gaining respect and admiration
Obtaining food and water
Obtaining food and water
Which of the following most accurately describes a dependent variable?
a. Some characteristic of research participants that is constant, such as gender
b. Some aspect of a participant’s response that is measured in an experiment
c. A factor that is manipulated by the experimenter in order to observe its effects on some other factor
d. A factor that can be used to predict how people in an experiment will respond
e. A factor that is equated for the experimental and the control group
b. Some aspect of a participant’s response that is measured in an experiment
A gymnast falls and hits her head on the floor. She attempts to continue practicing but has trouble maintaining balance. What part of her brain has probably been affected?
a. Reticular Formation
b. Cerebellum
c. Amygdala
d. Thalamus
e. Medulla
b. Cerebellum
Process where information processing is guided by higher-level mental processes; constructs perceptions based on experience and expectations
a. Sensation
b. Perception
c. Top-down processing
d. Bottom-up processing
e. Pumpkin
c. Top-down processing
Based on its effects on the central nervous system, alcohol can be classified as
a hallucinogen
a depressant
a neurotransmitter
an antagonist
an agonist
a depressant
The final stage of general adaptation theory is known as
exhaustion
resistance
alarm
habituation
systematic desensitization
exhaustion
Jane Goodall lived among wild chimpanzees intermittently for decades, studying their social and family systems while keeping her interaction with the chimpanzees to a minimum. Her research method can most accurately be described as
(A) survey
(B) case study
(C) experiment
(D) correlational research
(E) naturalistic observation
(E) naturalistic observation
Which of the following is sometimes referred to as the brain’s sensory switchboard, because it directs incoming sensory messages (with the exception of smell) to their proper places in the brain?
a. Hypothalamus
b. Pituitary
c. Cerebellum
d. Limbic System
e. Thalamus
e. Thalamus
What is the effect related to your ability to attend to only one voice among many?
a. Change blindness
b. Cocktail party effect
c. Opponent affect
d. Inattentional blindness
e. Selective attention
b. Cocktail party effect
Which of the following groups of characteristics best describes the REM sleep stage?
Fast breathing, relatively high heart rate, relatively high blood pressure
Possible muscle contractions and sensations of falling
Likelihood of sleepwalking and sleep talking
Slow breathing, low heart rate, low blood pressure
Acting out dreams and bed-wetting
Fast breathing, relatively high heart rate, relatively high blood pressure
Which of the following best supports the hypothesis that basic human emotions, such as sadness, are innate?
a. Individuals typically experience a rise in blood pressure when they are afraid or angry.
b. Most individuals can distinguish between expressions of different basic emotions during the sensorimotor period.
c. Basic emotions are understood and expressed in a similar fashion by individuals from diverse cultures.
d. Most individuals can identify their own emotional states from their physiological symptoms and the context of their present situation.
e. Infants and young animals cry when they are hungry.
c. Basic emotions are understood and expressed in a similar fashion by individuals from diverse cultures.
Professor Ahad has forty-three students in section one of the psychology classes she teaches and fifty-two students in section two. Section one meets at eight a.m. and section two meets at one p.m. Professor Ahad gives all of her students the same final exam, and those in section two score significantly higher than those in section one. Professor Ahad concludes that her section one students are academically inferior to students in section two. The biggest problem with Professor Ahad’s conclusion is that
a. she did not randomly assign the students to her classroom.
b. she needs an equal number of students in each class in order to draw comparisons.
c. there is no dependent variable in this scenario.
d. time of day is a confounding variable in this scenario.
e. she should have used the single-blind method.
d. time of day is a confounding variable in this scenario.
George was involved in an accident and experienced head trauma. Although his eyes were functioning normally, he was unable to see. Which area of the brain was most likely affected by the accident?
b. The occipital lobe
As you watch a friend walk away from you, your retinal image of your friend gets smaller. Despite this, you do not perceive him to be shrinking. This is an example of
a. motion parallax
b. retinal disparity
c. size constancy
d. continuity
e. common fate
c. size constancy
In which of the following scenarios is someone showing evidence of extinction in classical conditioning?
Randy was always worried about his exams in high school and felt anxiety when in the building. However, now that he is a teacher at the same high school the anxiety has gone away.
Marta always associated her mother’s fruitcake with the happiness of the holidays. After being on her own for some time the fruitcake no longer had that association, but when a colleague brought a fruitcake to work she felt the happiness return.
When Clara smells a certain cologne it makes her smile because it reminds her of her first boyfriend, but other colognes do not have that effect on her.
After his first kiss at a school dance, Lester not only gets a warm feeling every time he hears the song that was playing during the kiss, but also whenever he hears a song by the same artist.
Randy was always worried about his exams in high school and felt anxiety when in the building. However, now that he is a teacher at the same high school the anxiety has gone away.
Which of the following concepts provides the best explanation for why people seek to put on warmer clothing when they start to feel cold?
a. Homeostasis
b. Set-point theory
c. Self-serving bias
d. Refractory period
e. Assimilation
a. Homeostasis
An instructor conducted an experiment to determine the effects of two different methods of study on the amount students learned in introductory physics. The results showed that the average amount learned by the group using one method was greater than the average amount learned by the group using the other. However, the difference was not statistically significant. Which of the following is the most appropriate conclusion to be drawn?
a. The group of students attaining the higher mean score had studied more than the other group.
b. The better study method will have different effects for students of varying levels of ability.
c. Neither group learned a significant amount.
d. There is a positive correlation between the results of the two methods.
e. There is a possibility that the difference between the two groups occurred by chance.
e. There is a possibility that the difference between the two groups occurred by chance.
Mary participates in an exercise program because she experiences an increase in energy and feelings of well-being at the end of each exercise session. The best explanation for Mary’s perseverance in the program is that exercise
e. Increases her level of endorphins
Domingo has just hit Play to begin listening to a new song he bought. Based on the structure of the ear, what will the sound waves contact first after moving through Domingo’s auditory canal?
(A) The cochlea
(B) The auditory nerve
(C) The anvil
(D) The stirrup
(E) The eardrum
(E) The eardrum
Which of the following operant conditioning concepts is an example of positive punishment?
Honeybees will automatically stick out their tongue when sugar water is placed on their antennae. If a neutral odor is paired with the sugar water, the bees will eventually stick out their tongue. Finally, if a second neutral odor is paired with the first odor, the bees will learn to stick out their tongue in response to this odor.
As a reward for LaKeisha getting good grades, her parents take her out to dinner at her favorite restaurant.
While driving through the state of Mississippi, Lance was stopped for speeding and had to pay an expensive speeding ticket. As a result, he no longer goes over the speed limit when driving in Mississippi.
Caroline was caught stealing money from her brother’s room. As punishment, her parents said she could not use social media for three weeks.
A rat was taught to dunk a ball into a miniature basketball hoop in order to receive a treat. After the rat stopped receiving treats, it eventually stopped playing basketball. A week later, however, the rat randomly started playing basketball again.
While driving through the state of Mississippi, Lance was stopped for speeding and had to pay an expensive speeding ticket. As a result, he no longer goes over the speed limit when driving in Mississippi.
Which of the following is LEAST likely to affect the immune system’s ability to ward off illness?
a. Exposure to stress associated with final examination week
b. Having a serious argument with a close friend
c. Experiencing the death of a loved one
d. Being around someone who has a serious case of the flu
e. Suffering sleep deprivation due to staying up for several nights writing a research paper
d. Being around someone who has a serious case of the flu