Why Research Methods?
An independent variable is a
variable influencing other variables.
________ research seeks to answer questions such as “What is it?” “What are the characteristics of it?” or “What does it look like?
Descriptive
Conceptions are:
mental or abstract images.
If a sample is selected through a process in which every population element has a known, non-zero chance of being selected, the process is called ______.
probability sampling
Number of arrest would be what level of measurement?
ratio
Fred's biology teacher told him about the "birds and the bees." By relying on his biology teacher's explanation, Fred relies on _____ as a way of knowing.
authority
_______ research is the systematic assessment of the need for, implementation of, or output of a program based on objective criteria
Evaluation
Professor Tilton measured the variable "feelings toward drafting women" with the categories strongly agree, agree, indifferent, disagree, and strongly disagree. Professor Tilton was using the _____ level of measurement.
ordinal
A researcher who uses a list of registered voters as a sampling frame and selects every 5th person on the randomized list is engaging in what kind of sampling?
systematic sampling
Likert scales are designed to be _____ in measurement.
ordinal
A(n) _____ is a testable statement about a relationship between two variables.
hypothesis
_____ is a norm in which subjects base their voluntary participation in research projects on a full understanding of the possible risks involved.
Informed consent
What two characteristics are needed for response categories?
mutually exclusive and exhaustive
You are doing research on hospital personnel—orderlies, technicians, nurses, and doctors. You want to be sure you draw a sample that has cases in each of the personnel categories. You want to use probability sampling. An appropriate strategy would be:
stratified sampling
Professor Smith gave the class an exam on Monday. On Wednesday Professor Smith gave the same class the same exam. Professor Smith was clearly interested in assessing the exam’s:
reliability
Professor Rodgers found that the average level of happiness reported by people under 65 years of age declined from 1957 to 1970. However, for this same group, the average level of happiness increased slightly from 1970 to 1978. Rodgers also found that the average level of happiness reported by people age 65 and older increased from 1957 to 1978. An(the) independent variable(s) in this study is(are)
age
What institution reviews all reasearch?
Institutional Review Boards
Classifying someone as employed or not employed treats employment as what level of measurement?
nominal
Dr. Smith is instructing his graduate students to put together a sample for an upcoming research study of college students. The graduate students were asked to stand outside of the student union to solicit participants, finding 50 freshmen, 50 sophomores, 50 juniors, and 50 seniors. What sort of sampling method is being used?
Quota sampling
When names are removed from questionnaires and are replaced with identification numbers so that only the researcher can later link a response to a particular name, the researcher should tell the respondent that the information is:
confidential
Ethical obligations to one's colleagues in the scientific community:
require that technical shortcomings and failures of the study be revealed.
Steve had a hunch that female students were more punctual than males in the classes that he taught. So, he began to keep track for a week in each class of how many male and female students came in after the class was scheduled to begin. His results supported his hypothesis. Steve is using
deductive reasoning
A researcher examined newspaper editorials from papers published in major U.S. cities to determine what issues concerned readers. The type and specific unit of analysis in these cases is?
social artifact and the newspaper editorials
In general, as sample size increases:
the standard error decreases in size.
Dr. Ross is looking to examine if the indicators that make up her measurement of romantic attraction are truly related to one another and make for an accurate representation of the variable she is researching. What sort of validity is she examining?
Construct validity