Experiments
A researcher assigns participants to either an experimental or a placebo group without informing them. The researcher's students who test the participants are also unaware of the participants' assigned group. In this scenario, the experiment has used a
A. single-blind technique.
B. double-blind technique.
C. strong experimental manipulation.
D. behavioral measure.
B. double-blind technique.
What is the difference between true experimental designs and quasi-experimental designs?
A. True experimental designs use random assignment, whereas quasi-experimental designs do not.
B. True experimental designs use control groups, whereas quasi-experimental designs do not.
C. Quasi-experimental designs use random assignment, whereas true experimental designs do not.
D. Quasi-experimental designs use control groups, whereas true experimental designs do not.
A. True experimental designs use random assignment, whereas quasi-experimental designs do not.
A factorial design involves
A. more than one independent variable.
B. specifying the overall effect of a dependent variable.
C. having multiple dependent measures.
D. using one independent variable or factor.
A. more than one independent variable.
Which of the following behaviors does not represent plagiarism?
A. including a copied sentence without using quotation marks or a reference citation
B. representing another's work as one's own
C. paraphrasing the actual words of another source without citation
D. including a personal idea or research finding in one's own research
D. including a personal idea or research finding in one's own research
Mark, a scientist, has just read an article in a popular magazine that states, "People who jog live longer than people who do not jog." As a scientist, Mark would most likely
A. make plans to accommodate jogging in his weekly schedule.
B. accept the statement as true.
C. want to see the study that led to this conclusion.
D. reject the idea straightaway.
C. want to see the study that led to this conclusion.
To analyze the effects of a new drug for anxiety developed by Solvit Wellness Inc., researchers conduct a study on two groups. Both of the groups are informed about the usefulness of the drug in treating anxiety. However, only group A receives an injection of the actual drug, while group B receives an injection containing an inert substance. In this scenario, group B is known as a(n)
A. placebo group.
B. high-anxiety group.
C. topical group.
D. experimental group.
A. placebo group.
To study personality development, a researcher studies the same individuals at 11, 14, 21, and 30 years of age. In this case, the researcher is using the _____ method.
A. longitudinal
B. sequential
C. cross-sectional
D. time analysis
A. longitudinal
Identify the design of a study that manipulates the temperature in a room (warm or cold), difficulty of study material (easy, difficult), and the amount of material (low, moderate, high).
A. 2 × 2
B. 2 × 3
C. 2 × 2 × 3
D. 3 × 3
E. 2 × 2 × 2
C. 2 × 2 × 3
Which of the following statements would be appropriate for the method section of a research report?
A. Past research shows that men generally talk more than women.
B. For men, the average time spent talking was 10.7 minutes while for women, the average was 7.4 minutes.
C. While three men and three women discussed an issue, an experimenter measured time spent talking using a stopwatch.
D. Contrary to popular belief, in groups of mixed gender, men talk more than women, interrupt more than women, and are more likely to direct discussion topics.
C. While three men and three women discussed an issue, an experimenter measured time spent talking using a stopwatch.
Javier wants to know what teenagers believe is the most significant social problem faced by today's youth. Which type of question would be the most useful to Javier in this scenario?
A. closed-ended
B. double-barreled
C. open-ended
D. loaded
C. open-ended
Dunn et al. (2005) conducted an experiment of the relationship between exercise and depression. Participants were randomly assigned to either a low or a high intensity workout regime. Some were assigned to work out 3 days a week, while other participants worked out 5 days a week. Identify the independent variable(s) in this study.
A. energy condition
B. the participants' interest in exercise and health conditions
C. the amount of exercise and the frequency of exercise
D. depression
C. the amount of exercise and the frequency of exercise
Selection differences are less likely to occur when researchers
A. use pre-existing groups found in natural settings.
B. randomly assign participants to groups.
C. allow participants to assign themselves to groups.
D. use the nonequivalent control group design.
B. randomly assign participants to groups.
A researcher studies the effect of room music (fast, slow) and room cleanliness (tidy, untidy) on people's dining experience at a restaurant. How many main effects are possible?
A. 2
B. 4
C. 8
D. 1
A. 2
Kathy is writing a section of a research report in which she explains the possible reasons for results in her study and suggestions for practical applications of the research and future research ideas. Kathy is most likely writing the _____ section.
A. conclusion
B. method
C. results
D. discussion
D. discussion
In the context of variables and measurement scales, categorizing automobiles as American-made or foreign-made is an example of a(n) _____ scale.
A. ratio
B. ordinal
C. interval
D. nominal
D. nominal
When testing the effect of noise on the performance of a task, Marco tests half the participants in a cool, quiet room and the other half in a hot, noisy room. In this case, what confounding variable has Marco failed to eliminate?
A. task performance
B. noise level
C. gender of the participants
D. room temperature
D. room temperature
Why is the cross-sectional method more common than the longitudinal method?
A. The results are obtained relatively quickly and it is less expensive.
B. The developmental change is observed directly among the same group of people.
C. The differences among groups of different ages reflect developmental age changes.
D. The results observed are based on comparisons among different cohorts of individuals.
A. The results are obtained relatively quickly and it is less expensive.
A researcher manipulates a defendant's appearance (attractive, average, or unattractive) and gender (male or female) to study how these variables affect judgments of criminal behavior. How many interactions are possible in this design?
A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. 6
A. 1
_____ is the process by which scientists with expertise in a particular field assess a study before it is published in a top-quality scientific journal.
A. Applied research
B. Peer review
C. Program evaluation
D. Temporal precedence
B. Peer review
In the case of knowing that watching television violence is a predictor of actual aggression, which of the following types of evidence emphasizes the need to know that aggression followed television viewing occurred?
A. temporal precedence
B. covariation of cause and effect
C. elimination of alternative explanations
D. observational analysis
A. temporal precedence
A researcher examines the effect of noise levels on reading comprehension. He finds that the participants who were tested received the highest scores for their comprehension irrespective of the noise levels. The results are most likely due to a ________ effect.
A. fatigue
B. performance
C. ceiling
D. floor
C. ceiling
Ethan concludes that there is no difference in the driving ability of drivers who have consumed one can of beer and those who have consumed three cans of beer. However, there actually is a difference in the driving ability of the drivers. In this case, Ethan has made a(n) _____ error.
A. null
B. alpha
C. Type I
D. Type II
D. Type II
Dr. Parker finds that judgments of responsibility for an automobile accident is greater for male drivers if the outcome is severe rather than mild. However, for female drivers, ratings are the same irrespective of the outcome. These findings suggest
A. a main effect of responsibility.
B. a main effect of outcome.
C. an interaction between gender and responsibility.
D. an interaction between gender and outcome.
D. an interaction between gender and outcome.
In the context of conducting a PsycINFO search, an advantage of using the asterisk (*) is that
A. it returns a bibliography of articles.
B. it returns only the "key article" related to a topic.
C. it expands the scope of a search.
D. it includes only those articles that are relevant to the researcher conducting the research.
C. it expands the scope of a search.
To assess the reliability of a measure, Julie administers different versions of the same test to the same individuals at two points in time. This procedure is an example of
A. test-retest reliability.
B. interrater reliability.
C. alternate forms reliability.
D. split-half reliability.
C. alternate forms reliability.