Exam 2: Reading and Evaluating Scientific Research

Collecting objective data without interference in the subject's normal environment is associated with ________. a. survey research b. applied research c. laboratory research d. naturalistic observation

A teacher notices that on the last science test, some students did very well, while other students performed poorly or had grades in the middle of the pack. If she wanted to measure how "spread out" all of the scores were, which descriptive statistic could she use?

Dr. Potter, an English professor, is curious about his students' attitudes toward one of his favorite books. What research method is he most likely to use to gather this information?

If researchers find a statistically significant result, they would be likely to find the same result if they replicated the study again.

In an experiment to test the effects of anxiety on performance, the dependent variable is the __________. a. amount of anxiety b. age of the person c. person's performance d. cause of the anxiety

In psychological studies, randomization is used to ensure that: a. there will be an independent and dependent variable. b. each person has an equal chance of being assigned to each group. c. the control group does not know the purpose of the study. d. the experimenter won't know who is in each group.

The purpose of an experiment is to discover whether there is a relationship between the ___________ and the ___________. a. independent variable; control variable b. dependent variable; control variable c. control group; experimental group d. independent variable; dependent variable

An experiment is said to be __________ when neither researchers nor participants are aware of who is in the experimental or control group.

A scientist, conducting a research study on sleep and learning, questions her own objectivity and decides to let a third person, not associated with conducting the experiment, score the tests. The scientist is probably trying to eliminate __________. a. experimenter bias b. sample bias c. control bias d. treatment bias

Observing behavior as it happens in real-life natural settings without imposing laboratory controls is known as the __________. a. naturalistic observation method b. experimental method c. correlational method d. psychometric approach

Which of the following statements is true about naturalistic observation?

The peer review process is designed to:

Which of the following is NOT a descriptive research method?

According to your text, which of the following have researchers concluded about the effects of meditation on stress?

Which of these is an essential concern regarding ethical principles for human research?

Although not ideal, researchers often use _______________ samples, which are samples of individuals that are the most readily available.

Professor Todd decides to test her hypothesis that eating chocolate prior to exams increases students' test scores. She randomly assigns students to two groups at the beginning of the semester. One group receives a bar of chocolate before each test, while the other group receives another type of candy. She compares their scores at the end of the year, and finds that the students who ate the chocolate scored an average of ten points higher on their exams. What is the dependent variable in this experiment?

A "fake treatment" is one way to define a ______. a. decoy b. demand characteristic c. control group d. placebo

Dr. Nolen wants to know the effects of removing portions of one's hippocampi on long-term memory, in the hopes of one day finding a cure for patients with Alzheimer's disease. The subjects for his study are most likely to be ___________.

In order to organize and summarize a large set of data, use a set of mathematical techniques called