Exam 2: Theory and Models

Many cities have created non-emergency phone numbers that citizens can call with questions or comments about public services .However, complaints about government services may rise just because complaining is easier .In cities with very low service quality, that relationship may not be as strong because citizens were already making a lot of complaints through other means .On the other hand, citizens often appreciate the non-emergency phone number service, which can improve local government's reputation, and in turn, decrease the number of complaints about government .Other factors, of course, affect the number of complaints besides the non-emergency phone number .For example, news coverage of local government affairs may raise awareness of particular issues and generate additional complaints. A foundation interested in local government affairs developed a logic model and research design to test these hypotheses .The foundation wanted to find out whether the rate of citizen complaints about local government was higher in cities with non-emergency lines, and whether the number of complaints increased after cities adopted non-emergency phone numbers. $+$ Which of the following is a mediator (intervening) variable in this model?

A ______________ is a graphical or mathematical representation that serves to articulate and communicate a theory.

In the statement "Raising taxes stifles economic growth" which of the following are true:

Theories:

________________ variables represent steps in the causal process leading from the independent to the dependent variable.

Many cities have created non-emergency phone numbers that citizens can call with questions or comments about public services .However, complaints about government services may rise just because complaining is easier .In cities with very low service quality, that relationship may not be as strong because citizens were already making a lot of complaints through other means .On the other hand, citizens often appreciate the non-emergency phone number service, which can improve local government's reputation, and in turn, decrease the number of complaints about government .Other factors, of course, affect the number of complaints besides the non-emergency phone number .For example, news coverage of local government affairs may raise awareness of particular issues and generate additional complaints. A foundation interested in local government affairs developed a logic model and research design to test these hypotheses .The foundation wanted to find out whether the rate of citizen complaints about local government was higher in cities with non-emergency lines, and whether the number of complaints increased after cities adopted non-emergency phone numbers. $+$ Which of the following is NOT an independent variable in the model?

Hypotheses are:

A _____________ represents the objects or things described by the variables in a model, and can also be thought of as the level of aggregation or disaggregation.

A theory has observable implications .In other words, it generates

Many cities have created non-emergency phone numbers that citizens can call with questions or comments about public services .However, complaints about government services may rise just because complaining is easier .In cities with very low service quality, that relationship may not be as strong because citizens were already making a lot of complaints through other means .On the other hand, citizens often appreciate the non-emergency phone number service, which can improve local government's reputation, and in turn, decrease the number of complaints about government .Other factors, of course, affect the number of complaints besides the non-emergency phone number .For example, news coverage of local government affairs may raise awareness of particular issues and generate additional complaints. A foundation interested in local government affairs developed a logic model and research design to test these hypotheses .The foundation wanted to find out whether the rate of citizen complaints about local government was higher in cities with non-emergency lines, and whether the number of complaints increased after cities adopted non-emergency phone numbers. $+$ Which of the following is a moderator variable in this model?

The path diagram X $\rightarrow$ Y represents a causal theory .An explanation of how change in X produces change in Y is also an important part of the theory; it is called the

Many cities have created non-emergency phone numbers that citizens can call with questions or comments about public services .However, complaints about government services may rise just because complaining is easier .In cities with very low service quality, that relationship may not be as strong because citizens were already making a lot of complaints through other means .On the other hand, citizens often appreciate the non-emergency phone number service, which can improve local government's reputation, and in turn, decrease the number of complaints about government .Other factors, of course, affect the number of complaints besides the non-emergency phone number .For example, news coverage of local government affairs may raise awareness of particular issues and generate additional complaints. A foundation interested in local government affairs developed a logic model and research design to test these hypotheses .The foundation wanted to find out whether the rate of citizen complaints about local government was higher in cities with non-emergency lines, and whether the number of complaints increased after cities adopted non-emergency phone numbers. $+$ Which of the following is NOT a dependent variable in this model?

In the statement, disorder causes crime, disorder is the ____________ variable, and crime is the _______________ variable.

A study looked at World Bank data on the political stability and economic growth of countries in the worlD .It found that more politically stable countries experienced more economic growth .Which of the following is the unit of analysis in this study?

Which is most clearly an example of a positive (not normative) question?

Many cities have created non-emergency phone numbers that citizens can call with questions or comments about public services .However, complaints about government services may rise just because complaining is easier .In cities with very low service quality, that relationship may not be as strong because citizens were already making a lot of complaints through other means .On the other hand, citizens often appreciate the non-emergency phone number service, which can improve local government's reputation, and in turn, decrease the number of complaints about government .Other factors, of course, affect the number of complaints besides the non-emergency phone number .For example, news coverage of local government affairs may raise awareness of particular issues and generate additional complaints. A foundation interested in local government affairs developed a logic model and research design to test these hypotheses .The foundation wanted to find out whether the rate of citizen complaints about local government was higher in cities with non-emergency lines, and whether the number of complaints increased after cities adopted non-emergency phone numbers. $+$ What is the unit of analysis in this model?

Theories are created from a number of sources, including: