Question 1

Which of the following is among the functions of the ordinal level of measurement?

Accepted Answer

A)  to allow distances between categories to be exactly defined 
B)  to allow distance to be measured between high and low 
C)  to allow analysts to say that one case is twice as large as another 
D)  to allow categories to be ordered from high to low 
A)  to allow distances between categories to be exactly defined 
B)  to allow distance to be measured between high and low 
C)  to allow analysts to say that one case is twice as large as another 
D)  to allow categories to be ordered from high to low D

Question 2

Which of these statements is the best example of a hypothesis?

Accepted Answer

A)  Gender is associated with political views. 
B)  Sex hormones influence political views. 
C)  Women are more likely than men to favour government policies intended to help the homeless. 
D)  Men and women likely differ in their attitudes toward housing and homelessness policies. 
A)  Gender is associated with political views. 
B)  Sex hormones influence political views. 
C)  Women are more likely than men to favour government policies intended to help the homeless. 
D)  Men and women likely differ in their attitudes toward housing and homelessness policies. D

Question 3

Suppose a researcher wants to understand public attitudes about drug legalization in Canada, but it is not feasible for her to interview every person living in the country. Which of the following should she do?

Accepted Answer

A)  find and interview a large number of drug users 
B)  use discrete measurement techniques to find the ideal number of Canadians to interview 
C)  carefully employ bivariate descriptive statistics to show how drug users' attitudes differ from those of non-users 
D)  devise a representative sample from the population and use inferential statistics to make generalizations about the Canadian public 
A)  find and interview a large number of drug users 
B)  use discrete measurement techniques to find the ideal number of Canadians to interview 
C)  carefully employ bivariate descriptive statistics to show how drug users' attitudes differ from those of non-users 
D)  devise a representative sample from the population and use inferential statistics to make generalizations about the Canadian public D

Question 4

"Among employees at a software company, having a post-graduate degree was associated with level of seniority." Which of the following is this statement an example of?

Accepted Answer

A)  inductive statistics 
B)  inferential statistics 
C)  bivariate descriptive statistics 
D)  univariate descriptive statistics 
A)  inductive statistics 
B)  inferential statistics 
C)  bivariate descriptive statistics 
D)  univariate descriptive statistics

Question 5

A researcher conducts a survey of 90 men and women aged 65. The purpose of the survey is to determine attitudes toward work and retirement. Why can "age" not represent a variable in the researcher's analysis?

Accepted Answer

A)  Age probably has little to do with attitudes about work and retirement. 
B)  Age does not differ from case to case (person to person). 
C)  Gender is actually the independent variable in this example, and attitudes are a dependent variable. 
D)  There are not enough cases to conduct an appropriate survey. 
A)  Age probably has little to do with attitudes about work and retirement. 
B)  Age does not differ from case to case (person to person). 
C)  Gender is actually the independent variable in this example, and attitudes are a dependent variable. 
D)  There are not enough cases to conduct an appropriate survey.

Question 6

Which of the following is an example of data reduction?

Accepted Answer

A)  a graph representing the musical preferences of 500 university students 
B)  a list of students' grade levels from a 100-student university class 
C)  a sample of 50 residents drawn from a 250-resident neighbourhood 
D)  a decision to reduce the size of a study from a 100-person sample to a 25-person sample 
A)  a graph representing the musical preferences of 500 university students 
B)  a list of students' grade levels from a 100-student university class 
C)  a sample of 50 residents drawn from a 250-resident neighbourhood 
D)  a decision to reduce the size of a study from a 100-person sample to a 25-person sample

Question 7

Some research situations are summarized below. For each situation, which variable is the independent variable and which is the dependent variable? Indicate what level of measurement is being used for each variable.
a. A university's office of academic excellence examines whether high-school grade point averages predict university grade point averages.
b. A manufacturing company explores whether temperature affects orders of its products by retail stores.
c. A professor of a large writing composition class assesses whether students' academic field (engineering, science, humanities, social sciences) predicts how many times they miss class during the semester.

Accepted Answer

a. The independent variable is high-scho

Question 8

According to the "wheel of science," which of these factors generates a hypothesis?

Accepted Answer

A)  observation 
B)  statistics 
C)  empirical generalizations 
D)  theory 
A)  observation 
B)  statistics 
C)  empirical generalizations 
D)  theory

Question 9

What should a researcher do if he or she fears that a nominal variable's categories are not sufficiently homogeneous?

Accepted Answer

A)  convert the variable to interval-ratio form 
B)  revert to descriptive analysis 
C)  delete some of the categories for the variable 
D)  generate extra categories so that cases are classified with enough specificity for the researcher's purposes 
A)  convert the variable to interval-ratio form 
B)  revert to descriptive analysis 
C)  delete some of the categories for the variable 
D)  generate extra categories so that cases are classified with enough specificity for the researcher's purposes

Question 10

When are addition and subtraction completely justified?

Accepted Answer

A)  only when variables are ordinal 
B)  only when variables are nominal 
C)  only when variables are interval-ratio 
D)  only when variables are discrete 
A)  only when variables are ordinal 
B)  only when variables are nominal 
C)  only when variables are interval-ratio 
D)  only when variables are discrete

Question 11

Which sentence describes the role of theory in the research process?

Accepted Answer

A)  develops generalizations based on patterns 
B)  provides a specific, exact relationship among variables 
C)  attempts to explain the relationship between phenomena 
D)  measures social reality 
A)  develops generalizations based on patterns 
B)  provides a specific, exact relationship among variables 
C)  attempts to explain the relationship between phenomena 
D)  measures social reality

Question 12

Which of these factors is a discrete variable?

Accepted Answer

A)  cars owned 
B)  blood pressure 
C)  home square footage 
D)  currency exchange rate 
A)  cars owned 
B)  blood pressure 
C)  home square footage 
D)  currency exchange rate

Question 13

Which of these statements illustrates the limitations of statistics in social scientific inquiry?

Accepted Answer

A)  Statistical analysis cannot help generate empirical generalizations. 
B)  Theories can be developed only prior to statistical analysis. 
C)  Sophisticated statistical analyses cannot fix poorly conceived study designs. 
D)  Statistical analysis is useless if we want to summarize ordinal-level variables. 
A)  Statistical analysis cannot help generate empirical generalizations. 
B)  Theories can be developed only prior to statistical analysis. 
C)  Sophisticated statistical analyses cannot fix poorly conceived study designs. 
D)  Statistical analysis is useless if we want to summarize ordinal-level variables.

Question 14

Briefly describe how a theory differs from a hypothesis in social science research.
? A theory explains how phenomena are related. It uses the terminology of "variables," specifying that an independent variable has an effect on a dependent variable.
? Scientific theories are general and abstract explanations, so hypotheses must be devised.
? ? hypothesis is a statement about the relationship between variables, and while logically derived from the theory, it is much more specific and exact.

Accepted Answer

In social science research, a theory and

Question 15

Which of these factors is NOT a nominal-level variable?

Accepted Answer

A)  religious denomination 
B)  political affiliation 
C)  frequency of yoga or mediation practice 
D)  sexual preference 
A)  religious denomination 
B)  political affiliation 
C)  frequency of yoga or mediation practice 
D)  sexual preference

Question 16

What are measures of association used for?

Accepted Answer

A)  They provide clues as to whether one variable causes another. 
B)  They allow us to predict with perfect accuracy how one variable causes another. 
C)  They tell us whether we can generalize from our sample to the larger population. 
D)  They tell us which variable should be the dependent variable in our theory. 
A)  They provide clues as to whether one variable causes another. 
B)  They allow us to predict with perfect accuracy how one variable causes another. 
C)  They tell us whether we can generalize from our sample to the larger population. 
D)  They tell us which variable should be the dependent variable in our theory.

Question 17

Which of these terms applies to a variable measuring how many times a person has voted in local elections over their lifetime?

Accepted Answer

A)  ordinal measurement 
B)  interval-ratio measurement 
C)  inferential measurement 
D)  nominal measurement 
A)  ordinal measurement 
B)  interval-ratio measurement 
C)  inferential measurement 
D)  nominal measurement

Question 18

What do interval-ratio and ordinal variables have in common?

Accepted Answer

A)  Scores can be ranked from least to greatest. 
B)  They have the ability to precisely quantify the difference between two scores. 
C)  They cannot be used for descriptive statistics. 
D)  They do not use discrete forms of measurement. 
A)  Scores can be ranked from least to greatest. 
B)  They have the ability to precisely quantify the difference between two scores. 
C)  They cannot be used for descriptive statistics. 
D)  They do not use discrete forms of measurement.

Question 19

Which of these types of variable permits the broadest range of mathematical operations?

Accepted Answer

A)  interval-ratio 
B)  nominal 
C)  inferential 
D)  discrete 
A)  interval-ratio 
B)  nominal 
C)  inferential 
D)  discrete

Question 20

Variables measured at the ordinal level are limited to one mathematical operation. Which one is it?

Accepted Answer

A)  multiplication 
B)  addition 
C)  ranking cases as higher or lower, more or less 
D)  counting the number of cases per category 
A)  multiplication 
B)  addition 
C)  ranking cases as higher or lower, more or less 
D)  counting the number of cases per category

Which of the following is among the functions of the ordinal level of measurement?

Which of these statements is the best example of a hypothesis?

Suppose a researcher wants to understand public attitudes about drug legalization in Canada, but it is not feasible for her to interview every person living in the country. Which of the following should she do?

"Among employees at a software company, having a post-graduate degree was associated with level of seniority." Which of the following is this statement an example of?

A researcher conducts a survey of 90 men and women aged 65. The purpose of the survey is to determine attitudes toward work and retirement. Why can "age" not represent a variable in the researcher's analysis?

Which of the following is an example of data reduction?

According to the "wheel of science," which of these factors generates a hypothesis?

What should a researcher do if he or she fears that a nominal variable's categories are not sufficiently homogeneous?

When are addition and subtraction completely justified?

Which sentence describes the role of theory in the research process?

Which of these factors is a discrete variable?

Which of these statements illustrates the limitations of statistics in social scientific inquiry?

Which of these factors is NOT a nominal-level variable?

What are measures of association used for?

Which of these terms applies to a variable measuring how many times a person has voted in local elections over their lifetime?

What do interval-ratio and ordinal variables have in common?

Which of these types of variable permits the broadest range of mathematical operations?

Variables measured at the ordinal level are limited to one mathematical operation. Which one is it?

Basic Descriptive Statistics: Percentages, Ratios and Rates, Tables, Charts, and Graphs

Measures of Central Tendency and Dispersion

The Normal Curve

Introduction to Inferential Statistics: Sampling and the Sampling Distribution

Estimation Procedures for Sample Means and Proportions

Hypothesis Testing With Nominal and Ordinal Variables: CHI Square

Measures of Association for Variables Measured at the Nominal Level

Measures of Association for Variables Measured at the Ordinal Level

Hypothesis Testing With Means and Proportions: The One-Sample Case

Hypothesis Testing With Means and Proportions: The Two-Sample Case

Hypothesis Testing With More Than Two Means: One-Way Analysis of Variance

Hypothesis Testing and Measures of Association for Variables Measured at the Interval-Ratio Level

Partial Correlation and Multiple Regression and Correlation

Filters

Exam 1: Introduction

Which of the following is among the functions of the ordinal level of measurement?

Which of these statements is the best example of a hypothesis?

Suppose a researcher wants to understand public attitudes about drug legalization in Canada, but it is not feasible for her to interview every person living in the country. Which of the following should she do?

"Among employees at a software company, having a post-graduate degree was associated with level of seniority." Which of the following is this statement an example of?

A researcher conducts a survey of 90 men and women aged 65. The purpose of the survey is to determine attitudes toward work and retirement. Why can "age" not represent a variable in the researcher's analysis?

Which of the following is an example of data reduction?

According to the "wheel of science," which of these factors generates a hypothesis?

What should a researcher do if he or she fears that a nominal variable's categories are not sufficiently homogeneous?

When are addition and subtraction completely justified?

Which sentence describes the role of theory in the research process?

Which of these factors is a discrete variable?

Which of these statements illustrates the limitations of statistics in social scientific inquiry?

Which of these factors is NOT a nominal-level variable?

What are measures of association used for?

Which of these terms applies to a variable measuring how many times a person has voted in local elections over their lifetime?

What do interval-ratio and ordinal variables have in common?

Which of these types of variable permits the broadest range of mathematical operations?

Variables measured at the ordinal level are limited to one mathematical operation. Which one is it?

Basic Descriptive Statistics: Percentages, Ratios and Rates, Tables, Charts, and Graphs

Measures of Central Tendency and Dispersion

The Normal Curve

Introduction to Inferential Statistics: Sampling and the Sampling Distribution

Estimation Procedures for Sample Means and Proportions

Hypothesis Testing With Nominal and Ordinal Variables: CHI Square

Measures of Association for Variables Measured at the Nominal Level

Measures of Association for Variables Measured at the Ordinal Level

Hypothesis Testing With Means and Proportions: The One-Sample Case

Hypothesis Testing With Means and Proportions: The Two-Sample Case

Hypothesis Testing With More Than Two Means: One-Way Analysis of Variance

Hypothesis Testing and Measures of Association for Variables Measured at the Interval-Ratio Level

Partial Correlation and Multiple Regression and Correlation

Filters