Exam 2: Section 4: Methods in Psychology

In an internally valid experiment, the properties under study necessarily cause one another in the world at large.

In a skewed distribution, the peak of the frequency distribution will correspond to the modal score.

Researchers are NOT permitted to serve on institutional review boards.

One feature of a negatively skewed distribution is that the mean is less than the median.

In a double-blind observation, the researcher but not the participant knows the purpose of the study.

Deception is NOT allowable in psychological research.

If people in favor of the death penalty are given mixed evidence about its effectiveness at deterring crime, they generally become less supportive of it.

When it comes to reporting data truthfully, scientists use the honor system.

A random sample means that every member of the population has an equal chance of being included for study.

Only a small percentage of psychological research uses animal subjects.

A researcher's expectations about a study's outcome can influence measurements of that outcome.

Random assignment of participants to groups generally is an effective way of eliminating the third-variable problem.

In a frequency distribution, the average score for each group is plotted on the vertical axis.

The third-variable problem means that the possibility of a third, causal variable is always present in correlational measurements.

In the case method, only one individual is studied.

With respect to why people are difficult to study, variability refers to the fact that people behave differently when they are being studied.

When participants in an experiment behave in a way they think the experimenter wants them to behave, the problem of demand characteristics has developed.

Matched samples effectively rule out specific third-variable correlations, but matched pairs do not.

An internally valid experiment means that accurate conclusions can be drawn about the causal relationship between an independent variable and a dependent variable.

Research suggests that most people engage in critical thinking most of the time.