Exam 1: Introduction and Research Methods

Which of the following phrases would be an acceptable operational definition for anxiety?

Even though Dr. Castro does not agree with Freud's psychoanalytic approach, she still thinks that unconscious processes and interpersonal relationships are critical to explaining human behavior. Thus, Dr. Castro follows the _____ perspective in psychology.

What roles did Ivan Pavlov, John B. Watson, and B. F. Skinner play in the founding of behaviorism?

The purpose of using a double-blind research design is to:

Sigmund Freud:

In contrast to the experimental method, the basic goal of the descriptive method is to:

Educational psychologists use psychological theory and knowledge to enhance athletic performance, motivation, and consistency.

Every day on the World Wide Web, people can participate in an opinion poll about current news events at the CNN.com Web site. How do scientifically conducted surveys differ from such surveys?

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a noninvasive imaging technique that uses magnetic fields to map brain activity by measuring changes in the brain's blood flow and oxygen levels.

With which behaviorist would you associate the procedures of reinforcement and punishment for shaping the behavior of rats and pigeons?

What is humanistic psychology, and who advocated this approach?

At the conclusion of the Crum and Langer hotel experiment:

In the Crum and Langer hotel experiment, the participants were selected because they were elderly people who believed that their health was "excellent."

The results of experiments conducted in the laboratory may not _____ well, meaning that the results cannot be applied to real-world situations or to more general populations beyond the participants in the study.

Dr. Meziere is giving a presentation on her research at the Annual Symposium of Health Psychologists. Which of the following is the most likely title for her presentation?

What is the method of naturalistic observation, and what are some of its advantages?

Dr. Kiecolt-Glaser is a health psychologist studying whether stress impairs the body's ability to heal. In the highly stressful week before final exams, Dr. Kiecolt-Glaser gives dental students an oral punch biopsy in which a small sample of gum tissue is removed. She then records the number of days for the oral wound to completely heal. Dr. Kiecolt-Glaser gives the same dental students a second oral punch biopsy during summer vacation. Once again, she records the number of days until the oral wound completely heals. What is the independent variable in this study?

Joanna has suffered a series of personal setbacks, including the death of a family member, academic problems in college, and a divorce. She feels so sad, upset, and lonely that she is contemplating suicide. Joanna could probably best be helped by a(n) _____ psychologist.

Developmental psychologists study the physical, social, and psychological changes that occur throughout the lifespan, from conception to death.

The use of deception in psychology experiments has been banned by the American Psychological Association since the 1960s.