Deck 2: How Psychologists Do Research

Question 1

Tessa agrees to an evaluation designed to tap her unconscious feelings and motives. Tessa will be given a(n):

A) objective test.
B) projective test.
C) double-blind test.
D) single-blind test.

Answer 1

projective test.

Question 2

In a(n) _______________ study, a researcher carefully and systematically watches and records behavior, taking care to avoid affecting the subjects being studied.

A) observational
B) exploratory
C) experimental
D) double-blind

Answer 2

observational

Question 3

A variable that is predicted to be affected by an experimenter's manipulations in experimental research is called a(n):

A) extraneous variable.
B) dependent variable.
C) confounding variable.
D) independent variable.

Answer 3

dependent variable.

Question 4

People who are willing to take part in surveys usually have opinions and views that are different from those who decline to take part. This phenomenon is called:

A) volunteer bias.
B) experimenter's bias.
C) confirmation bias.
D) systematic bias.

Question 5

The tendency to look for information that supports one's own belief is called:

A) the principle of falsifiability.
B) confirmation bias.
C) denialism.
D) cognitive inertia.

Question 6

Psychologists typically consider a result to be significant if it would be expected to occur by chance _______________ times in 100 repetitions of the study.

A) 5 or fewer
B) 10 or fewer
C) 20 or fewer
D) 40 or fewer

Question 7

An organized system of assumptions and principles that purports to explain a specified set of phenomena and their interrelationships is called a(n) _______________.

A) hypothesis
B) operational definition
C) research design
D) theory

Question 8

People who participate in research studies must participate voluntarily and must know enough about the study to make an intelligent decision about participating. This concept is known as:

A) the Milgram doctrine.
B) the APA code.
C) informed consent.
D) human welfare.

Question 9

Which of the following is an advantage of case studies?

A) Case studies produce a more detailed picture of an individual than other methods do.
B) The information produced in a case study is easy to interpret.
C) Data collected during a case study can be easily generalized to other individuals.
D) Case studies are less susceptible to researcher bias than other methods.

Question 10

Research methods that depict behavior, but do not necessarily yield causal explanations, are called:

A) experimental methods.
B) blind studies.
C) significance tests.
D) descriptive methods.

Question 11

A _______________ is a measure of how strongly two variables are related to one another.

A) relationship coefficient
B) meta-analysis
C) Bayesian statistic
D) correlation

Question 12

Which variable does an experimenter manipulate when conducting experimental research?

A) control variable
B) confounding variable
C) independent variable
D) dependent variable

Question 13

Which of the following is an example of a positive correlation?

A) height and weight
B) average income and shoe sizes
C) average income and the incidence of dental disease
D) school grades and number of hours spent playing video games

Question 14

Assessment instruments that are designed to tap unconscious feelings or motives are called:

A) objective tests.
B) projective tests.
C) double-blind tests.
D) single-blind tests.

Question 15

A statement that attempts to predict or account for a set of phenomena is called a(n) _______________.

A) hypothesis
B) axiom
C) corollary
D) theory

Question 16

The tendency to look for information that supports one's own belief is called:

A) the principle of falsifiability.
B) confirmation bias.
C) denialism.
D) cognitive inertia.

Question 17

A result that is significant at the .05 level indicates that:

A) the result was obtained purely by chance and is not real.
B) the probability that the result is due to real differences between groups is .05.
C) there is a positive relationship between variables.
D) the probability that the result occurred by chance is low, and therefore the result is probably real.

Question 18

Dr. Littman-Smith is conducting research in Kenya to learn about the ways that mothers and their toddlers interact as they go about their day. It is most likely that she is engaged in:

A) naturalistic observation.
B) laboratory observation.
C) exploratory research.
D) experimental research.

Question 19

Which of the following pairs of variables would illustrate a negative correlation?

A) ocean temperature and the number of people at the beach
B) adult shoe size and IQ scores
C) the price of a car and the mileage on the odometer
D) height and weight

Question 20

Which of the following is true regarding the use of non-human animals in psychological research?

A) They must give informed consent before being used.
B) They are no longer used in psychological research.
C) Federal regulations governing their housing and care have been strengthened.
D) The APA objects to their use.

Question 21

Which of the following statements about skepticism is correct?

A) Skepticism about a claim is generally unnecessary if the person making the claim is an authority on the topic.
B) Skepticism in science is the willingness to accept an idea without empirical evidence.
C) Skepticism means always refusing to believe the claims of authorities in the field.
D) Good scientists must balance skepticism and openness to new ideas.

Question 22

Which of the following statements is true?

A) Scientists should keep their research covert so as to protect their ideas from plagiarism.
B) It is a waste of time and money to replicate a study that has already been done.
C) Disclosure of the details of a study is important so that others can verify them.
D) Peer reviews take place after research findings are announced publicly.

Question 23

A scientific theory can be thought of as a(n):

A) personal opinion.
B) established truth.
C) system of assumptions.
D) empirical proof.

Question 24

An operational definition states:

A) how something is to be observed and measured.
B) how the purpose of a study will be explained to the participants.
C) the meaning of a term in commonly used, non-scientific language.
D) which research methods will be used in a study.

Question 25

An organized system of assumptions and principles that purports to explain a specified set of phenomena and their interrelationships is called a(n) _______________.

A) hypothesis
B) operational definition
C) research design
D) theory

Question 26

The tendency to look for information that supports one's own belief is called:

A) the principle of falsifiability.
B) confirmation bias.
C) denialism.
D) cognitive inertia.

Question 27

Psychologists are scientists because:

A) they work with complicated computers and laboratory equipment.
B) they rely upon sophisticated brain-imaging machines.
C) they base their work on scientific attitudes and procedures.
D) psychology is related to human biology, which is an important part of science.

Question 28

In the scientific use of the term, a "theory" is:

A) a prediction about the outcome of a given experiment or study.
B) an organized system of assumptions and principles that purports to explain a set of observations and how they are related.
C) a precise definition of a term in a hypothesis, which specifies how it will be observed and measured.
D) a scientist's best guess about the cause of an event or phenomenon.

Question 29

Hannah decides to test whether engineering majors have greater visual-spatial abilities than students with other majors. To measure visual-spatial ability, Hannah times how long it takes each participant to complete a jigsaw puzzle. This is an example of a(n):

A) operational definition.
B) theoretical definition.
C) corollary.
D) hypothesis.

Question 30

An operational definition is:

A) a statement that attempts to describe or explain a given behavior.
B) an organized system of assumptions and principles that purports to explain a specified set of phenomena and their interrelationships.
C) the precise meaning of a term, which specifies the processes required for observing and measuring the phenomenon being investigated.
D) a statement that is accepted without proof and regarded as fundamental to a subject.

Question 31

Which of the following statements is true of a hypothesis?

A) It is a sentence negating the assumption that is considered correct by a researcher.
B) It is a theory that has not yet been accepted by most scientists.
C) It is a statement about a relationship between variables that may be empirically tested.
D) It is a precise definition of a term used in a theory.

Question 32

Scientists are expected to submit their results to professional journals, which then send the findings to experts for evaluation before publication. This process is called:

A) replication.
B) abstract management.
C) peer review.
D) falsification.

Question 33

Skepticism in scientific research means:

A) acquiring knowledge by means of observation or experimentation.
B) refusing to accept empirical evidence.
C) believing a claim is true unless you have evidence that it is wrong.
D) treating conclusions, both new and old, with caution.

Question 34

Which of the following is an operational definition of depression?

A) a feeling of extreme sadness
B) a state of low mood and aversion to activity that has a negative effect on a person's thoughts
C) a score on a depression questionnaire
D) the opposite of euphoria

Question 35

A statement that attempts to predict or account for a set of phenomena is called a(n) _______________.

A) hypothesis
B) axiom
C) corollary
D) theory

Question 36

Marcy is trying to define "anxiety" in such a way that it specifies how it is to be observed, measured, and empirically tested. She is attempting to find an appropriate:

A) hypothesis.
B) corollary.
C) theoretical definition.
D) operational definition.

Question 37

Dennis believes that women are worse drivers than men. He always notices examples of poor women drivers, but ignores evidence to the contrary, such as poor male drivers or good female drivers. Dennis' behavior is an example of:

A) the principle of falsifiability.
B) critical thinking.
C) the confirmation bias.
D) skepticism.

Question 38

The principle of falsifiability means that:

A) scientists must be careful not to falsify their results.
B) all theories will eventually be shown to be false.
C) a scientist must state an idea in such a way that it can be refuted or disproved by counterevidence.
D) theories that have not been proven are considered false.

Question 39

Which of the following is a key characteristic of an ideal scientist?

A) reliance on intuition
B) virtuosity
C) secrecy
D) skepticism

Question 40

A major purpose of peer review is to:

A) verify the credentials of the researchers who worked on a project.
B) make sure the results of a study fit with current scientific theories.
C) determine whether the work lives up to accepted scientific standards.
D) make sure that the research does not involve animals as subjects.

Question 41

A group of individuals that matches the population on important characteristics such as age and sex is called a(n):

A) volunteer group.
B) representative sample.
C) unrepresentative sample.
D) general sample.

Question 42

The peer review process:

A) verifies the credentials of the researchers who work on a project.
B) is part of science's system of checks and balances.
C) ensures that the competition among scientists doing similar research is in check.
D) makes sure that the research does not involve animals as subjects.

Question 43

An advantage of observational studies is that:

A) they can provide accurate descriptions of behavior.
B) the presence of observers can alter the behavior being observed.
C) they can answer questions about cause and effect.
D) they allow experimenters to manipulate variables.

Question 44

Which of the following is a descriptive method used in psychological research?

A) an experiment
B) a case study
C) a double-blind study
D) a single-blind study

Question 45

In a(n) _______________ study, a researcher carefully and systematically watches and records behavior, taking care to avoid affecting the subjects being studied.

A) observational
B) exploratory
C) experimental
D) double-blind

Question 46

Which of the following is an advantage of case studies?

A) Case studies produce a more detailed picture of an individual than other methods.
B) The information produced in a case study is easy to interpret.
C) Data collected during a case study can be easily generalized to other individuals.
D) Case studies are less susceptible to researcher bias than other methods.

Question 47

Which of the following is a disadvantage of case studies?

A) Case studies produce a less detailed picture of an individual than other methods.
B) Case studies have only limited usefulness for deriving general principles of behavior.
C) Data from case studies is more abstract, vague, and general than data from other methods.
D) The amount of control used in case studies makes them very artificial.

Question 48

Researchers prefer to select participants who accurately represent the larger population that the researchers are interested in. This type of a group is called a _____________ sample.

A) double-blind
B) cross-cultural
C) volunteer
D) representative

Question 49

A researcher studies the history of a suicide bomber who attempted to blow up a police station. The researcher's goal is to understand the events and personality traits that led the person to become a bomber. This type of research is called a(n):

A) case study.
B) observational study.
C) correlational study.
D) survey study.

Question 50

Research methods that depict behavior, but do not necessarily yield causal explanations, are called:

A) experimental methods.
B) single-blind studies.
C) significance tests.
D) descriptive methods.

Question 51

Dr. Sardonicus wants to know whether or not the first three years of life are critical for acquiring language. She decides to study a child who was tragically deprived of human language by her parents. This type of research is called a(n):

A) correlational study.
B) experiment.
C) survey.
D) case study.

Question 52

In a psychological research study, a sample made up of those who happen to be available at the time of study is called a _______________ sample.

A) representative
B) quota
C) random
D) convenience

Question 53

Which of the following statements is true about case studies?

A) Case studies require a large number of participants.
B) Case studies are extremely useful for deriving general principles of behavior.
C) Conclusions obtained from case studies are highly reliable.
D) Researchers often resort to case studies when other methods would be unethical.

Question 54

A detailed description of a particular individual based on careful observation or formal psychological testing is called a(n):

A) observational study.
B) correlational study.
C) case study.
D) survey.

Question 55

Dr. Littman-Smith is conducting research in Kenya to learn about the ways that mothers and their toddlers interact as they go about their day. It is most likely that she is engaged in:

A) naturalistic observation.
B) laboratory observation.
C) exploratory research.
D) experimental research.

Question 56

Dawn is systematically recording the behaviors of the kids in a nursery school, taking pains to avoid being obvious about what she is doing. Dawn is engaging in a(n):

A) observational study.
B) exploratory research.
C) experimental research.
D) double-blind study.

Question 57

_______________ are usually sources of hypotheses, rather than tests of hypotheses.

A) Correlational studies
B) Case studies
C) Psychological tests
D) Regression analyses

Question 58

To test whether people in bars drink more when they are in groups than when they are alone, researchers visited all the pubs in a city. They ordered beers and recorded observations on napkins and pieces of newspaper. Why did they keep their identities in disguise?

A) They were conducting a double-blind study.
B) They wanted to make sure the study had test-retest reliability.
C) They needed to determine the experimenter effects in the study at a later point in time.
D) They wanted the people they were observing to behave naturally.

Question 59

Which of the following would be considered a good example of a representative sample of college students in the United States?

A) a survey given to several rural college classrooms
B) a questionnaire mailed to random households in Texas
C) a survey given to a diverse population in both urban and rural college classrooms in several states
D) volunteers who found your survey on the Internet

Question 60

An academic researcher would use the case study method for a research study when:

A) a new discovery has been made regarding a cause-and-effect relationship.
B) the relationship between two variables needs to be established.
C) ethical considerations prevent the usage of other sources of information.
D) the purpose of the research is to track down a cause.

Question 61

Procedures used to measure and evaluate personality traits, emotional states, aptitudes, and values are called:

A) laboratory observations.
B) psychological tests.
C) significance tests.
D) meta-analyses.

Question 62

When Hoshi takes a personality test, she is told that the resulting score is compared to norms; that is, the test:

A) measures what it is designed to measure.
B) results are compared to established standards of performance.
C) produces the same results from one time to the next.
D) predicts other criteria of the personality trait in question.

Question 63

A psychological test is said to have criterion validity if:

A) it measures what it is designed to measure.
B) its results are comparable to established standards of performance.
C) it produces the same results from one time to the next.
D) it predicts other criteria of the personality trait in question.

Question 64

When Joyce takes a personality test, she is told that the test is reliable; that is, it:

A) measures what it is designed to measure.
B) compares its results against established standards of performance.
C) produces the same results from one time to the next.
D) predicts other criteria of the personality trait in question.

Question 65

In order to be useful, a psychological test must be reliable; that is, it must:

A) measure what it is designed to measure.
B) compare results against established standards of performance.
C) produce the same results from one time to the next.
D) predict other criteria of the trait in question.

Question 66

Juan is given a vocational-interest test and is then asked to attempt the same test a week later. The test administrator wants to measure the _______________ of the test.

A) content validity
B) test-retest reliability
C) alternate-forms reliability
D) criterion validity

Question 67

Assessment instruments that are designed to measure beliefs, feelings, or behaviors of which an individual is aware are called:

A) projective tests.
B) objective tests.
C) double-blind tests.
D) single-blind tests.

Question 68

Ken is given a vocational-interest test and then takes a test, similar in format but with different questions, a week later. The test administrator wants to measure the _______________ of the test.

A) content validity
B) test-retest reliability
C) alternate-forms reliability
D) criterion validity

Question 69

A psychological test is said to have content validity if:

A) the items in the test broadly represent the trait in question.
B) its results are comparable to established standards of performance.
C) it produces the same results from one time to the next.
D) it predicts other measures of the personality trait in question.

Question 70

Reliability in psychological testing means that the test:

A) actually measures what it is supposed to measure.
B) is fair.
C) is unbiased.
D) produces the same results from one time and place to the next.

Question 71

If a psychological test measures what it is supposed to measure, it has which of the following properties?

A) reliability
B) validity
C) variability
D) standardization

Question 72

Tessa agrees to an evaluation designed to tap her unconscious feelings and motives. Tessa will be given a(n):

A) objective test.
B) projective test.
C) double-blind test.
D) single-blind test.

Question 73

In most cases, the pop-psychology tests found in magazines and newspapers:

A) have not been evaluated for their reliability but are valid tests.
B) have not been evaluated for their validity but are reliable tests.
C) have not been evaluated for their validity or reliability.
D) have been evaluated for their validity and reliability.

Question 74

Tess agrees to sleep in an artificial setting for three nights so that researchers can obtain information about her brain and muscle activity during sleep. She is taking part in a research method called _______________.

A) a single-blind study
B) a double-blind study
C) naturalistic observation
D) laboratory observation

Question 75

If a psychological test is standardized:

A) it has been approved for use by the APA.
B) it is always administered to a random sample of participants.
C) it has been demonstrated to be valid.
D) uniform procedures have been developed for giving and scoring the test.

Question 76

A major disadvantage of using laboratory observation in a research study is that:

A) the presence of researchers may cause participants to act differently than they would in their natural surroundings.
B) it can be used only for explaining behavior and not for describing it.
C) it is often considered unethical.
D) researchers have less control of the situation than they do in a naturalistic observation.

Question 77

Psychologists sometimes prefer to make observations in a laboratory setting rather than a naturalistic setting. The primary advantage of laboratory observation over naturalistic observation is:

A) it costs less money.
B) participants take their participation more seriously in a professional environment.
C) researchers have more control over the research study.
D) laboratory observation is more natural.

Question 78

Hadley is told that the achievement test he is taking is a standardized test. This means that:

A) the test has been approved by the APA.
B) the test will be measuring what is it intended to measure.
C) similar scores occur when the test is given in a standard laboratory setting or in a naturalistic setting.
D) uniform procedures exist for giving and scoring the test.

Question 79

When Haylee takes a personality test, the researcher gives her detailed instructions and plenty of time to complete it. But Tyler takes the same test and is given only vague instructions and a limited amount of time. This procedural difference shows that the test lacks:

A) validity.
B) standardization.
C) reliability.
D) variability.

Question 80

Assessment instruments that are designed to tap unconscious feelings or motives are called:

A) objective tests.
B) projective tests.
C) double-blind tests.
D) single-blind tests.