Deck 12: The Correlational Research Strategy

Question 1

The strength or consistency of a relationship between variables is indicated by

A)the sign of the correlation.
B)the numerical value of the correlation.
C)the type of correlation (Pearson or Spearman).
D)the other three choices are all indications of the strength or consistency of a relationship.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

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

A)salary level increases as educational level decreases
B)salary level decreases as educational level decreases
C)educational level decreases as salary level increases
D)educational level stays the same as salary level increases

Answer 2

B

Question 3

In correlational studies,the consistency of a relationship is typically measured and described by the numerical value obtained for a

A)mean.
B)t test.
C)correlational coefficient.
D)standard deviation.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Which of the following is a characteristic of a correlational study?

A)participants are assigned to groups
B)participants are assigned to treatment conditions
C)participants are separated into groups based on a specific characteristic such as age or gender
D)none of the other options is a characteristic of a correlational study.

Question 5

A negative value for a correlation indicates

A)a much stronger relationship than if the correlation were positive.
B)a much weaker relationship than if the correlation were positive.
C)increases in X tend to be accompanied by increases in Y.
D)increases in X tend to be accompanied by decreases in Y.

Question 6

The Spearman correlation measures

A)the degree to which the relationship is causal.
B)the degree of linear relationship.
C)the degree of curvilinear relationship.
D)the degree of monotonic relationship.

Question 7

The results from a research study indicate that adolescents who watch more sexual content on television also tend to engage in more sexual behavior that their peers.The correlation between amount of TV sexual content and amount of sexual behavior is an example of

A)a positive correlation.
B)a negative correlation.
C)a correlation near zero.
D)a correlation near one.

Question 8

The Pearson correlation measures

A)the degree of relationship without regard to the form of the relationship.
B)the degree to which the relationship is consistently one directional.
C)the degree of linear relationship.
D)the degree of curvilinear relationship.

Question 9

A college professor reports that students who finish exams early tend to get better grades than students who hold onto exams until the last possible moment.The correlation between exam score and amount of time spent on the exam is an example of

A)a positive correlation.
B)a negative correlation.
C)a correlation near zero.
D)a correlation near one.

Question 10

A Pearson correlation of r = ?0.25 indicates that a graph of the data would show

A)points clustered close to a line that slopes up to the right.
B)points clustered close to a line that slopes down to the right.
C)points widely scattered around a line that slopes up to the right.
D)points widely scattered around a line that slopes down to the right.

Question 11

A defining characteristic of the correlational study is

A)the research is conducted in field settings rather than in a laboratory.
B)the intent is simply to describe behaviors.
C)the intent is to demonstrate the relationship between variables.
D)the other three options are all defining characteristics of the correlational study.

Question 12

A researcher watches children on a playground to obtain measurements of their level of activity.Then the researcher watches the children's caregivers on the playground to obtain measurements of their level of verbal reprimanding of children.The researcher hopes to demonstrate that the caregivers verbal reprimanding is related to children's activity level.This researcher is using the

A)descriptive research strategy.
B)correlational research strategy.
C)experimental research strategy.
D)scientific research strategy.

Question 13

In a scatter plot

A)each individual is represented by a single point.
B)each group mean is represented by a single point.
C)each individual is represented by two data points.
D)each group mean is represented by two data points.

Question 14

A researcher determines the amount of sugar in each child's diet by interviewing the children's parents.Then the researcher watches the children on a playground to obtain measurements of their level of activity.The researcher hopes to demonstrate that sugar intake is related to activity level.This researcher is using the

A)descriptive research strategy.
B)correlational research strategy.
C)experimental research strategy.
D)scientific research strategy.

Question 15

A positive value for a correlation indicates

A)increases in X tend to be accompanied by increases in Y.
B)increases in X tend to be accompanied by decreases in Y.
C)a much stronger relationship than if the correlation were negative.
D)a much weaker relationship than if the correlation were negative.

Question 16

Which of the following pairs of variables should produce a correlation near zero?

A)model year (2003,2004,etc.)and price for a used Honda
B) driving distance from college and weekly cost of gas for a group of commuting college students
C)number of hours studying and number of errors on a math exam
D)IQ and weight for a group of third-grade students

Question 17

The goal of the correlational research strategy is

A)to examine and describe the relationship between variables.
B)to examine and describe the causal relationship between variables.
C)to describe an individual person or patient in great detail.
D)to describe a variable (or variables)as they exist naturally.

Question 18

Which of the following pairs of variables should produce a negative relationship?

A)model year (2003,2004,etc.)and price for a used Honda
B) driving distance from college and weekly cost of gas for a group of commuting college students
C)number of hours studying and number of errors on a math exam
D)IQ and weight for a group of third-grade students

Question 19

In a correlational study,commonly,

A)one variable is measured.
B)two variables are measured.
C)one individual is described in great detail.
D)one individual is treated.

Question 20

A researcher reports that there is no consistent relationship between grade point average and the number of hours spent studying for college students.The correlation between grade point average and the number of hours studying is an example of

A)a positive correlation.
B)a negative correlation.
C)a correlation near zero.
D)a correlation near one.

Question 21

When students apply to colleges,they usually are required to submit SAT scores along with their applications.College officials know that there is a good relationship between scores on the SAT and success in college.In this situation,success in college is the

A)predictor variable.
B)criterion variable.
C)dependent variable.
D)independent variable.

Question 22

Which research design is commonly used to help establish the reliability or validity of a measurement procedure?

A)the observational research design
B)the survey research design
C)the case study design
D)the correlational design

Question 23

Which of the following correctly identifies a similarity between a correlational study and the differential research design?

A)Both establish the existence of a relationship by demonstrating a difference between groups.
B)Both use one of the two variables to create groups of participants.
C)Both involve two groups with one score for each participant.
D)Both demonstrate the existence of a relationship between two variables.

Question 24

To establish the reliability of a measure,a researcher examines

A)the relationship between the scores from 2 administrations of the measure.
B)the relationship between the measure and another measure.
C)the mean difference between the scores from 2 administrations of the measure.
D)the mean difference between the measure and another measure.

Question 25

Dr.Jones hopes to demonstrate that children who eat a more nutritious breakfast also tend to have more academic success than their peers.If this result is obtained,then ______________ would be the predictor variable and __________ would be the criterion variable for the study.

A)the nutrition in the breakfast; the level of success
B)the level of success; the nutrition in the breakfast
C)those who eat a high nutrition breakfast; those who eat a low nutrition breakfast
D)the children; the level of success

Question 26

A scatter plot shows a set of data points that are clustered close to a line that slopes down to the right.Which of the following values would be closest to the correlation for these data?

A)0.80
B)0.40
C)?0.40
D)?0.80

Question 27

What is indicated by a negative correlation between grade point average and the number of hours spent studying for a sample of college students?

A)As the number of hours increases,grade point average also increases.
B)As the number of hours increases,grade point average decreases.
C)As the number of hours decreases,grade point average also decreases.
D)A negative correlation means that there is no consistent relationship.

Question 28

The results from a correlational study show a positive relationship between aggressive behavior for 6-year-old children and the amount of violence they watch on television.Based on this relationship,which of the following conclusions is justified?

A)Decreasing the amount of violence that the children see on TV will reduce their aggressive behavior.
B)Increasing the amount of violence that the children see on TV will increase their aggressive behavior.
C)Children who watch more TV violence tend to exhibit more aggressive behavior.
D)All of the other options are justified conclusions.

Question 29

A Pearson correlation of r = +0.25 indicates that a graph of the data would show

A)points clustered close to a line that slopes up to the right.
B)points clustered close to a line that slopes down to the right.
C)points widely scattered around a line that slopes up to the right.
D)points widely scattered around a line that slopes down to the right.

Question 30

A researcher reports an inverse relationship between weight and exercise level for a group of 8-year-old children (greater weight is associated with less exercise).However,the researcher suspects that the children's rate of metabolism may be responsible for the relationship.That is,children with higher metabolism exercise more and weigh less than children with lower metabolism.This is an example of

A)the third-variable problem.
B)the directionality problem.
C)the reversal problem.
D)the criterion problem.

Question 31

The correlational research strategy is often used for

A)manipulating a variable of interest.
B)establishing cause and effect relationships.
C)preliminary research in an area.
D)describing a variable.

Question 32

A researcher would like to examine the relationship between self-esteem and academic performance for high school students.This researcher could use a correlational study or

A)a differential study comparing academic performance scores for a group of high self-esteem students and a group of low self-esteem students.
B)an experimental study comparing academic performance scores for a group of high self-esteem students and a group of low self-esteem students.
C)a descriptive study examining self-esteem for a group of students who are in the top 25% of their high school class.
D)none of the other options could be used to examine the relationship.

Question 33

A Pearson correlation of r = +0.9 indicates that a graph of the data would show

A)points clustered close to a line that slopes up to the right.
B)points clustered close to a line that slopes down to the right.
C)points widely scattered around a line that slopes up to the right.
D)points widely scattered around a line that slopes down to the right.

Question 34

A researcher reports a positive relationship between sugar consumption and activity level for a group of 7-year-old children.Based on this relationship,which of the following conclusions is justified?
A)Decreasing the amount of sugar consumption in children will reduce their activity level.

A)Increasing the amount of sugar consumption in children will increase their activity level.
B)Children who consume more sugar tend to exhibit higher activity levels.
D)All of the other options are justified conclusions.

Question 35

To establish the validity of a measure,a researcher examines

A)the relationship between the scores from 2 administrations of the measure.
B)the relationship between the measure and another measure.
C)the mean difference between the scores from 2 administrations of the measure.
D)the mean difference between the measure and another measure.

Question 36

A researcher reports a positive relationship between sugar consumption and activity level for a group of 8-year-old children.However,the researcher cannot be sure whether the extra sugar is causing the children to be more active or whether the extra activity is causing the children to eat more sugar.This is an example of

A)the third-variable problem.
B)the directionality problem.
C)the reversal problem.
D)the criterion problem.

Question 37

Which of the following sets of correlations correctly shows the highest to lowest degree of relationship?

A)?0.91,+0.83,+0.10,?0.03
B)?0.91,+0.83,?0.03,?0.10
C)+0.83,+0.10,?0.91,?0.03
D)+0.83,+0.10,?0.03,?0.91

Question 38

The coefficient of determination is

A)computed by taking the square root of the correlation coefficient.
B)computed by squaring the correlation coefficient.
C)identical to the correlation coefficient.
D)independent of the value of the correlation coefficient.

Question 39

A statistically significant correlation means that

A)the correlation is large.
B)the correlation is small.
C)there is no relationship between the variables.
D)None of the other options is correct about a statistically significant correlation.

Question 40

A researcher reports an inverse relationship between weight and exercise level for a group of 8-year-old children (greater weight is associated with less exercise).However,the researcher cannot be sure whether the extra weight is preventing the children from exercising or whether the lack of exercise is leading to greater weight.This is an example of

A)the third-variable problem.
B)the directionality problem.
C)the reversal problem.
D)the criterion problem.

Question 41

Correlations are often used to help demonstrate the reliability and validity of measurement.

Question 42

A researcher obtained a correlation of r = +0.62 between the amount of time spent watching television and level of blood cholesterol.This means that there is a general tendency for people who watch more television also to have higher blood cholesterol.

Question 43

The coefficient of determination is computed by taking the square root of the correlation coefficient.

Question 44

The goal of the correlational research strategy is demonstrate a cause-and-effect relationship between two variables.

Question 45

Suppose it was observed that there is a correlation of r = ?0.81 between a driver's age and the cost of the car insurance.This correlation would mean that,in general,older people pay more for car insurance.

Question 46

A correlation of r = ?0.90 means that there is essentially no consistent relationship between X and Y.

Question 47

The electric company uses the correlation between summer temperatures and energy consumption to anticipate energy demands.In this example,temperature is the criterion variable.

Question 48

Suppose there is a correlation of +0.87 between the length of time a person is in prison and the amount of aggression the person displays on a psychological inventory.This means that spending a longer amount of time in prison causes people to become more aggressive.

Question 49

With a very large sample,even a very small correlation can be statistically significant.

Question 50

If decreases in the X variable are accompanied by decreases in the Y variable,then the correlation between X and Y is negative.

Question 51

A statistically significant correlation means that the correlation is large and strong.

Question 52

Because there is a strong positive correlation between depression and risk of divorce,we can conclude that depression causes divorce.

Question 53

The Pearson correlation measures the degree to which the X and Y data points fit on a straight line.

Question 54

It is possible for a sample to have a real,non-zero correlation,even though the correlation for the general population is zero.

Question 55

If the data for a correlational study consists of one or more scores that are not numerical values,the relationship between the variables cannot be evaluated.

Question 56

Both correlational studies and differential research examine the relationship between two variables.

Question 57

A researcher knows that there is a relationship between obesity and watching television for young children.However,it is not known whether children watch more TV because they are overweight or whether they are overweight because they watch so much TV.This is an example of the directionality problem.

Question 58

A researcher knows that there is a relationship between obesity and watching television for young children.However,it is not known whether children watch more TV because they are overweight or whether they are overweight because they watch so much TV.This is an example of the third-variable problem.

Question 59

For a positive correlation,decreases in X tend to be accompanied by decreases in Y.

Question 60

A Pearson correlation of r = ?1.00 means that all the data points fit perfectly on a straight line.

Question 61

Explain how the purpose of the correlational research strategy differs from the experimental research strategy.

Question 62

Describe how correlational studies can be used.

Question 63

Describe the differences between a correlational study and differential research.

Question 64

Describe the use of a scatter plot in graphing data from a correlational study.

Question 65

Describe what is meant by a "negative relationship between two variables."

Question 66

Describe the third-variable problem and the directionality problem in correlational research.Explain how these problems make it impossible to obtain an unambiguous cause-and-effect conclusion from a correlational study.

Question 67

Describe the strengths and weaknesses of the correlational research strategy.