Deck 4: Sources of Artifact and Bias

Question 1

What role is a participant taking if they are motivated to present themselves in a positive light?

A) Good subject
B) Faithful subject
C) True subject
D) Apprehensive subject

Answer 1

Apprehensive subject

Question 2

What steps are typically taken to reduce experimenter expectancy effects?

A) Use of a single well-trained experimenter
B) Keeping the experimenter naïve "blind") to the condition
C) Use of unstructured protocols
D) Identify which participants were in which condition during data analysis

Answer 2

Keeping the experimenter naïve "blind") to the condition

Question 3

Rival hypotheses about experimenter characteristics are less plausible when:

A) Decrease the number of experimenters
B) Increase the number of experimental conditions
C) Decrease the interaction between the experimenter and the participants
D) Increase the number of participants.

Answer 3

Decrease the interaction between the experimenter and the participants

Question 4

Demand characteristics are defined as:

A) The experimental manipulation that may lead participants to act in a certain manner
B) Any experimenter requests that are seen as hostile or coercive by the participant
C) A component of the experimental manipulation that influences participants
D) Any facet of the experiment that encourages behavior, other than the intended manipulation

Question 5

Demand characteristics are likely or at least very plausible if that data are:

A) The same for preinquiry and postinquiry participants, but not simulators
B) Different for real participants and simulators, but not preinquiry participants
C) The same for preinquiry, simulators and real participants
D) Different for real participants and postinquiry participants, but not preinquiry participants

Question 6

What is the problem with using volunteer participants?

A) Since they are so different, it is difficult to determine the treatment effect
B) Volunteer participants are typically uncooperative participants
C) The findings may be limited in their generality across subject characteristics
D) There are no problems with using volunteer participants

Question 7

Errors in experimental data analysis are typically:

A) Intentional fudging of data
B) In favor of the experimenter's hypotheses
C) Uncommon and unimportant
D) Due to a systematic bias on behalf of the experimenter

Question 8

What is an example of a subject-selection bias?

A) Subject attrition
B) Unique samples
C) Similar samples
D) Both a and b

Question 9

What is the loose protocol effect?

A) When a protocol fails to specify the experimenter's activities
B) A protocol that is found to have low externally validity
C) When a protocol is not followed closely
D) When a protocol is unable to account for all possible outcomes of the study

Question 10

Post-experimental inquiry is commonly used to determine:

A) The impact of possible demand characteristics
B) The extent to which participants determined the purpose of the experiment
C) If participant's were aware of the hypotheses of the experiment
D) All of the above

Question 11

What conclusions can be made if preinquiry data and experimental data are dissimilar?

A) The cues present in the experiment are not likely the cause of the experimental findings
B) Demand characteristics are likely at play in the design
C) The preinquiry data are not valid
D) The experimental data are not valid

Question 12

Which of the following is the best way an experimenter can increase procedural consistency in an experiment?

A) Interview the research assistant/confederates
B) Tape record all of the sessions
C) Train research assistants/confederates together
D) Interview the participants after each experimental session

Question 13

Experimenter expectancy effects are seen as:

A) An essential part of the experimental enterprise
B) Unintentional biases that lead participants to act accordingly
C) Effects that do not commonly influence the experience of participants
D) Both a and b

Question 14

As artifacts evolve, what are the three stages of evolution proposed by McGuire?

A) Ignorance, identification, and interpretation
B) Identification, interpretation, correction
C) Ignorance, coping, and exploitation
D) Determination, interpretation, correction

Question 15

Why does the file-drawer problem present a dilemma in research?

A) Many significant findings never get published
B) Many studies probably exist, but are not yet published since the publication process is lengthy
C) Some findings are not published so the published sample of research may be biased
D) Some research that is published may not include all of the original data