Deck 4: Causal Designs and Marketing Experiments

Question 1

Due to relationships among variables caused by other factors,such as reverse causation,omitted variables,and insufficient variation,concomitant variation is not sufficient to make valid causal inferences.

Answer 1

True
Just because variables display a high level of correlation does not mean one caused the other.

Question 2

The primary difference between the time-series experimental design and the multiple time-series design is the randomization of the test units to the treatment group in the multiple time-series design.

Answer 2

False
The primary difference is the presence of a control group with the multiple time-series design.

Question 3

The one-group pre-test-post-test design is represented symbolically by "O₁ X O₂."

Answer 3

True
This pre-experimental design uses a pre-test before the treatment and a post-test after the treatment.

Question 4

The reactive (or interactive)testing effect occurs when the first observation affects the second observation.

Question 5

For causation to occur,the cause must occur prior to the effect.

Question 6

In a Solomon four-group experimental design,all extraneous variables and the interactive testing effect can be controlled,but their effects cannot be measured.

Question 7

An experimental design involves the specification of treatments to be manipulated,test units to be used,and independent variables to be measured.

Question 8

Randomizing treatments to test units is not an effective method of handling extraneous variables,because it does not in any way control extraneous variables.

Question 9

Test unit mortality refers to instances where researchers exceed the treatment and observation deadlines specified in the experimental design.

Question 10

Extraneous variables need to be controlled to ensure that the experiment is externally valid.

Question 11

If physical control,randomization,and research design features do not eliminate the differential effects of extraneous variables among treatment groups,the experiment is said to be confounded.

Question 12

In true experimental designs,extraneous variables must never be present in the treatment group(s),although they can be present in control group(s)if properly controlled.

Question 13

The common sense notion talks of proving that X causes Y; the scientific notion holds that we can only infer causality without proving it.

Question 14

The R in X-O-R syntax stands for "reference," which are the test units being observed.

Question 15

In experiments,the greater the time between observations (O₁ and O₂),the greater the chance of a history or maturation effect confounding the experiment.

Question 16

External validity is concerned with whether the experimental results can be generalized.

Question 17

A time-series experiment undertakes periodic measurement on dependent variables for test units.The treatment is then introduced,or occurs naturally,and the periodic measurements continue on the same test units to monitor the effects of the treatment.

Question 18

The measures taken on the test units are the independent variables in an experiment.

Question 19

A true experimental design is one where the researcher is able to eliminate all extraneous variables as competitive hypotheses to the treatment,at least in theory.

Question 20

Deterministic causation is the scientific notion that the effect always follows the cause.

Question 21

In experimental design syntax,_______________ represents the exposure of a test group to an experimental treatment.

A) E
B) O
C) R
D) X
E) the subscript of O

Question 22

Only experimental and quasi-experimental designs can identify causal relationships.

Question 23

The _______________ variables are all variables other than the treatments that potentially affect the response of the test units to treatments.

A) dependent
B) extraneous
C) independent
D) control

Question 24

There is one line of defense against a confounding variable; its effects on the dependent variable may be statistically controlled through a technique called

A) analysis of variance
B) analysis of covariance
C) regression analysis
D) static-group comparison design

Question 25

In true and quasi-experiments,treatments need to form

A) a ratio scale
B) at least an interval scale
C) at least an ordinal scale
D) any of the four types of scales

Question 26

All of the following are methods for controlling the effects of extraneous variables in experiments except

A) if practical, hold such extraneous variables constant
B) assign treatments to test units randomly
C) use experimental designs that control for the effects of extraneous variables
D) eliminate the effect of extraneous variables on test units

Question 27

In a completely randomized design,treatments are randomly assigned to groups of test units based on an external criterion variable.

Question 28

In addition to causation,the other types of relationships possible among correlated variables include all of the following except

A) reverse causation
B) omitted variables
C) sequential effect
D) insufficient variation

Question 29

_______________ is the basic minimum _______________ that must be present in an experiment before any conclusion about treatment effects can be made.

A) External validity, validity
B) Internal validity, validity
C) External reliability, reliability
D) Internal reliability, reliability

Question 30

The _______________ are the entities to whom (or to which)the treatments are presented and whose response to the treatments is measured.

A) population units
B) researchers
C) test units
D) confounds

Question 31

The question of whether the observed effects on the test units could have been caused by variables other than the treatment refers to:

A) external validity
B) internal validity
C) possible instrumentation effects
D) possible concomitant variation

Question 32

If physical control,randomization,and design features do not eliminate the differential effects of extraneous variables among treatment groups,the experiment

A) has been confounded, but causal statements are still possible
B) has been confounded, and no causal statements are possible
C) must be repeated without the presence of extraneous variables
D) loses external validity, but can still salvage internal validity

Question 33

Under which conditions can researchers claim a causal inference?

A) concomitant variation
B) high level of correlation between variables
C) time order of occurrence of variables
D) elimination of other possible causal factors
E) a, b, and c only
F) a, c, and d only

Question 34

The _______________ effect refers to the occurrence of specific events that are external to the experiment but that take place at the same time as the experiment.

A) history
B) maturation
C) testing
D) instrumentation
E) statistical regression

Question 35

Getting older,growing hungrier,and developing fatigue are examples of _______________ effects,which is changes in the experimental units themselves that occur with the passage of time.

A) history
B) maturation
C) testing
D) instrumentation
E) statistical regression

Question 36

Laboratory settings generally offer lower control over confounding variables than other studies,but the results are more able to be generalized.

Question 37

In a randomized block design,the dependent variable must be of at least ordinal scale.

Question 38

In the Latin square (LS)design,each row and column category defines a block situation,which means that each treatment must appear once in each row and once in each column.

Question 39

One of the most common and pernicious erroneous assumptions about causation in marketing research is

A) not considering reverse causation
B) not eliminating other variables as the cause
C) not establishing sufficient variation
D) not ruling out the sequential effect

Question 40

The extent to which a cause,X,and an effect,Y,occur together or vary together in the way predicted by a hypothesis under consideration is

A) concomitant variation
B) convergent variation
C) deterministic causation
D) interaction effect
E) time occurrence of variables

Question 41

The _______________ is useful when the researcher is investigating the effect of one independent variable.

A) completely randomized design
B) randomized block design
C) Latin square design
D) factorial design

Question 42

All of the following are limitations of experimentation except

A) it is not always possible to control the effects of extraneous variables
B) experiments cannot control for all sources of internal invalidity
C) care must be taken that the experimenter does not say and do anything that might bias responses
D) in field experiments, lack of cooperation can limit experimental activity

Question 43

Which of the following statements comparing laboratory environments to field studies is false?

A) Laboratory environments provide the researcher with maximum control over possible confounding variables.
B) Laboratory environments are generally less expensive than field studies.
C) The complex nature of laboratory experiments means that they require more time to conduct than field studies.
D) The laboratory environment provides greater internal validity than do field studies.

Question 44

A single group of test units is first exposed to a treatment,and then a measurement is taken on the dependent variables.Which experimental design is this?

A) one-shot case study design
B) one-group pre-test-post-test design
C) static-group comparison design
D) pre-test-post-test control group design

Question 45

Exposing two random samples of visitors to a web page to alternate versions of a web page in order to optimize website elements is an example of

A) a factorial design
B) a nonequivalent control group design
C) A/B testing
D) a completely randomized design

Question 46

_______________ refers to the assigning of test units to treatment groups in such as way that the groups differ on the dependent variable before the presentation of the treatments.

A) The main testing effect
B) Test unit mortality
C) Selection bias
D) The instrumentation effect

Question 47

The _______________ pre-experimental design uses two treatment groups,one that has been exposed to the treatment and one that has not.

A) one-shot case study
B) one-group pre-test-post-test
C) static-group comparison
D) pre-test-post-test control group

Question 48

In a quasi-experimental design,researchers normally lack control of all of the following except

A) when the treatments are scheduled
B) which test units receive the treatment
C) data collection and/or measurement procedures
D) ability to randomize the test unit's exposure to treatments

Question 49

The biggest problem with the equivalent time-sample quasi-experimental design is the possibility of the _______________ effect.

A) interactive testing
B) history
C) statistical regression
D) instrumentation

Question 50

The _______________ effect is concerned with the possible effects on the experiment of taking a measure on the dependent variable before presentation of the treatment.

A) history
B) maturation
C) testing
D) instrumentation
E) statistical regression

Question 51

The _______________ is built on the principle of combining test units into blocks based on an external criteria variable that might impact the results of the study.

A) completely randomized design
B) randomized block design
C) Latin square design
D) factorial design

Question 52

The simplest type of designed experiment is the

A) completely randomized design
B) randomized block design
C) Latin square design
D) factorial design

Question 53

Only _______________ can identify causal relationships.

A) descriptive studies
B) field experiments
C) laboratory experiments
D) experimental and quasi-experimental designs

Question 54

In the _______________ quasi-experimental design,both the experimental group and the control group are given pre-test and post-test measurement,but the two groups do not have pre-experimental test unit selection equivalence,i.e.the control group cannot be considered equivalent to the test group.

A) time-series
B) multiple time-series
C) nonequivalent control group
D) equivalent time-sample

Question 55

The interactive testing effect cannot occur with the post-test-only control group experimental design,because

A) both the control and treatment group are measured after the treatment
B) there is no pre-test in the design
C) the testing units are randomly assigned to the treatment groups
D) the control group and treatment group do not interact

Question 56

The fundamental weakness of the time-series quasi-experimental design is the researcher's inability to control for the _______________ effect.

A) statistical regression
B) history
C) main testing
D) instrumentation

Question 57

When comparing laboratory experiments with field experiments,field experiments offer an advantage over laboratory experiments in terms of

A) internal validity
B) external validity
C) costs
D) speed

Question 58

The _______________ design controls for all extraneous variable effects on internal validity,plus the interactive testing effect.

A) Solomon four-group
B) one-group pre-test-post-test
C) Latin square
D) pre-test-post-test control group

Question 59

All of the following are pre-experimental designs except

A) one-shot case study design
B) one-group pre-test-post-test design
C) static-group comparison design
D) pre-test-post-test control group design

Question 60

In controlling internal sources of invalidity,true experimental designs control for

A) all of the sources of internal invalidity
B) all of the sources of internal invalidity except selection bias and test unit mortality
C) selection bias, instrumentation, and interactive testing effects only
D) selection bias and test unit mortality only

Question 61

Define the reactive testing effect.

Question 62

Causation is not the only reason variables can be correlated.Discuss the other possible explanations and give an example of a causal statement along with examples of the other possible explanations.

Question 63

Identify the three pre-experimental designs and the syntax that is used to represent them.Describe how each is conducted.

Question 64

If researchers want to examine two or more independent variables in an experimental design,they must use a

A) pre-test-post-test control group design
B) randomized block design
C) Latin square design
D) factorial design

Question 65

In a Latin square (LS)design the number of categories of each extraneous variable to be controlled

A) must not be greater than two
B) exactly equals the number of treatments
C) has to be less than the number of treatments minus one, divided by two [<(n-1)/2]
D) exactly equals the number of dependent variables

Question 66

In the randomized block design (RBD),researchers

A) can use only one blocking factor
B) can use one or two blocking factors
C) can use multiple blocking factors as long as it matches the number of dependent variables
D) cannot use any blocking factors

Question 67

Discuss the courses of action a researcher can follow to control extraneous variables and the statistical recourse that may be available if these fail to prevent a confound.

Question 68

Explain what is meant by the term "experiment."

Question 69

What elements are in an experimental design?

Question 70

Given an experiment with the following syntax:

Discuss what kind of design this syntax represents; whether it is pre-experimental,quasi-experimental,or true experimental; and which extraneous variables it controls for.Explain how treatment effects can be separated from other effects.

Question 71

Identify and define the symbols used in experimental syntax.

Question 72

Compare and contrast laboratory experiments and field experiments in terms of validity,costs,and time.

Question 73

To measure the interaction of independent variables,researchers would use a

A) pre-test-post-test control group design with the interaction observed before and after treatment
B) randomized block design with the interaction treated as the blocking factor
C) Latin square design with the interacting independent variables treated as levels of extraneous variables
D) factorial design

Question 74

Discuss the steps in properly conducting an experiment.

Question 75

When researchers wish to control for the effects of two extraneous variables,a _______________ may be used.

A) completely randomized design
B) randomized block design
C) Latin square design
D) either b or c