Deck 3: Three Claims, four Validities: Interrogation Tools for Consumers of Research

Question 1

Which of the following is true of operational definitions?

A)Conceptual definition and operational definition mean the same thing.
B)Some psychological concepts are more difficult to operationally define than others.
C)Some psychological concepts cannot be operationally defined.
D)Operational definitions answer the question,"Why did the researchers measure this variable?"

Answer 1

Some psychological concepts are more difficult to operationally define than others.

Question 2

In this study,the authors were interested in students' math effort.Which of the following would NOT be a reasonable operational definition of math effort?

A)An earnest attempt to solve math problems
B)The number of math classes taken in college
C)A score on a standardized measure of math effort
D)The number of math problems students answered correctly

Answer 2

An earnest attempt to solve math problems

Question 3

Anton and his friends are discussing a study he read about in his developmental psychology class.In the study,the researcher made the claim that a majority of middle school students who are bullied have low self-esteem.Clarissa questions the study,saying,"I am not sure that I am convinced-I am not sure you can really measure being bullied." Quinn also questions the study,saying,"Which middle school students did they study? I am curious if they included both private and public school students." Manish also is curious about the study,asking,"I wonder how strong the relationship is between bullying and self-esteem.Could you predict one from the other?"

Clarissa's concern is addressing which of the following?

A)The study's statistical validity
B)The study's internal validity
C)The study's external validity
D)The study's construct validity

Answer 3

The study's construct validity

Question 4

To evaluate how well a study supports a frequency claim,you need to focus on evaluating which of the following validities?

A)Construct validity and external validity
B)Statistical validity and external validity
C)Internal validity and external validity
D)Internal validity and construct validity

Question 5

Dr.Ramon makes the following claim: "Watching television leads people to spend less time communicating with their spouses,study says." Dr.LaSalle makes the claim: "Research shows that making more money correlates with spending less time talking with your spouse."

Which type of claim is Dr.Ramon making?

A)Anecdotal claim
B)Association claim
C)Causal claim
D)Frequency claim

Question 6

How many variables are mentioned in this study/headline?

A)Two
B)Three
C)Four
D)Five

Question 7

Which of the following allow us to make better predictions using association claims?

A)Strong positive associations
B)Strong negative associations
C)Both a and b
D)Neither a nor b

Question 8

In this study,the authors recorded how many math questions (out of 10 questions)participants tried to solve.This is an example of which of the following?

A)A constant
B)A variable's level
C)A measured variable
D)A manipulated variable

Question 9

Which of the following is a variable in this study/headline?

A)The sex of the participants
B)The major of the participants
C)The math test
D)The sex of the role model

Question 10

Dr.Ramon makes the following claim: "Watching television leads people to spend less time communicating with their spouses,study says." Dr.LaSalle makes the claim: "Research shows that making more money correlates with spending less time talking with your spouse."

Which of the following statements is true of Dr.Ramon's and Dr.LaSalle's claims?

A)Dr.Ramon's claim goes further than Dr.LaSalle's claim.
B)Dr.LaSalle's claim goes further than Dr.Ramon's claim.
C)Dr.LaSalle's claim is the same as Dr.Ramon's claim.
D)Dr.Ramon's claim involves more variables than Dr.LaSalle's claim.

Question 11

Dr.Hoda measures job satisfaction and number of years of education.In examining her scatterplot,she sees that the cloud of points has no slope.This indicates which type of relationship?

A)Negative association
B)Positive association
C)Zero association
D)There is not enough information to answer this question

Question 12

Anton and his friends are discussing a study he read about in his developmental psychology class.In the study,the researcher made the claim that a majority of middle school students who are bullied have low self-esteem.Clarissa questions the study,saying,"I am not sure that I am convinced-I am not sure you can really measure being bullied." Quinn also questions the study,saying,"Which middle school students did they study? I am curious if they included both private and public school students." Manish also is curious about the study,asking,"I wonder how strong the relationship is between bullying and self-esteem.Could you predict one from the other?"

Quinn's concern is addressing which of the following?

A)The study's statistical validity
B)The study's internal validity
C)The study's external validity
D)The study's construct validity

Question 13

Which of the following is the difference between anecdotal claims and frequency claims?

A)Anecdotal claims involve a single variable,but frequency claims involve two variables.
B)Anecdotal claims are not based on scientific studies,but frequency claims are.
C)Anecdotal claims are less interesting than frequency claims.
D)Anecdotal claims appear in newspapers,but frequency claims appear in journals.

Question 14

Anton and his friends are discussing a study he read about in his developmental psychology class.In the study,the researcher made the claim that a majority of middle school students who are bullied have low self-esteem.Clarissa questions the study,saying,"I am not sure that I am convinced-I am not sure you can really measure being bullied." Quinn also questions the study,saying,"Which middle school students did they study? I am curious if they included both private and public school students." Manish also is curious about the study,asking,"I wonder how strong the relationship is between bullying and self-esteem.Could you predict one from the other?"

Manish's concern is addressing which of the following?

A)The study's statistical validity
B)The study's internal validity
C)The study's external validity
D)The study's construct validity

Question 15

Which of the following is NOT true of variables?

A)Variables are the same as constants.
B)Some variables can only be measured.
C)Some variables can be either manipulated or measured.
D)All variables must have operational definitions.

Question 16

Which of the following phrases would NOT indicate that a researcher is making a causal claim?

A)"Curbs"
B)"Seems to decrease"
C)"Suggests a change"
D)"Is at higher risk of "

Question 17

Dr.Ellison finds a relation between the amount of sleep and problem solving.Specifically,having a higher amount of sleep the night before an exam is associated with higher scores on two measures of problem solving.This is an example of which type of association?

A)Negative association
B)Positive association
C)Zero association
D)There is not enough information to answer this question

Question 18

Which of the following is a constant in this study/headline?

A)The sex of the participants
B)The effort on math problems
C)The sex of the role model
D)The number of researchers

Question 19

Dr.Ramon makes the following claim: "Watching television leads people to spend less time communicating with their spouses,study says." Dr.LaSalle makes the claim: "Research shows that making more money correlates with spending less time talking with your spouse."

Which type of claim is Dr.LaSalle making?

A)Anecdotal claim
B)Association claim
C)Causal claim
D)Frequency claim

Question 20

Which of the following is an association claim?

A)"Owning a dog is related to higher life satisfaction."
B)"A majority of Americans like dogs."
C)"Dog traveled 500 miles to find its owners."
D)"Being visited by dogs in the hospital causes decreases in recovery time."

Question 21

Dr.Kang,a cognitive psychologist,conducts an experiment examining the effect of emotion on memory.He provides lists of 15 words to two groups of participants at his university.He puts the names of all the participants in a hat.The first 20 names he assigns to Group A,and the last 20 he assigns to Group B.Group A is given a list of words that are very emotional in content (e.g. ,passion,murder).Group B is given a list of words that are neutral in content (e.g. ,houseplant,desk).He then measures how many words each group is able to remember after being distracted for 5 minutes by watching a video about the history of the university.He finds that Group A remembers 15% more words than Group B.

Which of the following makes Dr.Kang's study an experiment?

A)Dr.Kang manipulated one variable and measured another.
B)Dr.Kang used a distractor task.
C)The study was conducted at a university.
D)The study was conducted by a professor.

Question 22

A dependent variable is one that:

A)Is manipulated
B)Is measured
C)Is kept constant
D)Has one level

Question 23

Dr.Kang,a cognitive psychologist,conducts an experiment examining the effect of emotion on memory.He provides lists of 15 words to two groups of participants at his university.He puts the names of all the participants in a hat.The first 20 names he assigns to Group A,and the last 20 he assigns to Group B.Group A is given a list of words that are very emotional in content (e.g. ,passion,murder).Group B is given a list of words that are neutral in content (e.g. ,houseplant,desk).He then measures how many words each group is able to remember after being distracted for 5 minutes by watching a video about the history of the university.He finds that Group A remembers 15% more words than Group B.

Which of the following is the independent variable in Dr.Kang's study?

A)The length of the distractor task
B)The number of words remembered
C)The emotional or neutral word list
D)The number of words on the list

Question 24

Dr.Kang,a cognitive psychologist,conducts an experiment examining the effect of emotion on memory.He provides lists of 15 words to two groups of participants at his university.He puts the names of all the participants in a hat.The first 20 names he assigns to Group A,and the last 20 he assigns to Group B.Group A is given a list of words that are very emotional in content (e.g. ,passion,murder).Group B is given a list of words that are neutral in content (e.g. ,houseplant,desk).He then measures how many words each group is able to remember after being distracted for 5 minutes by watching a video about the history of the university.He finds that Group A remembers 15% more words than Group B.

If Dr.Kang decided against using random assignment,which of the following would be threatened?

A)The covariance of the study
B)The temporal precedence of the study
C)The internal validity of the study
D)The external validity of the study

Question 25

A Type I error is known as which of the following?

A)A false positive
B)A false negative
C)A near miss
D)A missed opportunity

Question 26

Stefan wants to make a causal claim in his dissertation.Which of the following is necessary?

A)He must make a frequency claim first.
B)He must manipulate his two variables.
C)He must measure his two variables.
D)He must conduct an experiment.

Question 27

Dr.Kang,a cognitive psychologist,conducts an experiment examining the effect of emotion on memory.He provides lists of 15 words to two groups of participants at his university.He puts the names of all the participants in a hat.The first 20 names he assigns to Group A,and the last 20 he assigns to Group B.Group A is given a list of words that are very emotional in content (e.g. ,passion,murder).Group B is given a list of words that are neutral in content (e.g. ,houseplant,desk).He then measures how many words each group is able to remember after being distracted for 5 minutes by watching a video about the history of the university.He finds that Group A remembers 15% more words than Group B.

Dr.Kang sends his study to a journal to be published.One of the peer reviewers questions the way Dr.Kang manipulated emotion,arguing that being exposed to emotional words does not make one emotional.The reviewer is questioning which of the following?

A)The statistical validity of the study
B)The internal validity of the study
C)The construct validity of the study
D)The external validity of the study

Question 28

Dr.Kang,a cognitive psychologist,conducts an experiment examining the effect of emotion on memory.He provides lists of 15 words to two groups of participants at his university.He puts the names of all the participants in a hat.The first 20 names he assigns to Group A,and the last 20 he assigns to Group B.Group A is given a list of words that are very emotional in content (e.g. ,passion,murder).Group B is given a list of words that are neutral in content (e.g. ,houseplant,desk).He then measures how many words each group is able to remember after being distracted for 5 minutes by watching a video about the history of the university.He finds that Group A remembers 15% more words than Group B.

Which of the following is the dependent variable in Dr.Kang's study?

A)The length of the distractor task
B)The number of words remembered
C)The emotional or neutral word list
D)The number of words on the list

Question 29

An independent variable is one that:

A)Is manipulated
B)Is measured
C)Is kept constant
D)Has one level

Question 30

When examining the statistical validity of a frequency claim,one should look for the:

A)Strength of the association
B)Margin of error estimate
C)Statistical significance
D)Length of the measurement

Question 31

Dr.Kang,a cognitive psychologist,conducts an experiment examining the effect of emotion on memory.He provides lists of 15 words to two groups of participants at his university.He puts the names of all the participants in a hat.The first 20 names he assigns to Group A,and the last 20 he assigns to Group B.Group A is given a list of words that are very emotional in content (e.g. ,passion,murder).Group B is given a list of words that are neutral in content (e.g. ,houseplant,desk).He then measures how many words each group is able to remember after being distracted for 5 minutes by watching a video about the history of the university.He finds that Group A remembers 15% more words than Group B.

Dr.Kang's decision to assign participants randomly to Group A and Group B increases which of the following?

A)The covariance of the study
B)The temporal precedence of the study
C)The internal validity of the study
D)The external validity of the study

Question 32

Why should Anton NOT interrogate the internal validity of the study?

A)Because he is a student,not a researcher
B)Because the author of the study already did
C)Because the claim is an association claim
D)Because he has not taken statistics yet

Question 33

Dr.Kang,a cognitive psychologist,conducts an experiment examining the effect of emotion on memory.He provides lists of 15 words to two groups of participants at his university.He puts the names of all the participants in a hat.The first 20 names he assigns to Group A,and the last 20 he assigns to Group B.Group A is given a list of words that are very emotional in content (e.g. ,passion,murder).Group B is given a list of words that are neutral in content (e.g. ,houseplant,desk).He then measures how many words each group is able to remember after being distracted for 5 minutes by watching a video about the history of the university.He finds that Group A remembers 15% more words than Group B.

Dr.Kang can make a causal claim that "emotion enhances memory" for all of the following reasons EXCEPT:

A)He used a large number of participants
B)There is a numeric difference between Groups A and B
C)Reading the words occurred before recalling the words
D)Dr.Kang treated Groups A and B identically except for the emotional word content

Question 34

Anton is concerned that the researcher made a Type I error.What does that mean?

A)The researcher failed to consider a third variable.
B)The researcher concluded there was a relationship,but there isn't really one.
C)The researcher failed to establish the first rule of causation,
D)The research did not make a Type II error.

Question 35

Dr.Kang,a cognitive psychologist,conducts an experiment examining the effect of emotion on memory.He provides lists of 15 words to two groups of participants at his university.He puts the names of all the participants in a hat.The first 20 names he assigns to Group A,and the last 20 he assigns to Group B.Group A is given a list of words that are very emotional in content (e.g. ,passion,murder).Group B is given a list of words that are neutral in content (e.g. ,houseplant,desk).He then measures how many words each group is able to remember after being distracted for 5 minutes by watching a video about the history of the university.He finds that Group A remembers 15% more words than Group B.

Who is responsible for deciding which validity is prioritized in a study?

A)The researcher
B)The participants
C)The peer reviewer
D)The journalist

Question 36

Which of the following is NOT a research claim?

A)Texting interferes with driver's ability to pay attention.
B)A majority of drivers have reported texting while driving.
C)Texting while driving is associated with poor impulse control.
D)Teens spend too much time texting and driving.

Question 37

Which of the following validities is NOT examined in all research claims?

A)Construct validity
B)Statistical validity
C)Internal validity
D)External validity

Question 38

A common finding in the study of aggression is that exposure to television is associated with increased aggressive behavior in children.You know this relationship may not be causal because you are not sure which occurred first-watching television or being aggressive.You are questioning which of the following rules of causation?

A)The rule of covariance
B)The rule of temporal precedence
C)The third-variable rule
D)Rule of parsimony

Question 39

Dr.Kang,a cognitive psychologist,conducts an experiment examining the effect of emotion on memory.He provides lists of 15 words to two groups of participants at his university.He puts the names of all the participants in a hat.The first 20 names he assigns to Group A,and the last 20 he assigns to Group B.Group A is given a list of words that are very emotional in content (e.g. ,passion,murder).Group B is given a list of words that are neutral in content (e.g. ,houseplant,desk).He then measures how many words each group is able to remember after being distracted for 5 minutes by watching a video about the history of the university.He finds that Group A remembers 15% more words than Group B.

Dr.Hadden wants to conduct a study that will allow him to make claims that apply to all college students.Which of the following validities is he prioritizing?

A)The statistical validity of the study
B)The internal validity of the study
C)The construct validity of the study
D)The external validity of the study

Question 40

A common finding in the study of aggression is that exposure to television is associated with increased aggressive behavior in children.You are curious as to whether peer pressure is really to blame (peer pressure encourages you to watch television and peer pressure encourages you to be aggressive).You are questioning which of the following rules of causation?

A)The rule of covariance
B)The rule of temporal precedence
C)The third-variable rule
D)Rule of parsimony

Question 41

Name the three criteria/rules necessary for making a causal claim.Describe why each is important.

Question 42

From a Slate.com article entitled "Psych-Out Sexism: The Innocent,Unconscious Bias That Discourages Girls from Math and Science," published on March 1,2011.
Stout,Dasgupta,and their colleagues wanted to find out why women's outstanding performance on science and math tests in high school and college correlates so weakly with their eventual interest in pursuing careers in those fields.In high school and college,girls increasingly earn math and science grades equal to or better than the grades of their male peers.But when it comes to choosing a career in math or science,more men than women decide to walk through those open doors.
The psychologists asked female students studying biology,chemistry,and engineering to take a very tough math test.All the students were greeted by a senior math major who wore a T-shirt displaying Einstein's E = mc² equation.For some volunteers,the math major was male.For others,the math major was female.This tiny tweak made a difference: Women attempted more questions on the tough math test (comprising 10 questions)when they were greeted by a female math major rather than a male math major.


Explain the difference between a variable and a constant.Give an example of each in the above study.

Question 43

For the following three terms,create a measured operational definition for each: academic success,attention,and social anxiety.

Question 44

For the following three terms,create a manipulated operational definition for each: stress,personal space,and study skills.

Question 45

From a Slate.com article entitled "Psych-Out Sexism: The Innocent,Unconscious Bias That Discourages Girls from Math and Science," published on March 1,2011.
Stout,Dasgupta,and their colleagues wanted to find out why women's outstanding performance on science and math tests in high school and college correlates so weakly with their eventual interest in pursuing careers in those fields.In high school and college,girls increasingly earn math and science grades equal to or better than the grades of their male peers.But when it comes to choosing a career in math or science,more men than women decide to walk through those open doors.
The psychologists asked female students studying biology,chemistry,and engineering to take a very tough math test.All the students were greeted by a senior math major who wore a T-shirt displaying Einstein's E = mc² equation.For some volunteers,the math major was male.For others,the math major was female.This tiny tweak made a difference: Women attempted more questions on the tough math test (comprising 10 questions)when they were greeted by a female math major rather than a male math major.


In the study described above,what type of claim is the author making? Explain why you think this is the claim being made.

Question 46

Explain how you could convert the study described above into an experiment.

Question 47

You read an article stating that Facebook is related to unhappiness.In the study,a group of high school students were asked how many times a day they checked their Facebook pages and how happy they were.In discussing this article with your friend Matt,he exclaims,"I knew it! I have always said that being on Facebook is the cause of all my unhappiness!"

What type of claim is the author of the article making? Name two reasons you think the author is making this type of claim.

Question 48

Consider two variables: income and relationship satisfaction.Describe the three types of associations assuming these two variables.

Question 49

From a Slate.com article entitled "Psych-Out Sexism: The Innocent,Unconscious Bias That Discourages Girls from Math and Science," published on March 1,2011.
Stout,Dasgupta,and their colleagues wanted to find out why women's outstanding performance on science and math tests in high school and college correlates so weakly with their eventual interest in pursuing careers in those fields.In high school and college,girls increasingly earn math and science grades equal to or better than the grades of their male peers.But when it comes to choosing a career in math or science,more men than women decide to walk through those open doors.
The psychologists asked female students studying biology,chemistry,and engineering to take a very tough math test.All the students were greeted by a senior math major who wore a T-shirt displaying Einstein's E = mc² equation.For some volunteers,the math major was male.For others,the math major was female.This tiny tweak made a difference: Women attempted more questions on the tough math test (comprising 10 questions)when they were greeted by a female math major rather than a male math major.


In the study described above,consider the measured variable.Provide both a conceptual definition and an operational definition for it.

Question 50

Name the four validities used to interrogate claims.If you were to question a study's four validities,provide a question you might ask related to each validity.

Question 51

Name the three types of claims.Explain the difference between claims.

Question 52

From a Slate.com article entitled "Psych-Out Sexism: The Innocent,Unconscious Bias That Discourages Girls from Math and Science," published on March 1,2011.
Stout,Dasgupta,and their colleagues wanted to find out why women's outstanding performance on science and math tests in high school and college correlates so weakly with their eventual interest in pursuing careers in those fields.In high school and college,girls increasingly earn math and science grades equal to or better than the grades of their male peers.But when it comes to choosing a career in math or science,more men than women decide to walk through those open doors.
The psychologists asked female students studying biology,chemistry,and engineering to take a very tough math test.All the students were greeted by a senior math major who wore a T-shirt displaying Einstein's E = mc² equation.For some volunteers,the math major was male.For others,the math major was female.This tiny tweak made a difference: Women attempted more questions on the tough math test (comprising 10 questions)when they were greeted by a female math major rather than a male math major.


In the study described above,name the variables and indicate the levels of each.

Question 53

From a Slate.com article entitled "Psych-Out Sexism: The Innocent,Unconscious Bias That Discourages Girls from Math and Science," published on March 1,2011.
Stout,Dasgupta,and their colleagues wanted to find out why women's outstanding performance on science and math tests in high school and college correlates so weakly with their eventual interest in pursuing careers in those fields.In high school and college,girls increasingly earn math and science grades equal to or better than the grades of their male peers.But when it comes to choosing a career in math or science,more men than women decide to walk through those open doors.
The psychologists asked female students studying biology,chemistry,and engineering to take a very tough math test.All the students were greeted by a senior math major who wore a T-shirt displaying Einstein's E = mc² equation.For some volunteers,the math major was male.For others,the math major was female.This tiny tweak made a difference: Women attempted more questions on the tough math test (comprising 10 questions)when they were greeted by a female math major rather than a male math major.


What is the difference between a manipulated and a measured variable? In the study described above,indicate which variables are manipulated and which variables are measured.

Question 54

You read an article stating that Facebook is related to unhappiness.In the study,a group of high school students were asked how many times a day they checked their Facebook pages and how happy they were.In discussing this article with your friend Matt,he exclaims,"I knew it! I have always said that being on Facebook is the cause of all my unhappiness!"

Using the three criteria for evaluating causal claims,discuss the reasons your friend Matt is correct or incorrect in his interpretation of the study.

Question 55

Considering the study above,explain why converting the study to an experiment changes the type of claim the researcher can make.