Deck 2: Psychology and Science

Question 1

Your next door neighbor has a son named James.James,who is seven,has problems with attention and fidgets excessively.Based upon your interactions with James,you notice that he talks much of the time and has difficulty following instructions.What is James's most likely diagnosis?

A) childhood schizophrenia
B) attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
C) bipolar disorder
D) autism

Answer 1

attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder

Question 2

Stimulants like Ritalin and Adderall affect children by:

A) increasing activity but only in nonhyperactive children
B) increasing activity
C) decreasing activity
D) decreasing activity but only in hyperactive children

Answer 2

decreasing activity

Question 3

According to the textbook,which group has the lowest incidence of ADHD?

A) Asian-Americans girls
B) Hispanic-Americans boys
C) Anglo-Americans boys
D) African-Americans boys

Answer 3

Asian-Americans girls

Question 4

What disorder is characterized by the behavioral problems of inattention and excessive activity and can be treated with Ritalin?

A) conduct disorder
B) learning disability disorder
C) attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
D) autism

Question 5

You're listening to a talk show on the radio.The guest happens to be an expert on attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.One question asked of the guest concerns treatment.The expert says,"Ritalin is used to control this disorder.It is a depressant and has side effects." What was wrong with the expert's comments?

A) Ritalin is a stimulant, not a depressant.
B) Ritalin doesn't control the disorder; it cures it.
C) Ritalin is never prescribed for ADHD.
D) Ritalin has been shown to cause no side effects.

Question 6

Your 10-year-old cousin is currently taking Ritalin.Based on your knowledge of Ritalin's side effects,you should not be surprised to hear that he is having problems in:

A) gaining too much weight
B) sleeping
C) feeling depressed
D) maintaining attention

Question 7

The diagnosis of ADHD is difficult because:

A) it is based on behavioral symptoms and not medical tests
B) it is based on medical tests and not behavioral symptoms
C) the law states that two mental health professionals must agree on the diagnosis
D) ADHD is so poorly defined

Question 8

Ritalin is to ____ as aspirin is to ____.

A) stimulant; depressant
B) attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder; headache
C) depression; headache
D) analgesic; amphetamine

Question 9

According to the textbook,which of the following groups has the highest incidence of ADHD?

A) Asian-American girls
B) Hispanic-American boys
C) Native-American boys
D) African-American boys

Question 10

The process of answering questions about human behavior and mental processes through information observation and speculation is called ________ psychology.

A) pseudo
B) armchair
C) dialectic
D) descriptive

Question 11

What is the approach that attempts to gather information and to answer questions in a way that errors and bias are minimized?

A) debriefing
B) random selection
C) scientific method
D) manipulation of variables

Question 12

The scientific method attempts to:

A) propose theoretical ideas to answer questions
B) minimize errors and bias in gathering information and answering questions
C) promote common sense understanding
D) dispute common sense by forcing scientists to do experiments

Question 13

Based on telephone surveys,about ____ of school-age children are diagnosed with ADHD.

A) .5%
B) 1%
C) 5%
D) 25%

Question 14

Which of the following is an important strength of the scientific method?

A) It is very imprecise.
B) It makes use of an empirical process that enhances biases and errors.
C) It is very cheap to employ
D) It can be used for any of the four goals of psychology.

Question 15

Your friend has two children.The youngest of them,a three-year-old boy,was recently diagnosed with ADHD.You find that odd because:

A) ADHD rarely shows up in males.
B) The symptoms of ADHD typically are first observed around the age of ten.
C) In general, the youngest child in a family does not show ADHD.
D) A diagnosis of ADHD before the age of 4 does not follow the guidelines of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Question 16

A newspaper reporter wants to do a story on the controversy surrounding attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.She wants to focus on the biggest controversy.Based upon your reading of this Module,what should be the focus in her story?

A) the side effects of treating it with changes in diet
B) the diagnosis of the disorder
C) the unwillingness of insurance companies to pay for treatment
D) the use of stimulants like Ritalin or Adderall

Question 17

Which of the following is not a commonly used method for answering questions?

A) survey
B) case study
C) introspection
D) naturalistic observation

Question 18

Of the following symptoms,which is not present in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder?

A) hallucinations
B) frequently leaving seat in the classroom
C) making careless mistakes in schoolwork
D) talking excessively

Question 19

The discussion of hand washing in the textbook illustrates what important point about surveys?

A) The results may be accurate if you carefully define the words used in the survey.
B) Self-fulfilling prophecy introduces errors into survey results.
C) Surveys show cause and effect.
D) Sometimes people do not answer truthfully.

Question 20

Dr.Stokes has decided to conduct a study of the relationship between one's glucose intake and his or her likelihood of developing ADHD.If she is going to use the scientific method properly,Dr.Stokes's second step will be to:

A) formulate an hypothesis
B) review the literature
C) select a research design
D) collect data

Question 21

Jocelyn wants to study in great depth the personality development,behaviors,and feelings of a young child.Jocelyn should utilize:

A) a case study
B) an animal model
C) a laboratory setting
D) standardized testing

Question 22

If you are conducting an experiment in a naturalistic setting,which of the following will you avoid?

A) trying to observe the organisms' behavior
B) watching the organisms in their own environment
C) attempting to change or control the situation
D) using a large city as the experimental setting

Question 23

Johannah is studying ADHD and has asked the mothers of ADHD children how diet has affected their children's symptoms.According to the textbook,what response is Johannah most likely to get from the mothers?

A) when children were given diets with high levels of sodium their hyperactivity worsened
B) the children's symptoms increased when they consumed an artificial sweetener
C) the symptoms decreased when the diet is low in protein
D) low-calorie diets decrease the symptoms of the disorder

Question 24

Which research method involves questioning a group of people?

A) experimental method
B) naturalistic observation
C) survey method
D) laboratory observation

Question 25

What research method can be described as an in-depth analysis of a single person?

A) case study
B) correlation
C) survey method
D) experimental method

Question 26

You recently read a book about a celebrity who battled alcoholism throughout her adult life.This book best illustrates:

A) the experimental method
B) naturalistic observation
C) the survey method
D) a case study

Question 27

As part of a group project,you are required to write a survey.Which of the following research questions would be best answered using the survey method?

A) How do chimps establish dominance hierarchies in the wild?
B) Among the elderly, does caffeine help their problem-solving ability?
C) How many past Presidents were Democrats?
D) Is the President doing an overall good job?

Question 28

A testimonial is defined as:

A) a type of objective evidence gathered in experiments
B) a statement in support of a particular viewpoint based on personal experience
C) a correlation that takes place in more than one context
D) a correlation between two variables that exist independently of each other

Question 29

Marcus wants to accurately assess students' attitudes toward the cafeteria food on his college campus for his psychology research project.What research method should he use to collect this information?

A) survey method
B) laboratory observation
C) case study
D) experimental method

Question 30

During a recent trip to the shopping mall,someone working for the mall asked you to fill out a survey on shopping habits.As a student of psychology,what concerns might you have about this survey?

A) wording of the questions
B) confounded causes
C) placebo effect
D) correlation versus cause-and-effect relationships

Question 31

A person claims in a newspaper article that he has improved his memory by taking megavitamins.Psychologists would be skeptical of this finding because:

A) the data were presented in the form of a testimonial
B) megavitamins have been proven to have no effect on memory
C) a great deal of what is printed in the newspaper is not true
D) memory cannot be improved

Question 32

You are conducting a survey on racism.You have a group of well-trained assistants,about half white,half African American.Should you keep track of which subjects are questioned by white assistants and which by African-Americans assistants?

A) Yes-the ethnicity of the assistant may affect subjects' answers
B) Yes-the ethnicity of the assistant may affect their ability to accurately record subjects' answers
C) No-you might offend your assistants
D) No-ethnicity has no effect one way or the other

Question 33

A disadvantage of naturalistic observation is that:

A) the behavior is controlled
B) the situation is too artificial
C) the manipulation of the independent variable may be insufficient
D) the psychologists' own beliefs and values might affect their observation

Question 34

Which of the following is a disadvantage of surveys,as presented in your textbook?

A) Surveys collect much information.
B) Answers from different groups cannot be compared.
C) Surveys cannot identify problems of treatment programs for ADHD.
D) The ethnicity of the questioner can affect subjects' responses.

Question 35

When you give your ____,you are presenting a statement that supports a viewpoint based upon ____.

A) testimonial; personal experience
B) testimonial; confounded causes
C) correlation; placebos
D) testimonial; introspection

Question 36

Kristy is interested in conducting research on the table manners of children while eating.She concludes that a laboratory setting would be most appropriate for the research.Kristy's research supervisor at her college disagrees and suggests she rethink her research setting.What piece of advice would you give to Kristy?

A) get another research supervisor
B) conduct the research using naturalistic observation
C) use case-study techniques
D) consider using the animal model, focusing on baby chimps

Question 37

If a researcher wants to study a behavior in a controlled environment,the researcher should utilize a(n):

A) laboratory experiment
B) testimonial
C) naturalistic study
D) case study

Question 38

"When I start feeling a little tired and run-down,I just take a couple of Vitamin C tablets and I feel better." This is an example of a(n):

A) experiment
B) survey
C) testimonial
D) correlation coefficient

Question 39

Recently Willie broke up with his girlfriend and attributes the breakup to her.Jared,his best friend,thinks differently.Jared says of Willie,"I wish he would just consider that he is the real problem! But he has made up his mind." This situation is most closely related to:

A) a self-fulfilling prophecy
B) a confounded experience
C) personal beliefs biasing perceptions
D) correlation

Question 40

Which of the following would be most likely presented in the form of a testimonial?

A) a UFO sighting
B) medical evidence of the effectiveness of a new cold medication
C) the results of an intelligence test
D) the results of a television-viewing survey

Question 41

A number that describes the strength of a relationship between events is called a(n)____; it can range between ____.

A) mean coefficient; 0.00 and +1.00
B) average correlation; 0.00 and +10.00
C) average; .00 and +1.00
D) correlation coefficient; -1.00 and +1.00

Question 42

Molly strongly believes that she will hurt herself while playing basketball.A few weeks later,she actually does hurt herself during a basketball game.Her injury may have been the result of:

A) a self-fulfilling prophecy
B) a confounded experience
C) a subliminal message
D) ESP

Question 43

A psychologist is concerned that a colleague's research is yielding a certain type of finding because the colleague expects that finding.The psychologist suspects the effect of:

A) need bias
B) self-fulfilling prophecy
C) predictive invalidity
D) achievement bias

Question 44

Some placebo effects occur because of:

A) mistrust of science
B) mistrust of medicine
C) powerful correlations
D) natural painkillers released by the brain

Question 45

You are writing a paper on the effects of cough medicine.Based on the research cited in the textbook,which of the following should be the conclusion of your paper?

A) Using cough medicine is an effective method to control coughing.
B) Cough medicine helps to reduce but not eliminate coughing.
C) Cough medicines have no scientifically demonstrated effect on coughing.
D) Certain types of coughs are most likely to be reduced with cough medicine.

Question 46

When the focus of research is on a single individual,the most appropriate method is a(n):

A) case study
B) experiment
C) survey
D) correlation

Question 47

Your grandmother's cure for an upset stomach is to rub vinegar on your ear lobes.According to your relatives,the treatment works much of the time,but has no real medical effect.Placebos are often widely accepted because ____ is (are)very influential.

A) the double-blind effect
B) testimonials
C) correlational effects
D) confounding effects

Question 48

Your grandmother's cure for your upset stomach is to rub vinegar on your ear lobes.It works much of the time,but has no real medical effect.Psychologists would probably say that this is an example of a:

A) double-blind effect
B) biased effect
C) placebo effect
D) confounding effect

Question 49

Ollie is having a bad day.He's not feeling very good about himself.He also notices that people are treating him differently.Friends who are usually very considerate are acting rude and impatient toward Ollie.Is his low self-esteem affecting how he interacts with people? Or are his friends influencing how Ollie feels about himself? These questions are a classic example of:

A) a self-fulfilling prophecy
B) a confound
C) a fundamental attribution error
D) cognitive dissonance

Question 50

Late one night you are watching TV as an ad promoting magnetic pads to relieve pain comes on.You count more than 15 past customers appearing in the commercial claiming the product's effectiveness in relieving pain from injuries and arthritis.One customer is a former professional football star.You realize that the commercial is cleverly using:

A) debriefing
B) a placebo
C) testimonials
D) experimentation

Question 51

A(n)____ is a strong belief about future behavior that can affect the behavior so that the belief appears to have predicted it.

A) self-fulfilling prophecy
B) confounded experience
C) introspection
D) testimonial

Question 52

Which subject group is most likely receiving a placebo?

A) Group 1-receive an antibiotic
B) Group 2-receive Tylenol to relieve migraine headaches
C) Group 3-receive sugar pill
D) Group 4-receive Ritalin

Question 53

If Christa wants to study the relationship between income and years of education,she ought to use the ____ method.

A) observation
B) experimental
C) naturalistic
D) correlation

Question 54

A person suffering from anxiety predicts that he will make a fool of himself at a social gathering and,in fact,he does.A psychologist predicts that students in his morning class invariably outperform those in his afternoon class and,in fact,they do.What do the anxious person and the psychologist share in common?

A) they are both anxious
B) they both fell prey to a self-fulfilling prophecy
C) they both created bias in those who observe them
D) both are very good at predicting behavior

Question 55

A study of pain cited in Module Two found that subjects who received a placebo:

A) reported greater pain than those who received painkillers
B) experienced the release of natural painkillers
C) reported greater pain than subjects who were given a substance made from centipedes
D) felt more of a dull ache pain rather than a sharp pain

Question 56

A correlation is used to:

A) explain how one variable causes another variable
B) show the effect that one variable has on another variable
C) describe a relationship between two or more variables
D) prove theories

Question 57

Juan has been smoking for years and really wants to quit.He decided to buy a specially formulated vitamin that he saw advertised on TV.Since he has taken the vitamin,his urge to smoke has disappeared.Juan is most likely to have experienced a(n):

A) placebo effect
B) double-blind effect
C) experimenter effect
D) dependent effect

Question 58

A treatment that resembles medical treatment,but has no real effect is termed a:

A) pseudo
B) debrief
C) confound
D) placebo

Question 59

Based on Module Two,if cough medicine helps you to control a cough,it is because of:

A) your beliefs and thoughts of what caused the cough
B) your beliefs and expectations regarding the medicine's effectiveness
C) the chemical effects of the medicine on the brainstem
D) your beliefs and thoughts regarding the severity of the cough

Question 60

What technique is a measure of the relationship between two or more events?

A) correlation
B) survey
C) testimonial
D) observation

Question 61

Which of the following correlation coefficients represents a situation in which an increase in one variable is associated with a decrease in the other variable?

A) +.90
B) +.30
C) .00
D) -.70

Question 62

What does a correlation tell us?

A) the order in which variables occur
B) which variables influence other variables
C) what causes change in a variable
D) the relationship and strength of relationship between two or more variables

Question 63

Which of the following correlation coefficients represents the highest degree of association between two variables?

A) +.70
B) +.30
C) -.20
D) -.90

Question 64

"The more you study,the fewer errors you will make on the next exam," is a statement reflecting a ____ correlation.

A) positive
B) negative
C) perfect
D) zero

Question 65

As the price of gas increases,we tend to drive less.This is an example of a ____ correlation.

A) positive
B) negative
C) perfect
D) zero

Question 66

A newspaper article reports that crime increases each month when the moon is full.This relationship is a(n):

A) testimonial
B) experiment
C) survey
D) correlation

Question 67

A study reports a positive correlation between acts of aggression and the amount of television a child watches.The best interpretation of this statement would be:

A) television viewing causes children to act aggressively
B) children who watch a great deal of television tend to be more aggressive than children who watch less television
C) there is no relationship between the amount of television watched and aggressive behavior
D) being an aggressive child causes that child to watch more television.

Question 68

Andy measured the size of each of his friends' heads and also asked them for their SAT scores,in order to determine whether a relationship existed between head size and intelligence.His computed correlation coefficient was .00.What should Andy conclude?

A) As head size increases, intelligence increases.
B) As head size increases, intelligence decreases.
C) There is no relationship between head size and intelligence.
D) A small head causes a lowered level of intelligence.

Question 69

Assume there is a correlation of .00 between shoe size and number of siblings.If you know someone's shoe size:

A) your prediction of the number of siblings will be very accurate
B) it would be very difficult to accurately predict the person's number of siblings
C) your prediction of the number of siblings will depend upon the strength of the relationship
D) then you could explain why the person has the number of siblings she does

Question 70

Abdul was listening to a radio talk show and heard the announcer talk about "a high correlation between crime and poverty." The announcer then proceeded to say since there was a high correlation,poverty causes crime.Abdul is taking psychology,and is skeptical of what he just heard.He knows that:

A) correlation does not indicate cause-and-effect relationships
B) to properly evaluate the statement, he needs to know the magnitude of the correlation
C) poverty is difficult to measure
D) the research indicates that crime causes poverty, not vice versa

Question 71

Tennis players who have a high percentage of successful first serves have a greater chance of winning tennis matches than players who are not as successful on their first serve.This is an example of a ____ correlation.

A) positive
B) negative
C) perfect
D) zero

Question 72

Which of the following correlation coefficients represents a situation in which there is no relationship between variables?

A) -1.00
B) .99
C) 10.00
D) .00

Question 73

Recent research shows that the relationship between smoking and lung cancer may be caused by:

A) the paper in which cigarettes are wrapped
B) smokers not getting enough exercise
C) a chemical in cigarette smoke that turns off a gene that normally suppresses tumors
D) excessive drinking that occurs while the smoker smokes cigarettes

Question 74

Which of the following correlation coefficients represents a situation in which an increase in one variable is associated with an increase in the other variable?

A) -.45
B) -.61
C) .00
D) +.45

Question 75

Correlations are not appropriate to ____ but are useful to ____.

A) predict behavior; make cause-and-effect statements
B) make cause-and-effect statements; pinpoint confounding effects
C) evaluate testimonials; evaluate surveys
D) make cause-and-effect statements; make predictions about behavior

Question 76

If we find that intelligent parents tend to have intelligent children,then we would be correct in describing the relationship as a ____ correlation.

A) positive
B) negative
C) perfect
D) zero

Question 77

If the correlation between the number of siblings one has and their college GPA is .86,then we could:

A) explain why students who are the only child do so poorly in college
B) explain why students who are the only child do so well in college
C) predict that students who have several siblings will have higher GPAs
D) predict that students who have no siblings will have higher GPAs

Question 78

The correlation between smoking and lung cancer shows that:

A) correlations may, in fact, give clues to real causes
B) there is no way of determining whether smoking causes lung cancer
C) smoking does not cause lung cancer
D) even strong correlations can be misleading

Question 79

Select one of the following statements about research methods that is incorrect.

A) A survey gives us information about a large number of people.
B) A case study provides information about one person.
C) The experiment suggests cause-and-effect relationships.
D) A correlation shows us cause-and-effect relationships.

Question 80

Which of the following correlation coefficients represents the lowest degree of association between two variables?

A) +.40
B) +.15
C) -.50
D) -.75