Deck 6: Major Research Designs

Question 1

A sociologist sets up an experiment on television violence and children.She shows one set of children (group A)violent cartoons and then observes their play.She shows a second set of children (group B)nonviolent cartoons and then observes their play.Which of these groups would be considered the experimental group?

A)group A
B)group B
C)neither group
D)both groups

Answer 1

A

Question 2

When a researcher collects information about a group through direct involvement and inspection,this is known as

A)a survey.
B)observation.
C)secondary analysis.
D)an experiment.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

A sociologist attends meetings at all the schools and churches in his community over several years,and meets as many residents as he can for the purpose of exploring all facets of the community's social life.He then compiles a detailed description of the community.He is conducting

A)a content analysis.
B)a secondary analysis.
C)a quantitative study.
D)ethnographic research.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

A sociologist decides to study the interaction among students in the college's computer center.When the students realize they are under observation,they become shy and reserved in their interactions.This is an example of

A)replication.
B)secondary analysis.
C)the Hawthorne effect.
D)value neutrality.

Question 5

Sociologists consider secondary analysis to be

A)more valid than other forms of research.
B)more reliable than other forms of research.
C)a nonreactive form of research.
D)an outdated mode of research.

Question 6

A research design is a(n)

A)explanation of an abstract concept that is specific enough to allow a researcher to measure the concept.
B)speculative statement about the relationship between two or more variables.
C)indicator of attitudes,behavior,or characteristics of people or organizations.
D)detailed plan or method for scientifically obtaining data.

Question 7

Secondary analysis includes a variety of research techniques that use

A)questionnaires and interviews.
B)participant observation.
C)publicly accessible information and data,or data collected by another.
D)control groups.

Question 8

Researchers found which of the following to be true of cell phone users compared to landline users?

A)more likely to screen incoming calls
B)more likely to break off a call mid-survey
C)a higher proportion of non-adults on cell phones
D)All of these answers are correct.

Question 9

People may behave differently in artificial situations than they would in the "real world." This poses a particular problem for researchers using

A)questionnaires.
B)content analysis.
C)replication.
D)laboratory experiments.

Question 10

A researcher studies adolescent attitudes about senior citizens by analyzing depictions of the elderly in the lyrics of popular music and the content of teen magazines.This is an example of

A)content analysis.
B)replication.
C)survey research.
D)an experiment.

Question 11

Regina wants to study the homeless in her hometown.In order to do so,she lives at a homeless shelter for a month.During this time,she does everything that the women she is studying does and tells no one of her true identity.This method would be

A)an experiment.
B)ethnography.
C)face-to-face interview.
D)participant observation.

Question 12

Which of the following was NOT one of the goals of social scientists embedded with the U.S.military in Afghanistan and Iraq?

A)identify local customs
B)look at family structures
C)conduct experiments on local communities
D)identify local internal social conflicts

Question 13

What term do sociologists use to describe the phenomenon whereby subjects deviate from their typical behavior because they realize they are under observation?

A)the control group effect
B)the spurious response
C)the Hawthorne effect
D)skewing

Question 14

In an experiment,the group that is not exposed to the independent variable is called the

A)experimental group.
B)representative group.
C)study group.
D)control group.

Question 15

An inherent problem in using secondary sources of data is that

A)the researcher may not find the exact data needed for his or her own research.
B)the data are plagued with statistical errors.
C)the researcher may be more careless when using someone else's data.
D)all of the analysis has been completed by an initial research team.

Question 16

Ethnography is the most common form of ________ research,which relies on what is seen in the field and in naturalistic settings more than it does on statistical data.

A)quantitative
B)qualitative
C)observational
D)experimental

Question 17

An artificially created situation that allows the researcher to manipulate variables and to introduce control variables is known as a(n)

A)survey.
B)experiment.
C)replication.
D)research design.

Question 18

When a sociologist actually joins a group for a period to get an accurate sense of how it operates,the approach is called

A)an experiment.
B)ethnography.
C)face-to-face interview.
D)participant observation.

Question 19

To conduct a cross-cultural study of job discrimination against women,a sociologist interviews 75 women between the ages of 20 and 40 in an American city,and 75 women in the same age group in a Canadian city.This study would be classified as

A)a secondary analysis.
B)participant observation.
C)a survey.
D)a content analysis.

Question 20

A study,generally in the form of an interview or a questionnaire,that provides sociologists with information concerning how people think or act is known as

A)observation research.
B)a survey.
C)secondary analysis.
D)an experiment.

Question 21

Selection of a research design will influence both the cost of a research project and the amount of time needed to collect the results of the research.

Question 22

Which of the following existing data sources is used most frequently for sociological research?

A)census data
B)scientific records
C)personal journals
D)newspapers

Question 23

An interviewer is likely to obtain a higher response rate than a printed survey form would.

Question 24

All research designs have positives and negatives associated with them.

Question 25

Describe the various types of research designs and discuss the strengths and weakness of each design.Which type of research design is most commonly used by researchers,and which type of research design is the least reliable?

Question 26

Content analysis of children's books has been used to determine children's awareness of environmental issues.

Question 27

Describe why and how sociologists use previously-collected data in their research.