Deck 3: The Study of Adult Development and Aging: Research Methods

Question 1

Dependent variable example- stem A psychologist is conducting a study on the effect of intergenerational contact on happiness ratings,focusing on how such contact can be beneficial to older adults..In one condition,she pairs an older adult with a young child and in the other she pairs two older adults with each other.Both sets of pairs meet for 30 minutes at a time.In this study,the dependent variable is the:

A)pairings of young with old vs.old with old.
B)happiness ratings of the older adults.
C)length of time spent in contact.
D)number of words each pair exchanges while they meet.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Method of Research used in NSHAP Which research method was used in the NSHAP study on aging and sexuality in which older adults reported on their sexual experiences?

A)Focus groups.
B)Interviews.
C)Case studies.
D)Daily diaries.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Most efficient design- choice The _____________ refers to the approach that combines the three sequential designs.

A)Most Efficient Design
B)Three Factor Method
C)Cohort Sequential Design
D)Quasi Statistical Model

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Independent variable example- stem Researchers studying the effects of videogame training on the cognitive abilities of older adults expose separate groups of male and female participants to a training condition and two other groups to a no-training condition in performance on a cognitive test.They then conduct a similar comparison involving male and female younger adults.In this study,the only true independent variable is:

A)videogame training
B)age group
C)cognitive performance
D)gender

Question 5

Quasi-experimental design- choice Because age cannot be an independent variable,research on aging uses a(n)______________ type of design.

A)true experimental
B)bidirectional
C)quasi-experimental
D)semi-structured

Question 6

Age as an independent variable Age cannot be used as an independent variable in developmental research because:

A)People usually lie about their birthdate.
B)There are no statistics to analyze age-based data.
C)It cannot be manipulated by the experimenter.
D)There are no good theories about aging.

Question 7

Sequential design- choice In ____________ studies of aging,researchers collect data from more than one cohort at more than one time period.

A)sequential
B)longitudinal
C)sectional
D)prospective

Question 8

Cross-sectional problem- example Online headlines from a major new study report that sexual interest diminishes as people get older.However,as you read the article in more detail,you realize that the study only compared people of different ages.Therefore,this study was _____________ and could not permit conclusions about age changes.

A)cross-sectional
B)prospective
C)cross-sequential
D)observational.

Question 9

Selective attrition - choice When the unhealthy members of a sample die out,the scores of the survivors seem to "rise" even though they may not change in reality.This research problem in studies on aging is referred to as:

A)sequential growth.
B)time of testing.
C)selective attrition.
D)qualitative analysis.

Question 10

Longitudinal example- choice A British documentary film maker followed a group of children every 7 years starting when they were 7 years old and continuing to track them down through age 56.This film comes closest to which type of developmental research design?

A)Cross-sectional
B)Longitudinal
C)Cross-sequential
D)Time-sequential

Question 11

Prospective study- stem In a prospective study of development,researchers use which type of approach?

A)Compare people at one time who did and did not experience a major life transition.
B)Track participants before and after they experience a major life transition.
C)Ask participants to recall what they were like when they were younger.
D)Interview close friends and relatives of participants over several time points.

Question 12

Cross-sectional study problems A researcher conducting a cross-sectional study on age differences in health habits wants to look at people in their 20s vs.people in their 70s.This research might be improved by which of the following steps?

A)Limit the young adult group to college students to minimize bias.
B)Examine the older adults in a computer lab to control test conditions.
C)Pay the college students but not the older adults for participating.
D)Include a middle-aged group to reduce the age span being compared.

Question 13

Selective attrition- stem Selective attrition typically involves the people initially most ______________ dropping out of a longitudinal study earliest.

A)motivated
B)infirmed
C)active
D)capable

Question 14

Prospective study example- choice A researcher studying retirement is concerned that most of the available data come from people who are already retired,instead of following people up through the transition.The best approach to counter this problem would involve which type of research design?

A)cross-sectional
B)prospective
C)sequential
D)archival

Question 15

Time of measurement effects- stem Developmental researchers who study time of measurement effects on psychological functioning are most interested in finding out:

A)how people born at different years compare.
B)the effect of aging on performance.
C)how current social conditions affect scores.
D)whether the least able drop out first.

Question 16

Selective attrition- stem Although always a problem in research on aging,the issue of selective attrition most clearly affects what type of study?

A)Longitudinal
B)Sequential
C)Laboratory
D)Observational

Question 17

Cross-sectional confound with cohort In a cross-sectional study on aging,the most important factor to control for is:

A)terminal drop.
B)practice effects.
C)cohort differences.
D)lack of confidentiality.

Question 18

Terminal drop- choice The gradual loss of cognitive abilities as individuals get closer to death is referred to in research terms as:

A)terminal drop.
B)unreliability.
C)mortality control.
D)correlational fallout.

Question 19

Cross-sectional advantage Researchers conducting cross-sectional studies on aging have which specific advantage over researchers who conduct longitudinal studies?

A)They do not have to worry about practice effects.
B)The data are not affected by selective survival.
C)They have eliminated all possible cohort effects.
D)They can give different measures to different age groups.

Question 20

Cohort effect example- choice The fact that the "Greatest Generation" was raised in the 1930s,leading them to share certain sociocultural influences,is an example of which factor affecting developmental research results?

A)time of measurement
B)aging
C)cohort
D)mediation

Question 21

Prevalence statistics- stem In epidemiological studies,researchers obtain prevalence statistics when they want to investigate the percent of people who:

A)ever had a given disease.
B)first show symptoms of a disease.
C)had a disease and are now recovered.
D)were at risk but didn't get the disease.

Question 22

Cross-sequential design- choice A researcher finds that after completing all three analyses in the Most Efficient Design,the 50-year-olds differ from the 60-year-olds in two of the three analyses.To conclude that age was a factor in producing these results,which design would need to show no significant effects?

A)Time-sequential
B)Cohort-sequential
C)Age-sequential
D)Cross-sequential

Question 23

Incidence studies- choice Which type of epidemiological study do researchers use when they want to estimate the percent of people who first show symptoms of a disease?

A)Prevalence
B)Multivariate
C)Incidence
D)Descriptive

Question 24

Reliability- choice Tests that produce consistent results are said to be psychometrically:

A)valid
B)reliable
C)predictive
D)replicable

Question 25

Meta-analysis example- choice To evaluate the relationship between gender and psychological well-being,a researcher examines a set of 45 studies that all include similar types of measures.The researcher then is able to provide a measure of "effect size" to indicate the strength of the relationship.This type of approach is called a(n):

A)meta-analysis
B)archival study
C)focused analysis
D)descriptive study.

Question 26

Moderator example- choice In multivariate study,researchers are attempting to understand the joint contributions of age and gender to the outcome of scores on a measure of depression.Because age does not predict gender nor does gender predict age,both variables have the status of being:

A)structures
B)moderators
C)latent
D)mediators

Question 27

Structural equation models- choice Researchers who want to test causal hypotheses about a set of relationships involving age and other variables are likely to use which specific type of design?

A)Cross-sequential.
B)Structural equation model.
C)Quasi-experimental.
D)Correlational.

Question 28

Interpret sequential findings- choice For a researcher in a given field to find that both the time-sequential and the cohort-sequential designs produce significant age effects,then it is possible that the results reflect true ________ aging:

A)historical
B)social
C)personal
D)cultural.

Question 29

Observational study example- choice In a study examining the factors that influence whether drivers of different ages are likely to speed through an intersection,researchers set up recording devices at several major traffic lights in one town.They then estimate their ages and estimated speeds from the recordings.This would be an example of what type of study?

A)survey
B)observational
C)sequential
D)qualitative

Question 30

Latent variable- choice In a large-scale study investigating the relationship between intelligence and lifestyle,researchers administer a set of 10 intelligence tests which they then convert into one underlying factor.They relate this underlying factor,in turn,to various lifestyle variables such as exercise,diet,and leisure activity participation.The converted intelligence factor is known,in structural equation modeling terms,as a(n):

A)latent variable.
B)moderator.
C)multiple factor.
D)outcome variable.

Question 31

Survey example- choice (Aging Today) In the National Social Life,Health and Aging Study,researcher collected data on the sex lives of adults 57 to 85 years of aging by using which type of methodology?

A)Focus group
B)Laboratory
C)Observational
D)Survey

Question 32

Most Efficient Design- stem The Most Efficient Design would most likely be employed when researchers wish to compare the effects of:

A)gender vs.age
B)education vs.cohort
C)age vs.cohort
D)months vs.years

Question 33

Path analysis- choice Although only experimental studies can ultimately test causality,many researchers in the field of aging use multivariate techniques,such as ____________,because they allow for testing inferences about causality.

A)archival methods
B)path analyses
C)cross-sectional studies
D)case reports

Question 34

Focus group method example- choice The most appropriate method of analysis for data obtained from focus groups,such as older adults discussing their views about healthcare,would be:

A)qualitative.
B)correlational.
C)structural.
D)epidemiological

Question 35

Diary study- choice A method in which researchers gather data on a frequent basis from the same people over a period of weeks or months is called a(n)_______ study:

A)diary
B)incidence
C)survey
D)case

Question 36

Cross-sequential design- stem The cross-sequential design is designed to allow researchers to determine whether cohort and ___________ influence the patterns of results in developmental studies.

A)time of measurement
B)age
C)education
D)nationality

Question 37

Logistic regression method- choice Researchers attempting to predict whether or not a person will develop a disease from a set of risk factors are most likely to use the statistical method called:

A)structural equation modeling.
B)logistic regression.
C)mediational analysis.
D)latent variable measurement.

Question 38

Qualitative method example- stem The qualitatitve method would be most appropriate for research investigating topic in the psychology of aging?

A)The effects of aging on memory.
B)Age differences in daily experiences.
C)The prevalence by age of psychiatric disorders.
D)How older adults feel about grandchildren.

Question 39

Mediation- choice In multivariate correlational studies testing _________,researcher compare the correlation between two variables with and without the effect of a third.

A)moderation
B)association
C)description
D)mediation

Question 40

Cohort-sequential design- stem In the cohort-sequential design,researchers manipulate cohort and:

A)time of measurement
B)gender
C)age
D)date of birth

Question 41

Debriefing- stem The ethical principle of debriefing requires that a researcher who uses deception in an experiment is obligated to:

A)continue to maintain the deception so that participants don't leak the findings.
B)intervene by counseling directly any participants who seem to show distress.
C)ensure that participants don't leave the experiment until they have completed it.
D)provide a complete description of the study's purposes and answer any questions.

Question 42

Validity- choice Tests that are intended to measure personality need to meet psychometric criteria showing that they actually do relate to personality.These criteria refer to a test's:

A)reliability
B)equivalence
C)validity
D)consistency

Question 43

Criterion validity example- stem A personnel manager develops a test to determine whether he will be able to predict how well employees will be able to keep up with the technological advances in their field from questions that measure their ability to learn new information.This test is intended,then,to meet the psychometric quality known as:

A)criterion validity.
B)test-retest reliability.
C)convergent validity.
D)internal reliability.

Question 44

Anonymity- choice The ethical principle of ____________ cannot be maintained in longitudinal study,where researchers must keep track of the names of their participants.

A)anonymity
B)confidentiality
C)informed consent
D)portability

Question 45

IRB's- stem The role of the Institutional Review Board (IRB)in the research process involves which procedures?

A)Ensuring that all participants provide information that is anonymous.
B)Funding researchers who work at that institution to conduct their work.
C)Requiring that researchers protect the rights of their participants.
D)Ensuring that investigations carried out at that institution are published.

Question 46

Confidentiality example- choice A researcher obtains information about one of her older participants in a study that suggests the participant may have difficulty driving.According to the ethical principle of ______________,however,she cannot report this to the participant's family.

A)confidentiality
B)professionalism
C)informed consent
D)freedom of information

Question 47

Informed consent- choice Ethical guidelines require that researchers obtain ________________ in which they provide information about a study's risks and benefits to each participant and then obtain their signature indicating they understand it:

A)assisted feedback
B)confidential disclosure
C)informed consent
D)known agreement.