Question 1

Which of the following is the least likely goal of pilot testing a survey scale?

Accepted Answer

A)   Developing more tightly-worded survey items.
B)   Measuring the internal consistency of the scale.
C)   Determining the variables to be measured in the survey.
D)   Assessing respondent fatigue and likelihood of attrition. C

Question 2

Jennifer is analyzing the data from her survey study on people's attitudes towards social norms. She discovers that a participant had chosen "strongly disagree" to all the items on the last page of the survey, even for contrasting items. For example, the participant chose "strongly disagree" for the items "I am outgoing and love attending parties" and "I generally prefer to be alone at home". The participant has likely displayed:

Accepted Answer

A)   Social desirability bias
B)   Motivated respondent bias
C)   A response set
D)   Attrition C

Question 3

In a study by Wells et al. (2012) on attitudes about carrying handguns, the researchers compared responses of students who completed a survey in class with those of students who were given the option to complete the survey online. They found that students who responded to the web survey were more extreme in their attitudes than the in-class sample. These findings could possibly be a result of:

Accepted Answer

A)   Response set
B)   Motivated respondent bias
C)   Attrition
D)   Social desirability bias B

Question 4

David has developed a scale to examine social media addiction. He is concerned about whether the items in his scale are actually measuring the same thing. David is concerned with the ___________________ of his scale.

Accepted Answer

A)   internal consistency
B)   external validity
C)   test-retest reliability
D)   internal validity

Question 5

Which of the following strategies best works to reduce the impact of social desirability bias on survey responses?

Accepted Answer

A)   Inserting an item that requests participants to select "Strong disagree" for that particular item.
B)   Asking participants to promise that they would answer each survey item honestly.
C)   Discarding the survey data of participants who do not complete the survey.
D)   Asking about controversial issues subtly by framing all responses as normal behavior.

Question 6

List and explain three general benefits of using surveys over other research methods in psychology.

Accepted Answer

The answer of List and explain three general benefits of...

Question 7

As mentioned in the textbook, a 2005 Pew Research survey found that 51% of respondents favored "making it legal for doctors to give terminally ill patients the means to end their lives," but only 44% favored "making it legal for doctors to assist terminally ill patients in committing suicide". Anderson wants to show that his participants support euthanasia. Knowing the results of the Pew Research survey, he chooses to use the first phrasing in his survey to college students. As a result, Anderson's study is affected by:

Accepted Answer

A)   Experimenter bias
B)   Attrition
C)   Motivated respondent bias
D)   Social desirability bias

Question 8

Which of the following is not a benefit of using an existing survey instrument as compared to coming up with your own?

Accepted Answer

A)   Using an existing survey is more efficient than constructing a new one.
B)   Existing surveys usually have validity and reliability measures that are important in determining whether the survey would work well for your research.
C)   Using an existing survey will help you to formulate your research questions to suit the survey items.
D)   Using an existing survey helps comparison between studies that use similar measures.

Question 9

Gail sent out 50 surveys to students staying at her dormitory, asking them about their exercise behavior. After two weeks, she receives all fifty surveys back. Gail need not be worried about:

Accepted Answer

A)   Self-selection bias
B)   Social desirability bias
C)   Response set
D)   Experimenter bias

Question 10

David's scale measuring social media addiction has a Cronbach's alpha of 0.86. Edison's scale that also measures social media addiction has a Cronbach's alpha of 0.17. Which of the following is true when comparing the Cronbach's alpha of both scales?

Accepted Answer

A)   David's scale has poorer internal consistency than Edison's scale.
B)   David's scale has poorer test-retest reliability than Edison's scale.
C)   David's scale has better internal consistency than Edison's scale.
D)   David's scale has better test-retest reliability than Edison's scale.

Question 11

Consider the following scenario:
Item 47 of a 200-item questionnaire is "Please select Strongly Disagree". What is this item addressing?

Accepted Answer

A)   Response set
B)   Attrition
C)   Experimenter bias
D)   Participant bias

Question 12

In a survey on attitudes towards college cheating, the researcher would like to insert the item, "I always tell the truth". The responses are on a 5-point scale, Strong Agree, Agree, Neither Agree nor disagree, Disagree and Strongly Disagree. Esther claims that this item does not directly relate to cheating on tests, exams and assignments, however, Deena claims that including the item might be useful. Which of the following biases might this item help address?

Accepted Answer

A)   Fatigue effect
B)   Social desirability bias
C)   Non-response bias
D)   Motivated respondent bias

Question 13

Which of the following is not an example of instrument reliability?

Accepted Answer

A)   Respondents who take a survey the second time produced similar responses as compared to when they took it the first time.
B)   Survey items are carefully worded to accurately measure the construct of interest.
C)   Two separate versions of the same survey give similar results from the same respondents.
D)   The responses on both sets of items are similar when the items of a survey are regrouped into two different sets.

Question 14

Julie is analyzing her survey data and suspects that a respondent has answered the second half of her survey in a response set. However, she is unable to prove it. What is the best course of action for Julie to take?

Accepted Answer

A)   Include the data, because it is ultimately a completed survey
B)   Discard the data, because they are potentially invalid
C)   Include the data, as long as there is no experimenter bias
D)   Discard the data, because of attrition

Question 15

What are an advantage and a disadvantage of using interviews over surveys to conduct research?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What are an advantage and a disadvantage...

Question 16

What are three ways to reduce the effect of respondents who answer surveys fraudulently?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What are three ways to reduce the...

Question 17

Which of the following is the best definition of a Likert Scale?

Accepted Answer

A)   A single survey item with at least three response options.
B)   The sum of responses to multiple questions intended to measure the same variable.
C)   Any survey that includes both close-ended and open-ended response formats.
D)   Multiple questions measuring a range of different constructs that use a scale with a mid-point.

Question 18

A psychologist wants to examine the effect of artificial light exposure on eating behavior. She recruits her clients from her private, upscale clinic as participants for this study and all of them agree to take part in it. Given only this information, which of the following is the largest problem with her study's design?

Accepted Answer

A)   Selection bias
B)   Self-selection
C)   Non-response bias
D)   Experimenter bias

Question 19

Jennifer is investigating people's attitudes towards social norms. She is considering using either an in-person interview or web-based survey to collect data. What is a potential research benefit of using the web-based survey compared to the in-person interview?

Accepted Answer

A)   The web-based survey allows Jennifer to manipulate the phrasing of the survey items to obtain the results that she wants.
B)   The web-based survey allows for participant anonymity, which makes it more likely for participants to reveal controversial attitudes about social norms.
C)   The web-based survey allows for more questions to be asked, which makes it harder for the study to receive IRB approval.
D)   The web-based survey allows for fewer fatigue effects, which makes it less likely that participants will drop out.

Question 20

Jaime is checking her survey data for instances where respondents had answered inconsistently for similar items. She is checking for:

Accepted Answer

A)   Careless responding
B)   Self-selection bias
C)   Attrition
D)   Experimenter bias

Exam 7: Survey and Interview Approaches