Question 1

A researcher was asked to evaluate the outcome of a program implemented to enhance recycling in a community.Which method will the researcher likely select to answer the question of whether the program was effective?

Accepted Answer

A)  time series with nonequivalent control group design
B)  participant observation
C)  random groups design
D)  cross-sectional survey design A

Question 2

A researcher was interested in determining whether more frequent breaks (i.e., "coffee breaks") in a business setting would help employees to be more productive. With the cooperation of the management, employees on one floor of the corporate offices were allowed to take a 10-minute break each hour (at any time) between 8:00 and 11:00 A.M. (for a total of 30 minutes). The comparison group comprised employees on different floors who followed the usual corporate policy of taking a 30-minute break sometime during the morning (at any time). Measures of productivity were gathered for each employee according to his or her job (e.g., number of reports written, number of sales made, etc.). A time series analysis was applied to compare the productivity of both groups of employees for six months before and after the intervention (started in July). Quite surprisingly, the productivity of both groups increased following the onset of the intervention, suggesting to the researcher that the timing of breaks makes no difference.
-Describe one threat to internal validity that might be present in this study because the independent variable manipulation was implemented on different floors of the building.What information would you need to know in order to rule out this threat to internal validity?

Accepted Answer

Although the time series with nonequivalent control group design allows researchers to rule out many threats to internal validity,the selection threat remains because of the manner in which the independent variable was manipulated.If different departments of the corporation are housed on different floors,performance may be expected to be different because of the responsibilities associated with the various departments.For example,if a sales department was located on one floor and an accounting department was on a different floor,employees' performance may be differentially affected by factors such as time of the year,corporate expectations,and number of personnel within the department.To rule out this threat it would be important to know the ways in which employees may differ on the various floors of the corporate building.

Question 3

Perhaps the greatest difference between basic research and program evaluation lies in the differences in

Accepted Answer

A)  the political and social realities surrounding each of them.
B)  statistical procedures.
C)  the importance of the research.
D)  methodology. A

Question 4

The main problem associated with subject attrition during the course of a study is that

Accepted Answer

A)  groups initially created to be equivalent may no longer be equivalent.
B)  the group with the most participants remaining at the end of a study will likely have higher posttest scores.
C)  the researcher can no longer use statistical analysis to understand the results.
D)  regression to the mean on the dependent variable measure is likely.

Question 5

When it comes to control over the conditions in the experiment or over the assignment of participants to groups in the experiment,a researcher in a natural setting is likely to have

Accepted Answer

A)  more control than a researcher in a laboratory setting.
B)  the same amount of control as a researcher in a laboratory setting.
C)  more control over the conditions in the experiment but less control over assignment of participants.
D)  less control than a researcher in a laboratory setting.

Question 6

After implementing a program to improve admitting procedures in a hospital emergency room,a researcher seeks to determine whether the program is being implemented as proposed.Which research method will best serve this purpose?

Accepted Answer

A)  survey method
B)  observational method
C)  experimental design
D)  quasi-experimental design

Question 7

A physician wants to test the effectiveness of a new allergy medication.The physician consults a researcher who regularly conducts clinical trials.The physician tells the researcher that she has a backlog of 100 patients she is treating effectively with the prevailing medication but who could potentially benefit even more from the new medication.The researcher recommends that the physician do a true experiment because of the availability of a(n)

Accepted Answer

A)  excess-demand control group.
B)  quasi-treatment control group.
C)  waiting-list control group.
D)  convenience control group.

Question 8

Why is the nonequivalent control group design superior to the one-group pretest-posttest design in terms of controlling for threats to internal validity?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Why is the nonequivalent control group design...

Question 9

An intervention in an office setting leads employees to be pleased that the management is interested in their welfare.If the employees' performance improves in this situation,the researcher should be concerned about potential

Accepted Answer

A)  contamination effects.
B)  lack of discontinuity in the time series.
C)  selection threats to internal validity.
D)  Hawthorne effects.

Question 10

In the context of conducting experiments in natural settings,random assignment of participants to conditions is

Accepted Answer

A)  usually perceived by possible participants as the fairest procedure.
B)  the fairest procedure if the effectiveness of the treatment is not known.
C)  the fairest procedure if the effectiveness of the treatment is known.
D)  usually perceived by those in positions of authority as the fairest procedure.

Question 11

A researcher was interested in determining whether more frequent breaks (i.e., "coffee breaks") in a business setting would help employees to be more productive. With the cooperation of the management, employees on one floor of the corporate offices were allowed to take a 10-minute break each hour (at any time) between 8:00 and 11:00 A.M. (for a total of 30 minutes). The comparison group comprised employees on different floors who followed the usual corporate policy of taking a 30-minute break sometime during the morning (at any time). Measures of productivity were gathered for each employee according to his or her job (e.g., number of reports written, number of sales made, etc.). A time series analysis was applied to compare the productivity of both groups of employees for six months before and after the intervention (started in July). Quite surprisingly, the productivity of both groups increased following the onset of the intervention, suggesting to the researcher that the timing of breaks makes no difference.
-Describe two ways in which contamination may have influenced the results of this study.

Accepted Answer

The answer of A researcher was interested in determining whether...

Question 12

Even when pretest scores are the same,on average,for treatment and comparison groups in a nonequivalent control group design,the two groups may not be equivalent because

Accepted Answer

A)  the pretest measure is unlikely to be relevant to the dependent variable.
B)  the fact that the two groups are equal on the pretest measure does not ensure that the groups are equivalent on other characteristics relevant to the study.
C)  the posttest measure is unlikely to be the same as the pretest measure,and the two groups must be equivalent at the posttest.
D)  the natural growth rates of two groups from different populations are likely to be the same,but the pretest estimate of equality may still be in error.

Question 13

Participants for a treatment group are chosen because they score very low on a pretest measure of performance.When their performance improves on the posttest,the researcher

Accepted Answer

A)  can be confident that the treatment was effective.
B)  can rule out testing and instrumentation threats to internal validity.
C)  should consider the possibility that statistical regression influenced posttest scores.
D)  must conclude that additive effects with selection are responsible for the outcome.

Question 14

When individuals' performance on a posttest differs from their initial testing not because of a treatment but because of familiarity with the measure,a __________ threat to internal validity is likely.

Accepted Answer

A)  regression
B)  instrumentation
C)  testing
D)  contamination

Question 15

At a large university, a group of education specialists tested the effectiveness of a new academic improvement course. Students seeking help at the university counseling center because of academic difficulties were asked to participate in this 4-week program. Only students who were judged to be deficient in reading comprehension and other study-related skills were chosen for the program. Students who sought help at the counseling center for emotional difficulties were included in the study as a comparison group. They received the usual treatment offered at the counseling center. A group of 30 students completed the academic-improvement program at the counseling center. Average test grades from the students' courses for the two groups were compared before (midterm exams) and after (final exams) the program. Analyses revealed that a statistically significant majority of the students were doing better in school after completing the academic-improvement program than before.
-What type of research design was used for this study?

Accepted Answer

The answer of At a large university, a group of...

Question 16

Strong evidence of a treatment effect in a time series with nonequivalent control group design is indicated by

Accepted Answer

A)  discontinuity in neither the treatment group nor the comparison group.
B)  discontinuity in both the treatment group and the comparison group.
C)  discontinuity in the comparison group but not in the treatment group.
D)  discontinuity in the treatment group but not in the comparison group.

Question 17

Program evaluation represents perhaps the extreme case of

Accepted Answer

A)  basic research.
B)  applied research.
C)  theory development.
D)  experimental control.

Question 18

Contamination that results from communication of information between groups of participants in an experiment can lead to all of the following except

Accepted Answer

A)  greater compliance with the instructions within each group.
B)  resentment on the part of participants receiving less desirable treatments.
C)  rivalry among participants receiving different treatments.
D)  general diffusion of treatments across the groups.

Question 19

At a large university, a group of education specialists tested the effectiveness of a new academic improvement course. Students seeking help at the university counseling center because of academic difficulties were asked to participate in this 4-week program. Only students who were judged to be deficient in reading comprehension and other study-related skills were chosen for the program. Students who sought help at the counseling center for emotional difficulties were included in the study as a comparison group. They received the usual treatment offered at the counseling center. A group of 30 students completed the academic-improvement program at the counseling center. Average test grades from the students' courses for the two groups were compared before (midterm exams) and after (final exams) the program. Analyses revealed that a statistically significant majority of the students were doing better in school after completing the academic-improvement program than before.
-Identify and describe two threats to internal validity in this study.That is,show why there are at least two plausible alternative hypotheses for the obtained change in grades other than due to the academic-improvement program.

Accepted Answer