Deck 7: Problem Formulation

Question 1

The more broadly worded the research question is, the better the research question.​

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Research designs can be descriptive, explanatory, or exploratory, but never more than one.​

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Which of the following is an attribute of a good research question?​

A) ​There should be many possible acceptable answers to it.
B) ​It need NOT be stated in specific terms.
C) ​It need NOT be answerable by observable evidence.
D) ​Its answer should be relevant to others concerned about social work or social welfare.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

If a researcher wanted to test the hypothesis that female social workers are more empathic than male social workers, the researcher would design:​

A) ​a descriptive study.
B) ​an explanatory study.
C) ​a trend study.
D) ​a longitudinal study.
E) ​an exploratory study.

Question 5

Feasibility should NOT be a consideration when formulating an idealistic, far-reaching study.​

Question 6

Which of the following is/are true regarding the feasibility of social work research studies?​

A) ​Fiscal costs are rarely underestimated.
B) ​Agency staff members may resist research studies.
C) ​Unexpected obstacles rarely take up much time.
D) ​Ethical issues rarely require that the research be reformulated.

Question 7

Which of the following statements is TRUE about social work research as compared to social scientific research in disciplines like sociology and psychology?​

A) ​It is more likely to deal with practical problems and decisions confronting social welfare agencies.
B) ​It is less likely to be applied.
C) ​It is more likely to emphasize theory.
D) ​Theory plays no role in social work research

Question 8

​Descriptive research attempts to answer the question "why."

Question 9

In a study in which a researcher examined major U.S. newspaper editorials that dealt with the topic of public welfare, the unit of analysis was​

A) ​public welfare.
B) ​major U.S. cities.
C) ​newspapers.
D) ​newspaper editorials.
E) ​welfare recipients.

Question 10

When a researcher is deciding what information will be gathered (and from whom), that researcher is dealing with which of the following stages of the research design process?

A) ​purposes of research.
B) ​units of analysis.
C) ​topics for research.
D) ​time dimension.
E) ​motivations for research.

Question 11

Reductionism refers to an overly strict limitation on the kinds of concepts and variables to be considered as caused.​

Question 12

Agency member resistances to research often result in the need for much more time than anticipated to complete the research.​

Question 13

A good research topic should:​

A) ​Pass the "so what?" test.
B) ​Be specific.
C) ​Capable of being answered by observable evidence.
D) ​All of these are correct.
E) ​None of these is correct.

Question 14

​Cohort studies examine how specific subpopulations change over time, but the specific set of people observed will be different at different chronological points.

Question 15

Descriptive studies do NOT

A) ​study relationships between variables.
B) ​tell why something occurred.
C) ​use operational definitions.
D) ​use concepts.
E) ​Descriptive studies DO all of these.

Question 16

In order to formulate the question and purpose for your research requires considering the time dimension.

Question 17

To generate hypotheses or tentative new insights about a new phenomenon, a researcher would undertake:​

A) ​a trend study.
B) ​an explanatory study.
C) ​an exploratory study.
D) ​a longitudinal study.
E) ​a descriptive study.

Question 18

Unlike social work practice, social work research seeks to advance knowledge just for knowledge's sake.​

Question 19

If researchers wanted to find the average age of all licensed social workers in a country, they would undertake:

A) ​a descriptive study.
B) ​a trend study
C) ​a cohort study.
D) ​an exploratory study.
E) ​an explanatory study.

Question 20

Dr. Jordan chronicles people's attitudes toward an upcoming poverty program. Jordan is doing explanatory research.​

Question 21

Explanatory studies are designed to find answers to which of the following questions?​

A) ​Are people's attitudes toward public welfare changing?
B) ​Why are people's attitudes toward public welfare changing?
C) ​Who watches soap operas?
D) ​Is a measurement scale valid?

Question 22

Which of the following statements is true about the literature review?​

A) ​It should be put off until the research question has been sharpened.
B) ​It is a prime source for selecting a research question to begin with.
C) ​It should be done exclusively in the library, not online.
D) ​It should be limited to social work journal articles.

Question 23

Discuss the exploratory, descriptive and explanatory purposes for doing research. Describe a study that illustrates each purpose.​

Question 24

Explain why it is usually important to review the literature early in the problem formulation phase of research. study.​

Question 25

Which of the following statements is/are TRUE about selecting a research question?​

A) ​The selection should be based exclusively on the researcher's personal curiosity.
B) ​The question should pass the "so what" test.
C) ​Reading the research literature on the topic should be put off until after the research question is finalized.
D) ​The question must test a theory.

Question 26

If a researcher were conducting a study of women's attitudes toward abortion rights, the unit of analysis would be​

A) ​the individual.
B) ​attitudes.
C) ​abortion rights.
D) ​women's attitudes.
E) ​society.

Question 27

Identify and give an example of each of the four units of analysis. Illustrate the ecological fallacy and reductionism using your examples.​

Question 28

Give an example of how the longitudinal study of a problem in social welfare would differ depending on whether it was a trend study, a cohort study, or a panel study.​

Question 29

Professor Root was studying the child abuse rates in urban and rural areas of Ohio. It was found that the child abuse rate was higher in the rural areas. Professor Root concluded that people who live in rural areas are more likely to abuse children than are people who live in urban areas. Root's conclusion​

A) ​illustrates the ecological fallacy.
B) ​illustrates reductionism.
C) ​illustrates good deductive reasoning.
D) ​illustrates the importance of trend studies.

Question 30

A follow-up study of how the same clients discharged from a mental hospital in 1990 were functioning in 1991, 1992, 1993, and so on through 2000 would be​

A) ​a cohort study
B) ​a trend study
C) ​a panel study
D) ​a cross-sectional study