Question 1: Which of the following is NOT one of the three fundamental features of science?
empirical questions
public knowledge
mathematical equations
systematic empiricism
Question 2: A set of beliefs can be said to be pseudoscientific if it lacks one or more of the three features of science and _____.
its adherents claim or imply that it is scientific
it has been discredited by scientific research
it seems "crazy"
it refers to phenomena that cannot be directly observed
Question 3: Research questions in psychology can come from which of the following?
previous research
informal observations
practical problems to be solved
all of the above
Question 4: Which of the following is a categorical variable?
eye color
IQ
number of lifetime sexual partners
shoe size
Question 5: A research methods student conducts a study on the relationship between people's level of extroversion and the number of close friends they have. She computes Pearson's r, which comes out to be - 1.70. Which of the following is most clearly true?
The relationship between the two variables is weak.
More extroverted people have fewer friends.
She ought to use a bar graph to display her results.
She made an error in computing Pearson's r.
Question 6: When you want to show that Variable X has a direct effect on Variable Y, what is the best kind of study to conduct?
a nonexperimental study
an experiment
an observational study
a survey
Question 7: The relationship between people's heights and weights is positive.
True
False
Question 8: In a negative relationship, higher scores on one variable are associated with lower scores on another variable.
True
False
Question 9: Pearson's r cannot be negative.
True
False
Question 10: In Milgram's famous study, who was the confederate?
the person being shocked
the experimenter
the person doing the shocking
none of the above
Question 11: Which of the following occurred in the infamous Tuskegee syphilis study?
Research participants were told they had syphilis even though they did not to see how they would react.
Research participants were denied treatment for their syphilis.
Research participants were injected with syphilis bacteria.
Research participants were give experimental treatments for syphilis.
Question 12: Research on the effectiveness of normal educational activities would generally be categorized as which of the following?
exempt
minimal risk
at risk
none of the above
Question 13: Measuring characteristics of potential participants to identify those who may be at risk of harm in the study is called _____.
debriefing
prescreening
informed consent
risk reduction
Question 14: The difference between phenomena and theories is essentially the same as the difference between which of the following?
observations and models
correlational studies and experiments
significant and nonsignificant results
models and hypotheses
Question 15: How does a framework differ from a theory?
A framework is usually more specific than a theory.
A framework is usually more general than a theory.
A framework cannot be tested but a theory can.
A framework can be tested but a theory cannot.
Question 16: For every _____ there are many plausible _____.
fact; phenomena
theory; researchers
phenomenon; theories
researcher; variables
Question 17: As a general rule, every phenomenon has which of the following?
no real explanation
one clear explanation
many plausible explanations
one discoverer
Question 18: Theories in evolutionary psychology tend to take which approach?
functional
mechanistic
typological
stage
Question 19: A theory that explains a behavior primarily in terms of why it happens is which of the following?
a mechanistic theory
a typology
a functional theory
a hypothesis
Question 20: The general approach that scientists use to create and test theories is called which of the following?
the functional-mechanistic method
the theory-model-phenomenon approach
the quasi-logical hypothesis
the hypothetico-deductive method
Question 21: What is the first thing that you should do in constructing a new theory?
Create a set of mathematical equations that might account for the phenomena of interest.
Understand the phenomena of interest in detail, along with any existing theories of them.
Conduct at least four to six new empirical studies.
Decide which type of theory you want to construct.
Question 22: Measurement is best defined as which of the following?
directly comparing one individual to a standard reference individual
the assignment of scores to individuals so the scores represent some characteristic of the individuals
the use of an established measuring instrument such as a ruler or scale to describe an individual
an objective method of counting individuals
Question 23: Which of the following is the best example of a construct?
depression
number of siblings
height
annual income
Question 24: What is it called when a researcher measures the same construct in different ways?
multiple measurement
exploratory research
inconsistent assessment
converging operations
Question 25: There is a single best conceptual definition of every psychological construct.
True
False
Question 26: There is a single best way to measure every psychological construct.
True
False
Question 27: Face validity is the extent to which a psychological measure appears to measure the construct of interest.
True
False
Question 28: A Cronbach's alpha of .90 would indicate good internal consistency.
True
False
Question 29: A psychological measure is valid to the extent that the scores it produces are consistent over time.
True
False
Question 30: Psychological constructs can be observed directly by looking or listening.
True
False
Question 31: What are the two defining features of an experiment?
control of extraneous variables; statistical analysis of the results
statistical analysis of the results; a comparison of two groups
a comparison of two groups; manipulation of an independent variable
manipulation of an independent variable; control of extraneous variables
Question 32: Why are confounding variables bad?
They provide an alternative explanation for any observed difference between conditions.
They reduce internal validity.
They make it difficult to tell if the independent variable was responsible for the effect on the dependent variable.
all of the above
Question 33: Why do researchers randomly assign participants to conditions?
to control extraneous variables
to ensure that they find a strong statistical relationship between the independent variable and the dependent variable
to discover whether there is a placebo effect
to avoid fatigue effects
Question 34: Imagine that you are a participant in an experiment on the effects of morning exercise on mathematics performance. If this study uses a within-subjects design, which of the following would you do?
One day you take a math test after having exercised in the morning; another day you take a math test after not having exercised in the morning.
Either you exercise in the morning and then take a math test or you do not exercise in the morning and then take a math test.
You eat a healthy breakfast consisting of
You eat a healthy breakfast consisting of milk, juice, toast, and eggs.
You take a math test and then tell the researcher whether or not you exercised that morning.
Question 35: Imagine an experiment with one independent variable: noise level (quiet vs. noisy). If the researcher is using a between-subjects design and wants to have 20 participants per condition, how many participants will he need all together?
10
20
40
400
Question 36: What is the main advantage of conducting an experiment using a within-subjects design rather than a between-subjects design?
A within-subjects design eliminates the need for pilot testing.
A within-subjects design controls more extraneous variables.
A within-subjects design does not require manipulation of an independent variable.
A within-subjects design prevents carryover effects.
Question 37: A researcher is conducting a study in which the dependent variable is mental concentration. If it is a within-subjects design with lots of different conditions, then which of the following is most likely to be a problem for the researcher?
practice effect
fatigue effect
context effect
floor effect
Question 38: Experimenters manipulate independent variables and control extraneous variables.
True
False
Question 39: In a between-subjects experiment, each participant is tested in only one condition.
True
False
Question 40: In a within-subjects experiment, each participant is tested in more than one condition.
True
False
Question 41: Researcher Robert Rosenthal is known for his work on which of the following?
the effect of smiling on helping
cultural differences in time perception
social anxiety
experimenter expectancy effects
Question 42: What is the defining feature of nonexperimental research?
It is about personality and individual differences.
It lacks the manipulation of an independent variable, random assignment, or both.
It involves only one variable.
It has high external validity.
Question 43: Which of the following is a reason to conduct nonexperimental research?
The researcher is interested in thinking.
The researcher wants to maximize the internal validity of the study.
The researcher wants to avoid carryover effects.
It would be unethical to manipulate the independent variable.
Question 44: Which of the following is a type of nonexperimental research?
qualitative studies
correlational studies
quasi-experiments
all of the above
Question 45: Which of the following is the defining feature of correlational research?
An independent variable is manipulated while extraneous variables are controlled.
One variable is measured and described.
Research participants are interviewed in depth about their experiences.
Two variables are measured and the relationship between them is assessed.
Question 46: Coding of participant behaviors is generally an important part of which of the following?
archival data collection
sport psychology
quasi-experimental research
naturalistic observation
Question 47: Archival data would be least likely to be used in which of the following?
an experiment
a correlational study
a qualitative study
a single-variable study
Question 48: Qualitative research is meant to do which of the following?
generate novel research questions
explore people's "lived experience"
address broad questions
all of the above
Question 49: Which of the following is a common data collection method in qualitative research?
administering questionnaires with rating scale responses
taking multiple physiological measures
using computer simulations
giving unstructured interviews
Question 50: Data analysis in qualitative research is most likely to include which of the following?
means and standard deviations
inferential statistics
unfalsifiable theories
detailed examples of participant responses
Question 51: What are the two main characteristics of survey research?
large random samples and self-report measures
self-report measures and face-to-face interviews
face-to-face interviews and statistical analysis
statistical analysis and large random samples
Question 52: "Is there anything else you would like to tell us about?" is an example of an open-ended item.
True
False
Question 53: Closed-ended items provide a set of response options for respondents to choose from.
True
False
Question 54: A researcher who stands in a shopping mall and approaches anyone who looks to him like they would complete a survey is using random sampling.
True
False
Question 55: Researchers are most likely to use open-ended items under which of the following conditions?
They have a specific construct that they want to measure.
They do not have preconceived ideas about how people will respond.
They want their data to be quick and easy to analyze.
They are conducting their survey over the Internet.
Question 56: The BRUSO model is a model of which of the following?
how people respond to survey questionnaire items
the process of administering a survey
good survey questionnaire items
none of the above
Question 57: Survey research tends to use which of the following?
nonrepresentative sampling
convenience sampling
nonprobability sampling
probability sampling
Question 58: What is the best way to address the problem of nonresponse bias?
ignore the nonresponders when analyzing the data
force everyone to respond
do everything possible to maximize response rates
write unbiased questionnaire items
Question 59: What are the two main functions of the introduction to a survey questionnaire?
to encourage participation and establish informed consent
to establish the legitimacy of the survey and put respondents at ease
to inform the respondents of their rights and protect the researcher from lawsuits
to hide the true purpose of the survey and to establish rapport with respondents
Question 60: High-level APA style consists of rules about grammar, spelling, punctuation, and formatting.
True
False
Question 61: An APA-style abstract is usually about two pages long.
True
False
Question 62: Which of the following presents the major sections of an APA style empirical research report in the correct order?
Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion
Method, Results, Discussion, Abstract
Abstract, Discussion, Method, Results
Method, Introduction, Discussion, Results
Question 63: The two broad themes of high-level APA style writing are that it is _____ and _____.
technical; thought provoking
creative; engaging
formal; straightforward
interesting; controversial
Question 64: Which of the following is an example of a low-level rule of APA style?
Avoid personally insulting other researchers.
Use number words for numbers lower than 10.
An empirical research report should start with a title page.
Write in a simple and clear manner.
Question 65: The title of an APA style research report should generally be which of the following?
typed in all capital letters
cute and attention grabbing
highly technical
no more than 12 words long
Question 66: The literature review of an APA style introduction section should do which of the following?
cite and discuss the three most important studies on the current topic
provide an exhaustive list of all research conducted on the current topic
make an argument for why the current research question is worth addressing
discuss only new research that has been published in the past five years