A Theoretical Introduction to Research Methods - RUG - Practice exam 2018/2019

Questions

Question 1

Which of the following is not true of theory-testing mode?

1. The priority is external validity.
2. It is related to the theory-data cycle.
3. Most psychological students are of the theory-testing type.

Question 2

In the theory-data cycle, theories first lead to_____.

1. Data
2. Questions
3. Answers

Question 3

In which of the following ways are correlational designs similar to quasi-experimental designs?

1. They both suffer from possible threats to internal validity.
2. They both use small numbers of participants.
3. They both use random assignment.

Question 4

Joric is a social psychologist who studies marriage. He believes that marital satisfaction has two components: the ability to trust one’s partner and a belief that one can be a good spouse. This is known as:

1. Data
2. A theory
3. A hypothesis

Question 5

Why do quasi-experiments tend to have very good construct validity for the independent variable?

1. They tend to use more participants.
2. They use real-world manipulations/experiences
3. The manipulations have been previously validated in the lab.

Question 6

A common finding in the study of aggression is that exposure to television is associated with increased aggressive behavior in children. You know this relationship may not be causal because you are not sure which occurred first—watching television or being aggressive. You are questioning which of the following rules of causation?

1. The rule of temporal precedence
2. The rule of covariance
3. The third-variable rule

Question 7

Maaike is examining the graph of an interaction and sees that one line is flat and one line rises sharply to the right. Which of the following should Maaike conclude?

1. There is a crossover interaction
2. There is a spreading interaction
3. There is a main-effect interaction

Question 8

A psychologist who primarily does research is most concerned with which APA standard of ethics?

1. 4
2. 6
3. 8

Question 9

Dr. Field is conducting a 2 x 4 independent-groups factorial design. Assuming he wants 25 people in each cell, how many participants does Dr. Field need to recruit?

1. 100
2. 150
3. 200

Question 10

In addition to the three principles derived from the Belmont Report, which of the following two principles were added in the principles put forth by the American Psychological Association?

1. The principle of integrity and fidelity/responsibility
2. The principle of consent and honesty
3. The principle of reliability and validity

Question 11

Testing threats involve ________ whereas instrumentation threats involve ________.

1. Researchers; participant
2. Participants; measurements
3. Independent variables; dependent variables

Question 12

Hans is studying the effect of popularity on academic success for his research methods project. He decides to measure popularity by asking each elementary school student to tell him how many friends he or she has. He assumes that more friends means the student is more popular. Which of the following best describes this variable?

1. A qualitative variable
2. A ratio scale of measurement
3. A categorical variable

Question 13

Prior to conducting her current study, Dr. Knowles asked her research assistant to use the same mood manipulation with a sample of 30 college students in order to determine if people’s moods really did change after listening to the music. Running this preliminary study helps establish which of the following:

1. Construct validity
2. External validity
3. Internal validity

Question 14

In which of the following ways are content and face validity similar?

1. Both involve subjective judgments.
2. Both are necessary for predictive validity
3. Both involve judgments based on participants’ opinions.

Question 15

Dr. Knowles’ decision to randomly assign participants to three groups was done to avoid which of the following?

1. A practice effect
2. An order effect
3. A selection effect

Question 16

Which of the following is NOT a way to deal with reactivity?

1. Blending in with the surroundings
2. Using multiple observers
3. Measuring the behavior unobtrusively

Question 17

Which of the following is a correlation that could be examined in both longitudinal designs and simple bivariate designs?

1. Autocorrelation
2. Cross-sectional correlation
3. Cross-lag correlation

Question 18

Another term for probability sample is:

1. Random sampling
2. Purposive sampling
3. Cluster sampling

In which of the following ways are content and face validity similar?

1. Both involve subjective judgments.
2. Both are necessary for predictive validity.
3. Both involve judgments based on participants’ opinions.

Question 19

A more general term for practice effects and carryover effects is:

1. Order effects
2. Between-person effects
3. Within-person effects

Question 20

External validity is most important for which of the following claims?

1. Frequency claims
2. Association claims
3. Extern validity is equally important for all claims

Answers

Question 1

A

Question 2

B

Question 3

A

Question 4

B

Question 5

B

Question 6

A

Question 7

B

Question 8

C

Question 9

C

Question 10

A

Question 11

B

Question 12

B

Question 13

A

Question 14

A

Question 15

C

Question 16

B

Question 17

B

Question 18

A

Question 19

A

Question 20

A