introduction

Question 1

statistics

Answer 1

a set of methods and rules for organizing and interpreting information

Question 2

population

Answer 2

a collection of all individuals of interest in a particular study

Question 3

sample

Answer 3

a subset of a population, usually selected as representative of that population

Question 4

parameter

Answer 4

a value that describes a population

Question 5

statistic

Answer 5

a value that describes a sample

Question 6

descriptive statistics

Answer 6

statistics that simplify and summarize information

Question 7

data

Answer 7

measurements or observations

Question 8

raw score

Answer 8

an original measurement or observed value

Question 9

inferential statistics

Answer 9

statistics that allow generalizations about a population

Question 10

sampling error

Answer 10

the discrepancy between a sample statistic and a population parameter

Question 11

random sampling

Answer 11

a selection process such that every individual in the population has the same chance of being selected for the sample

Question 12

variable

Answer 12

a characteristic or condition that changes or has different values for different individuals

Question 13

constant

Answer 13

a characteristic or condition that does not change or have different values for different individuals

Question 14

correlational method

Answer 14

changes are observed in two variables to see if there is a relationship

Question 15

experimental method

Answer 15

one variable is manipulated while changes are observed in another variable

Question 16

independent variable

Answer 16

the manipulated variable

Question 17

dependent variable

Answer 17

the variable observed for changes

Question 18

control group

Answer 18

the group that does not receive the experimental treatment

Question 19

experimental group

Answer 19

the group that does receive the experimental treatment

Question 20

confounding variable

Answer 20

an uncontrolled variable that is unintentionally allowed to vary systematically with the independent variable

Question 21

quasi-experimental method

Answer 21

comparing preexisting groups of subjects or preexisting conditions

Question 22

quasi-independent variable

Answer 22

the variable used in the quasi-experimental method to differentiate groups

Question 23

hypothesis

Answer 23

a prediction about the outcome of the experiment

Question 24

construct

Answer 24

hypothetical concepts used in theories to organize observations

Question 25

operational definition

Answer 25

a construct’s definition in terms of specific operations or procedures

Question 26

nominal scale

Answer 26

observations are labeled and categorized

Question 27

ordinal scale

Answer 27

observations are ranked in order of size or magnitude

Question 28

interval scale

Answer 28

observations are ranked in order of size and magnitude, and equal intervals between numbers on the scale reflect equal differences in size or magnitude

Question 29

ratio scale

Answer 29

an interval scale with an absolute zero point

Question 30

discrete variable

Answer 30

variables with separate, indivisible value categories

Question 31

continuous variable

Answer 31

variable with infinite possible values

Question 32

real limit

Answer 32

the assigned category separations between continuous values

Question 33

X

Answer 33

the first variable

Question 34

Y

Answer 34

the second variable

Question 35

N

Answer 35

number of scores in a population

Question 36

n

Answer 36

number of scores in a sample

Question 37

Σ

Answer 37

sum