Research Design

Question 1

Question ID #18671: In the context of bivariate correlational techniques, “homoscedasticity” refers to:
Select one:
A. a linear relationship between X and Y.
B. a nonlinear relationship between X and Y.
C. a different range of Y scores at different values of X.
D. the same range of Y scores at different values of X.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Question ID #8961: A researcher would use which of the following techniques when her goal is to evaluate the cause and-effect or predictive relationships between measured variables and latent factors? 
Select one: 
A. meta-analysis 
B. multitrait-multimethod matrix 
C. discriminant function analysis 
D. structural equation modeling

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Question ID #18674: As a behavioral observation technique, event sampling (recording) is useful for behaviors that:
Select one:
A. occur infrequently or have a long duration.
B. occur frequently or have a short duration.
C. occur randomly and involve a sequence of responses.
D. occur spontaneously and have no clear beginning or end.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Question ID #8079: Campbell and Stanley (1966) identify which of the following as a direct threat to a study's external (but not internal) validity? 
Select one: 
A. multiple treatment interference 
B. statistical regression 
C. maturation 
D. attrition

Answer 4

A

Question 5

Question ID #18161: Squaring the multiple correlation coefficient (R) produces a measure of the:
Select one:
A. relative amount of dispersion (variability) in a set of scores.
B. degree to which a true score can be expected to vary from an obtained score.
C. correlation between two variables when the effects of a third variable have been statistically removed.
D. the amount of variability shared by three or more variables.

Answer 5

D

Question 6

Question ID #18203: Statistical regression is a potential threat to a study’s internal validity when:
Select one:
A. there is a statistically different number of participants in the studys treatment groups.
B. there is a statistically significant difference in the number of participants who drop out of the different treatment groups during the course of the study.
C. participants are selected for inclusion in the study because of their extremely high or low scores on the pretest.
D. the researcher is unable to randomly assign participants to the different treatment groups.

Answer 6

C

Question 7

Question ID #18210: The denominator term in the F-ratio is reduced in magnitude by:
Select one:
A. decreasing within-group variability.
B. increasing within-group variability.
C. increasing between-group variability and decreasing within-group variability.
D. decreasing between-group variability and increasing within-group variability.

Answer 7

A

Question 8

Question ID #18670: Which of the following is the appropriate multivariate technique when using two or more continous predictors to predict status on two or more continuous criteria? 
Select one: 
A. logistic regression 
B. linear regression  
C. discriminant function analysis 
D. canonical correlation

Answer 8

D

Question 9

Question ID #18183: Trend analysis is a type of analysis of variance that is used when:
Select one:
A. a studys independent variable is quantitative.
B. a studys dependent variable is qualitative.
C. a cross-sectional research design has been used.
D. a factorial research design has been used.

Answer 9

A

Question 10

Question ID #18173: To assess the effectiveness of a behavioral intervention on the caloric intake of young women with anorexia nervosa, you obtain a sample of women who have just received this diagnosis and determine the average number of calories each woman consumes each day during the week before and the week after the intervention is applied. To analyze the data you obtain, you will use which of the following statistical tests? 
Select one: 
A. t-test for a single sample 
B. t-test for dependent samples  
C. t-test for independent samples 
D. t-test for multiple samples

Answer 10

B

Question 11

Question ID #18206: LISREL (linear structural relations analysis) would be the appropriate method of analysis if your causal model:
Select one:
A. includes measured (observed) attributes only.
B. includes latent traits only.
C. includes both measured (observed) attributes and latent traits.
D. includes both correlated and uncorrelated attributes.

Answer 11

C
In contrast to path analysis models, which predict the causal relationships among measured attributes only, LISREL models incorporate both measured attributes and latent traits.

Question 12

Question ID #18177: If a teacher adds 10 points to each score in a distribution of scores, this will:
Select one:
A. affect the mean of the distribution but not its standard deviation or variance.
B. affect the mean and range of the distribution but not its standard deviation or variance.
C. affect the standard deviation and variance of the distribution but not its mean.
D. not affect the mean, range, standard deviation, or variance of the distribution.

Answer 12

A

Question 13

Question ID #18217: A researcher investigates the nature of client-therapist interactions during the initial therapy session by having graduate students in psychology assume the role of either the therapist or therapy client and role play the first session of therapy. The researcher's study is best described as which of the following? 
Select one: 
A. nonparametric 
B. cross-sectional 
C. causal comparative  
D. analogue

Answer 13

D

Question 14

Question ID #1875: An investigator is studying the impact of stress on the ability to perform a complex mental rotation task. The investigator is trying to eliminate all confounds to the experiment so that he can conclude that increased stress causes decrements in processing speed. What type of validity is the investigator trying to establish? 
Select one: 
A. face validity 
B. construct validity 
C. internal validity  
D. external validity

Answer 14

C

Question 15

Question ID #18169: An analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) is used to:
Select one:
A. analyze the effects of an independent variable on two or more dependent variables.
B. statistically control variability in the dependent variable due to the effects of an extraneous variable.
C. adjust for systematic differences between groups that occurred as part of the experimental treatment.
D. determine if there is a significant interaction between two or more independent variables.

Answer 15

B

Question 16

Question ID #18205: A researcher reports that she calculated a Cohen’s d of .50 for the data she collected in a study that compared two brief treatments for generalized anxiety disorder. This means that:
Select one:
A. there was a difference of one-half standard deviation between the means of the two groups.
B. there was a difference of one-fourth standard deviation between the means of the two groups.
C. the percent of variance accounted for by the difference in treatments was 50%.
D. the percent of variance accounted for by the difference in treatments was 25%.

Answer 16

A

Question 17

Question ID #18201: The Central Limit Theorem predicts that the sampling distribution of means increasingly approaches:
Select one:
A. a normal shape as the sample size increases regardless of the shape of the distribution of scores in the population.
B. a normal shape as the number of samples drawn from the population increases regardless of the shape of the distribution of scores in the population.
C. the shape of the population distribution as the size of the sample increases.
D. the shape of the population distribution as the number of samples drawn from the population increases.

Answer 17

A

Question 18

Question ID #8960: When the number of participants in a research study is too small to permit the use of a completely counterbalanced research design, a researcher would use which of the following? 
Select one: 
A. changing criterion design 
B. Latin square design 
C. multiple baseline design  
D. Solomon four-group design

Answer 18

B

Question 19

Question ID #18221: An investigator would use the split-plot ANOVA to analyze the data he has collected for which of the following studies?
Select one:
A. a study in which each participant receives only one level of Variable A and one level of Variable B
B. a study in which participants who received level 1 of Variable A also received either level 1 or 2 of Variable B, while participants who received level 2 of Variable A received either level 3 or 4 of Variable B
C. a study in which each participant received all levels of Variable A but in a different order
D. a study in which each participant received only one level of Variable A but all levels of Variable B

Answer 19

Split-plot is another name for “mixed”; and a researcher would use a split-plot ANOVA when the study uses a mixed design - i.e., it includes both between-groups and within-subjects comparisons.

a. Incorrect This answer describes a study that includes two between-groups variables.
b. Incorrect This answer describes a nested design.
c. Incorrect This answer describes a counterbalanced design with a single independent variable.
d. CORRECT CORRECT This is the only answer that describes a mixed design: Variable A is a between-groups variable, while Variable B is a within-subjects variable.

Question 20

Question ID #18167: Research participants act as their own no-treatment "controls" in which of the following types of research? 
Select one: 
A. single-subject  
B. cross-sectional 
C. ex post facto 
D. double-blind

Answer 20

A

Question 21

Question ID #18158: To analyze the data collected in a study that included a single independent variable and three dependent variables, a researcher would use a MANOVA (multivariate analysis of variance) rather than three separate one-way ANOVAs because:
Select one:
A. she wants to statistically remove the effects of a confounding variable.
B. at least one of the dependent variables is an extraneous variable.
C. she wants to reduce the probability of making a Type I error.
D. she doesn’t want to have to conduct a post-hoc analysis.

Answer 21

C

Question 22

Question ID #18188: To increase statistical power, you would:
Select one:
A. increase beta from .001 to .01.
B. increase alpha from .01 to .05.
C. use a nonparametric statistical test.
D. decrease the sample size.

Answer 22

B

Power refers to the ability to detect (reject) a false null hypothesis.

Question 23

Question ID #18184: The correlation between two variables is equal or close to zero when, in a scatterplot:
Select one:
A. the range of Y scores at each value of X is equal to the total range of Y scores.
B. the range of Y scores at each value of X is the about the same.
C. the range of Y scores is equal to the range of X scores.
D. the range of Y scores at each value of X is different.

Answer 23

A

Question 24

Question ID #18182: Which of the following behavioral observation techniques would be most useful for evaluating the extent to which a student remains on-task while his teacher is talking? 
Select one: 
A. event recording 
B. latency recording 
C. interval recording 
D. duration recording

Answer 24

a. Incorrect Event recording (sampling) is useful for behaviors that occur infrequently, have a long duration, and/or leave a permanent record or other product.
b. Incorrect Latency recording is used to determine how long it takes for a behavior to begin after a specific event has occurred (e.g., after a verbal demand or request has been made).
c. CORRECT CORRECT Interval recording is useful for behaviors that have no clear beginning or end (e.g., on-task behavior) and involves recording whether or not the behavior occurred during each interval.
d. Incorrect Duration recording indicates how long a behavior lasts and is useful for behaviors that have a clear beginning and end.

Question 25

Question ID #18207: A factorial design:
Select one:
A. always includes two or more dependent variables.
B. always includes two or more independent variables.
C. is used to control order effects.
D. is used to evaluate the effects of pretesting.

Answer 25

B

Question 26

Question ID #18204: When using stepwise multiple regression the addition of predictors to the equation is usually based on:
Select one:
A. a predefined model or theory.
B. the magnitude of R-squared.
C. the proportion of accurate versus inaccurate decisions made.
D. the magnitude of the eigenvalues.

Answer 26

B