Surveys, Observations, and Sampling

Question 1

What are the 4 question formats?

Answer 1

Open-ended, forced-choice, likert scale, and semantic differential format.

Question 2

What are forced-choice questions?

Answer 2

Questions in which there respondents give their opinion by picking the best of two or more options.

Question 3

What is a likert scale?

Answer 3

A scale containing multiple response options that are anchored by the terms “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.”

Question 4

What is semantic differential format?

Answer 4

A self-report response scale whose numbers are anchored with contrasting adjectives (e.g., easy vs. hard).

Question 5

What is a response set?

Answer 5

A shortcut that respondents may use to answer the items in a self-report measure with multiple items, rather than the content of each item.

Question 6

When are self-reports especially inaccurate?

Answer 6

When respondents are asked why they did something.

Question 7

How is one’s confidence in a story related to its accuracy?

Answer 7

There is no correlation between confidence and accuracy.

Question 8

How can question order influence the validity of the measure?

Answer 8

Earlier questions can influence answers to later questions.

Question 9

What is a potential threat to the construct validity of observational measures?

Answer 9

Observer bias.

Question 10

What is observer bias?

Answer 10

When the observer’s expectations influence their interoperation of the subject’s behaviours or the outcome of the study.

Question 11

What is reactivity?

Answer 11

The change in behaviour of an animal or person due to being watched.

Question 12

What can be done to reduce reactivity?

Answer 12

Make unobtrusive observations, let the subject become accustomed, or measure the traces that a behaviour leaves behind.

Question 13

What is a census?

Answer 13

A set of observations that contain all members of the population of interest.

Question 14

When is a sample biased?

Answer 14

When it is unrepresentative of the population.

Question 15

What causes biased samples?

Answer 15

Sampling those who are easy to contact, sampling those who are able to be contacted, and sampling only those who initiate themselves.

Question 16

How does one obtain a representative sample?

Answer 16

Take a random sample in which every member of the population of interest has an equal chance of being selected.

Question 17

What are 5 variants of probability sampling?

Answer 17

Simple random sampling, cluster sampling, multistage sampling, stratified random sampling, and systematic sampling.

Question 18

What is simple random sampling?

Answer 18

The most basic form of probability sampling, in which the sample is chosen completely at random.

Question 19

What is cluster sampling?

Answer 19

When researchers randomly select clusters of participants within the population of interest and then collect data from all the participants in each cluster.

Question 20

What is multistage sampling?

Answer 20

A random sample of clusters are taken, then a random sample of people from within those clusters are taken.

Question 21

What is stratified random sampling?

Answer 21

The researcher identifies particular demographic categories of interest and then randomly selects individuals within each of the categories.

Question 22

What is oversampling?

Answer 22

A variation of stratified random sampling in which one or more groups are intentionally overrepresented.

Question 23

What is systematic sampling?

Answer 23

The researcher counts off to achieve a sample. E.g., choosing every nth person in a population, where n is a randomly chosen number.

Question 24

What are two types of non-representative sampling methods?

Answer 24

Convenience sampling and purposive sampling.

Question 25

What is convenience sampling?

Answer 25

Choosing a sample based on those who are easiest to access.

Question 26

What is purposive sampling?

Answer 26

The inclusion of only certain kinds of people in a sample.

Question 27

What is snowball sampling?

Answer 27

A variation on purposive sampling in which participants are asked to recommend acquaintances for a study.

Question 28

When does external validity matter and not?

Answer 28

It matters in frequency claims, but it amy not be a priority when researchers study association or causal relationships.

Question 29

What is a margin of error?

Answer 29

A statistical term that quantifies the degree of sampling error in a study’s results.

Question 30

At one sample size does going bigger become unadvantageous?

Answer 30

After 1000 participants, the decrease in margin of error is too small to be worth the effort of finding a larger sample.