PSYC 300 Week 4 Midterm Exam 2

PSYC 300 Week 4 Midterm Exam 1. Marco’s study suggested that elementary students who watch TV more than three hours a day are more likely to be overweight than students who watch less TV. In this study student’s weigh ...

PSYC 300 Week 4 Midterm Exam 1. Marco’s study suggested that elementary students who watch TV more than three hours a day are more likely to be overweight than students who watch less TV. In this study student’s weight is 2. Professor Harris is constructing a demographic questionnaire for use in a research project. One question asks students to report how politically conservative they are it includes a 7-point scale where 1 is “not at all conservative” and 7 is “extremely conservative.” This is an example of a/an: 3. Professor Harris is constructing a demographic questionnaire for use in a research project. One question asks students to report their highest level of education by choosing these options: “some high school”, “completed high school,”, “some college”, or “completed 4-year college degree.” This is an example of a/an: 4. Professor Adams is constructing a demographic questionnaire for use in a research project. One question asks students to report their age in years. This is an example of a/an: 5. Professor Adams is constructing a demographic questionnaire for use in a research project. One question asks students to report whether they are currently living in an "urban", "suburban", or "rural" setting. This is an example of a/an: 6. Kate has spent the past month carefully observing a group of third graders on the playground during recess, taking notes of how the students interact with one another. On the basis of these observation, Kate is drawing conclusions about the interaction styles of boys and girls. This is an example of: 7. Alicia knows that teenagers often do not make good decisions in areas where they have little knowledge. She also knows that most teens have little knowledge about human sexuality. Therefore, Alicia believes that teens are likely to make poor decisions about sexual activity. This is an example of: 8. Which of the following represents a well-written applied research problem? 9. Which of the following represents a well-written applied research problem? 10. “What do underemployed U.S. workers (i.e., those workers who are employed, but not in positions for which they have specialized training or expertise) identify as the primary reason for their inability to find suitable employment?” The chief weakness of this research problem is that: 11. “What is the correlation between an index of civic-mindedness and years of involvement in local organizations and charities among members of city councils of selected midsized cities in the northeastern United States?” The chief weakness of this research problem is that: 12. “Among social workers in selected U.S. urban areas, are the personality characteristics of Need for Structure or In-Group Preference related to prejudicial social judgments about African Americans, Latino Americans, or Asian Americans?” Which of the following is a well-stated subproblem that follows from this research problem? 13. Which of the following represents a null hypothesis? 14. Which of the following represents a research hypothesis? 15. The recommended order of tasks in preparing a research proposal is: 16. If an important recent research article that you want to include in your literature review is not owned by your library, you might: 17. If an important book that you want to include in your literature review is not owned by your library, your best move would probably be to: 18. When considering general criteria for high-quality research projects, universality refers to the fact that: 19. When considering general criteria for high-quality research projects, replicability refers to the fact that: 20. Charlotte, an anthropologist, has been living in an Incan village for three years. During that time Charlotte has become expert in Incan weaving by observing and imitating the master weavers in the community. For Charlotte, observing weaving constitutes: 21. Charlotte wrote a book about her experience as an anthropologist living in an Incan village for three years and becoming an expert weaver. Her book was widely read by other anthropologists, including Mira, who is an expert in Navaho weaving. For Mira, Charlotte’s book constitutes: 22. Sean, a high school wrestler, has agreed to participate in a study of cardiovascular conditioning. He is left somewhat confused when, at the first research session, he is asked to complete a questionnaire about commonly purchased grocery items. Sean’s confusion indicates a lack of ______ regarding the task. 23. A researcher decides to use a high school sample to test the relationship between her new measure of empathy and a well-established measure of interpersonal sensitivity. She finds that the two instruments are highly related, which supports the ______ of the new instrument. 24. A researcher designed a new questionnaire to measure political conservatism. To test out his new instrument, he asks people leaving their polling place on election day to report their degree of political conservatism on a scale of 1 (low) to 10 (high) and then complete his questionnaire. Results show that people who identified themselves as political conservatives also had the highest scores on his questionnaire. This is an indication of the ______ of the new instrument. 25. Don and Jane are studying aggression among preschool children. Separately, they each watch a videotape of four children interacting in a playroom and then rate each child on the level of aggression displayed during the play session. They compare their completed ratings and are pleased to note they are highly similar. This is an example of ______ reliability. 26. Dr. Stevens is testing a 10-question measure of achievement motivation. He notes that if his respondents agree with the first question, they tend to also agree with the other nine. Likewise, if his respondents disagree with the first question, they tend of disagree with the other nine. This is an indication of good ______ reliability. 27. Professor Page is studying civic-mindedness among senior citizens. She administers a survey of civic mindedness to a senior citizens group in early April, then again in early May. By comparing the two sets of scores, the professor can assess the ______ reliability of her measure of civic-mindedness. 28. Dr. Davenport wants to conduct a study of whether high school students learn more efficiently while seated at a desk compared to in an easy chair. Participants will be seniors in local high school history classes. She hopes to publish her findings in the History Teacher Quarterly. Does Dr. Davenport need internal review board (IRB) approval for this study? 29. Dr. Davenport wants to conduct a study of whether high school students learn more efficiently while seated at a desk compared to in an easy chair. She knows there is a large research literature regarding similar influences on learning, and she wants to see if the findings hold true with a group of high school history students. Moreover, as a researcher she is uneasy with a lack of structure. You recommend that Dr. Davenport conduct a ______ study. 30. Dr. Greenhill wants to know how it is that some early adolescents come to make a connection between their personal lifestyle and environmental problems, while others don’t. Furthermore, among those who see the connection, why do some become committed to environmentalism while others do not? Dr. Greenwald looks forward to probing the thoughts of young teens on these issues and trying to see the questions and issues through “14-year-old eyes.” You recommend that Dr. Greenhill conduct a ______ study. 31. The research proposal is best thought of as: 32. When explaining how the data are to be analyzed and interpreted: 33. Three of the following are elements in the proposal revision process. Which one is NOT? 34. In regard to the style you will use for headings and subheadings in the research proposal: 35. In ______ research proposal(s), specific hypotheses regarding findings are often stated. 36. In ______ research proposal(s), a specific plan for how the data will be handled is clearly laid out in the document. 37. In ______ research proposal(s), a specific research problem is clearly stated at the outset of the proposal. 38. Describe three benefits of conducting a thorough review of existing literature before writing a research proposal. 39. Concepts, ideas, opinions, feelings, and other intangible entities are often labeled as “insubstantial phenomena.” Select one of the following 3 phenomena that would be considered insubstantial, and explain two different ways- one qualitative and one quantitative- that you might measure it: a) the closeness of undergraduates’ social network friends; b) the “campus climate at your university; c) “irrational exuberance” about the stock market. 40. In regard to quantitative research proposals, novice researchers often find it very challenging and tedious to explain in detail how the data will be analyzed and interpreted in their study. Explain why it is essential that the researcher not cut corners in this section of the proposal. If corners are cut it tends to make the results faulty. If the researcher come up with the way he/she will analyze the data it will help when trying to understand the data. Comment: more elaboration is needed to fully answer this question. 41. Graduate professors like to insist that the completion of thesis or dissertation research is not merely an “academic exercise” or final hurdle to obtaining the desired degree. Explain at least two personal benefits that the individual derives from completing a high-quality thesis or dissertation. Then explain at least two societal benefits that follow from the individual’s completion of a high-quality thesis or dissertation.