Deck 14: Understanding and Using Standardized Tests

Question 1

The following question is an example of a(n) ____.

A) fixed alternative question.
B) open-ended question.
C) Likert-type item
D) none of these

Answer 1

A

Question 2

A method that has been found to be valid for surveying potentially reactive or embarrassing questions is the:

A) reflexive response method.
B) reactive response method.
C) random response method.
D) reality response method.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

A disadvantage of open-ended questions is that

A) they provide limited scope for response.
B) answers may be difficult to categorize.
C) they reflect the researcher's point of view.
D) none of these

Answer 3

B

Question 4

This question that you are reading is an example of a(n):

A) open-ended question.
B) closed-ended question.
C) Likert scale.
D) semantic differential.

Question 5

According to the chapter, a criticism of using telephone surveys that is no longer valid today is that:

A) people generally were unwilling to use them.
B) telephones were highly unreliable.
C) the sound quality was too poor.
D) telephones were once only owned by individuals with high SES.

Question 6

The following response format is an example of a(n): How do you feel about the research methods course?
Good ____:____:____:____:____:____:____Bad

A) Likert item.
B) semantic differential item.
C) schematic differential item.
D) Thurstone item.

Question 7

According to Veroff et al., there are several general purposes for conducting surveys. Of the following which is not one of these purposes?

A) to assess mental health of the subjects
B) to assess the life experiences of the subjects
C) to determine how subjects cope with problems of adjustment
D) to assess the spending habits of subjects

Question 8

Closed-ended questions:

A) restrict responses to a fixed set of alternatives.
B) limit responses to "yes" or "no".
C) are difficult to score.
D) all of these

Question 9

Highest rates of survey completion are found when the survey is administered:

A) face to face.
B) by phone.
C) by mail.
D) by computer.

Question 10

Open-ended questions in a survey:

A) provide researchers with information that they had not considered before.
B) provide quantitative data.
C) impose the researchers' point of view on a survey.
D) all of these

Question 11

The first step in survey research is:

A) to state specific hypotheses.
B) to decide on the population to be surveyed.
C) to specify the broad objectives of the research.
D) to construct clear and unambiguous questions.

Question 12

One way to ensure that questions on a survey are clear and unambiguous is to:

A) establish a context in which questions are presented.
B) use only open-ended questions.
C) use only closed-ended questions.
D) start with open-ended questions and follow with closed-ended questions.

Question 13

"In what way has volunteerism influenced your personal relationships?" is an example of a(n) ____.

A) semantic differential question
B) closed-ended question
C) Likert-type question
D) open-ended question

Question 14

A problem with face-to-face interviews is that:

A) interviewer bias could be introduced.
B) they are expensive.
C) respondents may give different answers, depending on the sex, race, or appearance of the interviewer.
D) all of these

Question 15

This question is: This question illustrates a(n):

A) stratified format.
B) open-ended format.
C) Likert scale.
D) within-subject format.

Question 16

Double-barreled questions ____.

A) are difficult to code
B) should be avoided.
C) are those items that combine two separate questions into one.
D) all of these

Question 17

After determining the primary purpose of the survey, the researcher must:

A) construct the questions that will be used in the survey.
B) seek permission from a human subjects review committee.
C) select the specific statistical analyses that will be used.
D) determine how many surveys to print.

Question 18

A Likert scale uses:

A) bipolar adjectives.
B) open-ended questions.
C) a subjective scoring criterion.
D) numerically weighted response categories

Question 19

One of the most important ways to ensure that questions on a survey are clear and unambiguous is to:

A) have clear hypotheses.
B) use only a fixed alternative format.
C) use a Likert scale.
D) pretest the survey.

Question 20

When open-ended questions are followed by closed-ended questions on the same topic, the process is called:

A) siphoning.
B) tunneling.
C) funneling.
D) channeling.

Question 21

Generalizability of the results of a survey primarily depends upon:

A) sampling most members of the population.
B) sampling procedures.
C) the validity of the results.
D) content of the survey.

Question 22

A sample is:

A) smaller than the population.
B) ideally representative of the population.
C) what researchers use to make inferences.
D) all of these

Question 23

In probability sampling:

A) every individual in the population has an equal probability of being included in the sample.
B) the predetermined probability of any individual being selected to participate in the survey is known.
C) all samples are equally probable.
D) all groups are proportionally represented.

Question 24

A problem with a mail survey compared to other survey methods is:

A) low response rate.
B) biased sample.
C) high cost.
D) low response rate and consequently a biased sample.

Question 25

In commenting on using verbal reports, Nisbett and Wilson argue that:

A) people often don't accurately describe their own cognitive processes.
B) verbal report is highly consistent with actual behavior.
C) verbal report is too unreliable to use.
D) verbal report and actual behavior need to be conceptualized as two separate, independent phenomena.

Question 26

The sampling procedure in which you choose every fifth person listed in your population in called:

A) systematic sampling.
B) stratified random sampling.
C) simple random sampling.
D) selective random sampling.

Question 27

Sampling of all individuals in randomly selected population units such as city blocks is called:

A) stratified random sampling.
B) systematic sampling.
C) cluster sampling.
D) block sampling.

Question 28

If the ability to have a representative sample for your survey is very important, you should not administer the survey:

A) face to face.
B) by phone.
C) by mail.
D) by computer.

Question 29

In a study that examined mental health care among individuals living in certain areas of Cedar Falls, Iowa, groups of participants from randomly selected city blocks were surveyed. This is an example of ____ sampling.

A) convenience
B) simple random
C) stratified random
D) cluster

Question 30

Self-report of problem solving is the most accurate when:

A) face-to-face interviews are used.
B) preceded by questions on intelligence and general ability.
C) survey participants have just solved the problem.
D) accompanied by visual stimuli like figures and diagrams.

Question 31

To increase response rates, some telephone surveys begin with ____ and then switch the respondent to a ____.

A) human contact, another person.
B) a computer directed survey, human.
C) human contact, computer directed survey.
D) short questions, longer questions.

Question 32

In a survey research, we want to make inferences about:

A) a population.
B) a sample.
C) a representative sample.
D) both a population and a sample.

Question 33

Population refers to:

A) all the people in the world
B) all the people in a specified geographical area.
C) any group of people that the experimenter defines as the population of interest.
D) a representative sample.

Question 34

A return rate of ____ should be considered acceptable in a mail survey.

A) 25%
B) 50%
C) 75%
D) 85%

Question 35

In general, telephone interviews should be no longer than:

A) 5 minutes.
B) 10 minutes.
C) 15 minutes.
D) 20 minutes.

Question 36

If you want to make sure that all ethnic groups are systematically represented in your sample, you should use:

A) systematic sampling.
B) stratified random sampling.
C) cluster sampling.
D) quota sampling.

Question 37

Telephone interviews can do all of the following except:

A) establish rapport
B) determine motivation
C) clarify questions and responses
D) yield the highest completion rates

Question 38

A questionnaire that is administered to all members of a population is called a:

A) survey.
B) poll.
C) census.
D) nonprobability survey.

Question 39

Compared to taking a survey on paper, people find taking computerized surveys more:

A) impersonal.
B) enjoyable.
C) time consuming.
D) invasive.

Question 40

How can the response rate of mail questionnaires be improved?

A) Enclose another copy of the questionnaire in follow-up letters.
B) Include a small payment with the questionnaire.
C) Include an abridged version of the original questionnaire in follow-up letters.
D) All of the above.

Question 41

Describe how a researcher could gather information in a survey of the subjects' sexual behavior using the random response method.

Question 42

Discuss the questions that a researcher must answer when determining the size of the sample.

Question 43

A type of nonprobability sampling is:

A) quota sampling.
B) cluster sampling.
C) multistage sampling.
D) simple random sampling.

Question 44

Asking people who are available to participate in a survey is called:

A) quota sampling.
B) cluster sampling.
C) systematic sampling.
D) convenience sampling.

Question 45

Describe convenience sampling and its relationship to the question of generalizability.

Question 46

Assuming a large standard deviation, as the sample size increases:

A) the less likely it is that nonprobability sampling is appropriate.
B) the more likely it is that nonprobability sampling is appropriate.
C) sample error increases.
D) sample error decreases.

Question 47

One of the problems in survey construction is to avoid ambiguity. Discuss two ways to ensure that the questions on a survey are unambiguous.

Question 48

Describe the advantages and disadvantages of the open-ended and closed-ended formats.

Question 49

If you wish to increase the response rate of a mail questionnaire, what steps can you take? What level of response would be acceptable?

Question 50

Sample size is dependent on:

A) how many people are in the population.
B) the variability of the population.
C) acceptable amount of sampling error.
D) all of these

Question 51

Discuss the forms of probability sampling and nonprobability sampling. How does the researcher decide which form of sampling to use?

Question 52

Generalizability is a problem in:

A) stratified random sampling.
B) convenience sampling.
C) systematic sampling.
D) cluster sampling.

Question 53

What are some of the difficulties associated with developing survey questions?

Question 54

What is the principal problem with non-probability samples? Why do probability samples generally avoid the problem?

Question 55

If no list of the population exists, then you could not use:

A) systematic sampling.
B) simple random sampling.
C) stratified random sampling.
D) any of these

Question 56

If there is a sampling error of plus/minus 4%, the range of the confidence interval would be:

A) 4%
B) 5%
C) 8%
D) unknown

Question 57

A sampling procedure often used when no list of the population exists is:

A) snowball sampling.
B) cluster sampling.
C) simple random sampling.
D) quota sampling.

Question 58

The variation of the population is reflected by:

A) standard deviation.
B) reliability.
C) mean.
D) confidence interval.

Question 59

In 1936, two separate surveys were administered to predict the results of the presidential election. The survey that was administered to over 2 million people was incorrect whereas a much smaller survey came up with the correct prediction. Discuss this outcome with respect to sampling procedures.

Question 60

Discuss the relative advantages and disadvantages of face-to-face, phone, and mail-in surveys.

Question 61

How can the reliability of a survey be increased?