Deck 1: The Uses of Social Research

Question 1

Which of the following represents one of the tenets of the scientific method?

A) The scientific method should adhere to the rigors or logical thinking.
B) Logical reasoning is not synonymous with the scientific method.
C) The scientific method relies heavily on theoretical explanations.
D) Intersubjectivity is a necessary component of the scientific method.
E) The scientific method requires strict reliance on prior knowledge.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

When we rely on physicians,clergy members,and elected officials for information,we are putting our faith in

A) their knowledge in those positions of authority.
B) their individual knowledge.
C) their knowledge of scientific methods.
D) our ability to compare our own inquiry and experiences with theirs.
E) their access to superior knowledge.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Which of the following statements is factually testable?

A) All extra-terrestrials have large skulls.
B) Individuals with more education earn more than less educated individuals.
C) The death penalty is less moral than first-degree murder.
D) War should be outlawed.
E) None of these.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Which of the following statements about intersubjectivity is true?

A) Sometimes subjectivity in research is necessary in order to get to a specific outcome.
B) Scientists engaging in positivist research often strive for intersubjectivity.
C) Intersubjective science is filled with bias and personal feelings.
D) Two or more researchers can compare findings to look for consistencies about reality.
E) None of these.

Question 5

Exploratory research is

A) ideal for testing a theory.
B) ideal for examining unstudied phenomena.
C) a method for bringing social injustices to the public's attention.
D) a way of examining whether interventions are having their intended effect.
E) designed to describe, in detail, groups, activities, situations, events.

Question 6

Which of the following would describe applied research?

A) The primary goal of research is to add to our fundamental understanding and knowledge of the social world.
B) The aim of research is to have practical results for use in the immediate future.
C) The goal of research is to test hypotheses.
D) The goal of research is to create social theory.
E) None of these describe applied research.

Question 7

The positivist view of science states that

A) science should always focus on things which benefit society.
B) we should only study things that can be observed and measured.
C) science is beneficial for providing solid ground for things in society that can be speculated about.
D) science should be objective, free from personal biases
E) none of these

Question 8

Among the elements of the scientific method are

A) specifying the scope of an inquiry.
B) examining research that has been published in the past.
C) the connection between research and theory.
D) subjecting research findings to review by a community of scholars.
E) all of these.

Question 9

Which of the following is an authority,or socially defined source of knowledge?

A) parents
B) media
C) religious leaders
D) professors
E) all of these

Question 10

In scientific inquiry,intersubjectivity works to gain

A) critical analysis of previously accepted truths.
B) increased subjectivity by scholars.
C) agreement among researchers that their findings approximate reality because they are consistent with each other.
D) eliminate the possibility of bias in research.
E) publications.

Question 11

One of the great strengths of the scientific method is that

A) it involves communities of knowledge "authorities".
B) it involves the senses' evidence for arriving at knowledge.
C) it promotes skepticism about its knowledge claim.
D) it relies on authority and personal inquiry.
E) none of these.

Question 12

A question about one or more topics that can be answered through research is referred to as a

A) hypothesis.
B) social inquiry.
C) research question.
D) unit of analysis.
E) none of these.

Question 13

When individuals rely on their own experiences as a basis for knowledge about the world,they are using

A) knowledge from authorities.
B) a scientific approach.
C) personal inquiry.
D) intersubjectivity.
E) none of these.

Question 14

What is a potential problem with knowledge from personal inquiry?

A) one may overgeneralize.
B) perceive selectivity.
C) premature closure.
D) uses senses alone.
E) all of these.

Question 15

The view that knowledge is not based on irrefutable observable grounds,that it is always somewhat speculative,but that science can provide some solid ground for these speculations is known as

A) an empiricist view of science
B) an optimist view of science
C) a positivist view of science
D) a post-positivist view of science
E) both empiricist and positivist views of science

Question 16

The communal aspects of the scientific method are complemented by which of the following goals?

A) factual testability.
B) logic.
C) explicable through scientific theory.
D) all of these.
E) none of these.

Question 17

One type of applied research that jointly involves researchers and community members is called

A) evaluation research.
B) social theory.
C) participatory action research.
D) quantitative methods.
E) none of these.

Question 18

In applied research,investigators are interested in

A) knowledge for the sake of knowledge.
B) research having practical and useful outcomes.
C) knowing about fields where there is little previous research.
D) creating social theory.
E) none of these.

Question 19

Knowledge that is based on evidence from our senses is referred to an

A) authority.
B) sensory knowledge.
C) personal inquiry.
D) positivism.
E) applied research.

Question 20

A researcher is curious about why some students perform better on essay exams than others.He is engaged in

A) applied research.
B) descriptive research.
C) basic research.
D) quantitative research.
E) evaluation research.

Question 21

When a researcher,she is engaged in explanatory research.

A) suggests that program interventions are not having their intended effect
B) describes a population in detail
C) critiques the existing social order
D) determines that one variable causes another or is related to another variable
E) proposes community social action campaign

Question 22

Researchers must subject their findings to the scrutiny of other researchers.

Question 23

The difference between basic research and applied research is

A) basic research uses on qualitative methods and applied research uses quantitative methods.
B) basic research uses quantitative methods and applied research uses qualitative methods.
C) applied research aims to improve something and basic research aims to add to the knowledge base.
D) applied research works primarily with descriptive research and basic research works with explanatory research.
E) none of the above.

Question 24

Basic research serves the function of developing knowledge for its own sake.

Question 25

The scientific method benefits from the pursuit of counterexamples.

Question 26

In applied research,investigators are seeking to critique existing social relationships.

Question 27

Research is distinguished from other ways of knowing about the world because it is done by authorities.

Question 28

Research designed to add to our fundamental understanding and knowledge of the social world is referred to as basic research.

Question 29

The publication of research allows for public scrutiny.

Question 30

If we are presenting a detailed picture of a population,in terms of gender,age,income,residence,we have most likely conducted

A) evaluation research.
B) exploratory research.
C) explanatory research.
D) descriptive research.
E) applied research.

Question 31

A researcher is interested in understanding why some students choose to live in residence halls while others do not.The unit of analysis is the student.

Question 32

Evaluation research and participatory action research are two different types of basic research.

Question 33

Evaluation research

A) is designed to assess programs or policies.
B) is always quantitative.
C) is dependent on personal inquiry.
D) leads to significant change.
E) is equivalent to explanatory research.

Question 34

Exploratory research

A) is research which seeks to provide a picture of how "the land lies" on a particular social issue.
B) tends to be deductive using pre-existing theories to decide what kinds of data should be collected.
C) is analysis that results in the interpretation of action or representation of meanings in the researcher's own words.
D) is ground breaking research on a relatively unstudied topic or in a new area.
E) generally includes theory-testing.

Question 35

Descriptive research

A) uses reasoning that moves from less general to more general statements.
B) is analysis based on the statistical summary of data.
C) is research designed to explain why subjects vary in one way or another.
D) is research which seeks to provide a picture of how "the land lies" on a particular social issue.
E) all of these.

Question 36

Let's say that there is a well known theory that we can call "The General Attraction Theory" and that it suggests that people who are physically attractive get more of society's rewards than less attractive people.If we have a hypothesis that people who are physically attractive are more likely to be hired for certain jobs than their less attractive peers and wanted to test this theory in a specific industry,we would be conducting

A) descriptive research.
B) applied research.
C) explanatory research.
D) critical research.
E) evaluation research.

Question 37

When researchers have few cases and desire to interpret the meanings of words,they are engaging in
_____________________.

A) qualitative analysis
B) quantitative analysis
C) applied research
D) exploratory research
E) descriptive research

Question 38

The ability to see the world as it is without prejudice and free of personal opinion is referred to as intersubjectivity.

Question 39

In many ways,the scientific method

A) compensates for the shortcomings of other approaches to knowledge.
B) relies exclusively on the word of "authorities" and "personal inquiry".
C) emphasizes the value of communities of scientists and critical skepticism.
D) compensates for the shortcomings of other approaches to knowledge and emphasizes the value of communities of scientists and critical skepticism.
E) all of these.

Question 40

An early step involved in doing science is to specify the goals of inquiry.

Question 41

A researcher studying the effectiveness of an AIDS program is engaged in evaluation research.

Question 42

Describe the scientific method to someone unfamiliar with research.

Question 43

Qualitative research is based on the statistical summary of data.

Question 44

Individuals often rely on their own experiences to learn about the world.What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of relying on personal inquiry to learn about the world?

Question 45

What is the primary purpose of these research projects? Are they primarily exploratory,descriptive,or explanatory research?
A.A researcher wants to find out what proportion of students receives their bachelor's degree in five years or less.
B.A researcher wants to find out why some students receive their bachelor's degree in 5 years or less and others haven't finished after 6 or more years.
C.A researcher wants to find out what happens to teenagers who have been homeless for at least 6 months of their lives.
D.A researcher does research to find out if parenting classes taken by men and women before the birth of their first child decreases the amount of child abuse and increases the child's school readiness.

Question 46

What is intersubjectivity and why is it important in the scientific method?

Question 47

If we were interested in learning why individuals turn to lives of crime,we would be conducting explanatory research.

Question 48

In descriptive research,researchers aim to make judgments on whether interventions are working in the real world.

Question 49

Describe how basic and applied research differ.Provide an example of each.