Deck 12: Using Available Data

Question 1

One of the most frequently employed sources of existing statistics is/are the

A) US Census Bureau.
B) FBI Uniform Crime Reports.
C) Bureau of Labor Statistics.
D) National Center for Health Statistics.
E) Department of Education.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

If a researcher collects original data for her own purposes,she is relying onto study a research question.

A) secondary data
B) primary data
C) the scientific method
D) available data
E) in depth interviews

Answer 2

B

Question 3

A major advantage of using available data is that data are usually

A) cheap and convenient.
B) not requiring IRB and informed consent.
C) life stories and qualitatively analyzed.
D) unburdened by ethical concerns.
E) none of these

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Statistics that have been made into statistical documents are called

A) available data.
B) secondary data.
C) summary statistics.
D) existing statistics.
E) primary data.

Question 5

The unit of analysis for studies based on secondary analysis is almost always

A) individuals.
B) households.
C) groups.
D) statistics.
E) researchers.

Question 6

Professor Smithson is interested in learning which radio stations people really listen to.He has asked auto mechanics to record the stations that were tuned in when individuals bring their cars in for repair.This is an example of

A) an erosion measure.
B) a Nielson rating.
C) an accretion measure.
D) none of these
E) the ecological fallacy.

Question 7

Usable secondary data can be found by

A) doing a literature review.
B) searching the Internet.
C) collecting it yourself.
D) doing a literature review or searching the Internet.
E) searching the Internet or collecting it yourself.

Question 8

The US Commission on Immigrant Reform made the conclusion that El Paso's overall crime and homicide rates were much lower than those in cities of comparable size.This supported the belief that migrants don't commit more crimes,and particularly more homicides,than nonmigrants.What was wrong with these findings?

A) The researchers had issues with validity.
B) The researchers had issues with reliability.
C) The researchers didn't compare enough cities.
D) The researchers committed the ecological fallacy.
E) The researchers didn't interview both migrants and nonmigrants.

Question 9

Letters,emails,Twitter feeds,and autobiographies are included in

A) library records.
B) tertiary data.
C) personal records.
D) archives.
E) units of analysis.

Question 10

Secondary data is

A) the data that the same researcher collects at a different point in time.
B) data that has been collected by someone else.
C) data that is not useful to the researcher.
D) data that the same researcher collects at a different point in time and data that is not useful to the researcher.
E) none of these.

Question 11

In the focal research,Martinez and Lee avoided the ecological fallacy by

A) using the FBI's Uniform Crime Reports.
B) interviewing immigrants that live in Miami.
C) interviewing the police departments to learn about their experiences with crime among immigrants.
D) using the "homicide logs" of the Miami police department.
E) collecting primary data.

Question 12

Emile Durkheim's classic study on suicide is based on

A) qualitative interviews.
B) secondary data analysis.
C) field research.
D) qualitative interviews and field research.
E) none of these

Question 13

What is the dependent variable in the focal research by Martinez and Lee?

A) rates of immigration
B) ethnic backgrounds of immigrants
C) employment
D) homicide
E) immigrant victimization

Question 14

If we examined the extent of wear and tear in carpeting in a museum to study the popularity of exhibits,we would be employing

A) the floor wear index.
B) an erosion measure.
C) an accretion measure.
D) a reliable variable.
E) the ecological fallacy.

Question 15

Secondary data are frequently contrasted with

A) primary data.
B) existing statistics.
C) available data.
D) aggregate data.
E) both available data and aggregate data.

Question 16

In general,thein studies based on existing statistics is not the individual.

A) unit of observation
B) unit of analysis
C) rate
D) proportion
E) none of these

Question 17

data is collected by the researcher anddata is collected by someone other than the researcher.

A) Internal; external
B) External; internal
C) Primary; secondary
D) Secondary; primary
E) Primary; external

Question 18

In some cases,people misleadingly make inferences about certain types of individuals from information about groups that might not be exclusively composed of those individuals.What is this called?

A) rapport
B) non-correlation
C) ecological fallacy
D) vraisemblance
E) measurement error

Question 19

The unit of analysis used in the United Nations Demographic Yearbook and the International Labor Office is the

A) individual.
B) state.
C) county.
D) city.
E) nation.

Question 20

is/are statistics provided by large organizations.

A) Secondary statistics
B) The U.S. Census
C) Existing statistics
D) The General Social Survey
E) Units of analysis

Question 21

If we take group based results and infer that individuals in those groups share those characteristics,we are committing ecological fallacy.

Question 22

In the focal research by Martinez and Lee,Martinez had to spend hours with police detectives who acted as gatekeepers for the data.

Question 23

One important danger of using available data is

A) the possibility of becoming confused about your unit of analysis.
B) the possibility of making inferences about groups based on information about individuals.
C) the possibility of being too obtrusive.
D) the possibility of becoming confused about your unit of analysis and the possibility of being too obtrusive.
E) none of these.

Question 24

A disadvantage to using physical traces to gather data is their unobtrusiveness.

Question 25

The "Garbage Project" is an example of an erosion measure,in which the contents are sorted and measured.

Question 26

The ecological fallacy refers to

A) using inappropriate units of analysis.
B) making inferences about individuals from data about aggregates.
C) the continuity of availability.
D) using secondary data that is unreliable or invalid.
E) falsely analyzing data.

Question 27

Physical traces includes any kind of physical evidence left by humans.

Question 28

Martinez and Lee compared the context of immigrant homicides,including Haitians,Jamaicans,and Mariels in Miami.

Question 29

According to the ASA code of ethics,researchers must require participant confidentiality when collecting information from public records.

Question 30

Sometimes you can locate data that very nearly meet your research needs,so the issue ofarises.

A) attrition
B) validity
C) reliability
D) rigidity
E) none of these

Question 31

The "continuum of availability" refers to

A) the chance that all the subjects you wish to interview will be available.
B) the fact that at least available data is often worth exploring.
C) a measure of the worth of a source.
D) how researchers measure the value of a source against the costs of securing the data.
E) none of these

Question 32

Personal records tend to have easier access than physical traces.

Question 33

The advantages of using data that has already been collected do not include

A) the fact that others have already invested resources in collecting the data.
B) the fact that researchers can work at their own pace.
C) the fact that data may have been collected at several points in time permitting study of change over time.
D) the fact that the data collection is obtrusive.
E) the fact that data is on a continuum of availability.

Question 34

Although using available data may provide researchers with highly reliable information,it is usually too costly for an individual researcher to afford.

Question 35

The ecological fallacy is the fallacy of making inappropriate inferences.

Question 36

One must have a password to gain access to public data,such as Census Bureau files,on the Internet.

Question 37

The fact that we cannot be certain about thethe available data that has been collected is a disadvantage to using this as a source of information.

A) cost of
B) interpretation of
C) reliability of
D) research already done using
E) personal records of

Question 38

A major disadvantage of using an unobtrusive measure is that your subjects are likely to be inconvenienced.

Question 39

Personal records,like diaries,family albums and personal correspondence should never be used in social science research because of ethical concerns.

Question 40

What has been the dominant mode of social science research in the twentieth century?

A) surveys and questionnaires
B) using secondary data
C) observations
D) qualitative interviews
E) all of these

Question 41

Define and provide an example of physical traces,erosion measures,and accretion measures.

Question 42

Martinez and Lee used available data to study the connections between violent crime and immigrants in Miami.Included in this available data were "homicide logs,",and decennial census reports.What do they think are the advantages of using this methodology? What are the disadvantages? What other approach might have been successful?

Question 43

There are few sources of available data that allow researchers to examine changes over time.

Question 44

What are the key differences between primary and secondary data? When using secondary data,what are the main issues researchers need to be aware of?

Question 45

Describe the ecological fallacy and how you might avoid it.

Question 46

One concern of using available data is being confused about the unit of analysis.

Question 47

There are a variety of surveys that gather data on teen use of alcohol and drugs and involvement in crime and sexual experience.There are available in printed form and on the Internet.If these are dependent variables,what are some of the variables that might be independent variables? For example,what might be related to early use of drugs and alcohol? What would be good sources of this data?