Deck 11: Nonexperimental Designs

Question 1

Which of the following is an advantage of studies that use a longitudinal or prospective design?

A) The data obtained are focused and deep.
B) The study overall is more manageable for the researcher.
C) The issue of maturation as a threat to internal validity is avoided in this design.
D) This design does not require the use of tools or instrumentation.

Answer 1

The data obtained are focused and deep.

Question 2

What is the purpose of a correlational study of multiple variables?

A) To identify the independent variable
B) To test whether one variable causes another variable
C) To examine relationships between or among variables
D) To distinguish how different one variable is from another variable

Answer 2

To examine relationships between or among variables

Question 3

When should a descriptive or exploratory design be used?

A) When expanding the results of a qualitative study
B) When direct contact with potential subjects is not possible
C) When little is known about a particular subject or phenomenon
D) When issues of cause and effect in a situation have already been determined

Answer 3

When little is known about a particular subject or phenomenon

Question 4

Which of the following study titles suggests a cross-sectional design?

A) Effect of Prenatal Parenting Classes on Maternal-Infant Bonding in the Early Postpartum Period
B) Change in Self-Esteem Over Time Among Women Participating in a Weight Loss Support Group
C) Relationship Between Self-Esteem and Successful Breastfeeding at 1 Month and 6 Months After Delivery
D) Women's Appraisal of the Diagnosis Within the First 48 Hours After Initial Breast Cancer Diagnosis

Question 5

Which of the following titles suggests a descriptive study?

A) Characterization of Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy
B) The Lived Experience of Liver Transplantation Among Older Caucasian Men
C) Effect of Virtual Reality as a Distraction Intervention on Adolescents Undergoing Chemotherapy
D) Correlation Between Current Income Level and Self-Esteem Among Recently Widowed Women

Question 6

What is the purpose of developmental study designs?

A) Comparing the results of qualitative studies of a particular phenomenon with the results of quantitative studies of the same phenomenon
B) Re-analysis of existing data for a secondary purpose not stated in the original research
C) Exploration of the changing nature of relationships among variables over time
D) Development or refinement of a tool or instrument

Question 7

In which study design do participants serve as their own controls,allowing early trends in the data to emerge?

A) Cross-sectional
B) Ex post facto
C) Retrospective
D) Longitudinal

Question 8

What is the first question that should be asked in determining whether an experimental design or a nonexperimental design should be used in a quantitative study?

A) Is there an independent variable?
B) What is the nature of the problem being studied?
C) Will a measurement tool or instrument be needed?
D) Can statistical analysis be applied to the study data?

Question 9

Which of the following is an advantage of research studies that examine the association or relationships between variables?

A) Ability to determine a causal relationship
B) Possibility for greater manipulation of the variables
C) Randomization of participants that allows for increased generalizability
D) Potential for application in clinical settings and establishment of a foundation for future experimental studies.

Question 10

Which of the following statements about cross-sectional studies is true?

A) More than one group can be compared.
B) Only descriptive data can be measured.
C) Data are collected retrospectively, rather than prospectively.
D) Data collection and data analysis can occur simultaneously.

Question 11

Which of the following titles is most suggestive of a longitudinal study?

A) Effect of Prenatal Parenting Classes on Maternal-Infant Bonding in the Early Postpartum Period
B) Change in Self-Esteem Over Time Among Women Participating in a Weight Loss Support Group
C) Relationship Between Self-Esteem and Successful Breastfeeding at 1 Month After Birth
D) Women's Appraisal of the Diagnosis Within the First 48 Hours After Initial Diagnosis of Breast Cancer

Question 12

Which of the following threats to internal validity is more likely to occur with a longitudinal design?

A) Instrumentation effects
B) Mortality effects
C) History effects
D) Selection bias

Question 13

In a study of psychosocial adjustment to breast cancer,data collection instruments were sent to the same sample of women at six different times during their first year of living with breast cancer.What type of study design does this exemplify?

A) Cross-sectional
B) Retrospective
C) Longitudinal
D) Correlational

Question 14

What is the major characteristic of a retrospective,or ex post facto,study?

A) Obtaining informed consent is not an important issue in a retrospective study.
B) Maximal opportunity to manipulate the independent variable exists in a retrospective study.
C) In a retrospective study, the dependent variable is measured multiple times to examine the effect of maturation.
D) The dependent variable has already been affected by the independent variable in a retrospective study.

Question 15

Which of the following factors or situations in a study using a correlational design should cause you to question the validity of the study?

A) The study did not have a nontreatment control group.
B) The researchers concluded that a causal relationship existed between the variables.
C) The researchers suggested that their findings had practical application in a clinical setting.
D) The researchers used pre-existing instruments to measure the variables instead of developing specific instruments for the study.

Question 16

Which of the following would be used to assess whether mental health patients who received cognitive behavioural therapy via smart phones remain out of hospitals for longer periods of time.

A) Cross-sectional survey
B) longitudinal, comparative survey
C) Predictive, statistical survey
D) Causative, correlational survey

Question 17

Which of the following types of design would be appropriate to forecast the effects of psychoeducational interventions on psychological adaptation of women diagnosed with breast cancer?

A) Correlational
B) Prediction
C) Descriptive
D) Ex post facto

Question 18

What study type is indicated by data collection at only one point in time?

A) Cross-sectional
B) Retrospective
C) Longitudinal
D) Prospective

Question 19

What type of research focuses on the theory and development of measurement instruments?

A) Meta-analysis
B) Psychometrics
C) Methodology
D) Data management

Question 20

How is an ex post facto design more advantageous than a correlational design?

A) This design is easier to carry out.
B) The independent variable can be manipulated in this design.
C) A greater degree of control is possible with this design.
D) This design offers increased flexibility when the relationships among the variables in the study are complex.

Question 21

If no hypothesis is present in a study,does this indicate a weakness in the study? Why,or why not?

A) This is not a weakness, as the study can be descriptive.
B) This is not a weakness, if the study is quasiexperimental.
C) This is a weakness, as the study is descriptive.
D) This is not a weakness, as the study can be quasiexperimental.