Deck 1: Introduction

Question 1

"Ninety percent of dorm residents approved a proposed ban on smoking." This statement is an example of the use of

A)inferential statistics.
B)univariate descriptive statistics.
C)multivariate descriptive statistics.
D)inductive statistics.

Answer 1

univariate descriptive statistics.

Question 2

In terms of the "Great Wheel of Science," statistics are central to the research process

A)only between the theory phase and the hypothesis phase.
B)only between the hypothesis phase and the observation phase.
C)only between the observation phase and the empirical generalization phase.
D)only between the empirical generalization phase and the theory phase.

Answer 2

only between the observation phase and the empirical generalization phase.

Question 3

According to the "Wheel of Science," research projects begin

A)with theory.
B)with data.
C)with an hypothesis.
D)at any stage on the Wheel.

Answer 3

at any stage on the Wheel.

Question 4

If people who eat at fast food restaurants become obese,obesity is

A)an independent variable.
B)a causal variable.
C)a dependent variable.
D)none of the above.

Question 5

In the research process,the role of statistics is limited because

A)numbers don't prove anything.
B)of possible flaws in research design or method.
C)the researcher may not be a mathematician.
D)people lie when answering questionnaires.

Question 6

In the language of science,a variable that is thought to be causal is called

A)an independent variable.
B)a hypothetical variable.
C)a primary variable.
D)a dependent variable.

Question 7

An hypothesis differs from a theory in that

A)it is "testable."
B)it is true.
C)it is more speculative.
D)it is more abstract.

Question 8

The data reduction process of descriptive statistics

A)allows a few meaningful numbers to summarize a large amount of datA.
B)eliminates incorrect data.
C)simply lists all available information in order.
D)is rarely useD.

Question 9

As we move up the left-hand side of the "Great Wheel of Science" we become more

A)specific.
B)general.
C)empirical.
D)quantitative.

Question 10

As we move down the right-hand side of the "Great Wheel of Science" we become more

A)general.
B)abstract.
C)dependent.
D)specific.

Question 11

In social research,the purpose of statistics is to

A)prove that the research theory is correct.
B)validate the research project design.
C)manipulate and analyze data.
D)ensure acceptance by the scientific community.

Question 12

A theory differs from an hypothesis in that it is more

A)testable.
B)specific.
C)general.
D)concrete.

Question 13

In time,the ____ variable precedes the ____ variable.

A)hypothetical,theoretical
B)discrete,continuous
C)independent,dependent
D)dependent,independent

Question 14

An hypothesis states,in part,that "income increases as education increases." In this statement,education is

A)the dependent variable.
B)the independent variable.
C)the hypothetical variable.
D)the secondary variable.

Question 15

An hypothesis states,in part,that "income increases as education increases." In this statement,income is

A)the dependent variable.
B)the independent variable.
C)the hypothetical variable.
D)the secondary variable.

Question 16

Data is the same thing as

A)information collected in numerical form.
B)information collected in any form.
C)statistics.
D)proof.

Question 17

In terms of the Wheel of Science,an hypothesis is derived from ____ and leads to ____.

A)statistics,observation
B)theory,generalizations
C)observation,generalizations
D)theory,observation

Question 18

In the research process,theory

A)is unnecessary.
B)is always fully developed before any data is gathered.
C)is developed only after the data have been completely analyzed.
D)attempts to explain the relationship between phenomenon.

Question 19

If people who habitually drive over the speed limit have more fatal accidents,then speed is

A)an independent variable.
B)the dependent variable.
C)an effect or result variable.
D)none of the above

Question 20

Without statistics,____ research would be impossible.

A)meaningful
B)important
C)qualitative
D)quantitative

Question 21

Which of the following is a discrete variable?

A)height
B)age
C)miles per gallon
D)number of children

Question 22

A survey administered to a sample drawn from a local community finds that a person's political party affiliation is related to whether or not they favor an increase in local sales tax (the headline of a newspaper story based on this poll reads: "Republicans support proposed tax increase").This is an example of the use of

A)univariate descriptive statistics.
B)inferential statistics.
C)multivariate descriptive statistics.
D)reductionist statistics.

Question 23

The variable socioeconomic status ranges from upper class to lower class and is an example of the

A)nominal level of measurement.
B)ordinal level of measurement.
C)interval-ratio level of measurement.
D)ratio level of measurement.

Question 24

Which of the following is NOT a nominal level variable?

A)level of education
B)zip code
C)occupation
D)make of auto

Question 25

Inferential statistics are necessary in social research because

A)it may be impossible to find all members of a certain population.
B)social scientists don't have the time or money to test an entire population.
C)some of the population might not cooperate.
D)samples are sometimes accurate representations of the population but can't always be used to generalize.

Question 26

If a researcher summarizes the age of 1,000 people by calculating the average age,she is using

A)a qualitative technique.
B)an incorrect hypothesis.
C)data reduction.
D)non-empirical reasoning.

Question 27

Choose the nominal level variable below:

A)size of family unit
B)eye color of students in statistics class
C)speed of travel of a jet
D)your weight

Question 28

Categories of nominal level variables should be

A)mutually exclusive to avoid ambiguity in classifying cases.
B)exhaustive so that every case fits into a category.
C)relevant to the research goals.
D)all of the above

Question 29

When using interval-ratio data,the distance between the scores is

A)always two units.
B)unequal.
C)exactly defined.
D)not always clear.

Question 30

If a variable is discrete,it cannot be

A)continuous.
B)interval-ratio.
C)observable.
D)ordinal.

Question 31

Prejudice,when measured on a scale ranging from 'most prejudiced' to 'least prejudiced,' is an example of which level of measurement?

A)actual
B)ordinal
C)nominal
D)interval-ratio

Question 32

A nominal-level variable like marital status or gender is always

A)discrete.
B)continuous.
C)ordinal.
D)dependent.

Question 33

A public opinion poll that gauges the popularity of the President of the United States is an example of

A)descriptive statistics.
B)inferential statistics.
C)analytical statistics.
D)reductionist statistics.

Question 34

A researcher wants to know if there is a relationship between region of birth and political party affiliation.She should calculate a

A)univariate descriptive statistic like the mean.
B)qualitative measure of influence.
C)measure of association.
D)statistic that measures the non-relational differentiation between the two variables.

Question 35

Which of the following questions would generate a continuous variable?

A)How old are you?
B)How many books do you own?
C)How many times have you ever changed a flat tire?
D)How many degrees do you have?

Question 36

Variables measured at the ordinal level are limited to which of the following mathematical operations?

A)addition and subtraction
B)multiplication
C)ranking cases as higher or lower,more or less
D)counting the number of cases per category

Question 37

Which of the following survey items would generate a discrete variable?

A)How old are you?
B)How long does it take you to commute to work?
C)How much did you pay in taxes last year?
D)How many cars do you own right now?

Question 38

Measures of association are a type of descriptive statistics that allow us to

A)investigate the causal influence of some variables on others.
B)predict the score on one variable from the score on another.
C)know the strength and direction of a relationship between two or more variables.
D)all of the above

Question 39

Which of the following is a continuous variable?

A)number of children
B)time spent watching TV
C)number of times you have changed residences within the last five years
D)number of meals you consumed yesterday.

Question 40

In addition to saying that one case is different from another,the ordinal level of measurement allows us to

A)order categories from high to low.
B)measure the distance between high and low.
C)say that one case is more or less than another.
D)both a and c

Question 41

Select the variable(s)that can be measured at the interval-ratio level

A)different types of crimes
B)number of children in a family
C)attractiveness of a person
D)emotional stability

Question 42

Computation of a mean (or average)is completely justified when a variable is measured at which level?

A)interval-ratio
B)ordinal
C)nominal
D)discrete

Question 43

On a test,the numbers used to identify the questions would be ____ in level of measurement while the number of correct responses would be ____.

A)nominal,interval-ratio
B)interval-ratio,nominal
C)continuous,discrete
D)ordinal,nominal

Question 44

A researcher has numbered all 50 states from 1 to 50 and has calculated a mean of 17.43 for the variable "state of birth."

A)Since the variable is nominal,the mean makes no sense.
B)Since the variable is ordinal,we should treat the value of the mean with great caution.
C)The variable is interval-ratio and the mean is an appropriate and useful statistic in this case.
D)Since this variable is discrete,the mean should not be computed.

Question 45

Below are some items from a survey.For each item,identify the level of measurement and whether the variable will be discrete or continuous.Explain your reasoning for each item.

Question 46

If a variable is interval-ratio in level of measurement,it cannot also be

A)nominal
B)continuous
C)discrete
D)observable

Question 47

Summarize the research process as conceptualized in the "Wheel of Science." Identify and explain each of the stages of the research process.At what stage do statistics become central? How? What is the role of statistics in the process?

Question 48

Some research situations are summarized below.For each situation,identify all variables and characterize them in terms of level of measurement and whether they are discrete or continuous.If applicable,identify which variables are dependent and which are independent.Explain your reasoning.What statistical application is being used?

A)A group of one hundred students are asked for their high school and college GPAs. The GPAs are then compared to see if there is any relationship between them.
B)A candidate for student body president telephones a randomly selected sample of students and asks about their opinion of the system used for course evaluation. Each student is asked if they strongly support, moderately support, or do not support the system. The candidate then uses this information to characterize the opinions of the entire student body
C)From what regions of the nation does the college football program recruit players? A researcher ascertains the hometowns of every member of the team for the past ten years.
D)Which sport on campus has the players with the highest GPAs? The academic records of randomly selected samples of athletes from all sports are compared to answer this question.
E)Is academic achievement associated with any "background" variables? Information on a sample of students is collected. The information includes GPA, age, sex, major, years of schooling completed by both parents, and marital status of the student.

Question 49

Which of the following mathematical operations are permitted with interval-ratio level variables?

A)addition
B)subtraction
C)division
D)all of the above

Question 50

Which of the following can be treated as an interval-ratio variable?

A)social security number
B)zip code
C)age
D)hair color

Question 51

A researcher has calculated the mean for a variable that is ordinal in level of measurement.

A)This operation is a violation of level of measurement criterion and the results should be disregarded.
B)This violation of level of measurement criterion is common and results should be treated with caution.
C)No violation has occurred,this is a perfectly acceptable application of statistics.
D)This is a mistake: means should never be calculated for ordinal variables because they are always continuous.

Question 52

Addition and subtraction are completely justified only when variables are

A)discrete.
B)continuous.
C)ordinal.
D)interval-ratio.

Question 53

The number of years that a couple has been happily married is an example of

A)nominal level datA.
B)ordinal level data.
C)interval-ratio level data.
D)ordinary level data.