Question 1

Which of the following would be a true conceptualization of a research study?
A) study of weight of residents in a municipality
B) average traffic on the 76 expressway in Philadelphia
C) mean flight arrivals at lax airport per hour of day
D) rate of illegal immigration from Bangladesh into India

Accepted Answer

C

Question 2

In the context of scope of a definition, what do false negative cases refer to?
A) cases that are wrongly excluded from the study
B) cases within a defined a cutoff point
C) those that are incorrectly included in scope
D) those above a defined cutoff point.

Accepted Answer

False negative cases refer to instances that should have been included in the study or scope but were incorrectly excluded.

Question 3

What does the term "cutoff value" mean?
A) a value that measures the research concept
B) a number used to define the scope of a concept
C) numeric values that specify the range of cases
D) a value that quantifies an upper limit

Accepted Answer

A cutoff value is a number used to define the scope of a concept. It is a numeric value that specifies the range of cases that are included in the concept.

Question 4

A potential customer targeted by a marketing campaign of a furniture company did not fall within the demographic characteristics required by the campaign. Which of the following would correctly describe this case?
A) a false negative
B) a true positive
C) a false positive
D) a true negative

Accepted Answer

A false positive occurs when an outcome is incorrectly predicted as positive. In this case, the marketing campaign incorrectly targeted someone outside its intended demographic, making it a false positive.

Question 5

Changing the scope of a definition will result in which of the following?
A) reduce false positive and false negative cases
B) change in false positive cases only
C) reduce the false positives or the false negatives
D) change the false negative cases only

Accepted Answer

Changing the scope of a definition can either reduce the false positives (incorrectly identified as fitting the definition) or the false negatives (incorrectly identified as not fitting the definition), depending on whether the scope is broadened or narrowed.

Question 6

A research study on the effect of the 2008 recession on small businesses in Florida, defined small business as those with less than 200 employees. Another later study, also researching effects of the 2008 recession on small business, limited "small business" to include only those with 100 or less employees. Which of the following aspects of research make it difficult to compare the two studies?
A) scope
B) concept
C) definition
D) measurement

Accepted Answer

The answer of A research study on the effect of...

Question 7

An annual survey conducted by local authorities in a township included the category "transgender" to the sex variable in its questionnaire from the year 2015. Which is the causal factor in making comparisons of results before and after 2015 difficult?
A) unit measure
B) scope
C) topic
D) definition

Accepted Answer

The inclusion of a new category "transgender" to the sex variable changes the definition of the variable from before 2015 to after 2015, making direct comparisons challenging due to the altered classification system.

Question 8

How is an anecdote different from a definition?
A) It only defines a modal case.
B) It describes only a few cases.
C) It takes only outlier cases.
D) It includes cases of other phenomena.

Accepted Answer

An anecdote describes specific instances or examples, often personal or observed, rather than providing a broad, general definition applicable to all cases.

Question 9

What does the term "overgeneralizing" refer to?
A) outlining a theory from observation
B) using data to develop a theory
C) defining a concept using anecdotes
D) extrapolating from one topic to another

Accepted Answer

Overgeneralizing refers to the process of making broad or sweeping statements or conclusions based on limited or specific instances, often relying on anecdotes or isolated examples rather than comprehensive data or evidence. This can lead to inaccuracies or misrepresentations of the broader context or population.

Question 10

A researcher studying the association between elementary home-schooling and credit score of the respondent, chose cases which she knew had a positive association between the dependent and independent variable. What term or phrase is used to define this study design?
A) selective observation
B) overgeneralization
C) random sample
D) stratified sample

Accepted Answer

Selective observation refers to the practice of choosing specific cases that are known to support the hypothesis or expectation, rather than using a random or representative sample. This can lead to biased results because it does not accurately reflect the broader population.

Question 11

What should be the role of an anecdote in defining a concept?
A) provide a cutoff point for cases
B) outline the scope of a concept
C) give an example of a typical case
D) illustrate outlier cases of the study

Accepted Answer

The answer of What should be the role of an...

Question 12

The topic of a study naturally affects which of the following with regard to numbers?
A) plausibility and interpretation
B) scope and extreme values
C) context and definition
D) definition and interpretation

Accepted Answer

Plausibility and interpretation are both affected by the topic of a study, as the context and definition of the study will influence what is considered plausible and how the results are interpreted.

Question 13

Students in a Biology class received their term exam papers back with a number marked in red on each paper. The numbers ranged from 30 to 125. The maximum mark for the exam was not known to the students. Which factor makes it difficult to make sense of these numbers?
A) plausibility
B) interpretation
C) context
D) definition

Accepted Answer

The answer of Students in a Biology class received their...

Question 14

What factor determines the maximum possible runs scored in a 20-over cricket match, when each over always consists of 6 balls played and the maximum runs possible per ball is always 6?
A) six balls in an over
B) six runs per ball
C) 20 overs played
D) 36 runs per over

Accepted Answer

The answer of What factor determines the maximum possible runs...

Question 15

In a college statistics test, a set of numbers stated to come from a lognormal distribution has a negative number in it. Lognormal distributions are always positive. Which factor is to be considered in making sense of the negative number?
A) interpretation
B) plausibility
C) measurement
D) scope

Accepted Answer

The answer of In a college statistics test, a set...

Question 16

What is an "optimal" value in reference to quantitative research?
A) the maximum possible numeric value
B) a number furthest from the cutoff value
C) the highest point of the variable distribution
D) one that is most desirable in context of the study

Accepted Answer

An "optimal" value in quantitative research refers to the value that is most desirable or suitable within the context of the study, rather than simply being the highest, furthest, or maximum numeric value. This takes into account the specific goals and criteria of the research.

Question 17

Which of the following factors affects the optimal value in research?
A) topic of study
B) unit of measure
C) extreme values
D) scope of study

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following factors affects the...

Question 18

A private vehicle insurance company in New Hampshire conducts a study on risk of road incidents of their policyholders. The study was based on a similar study conducted by NAIC, the national insurance regulatory body. However, the cutoff value to identify high risk policyholders was kept at a lower level than the NAIC study. Which factor influenced the company's decision to choose a different cutoff?
A) scope of study
B) measurement unit
C) perspective of study
D) context of research

Accepted Answer

The company's decision to use a different cutoff value likely reflects a different perspective or objective in assessing risk, such as a more conservative approach to identifying high-risk policyholders.

Question 19

Which of the following statements is valid with regard to a research study?
A) definition and scope are independent factors of a study
B) defining the topic is essential to understanding its numbers
C) unit of measure affects study perspective
D) extreme numbers should be removed from a study

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following statements is valid...

Question 20

Which of the following is true with regard to misclassification of cases?
A) False positives are independent of true positives.
B) Increase of false negatives decreases false positives.
C) rRise in false positives increases false negatives.
D) Reduction of false negatives reduces false positives.

Accepted Answer

Increasing false negatives typically means fewer false positives, as the threshold for classification is adjusted, leading to more cases being missed (false negatives) rather than incorrectly identified (false positives).

Quiz 3: Topic and Conceptualization

Which of the following would be a true conceptualization of a research study?

In the context of scope of a definition, what do false negative cases refer to?

What does the term "cutoff value" mean?

A potential customer targeted by a marketing campaign of a furniture company did not fall within the demographic characteristics required by the campaign. Which of the following would correctly describe this case?

Changing the scope of a definition will result in which of the following?

An annual survey conducted by local authorities in a township included the category "transgender" to the sex variable in its questionnaire from the year 2015. Which is the causal factor in making comparisons of results before and after 2015 difficult?

How is an anecdote different from a definition?

What does the term "overgeneralizing" refer to?

A researcher studying the association between elementary home-schooling and credit score of the respondent, chose cases which she knew had a positive association between the dependent and independent variable. What term or phrase is used to define this study design?

What should be the role of an anecdote in defining a concept?

The topic of a study naturally affects which of the following with regard to numbers?

Students in a Biology class received their term exam papers back with a number marked in red on each paper. The numbers ranged from 30 to 125. The maximum mark for the exam was not known to the students. Which factor makes it difficult to make sense of these numbers?

What factor determines the maximum possible runs scored in a 20-over cricket match, when each over always consists of 6 balls played and the maximum runs possible per ball is always 6?

In a college statistics test, a set of numbers stated to come from a lognormal distribution has a negative number in it. Lognormal distributions are always positive. Which factor is to be considered in making sense of the negative number?

What is an "optimal" value in reference to quantitative research?

Which of the following factors affects the optimal value in research?

Which of the following statements is valid with regard to a research study?

Which of the following is true with regard to misclassification of cases?