Question 1

Factor analysis aims to identify as many factors from data as possible. What does the process of factor analysis start with?

Accepted Answer

Factor analysis begins with a correlation matrix that shows the intercorrelations among tests or items from the data. Eigenvalues determine the strength of a factor, which is not calculable until all factors are extracted.

Question 2

Research aims to draw conclusion about relationships among variables. There are a number of threats to validity-factors that interfere with making reliable and clear conclusions. Which of the following concerns is a threat to internal validity?

Accepted Answer

Instrumentation refers to changes in researchers or calibration of equipment used in a study. This is a threat to internal validity; it is a factor other than the independent variable that might affect the dependent variable of a study.

Question 3

Research aims to draw conclusions about relationships among variables. There are a number of threats to validity-factors that interfere with making reliable and clear conclusions. Which of the following is a threat to construct validity?

Accepted Answer

The John Henry effect refers to individuals in a control group trying harder than usual due to competitive drive. Threats to construct validity are factors other than the specifics of an intervention that may result in differences; the John Henry effect can be controlled by not allowing control groups and experimental groups to know about each other, when possible.

Question 4

Research aims to draw conclusions about relationships among variables. There are a number of threats to validity-factors that interfere with making reliable and clear conclusions. Which of the following is a threat to external validity?

Accepted Answer

Threats to external validity are factors that interfere with the ability of research to determine if results can be generalized to the population. The Hawthorne effect is a specific example of the threat of reactivity (which is a type of contextual characteristic threat). Reactivity involves subjects behaving in certain ways because they know they are being observed.

Question 5

Research aims to draw conclusion about relationships among variables. There are a number of threats to validity-factors that interfere with making reliable and clear conclusions. Which of the following designs is a control for a threat to internal validity?

Accepted Answer

The Solomon Four-Group design is an answer to the threat of testing or test practice (a threat to internal validity), which involves familiarity with test subject affecting scores on repeated testing. This design involves dividing subjects into four groups; each group receives a different combination of measurement and intervention.

Question 6

Research aims to draw conclusions about relationships among variables. There are a number of threats to validity-factors that interfere with making reliable and clear conclusions. Variability in procedures is a threat to which type of validity?

Accepted Answer

Statistical conclusion variability involves looking at reasons for not obtaining statistically significant results. Variability in procedures refers to inconsistency in treatment procedures and can mask statistically significant treatment findings.

Question 7

A study is investigating the effect of different methods of therapy-cognitive behavioral, Gestalt, and psychoanalytic-on self-reports of symptom improvement. Improvement is rated on a 0-10 scale, where 10 represents complete improvement. Researchers are deciding what type of statistical analysis to use, a one-way ANOVA or three t-tests. What should they be most concerned about when making this choice?

Accepted Answer

Researchers should be most concerned about a type I error when making this decision. Whatever the researchers have determined the alpha is, it has to be multiplied by the number of tests used for the overall experiment alpha. So if the experiment alpha is .01, it will remain at that value if one ANOVA is used, but will increase to .03 if three t tests are used. The higher the alpha of an experiment, the more likely a type I error is.

Question 8

If Tessa wants to ask about the major social categories in the demographics section of her research questionnaire, she should ask about gender, ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status, and:

Accepted Answer

If Tessa wants to ask about the major social categories in the demographics section of her research questionnaire, she should ask about gender, ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status and sexual orientation.
While history of interpersonal violence, which parent raised the individual, and number of children may be important to some research projects, only the major social categories are likely to be asked in all research questionnaires. The major social categories, including gender, ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status, and sexual orientation have implications for most behaviors and/or thoughts that an individual demonstrates.

Question 9

Observing children at a playground, then using a methodical means of collecting data is an example of __________ .

Accepted Answer

Systematic observation is used to gather information without facilitation of respondents or people being interviewed. Systematic observation is frequently used in scientific research. Information obtained in the systematic observation can be used as either evidence to support, or dispute a hypothesis.

Question 10

Experimental psychology uses research experiments to explore human behavior. Conducting these experiments includes all except the following:

Accepted Answer

Experimental psychologists perform experiments through use of hypothesis (a proposed explanation), defining variables, randomly assigning research participants, and manipulating independent variables. The dependent variable is never manipulated, as it is what is affected during the experiment, and therefore, fluctuates or changes, based on the independent variables' manipulation.

Question 11

Some examples of qualitative methods of obtaining data are through conducting focus groups, asking open-ended survey questions, or role-playing. What does qualitative data provide that quantitative data does not?

Accepted Answer

Qualitative data offers information that is more in-depth, and descriptive than quantitative data, and explores the answers to questions of "why," or "how."

Question 12

A researcher designs a study in which he investigates whether drug A is superior to drug B in elevating the mood of a depressed patient. The independent variable in his study is:

Accepted Answer

Drug A and B collectively are the independent variable.
The term independent variable refers to a variable that is believed to alter the status of the dependent variable. In this example, the independent variable is the drug type and the dependent variable is depressive symptoms.

Question 13

The dependent variable is symbolized with the letter:

Accepted Answer

The dependent variable is symbolized with a Y.
The letter Y is generally used to symbolize the dependent variable while the letter X symbolizes the independent variable.

Question 14

A researcher noticed that when a client's socioeconomic status increased they tended to miss appointments with their psychologists less frequently. When their socioeconomic status increased, they had access to a vehicle more frequently. When they had access to a car more frequently they attended therapy more frequently. In this example, having a car is the:

Accepted Answer

Having a car is a confounding variable in this example.
A mediator variable is responsible for the observed relationship between two variables (higher socioeconomic status and missing appointments less frequently). Thus, the independent variable (socioeconomic status) affects the mediator variable (access to a vehicle) which in turn affects the dependent variable (missing appointments less frequently). When there is a confounding variable, the independent variable does not cause the dependent variable.

Question 15

When the number of vacation hours increases, the number of study hours decreases. Summer is positively correlated with the number of vacation hours and negatively correlated with the number of study hours. In this example, summer is the:

Accepted Answer

Summer is a confounding variable in this example.
The number of vacation hours does not cause summer, but summer causes vacation hours to increase. Therefore, summer is a confounding variable instead of a moderator.

Question 16

Some studies suggest that listening to Mozart can increase a person's spatial reasoning abilities but only if that person likes Mozart. The preference for Mozart in this study is the:

Accepted Answer

The preference for Mozart is a moderating variable.
Moderating variables are used when researchers are interested in things like who the individuals are that perform better in spatial reasoning tasks when listening to Mozart? They are interested in changes in relationships between independent and dependent variables. Mediating variables explain the relationship between independent and dependent variables. For example, arousal might explain why people tend to perform better on spatial reasoning tasks after listening to Mozart. Mediating variables do not explain for whom the relationship between the independent and dependent variable exists the way moderating variables do.

Question 17

There is a strong correlation between drowning and eating ice-cream. Both of the variables seem to be related to summertime. During summer, people both eat ice-cream and drown more often. Thus, in this example, summertime is a:

Accepted Answer

Summertime is a third variable.
The third variable is related to both factors (drowning and eating ice-cream) and but does not show that there is a relationship between the two.

Question 18

A study finds that therapy reduces anxiety symptoms only in men. What is the moderating variable in this study?

Accepted Answer

Sex is the moderating variable in this study.
In this study, sex is the moderating variable that explains the direction and strength between the independent variable (therapy) and the dependent variable (anxiety symptoms).

Question 19

When the goal of a study is to observe behavior in multiple settings, researchers are likely to use:

Accepted Answer

Researchers are likely to use situational sampling for multiple settings.
Situational sampling is used when researchers observe behavior in multiple settings such as at school and home. Behavioral sampling includes both interval recording and event sampling. Interval recording involves observing behavior for a certain behavior of time. Event sampling entails observing a behavior every time it occurs.

Question 20

A researcher who wants to make sure they are sampling participants from all education levels is likely to use a:

Accepted Answer

The researcher is like to use stratified random sampling.
Stratified random sampling is used when the population of interest varies in terms of certain strata such as sex, age, and education that are relevant to the research question, and the investigator wants to make sure that each stratum is represented in their sample. Simple random sampling refers to situations where every member has an equal opportunity to get selected to a group. Cluster sampling uses simple or stratified random sampling to select units of individuals to the group. Multistage random sampling refers to a situation in which sampling happens in stages.

Quiz 6: Research Methods and Statistics