Deck 17: Reading and Writing Social Research

Question 1

Which of the following is NOT suggested by Babbie for citing Internet materials?

A)Include the URL or web address
B)Include the time and date when the site was accessed
C)Cite the author and title for published journal articles only
D)Cite the page numbers, if available, for published journal article that you read on the web.
E)Cite published online journal articles as you would printed materials.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

A downloadable electronic copy of a journal article that is paginated exactly the same as a printed copy usually has what extension?

A). J p g
B).m4v
C). P d f
D).ppt
E).txt

Answer 2

C

Question 3

A good literature review will make use of a process that is akin to which type of sampling?

A)Simple random sampling
B)Stratified sampling
C)Quota sampling
D)Cluster sampling
E)Snowball sampling

Answer 3

E

Question 4

Why is it important to include a section detailing your methodological design and execution in your journal article?

A)To make clear how your data were collected and analyzed
B)So that readers know what your hypothesis for your study was
C)To present your theoretical orientation clear to readers
D)To present your analysis of the data to your readers
E)So that other researchers can understand where your project fits into the literature

Question 5

A typical report begins with a(n):

A)literature review.
B)purpose and overview statement.
C)analysis and description statement.
D)summary statement.
E)conclusions statement.

Question 6

Why is plagiarism considered to be a violation of research ethics?

A)It involves the falsification of data.
B)It isn't a violation of research ethics.
C)It involves direct harm to research subjects.
D)It is the theft of someone else's words or ideas.
E)It is releasing the private personal information of subjects.

Question 7

Jenny decided to read an article published in Law and Society Review. Babbie would urge her to begin reading the article by:

A)reading the summary and conclusions.
B)skimming the article noting the section headings.
C)reading the abstract.
D)skimming the article completely.
E)just sitting down and carefully reading the article.

Question 8

Which of the following questions would be the MOST helpful in evaluating the analysis section of a research paper?

A)Has the researcher placed this particular study in the broader context of research on this topic?
B)Has the researcher reported any flaws or shortcomings in the study design or execution?
C)If tests of statistical significance were used, have they been interpreted correctly?
D)If historical or other documents are used as a data source, what biases might be embedded in them?
E)Is this a descriptive or an explanatory study?

Question 9

Research reports are written for one purpose only.

Question 10

A literature review serves to:

A)lay the groundwork for your research.
B)answer your research question.
C)discuss the sample used.
D)provide a list of suggested reading.
E)examine problems in your research.

Question 11

Which of the following is NOT a purpose of the literature review?

A)To situate your work within the body of knowledge about your subject.
B)To identify any factors or gaps in knowledge that may have been overlooked in previous research.
C)To provide a comprehensive bibliography of all the work done on your topic.
D)To point to general agreements and disagreements between other researchers in your field.
E)To show why your work has value as a contribution to the literature.

Question 12

Some websites advocate particular political, religious, social, or other points of view.

Question 13

While evaluating a research report, Dr. Childs focused on the issue of research design. Which of the following questions would be the least useful for evaluating the design?

A)What was the unit of analysis?
B)Is the study cross-sectional or longitudinal?
C)What population does the researcher want to draw conclusions about?
D)Was the purpose of the study exploration, description, or a combination of these?
E)Who paid for the study?

Question 14

Which of the following statements is FALSE concerning data on the web?

A)Information on the web is available to a large proportion of the population.
B)Information that is placed on the web is typically screened for accuracy.
C)Out-of-date data may be reported on the web.
D)University research centers are usually committed to peer review.
E)US Government websites are good sources of information.

Question 15

While conducting a literature review, Amira focused on the theoretical orientation of a research report from Gender Society. Which of the following questions would be the LEAST helpful in understanding the theoretical orientation of the article?

A)Is the methodology used appropriate for the theoretical issues involved?
B)Is the author attempting to refute a paradigm or theory?
C)What are the names of the concepts under study?
D)Is a theory or hypothesis being tested?
E)How has the theoretical orientation shaped the methodology?

Question 16

Many journal articles that you will find online can be downloaded as a Microsoft Word document.

Question 17

Which of the following questions would be LEAST useful in evaluating the sampling methods of a research study?

A)What population does the researcher want to draw conclusions about?
B)What specific sampling techniques have been deployed?
C)Has the researcher tested for representativeness?
D)What is the primary dependent variable in the research study?
E)What level of sampling error would you expect for this size study?

Question 18

On average, the length of a research note is:

A)1 paragraph, single spaced.
B)1 to 5 pages, double spaced.
C)6 to 10 pages, double spaced.
D)6 to 10 pages, single spaced.
E)20 to 30 pages, double spaced.

Question 19

Which of the following is NOT plagiarism?

A)Using another writer's exact words without using quotation marks.
B)Taking a passage of eight or more words without a citation.
C)Editing another's words and presenting those as your own.
D)Paraphrasing another's words and presenting those as your own.
E)Paraphrasing a paragraph from another paper but citing the original author.

Question 20

If Juan asks the questions "What is the social intervention being analyzed?" and "Has the researcher judged the intervention a success or failure?" what research method did the paper he is reviewing use?

A)historical research
B)an experiment
C)content analysis
D)evaluation research
E)field research

Question 21

Sam wants to prepare a short report on his research for an academic journal. He simply wants to tell the audience about his findings. The most appropriate form for his report is:

A)a working paper.
B)an article.
C)a book.
D)a research note.
E)a blog post.

Question 22

When publishing scholarly research, using the most complex language as possible is highly recommended.

Question 23

What are some basic guidelines/considerations in writing a research report?

Question 24

The term "research monograph" refers to published books only.

Question 25

Which of the following is NOT a suggestion used for evaluating a website?

A)Who is the author of the website?
B)Does the site advocate a particular viewpoint?
C)Does the site give accurate and complete references?
D)Are the data up-to-date?
E)How well is the website designed and the data presented?

Question 26

Lisa wants to present her tentative findings on a very complex project to a research audience. The most appropriate form for her presentation would be a(n):

A)working paper.
B)article.
C)book.
D)research note.
E)textbook.

Question 27

Which of the following guidelines is FALSE for reporting on analyses?

A)The presentation of data analyses should provide a maximum of detail without being cluttered.
B)If you're using quantitative data, present them so the reader can recompute them.
C)If you're using quantitative data, the reader needs to be able to recompute percentages in the same direction that you used in your presentation.
D)If you're using quantitative data, the reader does not need to be able to recompute percentages in the direction opposite from what you used in your presentation.
E)If there is a significant amount of quantitative data, you may choose to include them in an appendix.

Question 28

Which of the following is NOT true about abstracts?

A)Abstracts should give you a good idea as to whether you'll want to read the rest of the article.
B)Abstracts should give you a framework for reading the rest of the article.
C)Abstracts may raise questions in your mind regarding methods or conclusions.
D)Abstracts may create an agenda to pursue in reading the article.
E)Abstracts should tell you every detail of the data collection and analysis used in the article.

Question 29

If you are looking to find a website with reputable, trustworthy information for a research project, which suffix should you focus on?

A).com
B).info
C).edu
D).tv
E).org

Question 30

Plagiarism may be intentional or accidental.

Question 31

A good summary quickly reviews every specific finding.

Question 32

Social researchers willingly give away the main findings in the abstract.

Question 33

What are the ethical implications of "cherry-picking" supportive research when you write social science research papers?

Question 34

Your professor will assign you an article. Please review the article using the 13 criteria suggested by Babbie.

Question 35

If a reader asks "Who originally collected the data being reanalyzed?" or "When were the data collected?" that reader is most clearly examining issues that focus on:

A)research design.
B)survey research.
C)theoretical orientation.
D)field research.
E)analysis of existing statistics.

Question 36

Describe the peer review process that journal articles go through. Why is this a preferred source of information for research?

Question 37

Which of the following subjects anything published to a peer-review process?

A)Website
B)Book
C)Conference presentation
D)Journal article
E)Editorial

Question 38

The presentation of data analyses should provide a maximum of detail without being cluttered.

Question 39

List and explain the suggestions made by Babbie for evaluating the quality of Internet materials.

Question 40

A journal article should always be read from beginning to end.