Deck 6: Relational Research

Question 1

The typical cell entries in a contingency table are:

A) frequencies
B) durations
C) magnitudes
D) ratios

Answer 1

frequencies

Question 2

A contingency table that had 4 columns and three rows would be labeled:

A) 2 $\times$ 3
B) 3 $\times$ 2
C) 3 $\times$ 4
D) 4 $\times$ 3

Answer 2

3 $\times$ 4

Question 3

In research involving after the fact assessment of the data:

A) subject (participant)reactivity is not a problem
B) the magnitude of reactivity is unknown
C) frequencies are not subject to reactivity
D) reactivity is greater than in other kinds of research

Answer 3

the magnitude of reactivity is unknown

Question 4

A researcher finds an r = 0.He/she might be able to conclude that:

A) there is a strong correlation between the variables.
B) there is a negative correlation between the variables.
C) there is a positive correlation between the variables.
D) there is no correlation between the variables.

Question 5

Which interpretation of a zero correlation is appropriate?

A) The range of values was too small to show a meaningful relationship between variables.
B) There is a meaningful relationship between variables.
C) The relationship between variables is linear.
D) There was a lack of reactivity by the participants to the testing environment.

Question 6

Which correlation coefficient reflects the strongest relationship between variables AND meets the following condition: an increase in the value along one variable reflects an increase in the value along the other variable?

A) -2
B) -1
C) 0
D) +1
E) +2

Question 7

In the absence of additional information,it is likely that the failure to find a correlation between height and another variable for a sample of professional basketball players indicates:

A) a violation of the statistical test.
B) reactivity.
C) the reliance on a truncated range.
D) the presence of floor effects.

Question 8

Which variable are you most likely to see in a relational study with human participants rather than directly manipulated in an experiment?

A) task difficulty
B) intensity of a light
C) brain damage
D) supposed level of an electric shock (via deception)

Question 9

Ex post facto data:

A) arise from experimentation
B) are after the fact assessments
C) are similar to unobtrusive data
D) only arise from a reliance on contingency tables

Question 10

Which of the following represents a limitation (i.e.,a threat to internal validity)for any correlational study of the relationship between smoking and lung cancer?

A) Some relevant factors could not be examined in a correlational study,but all these factors could be directly manipulated in an experiment.
B) A correlational study about smoking is more difficult to set up than a controlled experiment.
C) Smoking incidence could be confounded with other variables that might increase susceptibility to cancer.
D) It is not possible to construct a contingency table that maps out the relationship between variables.

Question 11

Which of the following is an example of a positive correlation?

A) height increases as weight decreases
B) weight decreases as height decreases
C) height decreases as weight increases
D) weight stays the same as height increases

Question 12

Probably the most common problem associated with relational research is that:

A) researchers tend to be fallible in their observations.
B) it does not prove causation.
C) such studies are always performed in an artificial (laboratory)setting.
D) there are always strong demand characteristics from the testing environment.
E) it is impossible to replicate results.

Question 13

A researcher computing the r between age and memory span might:

A) be able to show that old age produces a decrease in memory span
B) be able to predict memory span based on age
C) make an error because age and memory span are on different scales
D) be able to show the effects of age on memory span

Question 14

The $\chi$ ² statistic most often is used to evaluate data from ____.

A) experiments
B) correlational designs
C) contingency tables
D) observational studies

Question 15

How many cells are in a contingency table that examines the frequencies of men and women who are freshman,sophomores,or juniors?

A) 2
B) 4
C) 6
D) 8

Question 16

The typical correlation coefficient varies from:

A) 0 to +1.00
B) -1.0 to 0
C) -1.0 to +1.0
D) -10.0 to +10.0

Question 17

Which is the best estimate of Pearson's r for the scatter plot below?

A) 2
B) 1
C) .5
D) 0
E) -1

Question 18

With a truncated range,the researcher:

A) may obtain a very low correlation.
B) will have a broad range of scores.
C) should correctly assume that there is no relationship between variables.
D) may conclude that changes along one variable caused changes along the other variable.

Question 19

Which of the following is an example of a negative correlation?

A) height increases as weight decreases
B) weight decreases as height decreases
C) height increases as weight increases
D) weight stays the same as height increases

Question 20

Which of the following conclusions can be reached given a Pearson's r of -.9 between two variables?

A) The value along one variable decreases with increases along the other variable.
B) There is a very weak relationship between the two variables.
C) There is a perfect relationship between the two variables.
D) The direction of the relationship cannot be determined.

Question 21

Correlations are likely to be spuriously high when one or both of the variables suffer from a truncated range.

Question 22

Which statement about experiments is true?

A) All experiments permit causal conclusions to be made.
B) Variables in experiments cannot be confounded.
C) Experiments can specify the direction,but not the magnitude,of a relationship between variables.
D) Experiments generally offer the researcher more control than relational research.

Question 23

Animal-rights activists claim that psychological research is more harmful to animals than is medical research.

Question 24

An advantage of experimentation over descriptive and relational methods is that experiments:

A) have greater construct validity
B) have greater external validity
C) have lesser truncated ranges
D) have greater internal validity

Question 25

Of the following options,which is most likely to improve the internal validity of a correlational research project?

A) Replicate the study.
B) Expand the range of a variable.
C) Exclude possible covariates in multiple regression procedures.
D) Use a cross-lagged panel procedure.

Question 26

Which assertion represents an ultimate cause?

A) Memory recall was found to increase with the use of mental imagery.
B) Evolution is responsible for our ability to speak a language.
C) Changes in the availability of natural lighting directly affected participant estimates of the length of a day,and thus circadian rhythms.
D) Increasing the intensity of the sound directly made it appear to last longer.

Question 27

Which conditions below should be expected to produce the lowest correlation coefficient due to a truncated range?

A) Studying the relationship between memory and age for seniors in assisted living situations
B) Measuring the relationship between cigarette smoking and lung cancer
C) Examining the relationship between the teenage viewing of sexual content on television and subsequent intercourse
D) Surveying students about sexual and religious attitudes,as well as drug use

Question 28

A researcher is interested in mapping the direction and the degree of a relationship between two variables that cannot be directly manipulated.Additionally,an extended period of time (i.e.,several observations)may be required before a meaningful relationship can be seen.A(n)____ should be the most effective method of relational research for assessing this relationship.

A) contingency table
B) naturalistic observation
C) cross-lagged panel procedure
D) experiment
E) correlation

Question 29

A crucial assumption underlying the cross-lagged-panel correlation procedure is that:

A) correlations almost always indicate causation.
B) causes are usually easy to determine from correlations.
C) causes take time to have effects.
D) ultimate causes derive from correlations.

Question 30

Because it is after the fact,ex post facto research is free from subject (participant)reactivity.

Question 31

In a 4 $\times$ 2 contingency table,there are more columns than rows.

Question 32

Because there is a documented negative correlation between the number of cigarettes smoked and grades in college,we can conclude that smoking causes poor grades.

Question 33

Contingency research is usually not done when people can appear in more than one cell of the table.

Question 34

Ex post facto data usually do not result from direct manipulation by the researcher.

Question 35

Which of the following represents an example of a truncated range?

A) Admissions committees often restrict comparison of SAT scores to those between 500 and 800.
B) There does not appear to be a linear relationship between age and memory.
C) Obtained scores on a research methods exam varied from 10 to 100 percent correct.
D) There appears to be a correlation between head size and IQ.

Question 36

In a negative correlation,high scores on one variable go with low scores on the other variable.

Question 37

Teenage sex has been shown to be more frequent following exposure to sexual content on television.However,sensation seeking behaviors also have been shown to predict teenage sex.In this description sensation seeking can most accurately be labeled as a ____.

A) multiple regression
B) cross-lagged panel procedure
C) covariate
D) causal variable

Question 38

In a 4 $\times$ 2 contingency table,there are 8 cells.

Question 39

If lower scores on one variable go with lower scores on another,a negative correlation is a real possibility.

Question 40

Which value of Pearson r is closest to what you would expect to find given the curvilinear pattern of data that is displayed below?

A) -1
B) -.75
C) 0
D) 1

Question 41

A correlation coefficient of zero can be obtained even when there is actually a meaningful relationship between two variables (e.g.,data is collected when there is only slight variation in one of the variables).

Question 42

A multiple regression procedure is frequently conducted when a researcher desires to predict values along a target variable/dimension using several other variables (e.g.,predicting the number of words recalled from a list following using combined measures of a participant's age and intelligence).

Question 43

In an experiment concerned with the effects of hours of food deprivation on the amount eaten,a proximate cause of changes in eating might be evolution.

Question 44

Some scientists argue that experiments provide nothing more than controlled correlations between variables.

Question 45

In an experiment concerned with the effects of hours of food deprivation on the amount eaten,an ultimate cause of changes in eating might be evolution.