Deck 2: Doing Social Psychology Research

Question 1

Which of the following resources is a research database that provides specific information related to the field of psychology?

A) GooglePsych
B) TrackPsych
C) PsychFind
D) PsycINFO

Answer 1

PsycINFO

Question 2

Theories in social psychology have all of the following characteristics except that

A) they are efficient and precise.
B) they lead to new hypotheses.
C) they predict conditions under which events will occur.
D) they encompass all of the relevant information .

Answer 2

they predict conditions under which events will occur.

Question 3

Which of the following BEST describes the primary goal of basic research?

A) To solve practical problems
B) To integrate the different research methodologies within one subfield of social psychology
C) To test specific hypotheses derived from a specific theory
D) To make real-time applications

Answer 3

To test specific hypotheses derived from a specific theory

Question 4

Why do social psychologists use electronic databases?

A) To determine the moral value of their research question
B) To find published research on a particular topic
C) To increase the external validity of their research
D) To help them select a random sample of participants

Question 5

"Moms prefer Brand X of peanut butter" is a commercial claim. Sarah wonders what other brands were used as the comparison group. Which of the following benefits of learning about research methods is Sarah displaying?

A) Better understanding of studies
B) Better memory for the results of studies
C) Critical evaluation of information
D) Enhanced self-esteem

Question 6

Why do social psychologists use the scientific method when studying human behavior?

A) To encourage the use of basic research rather than applied research
B) To replicate their findings
C) To ensure that the right people get credit for the research.
D) To provide a solid theoretical foundation for social psychological research.

Question 7

Which of the following statements concerning research questions in social psychology is FALSE?

A) Social psychologists sometimes develop research questions based on their own personal experiences and observations.
B) Research questions can be inspired by real-world events.
C) Research questions are often determined after the research begins rather than before it starts.
D) Social psychologists can develop research questions from song lyrics.

Question 8

What is the definition of hypothesis?

A) An investigation about how a testable prediction is carried out
B) An organized set of principles used to explain observed phenomena
C) The specific procedure through which a set of questions is tested
D) An explicit, testable prediction about the conditions under which an event will occur

Question 9

Hypotheses must be all of the following except

A) comprehensive.
B) explicit.
C) testable.
D) predictive.

Question 10

Adarah is learning about research methods in her social psychology course. She should experience all of the following benefits except that

A) she will develop a better appreciation for the advantages of anecdotal stories.
B) the findings she learns about in class will be easier to understand and remember.
C) she will become a more sophisticated consumer of information in general.
D) it will improve her reasoning about real-life events.

Question 11

In encouraging social psychologists to generate useful, practical theories, Kurt Lewin

A) set apart reliability issues from validity issues.
B) urged the synthesis of basic and applied research.
C) emphasized the importance of experimental methodologies.
D) reduced the distinction between hypotheses and theories.

Question 12

Britney believes that exposure to violent television increases aggressive behavior by making people's own aggressive thoughts more accessible. Christina believes that violent television increases aggressive behavior by impairing people's cognitive abilities, which in turn makes them worry less about the consequences of their behavior as well as more likely to have aggressive thoughts. If we knew that violent television indeed increases aggressive behavior but knew nothing else on this topic, which of the following two theories should we prefer?

A) Christina's, because it is more empirical than Britney's
B) Britney's, because it is more efficient than Christina's
C) Christina's, because it is more testable than Britney's
D) Britney's, because it is more testable than Christina's

Question 13

A hypothesis provides a means of ____ a theory.

A) testing
B) creating
C) proving
D) generalizing

Question 14

An organized set of principles used to explain observed phenomena is called a(n)

A) personal bias.
B) theory.
C) hypothesis.
D) educated guess.

Question 15

Which of the following is NOT involved in basic research?

A) Solving practical or real-world problems
B) Increasing our understanding of human behavior
C) Testing hypotheses
D) Increasing our understanding of animal behavior

Question 16

Melissa's research examines the cognitive processes involved in persuasion and how those processes can be used to persuade women to have yearly mammograms. This work represents an integration of

A) basic and applied research.
B) independent and dependent research.
C) hypothetical and theoretical research.
D) experimental and nonexperimental research.

Question 17

Which of the following is a major difference between research in social psychology and research in other fields?

A) Social psychologists are less likely to rely on empirical observation to draw conclusions.
B) Many people have intuitive opinions about the questions that social psychologists study empirically.
C) Social psychology researchers are less concerned with theories and more concerned with data.
D) Social psychology is less of a science than many other fields.

Question 18

Which of the following is NOT a testable hypothesis?

A) People smile more when they are lying than when they are telling the truth.
B) Refusing to help someone in need is morally wrong.
C) Stereotypes are more likely to impact judgments when people are tired.
D) Women tend to have more opposite-sex friends than men.

Question 19

What is integral to starting social psychological research?

A) Control group
B) Subject variable
C) Question
D) Independent variable

Question 20

Dr. Pinsker is conducting research that he hopes will lead to a reduction in gender biases that impact women in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) courses. His work is purely a(n) ____ research.

A) applied
B) integration of basic and applied
C) basic
D) descriptive

Question 21

Johanna is participating in a study on social contacts and subjective well-being. At random times during the day, she receives a text message to which she responds with information about who she was with and how happy she is feeling. The researcher is using ____ self-report in this study.

A) signal-contingent
B) interval-contingent
C) bogus pipeline
D) event-contingent

Question 22

In a study concerning the cues that signal deception, Winston uses the number of times a person shifts in his or her seat as a measure of lying. Virginia points out that people may shift their position because they are nervous about being perceived as a liar, even though they are actually telling the truth. Virginia is questioning the ____ of Winston's measure of lying.

A) internal validity
B) construct validity
C) interrater reliability
D) mundane realism

Question 23

Which of the following is NOT true of applied research in social psychology?

A) It is often conducted by researchers who also conduct basic research.
B) It contributes to solutions of social problems.
C) It was pioneered by Kurt Lewin.
D) It is more experimental than basic research.

Question 24

Rhianna is participating in a study on social contacts and subjective well-being. After each social interaction that is longer than 5 minutes in duration, Rhianna logs into a site and responds to a series of questions about how she is feeling. The researcher is using ____ self-report in this study.

A) signal-based
B) event-based
C) interval-based
D) bogus pipeline

Question 25

Sapna is interested in the influence of nutrition on reaction time. She assigns participants to eat a salad and fruit for dinner every day for a week or to eat fast food each day. She then brings participants into the lab and asks them to push a button on a keyboard as fast as they can every time they hear a particular sound. What are the operational definitions of the variables in Sapna's study?

A) nutrition; reaction time
B) nutrition; whether participants eat a salad or fast food
C) whether participants eat salad or fast food; how quickly they push the button when they hear the sound
D) whether participants eat salad or fast food; reaction time

Question 26

Which of the following statements about construct validity does NOT hold?

A) It ensures that the study is high in internal validity.
B) It is relevant to both the dependent and independent variables in a study.
C) It can be identical for two researchers who have different operational definitions of the same conceptual variable.
D) It facilitates the testing of both hypotheses and theories.

Question 27

What is the most popular method of testing ideas in social psychology?

A) Meta-analysis
B) Descriptive research
C) Correlational research
D) Experimentation

Question 28

Which of the following is NOT relevant to self-reports?

A) They are sometimes inaccurate because people intentionally present themselves in a socially desirable way.
B) They may not allow for individuals to explicitly remember the thoughts or behaviors they are asked about.
C) They allow researchers access to individuals' private thoughts and feelings.
D) They are not influenced by the phrasing of a question or the response options provided.

Question 29

When interrogating a woman in a string of neighborhood thefts, Detective Morse tells her suspect the following: "I am asking you these questions and I'd advise you to answer honestly. When we are done chatting, you are going to have to answer them again when attached to a lie-detector." In this investigation, Detective Morse uses the ____ technique.

A) bogus pipeline
B) experimental realism
C) deception
D) quasi-experimental

Question 30

Self-report measures and observational measures are similar in that both

A) are subject to profound distortions from memory errors.
B) require exceptionally high interrater reliability to be considered accurate.
C) may be biased by participants presenting themselves in a favorable light.
D) provide direct access to people's thoughts and feelings.

Question 31

Researchers have developed interval-contingent, signal-contingent, and event-contingent report methods to

A) reduce memory distortions in self-report measures.
B) amplify memory distortions in self-report measures.
C) increase the role of values in the research process.
D) observe participants' behavior unobtrusively.

Question 32

Johanna is participating in a study on social contacts and subjective well-being. Each evening around 6 p.m., Johanna is supposed to record in a journal the number of social interactions she had that day that were longer in duration than 5 minutes. The researcher is using ____ self-report in this study.

A) event-contingent
B) signal-contingent
C) bogus pipeline
D) interval-contingent

Question 33

Which of the following is/are NOT mentioned in the text as a technology used by social psychologists in obtaining data?

A) Brain imaging technology
B) Measures of reaction time and heart rate
C) Polygraphs (lie detector machines)
D) Eye tracking

Question 34

Construct validity is BEST defined as the extent to which

A) participants who are tested repeatedly on the same measure will yield the same results.
B) the participants in a study were subjected to both random assignment and random selection.
C) results in a study can be achieved upon repeated administration of the same measuring instrument.
D) measures used in a study really measure the conceptual variables they were designed to measure.

Question 35

What is the significant advantage of observational research?

A) Seeking evidence to support ideas of different observers
B) Having control over events
C) Avoiding faulty recollections and distorted interpretations of our own behavior
D) Eliminating the problems of the past

Question 36

Which of the following procedures is used to increase the accuracy of self-reports?

A) Experimental research
B) Construct validity
C) The bogus pipeline technique
D) Random sampling

Question 37

Your book describes a study in which participants were provided with information about either the success rate or failure rate of condoms. The findings of this study indicate that

A) the simple wording of a question can have a drastic effect on self-report responses.
B) men and women had very different opinions about the effectiveness of condoms.
C) participants often lie when they are asked about sensitive personal issues.
D) college students tend to be naively ignorant of the risks associated with unsafe sex.

Question 38

To assess the extent to which students are reading their textbooks, a professor notes how creased the spines of books are. What technique does this professor apply?

A) An event-contingent self-report
B) An observational measure
C) A descriptive study
D) A signal-contingent self-report

Question 39

Interrater reliability is BEST employed in which of the following examples?

A) The degree of correlation of students' responses to several foods
B) The relationship between the quality ratings and actual health in different nursing homes
C) The degree of jury agreement in rating children's paintings
D) A comparison of toy preferences of toddlers at different intervals

Question 40

The research methods used by social psychologists tend to emphasize all of the following except a(n) ____ approach.

A) systematic
B) objective
C) variable
D) quantifiable

Question 41

Social psychologists use descriptive research in order to describe

A) associations between two or more variables of interest.
B) people and their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.
C) the strength of an observed effect.
D) cause-and-effect relationships between independent and dependent variables.

Question 42

The sign of a correlation coefficient indicates the ____ of the relationship between variables.

A) quality
B) strength
C) power
D) direction

Question 43

Which of the following statements concerning correlational research is TRUE?

A) In correlational research, variables are measured but not manipulated.
B) In correlational research, one variable is manipulated and one is measured.
C) Correlational research can be conducted using observational, but not archival, measures.
D) Correlational research can be conducted using archival, but not observational, measures.

Question 44

Latrell, the editor of a popular sports magazine, would like to know more about the demographics of the magazine's readers. He designs a questionnaire to assess this information and sends it to a random sample of the magazine's readers. Latrell is conducting a(n)

A) survey.
B) observational study.
C) archival study.
D) experiment.

Question 45

A study that examines existing records or databases is referred to as a(n)

A) anecdotal study.
B) survey.
C) case study.
D) archival study.

Question 46

In principle, the purpose of random sampling is to make sure that research participants

A) have the right to withdraw from a study without incurring any penalty.
B) are fully informed as to the procedures and hypotheses of the study.
C) do not differ from one another in systematic ways.
D) constitute a representative sample from the population of interest.

Question 47

Luke would like to know if there is a relationship between the number of psychology courses people take and their level of empathy. He surveys a randomly selected group of college students. Each student indicates the number of psychology courses he or she has taken and then completes an empathy scale. Luke's research is best described as a(n)

A) correlational study.
B) experiment.
C) prospective study.
D) archival study.

Question 48

Carmella finds a correlation of +0.47 between self-esteem and academic achievement. Which of the following is the MOST appropriate interpretation of this correlation?

A) High self-esteem motivates students to achieve more academically.
B) Doing well academically increases students' self-esteem.
C) The higher students' self-esteem, the greater their academic achievement.
D) As self-esteem increases, academic achievement decreases.

Question 49

Which of the following correlation coefficients reflects the strongest meaningful relationship?

A) +0.67
B) 0.00
C) −0.86
D) +1.25

Question 50

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

A) The more pets you own, the better your physical health tends to be.
B) The more money people make, the bigger their house tends to be.
C) The more alcohol you consume, the lower your GPA tends to be.
D) The more points a player scores, the more time they play in the next game.

Question 51

To examine potential gender differences in the qualities individuals seek in their romantic partners, HaeJin compares the personal ads placed by men and women. HaeJin is conducting a(n)

A) experiment.
B) observational study.
C) archival study.
D) survey study.

Question 52

Suppose the correlation between the number of times couples go to the movies and the number of times they go out to dinner is +0.79. Among the following conclusions, which one is NOT consistent with this computation?

A) The more often that couples go to the movies, the more often they go out to dinner.
B) The less often that couples go to the movies, the less often they go out to dinner.
C) There is a strong positive correlation between the number of times couples go to the movies and the number of times they go out to dinner.
D) Because the correlation coefficient is less than 1.0, the association between these two variables is very weak and probably unreliable.

Question 53

Vito finds a correlation of −0.35 between procrastination behaviors and academic achievement. Which of the following is an appropriate conclusion for Vito to draw?

A) Procrastination leads students to perform more poorly.
B) Poor academic performance causes more procrastination.
C) Elimination of procrastination behaviors will lead students to perform better.
D) As a student procrastinates more, her academic achievement decreases.

Question 54

In what way do descriptive and correlational research methods differ from each other?

A) Descriptive research does not look at relationships between variables.
B) Descriptive research is more useful when one wants to infer causation.
C) Correlational research cannot make use of archival data.
D) Correlational research allows the researcher to control the participants' actions.

Question 55

For which of the following questions would a researcher be MOST likely to use an observational study?

A) Is memory for television commercials influenced by the tune of the music included in the commercial?
B) Does smoking marijuana lead to increased aggression?
C) Does taking a social psychology course cause one to be happier?
D) Do banks tend to offer minorities lower interest rates on home mortgages than nonminorities?

Question 56

A television producer is interested in whether women like soap operas more than sitcoms. The producer uses a random number table to select a sample of 100 households, and then makes phone calls to these households every afternoon for three weeks. Of those who were home when the producer called, 75% reported they liked soap operas more than sitcoms. Which of the following might raise questions about the results?

A) The use of archival data
B) The representativeness of the sample
C) The construct validity of the measure
D) The operational definition advanced by the magazine

Question 57

When decreases in one variable are accompanied by decreases in another variable, the variables are described as

A) negatively correlated.
B) positively correlated.
C) causally related.
D) prospectively related.

Question 58

The MOST important aspect of sampling in a survey study is

A) its inclusion of equal numbers of individuals from different groups in the population.
B) the number of people in the sample.
C) the ratio of the sample size to the population size.
D) the total number of groups in the population.

Question 59

The main purpose of conducting correlational research is to

A) determine the causal relationship between an independent and a dependent variable.
B) describe the population's average score on a particular measure.
C) manipulate one variable but hold the other constant.
D) determine the nature and strength of the association between two measured variables.

Question 60

Many social psychological questions can be addressed only with surveys because

A) funding sources are looking to save money and surveys are relatively inexpensive.
B) researchers rarely have time to carry out complex social psychological experiments.
C) the analysis of surveys permits much tighter control than could otherwise be achieved.
D) they involve variables that are impossible or unethical to observe directly or manipulate.

Question 61

Which of the following characteristics is MOST relevant to the condition that any differences one obtains after the experimental manipulation of a study have been produced only by that manipulation?

A) Control of subject variables
B) Random sampling
C) Construct validity
D) Control over experimental procedures

Question 62

Stanley examines the impact of group size on conformity behavior in an experiment. He makes groups of two, five, or ten people stand on a city street and stare up at a window. He then records the number of passersby who stop and stare at the window. This study is an example of a(n)

A) meta-analysis.
B) archival study.
C) experiment with one independent variable.
D) experiment with two independent variables.

Question 63

Which of the following conditions does NOT hold for conducting an experiment in social psychology?

A) All participants are treated equally.
B) The researcher has control over experimental procedures.
C) Participants are assigned to different manipulations.
D) The experiment is limited to be performed in a tightly controlled laboratory environment.

Question 64

Random assignment is essential to establishing causality because it

A) permits researchers to verify that they have a diverse and representative sample of participants.
B) reduces the possibility that individual characteristics of the participants produced the observed results.
C) increases the external validity of the experiment and virtually eliminates issues of reliability.
D) allows researchers to determine whether or not their operational definitions reflect the variables of interest.

Question 65

Alan conducted an analysis to examine the relationship between pollution and low life expectancy in a rural setting. He estimated the correlation ratio to be 0.089 for the age group of 25 to 85 years. What type of correlation would he have observed?

A) No correlation
B) Positive correlation
C) Negative correlation
D) Weak correlation

Question 66

What is the major limitation of random assignment?

A) It may result in inconsistent estimates of possible correlations.
B) It cannot establish causality.
C) It cannot be implemented for experiments involving more complex calculations.
D) It may affect external validity under certain conditions.

Question 67

One of the many advantages of correlational research is that it

A) allows researchers to study variables that cannot be examined using an experiment.
B) allows the researcher to test for and determine the nature of causal relationships.
C) exhibits high internal validity.
D) tends to be statistically significant.

Question 68

Which of the following statements about correlational research is TRUE?

A) It is a powerful way to establish causal relationships between variables.
B) It allows a researcher to establish cause-and-effect relationships.
C) It permits researchers to determine whether one variable is predictive of another.
D) It is limited to the study of variables that can be measured in the laboratory.

Question 69

Causation cannot be inferred from correlational studies because

A) they are so low in external validity.
B) they do not involve the manipulation of variables.
C) they are always conducted outside of the research lab.
D) researchers have too much control over the variables.

Question 70

In an experiment, the independent variable is ____ while the dependent variable is ____.

A) held constant; varied
B) correlational; descriptive
C) manipulated; measured
D) general; specific

Question 71

Random assignment, a defining feature of an experiment, means that participants

A) select the particular experimental manipulations they wish to experience.
B) are chosen randomly from the population of interest.
C) have an equal chance of being in any of the conditions.
D) are assigned to groups on the basis of their preexisting differences.

Question 72

Camryn uses a survey to measure the association between students' grade point average and weekly consumption of alcohol. She finds that higher GPAs tend to be associated with lower levels of alcohol consumption (and vice versa). This study is best described as a(n)

A) experiment.
B) observational study.
C) concurrent study.
D) correlational study.

Question 73

A researcher examined the effects of mood on aggression in an experiment. She decided to see how receiving an insult or a compliment affects aggression, and she measured aggression by having participants administer small shocks to another participant. The researcher found that participants in the insult condition were more aggressive than those in the compliment condition. One of her colleagues reads about this research and voices concern that people in the insult condition may have been more naturally aggressive than people in the compliment condition, causing the differences observed by the researcher. This concern about preexisting differences between participants in the two conditions would only be valid if participants were not

A) a representative sample of the population.
B) randomly assigned to the condition.
C) randomly selected from the population.
D) informed that they were involved in a correlational study.

Question 74

What is the primary disadvantage of correlation studies compared to experimental studies?

A) They are more labor-intensive.
B) They do not allow one to determine causality.
C) The results are more difficult to understand.
D) The choice of variables that can be studied is limited.

Question 75

Which of the following characteristics does NOT belong to subject variables?

A) They are neither dependent nor truly independent variables.
B) They cannot be manipulated or randomly assigned.
C) They may include gender and ethnicity of participants.
D) They are essential for field experiments.

Question 76

Professor Collison conducts an experiment to find whether playing video games causes aggressive behavior or aggressive behavior induces playing video games. His study signifies what kind of relationship?

A) Random
B) Correlation
C) Statistical
D) Indirect

Question 77

In a well-designed experiment, all participants must

A) be treated in exactly the same manner except for the specific differences the experimenter wants to create.
B) not realize that they are involved in an experiment.
C) be influenced by experimenter expectancy effects.
D) be allowed to choose their own experimental conditions without interference or bias from the experimenter.

Question 78

The procedure used to ensure that research participants have an equal chance of being placed in the experimental or control groups in an experiment is called

A) random assignment.
B) random sampling.
C) debriefing.
D) experimental realism.

Question 79

Buster runs an experiment in which she finds that participants placed in a good mood by a happy film clip are more likely to offer help to a fellow participant than participants who see a sad film clip. Bob suggests that perhaps this difference simply results from the fact that the participants in the happy film clip condition were more helpful people to begin with. What methodological aspect of a successful experiment can Buster point to in order to refute this criticism?

A) External validity
B) Random selection
C) Random assignment
D) Manipulation

Question 80

In comparison to field experiments, laboratory experiments

A) permit researchers greater control.
B) allow more naturalistic observation of behavior.
C) are less susceptible to experimenter expectancy effects.
D) have fewer problems caused by the limitations of self-report data.