Deck 2: Personality Research Methods

Question 1

________ data are the most frequently used basis for personality assessment.

A) B
B) L
C) S
D) I

Answer 1

C

Question 2

According to the text,accidental mistakes in judging personality are considered ________,whereas inaccurate judgments that are influenced by prejudices are considered ________.

A) biases; stereotypes
B) heuristic errors; formal errors
C) errors; biases
D) trivial; serious

Answer 2

C

Question 3

What you do may be influenced by how you see yourself and how you are seen by others.This means that your self-perceptions and others' perceptions have ________.

A) definitional truth
B) causal truth
C) phenomenological force
D) causal force

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Researchers must use clues to personality in their research because________.

A) personality is defined solely by biological factors that cannot be observed
B) personality tests are unethical
C) personality is something hidden that resides inside an individual
D) personality is defined by responses to self-report questionnaires

Question 5

I data essentially measure ________.

A) your internal states or emotions
B) your level of self-awareness
C) your reputation
D) work productivity (in industrial psychology)

Question 6

According to the textbook,there are no perfect ________ of personality,only ________.

A) measures; devices
B) indicators; clues
C) theories; hypotheses
D) reliable measures; valid measures

Question 7

The Thematic Apperception Test and the Rorschach test elicit ________ data.

A) L
B) I
C) S
D) B

Question 8

The typical experimental social psychologist collects ________ data.

A) B
B) I
C) L
D) S

Question 9

To obtain S data,a psychologist can ________.

A) develop a questionnaire
B) recruit informants
C) observe the subject directly
D) look up information in public records

Question 10

According to the text,a ________ would receive technical training,whereas a ________ would receive scientific education.

A) pharmacologist; pharmacist
B) physician; biologist
C) botanist; computer programmer
D) research psychologist; clinical psychologist

Question 11

Because each kind of data has limitations,personality psychologists should ________.

A) not bother collecting data
B) gather as much data as possible
C) only use L data, which are the most reliable
D) use only one source of data and control for its limitations

Question 12

According to the text,what simple example of L data is considered by clinical psychologists to be a potential indicator of psychopathology?

A) an arrest record by age 21
B) an annual income below the poverty line
C) being fired from a job by age 30
D) never being married by age 40

Question 13

In order to examine the relationship between early life experiences and adult criminality,Dr.Robbins asks his research participants to fill out questionnaires describing their early life.He then obtains copies of their arrest records from the county courthouse.The questionnaires used in Dr.Robbins's study would be ________ data,whereas the arrest records would be ________ data.

A) L; B
B) S; I
C) S; L
D) B; L

Question 14

The goal of the dissertation in the process of scientific education is to demonstrate that the future scientist ________.

A) has memorized all of the known facts about a given topic
B) has read all of the known articles about a given a topic
C) can contribute something new to the field
D) can apply the technical knowledge learned in graduate school

Question 15

There is a possibility that individuals are so accustomed to certain aspects of their personality that they might not be aware of those traits.This is called the ________ effect.

A) fish-and-water
B) self-verification
C) self-expectancy
D) narcissism

Question 16

What is the minimum number of informants that Funder recommends for each person in a study?

A) one
B) two
C) three
D) five

Question 17

According to the text,the goal of a scientific education is ________.

A) to question what is known and how to find out what is not yet known
B) to convey what is known about a subject so it can be applied in a medical context
C) to train individuals to exclusively rely on deductive reasoning to solve problems
D) all of the above

Question 18

To assess the personality traits of a group of 5-year-olds,researchers use puppets to illustrate different personality traits.Children are then asked to pick the puppet that best matches their personality.This is an example of ________ data.

A) S
B) I
C) L
D) B

Question 19

When gathering data or clues about personality,the best policy is to ________.

A) gather only a very small number of clues and focus on the important ones
B) gather only clues that are certain not to be misleading
C) rely solely on self-report data
D) collect as many clues as possible

Question 20

I data are ________.

A) self-judgments
B) judgments made by knowledgeable observers
C) easily observable, real-life outcomes
D) direct observations of the subject in some predefined context

Question 21

The judgments that others make of your personality affect your opportunities and expectancies.Thus,these judgments have ________.

A) generalizability
B) validity
C) causal force
D) reliability

Question 22

A major advantage of S data is that ________.

A) only a trained personality psychologist can interpret S data
B) the best information about personality is obtainable from real-life social outcomes
C) you are the world's best expert about your own personality
D) to assess personality, you must observe what the person actually does

Question 23

Which of the following types of personality data is the most objective and verifiable?

A) S
B) B
C) I
D) L

Question 24

________ data derive from the researcher's direct observation of what the subject does.

A) L
B) I
C) S
D) B

Question 25

Which type of data is likely to be the most subjective and judgmental?

A) I
B) B
C) L
D) S

Question 26

In a priming study,participants solved puzzles that included words such as gray,wise,retired,and Florida.After solving these puzzles,participants were observed as they walked down a hallway.The observation of participants' speed of walking would be considered ________ data.

A) experience sampling
B) experimental B
C) L
D) projective

Question 27

Which of the following is LEAST likely to be considered B data?

A) measures of heart rate and other physiological measurements
B) observation of how many times a participant spoke during a five-minute conversation
C) a psychologist's interpretation of a participant's responses to an unstructured clinical interview
D) a participant's records of his daily activities in a daily research "diary"

Question 28

What kinds of behaviors by an acquaintance would most likely be remembered?

A) an atypical behavior that was emotionally evocative
B) only behaviors consistent with the acquaintance's personality
C) the most recently observed typical behavior
D) behaviors that are observed every day

Question 29

What is the best way for a researcher to judge the face validity of items on a measure?

A) Conduct an exploratory factor analysis on the items.
B) Conduct a confirmatory factor analysis on the items.
C) Conduct an internal consistency analysis on the items.
D) Read and consider the content of the items.

Question 30

Records of employee absenteeism are what type of data?

A) S
B) B
C) I
D) L

Question 31

Dr.Garcia wants to measure the earliest autobiographical memories of the participants in her project.She would most likely obtain ________ data.

A) L
B) I
C) S
D) B

Question 32

Different informants may not agree about the personality of a common target individual because ________.

A) each judge may see the target person in only a limited number of social contexts
B) judges may form a mistaken impression based on the recollection of a single, uncharacteristic behavior
C) some informants may have biases that affect the accuracy of their judgments
D) all of the above

Question 33

Which kind of data would be the easiest way to obtain information about the content of dreams?

A) S
B) B
C) L
D) I

Question 34

The tendency for us to become what other people believe us to be is called a(n)________ effect.

A) confirmation
B) expectancy
C) fish-and-water
D) self-monitoring

Question 35

Which of the following would be an example of natural B data?

A) observations of the number of times a subject told a joke in a day
B) number of seconds a subject waits before seeking help in an experimental emergency situation
C) a subject's verbal responses to a Rorschach test
D) number of times a subject interrupts others during a videotaped laboratory situation

Question 36

The fact that behavior is frequently determined by multiple causes presents the most significant disadvantage for ________ data.

A) B
B) L
C) I
D) S

Question 37

________ data are fairly easily verifiable,concrete,real-life outcomes of possible psychological significance.

A) S
B) B
C) I
D) L

Question 38

According to the text,which of the following is another term for behavioral confirmation?

A) action verification
B) causal force
C) expectancy effect
D) narcissistic reflection

Question 39

When a psychologist asks a question because he or she wants to know the answer,the question elicits ________.When a psychologist asks a question because he or she wants to see how the individual will respond to that stimulus,the test elicits ________.

A) B data; I data
B) S data; I data
C) S data; B data
D) laboratory B data; natural B data

Question 40

Which kind of data is the LEAST expensive to collect?

A) L
B) S
C) I
D) B

Question 41

What term describes computer-assisted methods to measure thoughts and feelings that occur during normal daily activities?

A) experiential assessment
B) ambulatory assessment
C) projective assessment
D) digitally assisted experimental assessment

Question 42

When someone is high in narcissism,what type of data about this person might be the LEAST trustworthy?

A) B
B) I
C) L
D) S

Question 43

A researcher asks participants to imagine that they have been excluded from their circle of friends and then takes images of their brains using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)scanning technology.The images generated in this study would be considered ________ data.

A) experience sampling
B) experimental B
C) L
D) projective

Question 44

According to principles described in the text,it would be relatively difficult to create a reliable measure of attitudes toward ________.

A) paper clips
B) casual sexual encounters
C) outgroup members
D) the self (like self-esteem)

Question 45

As part of a research project,a participant uses a smart phone application that signals her at random times throughout the day.At those times,the application presents a series of questions for her to answer regarding her current activities.This is an example of ________ data.

A) experience sampling
B) experimental B
C) L
D) projective

Question 46

A behavioroid measure is a combination of which two types of data?

A) S and B
B) L and B
C) I and B
D) S and L

Question 47

What term is sometimes used to describe instruments like the Rorschach and Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)?

A) S instruments
B) omnibus personality test batteries
C) objective tests
D) performance-based personality tests

Question 48

Linda is taking an intelligence test.During the test,the teachers walk through the halls and chat loudly with each other.Due to these distractions,Linda scores lower on the test than she would have if she had been able to concentrate fully.The influence of the teachers' chatting is an example of ________.

A) reliability
B) a validity bias
C) a cohort effect
D) measurement error

Question 49

If measurement errors are truly random,then they should ________.

A) never occur
B) not affect the reliability of a measure
C) not attenuate the validity of a measure
D) sum to zero

Question 50

The most important advantage of B data is that they are based on ________.

A) common sense, so they have greater psychological relevance
B) a report by the best expert, so they are more accurate
C) direct psychological tests, so they have greater causal force and scientific value
D) direct observations of behavior, so they are more objective and quantifiable

Question 51

Because Jesse's teacher believes that he is intelligent,she challenges him with extra assignments and generally encourages his curiosity.At the end of the school year,Jesse performs better on the school's achievement test than any other student.Jesse's enhanced performance is likely due to the ________.

A) recency effect
B) expectancy effect
C) self-serving bias
D) judgment bias

Question 52

Which of the following is NOT an advantage of B data?

A) Direct observations require little in the way of psychological interpretation.
B) Direct observations are easily quantifiable.
C) Direct observations can be made with extreme precision, as in the case of reaction times.
D) Psychologists can construct situations to elicit particular behaviors.

Question 53

If Dr.O'Connell wants to learn about Laura,why might Dr.O'Connell want to avoid using S data?

A) The person supplying the S data may not want to or be able to provide accurate reports about Laura.
B) The S data often do not have psychological relevance.
C) The S data are influenced by too many factors to reveal much about a person's personality.
D) The S data have definitional truth.

Question 54

Which of the following is NOT an advantage of I data?

A) They have causal force.
B) They include common sense.
C) They are based on large amounts of information.
D) They come from carefully controlled experimental situations.

Question 55

On Friday,Terence completes the Self-Monitoring Scale and receives a score of 49.On the following Tuesday,he fills out the scale again and receives a score of 28.Terence's scores on the Self-Monitoring Scale do not appear to be ________.

A) valid
B) reliable
C) significant
D) free of unwanted biases

Question 56

One concern with items on measures like the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)is that they often lack face validity.What kind of problem does this create?

A) Participants can easily fake responses on the items.
B) Such items raise concerns with social desirability.
C) Responses are difficult to interpret in psychological terms.
D) Such items tend to make participants very anxious.

Question 57

Which formula in psychometrics quantifies the principle of aggregation?

A) alpha
B) Spearman-Brown
C) kappa
D) Kaiser-Guttman

Question 58

If you can get the same answer repeatedly,then your measure is ________.

A) reliable
B) valid
C) significant
D) generalizable

Question 59

The technical meaning of reliability refers to ________.

A) how much measurement error is present in your assessment instrument
B) whether an instrument accurately assesses the construct it is intended to measure
C) whether an instrument correlates with a similar measure of the same construct
D) whether a sample of participants reasonably represents the population of interest

Question 60

A major disadvantage of L data is ________.

A) that they provide too much information
B) that informants may have access to only a narrow range of the target's behavior
C) that the data are influenced by multiple factors besides just personality
D) that judges may be biased about the person they are describing

Question 61

What is the big disadvantage of the case study method?

A) It describes isolated variables, not the whole phenomenon.
B) It is rarely the source of testable hypotheses.
C) It does not usually apply to particular individuals, only to groups.
D) It is not generalizable.

Question 62

According to the text,which of the following would NOT be a threat to the generalizability of personality research?

A) More women than men participate in research.
B) Participants who show up for research studies are more conventional than individuals who do not show up.
C) Personality researchers strive to study multiple cohorts.
D) Much personality research is based on samples of college students.

Question 63

Reliability and validity are actually both aspects of a broader concept called ________.

A) factorial invariance
B) psychometric integrity
C) measurement equivalence
D) generalizability

Question 64

A researcher can increase the reliability of a personality test by ________.

A) refusing to aggregate items
B) measuring something important
C) using very few items to reduce the risk of mistakes
D) constructing items with complicated words and phrases

Question 65

Validity is the degree to which a measurement ________.

A) is consistent and stable
B) provides the same result if repeated
C) actually reflects or measures what you think it does
D) is reliable

Question 66

Many psychologists tend to use college students as participants in their research and then assume that what they learn applies to people in general.However,this common practice may limit ________.

A) the ecological reliability of their research
B) the internal validity of their studies
C) the generalizability of their findings
D) the construct validity of their studies

Question 67

Jane recently completed a new test that was designed to measure her IQ.She took the test twice and each time received the same score.The test administrator told her that her scores indicate she is extremely intelligent.However,Jane scored well below average when she completed the Stanford-Binet and the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS),two well-established intelligence tests.Based on this pattern of results,it appears that the new measure of IQ was a ________.

A) valid measure of intelligence
B) valid but unreliable measure of intelligence
C) reliable but not valid measure of intelligence
D) more accurate measure of intelligence than the Stanford-Binet or the WAIS

Question 68

At the heart of aggregation is the idea that ________.

A) random errors cancel each other out
B) random errors never cancel each other out
C) reliable errors cancel each other out
D) a sufficiently precise measure has no reliable error

Question 69

The fact that much of modern empirical research in psychology has been based on white,middle-class college sophomores may reduce the ________ of psychological research.

A) generalizability
B) reliability
C) validity
D) statistical significance

Question 70

Which of the following sampling methods affords a researcher the greatest generalizability?

A) randomly selecting a sample of introductory psychology students
B) randomly selecting a sample of both high school and college students
C) recruiting all the executives at a large company to participate
D) selecting participants using a random telephone dialing system

Question 71

A research strategy that involves gathering as many different measurements as you can of a particular construct and determining if those measurements correlate is called ________.

A) construct validation
B) aggregation validation
C) generalization
D) internal validation

Question 72

Which of the following is NOT likely to undermine the reliability of a survey?

A) entering data into a database incorrectly after collection
B) the immediate state of the participant
C) the mood of the experimenter
D) aggregation of responses to different items

Question 73

According to Cronbach and Meehl's (1955)terminology,psychological attributes such as intelligence and sociability are examples of ________,whereas an IQ test and extraversion questionnaire are both examples of specific tests or measurements.

A) constructs
B) valid ideas
C) assessments
D) manifest factors

Question 74

The major difference between the experimental and correlational methods is that in the experimental method the presumed causal variable is ________,whereas in the correlational method the same variable is ________.

A) externally derived; internally derived
B) significant; important
C) manipulated; measured
D) reliable; valid

Question 75

Narrative psychology is an example of the ________ method.

A) case study
B) correlational
C) experimental
D) behavioral

Question 76

Dr.Grant is creating a new measure of shyness,and she decides to include more than one item in her scale.She believes that using multiple items will lead to a more reliable measure.Dr.Grant is following which principle of measurement?

A) multitrait assessment
B) content validation
C) aggregation
D) construct validation

Question 77

Reliability is ________ for validity.

A) a necessary and sufficient condition
B) a necessary but not sufficient condition
C) a sufficient condition
D) not at all relevant

Question 78

The most important and generally useful way to enhance reliability is to ________.

A) use the smallest possible number of items
B) measure something that is important
C) aggregate your measurements
D) maximize error variance

Question 79

In simple language,questions about reliability concern ________,whereas questions about validity concern ________.

A) accuracy; consistency
B) consistency; dependability
C) stability; dependability
D) consistency; accuracy

Question 80

The strongest advantage of the experimental method is that ________.

A) it allows the assessment of causality
B) it allows the study of naturally occurring individual differences that already exist in the participants
C) participants are always randomly sampled from the general population
D) it can take advantage of extreme levels of the independent variable