Deck 10: Experimental and Quasiexperimental Designs

Question 1

Random assignment of participants to experimental and control groups has which of these effects?

A) Minimizes mortality within groups
B) Maximizes variance between groups
C) Decreases systematic bias
D) Increases selection bias

Answer 1

Decreases systematic bias

Question 2

What is the term used to describe the experimental treatment initiated by the researcher?

A) Independent variable
B) Dependent variable
C) Extraneous variable
D) Outcome variable

Answer 2

Independent variable

Question 3

Control is important in an experimental research study for which of these reasons?

A) It ensures maintenance of participant confidentiality.
B) It introduces one or more constants into the experimental situation.
C) It prevents data collection from extending beyond the original time specified for the study.
D) It ensures a cause-and-effect relationship between independent and dependent variables.

Answer 3

It introduces one or more constants into the experimental situation.

Question 4

The nurse is critiquing a research study that used an experimental design.Which of the following criteria must be met to infer causality?

A) The relationship between cause and effect must be reciprocal.
B) The relationship must not be explainable by any other variable.
C) The independent variable must change in response to manipulation of the dependent variable.
D) The outcome must be logical, expected, and predictable.

Question 5

Why is randomization important in a study with an experimental design?

A) It reduces the risk of the participant being harmed by participation in the study.
B) It ensures that the experimental group and the control group have the same number of participants.
C) It allows the study to proceed without the researcher knowing the identity of the treatment group.
D) It increases the likelihood that differences in the outcomes of the groups are not related to chance alone.

Question 6

Which of the following factors or characteristics is present only in true experimental design (and not in a quasi-experimental design)?

A) Research question or hypothesis
B) Experimental treatment
C) Informed consent
D) Randomization

Question 7

In a study about help to quit smoking,one group of participants received a single supportive phone call 10 days after attending a program on strategies to resist the urge to smoke.A second group received a weekly supportive phone call for 6 weeks after attending the same program,and a third group received no supportive phone calls after attending the program.What is the dependent variable in the research scenario?

A) Program on strategies to resist smoking
B) Elimination of cigarette smoking
C) Weekly supportive phone call
D) No supportive phone call

Question 8

What aspect should be the primary consideration in critiquing the research report of an experimental study and determining the validity of the conclusions presented?

A) How well the researcher controlled for extraneous variables
B) The number of participants who dropped out of the control and experimental groups
C) The credentials and previous experience of the researcher
D) The number of persons involved in the data collection process

Question 9

A study compared weight loss in obese participants between those who participated in a support group and those who chose not to.Which of the following factors or conditions in the study would be considered an intervening variable?

A) Data collection for both groups occurred over the Thanksgiving holiday.
B) The group that did not participate in a support group had a greater percentage of male participants.
C) Three participants received a diagnosis of hypertension 1 month after the study began.
D) Two participants dropped out of the study 1 month after the study began.

Question 10

How differently is the independent variable handled in studies with an experimental design or a quasi-experimental design?

A) An independent variable is not identified or needed in a quasi-experimental design.
B) Both designs identify an independent variable, and both manipulate the independent variable.
C) Experimental designs demonstrate that the independent variable is related to the outcome, but quasi-experimental studies allow for independent variables that stand alone.
D) Although both designs identify an independent variable, experimental designs identify it before the research is initiated, and quasi-experimental designs identify it after the data have been analyzed.

Question 11

What is the meaning of "control" in a study with an experimental design?

A) The care taken to ensure maintenance of participant confidentiality
B) The introduction of one or more constants into the experimental situation
C) The ability of the researcher to prevent data collection from extending beyond the original time specified for the study
D) The faithfulness of the researcher in the application of all the assumptions of the experimental process to the study

Question 12

Which of the following statements about random assignment or randomization is true?

A) The randomization process decreases the influence of researcher bias but can increase the effect of systematic bias in a study.
B) The randomization process decreases the influence of systematic bias but can increase the effect of researcher bias in a study.
C) With randomization, each participant has an equal and known probability of being assigned to any group in a study.
D) Randomization eliminates the need for informed consent.

Question 13

In a study about help to quit smoking,one group of participants received a single supportive phone call 10 days after attending a program on strategies to resist the urge to smoke.A second group received a weekly supportive phone call for 6 weeks after attending the same program,and a third group received no supportive phone calls after attending the program.What property of experimental research did the researcher employ in this study?

A) Quasi-experimental research-no control group
B) Random assignment to research groups
C) Manipulation of the intervention dose
D) Controlling for extraneous variables

Question 14

The nurse is critiquing a research study that involves participants undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer.Which finding would meet a criterion for inferring causality between performance of exercise and adaptive behaviour of the participants receiving chemotherapy?

A) Adaptation behaviour began before the exercise program was initiated.
B) Adaptive behaviour occurred in the control group over time.
C) The level of adaptation behaviours increased proportionately with increase in the intensity of the exercise.
D) No differences in adaptation behaviours were observed between participants in the experimental group and participants in the control group.

Question 15

By what specific criterion should you judge the results or findings of experimental research?

A) The size of the experimental group compared with the size of the control group
B) The validity that the experimental treatment caused the desired effect on the outcome
C) The degree to which the research questions were congruent with the hypotheses and the purpose of the study
D) The degree to which the researcher was able to apply the findings to clinical or practice settings

Question 16

In a true experimental study,the control group is the group that does what?

A) Receives the experimental treatment
B) Receives the placebo treatment
C) Experiences the adverse results
D) Experiences the reactive effects

Question 17

What type of threat to validity is minimized by the use of the Solomon four-group design?

A) Mortality
B) Selection bias
C) Testing
D) Antecedent variable

Question 18

Which action would increase the control of an experimental study?

A) Establishing strict criteria for participant selection
B) Allowing participants to decide whether or not to be in the experimental group
C) Ensuring that participants do not know the purpose of the experimental study
D) Increasing the number of assistants involved in data collection

Question 19

Using the abstract information provided below,identify which group would be considered the "control group" for this experimental study. "To determine the efficacy of a cognitive-behavioural intervention for treating insomnia in breast cancer survivors,randomized controlled trials were conducted with seventy-two women who through sleep diaries were identified as experiencing insomnia.Participants were randomly assigned to a multicomponent intervention including stimulus control instructions,sleep restriction,and sleep or a single-component group (sleep education)."

A) The group receiving the multicomponent.
B) The group receiving the single component.
C) The group experiencing adverse effects.
D) The group refusing to participate.

Question 20

A study was conducted to determine whether a videotape would be more effective than a pamphlet in instructing college-age women to perform breast self-examination on a regular basis.Which of the following conditions could be considered an antecedent variable?

A) Four participants in the pamphlet-based instruction group had mothers who had been received a diagnosis of breast cancer, and the other group had no participants with mothers diagnosed with breast cancer.
B) The group that received the videotape training comprised members of one sorority, and the group that received the pamphlet-based instruction comprised members of a different sorority.
C) During the study, most participants received flu shots through the college's student health service.
D) The pamphlet group had 38 members, and the videotape group had 33 members.

Question 21

For which of the following studies would an after-only experimental research design be most appropriate?

A) The effect of cause of spousal death on widow self-esteem
B) The effect of preoperative teaching on vascular complications after surgery
C) The effect of a mentorship program on improvement of student performance in a BSN program
D) The effectiveness of using the videotape to teach adolescent men about the warning signs of testicular cancer.

Question 22

A research study is planned to determine the effect of nutritional supplementation and type of support surface on the rate of wound healing in sacral myocutaneous flap failures.Which is an independent variable in this study?

A) Rate of wound healing
B) Sacral myocutaneous flap
C) Retailer source of protein supplement
D) Type of support surface
E) Nutritional supplementation

Question 23

A study was conducted to determine if videotaped instruction was more effective than written instruction (a pamphlet)to teach menopausal women the benefits of regular mammograms.Which condition would be considered an antecedent variable?

A) There were 38 participants in the pamphlet group and 34 participants in the videotape group.
B) During the study, 50% of the videotape group received flu shots, whereas 25% of those in the pamphlet group received flu shots.
C) Four members of the pamphlet group had mothers who had been received a diagnosis of breast cancer, but no members of the videotape group had mothers who had been received a diagnosis of breast cancer.
D) While participating in the study, five members of the videotape group began performing breast self-examination (BSE), while two members of the pamphlet group began performing BSE.

Question 24

Which of these research designs could be classified as quasi-experimental?

A) Solomon four-group design
B) After-only design
C) Nonequivalent control group design
D) After-only nonequivalent control group design
E) One-group pretest-posttest design
F) True experimental pretest-posttest group design
G) Time series design

Question 25

A research study in a laboratory setting incorporates four groups (two control and two experimental)in which only one experimental group and one control group are pretested,while all four groups are posttested.Which descriptions of the design are accurate?

A) Experimental design
B) After-only experimental design
C) Real-world experimental design
D) quasi-experimental design
E) Solomon four-group design

Question 26

Which of the following is a purpose of evaluation research in nursing?

A) Documenting the cost effectiveness of new nursing interventions
B) Discovering the health beliefs of a specific ethnic group
C) Defining the cause-and-effect relationship in poor surgical outcomes
D) Describing various models of health care delivery

Question 27

In the study by Siminoff,Burant,and Ibrahim entitled "Racial Disparities in Preferences and Perceptions Regarding Organ Donation," sampling was done using a random digit telephone technique.What threats to internal validity does this prevent?

A) Selection effects
B) Selection bias
C) Social desirability bias
D) Testing effects

Question 28

Which research designs could be classified as experimental?

A) Solomon four-group design
B) After-only design
C) Nonequivalent control group design
D) After-only nonequivalent control group design
E) One-group pretest-posttest design
F) True experimental pretest-posttest control group design
G) Time series design

Question 29

What advantage do quasi-experimental studies have over experimental studies?

A) A smaller sample size is sufficient to obtain significant results in quasi-experimental studies.
B) Quasi-experimental studies are stronger in establishing cause-and-effect relationships.
C) Descriptive statistics can be used to analyze the data in quasi-experimental studies.
D) Quasi-experimental studies are more adaptable to real-world settings.

Question 30

In a study using a true experimental design,which of these methods would control for antecedent variables?

A) Manipulation of the independent variable
B) After-only data collection
C) Intervention fidelity
D) Random assignment to groups

Question 31

How are threats to validity affected when studies are conducted in laboratory settings?

A) Threats to both internal and external validity are increased.
B) Threats to both internal and external validity are decreased.
C) Threats to internal validity are decreased, whereas threats to external validity are increased.
D) Threats to internal validity are increased, whereas threats to external validity are decreased.

Question 32

A planned quasi-experimental study using a nonequivalent control group design has several extraneous variables that threaten its internal validity.The nurse researcher's actions should be based on which understanding?

A) The results of the study will not be statistically significant.
B) The random assignment of participants to groups will nullify the intervening variables.
C) The study should be strengthened by controlling intervening variables.
D) Because observation rather than causation is the purpose of the study, no action is necessary.

Question 33

A study was conducted to determine if videotaped instruction was more effective than written instruction (a pamphlet)to teach menopausal women the benefits of regular mammograms.Which condition would be considered an antecedent variable?

A) There were 38 participants in the pamphlet group and 34 participants in the videotape group.
B) During the study, 50% of the videotape group received flu shots, whereas 25% of those in the pamphlet group received flu shots.
C) Four members of the pamphlet group had mothers who had been received a diagnosis of breast cancer, but no members of the videotape group had mothers who had been received a diagnosis of breast cancer.
D) While participating in the study, five members of the videotape group began performing breast self-examination (BSE), while two members of the pamphlet group began performing BSE.

Question 34

Which of the following types of quasi-experimental design is implemented when participants are not randomly assigned to groups?

A) Nonequivalent control group design
B) After-only control group design
C) Solomon four-group design
D) Time series design

Question 35

Why would a nurse researcher opt for a quasi-experimental study design instead of an experimental study design?

A) The study is planned to be conducted in a laboratory setting.
B) An experimental treatment is not part of the study.
C) The researcher has not conducted research before.
D) Full experimental control is not possible.

Question 36

Which are characteristics of quasi-experimental research designs that are considered weaknesses,compared with experimental designs?

A) Cost of implementation
B) Confidence in making causal assertions
C) Subject to contamination of internal validity
D) Disruptive to the usual routine of the setting
E) Difficult to perform in a particular clinical setting
F) Findings due to interference of extraneous variables

Question 37

How are threats to validity affected when studies are conducted in real-world settings?

A) Threats to both internal and external validity are increased.
B) Threats to both internal and external validity are decreased.
C) Threats to internal validity are decreased, whereas threats to external validity are increased.
D) Threats to internal validity are increased, while threats to external validity are decreased.

Question 38

A nurse researcher is planning a quantitative (experimental)research study to test the effect of a new wound product on wound healing.Which of these factors is necessary to implement an experimental pretest-posttest design?

A) Inclusion of a second control group
B) Ability to collect pretest data
C) Use of two posttreatment data collection times
D) Participants randomized to the control group only
E) Random assignment of participants to treatment and control groups