Question 1

Dr. Alberts is examining a measure of dietary preferences in her study of obesity and realized that if she wants higher scores on the given measure to represent higher or more healthy dietary preferences, then she needs to _____ prior to summing the items to determine the overall score for each participant.

Accepted Answer

Reverse-coding items that are worded in the opposite direction ensures that all items align correctly with the intended scale direction, allowing for accurate aggregation of scores to reflect healthier dietary preferences consistently.

Question 2

Granetta was completing a survey developed by her social club at school. Granetta agreed with every statement regardless of the actual item content. This is an example of:

Accepted Answer

An acquiescent response set refers to the tendency of a respondent to agree with all the statements in a survey, regardless of their content, which is exactly what Granetta is doing.

Question 3

One way to improve a scale's precision and _____ the error of tendency is to use more response alternatives.

Accepted Answer

Minimizing the error of tendency involves reducing inaccuracies or biases, which is achieved by improving a scale's precision, often through using more response alternatives.

Question 4

Dr. Kfir conducted a study that involved administration of the same scale at two different times approximately one month apart. Dr. Kfir noticed that the participants' scores on the second administration were much higher than the first administration, which suggested greater familiarity with the questions and tasks. This greater familiarity may lead participants to answer how they believe Dr. Kfir wants them to and may be an example of:

Accepted Answer

The increase in scores due to familiarity with the test suggests a systematic error, which is a type of bias. Participants may respond in a way they think is expected, rather than how they truly feel or think, leading to biased results.

Question 5

Lorenzo was in the process of reviewing the likert-scales used in his graduate research lab. Lorenzo observed that the majority of the scales used by his research lab have at least _____ and no more than _____ response alternatives with verbal descriptors.

Accepted Answer

Likert scales typically have 5 to 9 response alternatives with verbal descriptors.

Question 6

Mr. Wright is reviewing a measure of relationship satisfaction and realized that if he wants higher scores to represent higher relationship satisfaction then he needs to reverse code the items worded in the opposite direction before he _____ to determine the overall score for an individual participant.

Accepted Answer

Reverse coding is necessary before summing the items to ensure that all items are aligned in the same direction, allowing for an accurate overall score that reflects higher satisfaction with higher scores.

Question 7

Dr. Quezada is concerned about the measurement's _____ and that is why she is thinking at length about the type of response alternatives included in her survey of childhood bullying experiences.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Dr. Quezada is concerned about the measurement's...

Question 8

Marcus made a very poignant statement at a recent meeting. He said, "An unreliable scale cannot be _____."

Accepted Answer

An unreliable scale cannot be considered valid because validity refers to the accuracy and truthfulness of the measurement, which cannot be achieved if the scale is unreliable.

Question 9

Reverse-coding is a scoring strategy where more negative response alternatives are assigned _____ values and more positive response alternatives are assigned _____ values.

Accepted Answer

Reverse-coding is used to ensure that higher scores always reflect a more positive response, regardless of the question's phrasing. Thus, more negative responses are assigned higher values, and more positive responses are assigned lower values to maintain consistency in the direction of scoring.

Question 10

Reginald noticed in his work as a customer service representative that the majority of the likert-rating scales available have at least 5 to 9 response alternatives with:

Accepted Answer

Likert-rating scales typically have 5 to 9 response alternatives to capture a range of opinions or attitudes, and these alternatives are usually accompanied by verbal descriptors (e.g., "strongly agree," "agree," "neutral," "disagree," "strongly disagree") to clearly communicate the meaning of each response option to respondents.

Question 11

Esha is creating a new scale assessing social conformity and is particularly concerned about the scale items' degree of interrelatedness among each other. Esha currently appears to be most concerned with the scale's:

Accepted Answer

Esha's concern about the degree of interrelatedness among the items on her scale directly relates to internal consistency reliability. This type of reliability assesses how well the items on a test measure the same construct and are consistent with each other.

Question 12

Which of the following would NOT be considered a forced choice scale format?

Accepted Answer

A forced choice scale format typically requires respondents to choose between two polar options, leaving no room for neutrality or indecision. Option C, "Yes, No, or Maybe," includes a neutral or indecisive option ("Maybe"), which does not fit the definition of a forced choice scale.

Question 13

Dr. Hurley decided to only provide two response alternatives, True and False, on his survey about preconceived notions of individuals who are classified as Internet addicts. Dr. Hurley should be concerned that his measurement has minimal:

Accepted Answer

By providing only two response alternatives, the measurement lacks sensitivity, as it does not capture the nuances or degrees of preconceived notions, limiting the ability to detect subtle differences in responses.

Question 14

Dante used a public scale for an experiment in his sociology class to examine satisfaction with community resources. Dante realized that some of the questions are written inversely. He is trying to determine a way to sum participants' responses on the scale so that a higher number accurately reflects a higher degree of satisfaction with community resources. Dante should use:

Accepted Answer

Reverse-coding is used to ensure that higher numbers consistently reflect higher satisfaction, even for inversely written questions. This technique involves flipping the scale for these specific questions so that responses are aligned with the direction of the scale used for other items.

Question 15

One way to improve a scale's precision and minimize the error of central tendency is to:

Accepted Answer

The answer of One way to improve a scale's precision...

Question 16

Nestor is reviewing data for his research lab and is in the process of going down the spreadsheet column and changing responses. He is changing 5s to 1s and 1s to 5s. He is going through the process of:

Accepted Answer

Nestor is engaging in reverse-coding, a process where the response options for items on a survey or questionnaire are reversed to ensure that the scale measures the same attitude or trait in the opposite direction. This helps in analyzing data more effectively, especially in psychological tests or attitude surveys.

Question 17

Noel asked his partner "Are you happy with our life and communication?" This could be viewed as an unfair question because it is an example of a(n):

Accepted Answer

This question is considered a double-barreled item because it asks about two different things (life satisfaction and communication) in one question, making it difficult for the respondent to answer if their feelings on these topics differ.

Question 18

Jeri was completing a scale assessing her degree of anxiety regarding the upcoming presidential election. She simply selected the "neutral" option for all of her responses because it seemed less extreme. This bias is referred to as the:

Accepted Answer

The error of central tendency occurs when respondents avoid extreme responses and instead choose middle or neutral options on a scale, as described in the scenario with Jeri.

Question 19

Natalia asked her college roommate, "Will becoming a doctor or an artist help me meet my personal goals and my parents' goals for me?" This question is difficult to answer because it is an example of a(n):

Accepted Answer

This question is difficult to answer because it is a double-barreled item, meaning it asks about two different things (becoming a doctor or an artist) in relation to meeting two sets of goals (personal goals and parents' goals) within one question, making it challenging to provide a clear answer that addresses all aspects.

Question 20

Dr. Ramos highlighted the importance of the initial steps in setting up a research study when discussing protocol with his graduate students. He emphasized that it is extremely important that a study's measures have _____, meaning the individual items on a scale are interrelated, otherwise it is a waste of time to proceed with additional analyses.

Accepted Answer

Internal consistency reliability refers to the degree to which the items on a scale measure the same construct or concept, indicating that they are interrelated. This is crucial for ensuring that a research study's measures are reliable and meaningful.

Quiz 7: Survey Design and Scale Construction: Is Going Greek a Great Idea