Question 1

It is likely that you will find an interaction when
A) the dependent variable is affected by an independent variable.
B) the effect of one independent variable is affected by a second independent variable.
C) the effect of an independent variable is affected by the dependent variable.
D) there is a restriction of range problem.

Accepted Answer

The answer of It is likely that you will find...

Question 2

In an experiment with two independent variables, the occurrence of an interaction means that
A) the experiment was poorly designed.
B) there was a ceiling effect.
C) the effect of one independent variable was different at different levels of the other independent variable.
D) the effect of one independent variable was the same at all levels of the other independent variable.

Accepted Answer

An interaction occurs in an experiment when the effect of one independent variable on the dependent variable changes depending on the level of the other independent variable. This means the influence of one variable is not consistent across the levels of the other variable, indicating that the variables interact with each other in affecting the outcome.

Question 3

In order to obtain equivalent groups in between-subjects designs, you can use each participant as his or her own control.

Accepted Answer

In between-subjects designs, different groups of participants are used for each condition, so you cannot use each participant as his or her own control. This is a characteristic of within-subjects designs.

Question 4

A control variable is a potential dependent variable that is held constant during the experiment.

Accepted Answer

A control variable is not a potential dependent variable; it is a variable that is kept constant to ensure that the effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable can be accurately measured.

Question 5

A researcher wants to know whether a new drug reduces anxiety. Forty participants who suffer from anxiety disorder are assigned randomly to one of two groups. One group gets the new drug and the other group gets a placebo. Neither group knows which they receive. After 30 days on the drug, their anxiety levels are measured. In this experiment, is the independent variable and is the dependent variable.
A) anxiety, the new drug
B) the new drug, the placebo
C) anxiety, the placebo
D) the new drug, anxiety

Accepted Answer

The independent variable is the one that is manipulated by the researcher, which in this case is "the new drug" (participants are either given the new drug or a placebo). The dependent variable is the outcome that is measured, which is "anxiety" levels after the treatment.

Question 6

Counterbalancing reduces the problem of order in a within-subjects design.

Accepted Answer

Counterbalancing is used in within-subjects designs to minimize the effects of order, such as fatigue or practice, by varying the order in which participants experience conditions.

Question 7

One technique in psychological experiments is to keep the experimenter from knowing the research hypothesis or the experimental condition of the subjects currently being tested. This helps to prevent the problem of
A) ceiling effects.
B) carryover effects.
C) placebo effects.
D) experimenter effects.

Accepted Answer

This technique is used to prevent experimenter effects, where the experimenter's expectations or biases could inadvertently influence the participants' behavior or the interpretation of the data.

Question 8

The practice of repeating an experiment that has already been done to determine whether the same effect is observed is called
A) regression.
B) replication.
C) randomization.
D) counterbalancing.

Accepted Answer

Replication is the practice of repeating an experiment to confirm findings or to ensure accuracy. This process is crucial in scientific research to verify the reliability and validity of experimental results.

Question 9

Which of the following uses a quasi-experimental design?
A) A researcher compares the effects of caffeine on sleep by assigning subjects randomly into one of 3 treatment groups (5, 10 or 20 mg. doses of caffeine) and recording EEGs of each subject
Throughout the night.
B) To see whether the effectiveness of a new method of reading instruction is different for bilingual children vs. children who speak only English, 40 Bilingual and 40 English-Speaking children are
Taught using the bilingual method for one semester and reading scores for the 2 groups are
Compared.
C) A clinical psychologist tests the relative effectiveness of two forms of therapy for treatment of panic attacks by recruiting 20 people diagnosed with panic attacks and treating half with one form
Of therapy and half with the other form of therapy for the same amount of time.
D) In a study of picture memory, 40 subjects are shown 1000 photographs under standard viewing conditions and recognition of the pictures is tested 1 week, 2 weeks, 4 weeks, and 8 weeks later.

Accepted Answer

Quasi-experimental designs do not use random assignment. In choice B, the groups (bilingual and English-speaking children) are pre-existing groups, not randomly assigned, making it a quasi-experimental design.

Question 10

Automating an experiment can
A) greatly reduce the possibility of experimenter effects.
B) be a source of an experimenter effect.
C) eliminate the need for a control group.
D) prevent the occurrence of a floor effect.

Accepted Answer

Automating an experiment can reduce the possibility of experimenter effects by minimizing human involvement, which can introduce bias or variability.

Question 11

An interaction occurs when the effect of one independent variable is not the same at each level of another independent variable.

Accepted Answer

An interaction occurs in a statistical model when the effect of one independent variable on the dependent variable changes depending on the level of another independent variable. This means the impact of one variable is dependent on the level or value of another variable, indicating that their effects are not additive but interdependent.

Question 12

Ceiling and floor effects are caused by careless counterbalancing.

Accepted Answer

Ceiling and floor effects refer to the limitations of a measurement instrument that cause it to fail in distinguishing between high and low scorers, respectively, and are not directly related to counterbalancing, which is a method used to control for the effects of the order in which treatments are administered in an experiment.

Question 13

One criterion for a good dependent variable is stability in repeated measures.

Accepted Answer

A good dependent variable should show stability in repeated measures, meaning that under the same conditions, it produces consistent results, which is crucial for the reliability of the experiment.

Question 14

Matching is a technique used to equate experimental and control groups on certain variables.

Accepted Answer

Matching is a technique used in experimental research design where participants in the experimental and control groups are paired or matched on one or more characteristics to ensure that these variables are equally distributed across groups, thereby reducing confounding variables.

Question 15

The effect of boredom or fatigue with a task are termed general practice effects.

Accepted Answer

The answer of The effect of boredom or fatigue with...

Question 16

What is a subject variable?
A) A characteristic or feature of a research participant used to assign that participant to a condition of an experiment (e.g., the subject's age).
B) The individual score of a subject on the dependent variable measure.
C) A characteristic or feature of a subject which is expected to change as the result of an experimental manipulation.
D) The degree to which a subject responds to an experimental manipulation.

Accepted Answer

A subject variable is a characteristic or feature of a research participant that is used to assign them to different conditions in an experiment, such as age, gender, or any pre-existing condition that is not manipulated by the researcher.

Question 17

A control variable is
A) under the control of the subject.
B) a potential independent variable that is held constant in an experiment.
C) a potential independent variable that is manipulated by the experimenter.
D) expected to change as the result of an experimental manipulation.

Accepted Answer

A control variable is a variable that is held constant or whose impact is removed in order to clearly isolate the relationship between an independent variable and a dependent variable. This ensures that any observed effects can be attributed to the manipulation of the independent variable rather than variations in the control variable.

Question 18

When an experiment produces null results
A) it is possible that the experimenter did not use a valid manipulation of the independent variable.
B) it shows that the independent variable manipulation produced a change in the dependent variable.
C) it shows that the dependent variable had no effect on the independent variable.
D) it is possible that the effect of the independent variable occurred by chance.

Accepted Answer

Null results in an experiment suggest that the manipulation of the independent variable may not have been effective or valid, rather than indicating a causal relationship or chance occurrence between the independent and dependent variables.

Question 19

Randomization is an old and rarely used technique for creating equivalent groups in an experiment.

Accepted Answer

Randomization is a widely used and fundamental technique in experimental design to ensure that experimental and control groups are equivalent, thereby minimizing bias and enhancing the validity of the results.

Question 20

A weak manipulation of the independent variable may result in null results.

Accepted Answer

A weak manipulation of the independent variable may not produce a significant difference between experimental groups, leading to null results where no effect is observed.

Quiz 3: Research Techniques: Experiments

It is likely that you will find an interaction when

In an experiment with two independent variables, the occurrence of an interaction means that

In order to obtain equivalent groups in between-subjects designs, you can use each participant as his or her own control.

A control variable is a potential dependent variable that is held constant during the experiment.

Counterbalancing reduces the problem of order in a within-subjects design.

One technique in psychological experiments is to keep the experimenter from knowing the research hypothesis or the experimental condition of the subjects currently being tested. This helps to prevent the problem of

The practice of repeating an experiment that has already been done to determine whether the same effect is observed is called

Which of the following uses a quasi-experimental design?

Automating an experiment can