Question 1

Which statement does NOT characterize commonsense ways of knowing?
A) People privilege their own experiences.
B) People tend to dismiss anything that contradicts what they've already decided is true.
C) People rely on simple heuristics.
D) People seldom accept the first reasonable explanation they come across.

Accepted Answer

People often accept the first reasonable explanation they encounter, rather than seldom doing so.

Question 2

Heuristics are
A) multistage methods used by professional scholars to test theories.
B) a way of drawing a representative sample for a research study.
C) simple rules that allow people to interpret information without a great deal of thought.
D) a systematic process of carefully evaluating incoming data by using current schema.

Accepted Answer

Heuristics are mental shortcuts or simple rules that help people make decisions and solve problems quickly without needing to engage in detailed analysis.

Question 3

Which is NOT a characteristic of scholarly research?
A) It uses simple heuristics
B) It is self critical
C) It is cyclical
D) It is self-correcting

Accepted Answer

Scholarly research does not typically rely on simple heuristics; instead, it involves systematic, rigorous, and methodical approaches to inquiry.

Question 4

When we say that research must be replicable, we mean
A) researchers must avoid repeating earlier studies.
B) methods must be so objective that the same results would occur if it were conducted again.
C) research must always include a comparison between a treatment and a control group.
D) research involves inventive ingenuity.

Accepted Answer

Replicability means that the research methods are clear and objective enough that the study can be repeated by others and yield the same results.

Question 5

Which of the following is an example of an operational definition of credibility?
A) Credibility is the extent to which an individual is perceived as being worthy of belief.
B) Credibility is the amount of informational power a source possesses.
C) Credibility is the score a source achieves on a 7-point scale that asks subjects to indicate their responses to the statement: "I find the source believable."
D) All of the above

Accepted Answer

An operational definition specifies how a concept is measured or manipulated in a specific study. Option C provides a measurable way to assess credibility using a 7-point scale.

Question 6

Which of the following ways of investigating the topic of communication in cults is an example of rhetorical criticism?
A) Join a cult and observe cult members as they communicate.
B) Analyze the values in the cult leaders' speeches.
C) Send questionnaires to ex-members asking them to describe why they joined the cult and what they communicated about in the cult.
D) Take transcripts from cult members' diaries and perform these transcripts before an audience.

Accepted Answer

Rhetorical criticism involves analyzing texts or speeches to understand how they persuade or convey values, making option B the correct choice.

Question 7

Which of the following ways of investigating political communication is an example of ethnographic research?
A) Volunteer to work in the campaign of a senate candidate and observe his/her behavior.
B) View videotapes of campaign ads and identify the themes used at various stages of the campaign.
C) Interview a representative group of politicians, asking them to describe and rate strategies used in the campaign.
D) Create two different ads, one that attacks a candidate's opponent and the other than gives positive information about the candidate; show the ads to randomly selected groups of viewers to see which is most effective.

Accepted Answer

Ethnographic research involves immersive observation and participation in the environment being studied, which is exemplified by volunteering in a campaign to observe behavior.

Question 8

Which of the following research questions most clearly calls for content analysis?
A) Is racial tension increasing at a certain high school, as measured by graffiti?
B) How are conversational openings and closing structured?
C) What is the average number of violent acts on prime-time television?
D) How did Mario Cuomo use metaphor to reach multiple audiences in his keynote address at the l984 Democratic National Convention?

Accepted Answer

Content analysis is a research method used to quantify and analyze the presence, meanings, and relationships of certain words, themes, or concepts within qualitative data. Option C involves quantifying the number of violent acts, which is a typical application of content analysis.

Question 9

The research method that is an extension and refinement of the everyday impulse to evaluate	and analyze the impact of messages is
A) triangulation.
B) conversational analysis.
C) rhetorical criticism.
D) survey research.

Accepted Answer

Rhetorical criticism is the research method that involves evaluating and analyzing the impact of messages, similar to how people naturally assess communication in everyday life.

Question 10

A study in which the critic looked at the way cultural products represent a culture's basic ideals and principles would be an example of
A) Burkean dramatistic analysis.
B) unobtrusive measurement.
C) social movement study.
D) social values criticism.

Accepted Answer

Social values criticism examines how cultural products reflect and shape the fundamental ideals and principles of a culture.

Question 11

Which research method did Conquergood's study of gangs in Chicago use?
A) survey research
B) experimental
C) ethnography
D) performance studies

Accepted Answer

Conquergood's study of gangs in Chicago used ethnography, which involves immersive observation and participation in the community being studied.

Question 12

Which of the following survey questions is phrased in an acceptable way?
A) How many ounces of cola beverage do you consume in a week?
B) When you cheat on tests, why do you do so?
C) Do you believe that the way women are portrayed on television as sex objects should be changed?
D) None of the above

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following survey questions is...

Question 13

Vignes used which method in conducting her study of the Katrina survivors?
A) Questionnaire
B) Content analysis of open-ended responses
C) Survey
D) Performance Research

Accepted Answer

The answer of Vignes used which method in conducting her...

Question 14

Ray's study showed that
A) women never tried to gain the right to vote.
B) most people today don't believe women should be voting.
C) real social change, such as women earning the right to vote, requires hard work and overcoming obstacles.
D) before earning the vote, women would dress up like men to try to register to vote.

Accepted Answer

Ray's study highlighted that significant social changes, like women gaining the right to vote, necessitate persistent effort and overcoming various challenges.

Question 15

Which of the following is NOT essential in a well-designed study?
A) use of naturally occurring groups
B) comparison of two or more groups
C) random assignment to treatment groups
D) a post-test

Accepted Answer

A well-designed study does not necessarily require the use of naturally occurring groups; it can involve groups created through random assignment or other methods.

Question 16

According to the studies on reality television, which is NOT a motive for watching reality television programs?
A) The need to escape
B) The need to feel self important
C) An enjoyment of competition
D) To procrastinate from doing homework

Accepted Answer

Procrastinating from doing homework is not a motive for watching reality television programs.

Question 17

What was NOT a result of Lee's study on the developmental nature of robots?
A) Students that interacted with the developing robot felt it was more lifelike.
B) Students that interacted with the developing robot experienced more social presence.
C) Students that interacted with the developing robot felt emotionally closer to it.
D) Students that interacted with the developing robot felt that it was annoying.

Accepted Answer

Lee's study found that students felt the developing robot was more lifelike, experienced more social presence, and felt emotionally closer to it, but did not find it annoying.

Question 18

It is not just professional scholars who form and test hypotheses; everyone engages in hypothesis testing.

Accepted Answer

Everyday decision-making and problem-solving often involve forming and testing hypotheses, even if informally, as people predict outcomes and test their assumptions in various situations.

Question 19

According to your text, commonsense ways of knowing are often more careful and accurate than systematic ways of knowing.

Accepted Answer

Systematic ways of knowing, such as scientific methods, are generally more careful and accurate than commonsense ways, which can be subjective and prone to biases.

Question 20

Good researchers must make special efforts to find flaws in their arguments and must try to disprove their own theories.

Accepted Answer

Good researchers aim to ensure the validity and reliability of their findings by critically evaluating their own work and considering alternative explanations.

Quiz 13: Methods of Discovery

Which statement does NOT characterize commonsense ways of knowing?

Heuristics are

Which is NOT a characteristic of scholarly research?

When we say that research must be replicable, we mean

Which of the following is an example of an operational definition of credibility?

Which of the following ways of investigating the topic of communication in cults is an example of rhetorical criticism?

Which of the following ways of investigating political communication is an example of ethnographic research?

Which of the following research questions most clearly calls for content analysis?

The research method that is an extension and refinement of the everyday impulse to evaluate and analyze the impact of messages is

A study in which the critic looked at the way cultural products represent a culture's basic ideals and principles would be an example of

Which research method did Conquergood's study of gangs in Chicago use?

Which of the following survey questions is phrased in an acceptable way?

Vignes used which method in conducting her study of the Katrina survivors?

Ray's study showed that

Which of the following is NOT essential in a well-designed study?

According to the studies on reality television, which is NOT a motive for watching reality television programs?

What was NOT a result of Lee's study on the developmental nature of robots?

It is not just professional scholars who form and test hypotheses; everyone engages in hypothesis testing.

According to your text, commonsense ways of knowing are often more careful and accurate than systematic ways of knowing.

Good researchers must make special efforts to find flaws in their arguments and must try to disprove their own theories.