Question 1

When George agrees to participate in a research study, he is told that he may quit at any point for any reason. The reason for this option of quitting is required by the ethical guideline the text refers to as:

Accepted Answer

The text defines informed consent as involving a statement of the procedures and risks, as well as the obligations of the participants and the researchers. It gives an example of informed consent as the participant's right to discontinue participation at any point for any reason without fear of punishment.

Question 2

Which of the following statements best describes the role of a dependent variable?

Accepted Answer

The dependent variable is the variable that the researchers measure, meaning it is the variable that is being observed and recorded to see the effect of the independent variable. The independent variable is the variable that is being manipulated or changed by the researchers. The dependent variable is not the same as the treatment, which is actually the manipulation of the independent variable.

Question 3

The participants in the "Fragile Families and Child Well-Being Study" were:

Accepted Answer

The answer of The participants in the "Fragile Families and...

Question 4

What was the primary purpose of the "Fragile Families and Child Well-Being Study?"

Accepted Answer

The primary purpose of the "Fragile Families and Child Well-Being Study" was to evaluate the impact of poverty and environmental stress on the development of young children. The study followed a cohort of nearly 5,000 children born out of wedlock in large U.S. cities to understand how socioeconomic factors and other stressors affect their lives. The study has been ongoing since 1998 and has yielded significant insights into the challenges facing families and children in poverty.

Question 5

In an experiment, the variable that the researcher manipulates is called the:

Accepted Answer

The independent variable is the variable that is deliberately manipulated by the researcher to observe its effects on the dependent variable. The dependent variable, on the other hand, is the variable that is being measured or observed for changes that occur as a result of the manipulation of the independent variable. Controlled variables are kept constant throughout the experiment to prevent their effects on the dependent variable. Uncontrolled variables are variables that are not manipulated or controlled by the researcher, but may still have an impact on the dependent variable.

Question 6

Eighteen-year-old Trisha is experiencing the following symptoms: frequent sleep disturbances, the inability to feel normal emotions

Accepted Answer

The symptoms mentioned in this question are exactly those listed in the text for PTSD, which is discussed in the context of the trauma associated with war. HIV, schizophrenia, and low IQ are not discussed in this chapter and they do not have symptom patterns that would correspond to those of PTSD.

Question 7

Which of the following methods of assigning participants to groups in an experiment is the best example of random sampling?

Accepted Answer

Random sampling involves placing people in groups so that the groups are roughly equivalent. When children self-select their groups, they are likely to be unequal in important ways. Having a teacher assign children, although better than letting children self-select, may also result in a non-random sampling, since the teacher may be placing children with some specific strategy in mind. Random sampling is best done by drawing names because no bias of any sort can enter into this selection method.

Question 8

According to the text, in the 1990s, there were 50 regions in the world at war. In about how many of these regions were children involved as soldiers?

Accepted Answer

The text notes that of the 50 regions of the world at war in the 1990s, about two-thirds involved underage soldiers in their conflicts.

Question 9

A researcher studies how the scores children receive on a spelling test are affected by the amount of sugar they consumed for breakfast. She identifies a group of children and feeds half of them a high-sugar breakfast and feeds the other half a low-sugar breakfast. She gives them the spelling test three hours later. In this study, what is the independent variable?

Accepted Answer

An independent variable is the variable in an experiment that is manipulated in order to observe its effects on the dependent variable. In this example, the researcher looks at how the amount of sugar consumed (independent variable) affects the dependent variable (scores on a spelling test).

Question 10

A researcher obtains individuals' permission before randomly assigning them to the treatment or the control group. She is complying with the basic ethical principle regarding:

Accepted Answer

Informed consent refers to the ethical principle that people should participate in research voluntarily, be fully informed of the nature and possible consequences of the research, and not be coerced in any way. In this situation, the researcher is ensuring that informed consent exists.

Question 11

In an experiment testing the effects of a drug on behavior, whether or not a subject receives a drug represents the:

Accepted Answer

The independent variable is the one that is being manipulated or changed in an experiment, which in this case is whether or not a subject receives a drug. The dependent variable is the behavior being measured, which is not mentioned in this question. Control variables are the ones that are held constant to prevent them from influencing the dependent variable, and random variables are not specifically mentioned in this question.

Question 12

A screening committee rejected a research proposal to study frustration in children because the method involved exposing 5-year-olds to repeated failure on a series of highly difficult tasks. The committee's decision to reject this study reflected their concern about which ethical principle?

Accepted Answer

Under certain circumstances, a psychologist may study humans under conditions that involve minimal risk. However, under no circumstances should research be conducted that has the potential for serious or lasting physical or psychological harm. In this example, exposing 5-year-olds to repeated failure might lead these children to doubt their own abilities even after the study ends, suggesting the potential for lasting psychological harm.

Question 13

The original phase of the "Fragile Families and Child Well-Being Study" assessed children at which of the following ages?

Accepted Answer

The original phase of the "Fragile Families and Child Well-Being Study" assessed children at birth, and at 12, 30, and 48 months of age.

Question 14

Suppose you collect data about child abuse and find that mothers who have their first child before age 18 are more likely to be abusive than mothers who are older. However, you also note that young mothers are also more likely to be poor and have less access to prenatal care. Therefore, you cannot draw conclusions about maternal age and child abuse. The reason you cannot draw this conclusion is because your study involved:

Accepted Answer

Confounding results when differences between cohort groups, in this case younger and older mothers, involve cohort effect. In this case, the cohort effects include differences between the two groups of mothers with respect to poverty and prenatal care.

Question 15

According to the text, which ethical principle holds that people should participate voluntarily, should be told fully of the nature and possible consequences of the experiment, and should not be offered excessive rewards to participate?

Accepted Answer

The principle mentioned in the text is informed consent, which requires that individuals are fully informed about the nature and possible consequences of participating in the experiment and that they participate voluntarily. It also prohibits offering excessive rewards to participate. Choices A, B, and D are not relevant to the described principle.

Question 16

A researcher investigating the effect of peer tutoring on reading skills studies two groups of children in remedial reading classes. One group receives peer tutoring three times a week for three months, the other group does not. At the end of the three months, the two groups are tested in reading skills. What is the independent variable in this experiment?

Accepted Answer

An independent variable is the variable in an experiment that is manipulated in order to observe its effects on the dependent variable. In this example, the researcher manipulates whether children receive peer tutoring or not and observes the effects on reading skills at the end of the experiment.

Question 17

Suppose that Dr. Jones reads about a new study with an interesting result. She decides to repeat the study in her own lab to see if she gets the same result. In this case, Dr. Jones's study would best be considered a(n):

Accepted Answer

Dr. Jones is attempting to replicate the original study in order to confirm its findings, so her study would be considered a replication study.

Question 18

Developmental psychologists generally focus their study on the unusual individuals in order to learn about the extremes of human development.

Accepted Answer

Developmental psychologists usually focus on typical individuals, because they hope to better understand developmental processes that are common to nearly all normal individuals. Psychologists interested in the study of abnormal psychology or individual differences would be more likely to study unusual individuals as a method of understanding deviation.

Question 19

According to the text, the children who fare best in times of war are those who:

Accepted Answer

According to the text, the children who fare best in times of war are those who have loving parents and good peer relationships. This allows children to have a support system in times of crisis, which helps them to cope better with the stress and trauma they experience. The other options (A, B, and D) are not mentioned in the text as factors that contribute to children's resilience in times of war.

Question 20

A researcher investigating the effect of peer tutoring on reading skills studies two groups of children in remedial reading classes. One group receives peer tutoring three times a week for three months, the other group does not. At the end of the three months, the two groups are tested in reading skills. What is the dependent variable in this experiment?

Accepted Answer

The dependent variable is the variable in an experiment that changes as a result of manipulating the independent variable. In this example, the researcher manipulates whether children receive peer tutoring or not and observes the effects on reading skills at the end of the experiment.

Quiz 1: Understanding Human Development