Exam 2: How Psychologists Do Research

Which of the following is an advantage of case studies?

In a laboratory, smokers are asked to drive using a computerized driving simulator and cover the maximum distance possible, while avoiding rear-end collisions. Some volunteers are given a real cigarette to smoke immediately before the test. Others smoke a fake cigarette without nicotine. The number of collisions the two groups make is to be compared. In this study, the dependent variable is:

A representative sample is a group of participants that accurately represents the larger population that the researcher is interested in.

Research methods that depict behavior, but do not necessarily yield causal explanations, are called:

The _______________ tells us how clustered or spread out individual scores are around an arithmetic mean.

In the scientific use of the term, a "theory" is:

Which of the following is critical in testing new drugs because of the optimism that the new drugs may create in the minds of the users?

Observational studies are more useful for describing behavior than for explaining behavior.

Psychologists are scientists because:

Which variable does an experimenter manipulate when conducting experimental research?

A major disadvantage of using laboratory observation in a research study is that:

A detailed description of a particular individual based on careful observation or formal psychological testing is called a(n):

Two sets of observations assessing shoe size and IQ are compared. Which of the following is the most likely outcome?

A scientific theory can be thought of as a(n):

In a control condition, subjects are not exposed to the same treatment of the independent variable as in an experimental condition.

An association between decreases in one variable and decreases in the other variable is called a negative correlation.

Which of the following is an example of a positive correlation?

Ken is given a vocational-interest test and then takes a test, similar in format but with different questions, a week later. The test administrator wants to measure the _______________ of the test.

List the five major characteristics of an ideal scientist.

The main advantage of a ______________ study is that the results cannot be influenced by the expectations of either the participants or the experimenters.