Exam 2: Psychology’s Scientific Method

A quasi-experimental design does not randomly assign participants to conditions because such assignment is either impossible or unethical.

Dr.Klaus conducted research in psychology,which established that the number of hours of study before a test is directly proportional to performance in the test.In the context of correlational research,it can be said that _____ exists between the two variables.

Dr.Matthews has submitted a proposal to the institutional review board (IRB)of a university.At this university,she intends to conduct research on the socialization patterns of students from foreign countries.In the context of ethics guidelines,the IRB at the university will decide:

When psychologists conduct a study,the group of participants chosen for the study is referred to as the:

In the context of psychology's scientific method,the objective description of how a variable is going to be measured and observed in a particular study is referred to as the:

Noelle,a psychologist,hypothesizes that male high school students experience increased self-esteem if they receive excellent grades in math.She conducts an experiment in which she divides the participants to two groups.One group is consistently given excellent grades in math by their teachers,whether they are actually doing well or not.The other group is consistently given average scores by their teachers.After two months,she gives the boys the same self-esteem questionnaire that she administered to them before the test.In the context of experimental research,the group that receives average grades consistently is the:

In psychology,a correlational research study tells the researcher which variable is the cause and which is the effect.

The first step of the scientific method in psychology involves:

In descriptive statistics,range and standard deviation are measures of _____.

After careful observation,Dylan has stated a hypothesis that spending money on other people leads to greater happiness than spending money on oneself.In accordance with the scientific method,which of the following steps is Dylan most likely to take next?

In the context of inferential statistics,a confidence level of .05 means that:

In the context of psychology's scientific method,which of the following is true of a theory?

In a set of numbers,the mode is the number that divides the distribution in half when the numbers are arranged from lowest to highest.

An experimenter studies the relationship between caffeine and reaction time.She designs her experiment with four groups.Group one receives 100 mg of caffeine each in their cups of coffee;group two receives 200 mg of caffeine each in their cups of coffee;group three receives 300 mg of caffeine each in their cups of coffee;and group four receives no coffee.Twenty minutes later,participants from all the groups are given a reaction-time test.In this experiment,which group is the control group?

Professor Rodman,a social psychologist,studied the relationship between the severity of injuries in automobile accidents and the use of seat belts.He obtained a correlation coefficient of -0.72.In the context of correlational research,which of the following conclusions will the professor most likely arrive at?

Sonja is being treated by her psychiatrist for an anxiety disorder.Her therapist knows the extent of Sonja's faith in medication and gives her pills that contain no active ingredients.Despite this,Sonja is cured of her anxiety disorder.Sonja's recovery is due to her belief that the pill has taken away her anxiety;this is an example of _____.

When conducting an experiment on time management,Jamie assigns everyone who arrives before noon to the experimental group and everyone who arrives after 12 noon to the control group.In the context of experimental research methods,what is wrong with Jamie's experiment?

The final step in the scientific method of psychology is:

What is an operational definition? Explain its importance in the field of psychology.

Professor Jacobs believes that sleep deprivation is related to conflicts between roommates.He collects data on the number of hours of sleep and the number of conflicts for a group of college students over the course of a month.He obtains a correlation coefficient of -0.75.In the context of correlational research,which of the following is the most likely conclusion from the results of his study?