Question 1

Causation cannot be inferred from correlational studies because

Accepted Answer

A)  they are so low in external validity. 
B)  they do not involve the manipulation of variables. 
C)  they are always conducted outside of the research lab. 
D)  researchers have too much control over the variables.

Question 2

In an experiment, the independent variable is ____ while the dependent variable is ____.

Accepted Answer

A)  held constant; varied 
B)  correlational; descriptive 
C)  manipulated; measured 
D)  general; specific

Question 3

The main purpose of conducting correlational research is to

Accepted Answer

A)  determine the causal relationship between an independent and a dependent variable. 
B)  describe the population's average score on a particular measure. 
C)  manipulate one variable but hold the other constant. 
D)  determine the nature and strength of the association between two measured variables.

Question 4

What are the benefits and the main limitation of conducting correlational research over experiments? Give an example of negatively correlated variables. Justify your example.

Accepted Answer

The answer of What are the benefits and the main...

Question 5

The procedure used to ensure that research participants have an equal chance of being placed in the experimental or control groups in an experiment is called

Accepted Answer

A)  random assignment. 
B)  random sampling. 
C)  debriefing. 
D)  experimental realism.

Question 6

Why do social psychologists use electronic databases?

Accepted Answer

A)  To determine the moral value of their research question 
B)  To find published research on a particular topic 
C)  To increase the external validity of their research 
D)  To help them select a random sample of participants

Question 7

Participants who are subjected to all of the experimental procedures except the experimental manipulation are part of a(n) ____ group.

Accepted Answer

A)  rating 
B)  experimental 
C)  sample 
D)  control

Question 8

The MOST important aspect of sampling in a survey study is

Accepted Answer

A)  its inclusion of equal numbers of individuals from different groups in the population. 
B)  the number of people in the sample. 
C)  the ratio of the sample size to the population size. 
D)  the total number of groups in the population.

Question 9

Many social psychological questions can be addressed only with surveys because

Accepted Answer

A)  funding sources are looking to save money and surveys are relatively inexpensive. 
B)  researchers rarely have time to carry out complex social psychological experiments. 
C)  the analysis of surveys permits much tighter control than could otherwise be achieved. 
D)  they involve variables that are impossible or unethical to observe directly or manipulate.

Question 10

The purpose of using control groups is to

Accepted Answer

A)  address ethical concerns about experiments. 
B)  determine if there are any interactions among the independent variables. 
C)  ensure a high level of experimental realism. 
D)  provide a baseline against which to compare the effects of the independent variables.

Question 11

External validity is defined as the degree to which

Accepted Answer

A)  there can be reasonable certainty that the independent variables in an experiment caused the observed effects on the dependent variables. 
B)  there can be reasonable confidence that the same results would be obtained for other people and in other situations. 
C)  participants were assigned to the various conditions on the basis of representative criteria. 
D)  the experimental situation engages participants and leads them to behave naturally and spontaneously.

Question 12

Suppose the correlation between the number of times couples go to the movies and the number of times they go out to dinner is +0.79. Among the following conclusions, which one is NOT consistent with this computation?

Accepted Answer

A)  The more often that couples go to the movies, the more often they go out to dinner. 
B)  The less often that couples go to the movies, the less often they go out to dinner. 
C)  There is a strong positive correlation between the number of times couples go to the movies and the number of times they go out to dinner. 
D)  Because the correlation coefficient is less than 1.0, the association between these two variables is very weak and probably unreliable.

Question 13

Imagine that some researchers are interested in college students' self-reports about their reactions to various stressful situations. Rather than simply asking the students to recall various stressful situations and their reactions to them, the researchers want to reduce the time between the students' self-reports about the situations and the actual situations themselves. Describe two methods that have been developed by social psychologists that could serve this purpose.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Imagine that some researchers are interested in...

Question 14

A hypothesis provides a means of ____ a theory.

Accepted Answer

A)  testing 
B)  creating 
C)  proving 
D)  generalizing

Question 15

What is the most popular method of testing ideas in social psychology?

Accepted Answer

A)  Meta-analysis 
B)  Descriptive research 
C)  Correlational research 
D)  Experimentation

Question 16

Which of the following statements about social psychology/psychologists is TRUE?

Accepted Answer

A)  Institutional review boards have had little effect on the types of research conducted by social psychologists. 
B)  Most social psychologists believe they have a moral imperative to study important topics even if doing so poses high risk for the study participants. 
C)  Social psychology research is devoid of human biases. 
D)  Strict adherence to scientific methods reduces but do not eliminate human biases in social psychology.

Question 17

Which of the following is NOT a testable hypothesis?

Accepted Answer

A)  People smile more when they are lying than when they are telling the truth. 
B)  Refusing to help someone in need is morally wrong. 
C)  Stereotypes are more likely to impact judgments when people are tired. 
D)  Women tend to have more opposite-sex friends than men.

Question 18

Latrell, the editor of a popular sports magazine, would like to know more about the demographics of the magazine's readers. He designs a questionnaire to assess this information and sends it to a random sample of the magazine's readers. Latrell is conducting a(n)

Accepted Answer

A)  survey. 
B)  observational study. 
C)  archival study. 
D)  experiment.

Question 19

Barb examines the impact that sitting in front of a mirror has on the academic performance of female adolescents. In her study, the number of math questions answered correctly appears to be the ____ variable.

Accepted Answer

A)  control 
B)  conceptual 
C)  independent 
D)  dependent

Question 20

Which of the following statements concerning correlational research is TRUE?

Accepted Answer

A)  In correlational research, variables are measured but not manipulated. 
B)  In correlational research, one variable is manipulated and one is measured. 
C)  Correlational research can be conducted using observational, but not archival, measures. 
D)  Correlational research can be conducted using archival, but not observational, measures.

Exam 2: Doing Social Psychology Research