Question 1

An experimenter had one group of participants eat ice cream that was packaged in a red carton,whereas another group of participants ate the same flavoured ice cream from a green carton.Participants then indicated how much they liked the ice cream by rating the taste on a 1-5 scale.The independent variable in this experiment was the

Accepted Answer

A)   ice cream ratings.
B)   gender of the participant.
C)   colour of the carton.
D)   flavour of the ice cream. C

Question 2

Ice cream sales increase when daily temperatures rise.This is an example of a ____ relationship.

Accepted Answer

A)   positive
B)   negative
C)   curvilinear
D)   zero A

Question 3

Dr.George examines the relationship between students' distance to school and the amount of time they spend studying.If no relationship between the variables exists,then

Accepted Answer

A)   as distance to school increases,time spent studying increases.
B)   as distance to school increases,time spent studying decreases.
C)   distance has no effect on time spent studying.
D)   as distance to school increases,time spent studying first increases and then decreases. C

Question 4

Rats learning a maze are tested after varying degrees of food deprivation,to see if it affects the time it takes for them to complete the maze.Some rats are deprived of food for 4 hours before they run the maze,others for 8 hours,and others for 12 hours.In this study

Accepted Answer

A)   duration of food deprivation is the independent variable.
B)   the rats are a situational variable.
C)   time to complete the maze is the independent variable.
D)   food deprivation is the dependent variable.

Question 5

Which one of the following is a situational variable?

Accepted Answer

A)   Reasoning ability
B)   Temperature in the room
C)   Performance on a weight-lifting task
D)   Ratings for the humor of several comic strips

Question 6

Random assignment is a critical element of the experimental method because it

Accepted Answer

A)   always leads to equal group sizes.
B)   increases the construct validity of the dependent variable.
C)   eliminates consistent effects of extraneous variables.
D)   enables generalization of the results.

Question 7

A laboratory experiment uses ________ while a field experiment does not.

Accepted Answer

A)   a manipulated dependent
B)   specifically selected groups
C)   an artificial environment
D)   qualitative data

Question 8

A study examined the relationship between years spent smoking and attitudes toward quitting by asking participants to rate their optimism for the success of a treatment program.If there were a negative relationship between these variables,what should the results of the study be like?

Accepted Answer

A)   The more years spent smoking,the more optimistic for success.
B)   The fewer years spent smoking,the less optimistic for success.
C)   The more years spent smoking,the less optimistic for success.
D)   The fewer years spent smoking,the fewer participants they could find.

Question 9

A researcher measured how much violent television children watched at home.These children were also observed for their aggressiveness on the playground.The researcher found that as the amount of violence watched on TV increased,the amount of playground aggressiveness increased.The type of relationship found was

Accepted Answer

A)   negative.
B)   positive.
C)   curvilinear.
D)   inconclusive.

Question 10

A researcher investigated the relationship between test length and grades in a Western Civilization course.After randomly assigning students to groups,she found that students who took longer exams received better grades than students who took shorter exams.The independent variable was

Accepted Answer

A)   test grades.
B)   gender of the students.
C)   class size.
D)   length of test.

Question 11

By employing randomization,the researcher ensures that

Accepted Answer

A)   one group is different than the other.
B)   participants are manipulated at random.
C)   any extraneous factor is as likely to affect one group as it is to affect the other.
D)   participants are unable to choose their preferred group.

Question 12

The non-experimental (correlational)method involves

Accepted Answer

A)   manipulation of an independent variable.
B)   random assignment to groups.
C)   measurement of participants on two variables.
D)   elimination of the third-variable problem.

Question 13

An exercise physiologist examines the relationship between the number of sessions of weight training and the amount of weight a person loses in a month.If a curvilinear relationship exists,what should the results be like?

Accepted Answer

A)   The more sessions of weight training,the more weight that is lost
B)   The more sessions of weight training,the less weight that is lost
C)   The fewer sessions of weight training,the less weight that is lost
D)   The more sessions of weight training,the more weight that is lost,followed by a decline in weight loss

Question 14

The process of clearly identifying how a variable is measured or manipulated is referred to as the _______ of the variable.

Accepted Answer

A)   reliability
B)   validity
C)   level
D)   operational definition

Question 15

When a researcher manipulates temperature of a room in order to examine the effect it has on task performance,the different temperature conditions are referred to as the _____ of the variable.

Accepted Answer

A)   subjects
B)   responses
C)   reliability
D)   levels

Question 16

A researcher found that as the amount of violence watched on TV increased,the amount of playground aggressiveness increased.Based on these findings,it can be said with certainty that

Accepted Answer

A)   reducing violence on television will reduce children's aggressiveness.
B)   knowing the amount of violence children watch on television allows prediction of their aggressiveness.
C)   aggressive children should not watch television.
D)   passive children watch less television than aggressive children.

Question 17

A psychological process that is responsible for the effect of an independent variable on a dependent variable is referred to as a(n)_____ variable.

Accepted Answer

A)   operational
B)   hypothetical
C)   process
D)   mediating

Question 18

Dr.King asks student teachers to assign a punishment for misbehavior displayed by an attractive versus unattractive child.The response variable would be

Accepted Answer

A)   the student teachers.
B)   assigned punishment.
C)   the child's attractiveness.
D)   the misbehaviour.

Question 19

In graphing the results of an experiment,the independent variable is placed on the ________ axis and the dependent variable is placed on the ________ axis.

Accepted Answer

A)   vertical;horizontal
B)   bottom;central
C)   central;bottom
D)   horizontal;vertical

Question 20

Which of the following is true of having to operationally define a variable.Operational definitions

Accepted Answer

A)   can result in the realization that a variable is too vague to study.
B)   allow the researcher to conceal the real variable.
C)   are not easily measured.
D)   may contain abstract terms.

Exam 4: Research Design Fundamentals