Deck 6: Researching Your Subject

Question 1

A common problem in field research is that your presence as an observer might affect the behavior you are studying.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Chapter 6 suggests that you do three things to prepare to conduct an interview. What is one of them?

Answer 2

not answered

Question 3

What kind of information about an author can help you determine if a source is reliable?

Answer 3

not answered

Question 4

"How will China's rapid industrial development affect the global energy market over the next decade?" is more likely to be a workplace research question than an academic research question.

Question 5

According to Chapter 6, what is the most difficult kind of source to evaluate and why?

Question 6

Chapter 6 advises researchers to look for information that is current. List two other characteristics of reliable information, according to the chapter.

Question 7

When obtaining information on products and services from websites, discussion forums, and blogs, it is important not to assume that vendors' claims are accurate.

Question 8

Primary research is the set of sources that you consult while you are in the document-planning stage.

Question 9

Chapter 6 advises researchers to look for information that is current. What is one other characteristic that the chapter says you should look for in the information you use?

A) lack of bias
B) well-known author
C) attractive design
D) conciseness

Question 10

Tags are descriptive keywords that people use to categorize and label content they find on the Internet.

Question 11

What is the function of the hashtag symbol (#) that is used on a number of social-media platforms?

Question 12

Secondary research is the process of creating technical information yourself, as opposed to collecting information that other people have discovered or created.

Question 13

You should select research methods before determining what research questions to pursue.

Question 14

One stage of conducting an experiment is to establish a hypothesis. What is the next stage?

Question 15

Your research leads you to the following information. What is the name for this kind of information presented in this fashion?
Title: ENVIRONMENT: THE THIRD DIMENSION OF THE LAND-USE TRANSPORT INTERACTION
Author: WOOLLEY, JE; YOUNG, TM
Publication Year: 1994
Language: ENGLISH
Pages: 223-39
Journal Name: PAPERS OF THE AUSTRALASIAN TRANSPORT RESEARCH FORUM, 1994, VOL 19, Journal Number: NA, Journal Volume: NA
Corporate

Question 16

According to Chapter 6, one disadvantage of a questionnaire is that you cannot be sure the respondents are representative of the population you want to study.

Question 17

Government publications are cataloged and shelved separately from other kinds of materials and are indexed on various government websites.

Question 18

Chapter 6 lists five characteristics to consider when evaluating print and online sources. Name two of them.

Question 19

A periodical index contains lists of citation information for journal and magazine articles.

Question 20

What is the difference between secondary research and primary research?

Question 21

A writer who is researching a state agency's transition from paper-based reports to electronic reports has scheduled an interview with a senior writer at the agency. Which of the following interview questions is likely to be most effective?

A) How do you think electronic reports will change your job?
B) What is the future of paper?
C) Do you think having paperless reports is worth the effort required to learn the new software?
D) Why do you write reports?

Question 22

Chapter 6 recommends asking clear, focused, and open questions when conducting an interview. Which of the following is an example of a clear, focused, and open question?

A) Do you agree with the federal government's stance on net neutrality?
B) In your opinion, what are the advantages of net neutrality?
C) What is the history of net neutrality?
D) How important is net neutrality?

Question 23

Which statement about wikis is true?

A) The lack of editors on a wiki means that authors on the site can always be trusted to speak the truth.
B) The lack of editors on a wiki means that authors on the site may mix truth with fiction.
C) Wikis tend to represent a narrower spectrum of viewpoints than edited websites do.
D) Because a wiki's content is "crowd-sourced," wikis have better accountability than edited websites.

Question 24

Which of these resources is NOT likely to appear in a library's online database?

A) proceedings from an annual academic conference
B) posts from a blog
C) articles from a magazine
D) articles from a national newspaper

Question 25

According to Chapter 6, in which phase of the writing process is it best to conduct research?

A) editing
B) revising
C) proofreading
D) planning

Question 26

Which of the following types of research is LEAST like field research?

A) observations
B) inquiries
C) experiments
D) inspections

Question 27

A writer is developing a questionnaire asking users about their experiences with a company's website. Which of the following questions is NOT flawed?

A) I was able to easily find answers to my questions.
Disagree _____ Neutral ____ Agree _____
B) Should we make this site better?
Yes ___ No ___
C) List the top three reasons you visit this site:
D) The flawed graphics made it hard for me to order parts using this site.
Yes __ No __

Question 28

According to Chapter 6, conducting an experiment involves four stages. One is reporting the data. Which of the following is NOT one of the other three?

A) duplicating the experiment
B) testing the hypothesis
C) establishing a hypothesis
D) analyzing the data

Question 29

You are writing a report about technical methods used for desalination of seawater. Which of these resources is LEAST likely to provide the technical information you need?

A) a website for professional water-treatment engineers
B) a book about industrial desalination
C) a discussion forum about ecology
D) a blog by a leading expert in desalination

Question 30

Your manager has asked you to recommend which one of two new types of digital camera to buy for your company's publications department. Which of the following is likely to be the best source of information for your report?

A) website
B) book
C) scholarly article
D) abstract service

Question 31

Which word best describes the kind of information found in reference works?

A) exploratory
B) experimental
C) cutting-edge
D) foundational

Question 32

What is the term for demographic information about individuals who use and follow social media?

A) big data
B) analysis
C) analytics
D) mined data

Question 33

Which source reflects the highest degree of authority on the subject of shale-oil deposits in North America?

A) an article in an encyclopedia
B) an article in a national newspaper
C) an article in a journal on geological research
D) an article in a journal on public policy

Question 34

You are interviewing the mayor of your city for a report on the prospects for high-tech manufacturing there. Which of the following questions will be most effective in an interview?

A) Are tax incentives helping to retain expanding companies?
B) How well are tax incentives helping to retain expanding companies?
C) How long have you been the mayor?
D) Do companies complain about the tax system here?

Question 35

Which research method gives the researcher the LEAST amount of control?

A) field research
B) interviews
C) experiments
D) inquiries

Question 36

You are writing a report analyzing whether your company should hire a new vendor to provide data-warehousing services. You have found a white paper online that looks promising. How can you judge the degree to which the authors are unbiased?

A) Check to see if the authors have offices in the same cities as your potential data-service vendors.
B) Check to see if the authors work as industry-wide consultants or as contractors for specific vendors.
C) Check to see if the authors have advanced degrees.
D) Check to see if the authors appear to be related to each other.

Question 37

Books are a common type of secondary research source. Chapter 6 identifies four other secondary research sources. Which of the following is NOT one of them?

A) periodicals
B) newspapers
C) government documents
D) library catalogs

Question 38

Which source is LEAST likely to be valuable when you have a question about new trends in the semiconductor industry?

A) an encyclopedia
B) a journal article published this year
C) a blog written by an analyst who covers the semiconductor industry
D) the website for a semiconductor magazine

Question 39

According to Chapter 6, which of these is NOT a tool for secondary research?

A) library catalog
B) web search engine
C) online database
D) experiment