Question 1

If a participant always shows fast reaction times on a visual task not because she is good at the task but because she can hear the experimenter start the presentation and can get ready for the stimulus,her data will show a high level of:

Accepted Answer

Systematic error occurs when there is a consistent, predictable error in the data, such as the participant reacting to auditory cues rather than the visual task itself.

Question 2

The mean,median,and mode are all examples of:

Accepted Answer

Measures of central tendency are statistical measurements that determine a single value that accurately describes the center of a dataset. The mean, median, and mode are all measures of central tendency. Inferential statistics involve using a small sample to make inferences about a larger population, types of variability involve measuring the spread or dispersion of a dataset, and correlational measures involve assessing the strength and direction of a relationship between two variables.

Question 3

If a seriously brain-damaged patient cannot give informed consent to participate in medical research,then researchers can:

Accepted Answer

In cases where a patient cannot give informed consent, researchers can obtain consent from a legal guardian, such as a family member or court-appointed guardian, to allow the patient to participate in the research. This ensures that someone is authorized to make medical decisions on the patient's behalf, and that their best interests are being considered. While debriefing and risk assessment may also be important components of ethical research, they do not address the issue of informed consent for patients who cannot provide it themselves.

Question 4

Suppose a researcher intended to study people's level of happiness by monitoring how often they smile or laugh when watching a movie.If this measurement does not really indicate level of happiness,psychologists would say that the data are NOT:

Accepted Answer

Validity refers to whether or not a measurement instrument actually measures what it is intended to measure. If researchers use smiling or laughing during a movie as a way to measure happiness, but this doesn't really reflect the participants' overall level of happiness, then the data would not be considered valid. Reliable refers to whether or not a measurement tool is consistent and yields similar results each time it is used, and systematic refers to the consistency with which a research study is conducted. Event-related refers to measurements that are taken at specific time points or in response to specific events, which is not relevant to this question.

Question 5

When researchers report a measure of central tendency,they might present:

Accepted Answer

The measure of central tendency refers to a single value that represents the entire set of data. The median is a type of central tendency that represents the midpoint of the data values where exactly half of the data values fall below and half fall above. Therefore, B is the best choice. The standard deviation (A) is a measure of the spread or variation in the data, not central tendency. Inferential statistics (C) refers to techniques used to draw conclusions about a larger population based on a sample, not a measure of central tendency. The correlation coefficient (D) measures the strength and direction of a linear relationship between two variables, not central tendency.

Question 6

If a researcher was denied permission to conduct a study because participants might suffer harm,that decision would have been made by the:

Accepted Answer

Institutional review boards (IRBs) are responsible for reviewing research proposals to ensure that they are ethical and do not pose undue harm or risk to participants. IRBs are typically housed within universities or other research institutions and are tasked with upholding federal regulations for the protection of human research subjects. The other organizations listed, such as the American Psychological Association and the Association for Psychological Science, may also have ethical guidelines for research, but the decision to deny permission for a study due to potential harm would ultimately be made by the IRB. The National Science Foundation is a funding agency for scientific research, but would not be directly involved in decisions about whether or not a study can be conducted.

Question 7

The matter of who has access to data collected in an experiment is associated with which ethical issue?

Accepted Answer

Confidentiality refers to the protection of identifying information and data collected from research participants from unauthorized access. It is an important ethical issue as research participants must feel that their sensitive information is safe and will not be used for any other purpose other than the research.

Question 8

One issue that an institutional review board is likely to concern itself with is:

Accepted Answer

Institutional review boards (IRBs) are primarily concerned with the ethical aspects of research, including the protection of participants. Relative risk pertains to the potential harm or benefit to participants, which is a key ethical consideration for IRBs.

Question 9

If a researcher publicly discussed a participant's responses and named the participant,that researcher would be guilty of violating what specific ethical principle?

Accepted Answer

Confidentiality is the ethical principle of protecting participants' personal information. By publicly discussing a participant's responses and naming the participant, the researcher is directly violating this principle.

Question 10

The process by which any deception used in a study is explained to a participant is called:

Accepted Answer

Debriefing is the process by which any deception used in a study is explained to a participant, including the reasons for the deception and its potential impact on the participant. Informed consent is the process of obtaining permission from a participant to participate in a study, while relief of confidentiality and relief from relative risk are not directly related to the process of explaining deception to participants.

Question 11

As Dr.O'Malley begins an experiment,he reviews the factors that might affect participants' willingness to take part.Dr.Quick is providing a detailed explanation to participants who have just completed a study.Which of the following statements is true?

Accepted Answer

Dr. O'Malley is reviewing factors that might affect participants' willingness to take part, which is a part of the informed consent process. Therefore, he is obtaining informed consent from his participants. On the other hand, Dr. Quick is providing a detailed explanation to participants who have just completed a study, which is a part of the debriefing process.

Question 12

When a researcher debriefs her participants,she:

Accepted Answer

Debriefing involves explaining the study's goals and purpose to participants after the study is completed.

Question 13

When researchers study multiple groups and report the means for each group,they are reporting:

Accepted Answer

The given scenario describes the reporting of means for multiple groups, which is an example of descriptive statistics. Descriptive statistics involves summarizing and describing a set of data, which includes measures such as means, medians, variability, and standard deviations. However, in this case, the question specifically mentions means, indicating that descriptive statistics and mean values are the most relevant choices. Median values, variability, and standard deviations may also be reported along with means, but they are not the main focus of the scenario.

Question 14

If a researcher's data are reliable:

Accepted Answer

Reliability refers to the consistency of measurements, not their accuracy or validity. Data can be reliable but still contain systematic errors, which affect validity.

Question 15

If a researcher finds that a participant produces very different scores on a task each time the participant engages in that task,a researcher can conclude that:

Accepted Answer

The variability in scores suggests a high level of random error, indicating inconsistency in the measurements.

Question 16

An institutional review board is likely to conclude that there are no troublesome ethical issues associated with which of the following types of study?

Accepted Answer

Naturalistic observation of public behavior, such as littering, typically involves minimal risk and does not usually require informed consent, making it less likely to raise ethical concerns.

Question 17

When data collected in research are not useful in addressing the issue that the investigator is studying,we say that the data are NOT:

Accepted Answer

When data collected in research are not useful in addressing the issue that the investigator is studying, they are said to lack validity. Validity refers to the extent to which the data measure what they are supposed to measure, and if they do not, then they are not helpful in answering the research question. Reliability refers to the consistency and reproducibility of data, systematic refers to a standardized, organized approach to data collection, and statistical significance refers to the likelihood that observed results are not due to chance. None of these terms directly address the usefulness of the data in addressing the research question.

Question 18

The statistic that involves the basic arithmetic average of a set of scores is known as the:

Accepted Answer

The basic arithmetic average of a set of scores is known as the mean. The mode refers to the most frequently occurring score, the range refers to the difference between the highest and lowest scores, and the median refers to the middle score when the scores are arranged in order.

Question 19

Which of the following statements is true regarding the use of deception in psychological research?

Accepted Answer

Deception can be allowable in psychological research when there is no alternative way to obtain the necessary information or capabilities needed for the study. However, researchers must ensure that the potential benefits outweigh the potential harm to participants, and they must thoroughly debrief participants once the deception is revealed.

Question 20

Which of the following sequences best reflects the order of events in a typical experimental session?

Accepted Answer

Informed consent should be obtained from participants before the experiment begins. Then the experiment is conducted. Finally, the participants should be debriefed after the experiment. Therefore, the correct sequence is informed consent -> experiment -> debriefing, which is represented only in choice D.

Quiz 2: Research Methodology