Question 1

Dr. McGlynn is conducting a study on the influence of exercise on reaction time. He allows subjects to exercise strenuously for either 0, 10, or 20 minutes. Next, subjects are seated at a table containing a red push button and a yellow light. Each subject is asked to push the button as soon as he or she sees the light flash. Dr. McGlynn measures the time it takes each subject to push the button after the light is lit. How many experimental groups does this study involve?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Dr. McGlynn is conducting a study on...

Question 2

Dr. McGlynn is conducting a study on reaction time. He allows subjects to exercise strenuously for either 0, 10, or 20 minutes. Next, subjects are seated at a table containing a red push button and a yellow light. Each subject is asked to push the button as soon as he or she sees the light flash. Dr. McGlynn measures the time it takes each subject to push the button after the light is lit. What is the independent variable in this study?

Accepted Answer

The independent variable in a study is the variable that is manipulated by the researcher to observe its effect on another variable. In this study, Dr. McGlynn manipulates the amount of time spent exercising (0, 10, or 20 minutes) to see its effect on reaction time, making it the independent variable.

Question 3

Dr. McGlynn is conducting a study on reaction time. He allows subjects to exercise strenuously for either 0, 10, or 20 minutes. Next, subjects are seated at a table containing a red push button and a yellow light. Each subject is asked to push the button as soon as he or she sees the light flash. Dr. McGlynn measures the time it takes each subject to push the button after the light is lit. What is the dependent variable in this study?

Accepted Answer

The dependent variable in this study is the reaction time, as it is the outcome being measured and is dependent on the level of exercise (the independent variable).

Question 4

Dr. McGlynn is conducting a study on reaction time. He allows subjects to exercise strenuously for either 0, 10, or 20 minutes. Next, subjects are seated at a table containing a red push button and a yellow light. Each subject is asked to push the button as soon as he or she sees the light flash. Dr. McGlynn measures the time it takes each subject to push the button after the light is lit. The experimental group in this study

Accepted Answer

The experimental group consists of subjects who underwent the variable being tested, which in this case is the effect of exercise on reaction time. Since the study involves comparing reaction times after exercising for different durations (10 or 20 minutes) against a control (0 minutes), the experimental group includes those who exercised for either 10 or 20 minutes.

Question 5

Dr. McGlynn is conducting a study on reaction time. He allows subjects to exercise strenuously for either 0, 10, or 20 minutes. Next, subjects are seated at a table containing a red push button and a yellow light. Each subject is asked to push the button as soon as he or she sees the light flash. Dr. McGlynn measures the time it takes each subject to push the button after the light is lit. The control group in this study

Accepted Answer

The control group in this study is the one that did not exercise, as they serve as the baseline to compare the effects of exercise on reaction time.

Question 6

Dr. Barber is conducting a study on the effects of touch on positive responses. She arranges for servers to touch their customers on the arm 0, 2, or 4 times. She then measured the amount of tips given by customer. The control group in this study was

Accepted Answer

The control group in an experiment is the group that does not receive the experimental treatment. In this study, the treatment is the act of touching, so the group that was not touched (0 times) serves as the control group against which the effects of being touched 2 or 4 times can be compared.

Question 7

Dr. Kettle wants to know if the type of lighting (fluorescent or incandescent) under which participants read affects the number of pages of text that they can read in one hour. The dependent variable in this experiment is

Accepted Answer

The dependent variable is the outcome that the researcher is interested in measuring or observing, which in this case is "the number of pages of text read in one hour." This variable depends on the type of lighting the participants are exposed to.

Question 8

Dr. Kettle wants to know if the type of lighting (fluorescent or incandescent) under which participants read affects the number of pages of text that they can read in one hour. The independent variable in this experiment is

Accepted Answer

The independent variable is the factor that is manipulated by the researcher to observe its effect on the dependent variable. In this case, Dr. Kettle is manipulating the type of lighting (fluorescent or incandescent) to see its effect on the number of pages read, making the type of lighting the independent variable.

Question 9

The term used to describe the fallacy that is committed when we mistakenly believe that we have explained an event by naming it is the __________ fallacy.

Accepted Answer

The nominal fallacy involves thinking that naming something explains it, which is a mistake because merely labeling a phenomenon does not account for its causes or nature.

Question 10

Suppose that your roommate snaps at you. After doing so, she says, "I'm sorry, I'm just a bit grumpy today."Which of the following statements about your roommate is true?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Suppose that your roommate snaps at you....

Question 11

Dr. Harzem is studying the effects of drugs on memory. He varies the amount of the drug subjects are given. Then he gives his subjects a list of 100 nonsense words and measures their memory ability by asking them to write down all the nonsense words that they can recall in two minutes. Which of the following statements is true about this study?

Accepted Answer

Dr. Harzem has operationally defined variables by specifying the exact amount of the drug given to subjects and by measuring memory ability through the recall of nonsense words within a set time frame. This operational definition allows for the clear manipulation and measurement of variables.

Question 12

An operational definition

Accepted Answer

An operational definition describes a variable specifically in terms of the procedures or operations by which it will be measured or manipulated, making it clear and replicable in research contexts.

Question 13

An operational definition that accurately represents the variable whose value is manipulated or measured is said to be

Accepted Answer

An operational definition that accurately represents the variable whose value is manipulated or measured is considered to be valid. Validity refers to the extent to which a concept, conclusion, or measurement is well-founded and corresponds accurately to the real world.

Question 14

Suppose that you conduct an experiment to study the effects of love on improving children's self-concepts. To manipulate love, you allow a research assistant to hug each child after he or she has successfully completed a set of math problems. After the study is over, you ask the children if they felt loved during the study. They all say no. Apparently, your operational definition of your independent variable is

Accepted Answer

The operational definition of the independent variable (love) is invalid because it did not effectively manipulate or measure the concept it was supposed to (love), as evidenced by the children's responses indicating they did not feel loved.

Question 15

A variable that is inadvertently allowed to affect the value of the dependent variable is called a(n) __________ variable.

Accepted Answer

A confounding variable is one that influences both the dependent variable and independent variable, causing a spurious association. This makes it difficult to establish a clear cause-and-effect relationship.

Question 16

The presence of a confounding variable in an experiment renders the collected data as

Accepted Answer

A confounding variable is a variable that is related to both the independent and dependent variables in an experiment. This can make it difficult to determine the true effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable. As a result, the presence of a confounding variable can render the collected data invalid.

Question 17

A confounding variable

Accepted Answer

A confounding variable is not deliberately manipulated by the experimenter; instead, it is an external variable that can affect the results of an experiment but is not the variable being studied.

Question 18

Dr. Hartwick wants to determine if a group of participants reading under incandescent light will read more pages of text in one hour than a group of participants reading under fluorescent light. She assigns students sitting at the front of the class to be in the "incandescent light"condition and students at the back of the class to be in the "fluorescent light"condition. In this experiment seating location is

Accepted Answer

Seating location is a confounding variable because it may influence the results independently of the type of lighting, potentially affecting the validity of the experiment's outcome.

Question 19

The text suggests that in the hypothetical SIRD stereogram study, the image could be placed in only one quadrant of the stereogram and subjects could be asked to indicate that quadrant when they reported detection. The purpose of this procedure would be to

Accepted Answer

Placing the image in only one quadrant and asking subjects to indicate that quadrant when they report detection helps ensure that their responses are accurate reflections of their actual perception, thus increasing the validity of the dependent variable, which in this context is likely the ability to detect or perceive the image.

Question 20

Dr. Clinton's experiment finds that his 20-year-old subjects, tested under cool temperatures, show little anger, whereas his 15-year-old subjects, tested under hot conditions, show significantly greater anger. In this experiment the two variables of age and temperature are

Accepted Answer

The variables of age and temperature are confounded because both are varying together, making it impossible to determine which one is actually affecting the observed changes in anger levels.

Quiz 2: The Ways and Means of Psychology