Question 1

Each of the following is required in a true experiment, EXCEPT:

Accepted Answer

While a pretest and posttest measurement is common in true experiments, it is not always required depending on the research question and design. The other three components (experimental control, random assignment, and temporal precedence) are considered essential to conducting a true experiment.

Question 2

What is the goal of random assignment?

Accepted Answer

The goal of random assignment is to create two samples that are roughly equal in terms of their characteristics such as age, gender, ethnicity, and other relevant variables. This ensures that any differences between the groups can be attributed to the treatment or intervention being studied, rather than pre-existing differences between the groups.

Question 3

Gustave is testing whether participants are more likely to comply with a request from an individual wearing a uniform than from someone in more casual clothes. Which of the following questions would be an appropriate manipulation check for his study?

Accepted Answer

This question directly addresses the manipulated variable of the study, which is the clothing worn by the requester.

Question 4

_____ is the extent to which the research setting influences the participant's behavior.

Accepted Answer

Experimental realism refers to the extent to which the research setting and procedures are similar to real-life situations, thus influencing the participant's behavior to be more natural and spontaneous.

Question 5

Virtual reality has been used to increase _____ and helps to make a study feel as real as possible.

Accepted Answer

Experimental realism refers to the extent to which a study feels real to participants. Virtual reality can be used to enhance experimental realism by creating immersive experiences that feel as close to reality as possible. This can help increase engagement and reduce demand characteristics in the study.

Question 6

Valentino is a health psychologist who is working on a campaign to encourage people to take the stairs instead of the elevator. He places posters in the elevators in his building. In one location the posters highlight the negative consequences of taking the elevator. In another location, the posters highlight the positive consequences of taking the stairs. He then measures how many people change their behavior at each location. What measure could Valentino include as a manipulation check?

Accepted Answer

To ensure that the posters were the key factor influencing behavior change, Valentino should include a measure to check whether the participants actually perceived and recalled the content of the posters. A questionnaire asking about the content of the poster in their location can serve as a manipulation check in this case, as it would show whether participants were aware of the messages on the posters and whether they were influenced by them. The other options, such as self-reports of physical activity or daily caloric intake, are not directly related to the manipulation of the posters and therefore would not serve as effective manipulation checks.

Question 7

Researcher notes are important because they do each of the following, EXCEPT:

Accepted Answer

Researcher notes are important because they help minimize alternative explanations, document abnormalities, and identify issues that arose during data collection that should be considered. However, they do not increase the impact of extraneous variables. In fact, the purpose of researcher notes is to identify and account for extraneous variables in the research process.

Question 8

Jayla's experimental study revealed a significant result. Which of the following will help to increase her confidence in her findings?

Accepted Answer

Replication is the best choice as it involves repeating the study to confirm the results. This increases the confidence in the findings by showing that they are consistent and not just a chance occurrence. Confirmation bias, covariation, and a confederate are not relevant to increasing confidence in the findings.

Question 9

Professor Montgomery is interested in testing the utility of a new teaching technique but is worried that individual differences between her students' levels of comprehension of the course material may affect her outcomes. How might she reduce this concern?

Accepted Answer

By using random assignment, Professor Montgomery can ensure that any individual differences between her students' levels of comprehension are distributed evenly across the experimental and control groups, thus reducing the potential influence of those differences on her outcomes. Random sampling would be more appropriate if Professor Montgomery wanted to ensure that her sample was representative of the larger population, but it wouldn't address the issue of individual differences between students. Using another professor's students or only examining students who are already doing well in the class would also not address this concern.

Question 10

Charles works at a newspaper as a fact-checker. His job is to verify claims to ensure that any conclusions made by the reporters are, in fact, correct. Charles is the metaphorical _____ of the newspaper.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Charles works at a newspaper as a...

Question 11

Penelope is investigating the hypothesis that wearing a watch makes people more punctual. In her study participants in the experimental group are those who are assigned to _____, while participants in the control group are assigned to_____.

Accepted Answer

The experimental group should be the one to wear a watch in order to test the hypothesis that wearing a watch makes people more punctual. The control group, on the other hand, needs to be a group who does not wear a watch to provide a comparison of punctuality. Therefore, the correct choice is A.

Question 12

A confederate is:

Accepted Answer

A confederate is an individual who isinvolved with an experimenter in a research study, usually by pretending to be a participant or by being present to help administer the study.

Question 13

_____ is a measure that helps determine whether the manipulation effectively changed (or varied) the independent variable across conditions.

Accepted Answer

A manipulation check is a measure used to determine if the independent variable was effectively manipulated or varied across different conditions. It helps researchers ensure that any observed effects on the dependent variable are due to the intended manipulation, rather than extraneous factors. The other options, experimental realism, effect size, and random assignment, are related to different aspects of experimental design and analysis but do not directly assess the effectiveness of the manipulation.

Question 14

How might a researcher ensure that a study has independence?

Accepted Answer

Running participants one at a time ensures that each participant's response is not influenced by the presence or behavior of other participants. This increases the independence of the study.

Answer: C 
 Replicating previous findings can strengthen the independence of a study by verifying that the results are not dependent on the individual researcher or study design.

Both A and C can be correct choices.

Question 15

Isabel would like for her experiment to have as much experimental realism as possible. Accordingly, when examining the impact of fear on memory, she uses _____ to induce participants' fear.

Accepted Answer

The use of an actual snake would provide the highest level of experimental realism as it would be the most direct and immersive way to induce fear in participants. It would also provide the most accurate representation of a real-life situation where a person may encounter a snake and experience fear.

Question 16

In a _____ design, the researcher creates a set of two participants who are highly similar on a key trait and then randomly assigns these individuals to different groups.

Accepted Answer

The description of the design fits a matched-pair design. This type of design is used when the key trait is expected to have a significant impact on the outcome of the study, and controlling for it is important. The use of random assignment ensures that any differences between the two groups are not due to the key trait but rather to the treatment or intervention being tested.

Question 17

As the number of participants in an experimental test session increases, the independence of a study:

Accepted Answer

As the number of participants in an experimental test session increases, the likelihood of participants influencing each other or being influenced by extraneous variables also increases. This can decrease the independence of the study.

Question 18

Dante is investigating whether smoking affects mental clarity. Which of the following participants would be an appropriate matched-pair for an individual who is a regular smoker?

Accepted Answer

In a matched-pairs experiment, the goal is to match participants based on certain characteristics that may affect the outcome of the study. In this case, Dante is investigating the effect of smoking on mental clarity, so he would want to match participants based on factors that could influence mental clarity, such as age, education level, and occupation. Since the individual in question is a regular smoker, the best matched-pair would also be a regular smoker, hence choice C. The other options may not match in terms of their smoking habits and would therefore not provide an appropriate comparison.

Question 19

Confederates can be used to increase:

Accepted Answer

Confederates are actors employed by the researcher to play a specific role in the experiment. Their behavior is controlled by the researcher, which increases experimental control by ensuring that all participants receive a standardized treatment or experience. This helps in isolating the effects of the independent variable on the dependent variable.

Question 20

Which of the following is an acceptable manner for randomly assigning participants to groups?

Accepted Answer

Flipping a coin is an acceptable and common method for randomly assigning participants to groups. Allowing participants to self-select, separating by gender, and assigning by age are not considered random assignment because they can introduce extraneous variables that may confound the results.

Quiz 8: Two-Group Design: Texting: I Cant Get You Out of My Mind