Question 1

Which of the following best describes the main difference between descriptive and inferential statistics in psychological research?

Accepted Answer

Descriptive statistics summarize and describe the characteristics of a data set, while inferential statistics allow researchers to draw conclusions about a population based on a sample.

Question 2

A researcher wants to know if there is a relationship between hours of sleep and exam performance among university students. Which research method is most appropriate for this question?

Accepted Answer

Correlational design

Question 3

Which of the following is an example of a positive correlation?

Accepted Answer

As the number of hours studied increases, exam scores also increase.

Question 4

A test consistently produces the same results when administered to the same person under similar conditions, but it does not measure what it claims to measure. This test is:

Accepted Answer

Reliable but not valid

Question 5

In an experiment testing the effect of a new teaching method on student performance, what is the independent variable?

Accepted Answer

The teaching method used

Question 6

Which of the following best illustrates the placebo effect?

Accepted Answer

A patient reports reduced pain after receiving a sugar pill they believe is a painkiller.

Question 7

What is the main ethical violation in the Tuskegee Syphilis Study?

Accepted Answer

Participants were not given informed consent and were denied treatment.

Question 8

Which of the following is a key feature of a double-blind experimental design?

Accepted Answer

Neither the participants nor the experimenters know which group the participants are in.

Question 9

A researcher finds a correlation coefficient of $$r = -0.85$$ between stress and sleep quality. What does this indicate?

Accepted Answer

There is a strong negative relationship: as stress increases, sleep quality decreases.

Question 10

Which of the following is an example of a confounding variable in an experiment?

Accepted Answer

A variable that unintentionally varies along with the independent variable, such as classroom temperature when testing teaching methods.

Question 11

A researcher uses a survey to measure alcohol consumption among college students. Which of the following is a potential limitation of this method?

Accepted Answer

Participants may underreport their alcohol use due to social desirability bias.

Question 12

Which of the following best describes the difference between random selection and random assignment?

Accepted Answer

Random selection refers to how participants are chosen for a study; random assignment refers to how participants are placed into groups within the study.

Question 13

Which of the following is a characteristic of System 1 (Intuitive) thinking?

Accepted Answer

It is fast, automatic, and relies on heuristics.

Question 14

A study finds that people who eat more vegetables tend to have lower rates of depression. Which of the following statements is most accurate?

Accepted Answer

There is a correlation between vegetable consumption and depression, but causation cannot be inferred.

Question 15

Which of the following is an example of test-retest reliability?

Accepted Answer

A personality test yields similar results when given to the same person two weeks apart.

Question 16

A researcher wants to generalize findings from a sample to the entire population. Which statistical concept is most relevant?

Accepted Answer

Inferential statistics

Question 17

Which of the following is an example of a negatively skewed distribution?

Accepted Answer

Most scores are high, with a few low outliers.

Question 18

If a study reports a statistically significant result with $$p \u003c 0.05$$, what does this mean?

Accepted Answer

The probability that the result occurred by chance is less than 5%.

Question 19

Which of the following is a potential problem with self-report measures?

Accepted Answer

Participants may engage in positive impression management.

Question 20

A researcher is concerned that participants are changing their behavior because they have guessed the purpose of the study. This is an example of:

Accepted Answer

Demand characteristics

Research Methods and Safeguards in Psychology: Key Concepts and Applications

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