Question 1

Which of the following best describes the purpose of operational definitions in psychological research?

Accepted Answer

To translate abstract concepts into specific, measurable procedures

Question 2

A researcher wants to study aggression in children. Which of the following is the best operational definition for aggression in this context?

Accepted Answer

The number of times a child hits, pushes, or yells at another child during a 30-minute observation period

Question 3

Which of the following statements about random selection is TRUE?

Accepted Answer

It increases the generalizability of the study's findings to the population.

Question 4

A study finds a correlation coefficient of $$r = -0.85$$ between hours spent playing video games and academic performance. What does this indicate?

Accepted Answer

There is a strong negative relationship between video game playing and academic performance.

Question 5

Which of the following is a major disadvantage of naturalistic observation?

Accepted Answer

It is difficult to control for extraneous variables, making it hard to draw cause-and-effect conclusions.

Question 6

A researcher is concerned that participants are answering survey questions in a way that makes them look good rather than being truthful. This is an example of:

Accepted Answer

Social desirability bias

Question 7

Which of the following best illustrates the difference between reliability and validity?

Accepted Answer

A measure can be reliable (consistent) but not valid (not measuring what it claims to measure).

Question 8

In the context of psychological research, what is a confounding variable?

Accepted Answer

A variable that is not of interest but varies along with the independent variable, potentially providing an alternative explanation for the results.

Question 9

Which of the following research methods is best suited for studying rare or unusual phenomena, such as a unique brain injury?

Accepted Answer

Case study

Question 10

A researcher wants to determine if listening to happy music causes people to tip more at restaurants. Which research design should they use?

Accepted Answer

Experimental design

Question 11

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 one month apart.

Question 12

Why can't correlational studies establish causation?

Accepted Answer

Because they do not manipulate variables and cannot rule out third variables.

Question 13

Which of the following best describes internal validity?

Accepted Answer

The degree to which a study is conducted so that it supports causal conclusions about the relationship between variables.

Question 14

A researcher uses a scale to measure how much people like cats. The scale includes items like 'I enjoy being around cats' and 'I prefer cats to dogs.' What type of validity is most relevant here?

Accepted Answer

Construct validity

Question 15

In the Stanford Marshmallow experiment, what was the independent variable (IV)?

Accepted Answer

The experimental condition (e.g., presence or absence of the experimenter)

Question 16

Which of the following is an ethical violation that occurred in the Tuskegee Syphilis Study?

Accepted Answer

Participants were not informed they had syphilis and were denied treatment even after a cure was found.

Question 17

A researcher wants to ensure that their measure of stress in university students is consistent across different raters. Which type of reliability should they assess?

Accepted Answer

Inter-rater reliability

Question 18

Which of the following best describes the relationship between population and sample in research?

Accepted Answer

A sample is a smaller group drawn from the population to participate in the study.

Question 19

A researcher finds that children who own dogs are happier than those who do not. Which of the following is a possible third variable that could explain this relationship?

Accepted Answer

Family income

Question 20

Which of the following is a key advantage of using self-report surveys in psychological research?

Accepted Answer

They allow researchers to collect data on participants' attitudes and perceptions directly from the participants.

Research Methods in Psychology: Foundations, Designs, and Validity

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