Bartleby Sitemap - Textbook Solutions
All Textbook Solutions for Research Methods for the Behavioral Sciences (MindTap Course List)
Compare and contrast the nonscientific methods for knowing or acquiring knowledge (tenacity, intuition, authority, the rational method, and the empirical method). Identify an example and explain the limitations of each method. Consider the following questions. Does multitasking make you more efficient with your time? Does having more friends make you less vulnerable to depression? Are children of divorced parents less likely to be satisfied with their romantic relationships? Are girls more likely to cyberbully than boys? Does eating cake for breakfast make dieters more likely to stick to their diets later in the day? Are adolescents who play violent video games more aggressive than adolescents who do not play violent video games? Does playing brain games in adulthood make it less likely you will develop Alzheimers?Identify and describe the steps of the scientific method.Define induction and deduction and explain the role of each in the scientific method.Distinguish between a hypothesis and a prediction.Explain what it means to say that the scientific method is empirical, public, and objective.6LODistinguish between qualitative and quantitative research and recognize examples of each.Identify and describe the steps in the research process.In addition to the key words that were defined in the text, you should be able to define the following terms, which also appear in the glossary: Replication PseudoscienceDescribe how some behaviors can be explained by clichés, such as “You cant teach an old dog new tricks or “You cant make an omelet without breaking eggs.Describe why you might be cautious about using the Internet to find answers to medical questions.Suppose that you are debating whether to hitchhike across country or take the bus. Explain how the rational method could help you make a decision.According to the gamblers fallacy, if a coin toss results in heads three times in a row, then the probability of tails increases for the fourth toss. Describe how you would use the empirical method to evaluate this claim.In this chapter, we identified the method of authority, the rational method, and the empirical method as techniques for acquiring information. For each of the following, choose one of these three methods and describe how you could use it to answer the question. Can you describe an alternative method for finding the answer? a. What is the phone number for the psychology department office at your school? b. What is the current exchange rate for converting Canadian dollars to U.S. dollars? c. How tall is your course instructor? d. My local pizza shop guarantees “delivery in 30 minutes or your pizza is free: If my pizza arrives 25 minutes after I order it, will it be free? e. What is the distance from the floor to the ceiling in your bedroom?What are the five steps of the scientific method?Describe the difference between inductive and deductive reasoning and give an example of each.State a hypothesis that identifies a specific variable that causes some people to choose red as their favorite color. Create a prediction from your hypothesis.Describe what it means to say that science is empirical, public, and objective, and explain why each of these principles is important.An expert appears on a shopping network to explain how the different candle fragrances they are selling influence peoples moods and behaviors. Explain how you could determine whether the experts theories are science or pseudoscience.A social science researcher would like to determine the characteristics of people who live and work in small towns (population less than 2,000). a. Explain how this information might be obtained using qualitative research. b. Explain how this information might be obtained using quantitative research.Identify possible sources and use them to identify a topic area for research.Define applied research and basic research and identify examples of each.Define primary and secondary sources, identity examples of each, and explain the role that each plays in a literature search.Describe the process of conducting a literature search, including using an online database such as PsycINFO, and conduct a search to locate current published research related to a specific topic.Describe the differences between a full-text database and one that is not full text, and explain the advantages and disadvantages of each in a literature search.Identity the basic sections of an APA-style research article, know what to expect in each section, and summarize and critically evaluate the content of each section for an existing article.7LODescribe the characteristics of a good hypothesis and identify examples of good and bad hypotheses.1EMake a list of five ideas for a general research topic that interests you. For each, identify the source of the idea.Based on the following descriptions of studies, determine whether each of the studies can be classified as basic or applied research. a. A researcher conducts a study to determine whether there is a significant increase in job satisfaction if employees can work from home one day a week. b. A researcher initiates a study to determine whether students are more likely to complete assigned readings prior to class, if they are given an in-class quiz on the material. c. A researcher develops a study to examine personality traits as a predictor of career success. d. A researcher conducts a study to determine whether parenting type is an explanation for the development of anxiety in children.Define primary and secondary sources and explain how each plays a role in the process of finding a research idea.Using PsycINFO (or a similar database), find five articles on the topic of preschool daycare and social anxiety. Print out a copy of the Record List page.Using PsycINFO (or a similar database), find research articles on how background music influences mood. Print out the Detailed Record (including the abstract) for one research article on this topic.Search in a current newspaper or on a news website and find one news story that is based on the results of a recent research study. Summarize the research result according to the story. Do you have any reason to doubt that this information is accurate?How does a full-text database differ from other databases?List the five sections typically found in a research article, and describe briefly what each should contain.Describe the three ways identified in the text to find or develop a new research idea from existing research report(s).Is the following hypothesis testable, refutable, and positive? Explain your answer. Hypothesis: People who pray regularly are less likely to be injured in an accident.Determine whether each of the following hypotheses is testable and refutable. If not, explain why. a. Young children can see good or evil auras surrounding the people they meet. b. A list of three-syllable words is more difficult to memorize than a list of one-syllable words. c. The incidence of paranoia is higher among people who claim to have been abducted by aliens than in the general population. d. If atomic weapons were never invented, then there would be less anxiety in the world.Define a construct and explain the role that constructs play in theories.Define an operational definition and explain the purpose and the limitations of operational definitions.Define a positive relationship and a negative relationship and explain the how consistency of positive and negative relationships can be used to establish validity and reliability.Define the validity of measurement and explain why and how it is measured.Define the reliability of measurement and explain why and how it is measured.Compare and contrast the four scales of measurement (nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio) and identify examples of each.Identify the three modalities of measurement and explain the strengths and weaknesses of each.Define a ceiling effect and a floor effect and explain how they can interfere with measurement.Define an artifact and explain how examples of artifacts (experimenter bias, demand characteristics, and reactivity) can threaten both the validity and reliability of measurement and how they can influence the results of a research study.In addition to the key words, you should also be able to define each of the following terms: Positive relationship ratio scale Negative relationship self-report measure Accuracy physiological measure Scale of measurement behavioral measure Nominal scale range effect Ordinal scale artifact Interval scale subject roles or subject role behaviorsHypothetical concepts, such as honesty, are variables that cannot be observed or measured directly and, therefore, require operational definitions. a. Describe one procedure that might be used to measure honesty. b. Use the procedure you described in (a) to explain why there may not be a one-to-one relationship between the actual variable and the measurement produced by the operational definition of the variable.Briefly explain what an operational definition is and why operational definitions are sometimes necessary.A researcher evaluates a new cholesterol medication by measuring cholesterol levels for a group of patients before they begin taking the medication and after they have been taking the medication for 8 weeks. A second researcher measures quality of life for a group of 40-year-old men who have been married for at least 5 years and a group of 40-year-old men who are still single. Explain why the first researcher is probably not concerned about the validity of measurement, whereas the second researcher probably is. (Hint: What variable is each researcher measuring and how will it be measured?)A clinical researcher has developed a new test for measuring impulsiveness and would like to determine the validity of the test. The new test and an established measure of impulsiveness are both administered to a sample of participants. Describe the pattern of results that would establish concurrent validity for the new test.Suppose that a social scientist has developed a questionnaire intended to measure the quality of romantic relationships. Describe how you could evaluate the reliability of the questionnaire.Explain how inter-rater reliability is established.A researcher claims that intelligence can be measured by measuring the length of a persons right-hand ring finger. Explain why this procedure is very reliable but probably not valid.For each of the following operational definitions, decide whether you consider it to be a valid measure. Explain why or why not. Decide whether you consider it to be a reliable measure. Explain why or why not. a. A researcher defines social anxiety in terms of the number of minutes before a child begins to interact with adults other than his or her parents. b. A professor classifies students as either introverted or extroverted based on the number of questions each individual asks during one week of class. c. A sports psychologist measures physical fitness by measuring how high each person can jump. d. Reasoning that bigger brains require bigger heads, a researcher measures intelligence by measuring the circumference of each persons head (just above the ears).In this chapter we identified four scales of measurement: nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio. a. What additional information is obtained from measurements on an ordinal scale compared to measurements from a nominal scale? b. What additional information is obtained from measurements on an interval scale compared to measurements from an ordinal scale? c. What additional information is obtained from measurements on a ratio scale compared to measurements from an interval scale?Select one construct from the following list: happiness Hunger Exhaustion motivation creativity Fear Briefly describe how it might be measured using: a. An operational definition based on self-report (e.g., a questionnaire). b. An operational definition based on behavior (e.g., what kinds of behavior would you expect to see from an individual with high self-esteem?)Describe the relative strengths and weaknesses of self-report measures compared to behavioral measures.What is a ceiling effect, and how can it be a problem?Explain how an artifact can limit the validity and reliability of a measurement.What are demand characteristics, and how do they limit the validity of the measurements obtained in a research study?Describe how the concept of participant reactivity might explain why a persons behavior in a group of strangers is different from a persons behavior with friends.Describe the major historical events that helped shape the current guidelines for the ethical treatment of human participants in research, including the Nuremberg Code, Milgrams obedience study, the National Research Act, and the Belmont Report.Describe and apply the three ethical principles of the Belmont Report (i.e., respect, beneficence, and justice) to a research situation.Describe the major elements of the APA ethical guidelines concerning human participants in research, including no harm, informed consent, deception, and confidentiality.4LODescribe the major elements of the APA ethical guidelines for nonhuman subjects in research.Describe the purpose and responsibilities of the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC).Define fraud and explain the safeguards that exist to prevent it.Define plagiarism and explain the techniques that can be used to help avoid unintentional plagiarism.1EFor each of the following, identify which of the three basic principles of the Belmont Report is being violated: a. A researcher recruits poor minorities to be participants in a risky experiment. b. A researcher tricks people into participating by suggesting that they might win a contest. c. A researcher knows that people will feel ashamed after one part of the study.By manipulating the participants experiences, it is possible to examine how peoples performance and attitudes are influenced by success and failure. To do this, researchers can give some participants a feeling of success and others a feeling of failure by giving false feedback about their performance or by rigging a task to make it easy or impossible (Thompson, Webber, & Montgomery, 2002). Describe how this can be done, so that the Belmont Report principles of respect and beneficence are not violated.Explain the role of voluntary participation in informed consent.Explain the difference between passive and active deception.Explain how the enforcement of confidentiality benefits both the participants and the researcher.Suppose you are planning a research study in which you intend to manipulate the participants moods: that is, you plan to create a group of happy people and a group of sad people. For example, one group will spend the first 10 minutes of the experiment listening to upbeat, happy music, and the other group will listen to funeral dirges. a. Do you consider the manipulation of peoples moods to be an ethical violation of the principle of no harm? Explain why or why not. b. Would you tell your participants about the mood manipulation as part of the informed consent process before they begin the study? Explain why or why not. c. Assuming that you decided to use deception and not tell your participants that their moods are being manipulated, how would you justify this procedure to an IRB? What could you do to minimize the negative effects of manipulating peoples moods (especially the negative mood group)?Describe in your own words the criteria that the IRB uses to evaluate proposed research.Find your colleges IRB guidelines and procedures (you probably will need to search online through your colleges website for “IRB). With a research idea in mind, determine what category or level of review your proposal would fit into.Summarize the major APA ethical standards concerning the care and use of animals in research.Describe how replication protects against fraud being committed in research.Explain why plagiarism is unethical.Describe the relationship between a sample and the population (both target and accessible) in a research study and explain the importance of obtaining representative, as opposed to biased, samples.Explain the basic distinction between probability sampling methods and nonprobability sampling methods and recognize examples of these two sampling techniques when they appear in research reports.Describe the process of simple random sampling, recognize this technique when it appears in a research report, and explain its strengths and weaknesses.Describe the four probability sampling methods presented in the book, other than simple random sampling (stratified random, proportionate stratified random, systematic, and cluster), recognize these techniques when they appear in research reports, and explain the strengths and weaknesses of each.Describe the process of convenience sampling, recognize examples of this technique in research reports, and explain why it is used and how researchers using this method can limit the risk of a biased sample.Describe quota sampling, recognize examples of this technique in research reports, and explain why it is used.In addition to the key words, you should also be able to define each of the following terms: target population accessible population law of large numbers sampling methods, or sampling techniques, or sampling procedures simple random sampling systematic sampling stratified random sampling proportionate random sampling proportionate stratified random sampling cluster sampling convenience sampling quota samplingA researcher conducting a political poll for a statewide election would like to know the attitudes of college students concerning the candidates. A sample of 200 upperclassmen from the state university is selected to participate in the survey. For this study: a. What is the target population? b. What is the accessible population? c. What is the sample?A researcher studying cyberbullying among middle-school students interviews a group of students from a local middle school about their cyberbullying experiences. For this study, identify the target population, the accessible population, and the sample.If a researcher selects a sample from each of the following populations, then which is likely to be a probability sample and which is likely to be a nonprobability sample? a. The population consists of the children enrolled in a prekindergarten program in a local school district. b. The population consists of adolescents from single-parent families.Explain how a researcher using simple random sampling can still obtain a biased sample.Under what circumstances is a stratified random sample preferred to a simple random sample?Under what circumstances is a proportionate stratified random sample preferred to a simple random sample?Explain the advantages and disadvantages of a stratified random sample compared with a proportionate stratified random sample.Describe the advantages and disadvantages of convenience sampling.For each of the following scenarios, identify which sampling method is used: a. The State College is conducting a survey of student attitudes and opinions. The plan is to use the list of all registered students and then select every 10th name on the list to make up the sample. b. The city population consists of four major ethnic groups. A researcher studying resident attitudes concerning a proposed city park surveys a large number of city residents and then selects the first 30 responders from each ethnic group to make up the sample. c. A second option for the survey in Part b is based on the observation that the four ethnic groups are not represented equally in the population. To ensure that the sample reflects these differences, the researcher first determines the number of residents in each ethnic group and then selects a sample so that the number for each group in the sample is in direct relation to the number in each group for the entire city population. d. The County Democratic Committee would like to determine which issues are most important to registered Democrats in the county. Starting with a list of registered Democrats, the committee uses a random process to select a sample of 30 names for telephone interviews. e. A medical research laboratory places ads in the local newspaper to recruit people with chronic migraine headaches to participate in clinical trials evaluating a new medication. Qualified individuals are asked to phone the lab for a screening appointment.Explain how the nonprobability technique of quota sampling can be used to mimic the probability technique of stratified random sampling.Describe, compare, and contrast the five research strategies (descriptive, correlational, experimental, quasi-experimental, and nonexperimental); the kinds of questions they address and the data structures they produce; and recognize examples of each.Define research strategy, research design, and research procedures, and describe the choices and decisions involved during these three stages in the development of a research study.Define the concept of external validity and a threat to external validity.Define the concept of internal validity and a threat to internal validity.Identify and explain the common threats to external validity and identify threats when they appear in a research report.Describe how extraneous variables can become confounding variables and threaten the internal validity of a research study; identify threats when they appear in a research report.Describe how environmental variables can be threats to internal validity for all studies, how some variables can threaten studies that compare different groups, and how other variables can threaten studies that compare scores for one group over time.Define experimenter bias, demand characteristics, and reactivity, and explain how these artifacts can threaten both internal and external validity.In addition to the key words, you should also be able to define each of the following terms: descriptive research strategy linear relationship curvilinear relationship positive relationship negative relationship correlational research strategy experimental research strategy quasi-experimental research strategy nonexperimental research strategy selection bias volunteer bias novelty effect multiple treatment interference sensitization, or assessment sensitization, or pretest sensitization participant variables time-related variables fatigue practice artifact experimenter bias single-blind double-blind demand characteristics reactivity laboratory fieldFor each of the following scenarios, identify which research strategy is used: descriptive, correlational, experimental, or nonexperimental. (Note: For now, do not differentiate between nonexperimental and quasi-experimental studies. The distinction between them is discussed in Chapter 10.) a. Dr. Jones conducts a study examining the relationship between sugar consumption and activity level for 5-year-old children. Sugar consumption scores are obtained by interviewing each childs parents and activity level is measured by observing the children during an outdoor play period. b. Dr. Jones conducts a study examining the relationship between sugar consumption and activity level for 5-year-old children. Sugar consumption scores are obtained by interviewing each childs parents. Based on the interview results, the children are divided into two groups: those who consume large amounts of sugar and those who eat relatively small amounts. Then activity level is measured by observing the children during an outdoor play period to determine if there is any difference between the two groups. c. Dr. Jones conducts a study examining the relationship between sugar consumption and activity level for 5-year-old children. A group of children is randomly separated into two groups. One group is given a sugary cereal for breakfast and the other is given oatmeal. Activity level is then measured by observing the children during an outdoor play period to determine if there is any difference between the two groups. d. Dr. Jones conducts a study examining activity level for 5-year-old children. Each afternoon for 1 week, a group of children in a childcare center is observed during a 30-minute period while they play outdoors. Activity level for each child is recorded during the 30-minute period.How is the descriptive strategy different from the other four research strategies?Explain the difference among the terms research strategy, research design, and research procedure.A researcher conducts a study with 6-year-old children at a summer computer camp for gifted children. However, the researcher suspects that different results would be obtained if the study were conducted with regular 6-year-old children. Does this study have a problem with internal validity or external validity?A researcher finds that college students are more anxious near final exams in December than at the beginning of the semester in September. However, it is not clear whether the anxiety is caused by exams or by the change in season. Does this study have a problem with internal validity or external validity?Explain how using college students as participants in a study may limit the external validity of a studys research findings.What is the novelty effect, and how does it affect a studys external validity?Suppose that you wake up in the morning with all the symptoms of a head cold. You take a cold pill and eat a big bowl of your mothers chicken soup. By midday your cold symptoms are gone, and you are feeling much better. Can you conclude that the chicken soup cured your cold? Explain why or why not.What is the primary threat to internal validity for a study that compares different groups of participants?Describe how experimenter bias can be a threat to internal validity; that is, how can experimenter bias provide an explanation for the scores in one condition being higher than the scores in a second condition?Describe how participant reactivity can be a threat to external validity; that is, how can participant reactivity limit the ability to generalize research results?Selection bias and individual differences are both potential problems dealing with the participants in a study. a. Identify which of these is a threat to internal validity and which is a threat to external validity, and describe how each one is a threat. b. Suppose that you were planning a research study in which the individuals who participate will be put into separate groups and each group will participate in one of the treatment conditions that are being compared. Explain how you could minimize the risk of selection bias and how you could minimize the risk that individual differences become a confounding variable.Describe the general purpose of an experimental research study, differentiate experiments from other types of research, and identify examples of experiments.Define independent, dependent, and extraneous variables and identify examples of each in an experiment.Describe the third-variable problem and the directionality problem, identify these problems when they appear in a research study, and explain why they must be eliminated before an experiment can demonstrate a cause-and-effect relationship.Explain why manipulation of an independent variable is a critical component of an experiment.Explain why control of extraneous variables is a critical component of an experiment.Explain how an extraneous variable can become a confounding variable and identify confounding variables when they appear in a research study.Describe the three primary techniques for controlling extraneous variables (holding constant, matching, and randomization), explain how each one works, and identify these techniques when they appear in a research report.Describe the purpose for control conditions in experimental research, define the two basic types of control conditions (no-treatment and placebo), and identity control conditions when they appear in research reports.Explain when a manipulation check is needed, describe what it is intended to accomplish, and identify a manipulation check when one appears in a research report.Define field studies and simulation, explain why they are used as alternatives to laboratory experiments, and identify these techniques when they appear in a research report.In addition to the key words, you should also be able to define the following terms: Third-variable problem Placebo Directionality problem Mundane realism Confounding variable Experimental realism Random processDr. Jones conducted a study examining the relationship between the amount of sugar in a childs diet and the activity level of the child. A sample of thirty 4-year-old children from a local preschool was used in the study. Sugar consumption was measured by interviewing the parents about each childs diet. Based on the result of the interview, each child was then placed into one of two groups: high sugar consumption and low sugar consumption. Activity level was measured by observing the children during a regular preschool afternoon. Finally, Dr. Jones compared the activity level for the high-sugar group with the activity level for the low-sugar group. Explain why Dr. Joness study is not an example of the experimental research strategy.In an experiment examining human memory, two groups of participants are used. One group is allowed 5 minutes to study a list of 40 words and the second group is given 10 minutes of study time for the same list of words. Then, both groups are given a memory test, and the researcher records the number of words correctly recalled by each participant. For this experiment, identify the independent variable and the dependent variable.It has been demonstrated that students with high self-esteem tend to have higher grades than students with low self-esteem. Does this relationship mean that higher self-esteem causes better academic performance? Does it mean that better academic performance causes higher self-esteem? Explain your answer, and identify the general problem that can preclude a cause-and-effect explanation.A researcher would like to compare two methods for teaching math to third-grade students. Two third-grade classes are obtained for the study. Mr. Jones teaches one class using method A. and Mrs. Smith teaches the other class using method B. At the end of the year, the students from the method-B class have significantly higher scores on a mathematics achievement test. Does this result indicate that method B causes higher scores than method A? Explain your answer, and identify the general problem that precludes a cause-and-effect explanation.Define extraneous variable and explain how extraneous variables can become confounding variables.Identify the two characteristics needed for a research study to qualify as an experiment.Identify the two active methods of preventing extraneous variables from becoming confounding variables.Explain how the process of randomly assigning participants to treatment conditions should prevent a participant variable such as age or gender from becoming a confounding variable.Can a research study be an experiment without a control group? Can a study be an experiment without controlling extraneous variables?What is the general purpose of a manipulation check?What is the general purpose for using a simulation or a field study for experimental research?Describe, compare, and contrast the defining characteristics of a between-subjects design and a within-subjects design, and recognize examples of each.Explain the general advantages and disadvantages of between-subjects design compared to within-subjects design.Define individual differences and explain how individual differences between groups and confounding from environmental variables can threaten the internal validity of a between-subjects design.Identify the three primary techniques for limiting confounding by individual differences in between-subjects experiments (random assignment, matched assignment, and holding variables constant) and explain how each one works.Describe how individual differences influence variability within-treatments and explain how variance within treatments can influence the interpretation of research results.Identify the options for reducing or controlling the variance within treatment condition and explain how each option works.Describe how differential attrition and communication between participants can threaten the internal validity of between-subjects designs and identify these problems when they appear in a research study.Describe how between-subjects designs are used to compare means and proportions for two or more groups, identify the statistical techniques that are appropriate for each application, and explain each designs strengths and weaknesses.In addition to the key words, you should also be able to define the following terms: Within-subjects design Between-subjects design Independent-measures design Random assignment Variance within treatments, or variance within groups Differential attrition Diffusion Compensatory equalization Compensatory rivalry Resentful demoralization Single-factor two-group design, or two-group design Single-factor multiple-group designAt the beginning of this chapter (p. 186) we described a study comparing the effectiveness of studying material printed on paper to studying material displayed on a computer screen (Ackerman & Goldsmith. 2011). Explain why this study is an example of a between-subjects design and describe how the same question could be addressed with a within-subjects design.In a between-subjects design, each individual score is obtained from a separate participant. Briefly explain why this is an advantage. Briefly explain why this is a disadvantage.A researcher has a sample of 30 rats that are all cloned from the same source. The 30 rats are genetically identical and have been raised in exactly the same environment since birth. The researcher conducts an experiment, randomly assigning 10 of the clones to treatment A, 10 to treatment B, and the other 10 to treatment C. Explain why the clone experiment is better than a between-subjects study using 30 regular rats that are randomly assigned to the three treatments. In other words, explain how the clone experiment eliminates the basic problems with a between-subjects study.Briefly explain how a participant characteristic, such as personality, could be a confounding variable in a between subjects experiment.Explain the advantages and disadvantages of using random assignment as a method to prevent individual differences from becoming confounding variables.A recent survey at a major corporation found that employees who regularly participated in the company fitness program tended to have fewer sick days than employees who did not participate. However, because the study was not a true experiment, you cannot conclude that regular exercise causes employees to have fewer sick days. a. Identify another factor (a confounding variable) that might explain why some employees participated in the fitness program, and why those same employees have fewer sick days. b. Describe the design for a between-subjects experiment that would determine whether participation in the exercise program caused fewer sick days. c. Describe how the factor you identified in Part A is controlled in your experiment.Describe how individual differences can produce large variance within treatments and explain why this is a problem in a between-subjects experiment.Explain how holding a participant variable such as gender constant prevents the variable from becoming a confounding variable and can help reduce the variance within treatments. Identify the problem with using this method.Describe some of the problems that can arise when the participants in one treatment condition of a between-subjects experiment are allowed to communicate with participants in a different condition.Describe the advantages of a two-group design compared to an experiment with more than two groups.Identify the advantages of a multiple-group design compared to an experiment with only two groups.Describe the general characteristics of a within-subject experimental design and identify these designs when they appear in a research report.Describe how time-related factors such as history, maturation, instrumentation, statistical regression, and order effects can threaten the internal validity of some within-subjects experiments.For a within-subjects experiment, explain how the time delay between treatments can influence time-related threats to internal validity and why it may be better to switch to a between-subjects design.Define counterbalancing and explain how it is used to minimize or eliminate threats to internal validity from time-related factors.Describe the limitations of counterbalancing and explain why partial counterbalancing is sometimes used.Explain the general advantages and disadvantages of within-subjects designs compared to between-subjects designs and be able to decide which design would be better under specific circumstances.Define a matched-subject design and explain how it attempts to achieve the advantages of both within-and between-subjects designs without their disadvantages.Describe the different ways that within-subjects designs are used to compare two or more treatment conditions, identify the statistical techniques that are appropriate for each application, and explain the strengths and weaknesses of each application.In addition to the key words, you should also be able to define the following terms: Within-subjects design Repeated-measures design Practice Fatigue Contrast effect Complete counterbalancing Partial counterbalancing Latin square Participant attritionDescribe the characteristics of a within-subjects experimental research design.Time-related factors and order effects can threaten internal validity for some within-subjects experiments. Describe the kind of study for which these factors can be a problem and explain how they can be a confounding variable in some within-subjects designs.For a within-subjects experiment that includes a time delay between treatment conditions, explain the possible advantages and the disadvantages of increasing the time delay between one treatment and the next.Under what circumstances is it advisable to switch to a between-subjects design instead of using a within-subjects design?Describe the circumstances in which counterbalancing is used and explain what it is trying to accomplish.Explain why partial counterbalancing is sometimes necessary.Describe the problems that can be caused by individual differences in a between-subjects experiment and explain how these problems are eliminated or reduced in a within-subjects experiment.A researcher has a sample of 30 rats that are all cloned from the same source. The 30 rats are genetically identical and have been raised in exactly the same environment since birth. The researcher conducts an experiment, randomly assigning 10 of the clones to treatment A, 10 to treatment B, and the other 10 to treatment C. Explain why the clone experiment is better than a within-subjects study using 10 regular rats that are tested in each of the three treatments. In other words, explain how the clone experiment eliminates the basic problems with a within-subjects study.Explain how a matched-subjects design attempts to avoid the major problem with between-subjects experiments (individual differences) and the major problem with within-subjects experiments (time-related factors).Describe the disadvantages of a multiple-treatment design, compared to a two-treatment design, for a within-subjects experiment.At the beginning of this chapter, we described a study in which participants shouted either a swear word or a neutral word over and over while holding one hand in a bowl of ice water. The study obtained two scores for each participant: how long the pain could be tolerated while swearing and how long while shouting a neutral word. Which statistical procedure should be used to evaluate the significance of the mean difference between the two groups of rating scores?Define, compare, and contrast the experimental, nonexperimental, and quasi-experimental research strategies, and identify these strategies when they appear in a research report.Define a nonequivalent group design and identify examples of this research design when it appears in a research report.Explain how individual differences threaten the internal validity of a nonequivalent group design.Describe the two nonexperimental nonequivalent group designs (differential research and the posttest-only nonequivalent control group design) and the quasi-experimental nonequivalent group design (pretest-posttest nonequivalent control group design), and identify examples of these designs when they appear in a research report.Explain how a simple modification of the posttest-only nonequivalent control group design increases internal validity and produces a quasi-experimental design.Define a pre-post design and identify examples of this research design when it appears in a research report.Identify the threats to internal validity for pre-post designs.Describe the nonexpenmental pretest-posttest design and the quasi-experimental time-series design, and identify examples of these designs when they appear in a research report.Explain how replacing the single observation before and after treatment with a series of observations converts the pretest-posttest design into a quasi-experimental time-series design by minimizing threats to internal validity.Define cross-sectional and longitudinal designs, identify these designs when they appear in a research report, and describe the strengths and weaknesses of each design.Identify the statistical techniques that are appropriate for each nonexperimental, quasi-experimental, and developmental design and explain the strengths and weaknesses of two-group compared to multiple-group designs.Explain how the terms quasi-independent variable and dependent variable are used in nonexperimental, quasi-experimental, and developmental research.In addition to the key words, you should also be able to define the following terms: Individual differences Differential effects History Instrumentation Order effects Maturation Statistical regression Interrupted time-series designs Single-case, or single-subject designs Participant attrition, or participant mortalityExplain the distinction between experimental and nonexperimental research strategies.Why are studies that examine the effects of aging not considered true experiments?Explain why we can be more confident about causal relationships between variables when a quasi-experimental design is used instead of a nonexperimental design.Give an example of a situation (aside from gender) in which a researcher must examine preexisting groups.Mueller and Oppenheimer (2014) conducted a series of studies comparing the effectiveness of taking classroom notes on laptops versus writing longhand. In one study, students were instructed to use their normal classroom note taking strategy using either a notebook or a laptop while they watched a brief lecture. A short time later, the students were given a quiz on the lecture material. Although the quiz results showed no difference between the two strategies for factual questions, the students using longhand had significantly higher scores for conceptual questions. Explain why the researchers cannot conclude that taking longhand notes causes better conceptual learning that taking notes on a laptop.A researcher measures personality characteristics for a group of participants who successfully lost weight in a diet program, and compared their scores with a second group consisting of individuals who failed to lose weight in the program. Is this study a differential design? Explain your answer.A researcher wants to describe the effectiveness of a new program (compared to the old program) for teaching reading to elementary school children. Describe how this study could be done as a posttest-only nonequivalent control group design. Next, describe how this study could be done as a nonexperimental pretest-posttest design.Explain how the pretest helps minimize the threat to internal validity from individual differences in a pretest posttest nonequivalent control group design.Describe the basic characteristics of a pre-post design and explain why these designs are not true experiments.To evaluate the effectiveness of a new television commercial, a researcher measures attitudes toward the advertised product for a group of consumers before and after they view the commercial. Identify one factor that threatens the internal validity of this study.What characteristic differentiates a pretest-post test design from a time-series design?Explain how a time-series design minimizes most threats to internal validity from time-related variables.A researcher wants to describe how fine motor skills change as a group of infants age from 18 to 24 months. Describe how this study could be done as a cross sectional design. Next, describe how this study could be done as longitudinal design.Although the cohort effect can be a serious problem for cross-sectional research, it is not a problem for longitudinal designs. Explain why not.Identify the appropriate statistical test for each of the following nonexperimental and quasi-experimental designs. a. A differential design b. A cross-sectional design comparing children at ages 10, 14, and 18The college offers all students an optional seminar on note taking and study skills. Suppose that a researcher compares personality scores for students who elected to take the seminar with the scores for students who did not. Identify the quasi-independent variable and the dependent variable for this study.Define a factorial research design, including the terms factor and level, and identity and describe factorial designs when they appear in a research report.Define a main effect for one factor and an interaction between factors, and be able to identify main effects and interactions in the results from a two-factor design.Explain how the existence of an interaction can influence the interpretation of main effects.Describe and explain the independent relationship between main effects and interactions.Explain how a factorial study can combine different research designs (between and within subjects) and different research strategies (experimental and nonexperimental) and identify these features when they appear in a research report.Identify the statistical analyses that are appropriate to evaluate the mean differences for two-factor designs, and explain the strengths and weaknesses of using two levels versus multiple levels for each factor.Describe three specific applications of the factorial design: (1) adding a factor to an existing study; (2) using a participant variable as a second factor to control the variance in a between-subjects design; and (3) using the order of treatments as a second factor to evaluate the order effects in a within-subjects design; explain the advantage of using a factorial design in these situations.In addition to the key words, you should also be able to define the following terms: Two-factor design Single-factor design Levels Three-factor design Higher-order factorial designIn a classic study, Shrauger (1972) examined the effect of an audience on performance for two groups of participants: high self-esteem and low self-esteem individuals. The participants in the study were given a problem-solving task with half of the individuals in each group working alone and the other half working with an audience. Performance on the problem-solving task was measured for each individual. The results showed that the presence of an audience had little effect on high self-esteem participants but significantly lowered performance for the low self-esteem participants. a. How many factors does this study have? What are they? b. Describe this study using the notation system that indicates factors and numbers of levels of each factor. c. Use a matrix to diagram the structure of the study.Suppose a researcher conducts a two-factor study comparing two treatments (I and II) for college graduates versus adults with no college experience. The structure of the study is shown in the following matrix. Treatment I. College graduate.. II. No college. a. If the results show that college graduates have higher scores than the no-college adults in treatment I and equivalent scores in treatment II. is it likely that there will be a main effect for the education factor? Is it likely that there will be an interaction? b. If the results show that college graduates have higher scores than the no-college adults in treatment I and lower scores than the no-college adults in treatment II, is it likely that there will be a main effect for the education factor? Is it likely that there will be an interaction?The following matrix represents the results (the means) from a 2 2 factorial study. One mean is not given. Al A2 B1 10 20 B2 20 a. What value for the missing mean would result in no main effect for factor A? b. What value for the missing mean would result in no main effect for factor B? c. What value for the missing mean would result in no interaction?The following data show the pattern of results that was obtained in a study by Liguori and Robinson (2001) examining how different levels of alcohol and caffeine consumption influenced response time in a simulated driving test. The means show the average response time in milliseconds for different combinations of alcohol and caffeine. For these data: a. Is there a main effect for alcohol? b. Is there an interaction? c. Does caffeine improve response time (produce faster times) for people who have consumed alcohol? d. Does caffeine eliminate the effect of alcohol on response time? No Caffeine 200 mg Caffeine 400 mg Caffeine Overall No alcohol M = 620 M = 600 M = 590 M = 603 Alcohol M = 720 M = 700 M = 690 M = 703 Overall M = 670 M = 650 M = 640Explain why the main effects in a factorial study may not provide an accurate description of the results?Explain what is meant by the concept that main effects and interactions are independent.In Figure 11.5, we show three combinations of main effects and interactions for a 2 2 factorial design. Using the same 2 2 structure, with factor A defining the rows and factor B defining the columns, create a set of means that produce each of the following patterns: a. A main effect for factors A and B, but no interaction. b. A main effect for factor A and an interaction, but no main effect for factor B. c. A main effect for both factors and an interaction. FIGURE 11.5 Three Possible Combinations of Main Effects and Interactions in a Two-Factor Experiment. (a) Data showing a main effect for factor A but no main effect for factor B and no interaction. (b) Data showing main effects for both factor A and factor B but no interaction. (c) Data showing no main effect for either factor, but an interaction.For a two-factor research study with two levels for factor A and four levels for factor B. how many participants are needed to obtain five scores in each treatment condition for each of the following situations? a. Both factors are between-subjects. b. Both factors are within-subjects. c. Factor A is a between-subjects factor and factor B is a within-subjects factor.A researcher would like to use a factorial study to compare two programs designed to help people stop smoking. The smoking behavior of each participant will be measured at the beginning of the program, at the end of the program, and again 4 months after the program has ended. Thus, the two treatment programs make up one factor, the three measurement times make up the second factor. For this study, which factor(s) should be between-subjects and which should be within-subjects? Explain your answer.A two-factor analysis of variance is used to evaluate the significance of the mean differences for the two-factor research study shown in the following table. The study is evaluating the effects of sugary versus nonsugary snacks on the activity level of preschool children. Identify the three F-ratios and, using the following data from a 2 × 2 design, identify the means (or mean differences) that are compared by each F-ratio. Before Snack After Snack Sugary snack M = 20 M = 24 M = 22 Nonsugary Snack M = 22 M = 26 M = 24 Overall M = 21 M = 25A researcher has demonstrated that a new non-competitive physical education program significantly improves self-esteem for children in a kindergarten program. a. What additional information can be obtained by introducing participant motor skill ability (high and low) as a second factor to the original research study? b. What additional information can be obtained by adding participant age (third grade, fifth grade, etc.) to the original study?Define the goal or purpose of the correlational research strategy and distinguish between a correlational study and experimental and differential research.2LOIdentify the statistical procedure used to determine a correlation for different types of data and explain what each correlation measures.Describe how correlations are used for prediction, measuring reliability and validity of measurement, and evaluating theories.5LOIn addition to the key words, you should also be able to define each of the following terms: Scatter plot Linear relationship Pearson correlation Monotonic relationship Spearman correlation Statistical significance of a correlation Regression Third-variable problem Directionality problem Multiple regressionExplain how the purpose of a correctional study differs from the purpose of an experimental study.Each of the following studies examines the relationship between sugar consumption and activity level for preschool children. Identify which is correlational, which is experimental, and which is nonexperimental. Study 1: A researcher obtains a sample of 100 pre-school children. Each childs parents are interviewed to determine the childs typical diet, and the child is assigned a score describing the amount of sugar consumed daily. Also, the childs activity level is obtained from direct observation on the playground. The results show that higher sugar consumption tends to be associated with a higher level of activity. Study 2: A researcher obtains a sample of 100 pre-school children. The children are randomly assigned to two groups. On arriving at school each morning, one group is given a high-sugar breakfast, and the other group is given a breakfast relatively low in sugar. After 1 week, each childs activity level is measured by direct observation on the playground. On average, the children in the high-sugar breakfast group had a higher level of activity than the children in the low-sugar group. Study 3: A researcher obtains a sample of 100 pre-school children. Based on interviews with the parents, the children are divided into two groups corresponding to high-sugar and low-sugar diets. The children are then observed on the playground Lo obtain an activity-level score for each child. On average, the children in the high-sugar group had higher activity scores than the children in the low-sugar group.Describe the pattern that would appear in a scatter plot showing the data points for each of the following correlations: r=0.9 and r=+0.3Suppose that there is a negative relationship between grade point average and the number of hours spent playing video games for high school boys. What grades would you predict for boys who spend more than the average amount of time playing video games?The following list contains several variables that differentiate college students. a. Select two variables from the list that should have a consistent relationship (either positive or negative). Briefly describe how you would do a correlational study to evaluate the relationship. b. Describe how you would do a nonexperimental, differential research study to evaluate the same relationship (see Box 10.1, p. 245). physical attractiveness intelligence alcohol consumption shyness exam anxiety hours of sleep per night hours of television per weekExplain the difference between a linear relationship and a monotonic relationship, and identify which correlation is used to measure each.Describe how the reliability of a personality test could be established using the results from a correlational study.Describe how the third-variable problem and the directionality problem limit the interpretation of results from correlational research designs.Describe the purpose of the descriptive research strategy, explain how it differs from the purpose of other research strategies, and identify this strategy when it is used in a research study.Describe the two general problems (observer influence and subjectivity) that can exist with behavioral observation, and explain how researchers attempt to minimize them.Describe the three techniques used to quantify behavioral observations and the three techniques used for sampling observations.4LODescribe the general characteristics of the observational research design; explain its strengths and weaknesses; and differentiate between natural observation, participant observation, and contrived observation.Describe the general characteristics of the survey research design.Define open-ended, restricted, and rating-scale questions; identify examples of these three types of questions; and describe the strengths and weaknesses of each.Describe the four methods for administering a survey (mail, phone, Internet, and in person) and explain the strengths and weaknesses of each, including the problems of nonresponse bias and interviewer bias.Describe the general characteristics of the case study design, identity the different situations for which this type of research is well suited, and explain its strengths and weaknesses.In addition to the key words, you should also be able to define each of the following terms: Descriptive research strategy. Behavioral observation. Habituation. Behavior categories. Inter-rater reliability. Frequency method. Duration method. Interval method. Time sampling. Event sampling. Individual sampling. Likert scale. Anchors. Response set. Nonresponse bias. Interviewer bias. Idiographic approach. Nomothetic approach.In this chapter, we introduced the observational research design, the survey research design, and the case study research design as examples of the descriptive research strategies. What differentiates these three designs from other research that uses behavioral observation, surveys, or case studies to obtain measurements?What is the purpose for determining a set of behavior categories and creating a list of specific behaviors to define each category before making behavioral observations.Describe how time, event, or individual sampling is done during behavioral observation, and explain why sampling may be necessary?Define content analysis, and explain how it is different from regular behavioral observational.Explain the distinction between naturalistic observation and participant observation, and describe the situations in which participant observation may be particularly useful.Explain the distinction between naturalistic observation and contrived observation, and describe the situations in which contrived observation may be particularly useful.What is the general advantage of using the survey research design instead of the observational design? In the same context, what is the disadvantage of survey research?Each of the following research studies uses a survey as a method for collecting data. However, not all of the studies are examples of the survey research design. Based on the information provided for each study, (a) indicate whether it is or is not an example of the survey research design and (b) briefly explain the reason for your answer. a. Based on a survey of 12,344 U.S. college students and 6,729 Canadian college students, Kuoetal.(2002) report that alcohol use is more common among Canadian than U.S. students, but heavy drinking (five or more drinks in a row for males. four or more for females) is significantly higher among U.S. students than Canadian students. b. To examine adolescent substance abuse, Li, Pentz, and Chou (2002) surveyed 1,807 middle school students from 57 schools. The results showed that a greater risk of adolescent substance abuse was associated with increasing numbers of parents and friends who were substance abusers. However, friends use did not affect adolescent substance abuse when parents were nonusers. c. Wolak, Mitchell, and Finkelhor (2002) used a survey of 1,501 adolescents to examine online relationships. The results showed that 14% reported close online friendships during the past year, 7% reported face-to-face meetings with online friends, and 2% reported romantic online relationships.Define the three types of survey questions (open ended, restricted, and rating-scale) and identify the relative strengths and weaknesses of each.11EMost research in the behavioral sciences involves gathering information from a group of participants. However, the case study design focuses on a single individual. Under what circumstances is the case study approach preferred to a group design?Describe the goal of single-case research and explain how single-case designs are related to other experimental designs, the descriptive case study, and the quasi-experimental time-series design.Identify the basic elements of a single-case experimental research design that make it a true experiment: manipulation and control (including baseline observations, multiple and stable observations, and replication of treatment effects).Describe the purpose of a phase in a single-case design and explain how patterns within a phase are defined, including the importance of stability of data.4LODescribe the structure of an ABAB reversal design and explain how the results from this design can demonstrate a cause-and-effect relationship.Identify the strengths and weaknesses of an ABAB reversal design and describe the circumstances in which it should or should not be used.Explain the circumstances in which an ABAB reversal design should be modified to create a more complex phase-change design and identify some options for the modification.Describe the structure of a multiple-baseline design and explain how the results from this design can demonstrate a cause-and-effect relationship.Identity and describe the component-analysis design and describe the circumstances in which it is used.Identify the strengths and weaknesses of a multiple-baseline design and describe the circumstances in which it should or should not be used.Identify the general advantages and disadvantages of single-case designs compared to traditional group designs.1E2ETraditional statistics (means, variances, and hypothesis tests) are not used to evaluate the results from a single-case study. Explain how the results are evaluated.4E5E6EWhat pattern of results is needed to provide convincing evidence that behavior changed when the phase was changed?Identify the four phases that make up an ABAB (reversal) design, and describe how the participant’s behavior is expected to change each time the phase is changed if the study is successful.In general, how does a phase-change design like the ABAB reversal design demonstrate that the treatment (rather than chance or coincidence) is responsible for causing changes in behavior?Explain why an ABAB reversal design is inappropriate for a treatment that has a permanent or long-lasting effect.11E12E13EHow does a multiple-baseline design rule out chance or coincidence as the explanation for changes in behavior that occur when the treatment is started?Suppose (hat a complex therapy procedure contains one component that has absolutely no effect on behavior. Explain how a component design could be used to demonstrate that the component has no effect.16EBriefly explain why a clinical psychologist might prefer doing research with a single-case instead of traditional group design.Define the two general categories of statistics, descriptive and inferential, and explain the purpose for each.2LO3LO4LO