Research Design and Methods A

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 Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Multiple Choice

1. In contrast to naturalistic observation, in a field survey you

a. simply observe the behaviors of your participants and take copious notes about them.
b. manipulate independent variables to see how they affect your participants’ behaviors.
c. directly question your participants about their behavior and underlying attitudes,
beliefs, and intentions.
d. are less concerned with experimenter bias.
Answer: c

2. A field survey can best be classified as a(n) ________ research strategy.

a. experimental
b. correlational
c. quasi-experimental
d. developmental
Answer: b

3. The inferences you can draw from a field survey about the factors underlying
behavior are limited by the fact that
a. you are able to manipulate only a limited number of independent variables.
b. extraneous variables are too rigidly controlled, thus limiting external validity.
c. you do not manipulate independent variables.
d. you cannot use the data to evaluate specific attitudes.
Answer: c

4. When you conduct survey research,

a. you must ensure that your participants are treated ethically.
b. you do not have to worry about ethics as much as you do when conducting
experiments.
c. the data you collect from your participants must always remain confidential.
d. as the researcher, you must ensure that you can never match up a participant’s name
with his or her responses.
Answer: a

5. If you promise your survey participants that you will maintain their anonymity, this
means you will
a. make sure that there will be no way for their names to be associated with their
responses.
b. take steps to make sure that only authorized personnel can gain access to any codes
used to associate the participant’s names and responses.
c. either a or b
d. not disclose any data in individual form, even if you know which participants filled
out which questionnaires (i.e., report only aggregate results).
Answer: c
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6. The first step in designing a questionnaire is to

a. write the questions.
b. decide on which demographic measures to include.
c. settle on a sampling strategy.
d. clearly define the topic of your study.
Answer: d

7. You should avoid the temptation to do too much in a single survey, because
a. this leads to an inordinately long questionnaire that may confuse or overburden your
participants.
b. it may make it more difficult for you to summarize and analyze your data.
c. both a and b
d. you will not have enough time left for coffee breaks.
Answer: c

8. Characteristics such as a participant’s age, sex, and income level are classified as
a. criterion variables.
b. causal variables.
c. demographics.
d. quasi-independent variables.
Answer: c

9. Demographic variables are often used as ________ variables.

a. criterion
b. independent
c. causal
d. predictor
Answer: d

10. A criterion variable

a. assesses the behavior or attitudes of participants.
b. is used to predict variation in some other variable.
c. should be eliminated from questionnaires, because it may confound results.
d. none of these
Answer: a

11. On a questionnaire, Dr. Jones asks participants to answer the following question:
“What do you think about the genetic engineering of food crops?” This question is an
example of a(n) ________ item.
a. restricted
b. partially restricted
c. free response
d. open-ended
Answer: d

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12. An advantage of an open-ended item is that

a. it allows a participant to answer a question in his or her own words.
b. the information obtained may be more complete or accurate than the information
obtained from other types of items.
c. participants are provided with several response alternatives, which keeps their
responses focused.
d. both a and b
Answer: d

13. A drawback to an open-ended item is that

a. the responses obtained may be difficult to code and analyze.
b. the item may place too many restrictions on the participant’s potential response.
c. it is more difficult to construct than other types of items.
d. all of these
Answer: a

14. The multiple-choice questions on this exam are ________ items.

a. open-ended
b. restricted
c. partially open-ended
d. partially restricted
Answer: b

15. The following item from a questionnaire is an example of a(n) ________ item:
The next car that I buy is most likely to be made by
___Ford
___General Motors
___Chrysler
___Toyota
___Nissan
___Other (Specify_____________________________________)
a. closed-ended
b. open-ended
c. partially open-ended
d. partially restricted
Answer: c

16. The advantage of restricted items over open-ended items is that

a. restricted items control the participant’s range of responses.
b. restricted items give the participant the opportunity to answer completely in his or her
own words.
c. restricted items are easier to construct than open-ended items.
d. you do not have to be as concerned with the format of the items.
Answer: a

17. A drawback of restricted items is that

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a. the data are difficult to code and analyze.

b. the information obtained is not as “rich” as the information obtained with an open-
ended item.
c. they are too often vague and leave the participant wondering what to say in an
answer.
d. none of these
Answer: b

18. Partially open-ended items represent an improvement over restricted items in that the
former provide
a. a larger number of highly specific response alternatives.
b. a continuous scale along which participant’s responses can be entered.
c. only half as many specific response alternatives, making them easier to answer.
d. an “other” category that gives the participant an opportunity to give an answer not
listed among the specific alternatives.
Answer: d

19. Which of the following is true of a rating scale?

a. Participants give a graded response to a question.
b. Rating scales should always have more than 10 points.
c. The data yielded can be difficult to analyze.
d. all of these
Answer: a

20. According to the text, a rating scale should not include fewer than ________ points.
a. 3
b. 5
c. 7
d. 10
Answer: b

21. Labeling each point on a scale versus labeling only the end points
a. significantly alters the responses participants give to a question.
b. usually does not significantly affect the responses participants give to a question.
c. may confuse the participant, so the practice should be avoided.
d. changes the underlying psychological dimension being measured.
Answer: b

22. Labeled points on a rating scale are called

a. pivots.
b. pegs.
c. weights.
d. anchors.
Answer: d

23. A type of rating scale widely used in attitude research is the

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 Chapter 9

a. unnumbered rating scale.

b. restricted rating scale.
c. Likert scale.
d. none of these
Answer: c

24. On a Likert scale, participants are required to

a. circle a number on a 10-point scale that best reflects how much they agree with a
statement.
b. check one of five alternatives indicating various degrees of agreement or
disagreement with a statement.
c. place a check along an unnumbered line to indicate the degree of disagreement with a
statement.
d. choose the upper and lower limits to the rating scale.
Answer: b

25. To write good survey items, you should

a. use simple words rather than complex words.
b. make the stem of a question short and easy to understand but use complete sentences.
c. avoid vague questions in favor of more precise ones.
d. all of these
Answer: d

26. To keep a questionnaire from appearing boring, Dillman (2000) suggests

a. placing demographic items right at the beginning of the questionnaire.
b. including many sensitive questions at the beginning of the questionnaire.
c. attacking several different issues with the same questionnaire.
d. making the first question interesting and engaging, so that participants are motivated
to continue.
Answer: d

27. Keeping related items together on a questionnaire contributes to the ________ of the
questionnaire.
a. internal consistency
b. reliability
c. continuity
d. external consistency
Answer: c

28. A technique used to handle questions asking for sensitive information is to

a. ask those questions first.
b. save all your objectionable questions for last.
c. not ask them at all.
d. place objectionable questions after less objectionable ones, perhaps even at the end of
the questionnaire.
Answer: d
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29. Although mail surveys are convenient, they do have drawbacks. Which of the
following is a drawback to mail surveys?
a. nonresponse bias
b. overresponse bias
c. random response bias
d. all of these
Answer: a

30. The single most important strategy for increasing the return rate of questionnaires in a
mail survey is to
a. have a cover letter that is forceful and intimidating to participants.
b. have a cover letter that pleads with participants to return the questionnaire.
c. make multiple contacts with respondents.
d. offer a small token of your appreciation.
Answer: c

31. Including a small token of your appreciation with a mailed questionnaire (for
example, a single dollar) has been found to
a. increase the return rate of mail surveys somewhat.
b. actually decrease the return rate of mail surveys.
c. increase the return rate of mail surveys only for women.
d. not significantly affect the return rate of mail surveys.
Answer: a

32. When conducting an Internet survey, e-mail surveys are best for
a. questionnaires that make use of complex navigational designs.
b. relatively short, simple questionnaires.
c. complex questionnaires involving multiple pages.
d. all of these
Answer: b

33. A significant advantage of using the Internet to conduct a survey is that

a. your sample is guaranteed to be representative of the general population.
b. you can reach a large body of potential participants with relative ease.
c. data can be collected quickly and easily, resulting in a large data set.
d. both b and c
Answer: d

34. Conducting a survey by administering your questionnaire on the Internet

a. allows you to reach a large body of potential participants with relative ease.
b. may produce a sample of respondents that is not representative of the general
population.
c. requires that you have the resources to post your survey on the Internet.
d. all of these
Answer: d
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35. Telephone surveys

a. offer a way to gather a large amount of data in a very short time.
b. are currently the most popular method of conducting surveys.
c. may not be the best way to administer a questionnaire, owing to the “backlash”
against telephone intrusions and new laws protecting people from unwanted calls.
d. using live interviewers have gained popularity since the invention of interactive voice
response (IVR) technology.
Answer: c

36. In a(n) ________ interview, the same questions are asked of participants in the same
order.
a. unstructured
b. structured
c. directed
d. undirected
Answer: b

37. An advantage of group-administered surveys is that

a. participants treat the questionnaire more seriously when they fill it out as a group than
when they fill it out alone.
b. it is easier to ensure anonymity when participants fill out the questionnaire as a group.
c. you do not have to worry about participants misplacing or forgetting about your
questionnaire.
d. participants are likely to be more honest in their responses.
Answer: c

38. When using face-to-face interviews, you should

a. train interviewers to ask questions in the same way for each participant.
b. train interviewers not to emphasize any particular words in the stem of a question or
in a response list.
c. try to anticipate any questions participants may have and provide your interviewers
with standardized responses.
d. all of these
Answer: d

39. Using a mixed-mode survey method has the possible advantage of

a. increasing the “coverage” area for potential respondents.
b. reducing nonresponse bias.
c. reducing the cost of administering the survey.
d. all of these
Answer: d

40. The ________ of a questionnaire refers to its ability to produce highly similar results
on repeated administrations of the questionnaire.
a. reliability
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b. continuity
c. validity
d. organization
Answer: a

41. Which of the following is a valid way of assessing the reliability of a questionnaire?
a. Administer the same questionnaire (or a parallel form) to the same participants more
than once.
b. Administer the questionnaire once and assess internal consistency.
c. Evaluate whether related items on the questionnaire are grouped.
d. both a and b
Answer: d

42. Before using test−retest reliability, you must consider

a. how long your questionnaire is.
b. the length of time between test administrations.
c. how many participants completed the test.
d. none of these
Answer: b

43. Using test−retest reliability to assess the reliability of a questionnaire is especially

problematic if
a. there are fewer than 100 participants who completed the questionnaire.
b. participants are likely to remember their answers on the first administration of the
questionnaire.
c. the ideas being tested are stable over time.
d. none of these
Answer: b

44. Dr. Loo administers a long and boring questionnaire concerning attitudes that tend to
fluctuate over time. When assessing the reliability of his questionnaire, Dr. Loo should
a. consider only test−retest reliability.
b. not worry about reliability at all.
c. avoid using test−retest reliability.
d. ignore reliability, but pay special attention to validity.
Answer: c

45. If you decide to assess reliability with multiple tests and use alternate forms of your
questionnaire, you would then use ________ to assess reliability.
a. internal consistency
b. Cohen’s Kappa
c. multiple-form reliability
d. parallel form reliability
Answer: d

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46. Which of the following statements would be true of using parallel forms to assess
reliability?
a. The technique eliminates all the problems associated with assessing reliability with
multiple tests.
b. The parallel forms must be equivalent.
c. The technique eliminates all the problems associated with assessing reliability with
multiple forms.
d. Parallel forms are used to assess split-half reliability.
Answer: b

47. ________ reliability involves dividing a test in half and correlating the items from
one half with the items from the other half.
a. Split-half
b. Test−retest
c. Parallel item
d. Split-form
Answer: a

48. The best way to divide items on a questionnaire for split−half reliability is
a. to use a first-half, second-half split.
b. to randomly select items for inclusion in each half.
c. to use an odd-even split.
d. none of these
Answer: c

49. Perhaps the most desirable way to assess reliability with a single test administration is
to apply
a. Pearson r.
b. Cohen’s Kappa.
c. the Kuder−Richardson formula.
d. none of these
Answer: c

50. The Kuder−Richardson formula is the best way to assess the reliability of a
questionnaire
a. via the test−retest method.
b. that was administered only once.
c. that was administered several times.
d. none of these
Answer: b

51. You can increase the reliability of your questionnaire by

a. increasing the number of items on the questionnaire.
b. standardizing administration procedures.
c. writing clear, appropriate questions.
d. all of these
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Answer: d

52. If the questions in your questionnaire cover the range of behaviors normally
considered to be part of the dimension you are assessing, your questionnaire has
a. content validity.
b. construct validity.
c. criterion-related validity.
d. sex appeal.
Answer: a

53. You establish the ______________ validity of a questionnaire by showing that the
questionnaire’s results agree with predictions based on theory.
a. content
b. construct
c. criterion-related
d. predictive
Answer: b

54. If you correlate your questionnaire’s results with those from another, established
measure, you are establishing the questionnaire’s ___________ validity.
a. content
b. construct
c. criterion-related
d. predictive
Answer: c

55. You establish your questionnaire’s ____________ validity by correlating its results
with some behavior that would be expected to occur, given the results.
a. content
b. construct
c. criterion-related
d. predictive
Answer: d

56. You establish your questionnaire’s concurrent validity by correlating its results with
a. predictions based on theory.
b. the results of another measure of the same dimension administered at the same time.
c. the results of an established measure.
d. some behavior that would be expected to occur, given the results.
Answer: b

57. A sample consisting of participants whose characteristics closely match the

characteristics of the population is a ________ sample.
a. systematic
b. balanced
c. random
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d. representative
Answer: d

58. A sample consisting of participants who are not representative of the population is
a(n) ________ sample.
a. biased
b. nonrandom
c. stratified
d. unbalanced
Answer: a

59. According to the text, the failure of the Literary Digest survey to accurately project
the winner of the Landon versus Roosevelt election was caused by
a. nonresponse bias.
b. a poorly designed questionnaire.
c. a biased sample.
d. using stratified sampling instead of simple random sampling.
Answer: c

60. In ________ sampling, each member of the population has an equal chance of
appearing in your sample.
a. stratified
b. cluster
c. matched
d. simple random
Answer: d

61. ________ is a technique that can be used in a telephone survey to ensure random
sampling.
a. Cluster sampling
b. Multistage sampling
c. Random digit dialing
d. Sequential digit dialing
Answer: c

62. Dr. Myers is conducting a survey of attitudes toward social programs. He wants to be
sure that he has White and non-White participants in his sample. Consequently, he
divides his population into groups according to race and then randomly samples from
each group. This is an example of ________ sampling.
a. simple random
b. stratified
c. cluster
d. multistage
Answer: b

63. Simple random sampling

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a. guarantees that your sample will be representative of the population.

b. does not guarantee that your sample will be representative of the population.
c. works better than more sophisticated sampling techniques to help ensure a
representative sample.
d. is more difficult to carry out than more sophisticated sampling techniques.
Answer: b

64. A technique you can use to ensure that your stratified sampling retains the character
of the population (in terms of the proportion of the sample represented by each group) is
a. proportionate sampling.
b. simple random sampling within strata.
c. multistage sampling.
d. none of these
Answer: a

65. In ________, you select every kth element after a random start.
a. proportionate sampling
b. random digit dialing
c. stratified sampling
d. systematic sampling
Answer: d

66. In ________ sampling, you identify naturally occurring groups (for example, classes
in a school) and sample some of those groups.
a. modified stratified
b. systematic
c. cluster
d. multistage
Answer: c

67. Using a nonrandom sample (such as a convenience sample) in your research

a. limits the generality of your results.
b. may be necessary as a practical matter.
c. is perfectly acceptable for most interests in psychology.
d. all of these
Answer: d

68. A sample that includes enough participants to ensure a valid survey, and no more, is
a(n) ________ sample.
a. stratified
b. limited
c. economic
d. frugal
Answer: c

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69. When determining a sample size needed for a valid survey, you must take into
account the
a. size of the population.
b. amount of acceptable error and the expected magnitude of the population proportions.
c. size of the population and the amount of acceptable sampling error.
d. amount of sampling error only.
Answer: b

70. You can estimate the magnitude of differences in the population by

a. consulting the results of previous surveys.
b. conducting a pilot survey.
c. using your intuition about expected differences.
d. both a and b
Answer: d

71. Sampling error

a. is the deviation of sample characteristics from those of the population.
b. is not a major problem in most surveys.
c. cannot be effectively reduced.
d. none of these
Answer: a

72. The finite population correction (f.p.c.) must be taken into account if the population is
a. large.
b. heterogeneous.
c. homogeneous.
d. small.
Answer: d

True/False

73. Field surveys are used to establish causal relationships among variables.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a

74. The first step in designing a questionnaire is to clearly define the topic of study.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a

75. Open-ended items elicit more complete and accurate information than do restricted
items.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
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76. The data obtained from an open-ended item are easier to analyze than the data
obtained from a restricted item.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b

77. Participants may not be willing to use the extreme ends of a rating scale.
Consequently, rating scales should include at least five points.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a

78. Labeling each point on a rating scale changes the underlying psychological dimension
being measured by the scale.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b

79. Objectionable questions asking for sensitive information should be placed before less
objectionable questions on a questionnaire.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b

80. Research has shown that the order in which questions are placed on a questionnaire
can affect responses to those questions.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a

81. The larger the token gift included with a questionnaire, the higher the return rate.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b

82. Administering a questionnaire to a captive audience (for example, freshman

psychology students during class periods) can reduce nonresponse bias.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a

83. The term reliability refers to whether a test measures what it is intended to measure.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
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84. If you assess reliability by administering a test more than once, you are establishing
test-retest reliability.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a

85. One way to evaluate the reliability of a test with a single administration is to evaluate
split-half reliability.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a

86. The best way to evaluate split-half reliability is to correlate the items on the first half
of a test with those on the second half.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b

87. If the results of your new test correlate highly with those of an existing test, you have
established criterion-related validity.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a

88. Biased sampling can lead to drastic misinterpretation of results from a survey.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a

89. Stratified sampling eliminates sampling bias.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b

90. Having participants write in for a questionnaire from a magazine advertisement

results in a representative sample.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b

91. Random sampling guarantees a representative sample.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b

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92. Proportionate sampling is used to make sure that no one group is overrepresented in
your sample.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a

93. A sample of 30,000 is always better than a sample of 1,500.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b

94. The acceptable margin of error for a survey is 10%.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b

Essay Questions

95. Discuss some of the common flaws in questionnaire item construction, and how they
can be handled.

96. What are the strengths and weaknesses of mail surveys? What steps can be taken to
reduce nonresponse bias?

97. What are the advantages and disadvantages of conducting a survey by posting it on a
Web page on the Internet?

98. Imagine that you are going to conduct a survey using a face-to-face interview
technique. Which interview technique would you use and why?

99. Discuss the ways that you could evaluate the reliability of a questionnaire. In your
answer, describe the advantages and disadvantages of each.

100. Imagine that you have tested the reliability of your questionnaire and have found it
to have low reliability. What can you do to increase its reliability?

101. Describe and discuss how you would go about establishing the validity of a
questionnaire.

102. Imagine that you are going to conduct a mail survey concerning attitudes toward
using tax increases to reduce the budget deficit. Of course, you want a representative
sample. Outline the sampling technique(s) you would employ to ensure a valid survey.

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