NURS 443 Practice Exams - Research 1

NURS 443 Chapter 1 Multiple Choice 1. Sally knows that babies come from the stork because her mother tells her so. This method of acquiring knowledge is known as a. the scientific method. b. a logical syllogism. c. the method of authority. d. the method of tenacity. ANSWER: c (p. 4) 2. Paul thinks that day care is bad for children because he’s heard it over and over from various sources. This method of acquiring knowledge is known as a. the scientific method. b. a logical syllogism. c. the method of authority. d. the method of tenacity. ANSWER: d (pp. 3-4) 3. One problem with acquiring knowledge using the method of tenacity is that a. repeating a fact does not necessarily make it true. b. it relies on empirical investigations. c. it uses independent and dependent variables. d. it controls for extraneous variables. ANSWER: a (p. 4) 4. The degree to which a knowledge claim is accurate is referred to as a. reliability. b. validity. c. authority. d. tenacity. ANSWER: b (p. 3) 5. A scheme of formal logic or argument consisting of a major premise, a minor premise, and a conclusion is known as a(n) a. logical syllogism. b. extraneous variable. c. experiment. d. theory. ANSWER: a (p. 5) 6. Complete the following logical syllogism: Beautiful people are good. Claudia is a beautiful person. Therefore, a. Claudia is beautiful. b. good people are beautiful. c. Claudia is good. d. All of the above. ANSWER: c (p. 5) 7. James believes that spanking is not detrimental to children because he was spanked as a child and he turned out fine. James is using which method of acquiring knowledge? a. Tenacity b. Experience c. Authority d. None of the above. ANSWER: b (pp. 4-5) 8. Which of the following is NOT a key element in the scientific method? a. Objective measurements b. Self-correction of errors c. Confirmation of findings d. Having extraneous variables ANSWER: d (pp. 5-6) 9. Janet conducts a study and finds that, similar to previous research, students by themselves worked harder than students in groups (a phenomenon known as social loafing). In addition, she found that social loafing could be lessened if the students in the group knew each other well. Janet’s study represents a. replication. b. replication with extension. c. lack of control. d. the method of tenacity. ANSWER: b (p. 7) 10. An empirical study is based on a. the method of tenacity. b. the method of authority. c. the method of experience. d. objectively quantifiable observations. ANSWER: d (p. 6) 11. Which of the following scenarios correctly depicts the self-correcting nature of science? a. Jane controls various extraneous variables in her study on self-esteem. b. Mark conducts a replication with extension study on deindividuation and finds that the previous research reached a faulty conclusion. c. Kelly conducts a study illustrating a cause-and-effect relationship between distraction and reading comprehension. d. Ray conducts an empirical research study on racial discrimination. ANSWER: b (p. 7) 12. In one study, half of the rats are given one food pellet each time they correctly run a maze, and the other half of the rats are given two food pellets each time they correctly run a maze. The researchers record the average amount of time it takes the rats to run the maze. In this study, the number of food pellets represents the variable. a. independent b. dependent c. extraneous d. intrinsic ANSWER: a (p. 8) 13. In one study, students read a fictitious job application. The applications are identical except that half have a female name (“Joan”) and half have a male name (“John”). The students rate the likelihood of the applicant succeeding at the job. What is the dependent variable? a. The name on the job application b. The students c. The students’ ratings of the applicants’ success d. The gender of the students ANSWER: c (p. 8) 14. Mary is interested in determining if active learning strategies promote better student learning than passive learning strategies. She teaches groups of volunteer students for one hour, using active learning strategies with half of the students and passive learning strategies with the other half of the students. The students are then given a test over the material and Mary records the number of items each student answers correctly. In this study, the independent variable is and the dependent variable is . a. type of learning strategy; number of correct answers b. number of correct answers; type of learning strategy c. number of correct answers; the test d. type of learning strategy; the test ANSWER: a (p. 8) 15. Which of the following is NOT a component of an experiment? a. Control of extraneous variables b. Manipulation of the independent variable c. Measurement of the dependent variable d. Manipulation of the dependent variable ANSWER: d (p. 8) 16. Undesired variables that could invalidate an experiment are referred to as variables. a. independent b. dependent c. extraneous d. intrinsic ANSWER: c (p. 9) 17. Cause-and-effect relationships can be determined through a. replications. b. experiments. c. empirical research. d. None of the above. ANSWER: b (p. 9) 18. Shayla conducts a study in which a confederate dresses up either in nice clothes or shabby clothes. The confederate goes to the mall and asks people for directions. Shayla hypothesizes that more people will help the confederate when he is nicely dressed rather than shabbily dressed. Which of the following represents control of an extraneous variable? a. The type of clothing worn by the confederate at the mall b. The number of people who stop to give directions c. The same student is used as the confederate (sometimes dressed in nice clothes and sometimes dressed in shabby clothes) d. None of the above. ANSWER: c (p. 9) 19. A theory is designed to a. organize existing scientific data. b. guide new research. c. Both (a) and (b). d. None of the above. ANSWER: c (p. 14) 20. “Students who have been given extra credit will report more satisfaction with their course than students who have not been given extra credit.” This statement best represents a(n) a. theory. b. hypothesis. c. extraneous variable. d. problem. ANSWER: b (p. 14) 21. Janell has discovered in her literature review that people often learn by imitation and observation (termed social learning). For example, when children see an adult behave violently toward a doll, they often imitate this violent behavior. Janell decides to do a study in which children who are initially afraid of snakes either view an adult playing with a snake or view nothing at all. She thinks that the children who view an adult playing with a snake will be more likely to later pet a snake than children who view nothing at all. Which of the following statements best represents the hypothesis? a. “Social learning refers to the idea that people often learn by imitation and observation.” b. “Children who view an adult playing with a snake will be more likely to later pet a snake than children who view nothing at all.” c. “Past research has found that when children see an adult behave violently toward a doll, they often imitate the violent behavior.” d. All of the above can be considered hypotheses. ANSWER: b (p. 14) 22. Which of the following components of the research process should be conducted first? a. Conducting the experiment b. Conducting the literature review c. Coming up with the hypothesis d. Data analysis ANSWER: b (p. 13) 23. The general plan for selecting participants, assigning participants to experimental conditions, controlling extraneous variables, and gathering data is known as the a. hypothesis. b. theory. c. research design. d. literature review. ANSWER: c (p. 15) 24. Which of the following steps in the research process occurs AFTER the data is collected? a. Formulate the hypothesis. b. Conduct a literature review. c. Make decisions in terms of past research and theory. d. Consider theories relevant to your project. ANSWER: c (p. 13) 25. Which of the following is a reason given in your textbook for why the Research Methods course is important? a. A course in research methods can help with other psychology courses. b. A course in research methods can help with research students may conduct in post-graduation jobs. c. A course in research methods can help students become more savvy consumers of research. d. All of the above. ANSWER: d (pp. 20-21) Chapter 2 1. Joanna, a budding undergraduate researcher, is interested in studying whether people see bright lights after they die. Why is this a poor research idea? a. Everyone already knows that people see bright lights after they die. b. It is too big of an idea for an undergraduate to tackle. c. This project is not testable. d. None of the above. ANSWER: c (p. 24) 2. If a research idea just “pops” into your mind unexpectedly, you have gotten your research idea through a. serendipity. b. past research. c. inspiration. d. a systematic source. ANSWER: c (p. 26) 3. Sources for research ideas that present themselves in an unpredictable manner are known as a. nonsystematic sources. b. systematic sources. c. theories. d. research articles. ANSWER: a (p. 25) 4. Sources for research ideas that are thoroughly examined and carefully thought out are known as a. everyday occurrences. b. inspiration. c. systematic sources. d. nonsystematic sources. ANSWER: c (p. 27)