PSY 2330 Exam 1 practice

Why is it important for professional psychologists to be familiar with research methods?

They might need to perform an evaluation to determine the effectiveness of an agency’s program

They might need to critically evaluate the scientific evidence for the effectiveness of some new clinical treatment for depression

Both A & C

None of the above—professional psychologists only need to apply the results of research; they need not be familiar with how the research was done

When students assume that their textbook must be correct, they are relying on _________ as a way of knowing.

The a priori method

Experience

Creativity

Authority

As psychologists use the term, determinism means that

Free choice does not exist

All the events of our lives have been "determined" ahead of time

Every event has a cause that can be known by using scientific methods

Events can be predicted with greater chance probability

Research psychologists believe all of the following EXCEPT:

The causes of behavior can be discovered by using scientific methods

If statistical determanism is true, than free choices cannot be made

It may not be possible to predict behavior with certainty

Making effective choices requires that events be predictable

A major characteristic of psychological science is its objectivity, which means that

Science is free from human biases

Psychologists assume that people are essentially machines

Observations can be verified by more than a single observer

Results of research are always reported in terms of numbers (statistics)

An objective is one

That can only be made by a mechanical recording device

Completely free from any personal bias on the part of the observer

That can be verified by a second observer

That cannot be questoned

Which of the following is most clearly phrased as an EMPERICAL QUESTION

Are Newborns essentially good or bad?

Do Catholics believe in the reality of hell?

Are the mind and body two separate entities?

Is there life after death?

Which of the following research studies is most obviously an example of basic research?

The effect of delaying reward on maze learning in mice

The effectiveness of hypnosis for improving courtroom eyewitness memory

Worker productivity in well-lit vs. poorly-lit environments

Whether hands-free cellphones are less disruptive to driving than hand-held cellphones

Applied Research

Always has mundane realism but seldom has experimental realism

Always has experimental realism but seldom has mundane realism

Can either be laboratory or field research

Is always field research, while basic research is laboratory research

A researcher is measuring aggression. Which of the following is most clearly inadequate as an operational definition of the term?

Choosing a button which makes it difficult for another subject to complete a task

Honking one's horn at an intersection for a period of more than two wseconds

Attempting to harm someone

Delivering electric shocks to a competitor

Operational definitions

Are seldom needed because of modern advances in behavioral technologies

Arechers in needed to force researchers in different laboratories to all use the exact same definition of a construct

Force researchers to be clear about defining the terms of their studies

Differ from one study to another, which means that using operational definitions hinders the replication process

Two researchers with two completely different operational definitions for aggression nonetheless produce the same result- frustration leads to agression. This outcome is referred to as

Exact replication

Operationalism

Converging operations.

Differ from one study to another, which means using operational definitions hinders the replication process

Which of the following is an example of a construct?

Entering arm # 3 of a radical maze

Using fingers when adding

Social effectiveness

Naming letters

The problem with relying on a belief that "experience is the best teacher" is that

Our experiences might be limited and influenced by bias

Our experiences seldom provide any information about what life is like

Relying on experience makes us overlook the most important source of knowledge- authorites

None of the above-personal experience is the ONLY reliable way to truth

Our experiences can be a valuable guide tot he truth, but drawing firm conclusions from experience can be affected by our tendencies to ignore events that don't support our beliefs. That is, we sometimes

Use the availability heuristic

Have a confirmation bais

Decide on the truth on the bias of logic rather than direct experience

Rely too much on introspection

Which of the following definitions of GREGARIOUS is more operational?

Texting with friends for at least three hours every week

Being open and friendly when in social gatherings with others

Laughing at friends' jokes even when they are not funny

A self-report from the subject that they are gregarious

Magazine surveys about your mental health

Have shown to be highly reliable

Have criterion validity but not construct validity

Have construct validity but not criterion validity

Have face validity but not construct validity

A test might appear to be a good test of native intelligence and yet it might do a very good job of predicting how well someone does in school. This is, this test

Has both face validity and predictive validity

Has criterion validity but not face validity

Is reliable but not valid

Has criterion validity but lacks reliability

For each of the following, a construct is paired with a measure. Which measure has the least content validity?

Creativity--crossword puzzle completetion

Delay of gratification--chosing to wait for a larger rewrd

Verbal intelligence--vocabulary

Short term memory--recall of nonsense syllables

PSY 2330 Exam 1 practice

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