1
SMPA 1050 Final Questions with Answers (100% Correct
Answers)
survey Answer: -a technique for ascertaining the self-reported
attitudes or behaviors of a particular group, usually by questioning a
representative, random sample of the group
pro: generalizable
con: cannot make strong claims, minor variation in wording and order
of questions and social desirability affect responses
content analysis Answer: the systematic coding and objective
recording of data, guided by some rationale, identifying patterns in
data
pros: cheap, high reliability, quantifies meaning
cons: if coding is inaccurate then the findings are invalid, context can
be ignored, not valid on its own
Experiments Answer: a technique that tests predicted relationships
among variables in a controlled environment
© 2025 All rights reserved
,2
pros: causal inferences, control over administration of independent
variables, internal validity
cons: not always generalizable, lacks external validity
Independent variable Answer: Things that influence, effect, or cause
other things
example: strategy framed news stories
dependent variable Answer: things that are influenced, affected, or
moved
population Answer: the universe of things you are interested in
understanding
example: Americans, voters, likely voters
sample Answer: a smaller portion of that population that you analyze
because the population is too big
meant to be representative
internal validity Answer: extent to which we can draw cause-and-
effect inferences from a study
© 2025 All rights reserved
, 3
is the study conducted properly
external validity Answer: extent to which we can generalize findings
to real-world settings
Codebook Answer: -a document that contains explicit directions about
how data from data collection forms are coded in the data file
-defines all variables
intercoder reliability Answer: in content analysis, the degree of
agreement between or among independent coders
crime story Answer: -A type of story most likely to lead to newscast
-up to 83% of the lead stories can be this type
print and broadcast agendas Answer: similarities between two news
platforms that cover crime the most while leaving out other stories and
newscast, newspaper Answer: Much greater difference between crime
and entertainment in __________ than __________
newsrooms think people don't care about politics, zoned coverage,
crime has universal appeal Answer: Why doesn't local broadcast news
not cover the local news
© 2025 All rights reserved
SMPA 1050 Final Questions with Answers (100% Correct
Answers)
survey Answer: -a technique for ascertaining the self-reported
attitudes or behaviors of a particular group, usually by questioning a
representative, random sample of the group
pro: generalizable
con: cannot make strong claims, minor variation in wording and order
of questions and social desirability affect responses
content analysis Answer: the systematic coding and objective
recording of data, guided by some rationale, identifying patterns in
data
pros: cheap, high reliability, quantifies meaning
cons: if coding is inaccurate then the findings are invalid, context can
be ignored, not valid on its own
Experiments Answer: a technique that tests predicted relationships
among variables in a controlled environment
© 2025 All rights reserved
,2
pros: causal inferences, control over administration of independent
variables, internal validity
cons: not always generalizable, lacks external validity
Independent variable Answer: Things that influence, effect, or cause
other things
example: strategy framed news stories
dependent variable Answer: things that are influenced, affected, or
moved
population Answer: the universe of things you are interested in
understanding
example: Americans, voters, likely voters
sample Answer: a smaller portion of that population that you analyze
because the population is too big
meant to be representative
internal validity Answer: extent to which we can draw cause-and-
effect inferences from a study
© 2025 All rights reserved
, 3
is the study conducted properly
external validity Answer: extent to which we can generalize findings
to real-world settings
Codebook Answer: -a document that contains explicit directions about
how data from data collection forms are coded in the data file
-defines all variables
intercoder reliability Answer: in content analysis, the degree of
agreement between or among independent coders
crime story Answer: -A type of story most likely to lead to newscast
-up to 83% of the lead stories can be this type
print and broadcast agendas Answer: similarities between two news
platforms that cover crime the most while leaving out other stories and
newscast, newspaper Answer: Much greater difference between crime
and entertainment in __________ than __________
newsrooms think people don't care about politics, zoned coverage,
crime has universal appeal Answer: Why doesn't local broadcast news
not cover the local news
© 2025 All rights reserved
