Test Bank for Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences, 6th Edition by Susan Nolan
Chapter 01 6th Edition
Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
1. A nutritional researcher examined whether the size of breakfast could decrease overall food consumption
throughout the rest of the day. They create two breakfast groups, a 350-calorie breakfast and a 700-calorie
breakfast, assign nine participants to each group, and track their total calories eaten in 1 day. Because of the
detailed attention needed to accurately interview participants about their eating, they work with the high-
calorie group and have their assistant interview the low-calorie group. What is the dependent variable in this
study?
a. total calories consumed
b. the breakfasts
c. weight loss experienced in the day
d. the researcher conducting the interviews
ANSWER: a
2. Continuous observations are related to scale variables as _____ observations are related to nominal and
ordinal variable(s).
a. discrete
b. ratio
c. valid
d. reliable
ANSWER: a
3. A medical researcher was interested in assessing whether a new medication had side effects on reaction time.
They performed an experiment on a group of rats. One group of rats received the medication, and the other
group of rats did not. The researcher then measured reaction time differences between the two groups on a
series of tasks. In this experiment, the dependent variable is:
a. reaction time.
b. tasks.
c. rats.
d. medication.
ANSWER: a
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,Name: Class: Date:
Chapter 01 6th Edition
4. An article published on April 24, 2007, in the New York Times, summarized research conducted by Dr.
Vallortigara, a neuroscientist at the University of Trieste, Italy. In this study, Dr. Vallortigara assessed whether
a dog's tail wags in a preferred direction in response to positive as opposed to negative stimuli. Dr.
Vallortigara recruited 30 dogs that were family pets. Filming the dog's tail from above, he allowed the dog to
view (through a slot in its cage) its owner, an unfamiliar human, a cat, and an unfamiliar dominant dog. The
study found that dogs' tails wagged to the right for the owner and to the left for the unfamiliar dominant dog.
What type of measure was the dependent variable in this study?
a. nominal
b. ordinal
c. interval
d. ratio
ANSWER: a
5. The measurement of the performance of triathletes in a race based on their finishing places is a(n) _____
variable. The measurement of the performance of triathletes in a race based on their times to complete the
race is a(n) _____ variable.
a. ratio; interval
b. ordinal; ratio
c. ordinal; nominal
d. nominal; ordinal
ANSWER: b
6. A variable that is systematically linked with the factor a researcher believes is causing the overall effect in
your research is called the _____ variable. The presence of such a variable can prevent the researcher from
knowing what is really causing the effect.
a. independent
b. dependent
c. confounding
d. interfering
ANSWER: c
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,Name: Class: Date:
Chapter 01 6th Edition
7. An educational psychologist studies length of time in college, first through fourth year, and its relation to
academic motivation. To get the most detail out of their measures, they assess each student during both the
fall and spring semesters of each year they are in school. They find that students have increasingly higher
motivation from their first semester to their seventh semester (the start of their fourth year), with a trailing off
in the last semester. What is the predictor variable in this study?
a. year in school
b. semester in school
c. academic motivation
d. time of year in which the assessment was completed
ANSWER: b
8. When researchers refer to the term level, they are referring to:
a. a variable that is manipulated to determine its effects on another variable.
b. the discrete values that a variable can take on.
c. a situation in which two variables have the same value.
d. a situation in which there are no confounding variables.
ANSWER: b
9. A behavioral psychologist wanted to determine whether watching cartoons with animated violence increased
the aggression of third graders during afternoon recess. After showing a group of 25 students cartoons
containing violence, they observed that, on average, the students committed 4.2 aggressive behaviors during
recess. In this example, the descriptive statistic is:
a. the 4.2 aggressive behaviors.
b. the 25 students the researcher observed.
c. all third graders.
d. all third graders who watched cartoon violence.
ANSWER: a
10. Students at 24 college campuses around the country were polled to find out how many students owned
wireless headphones. The number of owners of wireless headphones at one campus represents a(n) _____
statistic.
a. population
b. descriptive
c. inferential
d. sample
ANSWER: b
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, Name: Class: Date:
Chapter 01 6th Edition
11. A variable that is manipulated or observed so as to determine its effects on another variable is the _____
variable.
a. scale
b. predictor
c. dependent
d. confounding
ANSWER: b
12. A nutritional researcher examined whether the size of breakfast could decrease overall food consumption
throughout the rest of the day. They create two breakfast groups, a 350-calorie breakfast and a 700-calorie
breakfast, assign nine participants to each group, and track their total calories eaten in 1 day. Because of the
detailed attention needed to accurately interview participants about their eating, they work with the high-
calorie group and have their assistant interview the low-calorie group. How many levels does the
independent variable have in this study?
a. 1
b. 2
c. 8
d. 16
ANSWER: b
13. A person's political affiliation is a(n) _____ variable.
a. nominal
b. ordinal
c. interval
d. ratio
ANSWER: a
14. A behavioral economist wanted to explore the association between the number of bathrooms in a house and
the sale price of the house. They studied 1314 home sales in an economically diverse, medium-sized city and
found that the average sale price went up by $83,000 for each full bath. What is a logical population to
which the researcher would want to extend this finding?
a. the 1314 homes involved in the research
b. home sales across the country in which the research was conducted
c. all home sales in diverse, medium-sized cities
d. home sales in this medium-sized city during the last decade
ANSWER: c
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Chapter 01 6th Edition
Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
1. A nutritional researcher examined whether the size of breakfast could decrease overall food consumption
throughout the rest of the day. They create two breakfast groups, a 350-calorie breakfast and a 700-calorie
breakfast, assign nine participants to each group, and track their total calories eaten in 1 day. Because of the
detailed attention needed to accurately interview participants about their eating, they work with the high-
calorie group and have their assistant interview the low-calorie group. What is the dependent variable in this
study?
a. total calories consumed
b. the breakfasts
c. weight loss experienced in the day
d. the researcher conducting the interviews
ANSWER: a
2. Continuous observations are related to scale variables as _____ observations are related to nominal and
ordinal variable(s).
a. discrete
b. ratio
c. valid
d. reliable
ANSWER: a
3. A medical researcher was interested in assessing whether a new medication had side effects on reaction time.
They performed an experiment on a group of rats. One group of rats received the medication, and the other
group of rats did not. The researcher then measured reaction time differences between the two groups on a
series of tasks. In this experiment, the dependent variable is:
a. reaction time.
b. tasks.
c. rats.
d. medication.
ANSWER: a
Page 1
,Name: Class: Date:
Chapter 01 6th Edition
4. An article published on April 24, 2007, in the New York Times, summarized research conducted by Dr.
Vallortigara, a neuroscientist at the University of Trieste, Italy. In this study, Dr. Vallortigara assessed whether
a dog's tail wags in a preferred direction in response to positive as opposed to negative stimuli. Dr.
Vallortigara recruited 30 dogs that were family pets. Filming the dog's tail from above, he allowed the dog to
view (through a slot in its cage) its owner, an unfamiliar human, a cat, and an unfamiliar dominant dog. The
study found that dogs' tails wagged to the right for the owner and to the left for the unfamiliar dominant dog.
What type of measure was the dependent variable in this study?
a. nominal
b. ordinal
c. interval
d. ratio
ANSWER: a
5. The measurement of the performance of triathletes in a race based on their finishing places is a(n) _____
variable. The measurement of the performance of triathletes in a race based on their times to complete the
race is a(n) _____ variable.
a. ratio; interval
b. ordinal; ratio
c. ordinal; nominal
d. nominal; ordinal
ANSWER: b
6. A variable that is systematically linked with the factor a researcher believes is causing the overall effect in
your research is called the _____ variable. The presence of such a variable can prevent the researcher from
knowing what is really causing the effect.
a. independent
b. dependent
c. confounding
d. interfering
ANSWER: c
Page 2
,Name: Class: Date:
Chapter 01 6th Edition
7. An educational psychologist studies length of time in college, first through fourth year, and its relation to
academic motivation. To get the most detail out of their measures, they assess each student during both the
fall and spring semesters of each year they are in school. They find that students have increasingly higher
motivation from their first semester to their seventh semester (the start of their fourth year), with a trailing off
in the last semester. What is the predictor variable in this study?
a. year in school
b. semester in school
c. academic motivation
d. time of year in which the assessment was completed
ANSWER: b
8. When researchers refer to the term level, they are referring to:
a. a variable that is manipulated to determine its effects on another variable.
b. the discrete values that a variable can take on.
c. a situation in which two variables have the same value.
d. a situation in which there are no confounding variables.
ANSWER: b
9. A behavioral psychologist wanted to determine whether watching cartoons with animated violence increased
the aggression of third graders during afternoon recess. After showing a group of 25 students cartoons
containing violence, they observed that, on average, the students committed 4.2 aggressive behaviors during
recess. In this example, the descriptive statistic is:
a. the 4.2 aggressive behaviors.
b. the 25 students the researcher observed.
c. all third graders.
d. all third graders who watched cartoon violence.
ANSWER: a
10. Students at 24 college campuses around the country were polled to find out how many students owned
wireless headphones. The number of owners of wireless headphones at one campus represents a(n) _____
statistic.
a. population
b. descriptive
c. inferential
d. sample
ANSWER: b
Page 3
, Name: Class: Date:
Chapter 01 6th Edition
11. A variable that is manipulated or observed so as to determine its effects on another variable is the _____
variable.
a. scale
b. predictor
c. dependent
d. confounding
ANSWER: b
12. A nutritional researcher examined whether the size of breakfast could decrease overall food consumption
throughout the rest of the day. They create two breakfast groups, a 350-calorie breakfast and a 700-calorie
breakfast, assign nine participants to each group, and track their total calories eaten in 1 day. Because of the
detailed attention needed to accurately interview participants about their eating, they work with the high-
calorie group and have their assistant interview the low-calorie group. How many levels does the
independent variable have in this study?
a. 1
b. 2
c. 8
d. 16
ANSWER: b
13. A person's political affiliation is a(n) _____ variable.
a. nominal
b. ordinal
c. interval
d. ratio
ANSWER: a
14. A behavioral economist wanted to explore the association between the number of bathrooms in a house and
the sale price of the house. They studied 1314 home sales in an economically diverse, medium-sized city and
found that the average sale price went up by $83,000 for each full bath. What is a logical population to
which the researcher would want to extend this finding?
a. the 1314 homes involved in the research
b. home sales across the country in which the research was conducted
c. all home sales in diverse, medium-sized cities
d. home sales in this medium-sized city during the last decade
ANSWER: c
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