POS 3713 Großer Exam 2 #Questions with correct
answers
1. Which of the following is true if a study used random sampling to select its
participants?
(a) It means that the causal conclusions reached in the study about the
relationship between X and Y are scientifically valid.
(b) It means that every member of the population was given the opportunity to
participate in the study.
(c) It means that the results are more likely to be statistically significant.
(d) It means that every member of the population had an equal probability of
being selected to participate in the study. - ✔✔D
2. Which of the following best captures the difference between experimental and
observational research designs?
(a) Experimental designs control for confounding variables through randomly
assigning participants to different treatment groups, while observational designs
accomplish this through statistical controls.
(b) Experimental designs are less prone than observational designs to bias caused
by a researcher unintentionally influencing the behaviors of participants.
(c) Reverse causality is more likely to be problematic in experimental designs.
(d) Experimental designs are more likely to have problems with internal validity
because of how they recruit participants, whereas observational designs do not
suffer from this difficulty as often. - ✔✔A
, 3. A competent researcher would be least likely to study which of the following
using an experimental research design?
(a) The influence of negative media coverage on Iraq War opinions.
(b) The influence of emotional rhetoric on candidate evaluations.
(c) The influence of personal ideology on candidate evaluations.
(d) The influence of peer-group discussions on Iraq War opinions. - ✔✔C
4. What is the most significant benefit of randomly assigning participants to
different treatment groups?
(a) It ensures that the sample is an accurate representation of the population at
large.
(b) It ensures that you have a credible causal mechanism linking X to Y.
(c) Both (a) and (b).
(d) It controls for other possible causes of the dependent variable. - ✔✔D
5. Which of the following is not a potential drawback of experimental research
designs?
(a) Not every independent variable is subject to experimental manipulation.
(b) Experiments often suffer from low degrees of external validity.
(c) Experiments sometimes have trouble sorting out whether X causes Y or Y
causes X.
(d) Some experimental situations create ethical dilemmas for researchers. - ✔✔C
answers
1. Which of the following is true if a study used random sampling to select its
participants?
(a) It means that the causal conclusions reached in the study about the
relationship between X and Y are scientifically valid.
(b) It means that every member of the population was given the opportunity to
participate in the study.
(c) It means that the results are more likely to be statistically significant.
(d) It means that every member of the population had an equal probability of
being selected to participate in the study. - ✔✔D
2. Which of the following best captures the difference between experimental and
observational research designs?
(a) Experimental designs control for confounding variables through randomly
assigning participants to different treatment groups, while observational designs
accomplish this through statistical controls.
(b) Experimental designs are less prone than observational designs to bias caused
by a researcher unintentionally influencing the behaviors of participants.
(c) Reverse causality is more likely to be problematic in experimental designs.
(d) Experimental designs are more likely to have problems with internal validity
because of how they recruit participants, whereas observational designs do not
suffer from this difficulty as often. - ✔✔A
, 3. A competent researcher would be least likely to study which of the following
using an experimental research design?
(a) The influence of negative media coverage on Iraq War opinions.
(b) The influence of emotional rhetoric on candidate evaluations.
(c) The influence of personal ideology on candidate evaluations.
(d) The influence of peer-group discussions on Iraq War opinions. - ✔✔C
4. What is the most significant benefit of randomly assigning participants to
different treatment groups?
(a) It ensures that the sample is an accurate representation of the population at
large.
(b) It ensures that you have a credible causal mechanism linking X to Y.
(c) Both (a) and (b).
(d) It controls for other possible causes of the dependent variable. - ✔✔D
5. Which of the following is not a potential drawback of experimental research
designs?
(a) Not every independent variable is subject to experimental manipulation.
(b) Experiments often suffer from low degrees of external validity.
(c) Experiments sometimes have trouble sorting out whether X causes Y or Y
causes X.
(d) Some experimental situations create ethical dilemmas for researchers. - ✔✔C
