Test yourself on these multiple-choice questions. Clicking on the letter of your choice will give you immediate feedback on whether you are correct. Even when you are incorrect, you will receive feedback that will help you learn the material better so that you do well on the exam.
Research is scientific if
(a) it is carried out by a well-trained research scientist.
(b) it involves both empirical and rational processes.
(c) it uses models and constructs to generate ideas.
(d) the purpose is to understand the universe around us.
Which of the following is NOT true
about the basic assumptions of science?
(a) We often do not know if the assumptions we make are
true.
(b) The scientist treats the assumption as if it were true
in order to proceed with further investigation.
(c) Some assumptions are shared by all scientists regardless
of their discipline.
(d) Assumptions are usually tested directly.
Constructs are to
inference as facts are to
(a) models.
(b) behavior.
(c) observation.
(d) science.
Which of the following represents
the major category of facts in psychology?
(a) Behavior of organisms.
(b) Human behavior.
(c) Motives and learned responses.
(d) Psychological theories.
Which of the following would NOT be
a fact?
(a) A person's IQ score.
(b) The response of a participant to an anxiety producing
situation.
(c) A person's memory.
(d) The time it takes a participant to complete a difficult
task.
An inference
(a) often assumes that an observed behavior is the result of
some unseen process.
(b) will be accurate if the behavioral observations on which
the inference is based are accurate.
(c) follows directly from a given set of observations.
(d) is indistinguishable from the facts on which the
inference is based.
Which of the following is NOT a
construct?
(a) intelligence
(b) gravity
(c) the ego
(d) age
A construct
(a) is an idea created by the researcher.
(b) is often designed to explain and/or predict behavior.
(c) is often used by the researcher as if it were actually
true.
(d) all of the above
Many of the therapists who use
psychoanalytic techniques have been accused of actually
believing that there is an ego, superego, and an id. If this
accusation were true, they would have committed a logical error
known as
(a) reification of a construct.
(b) construct validity.
(c) construct confusion.
(d) none of the above
Which of the following is true
about models in science?
(a) A model must be true in order to be scientifically
useful.
(b) A model is always an incomplete representation of
reality.
(c) Only true or accurate models will produce accurate
predictions.
(d) none of the above
Which of the following is an
example of inductive thinking?
(a) Reasoning that a man will be able to hit a golf ball
further than a woman because men generally have greater muscle
development than women.
(b) Assuming that the sun will rise tomorrow morning because
it rises every morning.
(c) Assuming that there is something that we name
intelligence because we notice that problem solving measures
show differences between people that seem to be consistent over
time.
(d) none of the above
Which of the following is an
example of deductive thinking?
(a) Figuring out who was the killer in a mystery story by
carefully considering all of the clues.
(b) Predicting what a friend would do in a particular
situation based on your thorough knowledge of how this friend
reacts.
(c) Developing a theory of planetary motion by observing the
movement of planets in the night sky.
(d) None of the above are examples of deductive thinking.
When we are reasoning from the
specific to the general, we are using ______ reasoning. In
contrast, when we are reasoning from the general to the
specific, we are using ______ reasoning.
(a) theoretical; predictive
(b) deductive; inductive
(c) inductive; deductive
(d) predictive; theoretical
In which of the following phases of
research is the researcher actually in contact with the
participants under study?
(a) problem-definition phase
(b) procedures design phase
(c) observation phase
(d) communication phase
In which of the following phases of
research does the researcher primarily use inductive reasoning?
(a) idea-generating phase
(b) problem-definition phase
(c) data-analysis phase
(d) interpretation phase
In which of the following phases of
research does the researcher primarily use deductive reasoning?
(a) problem-definition phase
(b) procedures design phase
(c) data-analysis phase
(d) interpretation phase
In what phase of research is the
empirical component of science most clearly visible?
(a) procedures design phase
(b) observation phase
(c) interpretation phase
(d) communication phase
In which of the following phases of
research is the public aspect of science most obvious?
(a) idea-generating phase
(b) observation phase
(c) interpretation phase
(d) communication phase
Which two levels of constraint
involve the direct comparison of two or more groups?
(a) naturalistic and case-study
(b) case-study and experimental
(c) experimental and differential
(d) correlational and differential
The level of constraint that
employs the greatest level of control is
(a) differential.
(b) experimental.
(c) case study.
(d) correlational.