question

Kara interviews five drug users and discovers that four regularly carry weapons. Based on this information, she argues that drug users are more likely to carry weapons than others. This is an example of:

answer

Overgeneralization

question

Evaluation research usually emerges from:

answer

Policy motivations

question

Exploratory research is generally concerned with:

answer

Uncovering detailed information about a given phenomenon

question

Which of the following best describes an example of descriptive research about youth gang members?

answer

A study examining who gang members are and what their activities are

question

Which of the following is not a standard motivation for criminological research?

answer

Professional

question

Which of the following is not a general error in everyday reasoning?

answer

Causal/Internal validity

question

Which of the following terms refers to an error in which we unjustifiably conclude that our observations for some cases is true for all cases?

answer

Overgeneralization

question

Examining the effect of a drug court program on offenders' drug use is an example of:

answer

Evaluation research

question

Which of the following is not a type of research method?

answer

Generalizing

question

Knowing how to conduct research leads to valid interpretations of the social world. Which of the following is an aspect of validity?

answer

All of the above

question

Which of the following is not a consideration when evaluating research questions?

answer

Personal beliefs and philosophies

question

One of the most important requirements of theory is that it is:

answer

Testable

question

What is the dependent variable in the following research question, "If inmates are visited more frequently will they be more likely to follow prison rules regardless of their gender, age, or ethnicity?"

answer

Frequency of rule violations

question

A researcher argues that individuals with low self-control are more likely to commit crimes than individuals with high self-control. The independent variable in this proposition can be stated most clearly as:

answer

The intensity of self control

question

...association between urban gangs and violence. He then constructs a theory stating that violent behavior is a function of deviant subcultures. His research project is an example of:

answer

Inductive research

question

Knowing how to conduct research leads to valid interpretations of the social world. Which of the following is an aspect of validity?

answer

All of the above

question

The domestic violence study conducted in 1984 by Sherman and Berk had an ethical concern in that:

answer

They potentially withheld a beneficial treatment

question

Which of the following is not a current ethical standard?

answer

Subjects should be financially compensated for their time and effort

question

The ethics of Zimbardo's prison study have been debated because researchers:

answer

Permitted several "prisoners" to experience severe psychological negative reactions

question

Which of the following is not an aspect of the requirement that subjects give informed consent to participate in research?

answer

Subjects must be fully debriefed after the study

question

Committees which review research proposals for adherence to ethical guidelines are called _______ Review Boards

answer

Institutional

question

Sara presents subjects with photographs of people and asks them to describe their impressions. In order to get their honest opinions, she does not tell them that she is studying the stereotypes people form based on race and gender. In order to adhere to ethical guidelines as best as possible, she should:

answer

Debrief them at the end

question

Researchers with a ______ philosophy believe that by being objective and unbiased they can see reality clearly, while researchers with a ______ philosophy believe that they can only achieve intersubjective agreement about the nature of reality.

answer

Positivist, postpositivist

question

Understanding the meanings people give reality instead of how reality works is the goal of:

answer

Interpretivism

question

Which of the following is not a positivist guideline about how to conduct research?

answer

Become personally invested in a particular outcome

question

Which is not one of the eight positivist research guidelines?

answer

Avoid regularities and patterns

question

In criminological research, disproportionate stratified sampling:

answer

Could be used to provide equal numbers of male and female offenders

question

Which of the following terms could not be used to describe a random sample?

answer

Haphazard or unplanned. Systematic, Chance, Representative, and Probability do describe a random sample.

question

Which of the following is a non-probability sampling method?

answer

Convenient sampling and Quota sampling

question

One hundred cases are sampled from a population of 1000. Each case is identified by a number on the sampling frame. If the number for a given case is selected, this case is considered to be in the sample but its number is not removed from the sampling frame. Thus, by the time the sample of 100 cases is selected, the same case could be sampled more than once. This procedure:

answer

Is an acceptable way to draw a simple random sample

question

Which set of section headings most closely matches the components expected in a research study?

answer

Methods, Data Analysis, Findings, Limitations of the Study and Directions for Further Research, References

question

The section of a research study where you find the goals of the research or the question/problem that a researcher is attempting to answer is:

answer

Introduction- states the goals of the research

question

When evaluating a research study, what criteria might help you determine if the research is objective towards a particular outcome?

answer

The funding source or sponsor- could give you indication whether the author might have an interest in the outcome of the research study

question

Choose the group of publication sources below that use the most stringent quality control processes:

answer

National Institute of Health Web Site, Yale University Press, American Journal of Medicine

question

Which section of a research study explains the evidence about collected data and how it was analyzed in a research process?

answer

Results

question

Which author below is most likely to have written a quality research study about a tropic in the environmental sciences?

answer

A researcher with a Ph.D in Atmospheric Chemistry who has published articles in The Journal of Physical Chemistry- author with advanced degrees and expertise in a subject area typically perform and publish research to contribute to new knowledge to their field or discipline.

question

Specifying exactly what we mean and don't mean by the terms we use un our research is known as

answer

Conceptualization

question

Different aspects of a concept are known as

answer

Dimensions

question

A proxy used to capture a dimension is known as

answer

indicatior

question

Officer Davis believes that all juveniles who wear their pants below their waistline are involved in gang activity and so one evening on patrol when he observes a group of teenagers wearing their pants below their waistlines, he detains them. Which error in everyday reasoning did Officer Davis make?

answer

overgeneralization

question

While studying recidivism rates of offenders released from one prison, Dr. Smith observes that a majority of inmates with substance abuse problems return to prison within six months. Even though the prison Dr. Smith is studying is the only one in the state without a substance abuse treatment program, Dr. Smith concludes that all inmates in the state with substance abuse problems are more likely to recidivate. Which error in everyday reasoning did Dr. Smith made?

answer

overgeneralization

question

Travis reads a collection of journal articles about capital punishment, the majority of which find evidence that capital punishment does not have any long term effect on homicide rates. Later when asked his opinion about capital punishment Travis responds, "I think that the fear of being put to death will deter most crime, especially homicide." Which error in everyday reasoning has Travis made?

answer

Resistance ot change

question

Dr. Allan comes from a long line of teachers who all teach by lecturing to students and then testing students to determine how well they learned what they heard in their lectures. Another faculty member tells Dr. Allan about the success attributed in various research studies to using group projects to teach certain concepts. Dr. Allan responds, "That may be useful for you, but my family has had success teaching our way for decades and I don't see any reason to change." Which error in everyday reasoning has Dr. Allan made?

answer

Resistance to change

question

Dr. Johnson is conducting a series of research studies on the effect of technology resources in police patrol vehicles on accident rates among police officers. His study is funded by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) for the purpose of proposing new procedures on the use of laptop computers in patrol vehicles. Which of the follow most accurately describes the motivation for Dr. Johnson's research from the perspective of IACP?

answer

Policy motivation

question

Cindy is conducting a study that seeks to determine how many inmates in a state prison system suffered from various types of childhood abuse. Which of the following purposes of research most accurately describes her study?

answer

Descriptive research

question

When we conclude that what we have observed or what we know to be true for some cases is true for all cases:

answer

Overgeneralization

question

Choosing to look only at things that align with our preferences or beliefs

answer

Selective observation

question

When we prematurely jump to conclusions or argue on the basis of invalid assumptions, we are using:

answer

Illogical reasoning

question

The reluctance to change our ideas in light of new information, may occur for several reasons:

answer

Resistance to change 1. ego-based commitments 2. Excessive devotion to tradition 3. Uncritical agreement with authority

question

Research in which social phenomena are defined and describes

answer

Descriptive research- primary focus of many studies of youth crime and violence

question

Research in which social phenomena are investigated without a priori expectations, in order to develop explanations of them

answer

Exploratory research- seeks to find out how people get along in the setting under question, what meaning they give to their actions, and what issues concern them. "What is going on here?"

question

Research that seeks to identify causes or effects of social phenomena

answer

Explanatory Research- to predict how one phenomenon will change or vary in response to variation in some other phenomenon.

question

Research about social programs or interventions

answer

Evaluation research- seeks to determine effects of a social program or other types of intervention A type of explanatory research because it deals with cause and effect.

question

Dr. Elijah's current research project examines the meaning of inmate feelings about prison overcrowding. Which of the following purposes of research most accurately describes her study?

answer

Exploratory research

question

Warden Smithers observes that the inmates in cell block D are more prone to violent behavior than the inmates in cell blocks A, B, and C even though all four cell blocks are the same custody level. Smithers hires Dr. Stallings to conduct a study to test whether the size of the cell blocks is related to the frequency of violent behavior in them. Which of the following purposes of research most accurately describes the study Warden Smithers wants?

answer

Explanatory Research

question

The Orwell Residential Treatment Center recently introduced a new policy in which offenders are taught empathy skills by caring for baby pigs. The center hires Dr. Farmer to study the effectiveness of the new policy. Which of the following purposes of research most accurately describes this study?

answer

Evaluation Research

question

Dr. Adams' study examined the attitudes and beliefs of police officers regarding the use of tasers on juvenile suspects. It involved intensive interviews of officers following observation of the officers on patrol. Which of the following is revealed to be true in this information about Dr. Adam's study?

answer

The study uses qualitative methods

question

Which methods are used more often when the research agendas are exploratory, explanatory, descriptive, or evaluative?

answer

Quantitative methods

question

Methods such as surveys and experiments that record variation in social life in terms of categories that vary in amount. Numbers or attributes that can be ordered in terms of magnitude

answer

Quantitative

question

Methods such as participant observation, intensive interviewing, and focus groups that are designed to capture social life as participants experience it, rather than in categories predetermined by the researcher. Mostly written or spoken words, or observations that do not have a direct numerical interpretation

answer

Qualitative

question

Dr. Morales creates a measure of subject's devotion to their religion for a study about effect of religion on the recidivism rates of released prison inmates. Before putting his measure to use he attempts to discover whether his measure actually measures devotion to religion. Dr. Morales is concerned about:

answer

Measurement validity- exists when a measure actually measures what we think it does

question

Dr. Sinatra conducts a study using a sample of Texas police officers, but wants to know if her conclusions can be applied to all police officers in Texas. Dr. Sinatra is concerned with:

answer

Sample generalizability- when a conclusion based on a sample, or subset, of a larger population holds true for a population

question

Sammy reads a study about the attitudes of municipal police toward the use of cell phones while driving. He wonders if the study's findings also applied to state level police officers. Sammy is concerned with:

answer

Cross-population generalizability- (external validity) exists when findings about one group, population, or setting holds true for other groups, populations, or settings

question

Professor Williams observes that class attendance on Fridays has dropped after a local college hangout began offering drink specials on Thursday nights. He thinks that the drink special is affecting his class attendance and wonders if his conclusion is correct. Professor Williams is concerned with:

answer

Causal validity- exists when a conclusion that A leads to or results in B is correct

question

Graduate student Jill wants to understand the dating habits of elderly people in group homes. She spends several months observing in several group homes for the elderly, eating meals with the residents and having long questions with residents about their dating experiences. Which of the following is NOT a problem with her research?

answer

Authenticity- exists when the understanding of a social process or social setting is one that reflects fairly the various perspectives of participants in that setting

question

Which of the following is the major problem with the research question: "What effect would the installation of GPS tracking chips under the skin have on the recidivism of sex offenders?"

answer

Lack of feasibility- you must be able to conduct any study within the time frame and with the resources you have

question

If It is clear before conducting a research study that the findings would not affect people's lives, the research question the study was designed to answer could be said to suffer from a:

answer

lack of social importance- will it make a difference in society? are you personally motivated by it?

question

A study that is not grounded in any existing empirical research could be said to suffer from a:

answer

Lack of scientific relevance

question

According to the text, theory is:

answer

A logically interrelated set of propositions about empirical reality. Examples of criminological theories include social learning, routine activities, labeling, general strain, and social disorganization theory.

question

Deductive reasoning:

answer

Begins with a general idea or theory and develops specific expectations for empirical reality from that idea or theory

question

Inductive reasoning:

answer

Begins with an observation or specific empirical finding and develops from that finding a general idea.

question

Sal thinks that the police unions with more centralized leadership are more likely to support corrupt management of their retirement accounts. This is an example of a:

answer

Hypothesis- a tentative statement about empirical reality, involving a relationship between two or more variables

question

Which of the following would be a constant in a study of one prison at one point in time?

answer

Number of cells in a prison

question

In the following research question, "What effect does inmate visitation have on the rate of violent behavior in prison?", inmate visitation is an example of a:

answer

independent variable

question

In the following research question, "What effect does inmate visitation have on the rate of violent behavior in prison?", the rate of violent behavior is an example of a:

answer

dependent variable

question

A researcher does not need to be concerned with how her personal biases might affect the outcome of a study.

answer

false

question

Researchers are encouraged to keep procedures used in research private so that research findings will not be questioned unnecessarily.

answer

False

question

Researchers need to clarify any assumptions upon which their research is based.

answer

True

question

Researchers should conduct thorough reviews of previous studies in order to avoid replicating prior studies.

answer

False

question

A theoretical construct may identify what is important to look at to understand, explain, or predict crime

answer

True

question

Phil conducts a study using a sample of mentally challenged individuals without considering their ability to consider the costs and benefits of participation in the study. Which ethical standard from the Belmont Study has Phil violated?

answer

Respect for persons

question

Dr. Jackson's study evaluating the effectiveness of a new substance abuse treatment may violate which ethical standard if the researcher does not distribute the benefits of the new program fairly?

answer

Justice

question

Bob conducts a study on the effectiveness of a new non-lethal weapon without the use of safety equipment. Which ethical standard has been violated?

answer

Beneficence

question

Which of the following proposed studies would not require review by an Institutional Review Board?

answer

An exploratory study of the patterns of social interaction in a large public square.

question

Which of the following is not an ethical requirement for research involving human subjects?

answer

Keeping funding sources anonymous

question

Which are ethical requirements for research involving human subjects?

answer

Achieving valid results Protecting the confidentiality of subjects Minimizing risks to subjects

question

Dr. Roberts conducts a study on texting while driving that involves teenagers. He recruits teenagers and has them try to text a 10 word message while driving 35, 45, 55, and 65 miles per hour on highways. Which ethical standard has Dr. Roberts violated?

answer

Researchers should expose participants to no more than minimum risk of personal harm

question

Researchers who follow a ____________ philosophy believe that reality is socially created and that the goal of sociologists is to understand the meanings people give to this creation.

answer

interpretive

question

________________ is a perspective that emphasizes how different stakeholders develop their beliefs.

answer

constructivism

question

A positivist researcher is concerned with all of the following except:

answer

Stakeholder perceptions

question

Constructivist research guidelines include all of the following except:

answer

testing ideas in the context of empirical reality Does include: Identifying stakeholders' concerns and ideas Introducing stakeholder claims and concerns to other stakeholders Focusing information gathering on areas of disagreement between stakeholders

question

Researchers who follow a positivist research philosophy are concerned with creating positive change in society.

answer

False

question

Professor Lewis conducts research on the study habits of students in his classes. Students are told that if they refuse to participate they will fail his class. Which ethical standard has Professor Lewis violated?

answer

Participation in research should be voluntary, and therefore subjects must give their informed consent to participate in the research

question

Which of the following should be disclosed to research subjects if the ethical standard of informed consent is to be followed?

answer

Purpose of research Potential risks of the study Potential benefit of the study

question

Which of the following is a true statement regarding ethical standards for research?

answer

It is not required to completely eliminate potential risks to subjects

question

Researchers who follow a ________________ philosophy believe that there is an objective reality that exists apart from the perceptions of it and that the goal of science is to better understand this reality.

answer

Positivist

question

In deductive research, one key step is:

answer

Translating portions of abstract theory into testable hypotheses

question

In inductive research, one key step involves:

answer

Identifying patterns among related observations

question

Defining concepts is important because:

answer

some research utilizes terms that are not familiar to everyone some concepts are defined differently by different people or groups Experts do not always agree on the meanings of some concepts

question

The process of ______________________ helps researchers to achieve measurement validity.

answer

Operationalization

question

A single question with five response choices is said to be:

answer

closed-ended or fixed

question

"What is your opinion concerning the development of new prisons in Sussex County? Please write your answer below" is an example of which type of question?

answer

open-ended

question

A question with fixed choices for responses is what type of question?

answer

closed-ended

question

Which level of measurement is illustrated in the following data set: freshman, sophomore, junior, senior, graduate

answer

Ordinal- numbers indicating the variables value specify only the order of the cases, permitting "greater than" and "less than" distinctions

question

The length of time spent at a residential treatment center is an example of what level of measurement?

answer

Ratio- the numbers indicating a variables values represent fixed measuring units and an absolute zero point

question

A list of the municipal police departments in Arkansas would be an example of what level of measurement?

answer

Nominal- variables whose values have no mathematical interpretation; they vary in kind or quality but not in amount

question

A measure that is valid because it obviously pertains to the subject matter has:

answer

Face validity

question

Dr. Henson is able to demonstrate that his measure of fear of crime is related to a variety of other measures specified in theory. His measure has:

answer

Construct validity

question

When scores on one measure can be accurately compared to those obtained from a more direct or already validated measure, what type of validity has been established?

answer

Criterion validity

question

Professor Zhang is comparing answers that subjects in her study gave to slightly different versions of a survey she is using. She is testing for:

answer

Alternate-forms reliability

question

At the beginning of the semester Professor Joo gave his criminology class a survey to determine their knowledge of criminal theory. At the next class session, he gave the same class the same survey. He is trying to establish:

answer

Test-retest reliability

question

Conducting a study of Florida prisoners, George randomly chooses 100 inmates from each prison in the state. The sample used in this study is:

answer

the 100 inmates

question

Conducting a study of Florida prisoners, George randomly chooses 100 inmates from each prison in the state. The population used in this study is:

answer

all inmates in Florida prisons

question

Before drawing a sample of Sam Houston State University students, Janet obtains a list of all students currently enrolled. This list is an example of a:

answer

Sampling Frame- The list from which the elements of the population are selected

question

Dr. Webster wonders if the sample of police officers he selected from the Decatur police department can be used to draw conclusions about the entire Decatur Police Department's complement of police officers. Dr. Webster is concerned about:

answer

sample generalizability

question

A researcher wonders if findings from her sample of correctional officers from the state of Texas can be used to draw conclusions about correctional officers in Montana. She is concerned about:

answer

cross-population generalizability

question

Sampling methods in which the odds of any element being chosen from the population are known are referred to as:

answer

probability sampling methods

question

Sampling methods in which the odds of any element being chosen from the population are not known are referred to as:

answer

non-probability sampling methods

question

Random digit dialing is not used in:

answer

non-probability sampling Is used in: simple random sampling proportionate stratified sampling disproportionate stratified sampling

question

Using a complete sampling frame of 1000 potential subjects, Roger decides he wants a sample of 200 and divides 1000 by 200, choses a number between 1 and 20 to identify the case to start from and then choses every 5th case to include in his sample. Roger has used:

answer

systematic random sampling

question

A graduate student examines the drinking behavior of residents in Harrison County, learns that the county is 52% male and 48% female and deliberately draws a sample that has a 52/48 male to female ratio. She has probably used:

answer

proportionate stratified sampling

question

Bob wants to use probability sampling, but does not have a complete sampling frame. His best option is to utilize:

answer

cluster sampling

question

Professor Hank wants to draw a quick sample of college students and therefore distributes his sample to the students in the cafeteria at noon for three days. Professor Hank is using:

answer

availability sampling

question

Dr. Hill wants to ensure that his sample has a specific number of Caucasians, African-Americans, and Hispanics. Which of the following sampling methods would you recommend for his study?

answer

quota sampling

question

Dr. Kelvin wants to study the behavior of burglars who have not been caught by law enforcement so he uses his underworld contacts to find one such burglar who then helps him find more burglars. Dr. Kelvin has used:

answer

snowball sampling

question

A sampling technique that most heavily relies upon the knowledge of the researcher to choose subjects who represent different desired types.

answer

Purposive sampling

Research Methods in Criminal Justice test 1 (ch 1-5) – Flashcards

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