Unit 1 practice 1 – Flashcards

A(n) is a measure of how strongly two variables are related to one another. A) independent variable B) correlation C) dependent variable D) experimental effect

Which of the following statements is correct concerning critical thinking and astrology? A) Research shows no connection between astrological signs and personality. B) Astrology is based on stars and, therefore, it is scientific. C) Astrology is used by a lot of people. D) Although there are many skeptics, astrology has strong evidence suggesting it is a valid science.

Steve is a fan of the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team. With little provocation, he will engage you in a debate about whether it is the greatest team in basketball. Steve may be demonstrating ________. A) an eclectic approach B) critical thinking C) unconscious behavior D) bias

A person who has suffered a major stroke and is now experiencing severe personality problems because of the damage would BEST be advised to see a ________. A) cognitive psychologist B) psychiatrist C) psychologist D) psychiatric social worker

Children who watch violent cartoons will become more aggressive." According to the scientific method, this statement is most likely a ________. A) conclusion B) hypothesis C) fact D) result

The majority of psychologists work in ________. A) government B) public school C) colleges and universities D) private practice

After reading about the possible causes of schizophrenia, a scientist thinks that a virus is the most likely cause. What term most accurately describes the scientist's idea? A) hypothesis B) extraneous variable C) experimental estimate D) dependent variable

Researchers must report their results completely whether the hypothesis was supported or not. Complete reporting is necessary for the purpose of ________. A) replication B) educational knowledge C) finding a better way to support the hypothesis D) publication

Sandi believes that people who eat at McDonald's are overweight, so she decides to do a naturalistic observation of people who eat at McDonald's. What should most concern us about Sandi's observations? A) the observer effect B) subject bias C) observer bias D) the bystander effect

Observing behavior as it happens in real-life natural settings without imposing laboratory controls is known as the ________. A) psychometric approach B) experimental method C) survey method D) naturalistic observation method

You overhear psychology students preparing for a test. They note that one of the research methods often "fails to generalize." Which method is the MOST likely topic of their discussion? A) surveys B) case study C) experiment D) correlation

The magazine Desperate Wives publishes a survey of its female readers called "The Sex Life of the American Wife." It reports that 87 percent of all wives like to make love in rubber boots. The critical flaw in this research would be ________. A) the fact that making love has not been operationally defined B) the fact that rubber boots are not equally available in all regions of the country C) the fact that a psychological test, rather than a survey, should have been given D) the fact that the sample is not representative of American wives

A(n) ________ is a measure of how strongly two variables are related to one another. A) experimental effect B) correlation C) dependent variable D) independent variable

Drinking orange juice is negatively correlated with the risk of cancer. Based on this information, which of the following statements is true? A) The more orange juice you drink, the lower your risk of cancer. B) Drinking orange juice causes people to be cancer free. C) The more orange juice you drink, the higher your risk of cancer. D) The less orange juice you drink, the lower your risk of cancer.

A correlation coefficient shows that alcohol consumption and driving accidents are indeed related. As a result, a researcher could predict ________ if the direction of the relationship is known. A) the number of driving accidents a person has will contribute to the number of days spent in jail B) the number of driving accidents a person has will go up or down based on the number of alcoholic drinks consumed C) the number of arrests will increase the fewer drinks an individual consumes D) the number of arrests a person has will go up or down based on the type of car an individual drives

All of the following variables, except for ________ show a positive correlation. A) men's educational level and their income B) alcohol consumption and scores on a driving test C) height and weight D) school grades and IQ scores

The administration of Midwest State University wants to know if arrangement of chairs affects student participation in classrooms. What would be a good operational definition of the dependent variable in an experiment designed to measure this relationship? A) number of students enrolled in each class B) frequency with which students ask questions C) class size: under 50 or over 50 D) chair arrangement: theater style or circular

The steps or procedures an experimenter must use to control or measure the variables in a study is called the ________. A) hypothesis B) double-blind study C) operational definition D) theory

In a laboratory, smokers are asked to "drive" using a computerized driving simulator equipped with a stick shift and a gas pedal. The object is to maximize the distance covered by driving as fast as possible on a winding road while avoiding rear-end collisions. Some of the participants smoke a real cigarette immediately before climbing into the driver's seat. Others smoke a fake cigarette without nicotine. You are interested in comparing how many collisions the two groups have. In this study, the independent variable is ________. A) the driving skills of each driver B) the use of a driving simulator C) the use of nicotine D) the number of collisions

Several years ago two scientists announced that they had evidence of "cold fusion" in the laboratory, but further studies failed to replicate their findings and it was later found that the original scientists had used sloppy methods. This highlights which of the following critical thinking principles? A) Few "truths" do not need to be tested. B) Critical thinking requires an open mind. C) Authority or expertise does not make the claims of the authority or expert true. D) All evidence is not equal in quality.