AP Psych Research

Which of the following methods best limits the influence of unknown variables in an experiment?

• Random assignment

• Debriefing

• Stratified Sampling

• Subject matching

• Correlational study

Dr. Lee is interested in the effect of lighting on people's ability to concentrate. Dr. Lee studies this by manipulating the amount of lighting while participants read and then measuring their scores on a reading comprehension test. Which of the following research methods is Dr. Lee using?

• Case study

• Survey

• Correlational study

• Experiment

• Simulation

Which of the following measures can be precisely located on the graph of a skewed distribution without doing any calculations?

• Mode

• Median

• Mean

• Standard deviation

• Variance

It is important for researchers to use precise operational definitions when...

• They want to ensure that conditions are assigned randomly

• They want to be able to replicate the experiment

• They want to organize the hypothesis appropriately

• They are conducting experimental research but not correlational research

• They are conducting an experiment with no independent and dependent variables

Research particpants are randomly assigned to one of three groups. One group listens to a list of words, another group reads a list of words, and the third group hears and reads the words. The researcher then tests the participants' memories to see how many words the members of each group can recall. The way the words are presented is which type of variable?

• Confounding

• Dependent

• Independent

• Extraneous

• Control

Researchers find that there is a significant, positive correlation between the number of hours students sleep and their grades. The researchers would be justified in concluding that...

• Earning good grades causes people to sleep more

• Sleeping more causes students to perform better in school

• Students who earn good grades tend to sleep more than those who do not

• More sleep has a beneficial impact on school performance

A statistical technique that would allow a researcher to cluster such traits as being talkative, social, and adventurous with extroversion is called...

• A case study

• Meta-analysis

• Statistical significance

• Factor analysis

• Z score

A researcher surveyed social adjustment in the same group of 20 people from early childhood through adulthood. In this example, the group of 20 people surveyed was the study's...

• Sample

• Population

• Operational definition

• Control group

• Randomization

Respondents to surveys often report that they are healthier, happier, and less prejudiced than would be expected based in the results of other types of research. This finding can best be explained by which of the following?

• Sampling bias

• Experimenter bias

• Social desirability bias

• Bystander effect

• Placebo effect

Syesthesia is a phenomenon that has been estimated to occur in only a few people in a million. Because of its rarity, researchers are likely to choose which research method to study it?

• Naturalistic observation

• Correlational research

• Survey research

• Case study

• Experimental research