Unit 0 AP Psychology Research Methods

What is a type of bar chart graph that shows the distribution of data?

a histogram

Many people think that laboratory-based experiments are the best type of research because so many of the variables are controlled. While doing research in a lab does offer much more control, what is a drawback of experiments?

The results might not generalize to situations outside of the lab

To compare the pace of life in different countries, investigators measured the speed with which postal clerks completed a simple request. This best illustrates the use of a research method known as

naturalistic observation

The relief of pain following the ingestion of an inert substance that is presumed to have medicinal benefits illustrates the

placebo effect

Which of the following is a measure of the degree of variation among a set of events?

standard deviation

The distributions of which of the following types of data are most likely to form a normal curve?

height

Which of the following correlation coefficients expresses the strongest degree of relationship between two variables?

-.67

According to Professor Alrahami, we like people who like us because their affection for us boosts our own self-esteem as one part of a larger work on attraction. His idea is an example of a

theory

The biggest danger of relying on case-study evidence is that it may be

unrepresentative of what is generally true

Dr. Feldspar would like to study students’ feelings about school spirit initiatives. Which research method would Dr. Feldspar be most likely to use?

qualititive

A high school teacher would like to know if having the students do warm-up exercises at the beginning of every class leads to improved performance. Which research method should the teacher use?

experiment

To provide a baseline against which they can evaluate the effects of a specific treatment, experimenters make use of a(n)

control condition

When Mr. Adams calculated his students' algebra test scores, he noticed that two students had extremely low scores. Which measure of central tendency is affected most by the scores of these two students?

mean

In 1848, Phineas Gage, a railroad construction foreman, survived when an explosion drove an iron rod through his head damaging the functioning of the frontal lobes. This instance provided evidence that the frontal lobe plays a role in personality and behavior. Researchers have continued to study Gage's brain to better understand this link. Which research method is being used?

case study

According to Emily's grandfather, Adolf Hitler's obvious emotional instability made it clear from the beginning days of his international conflicts that Germany would inevitably lose World War II. The grandfather's claim best illustrates the

hindsight bias

What is the primary limitation of the case study research method? Individual cases can be misleading and result in

false generalizations

Sasha believes that she is a very good driver. Her belief leads her to take unnecessary risks, such as driving too fast and cutting in front of other drivers. Sasha's driving appears to be affected by

overconfidence

The King James Version of the Bible was completed when William Shakespeare was 46 years old. In Psalm 46 of this translation, the forty-sixth word is “shake,” and the forty-sixth word from the end is “spear.” Before concluding that the biblical translators were trying to be humorous with these specific word placements, you would be best advised to recognize the danger of

perceiving order in coincidental events

Variation is to central tendency as _____ is to _____

range; median

Researchers are interested in studying the impact of drugs on human fetuses. In this case, why would a correlational study be more appropriate than an experiment?

because participants could not be ethically assigned to an experimental or a control condition

A researcher interested in investigating the attitudes or opinions of a large sample of people is most likely to use which research method?

survey

Why would the median, rather than the mean, be the appropriate measure of central tendency in determining housing values in a particular community?

The median is minimally affected by extreme scores

To study the development of relationships, Dr. Rajiv carefully observed and recorded patterns of verbal and nonverbal behaviors among boys and girls in the school yard. Which research method did Dr. Rajiv employ?

naturalistic observation

Stanley Milgram designed his influential studies on obedience in response to thinking about the Holocaust. In their defense, Nazi war criminals said they had committed such atrocities against the Jews and others because they were “just following orders.” Milgram's motivation to study obedience to authority illustrates that

psychology is not value free; it affects what psychologists study

Hindsight bias, overconfidence, and our tendency to perceive patterns in random events push us to overvalue

common sense

Thinking that she had outperformed most of her classmates, Glenda was surprised to receive just an average grade on her psychology test. Glenda's experience best illustrates

overconfidence

The process of replication is most likely to be facilitated by

operational definitions

When we see certain outcomes as obvious based on what has occurred, we may be experiencing

hindsight bias