AP Psychology : Other Research Principles
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Example Questions
Example Question #11 : Other Research Principles
In a study of the effect of a new drug on sleep, researchers bring participants into a sleep lab and give half of them the new drug and half of them a placebo. They then asked the participants how they slept the next morning. In this experiment the quality of sleep is the __________ variable.
external
independent
dependent
internal
dependent
The dependent variable is what the researchers measure in the experiment. In this case, the dependent variable is reactions of the participants to the drug or placebo (the independent variable). Since the reaction depends on the drug and is not within the direct control of the researchers it is the dependent variable.
Example Question #12 : Other Research Principles
In a study of the effect of a new drug on sleep, researchers bring participants into a sleep lab and give half of them the new drug and half of them a placebo. They then asked the participants how they slept the next morning. In this experiment the drug is the __________ variable.
independent
internal
dependent
external
independent
The independent variable is what the researchers manipulate in the experiment. In this example, since the distribution of the drug and placebo is the element controlled by the researchers, it is the independent variable.
Example Question #13 : Other Research Principles
Which of the following describes the relationship between the population, the sample, and sampling in an experiment?
The sample is chosen from the population through sampling
The sampling is chosen from the population through the sample
The population is chosen from the sample through sampling
The sampling is chosen from the sample through the population
The population and the sample describe the same group of people
The sample is chosen from the population through sampling
The population is the entire group of people that the researcher is interested in, and the sample is the (often much smaller) group of people from that the researcher collects information from. Sampling is the process by which the sample group is chosen from the population.
Example Question #14 : Other Research Principles
Research has indicated that the level of intelligence in the world has has been steadily increasing over time. This is shown by increasing IQ scores over generations of students. This effect has been labeled as which of the following?
Galton effect
Sternberg effect
Flynn effect
Binet effect
Terman effect
Flynn effect
The answer is the "Flynn effect." The Flynn effect is the finding that IQ scores have steadily been surpassing previous generations. The reason for this effect has not been identified yet, but it is generally attributed to better nutrition and education.
Example Question #15 : Other Research Principles
Garth believes that there is a relationship between eating yogurt and doing well on important tests. Since there is not actually a relationship between these two variables, Garth's thinking represents an __________________.
hindsight bias
groupthink
false consensus effect
illusory correlation
anecdotal correlation
illusory correlation
Garth's thinking represents an illusory correlation. Although Garth believes that eating yogurt will help him to score higher on his important tests, there is no actual relationship between these two variables.
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