GRE Subject Test: Psychology : Other Areas

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All GRE Subject Test: Psychology Resources

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Example Questions

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Example Question #52 : Measurement & Methodology

After much success with her initial experiments (i.e. Groups A and B) and pilot test, Dr. Crawford wanted to further test the effects of a “smart pill." She recruited a new group of twenty students, Group C, for this next experiment. In the first trial, she gave the students the smart pill, and then waited five minutes to give them the list of forty words. Students were instructed to memorize the list in any order and were given five minutes to study it. The students were then asked to verbally recite all of the words they could remember within three minutes. One week later, Dr. Crawford repeated the experiment with the same group and same list of words. However, on the second trial, students were given the sugar pill instead of the smart pill.

On the first trial, students from Group C recalled an average of seventeen words. On the second trial, students recalled an average of twenty words.

Which statistical analysis should Dr. Crawford use?

Possible Answers:

T-test

ANOVA

Pearson-R

Chi-square

Cannonical correlation

Correct answer:

T-test

Explanation:

A t-test is most appropriate when only analyzing two variables. Dr. Crawford is analyzing the means produced by students in Group C, but under two different conditions. This test will determine whether the differences in means is due to chance or if there is a statistically sound significant difference.

Example Question #215 : Gre Subject Test: Psychology

Which of the following best describes a normal distribution?

Possible Answers:

None of these

Unimodal, asymptotic, and asymmetric

Bimodal, asymptotic, and symmetric

Unimodal, asymptotic, and symmetric

Bimodal, symptotic and asymmetric

Correct answer:

Unimodal, asymptotic, and symmetric

Explanation:

A normal distribution is asymptotic because it approaches a curve closely. It is unimodal because of its singular mode, and it is symmetric because both sides are mirror images of each other. There are other kinds of distributions like skewed distributions that are unimodal, asymptotic, and asymmetrical. These descriptions can vary depending on the shape of the distribution. 

Example Question #216 : Gre Subject Test: Psychology

Which of the following terms refers to a supposition based on previous observations that is offered as an explanation for observed phenomenon?

Possible Answers:

Hypothesis

Assumption

Observation

Perception

Conclusion

Correct answer:

Hypothesis

Explanation:

An hypothesis is a conclusion drawn before all of the facts are established and tentatively accepted as a basis for further investigation.

A conclusion is the final operation in the scientific method. It is a decision made about the validity of the hypothesis on the basis of experimental evidence. Observation is the first operation in the scientific method. Observation is the noting of a specific phenomenon leading to the formulation of a hypothesis. Perception is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information. An assumption is an idea that is not subjected to logical study. 

Example Question #217 : Gre Subject Test: Psychology

In a study examining the effect of cigarette smoking on men's blood pressure, the subjects' blood pressure is the study's __________.

Possible Answers:

confounding variable

dependent variable

None of these

mediating variable

independent variable

Correct answer:

dependent variable

Explanation:

In an experiment, the dependent variable is changed by changes to the independent variable; because this study examines how differences in smoking habits affect blood pressure, the number/frequency of cigarettes smoked is the study's independent variable and the subjects' blood pressure is the study's dependent variable.

Example Question #218 : Gre Subject Test: Psychology

Which of the following terms describes a study design in which several groups of different ages are studied over a period of several years?

Possible Answers:

Long-term groups

Cross-sectional

Longitudinal

Idiographic

Sequential cohort 

Correct answer:

Sequential cohort 

Explanation:

Sequential cohort studies are a combination of longitudinal and cross-sectional methods insofar as they compare the behaviors or attitudes of specific groups of people over an extended time period.

Example Question #61 : Other Areas

Why is it inappropriate to infer casual conclusions from correlative data?

Possible Answers:

One variable can be related to another without causing the other variable

Correlations require larger samples

Correlative data contains more than two variables

Cause-and-effect conclusions require longitudinal data

Correct answer:

One variable can be related to another without causing the other variable

Explanation:

Correlations explain the strength and direction of the relationship between two variables; however, these relationships do not indicate direct causality. For instance, the relationship can be caused by a third variable, called a confounding variable. Correlations—no matter how strong—do not imply causation.

Example Question #62 : Other Areas

Internal review boards (IRBs) set ethical guidelines for institutional research. Which of the following studies have been considered unethical by modern standards?

Possible Answers:

None of these

Milgram's Obedience and Authority Experiment

Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment

All of these

Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment

Correct answer:

All of these

Explanation:

Modern IRBs have set standards for the ethical treatment of subjects. Each of the studies listed violated the regulations set by IRBs. Milgram’s use of deception violated the rights of his subjects and may have exposed them to unnecessary mental anguish. Zimbardo’s prison experiment was not terminated after “prison guards” inhumanely abused “inmates,” which resulted in both physical and mental harm of subject’s well being. Last, researchers in the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment did not provide treatments to subjects in order to observe the final stages of the disease, which resulted in the death and suffering of many individuals. Each of these violated the rights of subjects involved in varying degrees.

Example Question #11 : General

Internal review boards (IRBs) set ethical guidelines for institutional research. Which of the following studies have been considered unethical by modern standards?

Possible Answers:

Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment

Milgram's Obedience and Authority Experiment

Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment

None of these

All of these

Correct answer:

All of these

Explanation:

Modern IRBs have set standards for the ethical treatment of subjects. Each of the studies listed violated the regulations set by IRBs. Milgram’s use of deception violated the rights of his subjects and may have exposed them to unnecessary mental anguish. Zimbardo’s prison experiment was not terminated after “prison guards” inhumanely abused “inmates,” which resulted in both physical and mental harm of subject’s well being. Last, researchers in the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment did not provide treatments to subjects in order to observe the final stages of the disease, which resulted in the death and suffering of many individuals. Each of these violated the rights of subjects involved in varying degrees.

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All GRE Subject Test: Psychology Resources

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