Research methods in psychology worksheet with answers

A hypothesis that predicts a difference but does not say in which direction is called:

1. AA null hypothesis
2. BAn operational definition
3. CDirectional (one-tailed)
4. DNon-directional (two-tailed)

In an experiment, the variable that is measured to see whether it is affected by the manipulation is the:

1. AIndependent variable
2. BDependent variable
3. CExtraneous variable
4. DControl variable

The Hawthorne effect refers to:

1. AScores moving towards the average on retesting
2. BParticipants performing worse as they become tired
3. CPeople changing their behaviour because they know they are being studied
4. DResearchers unconsciously influencing participants' behaviour through their own expectations

In observational research, event sampling means:

1. AChoosing participants at random
2. BRecording behaviour only at fixed time intervals
3. CRecording every time a specified behaviour occurs
4. DRecording only events the participants report

In a perfectly normal distribution:

1. AThe mean, median and mode are equal
2. BThe mean is always larger than the median
3. CThe mode is the lowest score
4. DMost scores lie in the tails

Which statistic is appropriate for the relationship between two sets of ranks, such as judges' rankings of paintings?

1. APearson's r
2. BSpearman's rho
3. CChi-square
4. DIndependent t-test

A researcher wants to show that a new anxiety scale measures something different from depression. Low correlations with a depression scale would support:

1. AConvergent validity
2. BFace validity
3. CDiscriminant validity
4. DPredictive validity

The "replication crisis" in psychology refers to:

1. AMany published findings failing to reproduce in new studies
2. BA shortage of participants for experiments
3. CCopying of questionnaires without permission
4. DJournals being legally required to reject all replication studies submitted