Communication Research: Asking Questions, Finding Answers, 5e (Keyton)
Chapter 7 Quantitative Research Designs
1) Experimental research:
A) most often occurs in the lab or other simulated environment controlled by the researcher.
B) produces data that are examined by statistical tests.
C) seeks to describe events rather than determine causation.
D) relies on nonprobability sampling for selection of research participants.
E) A and B.
2) In a classical experiment, the researcher:
A) controls the treatment of manipulation of the independent variable.
B) relies on natural variation in the independent variable.
C) tests only one value of the independent variable.
D) ignores the independent variable.
E) ignores the dependent variable.
3) Treatment groups are:
A) used in descriptive research designs.
B) based on theory and reflected in the study’s hypotheses.
C) the groups in which participants receive no stimuli.
D) compared to the control group.
E) B and D.
4) In a longitudinal design:
A) there are multiple measurements of the dependent variable.
B) the length of time between measurements is relative to the topic of study.
C) the greater the length of time between measurements, the more likely it is that other factors can
influence the dependent variable.
D) are particularly effective for evaluating the degree to which training has been effective or the
degree to which knowledge has been retained.
E) all of the above.
5) Researchers can influence the results of any experimental design by:
A) simply being themselves. A researcher’s characteristics can influence how participants respond.
B) unknowingly encouraging participants to respond in the way that supports the predictions of
their hypotheses.
C) being blind to the experimental conditions.
D) selecting participants from a population with whom they are unfamiliar.
E) A and B.
6) A research protocol:
A) is the form the participant reads and agrees to before participating in the research project.
B) is the set of instructions the researcher reads to participants in an experiment.
C) details each procedural step of the research design.
D) is the questionnaire to which participants respond.
E) is the same for every research study.
7) Choose the research term that describes “researcher manipulation of independent variables and
random assignment of participants to conditions.”
A) Descriptive research design
B) Experimental research design
C) Quasi-experimental research design
8) Choose the research term that describes manipulation of independent variables, but no random
assignment of participants.
A) Descriptive research design
B) Experimental research design
C) Quasi-experimental research design
9) Choose the research term that describes “temporal order of variables is not clearly determined.”
A) Descriptive research design
B) Experimental research design
C) Quasi-experimental research design
10) Choose the research term that describes “terms predictor variable and criterion variable are
substituted for the terms independent variable and dependent variable, respectively.”
A) Descriptive research design
B) Experimental research design
C) Quasi-experimental research design
11) Choose the research term that describes “initially developed for study in the physical
sciences.”
A) Descriptive research design
B) Experimental research design
C) Quasi-experimental research design
12) Choose the research term that describes “relies on natural variation of the independent
variable.”
A) Descriptive research design
B) Experimental research design
C) Quasi-experimental research design
13) Choose the research term that is also called correlational or non-experimental studies.
A) Descriptive research design
B) Experimental research design
C) Quasi-experimental research design
14) Choose the research term that describes the classic model against which other forms of
experimentation are evaluated.
A) Descriptive research design
B) Experimental research design
C) Quasi-experimental research design
15) Choose the research term that describes the following concept: two or more independent
variables are tested for the influence on the dependent variable.
A) Factorial design
B) Pretest-posttest
C) Posttest only
16) Choose the research term that answers the question, “Do two groups differ after the stimulus is
presented to only one group?”
A) Factorial design
B) Pretest-posttest
C) Posttest only
17) Choose the research term that answers the question, “Is the measurement of the dependent
variable different at time 2 than at time 1?”
A) Factorial design
B) Pretest-posttest
C) Posttest only
18) Choose the research term that describes “can test for an interaction effect.”
A) Factorial design
B) Pretest-posttest
C) Posttest only
19) In experimental research designs, participants in the control group never receive any form of
treatment of the independent variable.
20) Experimental research designs must have a temporal component.
21) The strength of experimental designs is that the degree of control helps eliminate rival
explanations for the changes observed.
22) The underlying principle of random assignment of participants to treatment groups is that any
differences among individuals before the treatment are minimized by the random assignment.
23) Selecting a random sample is the same as randomly assigning individuals to treatment and
control groups.
24) A manipulation check verifies that participants regarded the independent variable in the
various ways that the researcher intended.
25) In a factorial design, participants must be randomly assigned to conditions of all independent
variables.
26) Some control is lost when an experiment moves from the lab to the field. Thus, field
experiments are considered quasi-experiments rather than experiments.
27) Results from descriptive designs should not be used an explanation for causality.
28) Only the classical form of experimentation is susceptible to researcher influence and
procedural bias.
29) Explain the advantages researchers accrue when they conduct experiments in lab
environments.
30) Describe the effect of random assignment of participants to treatment groups.
31) Explain the effects on a study’s results if the manipulation check demonstrates that participants
did not view the different treatments of the independent variable in the way intended.
32) Describe the difference between a main effect and an interaction effect.
33) Describe the strengths and limitations of experimentation.
34) Using sex as the independent variable, explain why some researchers question the reliability of
relying on natural variation of the independent variable in quasi-experimental designs.
35) Using an example, describe an appropriate use of a descriptive research design.