The National Crime Victimization Survey prevents researchers of the public from
having information on a victim’s
a. age
b. relationship to an offender
c. place of residence
d. gender
A qualitative interview involves participants and researchers:
a. interaction
b. negotiation
c. data analysis
d. none of the answers are correct
High dispersion of a variable could result in:
a. a small standard deviation
b. the values of the mean and the median being quite different
c. a range is small
d. a variance is small
When a researcher prepares their understanding of a program’s goals, elements, and
operations, she is preparing a
program:
a. evaluation
b. description
c. analysis
d. hypothesis
Basing conclusions on the statistical relationship between two variables in a study with
a less-than-ideal number of cases may compromise:
a. external validity
b. internal validity
c. construct validity
d. statistical conclusion validity
Most of us have committed traffic offenses and have not been caught. This statement
reinforces the fact that:
a. crime is not measureable
b. crimes known to the police are not a good measure for some offenses
c. most traffic offenses are not crimes
d. none of the above
When crimes are selectively reported to police and selectively recorded by police, this
falls under which method of reporting crime?
a. UCR
b. Incident based reports
c. NCVS
d. NIBRS
Qualitative data may be recorded through a variety of mediums.
a. True
b. False
Which of the following is not an accurate description of the simulated prison project?
a. subjects accepted their roles very readily with guards becoming aggressive while
prisoners became passive
b. debriefing sessions were held at the conclusion of the project to insure that there was
no long term damage to the participants
c. participants were allowed to select their preferred role (guard or prisoner)
d. videotapes and audio tapes were made of the entire simulation
The production report generated at the city police department contains the number of
arrests made by each officer on a monthly basis. What level of measurement would
number of arrests be?
a. nominal
b. ordinal
c. interval
d. ratio
The effects of violence in children’s programming is a major research endeavor that
requires counting the number of
violent acts in Saturday morning cartoons for an entire year. The units of analysis being
used for this project are
a. social artifacts
b. individuals
c. groups
d. organizations
Which of the following is not accurate with respect to probability sampling?
a. enhances the likelihood that the results reflect the population from which the sample
was drawn
b. probability sampling offers a way to measure the degree of success in accomplishing
a representative sample
c. randomization is the key to probability sampling
d. it helps draw a sample but makes generalization to other populations more difficult
Beginning with general, theoretical expectations about the impact of organizational
characteristics on court operations, Eisenstein and Jacob then collected data to
determine the accuracy of those expectations. This process is known as:
a. conceptualization
b. the inductive model
c. the deductive model
d. the traditional image of science
There are two jails in your city, one houses state detainees waiting trial while the other
houses federal prisoners awaiting trial. You have been asked to assess why there are
differences in the institutional behavior between these two institutions. Which design
would be appropriate?
a. non-equivalent groups
b. true experiment
c. classical experiment
d. interrupted time-series
A researcher may face legal liability when
a. they observe crime occurring during the course of their study but decide not to report
it to the police
b. they become a participant in the criminal activity they are observing
c. they have knowledge that research subjects have committed illegal acts
d. all of the above
Particular empirical measures that may or may not agree with common understandings
of our individual mental images about a specific concept are known as:
a. reliability
b. validity
c. accuracy
d. face validity
With regard to drug formulation research, which of the following is a consequence of
not publishing unsuccessful research findings?
a. accusations of fraudulent practices
b. legal liability
c. research bias
d. studies on ineffective drugs are repeated unnecessarily
Which term best describes “one or more offenses committed by the same offender, or
group of offenders acting in concert, at the same time and place”?
a. victim
b. offense
c. crime
d. incident
A major mid-western university does annual surveys of its alumni. These surveys are
designed to gauge the attitudes that alumni hold about the university, its academic
programs, and the major team sports. These surveys have been an annual event for the
last two decades and represent which type of study?
a. cohort study
b. panel study
c. trend study
d. cross-sectional study
In social scientific experiments, as in medical experiments, the danger of experimenter
bias is further reduced to the extent that the operational definitions of the dependent
variables are:
a. clear and precise
b. controlled
c. tested and retested
d. scientifically proven
Scientific realism is rooted in the principle that:
a. similar interventions can naturally be expected to have different outcomes in different
contexts
b. the success of evaluations depends on the assignment of subjects to experimental and
control groups
c. there be equivalence between experimental and control groups before an intervention
d. treatment integrity must be rigorously guarded
Samantha has concluded that living in a co-ed residence hall makes residents more alike
in characteristics. As she continues her research, she tends to focus on events and
situations that fit this pattern. Which error in inquiry is reflected:
a. inaccurate observation
b. selective observation
c. overgeneralization
d. illogical reasoning
When there is pressure to reach a general understanding, there is a tendency toward
a. overgeneralization
b. inaccurate observations
c. illogical reasoning
d. miscalculation
Human inquiry attempts to answer what two questions?
a. where and when
b. who and why
c. how and when
d. what and why
The goal of sampling is to reduce potential biases.
a. True
b. False
What technique can be used to help reduce the threat to experimental mortality?
a. increasing the sample size
b. decreasing the sample size
c. shorten the time between the pretest and the posttest
d. select only subjects who are female
Delinquency, victimless crimes and crimes rarely observed may be measured by
self-report studies.
a. True
b. False
A research project concerning law enforcement that produces an alternative view of a
practice represents:
a. known reality
b. expressed reality
c. empirical reality
d. experiential reality
After a one-year study of the recidivism rates of boot camps in the state of Georgia, the
lowest rates were found in the boot camps located in Macon. What units of analysis
were used in this study?
a. social artifacts
b. individuals
c. groups
d. organizations
Dr. Quinn is interested in who is least likely to show up for their trial; those who bond
out of jail with the help of a bondsman or those placed in a court sponsored pre-trial
release program. The results of the study indicate that those inmates released using a
bail bondsmen had a lower failure to appear at trial rate than those using court
sponsored pre-trial release. The findings of the study are used to close the expensive
court run pre-trial release program. This study is an example of what type of research?
a. theory building
b. applied research
c. basic or pure research
d. a paradigm shift
A researcher is least likely to encounter legal liability in which of the following
situations?
a. in an observational study you see juveniles spray-painting walls at their school and
you say nothing
b. you watch one of your subject deal drugs on the corner and you alert him when a
police car turns the corner
c. one of your subjects tells you he committed a rape and you do not tell anyone even
though you know what he told you is true
d. you refuse to reveal confidential information under a claim of immunity