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UNIVERSITY OF GHANA
(AII rights reserved)

SECOND SEMESTER EXAMINATIONS 2021/2022

LEVEL 300: B.A/B.Sc. PSYCHOLOGY

DEPARTMENT OF DISTANCE EDUCATION

PSYC334: RESEARCH METHODS IN PSYCHOLOGY 3 CREDITS

Time Allowed: 2 Hours

ANSWER ONLY ONE QUESTION FROM SECTION A.

SECTIONS Q AND Q SHOULD BE ANSWERED ON THE QUESTION PAPER.

SECTION A 30%

l Outline the strengths and weaknesses of the research procedures of correlation, quasi-
experiment and true experiment.

2 Interviews and questionnaires are psychological measuring instruments. What guidelines

will you consider when you are writing these instruments?
3 Why is it better to study behavior through prediction, control and theory building than
through other methods of acquiring knowledge?

Examiner: Dr. B. Amponsah Page 1 of 9

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SECTION B g20%)
(INSTRUCTIONS: ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS. EACH QUESTION CONTAINS
· ONLY ONE CORRECT ANSWER)
l. Sampling is advantageous as it
a) Saves time
b) Helps in capital-saving
c) Both (a) and (b)
d) lncreases accuracy
2. ......refers to inferring about the whole population based on the observations made on a
small part
a) Pseudo-inference
b) Objective inference
c) lnductive inference
d) Deductive inference
3. Random sampling is helpü.11 as it is
— a) Reasonably accurate
b) Free from personal biases
c) An economical method of data collection
d) All the above
4 . Type-I Error occurs if
a) The null hypothesis is rejected even though it is true
b) The null hypothesis is accepted even though it is false
c) Both the null hypothesis as well as altemative hypothesis are rejected
d) None of the above
5. is a preferred sampling method for the population with finite size
a) Systematic sampling
b) Purposive sampling
c) Cluster sampling
d) Area sampling
6. Which of the following is not an essential element of report writing?
a. Research Methodology
b. Reference
c. Conclusion
d. None of these
7. Testing hypothesis is a
a. Inferential statistics
b. Descriptive statistics
c. Data preparation
d. Data analysis
8. What is the purpose of doing research?
a. To identify a problem
b. To find the solution
c. Both a and b
d. None of these
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9. Which method can be applicable for collecting qualitative data?

a. Altifacts (Visual)
b. People
c. Media products (Textual, Visual and sensory)
d. All of these
10. Which of the following is non-probability sampling?
a. Snowball
b. Random
c. Cluster
d. Stratified
l 1. In group interview there are
a. One interviewer and one interviewee
b. More than one interviewer and one interviewee
c. One interviewer and more than one interviewee
d. More than One interviewer and more than one interviewee
12. Which of the following are associated with behavioral observation?
a. Non-verbal analysis
b. Linguistic analysis
c. spatial analysis
d. All of these
13. Multistage sampling is a _
a. Probability sampling
b. Non—Probability sampling
c. None of these
d. Qualitative strategy
14. Hypothesis is
a) Conclusion drawn from existing literature
b) Interpretation of data
c) Relation between variables
d) Comparison of assumptions
15. In which of the following research methodologies, manipulation and control of variables
and randomization of sample are 2 of the basic necessities..........
a) Ex—post facto research
b) Descriptive research
c) Case study research
d) Experimental research
16. Which one of the following is the main feature of qualitative research?........
a) Avoids positivist assumptions and data analysis
b) Subscribe to pre-existing categories
c) Collects data in numerical form
d) Uses the empirical methods of data analysis

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17. Which of the following methodology is being used in empirical researches? —

a) Inductive method
b) Deductive method
c) Initiative method
d) Scientific method
18. In which research methodology, manipulation of independent variable and control of
extraneous variables are neither possible nor desirable?
a) Experimental method
b) Ex post facto method
c) Historical method
d) Descriptive survey method
19. Which of the following sequences correctly represents the steps of research using a
quantitative paradigm? ——
a) Hypothesis framing, hypothesis testing, conclusion, and reporting
b) Establishing a research problem, hypothesis framing, hypothesis testing, generalization
and conclusions and implications of result.
c) Problem identification, sample selection, developing a research design and field work.
d) Defining a problem, survey of related studies, sampling, data collection, and data analysis.
20. A researcher administers an achievement test to assess and indicate the possible effect of
an independent variable in his/her study. The distribution of scores on the test is found to be
negatively skewed. On the basis of this, what can be started with regard to the difficulty level
of the test? ——
a) The test is very easy
b) The test is very difficult
c) The test is neither easy nor difficult
d) The test is easy and needs nomlalization
21. Which is the research methodology predominantly used to study cultural anthropology?
a) Interview
b) Panel discussion
c) Participant observation
d) Focus group discussion
22. Which among the following is NOT related to qualitative research? —
a) Thematic analysis
b) Case study
c) Discourse analysis
d) Survey method
23. Experimental researches are aimed to........
a) Establish association between variables
b) Describe variables
c) Study the application of theory
d) Study trend analysis

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24. Through which of the following methodologies of research "cause and effect"
° relationship is focused?.........
a) Historical method
b) Experimental method
c) Ex-post facto method
d) Case study method
25. Quantitative research is otherwise known as —
a) Ethnographic approach
b) Unstructured approach
c) Descriptive approach
d) Structured approach
26. Sampling is advantageous as it..........
a) Saves time
b) Helps in capital-saving
c) Both (a) and (b)
d) Increases accuracy
27. Random sampling is helpful as it is.........
a) Reasonably accurate
b) Free from personal biases
c) An economical method of data collection
d) All of the above
28. -— refers to inferring about the whole population on the basis of the observations made on
a small part
a) Pseudo-inference
b) Objective inference
c) Inductive inference
d) Deductive inference
29. Which technique is generally followed when a population is finite?
a) Purpose sampling technique
b) Area sampling technique
c) Systematic sampling technique
d) None of the above
30. Which of the following is a non-probability sample'?
a) Quota sample
b) Simple random sample
c) Purposive sample
d) (a) and (c) both
31. A researcher selects a probability sample of 100 out of the total population. It is ——
a) A cluster sample
b) A random sample
c) A systematic sample
d) A stratified sample

Examiner: Dr. B. Amponsah

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32. A good hypothesis must be —
a) Formulated in such a way that it can be tested by the data
b) Precise, specific, and consistent with most known facts
c) Of limited scope and must not have global significance
d) All of the above
33. Field study is related to —
a) Real life situations
b) Laboratory situations
c) Experimental situations
d) None of the above
34. Research is based upon —
a) Rating scale
b) Experiments
c) General principles
d) Scientific methods
35. The main condition which must be followed by research is ——
a) Honest exploration
b) Knowledge of facts and principles
c) Standardized findings and conclusions
d) All of the above
36. Validity of a research can be improved by .
a) Taking the true representative sample of the population
b) Eliminating extraneous factors
c) A and B
d) None of the above
37. The best way to check external validity is by
a. debriefing the subjects
b. using true experimental designs
c. using placebo control groups
d. replication
e. standardization of measures
38. Debriefing subjects after an experiment is desirable from an ethical standpoint. But it also
is useful to the researcher to check
a. the subject’s beliefs about the study
b. for spontaneous double-blind effects
c. the partial correlation of the design
d. the intercorrelational effects of the design
e. for pseudo effects

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39. After assigning subjects randomly to treatment and control groups and collecting pre- and
post- measures, the researcher found the groups were unequal on the pre-measures. What
should she do next? The study
a. must be scrapped because of the selection threat
b. can still be analyzed using statistical adjustments for pre-measure differences
c. needs no change because the design rules out all threats
d. can still be analyzed as an interrupted time series
e. can still be analyzed using qualitative, descriptive methods
40. A researcher administered a standard personality questionnaire to a group and then
compared the males and females. This design is:
a. qualitative
b. quasi-experimental
c. true experimental
d. correlational
e. b and c

SECTION C (10%)
Consider the following scenario and identify the independent, dependent, and attribute
variables. Also name one extraneous variable that should be controlled by the researcher.
"A group ofexperienced and ‘fresh " teachers (with 10 plus years’ and less than two years’
experience, respectively) attended 10 workshop sessions in stress reduction techniques (the
treatment). A randomized group ofexperienced andßresh teachersfunctioned as a control
group. The groups were then compared on a measure ofstress (bloodpressure). It wasfound
that the treatment was linked to lower levels ofstress, with fresh teachers showing a greater
eyßct. "

(1) The independent variable in this study is:.....................................................

(2) The dependent variable is........................................................................
(3) Attribute variables are .................................................................... .......
(4) Extraneous variables are other things that could impact blood pressure like;

(5) Failure of a measure to detect a difference because it was too easy is known as

(6) ...................................................is the failure to control for the effects of a

third variable in an experimental design.

(7) Explanation of the purposes of the research that is given to subjects following their
participation in the research is known as..............................................
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~ (8) .........................................................is a type of sampling procedure in

which one cannot specify the probability that any member of the population will be
included in the sample.
(9) A sampling procedure in which the sample is chosen to reflect the numerical
composition of various subgroups in the population is...................................
(10) .............................................is the process of choosing members of a
population to be included in a study.
(11) The degree to which a measurement instrument measures what it is intended to
measure is termed .....................................................
(12) A general class or category of objects, events, or situations within which
specific instances are found to vary is known as.............................................
(13) In a repeated measures design, the effect that the order of introducing
treatment has on the dependent variable is called............................................

Read the passage below and answer Questions 14 to 20.

A major airline wants to know U"pilots make signyicantly more errors and more serious
errors when they are under a particular stress ’(e.g., ä their airplane is hüacked while in
flight). The airline also wants to know y’pilots years ofexperience is afactor. The following
research is set up.
A 474’s cockpit mock-up, containing all ofthe 747 controls and instruments, is used. All ofthe
pilot behavior is monitored, so that the number oferrors made by the pilot can be easily
read offthe computer record. The seriousness ofeach error isjudged later by master pilots
using a 25—point scale (interval) ofseriousness.
(
The subjects are jetliner pilots with experience rangingßom 1 to 20 years ofcommercial
piloting. The subjects are randomly assigned to two conditions and the years ofexperience is
the samefor both groups.
All pilots simulate take-ojfjrom New York, a two—and-a-hab'hourflight at 32, 000feet
cruising altitude and a landing at Miami. The pilots are told that theirjob rating depends on
how well they handle this simulatedflight and it is impressed on them that they are to do
everything as gf this were a realflight.
In the experimental condition, two masked "passenger" break into the cockpit 45 minutes
into theflight and aiming guns at the pilots, demand to be taken to Miamifor refueling, and a
payment ofmillion dollars, and then demand to be flown to Cuba. They threatert to kill some
ofthe passengers and then the pilots and themselves q'anything goes wrong. The control
group has no "hüacking" andproceeds to Miami without incident.

Examiner: Dr. B. Amponsah Page 8 of 9

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(14) What kind of design is described above?

a. Naturalistic
b. Experimental
c. Correlational
d. Differential
(15) What is the independent variable in the above study?
a. Years of experience
b. Hijacking
c. Number of errors
d. Flight time to Miami
(16) How many levels of the manipulated independent variable are there in the
study described above?
a. One
b. Two
c. Three
d. There is no manipulated independent variable
i (17) What type of design is represented in the research described above?
a. Correlated~groups design
b. Independent-groups design
c. Nonparametric design
d. Both B and C
(18) What are the dependent measures in the study above?
a. Years of experience and number of errors
l b. Flight time to Miami and number of errors
c. Flight time, number and seriousness of errors
d. Number and seriousness of errors
(19) What is the level of measurement of the dependent measure in the study
above?
a. Ratio; interval
b. Nominal; ratio; interval
c. Interval; ordinal
d. Interval; ordinal; ratio
(20) Given the four hypotheses below, what statistical procedures are appropriate
to use?
Hypothesis 1: There will be more errors in the hijack condition.
Hypothesis 2: Seriousness will be greater in the hijack condition.
Hypothesis 3: In the hijack condition there will be an inverse relationship
between years of experience and number of number of errors.
Hypothesis 4: In the hijack condition there will be an inverse relationship
between years of experience and seriousness of errors.
a. ANOVA for all of the hypotheses
b. ANOVA; ANOVA; correlation coefficient; correlation coefficient
c. T-test; Pearson r; Spearman r; chi-square
d. Chi-square; Spearman r; Pearson r; t-test

Examiner: Dr. B. Amponsah Page 9 of 9