Test Bank For Basics of Research Methods for Criminal Justice and Criminology 3rd Edition by Michael G. Maxfield

CHAPTER 3 TEST BANK General Issues in Research Design TRUE/FALSE 1. Social science involves three fundamental aspects: theory, data collection, and data analysis. ANS: T REF: 47 2. In grounded theory, observations may not contribute to theory development. ANS: F REF: 47 3. Research projects known as longitudinal studies are designed to permit observations over a short period of time. ANS: F REF: 67 4. Explanatory scientific research centers on the notion of cause and effect. ANS: T REF: 71 5. Most explanatory social research uses a probabilistic model of causation. ANS: T REF: 71 6. Individuals may be units of analysis in criminal justice research. ANS: T REF: 62 7. When scientists consider whether causal statements are true or false, they are concerned with the validity of causal inference. ANS: T REF: 58 8. Ecological fallacy refers to the dangers of making assertions about large groups as the units of analysis based upon examination of individuals. ANS: F REF: 64 9. Cross-sectional studies are those based on observations made at one time. ANS: T REF: 66 33 10. A scientific realist approach to examining mechanisms in context bridges idiographic and nomothetic approaches to causation. ANS: T REF: 55 MULTIPLE CHOICE 1. With respect to causation, _____. a. it is the focus of media b. it suggests a cause and effect relationship c. cause in social science is pre-determined d. research explains most aspects of life ANS: D REF: 47 2. Which of the following represent criteria for causality? a. there is a correlation between the cause and the effect b. the effect precedes the cause in time c. the change in the effect is caused by some third variable d. cause in social science is not probabilistic ANS: A REF: 58 3. Validity is "the approximate truth of an inference”. Here the emphasis is on: a. truth b. approximate c. inference d. validity ANS: B REF: 58 4. When we say something is valid, we make a judgment about the extent to which relevant evidence supports that inference as being _____. a. reliable b. probable c. true or correct d. untrue ANS: C REF: 58-59 5. A scientific realist approach to examining mechanisms in context bridges a. Dependent and independent approaches b. idiographic and nomothetic approaches to causation c. truth and reality d. sample and population differences ANS: B REF: 60 6. a. b. Traditional approaches to finding cause and effect usually try to isolate causal mechanisms from other possible influences while the scientific realist approach _____. views these other possible influences as deviations views these other possible influences as causal mechanisms 34 c. views these other possible influences as contexts in which causal mechanisms operate d. views these other possible influences as true causes ANS: C REF: 60 7. Which of the following would not be a unit of analysis? a. individuals b. groups c. organizations d. variables ANS: D REF: 62 8. Which of the following would not be an example of organizations as units of analysis? a. police departments b. federal courthouses c. drug treatment facilities d. measurement levels ANS: D REF: 62 9. Which of the following would be an example of social artifacts as units of analysis? a. newspaper editorials b. probation officers c. students d. professors ANS: A REF: 62 10. Which of the following would serve as an example of a cross sectional study? a. Uniform Crime Reports b. the 2000 U.S. census c. a single wave of the National Crime Victimization Survey d. both Uniform Crime Reports and the 2000 U.S. census ANS: D REF: 66 35 11. A major midwestern 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 ANS: C REF: 67 12. Marvin Wolfgang’s study of males born in Philadelphia in 1945 was an attempt to measure delinquency by following those males from their 10th birthday until they were 18. This is an example of what type of study? a. cohort study b. panel study c. trend study d. cross-sectional study ANS: A REF: 67 13. What type of study attempts to account for errors in drawing a sample by measuring the same people on two or more occasions? a. cohort study b. panel study c. trend study d. cross-sectional study ANS: B REF: 67 14. Which of the following would serve as a “snapshot” of a phenomenon at one point in time? a. panel study b. cross-sectional study c. cohort study d. trend study ANS: B REF: 69 15. Three broad distinctions underlie many of the variations of scientific research. Which is of the following is one not of these distinctions? a. idiographic and nomothetic explanations b. inductive and deductive reasoning c. quantitative and qualitative data d. social and cultural artifacts ANS: D REF: 54-55 16. 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 36 d. organizations ANS: A REF: 63 17. Units of analysis are typically also the units of __________. a. observation b. crime c. interaction d. fallacy ANS: A REF: 62 18. After careful study of the relationship between the economy and arson, the conclusion was drawn that when the economy is poor and unemployment is high, the arson rates go up. The researcher concluded that unemployed people are more likely to commit arson than are those who are employed. What error was just committed? a. the ecological fallacy b. reductionism c. using the wrong time dimension d. an internal validity threat ANS: A REF: 64 19. Which of the following are social artifacts? a. citizen attitudes about the death penalty b. editorials in the New York Times c. cities with over 250,000 inhabitants d. months of the year ANS: B REF: 63 20. A survey distributed on a college campus discovered that males support the death penalty in greater numbers than do females. The units of analysis in this case would be _____. a. social artifacts b. groups c. organizations d. individuals ANS: D REF: 62 37 21. Which of the following is an example of a panel study? a. National Incident-based Reporting System b. U.S. Census c. National Crime Victimization Survey d. Uniform Crime Reports ANS: C REF: 67 22. Scientific theory deals with a. the logical aspect of science b. the observational aspect c. operationalization d. data analysis ANS: A REF: 47 23. Which of the following would allow a researcher to measure change in a general population over time? a. trend study b. cohort study c. panel study d. cross-sectional study ANS: A REF: 67 24. Data analysis looks for patterns in what is ____________. a. proved b. observed c. hypothesized d. assumed ANS: B REF: 47 25. Having trouble reconciling general patterns of attitudes and actions with individual exceptions the research personally knows of is termed the __________? a. individualistic fallacy b. ecological fallacy c. observational fallacy d. personal fallacy ANS: A REF: 64 26. The relationship between attributes and variables lies at the heart of a. both science and fiction b. publishing your outcomes c. units of analysis d. both description and explanation in science ANS: D REF: 51 27. a. b. If a cross-sectional study can be likened to a “snapshot,” and a trend study to a “slide show,” then which of the following is most like a “motion picture?” longitudinal study retrospective study 38 c. prospective study d. panel study ANS: D REF: 67 28. In the following research conclusion, what units of analysis are being used? “An enormous variation of deviant activities was represented in a sample of 1,485 news items. We categorized these deviant activities into five general types of analysis: violence, economic, political, ideological/cultural and diversionary.” a. individuals b. social artifacts c. organizations d. groups ANS: B REF: 63 29. In an examination of violent crime among the most populous nations in the world, the United States ranks very high along with England, France, and Australia. The chance of being raped is higher in France than in the United States. What units of analysis are being used? a. individuals b. organizations c. social artifacts d. groups ANS: D REF: 62 30. Which of the following is not one of the research methods discussed in your text? a. cross-sectional b. survey c. field d. evaluation ANS: A COMPLETION REF: 66 1. Causation, units, and __________ are key elements in planning a research study. ANS: time REF: 47 39 2. ANS: 3. ANS: 4. ANS: 5. ANS: 6. ANS: 7. ANS: 8. ANS: 9. ANS: 10. ANS: Research that asks people to recall their pasts is called _____________ research. retrospective REF: 68 The two pillars of science are logic and ______________. observation REF: 47 Scientists assess the truth of statements about cause by considering threats to ________________. validity REF: 59 The relationship between attributes and variables becomes more complicated as we try to explain how _____________________________are related to each other. concepts REF: 52 Theories describe ________________________that might logically be expected among variables. relationships REF: 54 __________________________________________moves from the specific to the general, from a set of particular observations to the discovery of a pattern that represents some degree of order among the varied events under examination. Inductive reasoning REF: 56 When a researcher reports findings from data gathered on groups to the individuals within those groups, a(n) ________________________ has occurred. ecological fallacy REF: 64 Examples of longitudinal studies include: Trend, Panel, and ________________. cohort REF: 67 Exploratory and descriptive studies frequently are _______________________ in nature since they allow data to be gathered at one point in time. cross-sectional REF: 66 40 ESSAY 1. Define cohort, panel and cross-sectional study. Give an example of each. REF: 66-67 2. Explain in detail using an example of the way in which the ecological fallacy is the result of errors with units of analysis. REF: 64 3. Give a hypothetical situation that would lend itself to a cross-sectional study. What would be the research purpose in your hypothetical? Why would your example not lend itself to a longitudinal approach? REF: 66 4. Explain the difference between inductive and deductive reasoning. Give an example of each from the criminal justice literature. REF: Chapter 3 41