Quantitative Research Methods Flashcards

A researcher finds r = 0.70 between study hours and exam scores. What percentage of variance in exam scores is explained by study hours?

Answer: 49%

The coefficient of determination R² = r² = 0.70² = 0.49, meaning 49% of the variance in exam scores is explained by study hours.

Which chi-square test is used to determine whether two categorical variables are independent of each other?

Answer: Chi-square test of independence

The chi-square test of independence evaluates whether the distribution of one categorical variable differs across levels of another.

In survey research, acquiescence bias refers to respondents' tendency to:

Answer: Agree with statements regardless of their true opinion

Acquiescence bias (yea-saying) occurs when respondents systematically agree with items irrespective of their actual attitudes.

A post-hoc test following a significant one-way ANOVA is conducted to:

Answer: Identify which specific group pairs differ significantly

Post-hoc tests (e.g., Tukey's HSD, Bonferroni) make pairwise comparisons to locate which groups drive the significant omnibus F-test.

The interquartile range (IQR) is calculated as:

Answer: Q3 minus Q1

The IQR = Q3 − Q1, representing the spread of the middle 50% of data and is resistant to outliers.

Which research design allows causal inference because it uses random assignment of participants to conditions?

Answer: True experiment

True experiments use random assignment to equate groups on confounds, enabling researchers to attribute outcome differences to the manipulation.

Regression to the mean is a phenomenon where:

Answer: Extreme scores on first measurement tend to be less extreme on re-measurement

Regression to the mean occurs because extreme initial scores partly reflect chance, so subsequent measures tend to be closer to the true mean.