MFT Research Methods 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A two-way ANOVA is used when a researcher wants to examine:
- The relationship between two continuous variables
- The effect of two independent variables and their interaction on a dependent variable (Correct answer)
- Differences between two groups on a single variable
- Repeated measures on the same participants across two time points
Correct answer: The effect of two independent variables and their interaction on a dependent variable
Two-way ANOVA tests main effects of each of two independent variables and their interaction effect on one dependent variable.
Question 2: A researcher studying immigrant families uses an interpreter during interviews. A key methodological concern is:
- Decreased internal validity due to random assignment
- Potential loss of meaning or nuance in translation affecting credibility (Correct answer)
- Increased attrition because sessions take longer
- Violation of beneficence due to the interpreter's presence
Correct answer: Potential loss of meaning or nuance in translation affecting credibility
Using interpreters can introduce translation errors that alter participants' intended meanings, threatening qualitative credibility.
Question 3: In research ethics, the Belmont Report's principle of justice primarily requires that:
- Researchers maximize benefits and minimize harms to participants
- Burdens and benefits of research are distributed fairly across populations (Correct answer)
- Participants freely choose to enroll without coercion
- Researchers disclose all relevant information before consent
Correct answer: Burdens and benefits of research are distributed fairly across populations
Justice requires equitable selection of participants so that no group bears disproportionate research burdens or is excluded from benefits.
Question 4: When a researcher uses structural equation modeling (SEM), a primary advantage over standard regression is the ability to:
- Analyze nominal-level variables without transformation
- Model latent variables and complex causal pathways simultaneously (Correct answer)
- Eliminate the need for a large sample size
- Replace the need for random assignment
Correct answer: Model latent variables and complex causal pathways simultaneously
SEM allows simultaneous estimation of multiple relationships and can model unobserved latent constructs.
Question 5: A researcher studying adolescent substance use compares outcomes across ethnic groups but does not report effect sizes. This is problematic because:
- Statistical significance alone does not convey the magnitude or practical importance of group differences (Correct answer)
- Ethnic group comparisons always require qualitative methods
- Without effect sizes, internal validity cannot be established
- Effect sizes replace the need for significance testing
Correct answer: Statistical significance alone does not convey the magnitude or practical importance of group differences
Statistical significance is influenced by sample size; effect sizes convey whether group differences are meaningfully large.
Question 6: The Hawthorne effect refers to the phenomenon in which:
- Participants respond to the demand characteristics of the experimenter
- Participants change their behavior simply because they know they are being observed (Correct answer)
- Observers rate behavior differently when they know the study hypothesis
- Prior events affect participants' responses during a study
Correct answer: Participants change their behavior simply because they know they are being observed
The Hawthorne effect is the tendency for people to alter their behavior as a result of being aware that they are being studied.
Question 7: A researcher reports Cronbach's alpha of 0.91 for a new family resilience scale. This value indicates:
- Strong test-retest reliability
- High internal consistency among scale items (Correct answer)
- Strong criterion-related validity
- Adequate content coverage of the construct
Correct answer: High internal consistency among scale items
Cronbach's alpha measures internal consistency; values above 0.80 are generally considered good to excellent.
MFT Research Methods 5
A two-way ANOVA is used when a researcher wants to examine: