PRC Research Design & Methodology 3

Question 1

A researcher measures income using brackets ($0–$25k, $25k–$50k, etc.). What level of measurement is this?

Accepted Answer

Ordinal

Answer

Income brackets are ordinal because they have a meaningful order but the intervals between categories are not necessarily equal.

Question 2

Which threat to internal validity occurs when participants behave differently because they know they are being observed?

Accepted Answer

Hawthorne effect

Answer

The Hawthorne effect refers to behavior change caused by participants' awareness of being studied.

Question 3

When a researcher selects only the most accessible participants, this is called:

Accepted Answer

Convenience sampling

Answer

Convenience sampling selects participants based on ease of access, which can limit generalizability.

Question 4

Discriminant validity is demonstrated by showing that a measure:

Accepted Answer

Does not correlate strongly with measures of unrelated constructs

Answer

Discriminant validity confirms that a measure is distinct from measures of theoretically different constructs.

Question 5

In survey research, a double-barreled question:

Accepted Answer

Asks about two separate issues in a single question, making responses ambiguous

Answer

A double-barreled question combines two issues in one item, so it is unclear which issue the respondent is answering.

(PRC) Professional Researcher Certification Practice Test