1. If we wanted to quickly discover a general relationship between two variables in a large group of people, which kind of study would we want to perform?

A. a correlational study
B. a controlled study
C. several case studies
D. all the above

2. In the 1970s, a team of researchers in Taiwan decided to find variables that best predicted who would make use of birth-control methods. They found that people who had more electrical appliances in their homes (such as toasters and fans) were more likely to use birth-control methods. Given what you've learned about correlational studies, how would you interpret this finding?

A. The more electrical appliances in people's homes, the more likely it is that they will use birth-control methods.
B. The buying of many electrical appliances causes people to want to use birth-control methods.
C. The use of birth-control methods causes people to have more money to buy electrical appliances.
D. Educated people are more likely to use birth-control methods and to have enough money to buy electrical appliances.

3. Which of the following is an example of a positive correlation?

A. The more coffee per day that people drink, the lower is their chance of developing Parkinson's Disorder.
B. People who are younger have a lower chance of developing Parkinson's Disorder.
C. Males have a greater chance of developing Parkinson's Disorder than females do.

4. Which of the following is an example of a negative correlation?

A. The more coffee per day that people drink, the lower is their chance of developing Parkinson's Disorder.
B. People who are younger have a lower chance of developing Parkinson's Disorder.
C. Males have a greater chance of developing Parkinson's Disorder than females do.

5. The more years of schooling that people have, the higher is their lifetime earnings. Haylee went to graduate school and received a Master's degree, whereas Natalee went to a community college and received an Associate's degree. In other words, Haylee went to school for six years after high school, whereas Natalee went to school for two years after high school. Who will earn more money over her lifetime, Haylee or Natalee?

A. Haylee will because she had more years of schooling.
B. Natalee will because she had more years of work.
C. It is not possible to know based only on this information.

6. There is a negative correlation between the number of hours spent watching television per day and the number of arrests for violent crimes: people who spend more hours each day watching television are less likely, on average, to be arrested for violent crimes. Based on this finding, would a good strategy for reducing arrests for violent crimes be to get people to watch more television each day?

A. Yes, it seems that watching more television each day leads to fewer arrests for violent crimes.
B. Yes, it seems that not being arrested for violent crimes leads to more television viewing each day.
C. No, finding that television viewing and arrests for violent crimes are correlated tells us nothing about the cause of the correlation.

7. Using the example of a negative correlation in Question 6, which of the following illustrates the third-variable problem in correlational studies?

A. Being less physically fit causes people to watch more television and to commit fewer violent crimes.
B. Watching more television per day causes people to have less time for doing other things, such as committing violent crimes.
B. Committing more violent crimes causes people to have less time for doing other things, such as watching television.

8. There is a positive correlation between watching violent television programs and committing violent crimes: people who watch a larger number of violent television programs commit a larger number of violent crimes. Based on this finding, some have argued for reducing the number of violent programs on television in order to reduce the rates of violent crimes. In short, they are concluding that violent television programs cause violent crimes. Which of the following illustrates the directionality problem with respect to this example?

A. Committing violent crimes may cause people to prefer watching violent television programs.
B. Watching violent television programs may cause people to prefer committing violent crimes.
C. Being mentally disordered may cause people to commit violent crimes and to watch violent television programs.

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