RESEARCH METHODOLOGY-NET/JRF EXAMINATION DECEMBER 2013 prepared by Lakshmanan.MP, Asst Professor, Govt College Chittur

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1 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY-NET/JRF EXAMINATION DECEMBER 2013 prepared by Lakshmanan.MP, Asst Professor, Govt College Chittur For answer key mail request to 1 The research process is best described as a: a.method to select a a frame of reference b. Set of rules that govern the selection of subjects c. Series of steps completed in a logical order d. Plan that directs the research design 2. A research proposal is best described as a(n): a. Framework for data collection and analysis b. Description of the research process for a research project c. Description of how the researcher plans to maintain an ethical perspective during the study d. Argument for the merit of the study 3. The purpose of a literature review is to: a. Use the literature to identify present knowledge and what is unknown b. Assist in defining the problem and operational definition c. Identify strengths and weaknesses of previous studies d. All of the above 4. An operational definition specifies: a. The data analysis techniques to be used in the study b. The levels of measurement to be used in the study c. How a variable or concept will be defined and measured in the study d. How the outcome of the research objectives for the study will be measured 5. A statement of the expected relationship between two or more variables is known as the: a. Concept definition b. Hypothesis c. Problem statement d. Research question 6. In a qualitative research proposal you would not expect to see a: a. Research question b. Research aim c. Hypothesis d. Operational definition 7. 'Relaxation therapy is more effective than standard patient education alone in decreasing pre-operative anxiety' is an example of a: a. Null hypothesis b. Non-directional hypothesis c. Complex hypothesis d. Directional hypothesis 8. Which of the following statements meets the criteria for a researchable question? a. Is the use of normal saline to cleanse wounds harmful to patients? b. Do generalist registered nurses meet the mental health needs of general patients? c. What are the patients' perceptions of the effectiveness of pre-operative education for total hip replacement? d. Do palliative care patients have spiritual needs? 9. The researcher needs to clearly identify the aim of the study; the question to be answered; the population of interest; information to be collected, and feasibility in order to decide on the research: a. Design and method b. Purpose and assumptions c. Design and assumptions d. Purpose and data analysis 10. A variable that changes due to the action of another variable is known as the: a. Independent variable b. Extraneous variable c. Dependent variable d. Complex variable

2 11. Group work is commonly used in courses that require: a. A lot of assessment. b. Students to think deeply about course content. c. Decision-making and problem-solving. d. Report writing skills. 12. Effective presentations require: a. Good presentation skills and especially the ability to present material dramatically. b. A pleasant smile, good eye contact, suitable clothes and a well-modulated voice. c. Planning, practice and presentation skills. d. Planning, a logical order of presentation and asking the class lots of questions. 13. What 'body' aspect of the presentation is the most important to consider? a. The whole body b. The voice c. The eyes d. Gestures 14. The quality of a research study is primarily assessed on: a. The place of publication. b. The ways in which the recommendations are implemented. c. The rigour with which it was conducted. d. The number of times it is replicated. 15. Which of the following is not an appropriate source for academic research? a. An online encyclopaedia b. A government-based research organisation database c. A peer reviewed journal article d. A textbook 16. 'Research methodology' refers to: a. The sampling technique. b. The tools that the researcher uses. c. The chain of association between the research question and the research design. d. Qualitative methods. 17. Research is: a. A purposeful, systematic activity. b. Primarily conducted for purely academic purposes. c. Primarily conducted to answer questions about practical issues. d. A random, unplanned process of discovery. 18. When conducting a review of literature on a particular subject, the researcher should: a. Read all available material on the subject. b. Read the whole journal article and then decide whether or not it is useful. c. Read strategically and critically. d. Read fully only those texts that appear to agree with his/her point of view. 19. The two main styles of research are: a. Data collection and data coding. b. Surveys and questionnaires. c. Sampling and recording. d. Qualitative and quantitative. 20. Triangulation involves: a. Collecting data from a variety of different sources. b. Consulting the works of three other researchers. c. Consulting the works of authors with the same perspective as the researcher. d. The use of three different research tools in one study.

3 21. Qualitative research is: a. Not as rigorous as quantitative research. b. Primarily concerned with the collection and analysis of numerical data. c. Primarily concerned with in-depth exploration of phenomena. d. Primarily concerned with the quality of the research. 22. Quantitative research involves: a. Interviewing people to find out their deeply held views about issues. b. Collecting data in numerical form. c. More rigour than qualitative research. d. Interviewing every member of the target population. 23. Research reports: a. Present at least a review of the literature, the methods used, the findings and a discussion. They have some common elements but may vary in overall organisational structure. b. Typically present a review of the literature, the findings, a discussion and b. recommendations. c. Always present recommendations as well as an outline of the methods used and the findings. d.always state the research question or hypothesis and are written in first person to show that the author takes responsibility for the findings. 24. What kind of information is usually presented in the limitations section of a research report? a. An outline of the factors that may have prevented the researcher from conducting more thorough research b. An outline of the extent of the research study c. An outline of the historical background of the research study d. An explanation of the research tools used to gather the data 25. Jargon is: a. Specialised language and is always inappropriate. b. Technical language used within a field and therefore has a place in research reports. c. Specialised language and may be appropriate when used between peers but not with people outside the field. d. Specialised language and is never appropriate in reports. 26. The abstract of the report: a. Is usually written before the rest of the report. b. Provides a snapshot of the major section of the entire report. c. Serves as the introduction to the report, with a focus on the background for the research. d. Is usually several pages in length. 27. In the methods section of the report, the researcher needs to: a. Discuss the results of the research. b. Discuss the theoretical background for the research. c. Recount in detail the daily research activities conducted during the research process. d. Set out in detail how data was gathered and analysed. 28. Why is it important to identify the primary audience for the research report? a. In order to adapt the findings to their liking b. In order to bypass undesirable readers c. So that the writer can adapt the writing to meet their needs (i.e. in terms of language and level of expertise) d. In order to frame the discussion in such a way as to gain most approval for the findings 29. What is presented in the findings section of a research report? a. A discussion of the results b. The quantitative or qualitative data that was collected c. The theoretical foundations for the research study d. The methods that were used to collect the data 30. What is presented in the discussion section of a research report? a. The numerical data that was collected b. The reasons for undertaking the study c. A comment on the results presented in the findings section d. Your plans for future research 31. The conclusion of a research report: a. Can introduce new information. b. Must be based only on material presented in the report. c. Is the same as the abstract except that it is presented at the end of the report. d. Should focus only on the findings of the research.

4 32. Which form of reasoning is the process of drawing a specific conclusion from a set of premises? a. rationalism b. deductive reasoning c. inductive reasoning d. probabilistic 33. Research that is done to examine the findings of someone else using the "same variables but different people" is which of the following? a. exploration b. hypothesis c. replication d. empiricism 34. is the idea that knowledge comes from experience. a. rationalism b. deductive reasoning c. logic d. empiricism 35. Which scientific method is a top-down or confirmatory approach? a. Deductive method b. Inductive method c. Hypothesis method d. Pattern method 36. Which of the following statements is true of a theory? a. it most simply means explanation b. it answers the how and why questions c. it can be a well developed explanatory system d. all of the above are correct 37. A condition or characteristic that can take on different values or categories is called. a. a constant b. a variable c. a cause-and-effect relationship d. a descriptive relationship 38. All of the following are common characteristics of experimental research except: a. it relies primarily on the collection of numerical data b. it can produce important knowledge about cause and effect c. it uses the deductive scientific method d. it rarely is conducted in a controlled setting or environment 39. Which of the following includes examples of quantitative variables? a. age, temperature, income, height b. grade point average, anxiety level, reading performance c. gender, religion, ethnic group d. both a and b 40. Which of the following can best be described as a categorical variable? a. age b. annual income c. grade point average d. religion 41. When interpreting a correlation coefficient expressing the relationship between two variables, it is very important to avoid. a. checking the strength of relationship b. jumping to the conclusion of causality c. checking the direction of the relationship d. expressing a relationship with a correlation coefficient 42. Which correlation is the strongest? a b c d The tool function of theory is to: a. Summarize existing knowledge b. Summarize existing hypotheses c. Suggest new relationships and make new predictions d. Suggest new theories 44. According to the text, which of the following orders is the recommended in the flowchart of the development of a research idea? a. Research topic, research problem, research purpose, research question, hypothesis b. Research topic, research purpose, research problem, research question, hypothesis c. Research topic, research problem, research purpose, research question, hypothesis d. Research topic, hypothesis, research problem, research question, research purpose

5 45. What kind of ideas can t be empirically researched? a. Effectiveness of different methods of instruction b. Description of educational practices c. Issues of values and morality such as the correctness of having prayer in schools d. Factors helpful in predicting future drug use 46. The research participants are described in detail in which section of the research plan? a. Introduction b. Method c. Data analysis d. Discussion 47. The act of publishing the same data and results in more than one journal or publication refers to which of the following professional issues: a. Partial publication b. Duplicate publication c. Deception d. Full publication 48. Which term refers to publishing several articles from the data collected in one large study? a. Duplicate publication b. Partial publication c. Triplicate publication d. None of these 49. Which scale is the simplest form of measurement? a. Nominal b. Ordinal c. Interval d. Ratio 50. tests focus on information acquired through the informal learning that goes on in life. a. Personality b. Achievement c. Aptitude d. Intelligence 51. All of the following are examples of Intelligence Tests except : a. Wechsler Scales b. Stanford-Binet c. Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory(MMPI) d. Slosson 52. Reliability is most simply known as which of the following? a. Consistency or stability b. Appropriateness of interpretations on the basis of test scores c. Ways in which people are the same d. A rank order of participants on some characteristic 53. Which of the following is not a type of reliability? a. Test-retest b. Split-half c. Content d. Internal consistency 54. Which of the following is the correct order of Stevens four levels of measurement? a. Ordinal, nominal, ratio, interval b. Nominal, ordinal, interval, ratio c. Interval, nominal, ordinal, ratio d. Ratio, interval, nominal, ordinal 55. Which of these is not a method of data collection. a. Questionnaires b. Interviews c. Experiments d. Observations 56. Which of the following terms best describes data that were originally collected at an earlier time by a different person for a different purpose? a. Primary data b. Secondary data c. Experimental data d. Field notes 57. Another name for a Likert Scale is a(n): a. Interview protocol b. Event sampling c. Summated rating scale d. Ranking

6 58Which of the following is not one of the six major methods of data collection that are used by educational researchers? a. Observation b. Interviews c. Questionnaires d. Checklists 59. A census taker often collects data through which of the following? a. Standardized tests b. Interviews c. Secondary data d. Observations 60. When constructing a questionnaire, there are 15 principles to which you should adhere. Which of the following is not one of those principles? a. Do not use "leading" or "loaded" questions b. Avoid double-barreled questions c. Avoid double negatives d. Avoid using multiple items to measure a single construct 61. Which of the following will give a more accurate representation of the population from which a sample has been taken? a. A large sample based on the convenience sampling technique b. A small sample based on simple random sampling c. A large sample based on simple random sampling d. A small cluster sample 62. Sampling in qualitative research is similar to which type of sampling in quantitative research? a. Simple random sampling b. Systematic sampling c. Quota sampling d. Purposive sampling 63. In which of the following nonrandom sampling techniques does the researcher ask the research participants to identify other potential research participants? a. Snowball b. Convenience c. Purposive d. Quota 64. If we took the 500 people attending a school in a City, divided them by gender, and then took a random sample of the males and a random sampling of the females, the variable on which we would divide the population is called a. Independent variable b. Dependent variable c. Stratification variable d. Sampling variable 65. A number calculated with complete population data and quantifies a characteristic of the population is called which of the following? a. A datum b. A statistic c. A parameter d. A population 66. Which of the following would usually require the smallest sample size because of its efficiency? a. One stage cluster sampling b. Simple random sampling c. Two stage cluster sampling d. Quota sampling 67. a set of elements taken from a larger population according to certain rules. a. Sample b. Population c. Statistic d. Element 68. refers to the influence of a single independent variable. a. Interaction effect b. Reactive effect c. Main effect d. Proactive effect 69. GLM refers to which of the following? a. General Logit Model b. General Limited Model c. General Lab Model d. General Linear Model

7 70. The Pearson product moment correlation measures the degree of relationship present between two variables. a. Curvilinear b. Nonlinear c. Linear and quadratic d. Linear 71. Approximately what percentage of scores fall within one standard deviation of the mean in a normal distribution? a. 34% b. 95% c. 99% d. 68% 72. the set of procedures used to explain or predict the values of a dependent variable based on the values of one or more independent variables. a. Regression analysis b. Regression coefficient c. Regression equation d. Regression line 73. Which of the following is NOT a measure of variability? a. Median b. Variance c. Standard deviation d. Range 74. If a test was generally very easy, except for a few students who had very low scores, then the distribution of scores would be. a. Positively skewed b. Negatively skewed c. Not skewed at all d. Normal 75. Which of the following symbols represents a population parameter? a. SD b. σ c. r d Which of the following statements sounds like a null hypothesis? a. The coin is not fair b. There is a correlation in the population c. There is no difference between male and female incomes in the population d. The defendant is guilty 77. What is the standard deviation of a sampling distribution called? a. Sampling error b. Sample error c. Standard error d. Simple error 78. Which of the following is the researcher usually interested in supporting when he or she is engaging in hypothesis testing? a. The alternative hypothesis b. The null hypothesis c. Both the alternative and null hypothesis d. Neither the alternative or null hypothesis 79. results if you fail to reject the null hypothesis when the null hypothesis is actually false. a. Type I error b. Type II error c. Type III error d. Type IV error 80. A good way to get a small standard error is to use a. a. Repeated sampling b. Small sample c. Large sample d. Large population 81. The use of the laws of probability to make inferences and draw statistical conclusions about populations based on sample data is referred to as. a. Descriptive statistics b. Inferential statistics c. Sample statistics d. Population statistics 82. This is the difference between a sample statistic and the corresponding population parameter. a. Standard error b. Sampling error c. Difference error d. None of the above

8 83. A Type I error is also known as a. a. False positive b. False negative c. Double negative d. Positive negative 84. Why do you need to review the existing literature? a) To make sure you have a long list of references b) Because without it, you could never reach the required word-count c) To find out what is already known about your area of interest d) To help in your general studying 85. What is meta-analysis? a) A technique of correcting for the errors in individual studies within a survey of a large number of studies, to demonstrate the effect of a particular variable b) A process of secondary-data gathering to assemble all the possibilities for a variable's effects c) A substitute for original research, which is justified by constraints of time or money d) A specialized step in a computer software program (e.g. SPSS) 86. Which of the following is not an advantage of using closed questions in a survey? a) It reduces the risk of variability in the way answers are recorded b) It makes answers easier to process and analyse c) They prevent respondents from giving spontaneous, unexpected answers d) Closed questions are quicker and easier for respondents to complete 87. You should avoid using double-barrelled questions in a survey because: a) They rely too much on a respondent's memory b) They make the questions too long, so respondents lose interest c) They are too abstract and general in scope d) They confuse respondents by asking about two different things 88. Leading questions should also be avoided because: a) They suggest ways of answering and so may bias the results b) They create a mismatch between the question and its possible answers c) They involve negative terms and unnecessary jargon d) They ask about several different things at the same time 89. What is the purpose of the conclusion in a research report? a) It explains how concepts were operationally defined and measured b) It contains a useful review of the relevant literature c) It outlines the methodological procedures that were employed d) It summarizes the key findings in relation to the research questions 90. One of the advantages of self-completion questionnaires over structured interviews is that: a) They are quicker and cheaper to administer b) They create interviewer effects c) They have greater measurement validity d) They are less prone to inter-coder variation 91. When using a Likert scale with a long list of items, it is usually better to: a) Arrange the answers horizontally, in abbreviated form b) List the answers vertically, for each consecutive item c) Omit any instructions about how to select an answer d) List all questions on one page and all answers on another 92. If a study is "reliable", this means that: a) It was conducted by a reputable researcher who can be trusted b) The measures devised for concepts are stable on different occasions c) The findings can be generalized to other social settings d) The methods are stated clearly enough for the research to be replicated 93. What is a cross-sectional design? a) A study of one particular section of society, e.g. the middle classes b) One that is devised when the researcher is in a bad mood c) The collection of data from more than one case at one moment in time d) A comparison of two or more variables over a long period of time 94. Which of the following is a problem associated with survey research? a) The problem of objectivity b) The problem of "going native" c) The problem of omission d) The problem of robustness 95. A sampling frame is: a) A summary of the various stages involved in designing a survey b) An outline view of all the main clusters of units in a sample c) A list of all the units in the population from which a sample will be selected d) A wooden frame used to display tables of random numbers

9 96. The standard error is a statistical measure of: a) The normal distribution of scores around the sample mean b) The extent to which a sample mean is likely to differ from the population mean c) The clustering of scores at each end of a survey scale d) The degree to which a sample has been accurately stratified 97. What does 'sampling cases' mean? a) Sampling using a sampling frame b) Identifying people who are suitable for research c) Literally, the researcher's brief-case d) Sampling people, newspapers, television programmes etc. 98. Which of the following are true statements? 1 Voluntary response samples often under represent people with strong opinions. 2. Convenience samples often lead to under coverage bias. 3. Questionnaires with non neutral wording are likely to have response bias. (A)1 and 2 (B) 1 and 3 (C) 2 and 3 D) 1,2 and Consider the following three events: I. Although 18% of the student body are minorities, in a random sample of 20 students, 5 are minorities. II. In a survey about sexual habits, an embarrassed student deliberately gives the wrong answers. III. A surveyor mistakenly records answers to one question in the wrong space. Which of the following correctly characterizes the above? (A) I, sampling error; Il, response bias; ill, human mistake (B) I, sampling error; n, non response bias; ill, hidden error (C) I, hidden bias; n, voluntary sample bias; ill, sampling error (D) I, under coverage error; n, voluntary error; ill, unintentional error 100. To conduct a survey of long-distance calling patterns, a researcher opens a telephone book to a random page, closes his eyes, puts his finger down on the page, and then reads off the next 50 names. Which of the following are true statements? I. The survey incorporates chance. II. The procedure results in a simple random sample. III. The procedure could easily result in selection bias. (A) I and II (B) I and III (C) II and III (D) I, ) II and III