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Semester 2 AUTUMN REPEAT Examinations 2009/ 20010 Exam Code(s) 2BA1, 2BA6, 2BHR1, 2BFS1, 2BWM1, 2BIS1, 2BCS1, Exam(s) 2 nd^ Arts Module Code(s) SP Module(s) Methods for Social and Political Science Paper No. Repeat Paper External Examiner(s) Dr. Paul Mitchell Professor Piers Beirne Internal Examiner(s) Professor Chris Curtin Dr. Ricca Edmondson Dr. Henrike Rau Mr. Donal Igoe Instructions: Answer 2 questions from Section A and 50 MCQ questions from Section B. Answer for Section B must be entered on the MCQ sheet provided. Duration (^) 2 Hours No. of Pages Department(s) Course Co-ordinator(s) Requirements : MCQ MCQ Sheet Handout Statistical Tables Graph Paper Log Graph Paper Other Material
SP220 Methods for Social and Political Science. Answer TWO questions. Please use a separate answer book for this section.
- Refer to your reading to discuss the main benefits and the main pitfalls of participant observation. In what sorts of research would you consider it most appropriate?
- How important is interviewing as a method in social and political science? Refer to your reading to discuss the main methods of interviewing, and the main advantages and disadvantages of this approach to collecting knowledge.
- What are the major problems that social and political scientists should be aware of when writing? In your view, is the writer in complete charge of the text he or she is composing? If not, what other issues should writers consider?
- Gaventa and Cornwall (2001: 70) argue that ‘power and knowledge are inextricably intertwined’. Can participatory research really help reduce power asymmetries between researcher and participants?
- Discuss the benefits and drawbacks of focus groups. What can data produced by the interaction between participants reveal about the social world?
- ‘Certain questions cannot be answered by quantitative methods, while others cannot be answered by qualitative ones’ (Walker 1985:16). Does multi- method research offer a solution to this problem?
- What positions do social researchers take on ethical guidelines? Discuss the four main stances discussed in this course and give examples.
An inductive theory is one that: a) Involves testing an explicitly defined hypothesis b) Does not allow for findings to feed back into the stock of knowledge c) Uses quantitative methods whenever possible d) Allows theory to emerge out of the data Question 3 What is a research design? a) A way of conducting research that is not grounded in theory b) The choice between using qualitative or quantitative methods c) The style in which you present your research findings, e.g. a graph d) A framework for every stage of the collection and analysis of data Question 4 "Internal validity" refers to: a) Whether or not there is really a causal relationship between two variables b) Whether or not the findings are relevant to the participants' everyday lives c) The degree to which the researcher feels that this was a worthwhile project d) How accurately the measurements represent underlying concepts
In an experimental design, the dependent variable is: a) The one that is not manipulated and in which any changes are observed b) The one that is manipulated in order to observe any effects on the other c) A measure of the extent to which personal values affect research d) An ambiguous concept whose meaning depends on how it is defined Question 6 The Asch Experiment a. appears to demonstrate that social pressure can induce errors of visual judgment but only in the case of ambiguous stimuli. b. appears to demonstrate that social pressure can induce errors of visual judgment even with unambiguous stimuli. c. produces inconclusive results, because subjects are randomly assigned to the control group and the experimental group and so the apparent effect of social pressure can be explained away as possibly due to other differences between the groups. d. is incapable of producing rigorous evidence about the impact of social pressure because no control group is used. Question 7 A cross-sectional design a. entails the collection of data on more than one case at a single point in time, to find patterns of association between variables. b. entails the collection of data on more than one case at multiple points in time, to find patterns of association between variables. c. entails the intensive study of a single representative case at one point in time d. entails the intensive study of a single case at multiple points in time
Regarding validity of measurement, we can say that: a. random measurement error does not threaten validity b. both systematic measurement error and random measurement error threaten validity c. only systematic measurement error is a threat to validity. d. neither systematic nor random measurement error is a threat to validity. Question 12 Which of the following is not a form of measurement validity? a) Concurrent validity b) Face validity c) Conductive validity d) Convergent validity Question 13 The split-half method is used as a test of: a) Stability b) Internal reliability c) Inter-observer consistency d) External validity Question 14 Replications of previous studies a. are regarded as a waste of time in the natural sciences as researchers there can be relied upon to produce objective results b. are NOT regarded as an important safeguard in ensuring objectivity in the natural sciences c. are often found in social research as they are regarded as highly prestigious d. are NOT often found in social research because replication is not regarded as such a high status activity as designing original research
What kind of sample helps a researcher to claim that his or her results are generalizable? a. opportunity sample b. snowball sample c. probability sample d. self-selecting sample Question 1 6 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 Question 17 A simple random sample is one in which: a) From a random starting point, every n th unit from the sampling frame is selected b) A non-probability strategy is used, making the results difficult to generalize c) The researcher has a certain quota of respondents to fill for various social groups d) Every unit of the population has an equal chance of being selected
Closed ended questions are those that: a) Have a fixed range of possible answers b) Prevent respondents from allocating themselves to a category c) Encourage detailed, elaborate responses d) Relate to the basic demographic characteristics of respondents Question 22 A filter question is one that: a) Ensures that all respondents are asked every question on the schedule and in the same order b) Leaves a space for respondents to write long and detailed answers c) Helps the interviewer to avoid asking irrelevant questions by directing them elsewhere on the schedule d) Allows supervisors to distinguish between good and bad interviewers Question 23 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
Postal self-completion questionnaires a. normally have very high return rates b. have a notoriously low response rate c. are likely to result in a highly representative selection of respondents d. rarely have their response rates improved by sending reminder letters. Question 25 Why is it generally better to present fixed choice answers in vertical rather than horizontal form? a) It takes up less space on the page b) It encourages respondents to choose more than one answer c) It allows questions to be spread over more than one page d) It makes the layout of the questionnaire more clear and unambiguous Question 26 In order to identify response sets in a Likert scale, you could: a) Pre-code all items consistently from 1- 5 b) Reverse the scoring of pre-coded answers c) Only include items about socially desirable behaviours d) Include explicit instructions to respondents not to deceive you
What is an outlier? a) A type of variable that cannot be quantified b) A compulsive liar who is proud to be gay c) A score that is left out of the analysis because of missing data d) An extreme value at either end of a distribution Question 31 A test of statistical significance indicates how confident the researcher is about: a) The inter-coder reliability of their structured interview schedule b) Passing their driving test c) Understanding the difference between bivariate and multivariate analysis d) Generalising their findings from the sample to the population Question 32 (Babbie) A measure of dispersion describes a) which data are the most important b) how spread out the data are c) which data are appropriate for analysis d) discrete data only
Question 33 (Babbie) The key aspect of the control variable that determines the type of elaboration is: a) The number of categories b) the number of partials c) The time order d) The strength of the relationship Question 34 (Babbie) Professor Rodriquez found a strong positive relationship between participation in high school activities and subsequent occupational success. She then controlled for family social class background and the relationship vanished. Which type of elaboration is reflected in this example? a) replication b) specification c) interpretation d) explanation Question 35 (Babbie) Which of the following is an example of the null hypothesis? a) There is no difference between males and females on voting b) There is a difference between males and females on voting c) Males tend to vote more often than females d) The relationship between sex and voting is unknown
What is the "ecological fallacy"? a) The assumption that secondary data analysis can be carried out at home b) The mistake of observing people in their natural setting c) The error of making inferences about individual behaviour from aggregate data d) The myth that it is easy to research environmentalist action groups Question 40 What arguments have been put forward to challenge the critique of official statistics? a. Criticisms do not really apply to crime statistics b. Official statistics reflect more about the measurement process than they do about the forms of behaviour in question c. The gap between categories used by officials and social researchers is not that big d. Official statistics reflect administrative needs and priorities so that they are inherently unbiased. Question 41 In SPSS, what is the "Data Viewer"? a) A table summarizing the frequencies of data for one variable b) A spreadsheet into which data can be entered c) A dialog box that allows you to choose a statistical test d) A screen in which variables can be defined and labeled
In SPSS, what is the "Variable Viewer"? a) A table summarizing the frequencies of data for two or more variables in a crosstabulation b) A spreadsheet into which information about the data can be entered c) A dialog box that allows you to choose a graphical display d) A screen in which output can be viewed Question 43 How is a variable name different from a variable label? a) It is shorter and less detailed b) It is longer and more detailed c) It is abstract and unspecific d) It refers to codes rather than variables Question 44 What role is performed by ‘missing values’ in SPSS? a) Declaring that a value is a ‘missing value’ enables SPSS to substitute another adjacent value for it when performing analyses. b) Declaring that a value is a ‘missing value’ has no real impact as it merely attaches a value label to that value without affecting calculations for analysis c) Declaring that a value is ‘missing value’ prevents SPSS from including it when performing analyses. d) Declaring that a value is a ‘missing value’ results in the complete and permanent deletion from the data-set of any case where the value declared as ‘missing’ occurs.
In which sub-dialog box can the Chi Square test be found? a) Frequencies: Percentages b) Crosstabs: Statistics c) Bivariate: Pearson d) Gender: Female Question 49 How would you print a bar chart that you have just produced in SPSS? a) In Output Viewer, click File, Print, select the bar chart and click OK b) In Variable Viewer, open bar chart, click File, Print, OK c) In Chart Editor, click Descriptive Statistics, Print, OK d) In Data Editor, open Graphs dialog box, click Save, OK Question 50 How would you get SPSS to produce a Scatter diagram a) By using the regression submenu on the analyse menu b) By using the correlation submenu on the analyse menu c) By using the chart submenu on the graph menu d) By using the compute submenu on the transform menu
