1. _____ statistics are used to organize and summarize data in a meaningful way. 
A. Inferential 
B. Descriptive 
C. Sample 
D. Population
Answer: B 
2. Your textbook describes a research project concerned with health issues that generated a large amount of data. In order to make sense out of this mass of information, the researchers used _____ to organize and summarize the data in a meaningful way. 
A. inferential statistics 
B. population statistics 
C. correlation coefficients 
D. descriptive statistics
Answer: D 
3. If you arrange raw scores in order of magnitude and you record the number of times each score occurs, you have constructed a summary table called a: 
A. correlation coefficient. 
B. scatter plot. 
C. frequency distribution. 
D. central tendency table.
Answer: C 
4. After the first quiz in Psychology 101, Professor Driscoll used a summary table to arrange the raw scores in order of magnitude and recorded the number of times each score occurred. Professor Driscoll has created a: 
A. frequency polygon. 
B. scatter diagram. 
C. frequency distribution. 
D. variability table.
Answer: C 
5. A _____ is a graphic representation of a frequency distribution in a type of bar chart that uses vertical bars that touch. 
A. central tendency table 
B. coefficient scatter plot 
C. variability diagram 
D. histogram
Answer: D 
6. Data from the health promotion study described in the textbook were first arranged in a frequency distribution. The researchers then graphically displayed the data in a bar chart with vertical lines that touched. At that point, the researchers had constructed a: 
A. histogram. 
B. frequency polygon. 
C. scatter plot. 
D. standard deviation curve.
Answer: A 
7. When the data from the health promotion study described in the textbook were presented in a histogram, the categories (the number of hours of aerobic exercise per week) were placed along the _____, and the frequency of each category was displayed along the _____. 
A. X axis; Y axis 
B. vertical axis; horizontal axis 
C. Y axis; X axis 
D. ordinate; abscissa
Answer: A 
8. Yoshiko decided to organize the data from her frequency distribution graphically in a type of bar chart in which the bars were vertical and touched each other. Yoshiko's graph is called a: 
A. scatter diagram. 
B. histogram. 
C. frequency polygon. 
D. variability distribution.
Answer: B 
9. Marvin gathered data on the frequency of shopping trips to the mall as a function of various age categories. To organize the results of his research graphically, Marvin made a mark above each age category at the point corresponding to its frequency, and then connected these dots with straight lines. Marvin has constructed a: 
A. frequency polygon. 
B. frequency distribution. 
C. histogram. 
D. scatter plot.
Answer: A 
10. When Sarah created a frequency polygon, she noticed there were more scores on one side of the distribution than on the other. It would appear that Sarah's distribution is: 
A. symmetrical. 
B. a standard normal curve. 
C. skewed. 
D. a scatter plot.
Answer: C 
11. When Mrs. Sanderson plotted the math test scores of her sixth graders in a frequency polygon, the distribution turned out to be positively skewed. This indicates that: 
A. most students had low scores. 
B. the standard deviation is extremely large. 
C. most students had high scores. 
D. the correlation coefficient is close to zero.
Answer: A 
12. In a graph displaying family income in Slakia, the frequency of families with low incomes was far greater than the frequency of families with medium or high incomes. It would appear that the distribution of family incomes in Slakia: 
A. is negatively skewed. 
B. resembles the standard normal curve. 
C. is positively skewed. 
D. has little or no variability.
Answer: C 
13. A _____ distribution is asymmetrical, meaning that more scores occur on one side of the distribution than on the other. 
A. variable 
B. standard normal 
C. scattered 
D. skewed
Answer: D 
14. In a(n) _____ distribution most people have low scores, whereas in a(n) _____ distribution most people have high scores. 
A. positively skewed; negatively skewed 
B. symmetrical; asymmetrical 
C. negatively skewed; positively skewed 
D. asymmetrical; symmetrical
Answer: A 
15. Using a frequency polygon, Sydney plotted the incomes of families living in the Ritz Crescent area of town.  She discovered that very few families had low incomes, about a quarter had medium incomes, and the majority had high incomes. It would appear that the distribution of family income in Ritz Crescent: 
A. is negatively skewed. 
B. has little or no variability. 
C. is positively skewed. 
D. is symmetrical.
Answer: A 
16. Anthony compared the frequency distributions of two twelfth-grade classes on math test scores. He discovered that most students had low scores in the first distribution. In contrast, most of the students had high scores in the second distribution. The first distribution is _____ and the second distribution is _____. 
A. symmetrical; asymmetrical 
B. positively skewed; negatively skewed 
C. a polygon; a histogram 
D. negatively skewed; positively skewed
Answer: B 
17. A distribution in which scores fall equally on both sides of the graph is said to be: 
A. skewed. 
B. asymmetrical. 
C. symmetrical. 
D. deviated.
Answer: C 
18. The _____ is an example of a symmetrical distribution. 
A. standard normal curve 
B. standard deviation 
C. scatter diagram 
D. modal distribution
Answer: A 
19. Researchers gathered data on a health-enhancing program. The data indicated that the program had worked well in producing behavioral changes. By the end of the program, the majority of the program participants were exercising more hours per week, and far fewer participants were leading inactive lives. A frequency polygon of this data: 
A. would have very high z scores. 
B. would be negatively skewed. 
C. would be positively skewed. 
D. would resemble the standard normal curve.
Answer: B 
20. A(n) _____ is a single number that presents some information about the center of a frequency distribution. 
A. inferential statistic 
B. correlation coefficient 
C. measure of statistical significance 
D. measure of central tendency
Answer: D 
21. Ramon has organized his data into both a frequency distribution and a polygon. Now he wants to summarize the data with a single number that provides information about the "typical" score, or the "center" of the distribution. Ramon would be advised to use: 
A. a measure of central tendency. 
B. an inferential statistic. 
C. a measure of statistical significance. 
D. a correlation coefficient.
Answer: A 
22. The _____ is the most frequently occurring score in a distribution. 
A. mean 
B. mode 
C. median 
D. range
Answer: B 
23. An analysis of the test scores on the first quiz showed that more students got a score of 35 than any other score. In this example, the score of 35 would be the: 
A. mean. 
B. median. 
C. mode. 
D. standard deviation.
Answer: C 
24. In a slightly skewed distribution, the mode would be: 
A. the most frequently occurring score. 
B. the score that falls in the middle of the distribution. 
C. the arithmetic average. 
D. a number, expressed in standard deviation units, that shows a score's deviation from the mean.
Answer: A 
25. In a health psychology study, researchers compiled the following data: 
4 people exercised 7 hours per week
7 people exercised 6 hours per week
13 people exercised 5 hours per week
5 people exercised 4 hours per week
3 people exercised 3 hours per week
2 people exercised less than 3 hours per week
Because more people reported exercising 5 hours a week than any other category, 5 hours per week would be the _____ for this distribution. 
A. median 
B. range 
C. average 
D. mode
Answer: D 
26. When scores are arranged from lowest to highest, the _____ is the score that divides a frequency distribution exactly in half, so that the same number of scores lies on each side of it. 
A. average 
B. z score 
C. median 
D. mode
Answer: C 
27. During the first week of their vacation, Sam drank 15 soft drinks, Sonia drank 10, Dwayne drank 8, Eddie drank 6, and Michele drank 6. The median number of soft drinks consumed by this group is: 
A. 6. 
B. 8. 
C. 9. 
D. 45.
Answer: B 
28. When Carla plotted the distribution of scores in her data, she found that the score that fell exactly in the middle and divided the distribution exactly in half was 50. In this case, the score of 50 is the: 
A. range. 
B. mode. 
C. mean. 
D. median.
Answer: D 
29. The arithmetic average of all the scores is called the: 
A. z score. 
B. standard deviation. 
C. median. 
D. mean.
Answer: D 
30. Fifty students took the midterm exam in Dr. Axelrod's class. In order to get some idea of the most "typical" score, Dr. Axelrod added up all the scores and divided the sum by 50. The product of this calculation is called the: 
A. median. 
B. standard deviation. 
C. mean. 
D. range.
Answer: C 
31. The _____ is the score that is usually the most representative measure of central tendency. 
A. mode 
B. mean 
C. correlation coefficient 
D. median
Answer: B 
32. The _____ is the measure of central tendency that is most affected by very extreme scores. 
A. mean 
B. range 
C. median 
D. mode
Answer: A 
33. Neil had the following distribution of scores: 2, 2, 2, 4, 5, 6, 25. The _____ is the measure of central tendency that will be most affected by the one extreme score of 25. 
A. correlation coefficient 
B. mode 
C. median 
D. mean
Answer: D 
34. A measure of _____ is a single number that presents information about the spread of scores in a distribution. 
A. central tendency 
B. correlation coefficient 
C. statistical significance 
D. variability
Answer: D 
35. Tyler wants to know how much the scores in his data differ from each other and whether the scores are widely spread out. Tyler would be well advised to use: 
A. a measure of central tendency. 
B. the correlation coefficient. 
C. a measure of variability. 
D. a measure of statistical significance.
Answer: C 
36. The _____ is a measure of variability that is computed by subtracting the lowest score in the distribution from the highest score. 
A. standard deviation 
B. z score 
C. correlation coefficient 
D. range
Answer: D 
37. As a measure of variability, the range provides a limited amount of information because it: 
A. depends on the two most extreme scores in a distribution, the highest and the lowest. 
B. reflects only one score in the distribution, the middle point. 
C. depends on the average amount of variation in a distribution based on how different each score is from the mean. 
D. reflects only one score in the distribution, the most frequently occurring score.
Answer: A 
38. In order to determine the variability of the scores on the midterm exam, Professor Ainslie subtracted the mean from each score, squared each of these deviations, added them, divided the result by the total number of scores, and finally took the square root of that number. Professor Ainslie has calculated the: 
A. z score. 
B. correlation coefficient. 
C. mean. 
D. standard deviation.
Answer: D 
39. The _____ is a measure of variability expressed as the square root of the sum of the squared deviations around the mean divided by the number of scores in the distribution. 
A. correlation coefficient 
B. scatter plot 
C. standard deviation 
D. z score
Answer: C 
40. The range is to _____ as the mean is to _____. 
A. a measure of central tendency; a measure of variability 
B. descriptive statistics; inferential statistics 
C. a measure of variability; a measure of central tendency 
D. inferential statistics; descriptive statistics
Answer: C 
41. After collecting her data and performing a number of statistical analyses, Jana noticed that the standard deviation was very large. This indicates that: 
A. there was a relatively large number of scores in the distribution. 
B. the distribution was positively skewed. 
C. the scores were clustered around the mean and were not spread out. 
D. the scores had a great deal of variability and were not clustered around the mean.
Answer: D 
42. The standard deviation is to the mode as _____ is to _____. 
A. variability; central tendency 
B. correlation; inferential statistics 
C. central tendency; variability 
D. inferential statistics; correlation
Answer: A 
43. When Stefan compared two distributions, each with the same mean, he noticed that distribution A had much more variability, or "spread," than distribution B. It is very likely that the standard deviation of distribution A will _____. 
A. be smaller than the standard deviation of distribution B. 
B. be identical to the standard deviation of distribution B. 
C. be larger than the standard deviation of distribution B. 
D. have a negative value compared to the standard deviation for distribution B.
Answer: C 
44. The _____ is a number, expressed in standard deviation units, that shows a score's deviation from the mean. 
A. z score 
B. mode 
C. correlation coefficient 
D. mean
Answer: A 
45. If a distribution resembles the standard normal curve, a person's _____ can tell us exactly how his or her score compares to all the other scores in the distribution. 
A. correlation coefficient 
B. z score 
C. average score 
D. modal score
Answer: B 
46. On the first test, the scores in Professor Ramirez's introductory psychology class produced a bell-shaped curve. A student who scored better than 84 percent of the other students in the class would have a z score of: 
A. +.84. 
B. -1. 
C. +1. 
D. -.84.
Answer: C 
47. When the midterm test scores were analyzed and the results graphed, they produced a standard normal curve.  Ram—n's  z score on the midterm exam was +1, which indicates that: 
A. he scored better than 34.13 percent of the class. 
B. he scored better than 84 percent of the class. 
C. 50 percent of the class scored higher than Ram—n. 
D. 34.13 percent of the class scored lower than Ram—n.
Answer: B 
48. On the normal distribution of people's weights, Kayla had a z score of zero. This indicates that Kayla's weight _____ of all the weights in the distribution. 
A. equals the mean 
B. is greater than 84% 
C. is less than 34.14% 
D. was the lowest
Answer: A 
49. _____ is a symmetrical distribution forming a bell-shaped curve in which the mean, median, and mode are all equal and fall in the exact middle. 
A. A positively skewed polygon 
B. The standard normal curve 
C. A scatter diagram 
D. A negatively skewed histogram
Answer: B 
50. When Amanda plotted her data, the results closely resembled the standard normal curve. The data revealed a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 10. Amanda can be confident that approximately 68 percent of the scores are between: 
A. 34 and 84. 
B. 90 and 110. 
C. 80 and 120. 
D. 66 and 134.
Answer: B 
51. The relationship between two variables is called _____ and is measured by the _____. 
A. the standard deviation; z score 
B. a histogram; median 
C. a correlation; correlation coefficient 
D. the standard normal curve; standard deviation
Answer: C 
52. The correlation coefficient is a measure of: 
A. the magnitude and direction of the relationship between two variables. 
B. variability in a single set of scores. 
C. central tendency. 
D. statistical significance.
Answer: A 
53. A(n) _____ correlation coefficient indicates that as one variable increases, the other tends to increase, and a(n) _____ correlation coefficient indicates that as one variable increases, the other tends to decrease. 
A. high; low 
B. negative; positive 
C. asymmetrical; symmetrical 
D. positive; negative
Answer: D 
54. Ethan wants to measure the relationship between two variables, weight and height. To calculate the correlation coefficient for his data set, Ethan should first: 
A. convert both variables into z scores. 
B. do an inferential test for statistical significance. 
C. construct a frequency polygon. 
D. plot a standard normal curve.
Answer: A 
55. The closer a correlation coefficient is to _____, the stronger the relationship between the two variables. 
A. zero 
B. +5.0 
C. +10.0 
D. +1 or -1
Answer: D 
56. Dr. Meeney calculated correlation coefficients for two different sets of data. He found that data set X had a correlation coefficient of -.75, and data set Y had a correlation coefficient of +.58. Dr. Meeney can conclude that: 
A. set X has a stronger correlation than set Y. 
B. set Y has a stronger correlation than set X. 
C. the data in set X were positively skewed. 
D. the data in set Y were negatively skewed.
Answer: A 
57. In her research, Dr. Bristow found that the more time students spent studying, the higher their score on the final exam. Dr. Bristow has discovered a _____ correlation. 
A. positive 
B. zero 
C. negative 
D. skewed
Answer: A 
58. Assume that research has shown that there is a relatively high negative correlation between exercise and fitness. This would indicate: 
A. the less people exercise, the greater their physical fitness. 
B. the more people exercise, the greater their physical fitness. 
C. that there is a clear causal relationship between exercise and fitness. 
D. that there is no relationship between exercise and fitness.
Answer: A 
59. Bailey discovered that there was a negative correlation between the amount of time spent watching TV and level of education. If the correlation coefficient is relatively high, Bailey can conclude that: 
A. TV watching directly interferes with obtaining an education. 
B. the more education people have, the less TV they watch. 
C. the less education people have, the less TV they watch. 
D. people who watch a great deal of TV have higher levels of education than people who watch very little TV.
Answer: B 
60. Suppose that it has been shown that the lower the family income, the higher the incidence of psychological problems. This finding would demonstrate that there is a _____ between family income and psychological problems. 
A. positive correlation 
B. zero correlation 
C. negative correlation 
D. symmetrical causal relationship
Answer: C 
61. Assume that annual income is related to level of education. Which of the following correlation coefficients would indicate the strongest relationship between the two variables? 
A. -0.35 
B. -0.01 
C. +0.65 
D. +3.25
Answer: C 
62. Which of the following correlation coefficients would indicate the strongest relationship between high school grade-point average and first year college grade-point average? 
A. +0.15 
B. -0.72 
C. -0.45 
D. +0.30
Answer: B 
63. Ethan analyzed the data from his correlational research project and found a correlation coefficient of -.09. Ethan can conclude that the two variables: 
A. have a high negative correlation. 
B. are barely related. 
C. have a high positive correlation. 
D. are causally related.
Answer: B 
64. A _____ is a graph that represents the relationship between two variables. 
A. frequency polygon 
B. histogram 
C. scatter diagram or scatter plot 
D. standard normal curve
Answer: C 
65. A scatter diagram depicts graphically: 
A. the normal distribution of scores in a set of data. 
B. a number, expressed in standard deviation units, that shows a score's deviation from the mean. 
C. the amount of variability in a distribution. 
D. the relationship between two variables.
Answer: D 
66. When Brooke plotted her data in a graph that showed the relationship between variable A and variable B, she found that they clustered in a pattern that extended from the upper left-hand corner of the graph to the lower right-hand corner. Brooke has plotted a _____ that shows a ____. 
A. scatter diagram; negative correlation 
B. histogram; skewed distribution 
C. scatter diagram; positive correlation 
D. polygon; symmetrical distribution
Answer: A 
67. Researchers at State College used a scatter diagram to plot the relationship between students' high school GPA and their State College graduating GPA. They discovered that the data points clustered in a pattern that extended from the lower left-hand corner to the upper right-hand corner. This pattern suggests that there is _____ between high school GPA and college GPA. 
A. no relationship 
B. a positive correlation 
C. a negative correlation 
D. a causal relationship
Answer: B 
68. The scatter diagram for data set A showed scores clustered in a pattern that extended from the lower left to the top right corner of the graph. In contrast, data set B showed scores clustered in a pattern that extended from the upper left to the lower right corner. Data set A depicts a _____ and data set B depicts a _____. 
A. positively skewed polygon; negatively skewed polygon 
B. positive correlation; negative correlation 
C. negatively skewed polygon; positively skewed polygon 
D. negative correlation; positive correlation
Answer: B 
69. Which of the following statistical measures would be most useful for indicating the extent to which levels of stress could be used to predict physical and psychological well-being? 
A. a measure of central tendency 
B. the standard deviation 
C. the correlation coefficient 
D. a test of statistical significance
Answer: C 
70. If Logan wants to be able to determine the extent to which the personality factor of hostility can predict the risk of cardiovascular disease, he should use a statistical technique called: 
A. the correlation coefficient. 
B. the standard deviation. 
C. a measure of central tendency. 
D. a measure of variability.
Answer: A 
71. Which of the following statements about the correlation coefficient is FALSE? 
A. The higher the correlation coefficient, the stronger the relationship between the two variables. 
B. A high correlation coefficient between variables means that one variable causes the other. 
C. The correlation coefficient can range from -1 to +1. 
D. The strength of the correlation is indicated by the number, and the +/- sign indicates the direction of the relationship.
Answer: B 
72. Descriptive statistics are to _____ as inferential statistics are to _____. 
A. making inferences and drawing conclusions; organizing and summarizing data 
B. statistical significance; correlation coefficients 
C. organizing and summarizing data; making inferences and drawing conclusions 
D. samples; populations
Answer: C 
73. Researchers use _____ to determine whether a study's outcome is due to chance or not, and whether the outcome can be legitimately generalized to a larger population. 
A. measures of central tendency 
B. descriptive statistics 
C. measures of variability 
D. inferential statistics
Answer: D 
74. In analyzing the data from her study, Dr. Woods wants to determine how likely it is that the differences between the control group and the experimental group are greater than what would be expected by chance. To make this determination, she should use: 
A. inferential statistics. 
B. measures of variability. 
C. descriptive statistics. 
D. measures of correlation.
Answer: A 
75. After carrying out the appropriate statistical calculations of their data, the researchers concluded that the probability of obtaining the results, if random factors alone were operating, was less than 1 chance out of a 100. The researchers used _____, and can conclude that the results are _____. 
A. descriptive statistics; skewed 
B. inferential statistics; statistically significant 
C. descriptive statistics; statistically significant 
D. inferential statistics; not statistically significant
Answer: B 
76. In analyzing the results of his study, Dr. Cohen's statistical calculations showed there was less than one chance in a hundred that his findings were due to random factors alone. Dr. Cohen can be fairly confident his results are: 
A. positively skewed. 
B. statistically insignificant. 
C. negatively skewed. 
D. statistically significant.
Answer: D 
77. The Merchant Marketing Company wanted to target 18- to 25-year-old males for a new product, so they selected a random, representative subset of this group for test marketing. In this example, the target group is the _____ and the random, representative subset of the group is the _____. 
A. population; sample 
B. standard group; substandard group 
C. sample; population 
D. descriptive group; inferential group
Answer: A 
78. A _____ is a representative subset of a _____. 
A. sample; population 
B. scatter plot; significant group 
C. population; sample 
D. population; z score
Answer: A