For each of the studies, please indicate the following:
1) Independent variable(s)
2) Number of IVs
3) The levels the independent variable(s)
4) Dependent variable
(for correlation, list all variables here)
5) Between (B/S) or within-subjects (W/S)?
6) What type of design is being used?
7) What is the appropriate statistic?
*If a question isn’t applicable to a particular design, pleasenote that as well
Study1: A team of cognitive psychologists conducted a study onthe effects of sleep deprivation on short-term memory decay.Forty-eight participants stayed in a lab for two days. Twenty-fourof the participants are randomly assigned to a condition in whichthey are not permitted to sleep during that period. The othertwenty-four are allowed to sleep whenever they want. At the end ofthe two days, the participants complete a task that involvesreading a list of 20 words, then recalling as many words aspossible.
Study2: A researcher examined the effect of different kinds ofmusic on general math ability. Forty-eight participants wererandomly assigned to do a series of math tasks under one of threeconditions: 16 while listening to soft gentle music, 16 whilelistening to loud intense music, and 16 while in silence. The mathquiz contained arithmetic, geometry, and word problems. There were25 items that were 2 points each.
Study3: A health psychologist conducted a study on the how thenumber of hours a person exercised each week relates to the numberof days being sick per year. Participants were randomly selectedfrom the community and provided self-reports through a series ofquestions on the topics of interest.
Study4: A study was designed to test the effects of sciencefiction movies on participants' belief in the supernatural. A scalewas designed to measure the degree that a participant believes inthe supernatural on a 1-7 Likert Scale (high scores indicate highlevels of belief). Fifty-seven participants, selected via randomdigit dialing (RDD) responded to the scale before and afterwatching Return of the Jedi, a popular science fiction movie.
Study5: A researcher at a drug treatment center wanted todetermine the best combination of treatments that would lead tomore substance free days. This researcher believed there were twokey factors in helping drug addiction: type of treatment and typeof counseling. The researcher was interested in either residentialor outpatient treatment programs and either cognitive-behavioral,psychodynamic, or client-centered counseling approaches. As newclients enrolled at the center they were randomly assigned to oneof six experimental groups. After 3 months of treatment, eachclient’s symptoms were measured.
Study6: An organizational psychologist is hired as a consultantby a person planning to open a coffee house for college students.The coffee house owner wants to know if her customers will drinkmore coffee depending on the ambience of the coffee house. To testthis, the psychologist sets up three similar rooms, each with itsown theme (Tropical; Old Library; or New York Café ) then arrangesto have thirty students spend an afternoon in each room while beingallowed to drink all the coffee they like. (The order in which theysit in the rooms is counterbalanced.) The amount each participantdrinks is recorded for each of the three themes.
Study7: A manager at a retail store in the mall wants toincrease profit. The manager wants to see if the store’s layout(one main circular path vs. a grid system of paths) influences howmuch money is spent depending on whether there is a sale. Thebelief is that when there is a sale customers like a grid layout,while customers prefer a circular layout when there is no sale.Over two days the manager alternates the store layout, and has thesame group of customers come each day. Based on random assignment,half of the customers are told there is a sale (20 % will be takenoff the final purchases), while the other half is told there is nosale. At the end of each day, the manager calculates theprofit.
