Chapter 8: Research and Program Evaluation

Question 1

A professional counselor is interested in developing an
affirmative policy after investigating the treatment of gay, lesbian,
and bisexual individuals in a community program. This study is
represented best by which paradigm?

a. Interpretivism
b. Post-positivism
c. Positivism
d. Critical

Answer 1

d. Critical

A critical paradigm values individual, multiple perspectives of reality, with a research goal of addressing power issues and facilitating advocacy for underrepresented groups.

Question 2

The paradigm characterized most by the notion that with enough
research we can gain knowledge of a universal truth is

a. interpretivism.
b. post-positivism.
c. positivism.
d. critical.

Answer 2

c. positivism.

Positivism assumes that a universal, objective truth can be uncovered fully by investigating a phenomenon using the five senses.

Question 3

The ____________ study failed the most to outline participants’
voluntariness.

a. Belmont
b. Milgram’s Obedience
c. Carnegie
d. Willowbrook

Answer 3

d. Willowbrook

Parents in the Willowbrook study were not informed of their right to decline their children’s participation, which led to them to assume their children could not enroll in the school without study participation.

Question 4

____________ outlines research participants’ rights and
researchers’ responsibilities in conducting research.

a. HIPAA
b. 45 CRF 46
c. FERPA
d. Proposition 16

Answer 4

b. 45 CRF 46

45 CRF 46 requires institutions receiving federal funding to have their research study proposals reviewed by institutional review boards (IRBs). IRBs require participants be provided informed consent.

Question 5

____________ outlines the privacy rights of participants pertaining
to health information.

a. HIPAA
b. 45 CFR 46
c. FERPA
d. Proposition 16

Answer 5

a. HIPAA

HIPAA, or the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, refers to the protection of participants’ private health information.

Question 6

The type of counseling program a client selects would most likely
be an example of a(n)

a. independent variable.
b. dependent variable.
c. null variable.
d. extraneous variable.

Answer 6

a. independent variable.

Counseling program type could consist of several discrete programs a client could select. The researcher could then statistically evaluate the effect of different program types of which clients enroll.

Question 7

A(n) ____________ variable can create an uncontrolled effect in a
study’s outcome.

a. independent
b. dependent
c. null
d. extraneous

Answer 7

d. extraneous

An extraneous variable would be some factor not controlled or measured in the study.

Question 8

Detecting a significant relationship when one is present is known
as

a. alpha.
b. beta.
c. effect size.
d. power.

Answer 8

d. power.

Power is the ability to detect a significant relationship when one is actually there.

Question 9

Randomly identifying a counseling agency that serves clients with
attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and sampling its
entire staff is most likely an example of a ____________ sampling
method.

a. simple random
b. cluster
c. quota
d. systematic

Answer 9

b. cluster

Cluster sampling is the best choice here as the researcher identifies a particular subgroup of interest (i.e., agencies that serve ADHD populations) and samples exhaustively within that subgroup.

Question 10

Which of the following internal validity threats is LEAST likely
related to a repeated measures study for a group of sixth-graders?

a. History
b. Maturation
c. Attrition
d. Diffusion of treatment

Answer 10

d. Diffusion of treatment

Diffusion of treatment would be least likely to occur, as this occurs as different groups or subgroups receive different treatments.

Question 11

Conducting qualitative research followed by quantitative research
is known as a(n)

a. concurrent design.
b. exploratory design.
c. explanatory design.
d. All of the above.

Answer 11

b. exploratory design.

Collecting qualitative data before collecting quantitative data is known as an exploratory mixed-methods design.

Question 12

Analyzing digital recordings of several patients with
schizophrenia to determine the quality of their social interactions
would most likely be an example of

a. quantitative research.
b. qualitative research.
c. mixed-methods research.
d. single-subject research design (SSRD).

Answer 12

b. qualitative research.

Analysis of interview and observational data is common in qualitative research designs.

Question 13

Providing an overall picture of community crime statistics would
most likely be an example of

a. pilot research.
b. action research.
c. descriptive research.
d. single-subject research design (SSRD).

Answer 13

c. descriptive research.

Descriptive research does not require an intervention and can include simply gather data such as community crime statistics.

Question 14

Pilot studies are useful for each of the following reasons EXCEPT

a. they confirm post hoc a larger study’s findings.
b. they assist in revising data collection methods.
c. they help to find potential limitations of a planned larger
study.
d. All of the above are useful aspects of pilot studies.

Answer 14

a. they confirm post hoc a larger study’s findings.

Pilot research is typically used as an initial effort to investigate a phenomenon of interest prior to engaging in a more expansive study. Thus, pilot research would occur at the beginning of a particular project.

Question 15

Which of the following is the clearest example of a cross-sectional
design?

a. Studying children with reactive attachment disorder over
their lives
b. Examining participant attrition issues in a 10-year study
c. Developing a needs assessment to investigate necessary
policy changes
d. Comparing the impact of a bullying incident across grade
levels

Answer 15

d. Comparing the impact of a bullying incident across grade
levels

Participants in particular grade levels could be described as a cohort measured at a particular point in time (i.e., bullying incident).

Question 16

The question “Do two groups of students differ in their degree of
involvement in college activities?” would best be addressed by a
____________ design.

a. causal-comparative
b. panel
c. comparative
d. longitudinal

Answer 16

c. comparative

Because a comparative design seeks to look at group differences (i.e., students) for a particular variable (i.e., degree of involvement), this is the best answer choice.

Question 17

Evaluating change from pre- to post-intervention of a smoking
cessation program for a group of 25 individuals who select to join
the program would most likely be an example of

a. time series design.
b. one-group pretest-posttest design.
c. one-group posttest design.
d. split-plot design.

Answer 17

a. time series design.

A time series design for this study example involves measuring program impact before and after the program intervention for this group of 25 clients.

Question 18

“What is the relationship between driving speed and gas prices?”
is an example of a question best addressed by a(n) ____________
design.

a. causal-comparative
b. correlational
c. comparative
d. ex post facto

Answer 18

b. correlational

A correlational design seeks to explore the relationship between two variables. In this example, the two variables are driving speed and gas prices.

Question 19

Which of the following research designs requires random
assignment?

a. Pre-experimental
b. True experimental
c. Quasi-experimental
d. Single subject

Answer 19

b. True experimental

True experimental designs require random assignment.

Question 20

The amount of shared variance among the variables of depression
and anxiety (r = .30) is

a. .30.
b. .70.
c. .09.
d. It depends on the validity of the instruments.

Answer 20

c. .09.

Shared variance is calculated by squaring the correlational coefficient (r). The square of (r)
for this example is .09.

Question 21

The standard deviation represents

a. the difference between the lowest score and the highest
score in a distribution.
b. the typical score in a distribution.
c. how much an individual score differs from the mean
score in a distribution.
d. the height of a distribution of scores.

Answer 21

c. how much an individual score differs from the mean
score in a distribution.

Referred to as the most frequently reported indicator of variability, the standard deviation is the value for a respective data point and its distance (in standard deviation units)away from a mean.

Question 22

Each of the following statements is true EXCEPT

a. skewness can be identified if the values of the mean and
median are known.
b. the mean is influenced by extremely high or low scores.
c. the median is influenced by the position of scores.
d. the mode is influenced by extreme scores.

Answer 22

d. the mode is influenced by extreme scores.

The mode represents the most frequent score within a data distribution, and thus would not be affected by extreme scores as they would occur less frequently.

Question 23

On a set of geography test results, the instructor informed the
class that almost everyone had scored within one standard
deviation of the mean. Results like these would be depicted by
a(n) ____________ distribution.

a. platykurtic
b. inverted
c. mesokurtic
d. leptokurtic

Answer 23

d. leptokurtic

A leptokurtic distribution signals that data points are peaked and clumped together within a distribution. Because these test scores cluster within one standard deviation of the mean, this would be the best descriptor for that distribution.

Question 24

If you are trying to determine the typical salary for real estate
professionals and your data includes $30,000, $32,000, $25,000,
$38,000, and $249,000, using a ____________ would be the most
appropriate measure of central tendency.

a. mean
b. median
c. mode
d. All of the above.

Answer 24

b. median

Because the median is the middlemost score of a consecutive list of scores within a data distribution, it is not affected by outliers of that distribution. The median salary would be $31,000, which best represents a majority of the listed scores.

Question 25

Each of the following statements is correct EXCEPT

a. skewed distributions can be positively skewed.
b. skewed distributions can be negatively skewed.
c. in skewed distributions, the scores accumulate at the
center of the distribution.
d. in skewed distributions, the scores accumulate at one end
of the distribution.

Answer 25

c. in skewed distributions, the scores accumulate at the
center of the distribution.

Distributions with scores that accumulate at the center of a data distribution can either represent a symmetrical distribution (if the distribution is bell-shaped) or a leptokurtic distribution (if data peakedness is long and thin).

Question 26

Which of the following is most likely an example of restriction of
range?

a. Women in a particular community and depression levels
b. Prediction of graduate school grades among students
scoring >320 on the Graduate Record Examination
c. Elementary school children and depression levels
d. Clients at a psychiatric facility and depression levels

Answer 26

b. Prediction of graduate school grades among students
scoring >320 on the Graduate Record Examination

Scores of 320 or greater on the Graduate Record Examination would be considered extremely high scores. Thus, those who score within this range would be a restricted group and predictive validity would be poor.

Question 27

What is the key difference between a t-test and an ANOVA?

a. Number of dependent variables
b. Number of groups for an independent variable
c. The use of ratio data
d. The use of a continuous dependent variable

Answer 27

b. Number of groups for an independent variable

A t-test compares two means for one variable; this could involve two groups for one variable. An ANOVA allows comparison among several groups or levels for a particular variable.

Question 28

What is the key difference between an ANOVA and a MANOVA?

a. Number of dependent variables
b. Number of groups for an independent variable
c. The use of ratio data
d. The use of a continuous dependent variable

Answer 28

a. Number of dependent variables

While an ANOVA involves evaluating the relationship between at least one independent variable and only one dependent variable, a MANOVA can assess the relationship between at least one independent variable and multiple dependent variables.

Question 29

A professional counselor wants to examine the relationship
between education level and the decision whether to participate
in a continuing education program. Which statistical test would
be appropriate to use?

a. ANOVA
b. ANCOVA
c. Chi-square
d. Wilcoxon’s signed-ranks test

Answer 29

c. Chi-square

A chi-square test is a nonparametric test that allows examination of the relationship between ordinal data (i.e., education level) and categorical data (i.e., yes/no decision to participate).

Question 30

Answer the following analogy: An independent t-test is to a
Kolmogorov-Smirnov Z procedure as a dependent t-test is to a(n)

a. ANOVA.
b. ANCOVA.
c. chi-square.
d. Wilcoxon’s signed-ranks test.

Answer 30

d. Wilcoxon’s signed-ranks test.

Similar to a dependent t-test, Wilcoxon’s signed-ranks test is a nonparametric test that allows examination of change in a dependent variable.

Question 31

Which of the following qualitative research traditions most assists
the counselor to attend to participants’ lived experiences while
developing a theory on the processes of a phenomenon?

a. Phenomenology
b. Grounded theory
c. Consensual qualitative research
d. Ethnography

Answer 31

c. Consensual qualitative research

Consensual qualitative research combines elements of the phenomenological and grounded theory traditions to explore participants’ lived experiences and develop theory from the data.

Question 32

Which of the following qualitative research traditions most assists
the counselor to collaborate with participants to enact change in a
setting?

a. Ethnography
b. Biography
c. Case study
d. Participatory action research

Answer 32

d. Participatory action research

Participatory action research is a research tradition that focuses on change as part of qualitative research.

Question 33

A data management tool that can serve as a cover sheet or
snapshot for an event during data collection is a(n)

a. contact summary sheet.
b. memo.
c. reflexive journal.
d. audit trail.

Answer 33

a. contact summary sheet.

A contact summary sheet is typically a single-spaced page that details key initial information about a data collection source.

Question 34

The question “Why should I believe your qualitative findings?” is
best answered by focusing on

a. credibility.
b. transferability.
c. dependability.
d. confirmability.

Answer 34

a. credibility.

Credibility refers to the overall “believability” of a study’s findings.

Question 35

A college counselor is interested in including in his study all
students who witnessed a recent shooting at his university.
Which sampling method best describes this approach?

a. homogenous
b. comprehensive
c. extreme case
d. maximum variation

Answer 35

b. comprehensive

Comprehensive sampling is typically used to capture data from an entire participant pool that has a unique and/or intense characteristic.

Question 36

At the end of an evaluation examining the effectiveness of a
substance abuse prevention program, Charisse provides feedback
to counselors at the agency. This is an example of what program
evaluation concept?

a. Accountability
b. Efficiency
c. Summation
d. Advising

Answer 36

a. Accountability

Accountability refers to providing feedback about a program to its stakeholders.

Question 37

As part of the needs assessment process, a(n) ____________ is
typically given to stakeholders.

a. process evaluation
b. executive summary
c. outcome evaluation
d. treatment package

Answer 37

b. executive summary

An executive summary is a report given to stakeholders that includes information about the process and outcome of a program evaluation, including recommendations for next steps.

Question 38

Molly is developing objectives for a grief counseling program she
is beginning with her community. Using the ABCD model
discussed in this chapter, which component is most analogous to
the program location?

a. Behavior
b. Content
c. Condition
d. Audience

Answer 38

c. Condition

The condition component of the ABCD model would highlight the context or mode in which the grief counseling program interventions would occur; thus, program location would be characteristic of the condition component.

Question 39

Monitoring if a program is running as planned is known as

a. process evaluation.
b. executive summary.
c. outcome evaluation.
d. treatment package.

Answer 39

a. process evaluation.

A process evaluation, also known as program monitoring, is a formative assessment of the degree to which a program or intervention is carried out and/or meeting its intended objectives

Question 40

Ben, a professional school counselor, is trying to determine which
grade level would most benefit from his newly developed study
skills program. Which program evaluation strategy would most
characterize this?

a. Success case
b. Parametric
c. Constructive
d. Moderation design

Answer 40

d. Moderation design

A moderation design strategy would best allow Ben to consider which grade level would most benefit from his program, by soliciting information about individuals’ needs and comparing those to program goals and objectives.