CHAPTER 7 TEST BANK
Survey Research
TRUE/FALSE
1. Surveys may be used for descriptive, explanatory, and applied research.
Answer: True
2. The National Jail Census collects information every five years about federal prisons.
Answer: False
3. National Crime Victimization Survey can be used to evaluate local crime prevention
programs.
Answer: False
4. There are two basic options for researchers when asking questions: open-ended or closedended.
Answer: True
5. The subsequent questions in a series are called contingency.
Answer: True
6. Face-to-face interviews are best for complex questions and other specialized needs.
Answer: True
7. Telephone surveys are relatively fast and low cost.
Answer: True
8. Long items in a questionnaire are usually better than short ones
Answer: False
9. Focus groups usually consist of 15 to 20 people.
Answer: False
10. The essential characteristic of interviewers is that their presence in the data collection
process must not have any effect on the responses given to questionnaire items.
Answer: True
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Surveys may be used for ____.
a. exploratory, and applied research only
b. applied research only
c. descriptive research only
d. descriptive, explanatory, exploratory, and applied research only
Answer: D
2. Surveys are best suited for studies that have which units of analysis?
a. individuals
b. groups
c. organizations
d. social artifacts
Answer: A
3. General population surveys and surveys of offenders tend to present which types of
difficulties?
a. recall error
b. systematic error
c. feasibility error
d. random error
Answer: A
4. The term “questionnaire” suggests a collection of ____.
a. statements
b. concepts
c. conclusions
d. ideas
Answer: A
5. It should go without saying that questionnaire items must be ____.
a. long
b. statements of purpose
c. clear
d. translated in different languages
Answer: C
6. Questions that encourage respondents to answer in a particular way are called ____.
a. unfair
b. biased
c. double-barreled
d. short and clear
Answer: B
7. Inexperienced researchers tend to fear that their questionnaires will look too ____.
a. easy
b. complex
c. long
d. cluttered
Answer: C
8. It is usually best to begin a self-administered questionnaire with ____.
a. sensitive issues
b. age, gender, etc.
c. sexual behavior
d. the most interesting set of questions
Answer: D
9. When selecting a survey method, which factor is least likely to be a consideration?
a. cost
b. speed
c. clarity
d. question content
Answer: C
10. Which of the following represent targeted victims surveys?
a. Bureau of Justice Statistics
b. Uniform Crime reports
c. National Crime Victimization Survey
d. court records
Answer: C
11. On a questionnaire, a respondent is asked: “What do you feel is the most important crime
problem facing the police in your city today?” Which type of question is being asked?
a. closed-ended question
b. open-ended question
c. contingency question
d. matrix question
Answer: B
12. Closed ended questions are useful because they ____.
a. provide varied responses
b. responses can be transferred directly into a data file
c. can be altered to fit the needs
d. are more easily processed
Answer: D
13. Which of the following are necessary in the construction of closed-ended questions?
a. the response categories may be mutually exclusive
b. the response categories must be exhaustive
c. the researcher must focus on expanding responses
d. the response categories must be dichotomous
Answer: B
14. Which statement is accurate with respect to the construction of questionnaire items?
a. Use only questions, no statements.
b. Use long descriptions to clarify meaning.
c. Avoid negative items.
d. Ask questions that lead to a specific answer.
Answer: C
15. All of the following may represent errors when constructing items for a questionnaire
except for _____.
a. the researcher uses long and complicated items
b. the negation of a question
c. the researcher uses short items
d. the researcher uses a combination question when they only want a single answer
Answer: C
16. Which statement represents a negative item?
a. Drugs such as marijuana should not be legalized.
b. It is fair to say that marijuana is a drug.
c. Unlike alcohol, marijuana does not make the user mean.
d. Drugs have negative effect.
Answer: A
17. Bias in questions can be established in which way?
a. questions that encourage particular responses
b. do not identify the name of either a prestigious or unpopular agency in the question
c. do not identify the name of either a prestigious or unpopular person in the question
d. questions that are unambiguous and clear
Answer: A
18. If a researcher tries to assess criminal victimization of the poor and disadvantaged, which
phrase is less biased than using the term “welfare” in her questionnaire?
a. assistance to the poor
b. the dole
c. the underclass
d. poverty
Answer: A
19. Which factor is a problem when using self-report crime questions in general population
surveys?
a. social desirability
b. norm deviance
c. human bias
d. technical error
Answer: A
20. Which outcome is least likely when a questionnaire is incorrectly formatted?
a. Respondents may miss questions.
b. Respondents may finish the questionnaire too quickly.
c. Respondents may throw the questionnaire away.
d. Respondents may become confused about the nature of the data desired.
Answer: B
21. Contingency questions are appropriate when _____.
a. certain questions are clearly relevant to only some of the respondents and irrelevant to
others
b. you want the respondents to write out an answer
c. you want the respondents to rank their answers on a scale
d. you want to impress the respondents with your questions
Answer: A
22. Which of the following is not an advantage of the use of matrix questions?
a. they are faster to complete for respondents
b. they do not take much thought on the part of the respondents to answer
c. they use space efficiently
d. the format increases the comparability of responses given to different questions for the
respondent as well as the researcher
Answer: B
23. Which of the following have been identified as disadvantage of the use of computerassisted interviewing?
a. respondents seem to sense a greater degree of confidentiality
b. get more “productive” answers to questions dealing with topics such as drug use
c. increase the speed and efficiency of the responses
d. It can be difficult to print and archive a complex questionnaire used in CAI.
Answer: D
24. A mock jury is an example of a(n) ____.
a. open ended question
b. interview
c. focus group
d. survey design
Answer: C
25. Which statement is false with regard to surveys?
a. surveys are high on reliability
b. surveys are low on reliability
c. surveys are high on generalizability
d. surveys are low on validity
Answer: B
26. Which type of questions should be avoided on a questionnaire?
a. short items
b. contingency questions
c. ambiguous questions
d. matrix questions
Answer: C
27. Focus groups are most useful ____.
a. when precise generalization to a larger population is essential and the focus groups
participants and the larger population are relatively heterogeneous
b. when precise generalization to a larger population is essential and the focus groups
participants and the larger population are relatively homogeneous
c. when precise generalization to a larger population is not necessary and the focus groups
participants and the larger population are relatively homogeneous
d. when precise generalization to a larger population is not necessary and the focus group
participants and the larger population are relatively heterogeneous
Answer: C
28. Which of the following would be considered an appropriate method for increasing the
response rate in mailed surveys?
a. go to the respondent’s home and pick up the questionnaire
b. targeting a narrowly defined population
c. send one dollar along with the questionnaire
d. send out only one original mailing with no follow ups
Answer: B
29. When follow-ups are planned with mail surveys, ____.
a. response bias is not an issue
b. the anonymity of respondents is not guaranteed
c. the response rate increases
d. the response rate decreases
Answer: C
COMPLETION
1. A respondent who is asked to personally answer questions rather than selecting one of the
assigned answers is answering _______________ questions.
Answer: open-ended
2. A respondent who must select an answer from among a list provided by the researcher is
answering _______________ questions.
Answer: closed-ended
3. When a question asks respondents for a single answer to a multi-part question, the question
is said to be _______________.
Answer: double-barreled
4. When we ask people for information, they will often respond using a filter of what will
make them look good. This is known as _______________.
Answer: social desirability
5. Subsequent questions in series are called contingency questions because whether they are
to be asked and answered is _______________ on the response to the first question in the
series.
Answer: contingent
6. If you want to ask several questions that have the same set of answer categories, an
efficient type of question to use is the ________________.
Answer: matrix question
7. Respondents may develop a(n) _______________ or fixed pattern of answering when
answering matrix questions.
Answer: response set
8. _______________ questionnaires are generally the least expensive and easiest to complete.
Answer: Self-administered
9. One technique used in both criminal justice and market research is the _______________
which uses somewhere between 8 and 15 people.
Answer: Focus group
10. Surveys tend to be high on reliability and generalizability, but _______________ can be a
weak point.
Answer: validity
Test Bank for Basics of Research Methods for Criminal Justice and Criminology
Michael G. Maxfield, Earl R. Babbie
9781305261105, 9781111346911
