In a pretest-posttest design with switching replication, what helps to control for instrumentation effects?

Correct answer: The fact that any change in the instrument would be consistent across both groups.

Explanation

The switching replication design helps control for instrumentation because both groups are measured at the same time points. If the measuring instrument changes, it should affect both groups equally, making it less likely to be mistaken for a treatment effect which appears at different times for each group.

Other questions

Question 1

What is the defining characteristic of a nonequivalent groups design?

Question 2

In a posttest only nonequivalent groups design, what is the most significant threat to internal validity?

Question 3

How does a pretest-posttest nonequivalent groups design attempt to improve upon the posttest only nonequivalent groups design?

Question 4

What is meant by 'differential history' as a threat to internal validity in a pretest-posttest nonequivalent groups design?

Question 5

A researcher studies the effect of a new productivity software. They measure weekly output for 10 weeks in Company A and Company B. After 5 weeks, they introduce the software only in Company A. What type of design is this?

Question 6

What is the key feature of a pretest-posttest design with switching replication?

Question 7

What is a major strength of the pretest-posttest design with switching replication?

Question 8

How does a 'switching replication with treatment removal' design differ from a standard 'pretest-posttest design with switching replication'?

Question 9

A researcher evaluates a new method of teaching fractions to two third-grade classes. One class gets the new method, the other does not. The researcher compares the scores on the final exam. The classes were not randomly assigned. What is this design?

Question 10

What additional evidence does the switching replication with treatment removal design provide that a standard switching replication design does not?

Question 11

In a study on a new teaching method, a researcher selects two classes at the same school, ensures the students have similar standardized math scores, and that the teachers have similar experience. Why are these steps taken?

Question 12

Why might a pretest-posttest nonequivalent groups design fail to completely eliminate the possibility of confounding variables?

Question 13

In a pretest-posttest design with switching replication to test an exercise intervention for depression, researchers find that depression decreases in both the patient group and the student control group after the first phase of treatment is given only to patients. What is the most likely explanation?

Question 14

An interrupted time-series design with nonequivalent groups is an improvement on a simple interrupted time-series design primarily because it adds what component?

Question 15

Which design provides the strongest evidence for the efficacy of a treatment by demonstrating an effect in two different samples and also showing that the effect reverses when the treatment is withdrawn?

Question 16

If participants in a pretest-posttest nonequivalent groups design were randomly assigned to their conditions, what would the design become?

Question 17

A researcher studies two groups of patients with depression. Group A receives an exercise intervention for 4 weeks. Group B does not. After 4 weeks, depression is measured. Then, the intervention is removed from Group A and given to Group B for 4 weeks, after which depression is measured again in both. What is this design called?

Question 18

What is the primary reason researchers consider groups to be 'nonequivalent' in the designs discussed in Chapter 39?

Question 19

In a posttest only nonequivalent groups design, a principal assigning 'troublemakers' to one teacher's class and not another introduces what specific problem?

Question 20

A study on an anti-drug program gives a pretest to students in School A and School B. School A gets the program, School B does not. Both get a posttest. If a celebrity drug overdose occurs and is widely publicized between the pretest and posttest, how would this design help interpret the results?

Question 21

Which of the following remains a potential threat to internal validity in a switching replication design, according to Chapter 41?

Question 22

The posttest only nonequivalent groups design consists of how many distinct groups?

Question 23

In a pretest-posttest nonequivalent groups design, how many measurement points are there for the control group?

Question 24

In a pretest-posttest design with switching replication involving two groups, when is the third major assessment of the dependent variable conducted?

Question 25

How many groups are required at a minimum to conduct an interrupted time-series design with nonequivalent groups?

Question 26

If a researcher conducts a switching replication with treatment removal design with two groups, and finds that depression decreased in the student group after they started exercising but increased in the patient group after they stopped exercising, what does this suggest?

Question 27

All of the designs discussed in Chapter 39 are considered what type of design?

Question 28

What is the primary goal of adding a pretest in the pretest-posttest nonequivalent groups design?

Question 29

In the example of evaluating a new measure for teaching third graders, the text notes that even with a pretest, teachers' styles and classroom environments could still be very different. These are examples of what?

Question 30

An interrupted time-series design with nonequivalent groups involves taking 20 measurements in the treatment group and 20 measurements in the control group. How many of these measurements in the control group occur after the intervention is introduced in the treatment group?

Question 31

The key benefit of adding a 'switching replication' to a pretest-posttest design is that it provides better control over which threat to internal validity?

Question 32

What is the primary logic behind the 'treatment removal' aspect of the switching replication with treatment removal design?

Question 33

Which nonequivalent groups design is described as being a between-subjects design where participants are not randomly assigned, one group is exposed to a treatment, another is not, and then the two groups are compared?

Question 34

Imagine a study where one factory reduces work shifts from 10 to 8 hours, and a nonequivalent control factory does not. Productivity is measured weekly for a year. What is this design called?

Question 35

A study measures depression in a group of patients and a group of students. Patients get an exercise intervention, students do not. Depression is measured again. Then, the students also begin the exercise intervention. Depression is measured a final time. What is this design called?

Question 36

If a researcher finds that asbestos in one school caused a month-long shutdown during a study, this would represent what kind of threat to a pretest-posttest nonequivalent groups design?

Question 37

Why do researchers consider nonequivalent groups 'dissimilar in some ways'?

Question 38

Which design involves a treatment group and a nonequivalent control group, where both are given a pretest and a posttest, but the control group never receives the treatment?

Question 40

If a study uses a switching replication with treatment removal design involving two groups, how many distinct phases of treatment administration are there (including no treatment)?

Question 41

The use of a nonequivalent groups design is a feature of what broader category of research?

Question 42

In a posttest only nonequivalent groups design, why is it problematic if parents of higher achieving students requested their children be assigned to the treatment group's class?

Question 43

An interrupted time-series design with nonequivalent groups could be improved by adding a switching replication. How many groups would be needed for this improved design?

Question 44

Which of the five types of quasi-experimental designs that are between-subjects in nature mentioned in the Key Takeaways (Chapter 40) is NOT explicitly detailed in the main body of Chapter 39?

Question 45

Which design would be most appropriate for evaluating the effect of a new, permanent surgical procedure on patient outcomes using a control group, when random assignment is not possible?

Question 46

A researcher improves an interrupted time-series design by locating another manufacturing company that does not plan to change its shift length to use as a nonequivalent control group. What is the primary benefit of this addition?

Question 47

What is the minimum number of measurement points for a single participant in a pretest-posttest design with switching replication involving two groups?

Question 48

In a switching replication with treatment removal design, if the depression levels of the patient group do NOT increase after the exercise intervention is removed, what could this suggest?

Question 49

According to the Key Takeaways of Chapter 40, which of the quasi-experimental designs are considered highest in internal validity?

Question 50

What is the total number of groups involved in a pretest-posttest design with switching replication?