The McFarlane Companies”

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Individual Assignment 1 (due Week 1)

Individual assignment: McFarlane Case, p. 65 (Manning & Curtis): “Part One Video Case, Toying with Success: The McFarlane Companies”

After reading the case, answer “Questions for Discussion” 1 and 2, providing evidence for points you make.

Then, include a well thought-out and reflective 6 to 10-line personal conclusion.

Submit your assignment AS A MICROSOFT WORD DOCUMENT in the Week 1 Individual Assignment Dropbox. See the Syllabus section “Due Dates for Assignments & Exams” for due date information.

Rubric (professor has the discretion to award points as deemed reasonable):
  • Complete, well thought-out responses tapping into required content, arguments well presented, all parts responded to adequately, no significant errors – 40/40
  • Many points made, but some connection to content missing, one part not answered, not complete discussion- 34/40
  • Some points made, but some connection to content missing, incomplete and/or limited discussion – 26/40
  • Limited discussion, limited points – 18/40
  • Poor in every way – 5-10/40
  • For grammatical and spelling errors, student may lose additional points

Identify three improvements of the WAIS-IV over the WAIS-III.

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1.       A school psychologist strongly believes a particular child is in need of special services. What is the psychologist trying to control for if he or she uses the most recently normed test available?

The psychologist is trying to control for

2.       What are two benefits of the WASI?

 

3.       Identify three improvements of the WAIS-IV over the WAIS-III.

 

4.       Provide one advantage and one disadvantage of group-administered intelligence tests.

 

5.       Give three examples of extra-test behavior on an ability test.

 

6.       Name three recommended uses for the Woodcock-Johnson III.

 

7.       Name three things that would be included in the best approach to diagnosing a specific learning ability.

 

8.       What is the purpose of empirical criterion keying?

 

9.       Identify two functions of validity scales on personality tests.

 

10.   Identify a criticism of the MMPI that contributed to the need for developing the MMPI-2. Identify a criticism of the MMPI-2.What is the purpose of the inquiry stage of the administration of the Rorschach test?

 

11.   What is the purpose of the inquiry stage of the administration of the Rorschach test?

 

12.   Identify three criticisms of projective tests.

 

13.   What principle do assessors utilize when interpreting the TAT?

 

14.   Give an example of a behavioral assessment approach.

 

15.   What does a mental status exam assess?

 

16.   Give an example of the Barnum effect.

 

17.   Why is it recommended to utilize the BDI-II with other tests?

 

 

18.   What are three things that the Tower of Hanoi measures?

 

19.   Give an example of a performance assessment.

 

20.   What is an assessment center and what is it utilized for?

 

 

 

Essay Questions

The essay questions below are worth 10 points each.

1.       Compare and contrast two established personality assessments discussed in the course. Include in your discussion strengths and limitations of each measure.

 

2.       Throughout the course, issues related to cultural diversity have been addressed. Identify one intelligence, educational, or personality measure and describe its strengths and weaknesses as it relates to diversity.

 

 

3.       Identify and describe at least three ethical dilemmas or responsibilities a psychological assessor may face.

A reliable instrument is one that is consistent in what it measures. If, for example, an individual scores highly on the first administration of a test and if the test is reliable, he or she should score highly on a second administration. Imagine that you are conducting a study for which you must develop a test in mathematics for 7th-grade students. You develop a 30-point test and distribute it to a class of 12, 7th-grade students. You then administer the test again one month later to the day. The scores of the students on the two administrations of the test are listed below. Use Microsoft® Excel® or IBM® SPSS® to create a scatterplot with the provided scores, formatted as shown in the example graph. What observations can you make about the reliability of this test? Explain.

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Question 1

 

The main way in which an attitude differs from an opinion is that an attitude:

 

a.  includes an emotional component.

 

b.  is held for a briefer period of time.

 

c.  pertains to people, not just facts.

 

d.  is easier to change through persuasion.

 

Explain why you selected the answer you did.

 

Question 2

 

Applied

 

2. You are in the market for a new car and think you would like to own a Saab. According to research reported by Richard Nisbett and his associates, which of the following would be most likely to influence your decision?

 

a.  television commercials for Saab that are both informative and emotionally appealing

 

b.  print ads for Saab that are primarily informative

 

c.  hearing about the huge repair bills a neighbor’s sister had on her Saab

 

d.  a high ranking made by Consumer Reports based on a sample of 75,000 miles of testing

 

 

 

Why is this the best answer and what might explain this influence?

 

 

 

Question 3

 

Research/textbook

 

3. McAlister’s field experiment was successful in helping seventh-graders resist peer pressure to smoke cigarette. What did his strategy teach students to do that proved to be effective?

 

 

 

Question 4

 

Research/reader

 

Article #10

 

4. Drawing on laboratory research conducted by Berkiwitz, Phillips tested the “modeling of aggression” hypothesis. What did Phillips’ data indicate?

 

Question 5

 

Personal Relevance

 

5. Under what circumstances are you persuaded by an argument from a peer or an associate in your life? Specifically, what are the things that they may do to increase your tendency to listen to their argument and what things should exist before you take action on their advice?

 

Question 6

 

Summary

 

6. In general, how successful are obvious attempts to persuade? Summarize one piece of research that supports the notions that direct efforts to persuade are effective, and one that indicated that such direct efforts are relatively ineffective.

 

 

 

Question 7

 

Watch the video Merchants of Cool at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/cool/view/ After watching the video or reading the article, respond the following questions. (Must be a minimum of 400 word response)

 

How, and to what extent, does the mass media influence the public’s attitudes and behaviors? Do television shows and newscasts, for example, simply reflect what is happening in the world or do they carry the potential to actually cause real-life events? Apart from advertising, do you believe the members of the media engage in deliberate attempts to persuade people to adopt certain opinions and attitudes?

 

 

 

Question 8

 

Previously we have discussed many of the pros and some of the cons of Montessori education. If any of you have personal experience with the Montessori Method, please comment upon it here. Based upon what you now know about child development, can you think of any particular type of child for whom Montessori would not be a good fit? Are there any empirical data available to help answer this question (e.g., which children are suitable for a Montessori education)?  Do a little research on your own to see what the experts think and then form your own opinion. (Must be a minimum of 500 words)

 

 

 

Question 9

 

The question raised by Slife (2012): “Is Evolution a Good Explanation for Psychological Concepts?” debated in our course, Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Controversial Psychological Issues (Slife, 2012). Remember that a statement of the Slife (2012) question above followed by a “Yes” or “No” answer to it, depending on your assigned article perspective, should be the start of your initial post. (Must be a minimum of 400 words)

Validity And Reliability Worksheet

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A reliable instrument is one that is consistent in what it measures. If, for example, an individual scores highly on the first administration of a test and if the test is reliable, he or she should score highly on a second administration.

 

Imagine that you are conducting a study for which you must develop a test in mathematics for 7th-grade students. You develop a 30-point test and distribute it to a class of 12, 7th-grade students. You then administer the test again one month later to the day. The scores of the students on the two administrations of the test are listed below. Use Microsoft® Excel® or IBM® SPSS® to create a scatterplot with the provided scores, formatted as shown in the example graph. What observations can you make about the reliability of this test? Explain.