Page 1

Chapter 5: Research Design

Chapter 5

RESEARCH DESIGNGENERAL CONCEPT MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS1.General Mills conducted research on a "new, improved" version of their cereal, TRIX. Consumer taste tests showed the new version was preferred over the old TRIX, but the new version was a failure when it was introduced. It was noted that the research was flawed in that the new version of TRIX was compared with the old TRIX, a choice that consumers in the marketplace would not have. The correct research should have compared the new TRIX with competitor brands. This example was presented in your text to illustrate:

a. poor budgeting for research

b. how researchers in large firms are in "silos" and are not open to outside suggestions

c. how former research studies often determine the design of present studies

d. improper research design

e. a case where exploratory research should have been undertaken after the causal research

Answer: (d) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 114

2. Which of the following is true about research design?

a. Research design should be the first consideration in a research project.b. Research design decisions should be made after data analysis.c. Research design should be selected during the initial meeting with a client.d. Research design should be selected after thoroughly considering the problem and research objectives.e. Research designs should be made after data collection.Answer: (d) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 1163.Which of the following is the best description of research design?

a. a set of advance decisions that makes up the master plan specifying the methods and procedures for collecting and analyzing the needed information

b. a marketing term or concept involved in the marketing management problem that will be researched

c. the specific pieces of information are necessary to solve the problem at hand

d. a list from which sample elements are drawn from the sample, which contains all of the elements in the population being studied

e. a set of advance decisions that are made after the data have been collected in order to determine how the data will be analyzed.Answer: (a) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 1164.Which of the following best illustrates the significance of research design?

a. Because research designs may be "matched" to different kinds of problems, the research design may serve as a blueprint for the researcher.

b. Because all research problems are different, research designs are applicable only in an academic setting; they cannot be used in the real world.

c. Because research designs are like blueprints, they are most helpful during data analysis.

d. Research designs are used after studies are completed and are used to make improvements in future research studies.

e. All of the above are true.

Answer: (a) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 1165.The various types of research design include:

a. exploratory, exploitive, and competitive

b. deductive, descriptive, and exploitive

c. exploratory, causal, and competitive

d. causal, experimental, and exhaustive

e. exploratory, descriptive, and causal

Answer: (e) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 1166.Which of the following is an objective of research?

a. to gain background information

b. to describe marketing phenomena

c. to determine causality

d. All of the above

e. None of the aboveAnswer: (d) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 1177.If the research objective is to gain background information, it is likely that the most appropriate research design would be:

a. exploitive

b. exhaustive

c. exploratory

d. deductive

e. causal

Answer: (c) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 1178. Which of the following is most true about research designs?

a. They follow one another in a step-by-step fashion.

b. It may be that only exploitive research design is appropriate for a given project.

c. Exploitive designs must always follow competitive designs.

d. All designs should include at least some exhaustive research.

e. None of the above is true.

Answer: (d) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 1179.What type of research is unstructured and informal?

a. deductive

b. exploratory

c. causal

d. exploitive

e. exhaustiveAnswer: (b) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 11710.In which of the following situations should exploratory research be used?

a. to measure the relationships among variables

b. to test hypotheses

c. to define terms

d. in situations in which all of the concepts are clearly defined and measured

e. to determine how variable x causes variable yAnswer: (c) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 11911.Which of the following is NOT a situation in which exploratory research should be used?

a. to clarify problems

b. to measure the relationships among variables

c. to establish research priorities

d. to gain background information

e. to clarify hypotheses

Answer: (b) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 11912.Appropriate methods for conducting exploratory research would include:

a. secondary data analysis

b. experience surveys

c. sample surveys

d. longitudinal research

e. A and B

Answer: (d) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 11913.The process of searching for and interpreting existing information relevant to the research problem can be described as:

a. an experience survey

b. secondary data analysis

c. causal analysis

d. exploitive research

e. exhaustive research

Answer: (b) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 11914.Experience surveys are used in which of the following ways?

a. to gather information from persons thought to be knowledgeable on the issues relevant to the research problem

b. to search for and interpret existing information relevant to the research problem

c. to review the available information about a former situation(s) that has some similarities to the present research problem

d. to explore hidden consumer motives for buying goods and services by asking participants to project themselves into a situation and then respond to specific questions regarding the situation

e. to use surveys that the researchers have conducted in the past and, therefore, they have experience in how to conduct and interpret the surveys

Answer: (a) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12015.Which of the following is a type of exploratory research that refers to a review of available information about a former situation(s) that has some similarities to the present research problem?

a. secondary data analysis

b. experience surveys

c. case analysis

d. projective techniques

e. ex post facto studies

Answer: (c) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 12016.How should a researcher determine if case analysis is an appropriate component of exploratory research?

a. He should ask himself questions to determine the relevance of prior cases.b. She should determine how similar phenomenon in the past is with phenomenon in the present.c. It is not necessary to determine appropriateness, because case analysis should always be included in exploratory research.

d. She should conduct research on other researchers who have studied the subject in question and ask for appropriate case studies.

e. A and B are correct.

Answer: (e) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12017.Small groups of people brought together and guided by a moderator through an unstructured, spontaneous discussion for the purpose of gaining information relevant to the research problem can be categorized under which type of research design?

a. causal research

b. exploratory research

c. deductive research

d. exploitive research

e. exhaustive research

Answer: (b) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12018.What is the general purpose of projective techniques?

a. to gain information through small groups of people brought together and guided by a moderator through an unstructured, spontaneous discussion

b. to explore hidden consumer motives for buying goods and services, by asking respondents to project themselves into a situation

c. to review available information about a former situation that has some similarities to the present research problem

d. to gather information from those thought to be knowledgeable on the issues relevant to the projective research problem

e. None of the above; there is no such thing as "projective techniques."Answer: (b) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12019.What type of research design does the text state should almost always be used in research studies?

a. exploratory research

b. causal research

c. explicit research

d. exhaustive research

e. descriptive research

Answer: (a) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 121

20.What type of research design should a marketing researcher use to find out how many customers there are, what brands they buy and in what quantities, which advertisements they recall, what are their attitudes toward the company, and who is the competition?

a. exploratory research

b. causal research

c. explicit research

d. exhaustive research

e. descriptive research

Answer: (e) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12121.What are the two basic types of studies that are categorized as descriptive research?

a. focus groups and case analysis

b. longitudinal studies and case analysis

c. longitudinal studies and cross-sectional studies

d. focus groups and cross-sectional studies

e. case analysis and experiments

Answer: (c) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12222.What type of descriptive research study measures a population at only one point in time?

a. sample surveys

b. cross-sectional studies

c. longitudinal studies

d. A and B are correct.e. B and C are correct.Answer: (d) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12323.Descriptive studies are conducted to:

a. specify the causality in the problem

b. describe previous findings in similar problems

c. answer who, what, when, where, and how questions

d. answer who, what, when, where, how, and why questions

e. All of the above

Answer: (c) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12124.Longitudinal studies can be described as techniques that:

a. repeatedly measure the same sample units from the population over a period of time

b. measure the population at only one point in time

c. develop an understanding of a phenomenon in terms of "ifthen" conditional statements

d. search for and interpret existing information relevant to the research problem

e. studies conducted parallel (longitude) to one another, which allows for comparisons to be made between such studies

Answer: (a) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12325.A panel of respondents is often used in which type of study?

a. cross-sectional

b. longitudinal

c. sample surveys

d. case analysis

e. exhaustive

Answer: (b) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12326.What type of panel asks the panel members the same questions on each panel measurement?

a. continuous panel

b. inquisitional panel

c. discontinuous panel

d. repeatability panel

e. exploratory panel

Answer: (a) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12327.Of the following situations, which would be the most appropriate for using a discontinuous panel?

a. to gain insights into changes in consumers' purchases and attitudes

b. to determine if members of the panel switched brands from one time period to the next

c. to determine how consumers feel about two different product concepts by varying panel questions from one panel measurement to the next

d. to measure changes in market shares of brands

e. All of the above

Answer: (c) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12328.What type of panel should be used in brand-switching studies?

a. repeatability panel

b. continuous panel

c. inquisitional panel

d. discontinuous panel

e. exploratory panel

Answer: (b) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12529.What is the purpose of a market tracking study?

a. to measure some variable of interest, such as market share or unit sales over time

b. to determine if consumers switched brands from one time period to the next

c. to determine the relationship between several variables

d. to search for and interpret existing information relevant to the research problem

e. to keep up with changes competitors are making in their marketing mixes

Answer: (a) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 12630.What type of research design should a researcher use if he or she wishes to determine the effect of a change in price on the sales of a particular brand?

a. exploitive

b. longitudinal

c. causal

d. exploratory

e. discontinuousAnswer: (c) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 12631.In an experiment, over which type of variable does a researcher have control and wish to manipulate?

a. dependent variable

b. independent variable

c. extraneous variable

d. complex variable

e. All of the above

Answer: (b) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12732.When a variable exerts influence on the dependent variable and is not an independent variable we refer to it as a(n):

a. influencing variable

b. unwanted variable

c. complex variable

d. extraneous variablee. effect variableAnswer: (d) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12733.An experiment is defined as:

a. something men and/or women in white coats do

b. manipulating an independent variable to see how it affects a dependent variable, while also controlling for the effects of additional complex variables

c. manipulating an independent variable to see how it affects a dependent variable, while also controlling for the effects of additional extraneous variables

d. manipulating a dependent variable to see how it affects an independent variable, while also controlling for the effects of additional complex variables

e. None of the above; marketing research does not use experiments

Answer: (c) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12734.An experimental design is a procedure for ensuring that:

a. the change in the dependent variable may be solely attributed to the change in the independent variable

b. the change in the independent variable may be solely attributed to the change in the complex variable

c. the change in the dependent variable may be solely attributed to the change in the extraneous variable

d. any and all effects on all experimental values are measured

e. the manipulation made on the complex variable is measured accurately

Answer: (a) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12835.Which of the following symbols represents the measurement of the complex variable?a. O

b. X

c. C

d. Z

e. None of the above

Answer: (d) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 12836.Which of the following symbols represents the measurement of the dependent variable?a. D

b. X

c. C

d. O

e. IAnswer: (d) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 12837.Which of the following symbols represents the change or manipulation of the independent variable?a. I

b. Dc. C

d. Me. X

Answer: (e) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 12838.Which of the following research designs would be considered a quasi-experimental design as discussed in the textbook?a. Latin Square designb. OneGroup, BeforeAfter designc. BeforeAfter with Control Group design

d. AfterOnly design

e. Prettiest designAnswer: (d) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12939.Which of the following designs represents the BeforeAfter with Control Group design?

a. X O C

b. E = I X O

c. E = O X O

d. X = E + X + O

e. None of the above

Answer: (e) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 13040.In experimental designs an R stands for:

a. restricted use of complex variables

b. random assignment of research subjects (e.g., stores) to groups (experimental and control)

c. random assignment of treatments to either the independent or the dependent variables

d. realism; which is appropriate only for studies with external validity

e. There is no R in experimental design terminology.

Answer: (b) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 13041.How can it be determined if an experiment is valid?

a. The observed change in the dependent variable is in fact due to the independent variable.

b. The results of the experiment apply to the real world outside the experimental setting.

c. The results do not account for the effects of extraneous variables.

d. The results are reported in well-known news media.

e. A and B are correct.

Answer: (e) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 13142.Internal validity is concerned with which of the following?

a. the representativeness of the sample test units

b. the extent that the observed relationship between the independent variable and dependent variable is generalizable to the real world

c. the extent to which the change in the dependent variable was actually due to the independent variable

d. the measurement of extraneous variables that are internal to the experimental setting itself

e. the control of the complex variables not having an effect on the independent variable

Answer: (c) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 13243.What type of experimental validity is concerned with the extent that the relationship observed between the independent and dependent variable during the experiment is generalizable to the real world?

a. internal validity

b. external validity

c. extraneous validity

d. causal validity

e. confirmed validity

Answer: (b) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 13244.What type of experiment involves manipulating the independent variable and measuring the dependent variable in an artificial setting contrived to control extraneous variables?

a. laboratory experiments

b. field experiments

c. extraneous experiments

d. artificial experiments

e. All of the above

Answer: (a) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 13245.When are laboratory experiments desirable?

a. when the sample should be representative of the population to which the results are generalized

b. when the experiment's context and conduct are natural so that the subjects behave realistically

c. when the intent of the experiment is to achieve high levels of internal validity

d. when the intent of the experiment is to achieve high levels of external validity

e. Laboratory experiments are never desirable; they are used when field experiments are too costly.Answer: (c) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 13346.What type of experiment involves manipulating the independent variable and measuring the dependent variable in a natural setting?

a. extraneous experiments

b. laboratory experiments

c. field experiments

d. naturalistic experiments

e. eco-experiments

Answer: (c) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 13347.Which of the following is a potential use of test marketing?

a. to test the sales potential for a new product

b. to test variations in the marketing mix for a product

c. to test the sales potential for a new service

d. to test variations in the marketing mix for a servicee. All of the above

Answer: (d) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 13348.What type of test marketing should be used when a firm wants to test the product and/or marketing mix variables through the company's normal distribution channels?

a. controlled test markets

b. standard test markets

c. electronic test markets

d. simulated test markets

e. norm test markets

Answer: (b) Difficulty: Moderate) Page: 13449.What type of test markets are conducted by outside research firms who guarantee distribution of the product through prespecified types and numbers of distributors?

a. electronic test markets

b. controlled test markets

c. standard test markets

d. simulated test markets

e. guaranteed distribution test markets

Answer: (b) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 13450.Of the following, which is a potential disadvantage of using a simulated test market?

a. It is not as accurate as full-scale test markets.

b. The distribution network may or may not properly represent the firm's actual distribution system.

c. It is often very time consuming.

d. It is often too expensive.

e. All of the above

Answer: (a) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 13551.In what type of situation should a marketing researcher consider using "lead country" test marketing?

a. in domestic markets with similar demographic and cultural characteristics

b. in situations where the firm is interested in introducing its products and services globally

c. in situations where specific foreign countries seem to be good predictors for an entire continent for introducing a company's products or services

d. B and C are correct.

e. A and C are correct.

Answer: (d) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 13552.Which of the following best represents the criteria discussed by the authors to be used in selection of a test market city?

a. representativeness, isolation, and cost

b. representativeness, existing company presence, and control of promotion

c. representativeness, isolation, and control of distribution and promotion

d. representativeness, cost, and control of competitor's intelligence

e. isolation, cost, effectiveness, and control

Answer: (c) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 13653.Which of the following best represents the disadvantages of conducting test markets as discussed by the authors?

a. cost, competitor intervention, and government regulations of test markets

b. infallibility of results, cost, and exposure of product/service to competition and ethical issues

c. cost, delay in getting to the market first, and competitive awareness of the product/service

d. relying on consumers in only one market, using distributors who "know" there is a test, biased results arising from too much executive time being allocated to the test as opposed to normal market conditions

e. Disadvantages were not discussed in the textbook.

Answer: (b) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 137TRUE/FALSE QUESTIONS54.Marketing research projects vary widely; some are taste tests in "kitchen-like" labs while others may be confined to library research.Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 11555.Research design is confined to predetermining how data are to be analyzed. It is primarily the responsibility of statisticians.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 116

56.Knowledge of research design is helpful because certain designs can be matched with certain problems and this provides a blueprint for the researcher.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 11657.The choice of a research design depends largely upon the research objectives.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 11758.The four research designs are exploratory, exploitive, descriptive, and longitudinal.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 11659.Research designs should always be carried out, one after another, in the following order: exploratory, descriptive, and longitudinal.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 11760.Descriptive research is often carried out at the outset of research projects.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 11861.Exploratory research is best utilized when little is known about the problem.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 11862.Hypotheses are statements describing speculated relationships among two or more variables.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 11963.Exploratory research can be used to help define terms such as understanding exactly what satisfaction with service is.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 11964.Descriptive or causal research is best used to help gain background information about the problem.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 11965.Causal research is best utilized to define terms.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 11966.One method of conducting exploratory research is through secondary data analysis.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 11967.Experience surveys are carried out in order to assess the experience levels of several marketing research firms in order to select the most appropriate firm to conduct the project.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12068.Focus groups are small groups of people brought together and guided by a moderator through an unstructured, spontaneous discussion for the purpose of gaining information relevant to the research problem.

Answer: (True)Difficulty: (Moderate)Page: 12069.Projective techniques are so called because they ask participants to project themselves into some situation and to then respond to specific questions about that situation.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12070.Descriptive research consists of exploratory research, primary research, and secondary research.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 12171.Because descriptive research asks who, what, where, when, and how, it also provides conclusive answers to why.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12172.Sample surveys are descriptive, cross-sectional studies.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12373.Dirt Devil conducted a one-time survey of consumers and asked them about their attitudes, preferences, and intentions regarding buying vacuum cleaners. This is an example of a cross-sectional study.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12274Longitudinal studies are called such because they are long, very complex surveys taken at one point in time and having such large sample sizes as to require several months to complete the data analysis.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 12375.Several online research firms such as Lightspeed Research and Kidzeyes use panels as a means of conducting online survey research.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12376.Discontinuous panels provide data that may be used for brand-switching studies.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12577. Discontinuous panels are sometimes called omnibus panels.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12378.The advantage of the discontinuous panel is they represent a large grouppeople, stores, or other entity making up the panelthat is agreeable to providing information.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12479.In the example of brand-switching data provided in the textbook (Pooch Plus dog treats), cross-sectional study analysis provided a totally different conclusion than did the longitudinal data analysis.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12580.Market tracking studies track some variable of interest, such as market share over time, and represent a use of cross-sectional studies.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12681.An experiment is defined as manipulating a dependent variable to see how it affects an independent variable while controlling for the effects of a complex variable.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12782.Independent variables are those over which the experimenter has some control; in other words, independent variables may be manipulated by the experimenter.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12783.Dependent variables are those over which the experimenter has total, direct control; they may be easily manipulated by experimenters.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: Easy) Page: 12784.Complex variables are those that have some effect upon the dependent variable but yet are not independent variables.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 12785.Experimental designs provide procedures for devising an experimental setting, such that a change in a dependent variable may be attributed solely to the change in the independent variable.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12886.Experimental designs provide procedures for devising an experimental setting such that a change in an independent variable may be attributed solely to the change in the dependent variable while controlling for the effects of complex variables.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 12887.In experimental design nomenclature, an X represents the measurement of the dependent variable.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12888.In experimental design nomenclature, an O represents the measurement of the dependent variable.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12889.In experimental design nomenclature, an E represents the experimental effect: that is, the change in the dependent variable occurs due to a change in the independent variable.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12890.A pretest refers to measuring the dependent variable prior to changing the independent variable.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 12891.Designs that do not control for the effects of extraneous variables are known as quasi-experimental designs.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 12992.The OneGroup, BeforeAfter design is a quasi-experimental design.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 12993.The dependent variable is always manipulated in the experimental group but never in the control group.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Difficult) Pages: 12913094.The BeforeAfter with Control Group design is a quasi-experimental design.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 3095.The reason for using randomization or matching in experimental designs is to achieve equivalency between experimental and control groups.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 13096.Internal validity, carried out through field experiments, measures the extent to which the relationship between independent, dependent, and complex variables hold up in the real world.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 13197. ACNielsen conducts experiments but they do not rely on the use of experimental design concepts such as experimental and control groups.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 13198.If an experiment did not have a representative sample, this would be considered a threat to the experiment's external validity.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 13299.If an experiment did not have equivalent experimental and control groups, this would be considered a threat to the experiment's external validity.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 132100.The primary advantage of laboratory experiments is that they allow the researcher to control the effects of extraneous variables.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 132101.Although laboratory experiments allow for the control of extraneous variables, they cost more and take more time than do field experiments.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 133102. The primary advantage of field experiments is that they are conducted in non-naturalistic settings, which allow for tightly controlling extraneous variables.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 133103.Test marketing is the phrase commonly used to indicate an experiment, study, or test that is conducted in a field setting.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 133104.There is only one use of test markets: to determine the sales potential for a new product or service.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 133105.Electronic test markets require consumers, who are members of a panel, to carry identification cards.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 134106.Simulated test markets are conducted on computers without any consumer input.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 134107.Because all products eventually end up in the consumer market, there is no such thing as industrial test markets.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 135108.A city that is geographically isolated may be considered a good test market city.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Moderate)Page: 136109.Test markets do not yield infallible results. Sometimes test markets lead to the wrong decision.

Answer: (True) Difficulty: (Easy) Page: 137110.A firm selects a test market city that it believes will give them very favorable results because it knows the media will publicize the "success" of the new test product. This may be considered stupid but it would not be considered to be unethical.

Answer: (False) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 137APPLICATION QUESTIONS111. Dirt Devil vacuum cleaning company is interested in knowing if a proposed advertising message will be effective in generating interest in purchasing their portable vacuum cleaner. They contact marketing research firm InsightExpress, which has a service that tests proposed ad copy with consumers they have recruited to participate. Copies of the ad are prepared and are shown to several hundred consumers online. Consumers evaluate the ad and the results are given to Dirt Devil. This is an example of which of the following?a. longitudinal research

b. causal research

c. experimental research

d. exhaustive research

e. cross-sectional research

Answer: (e) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 122

112. Your university decides it will create a panel of consumers in your local area. The purpose of the panel is to report the local population's attitudes, preferences, and intentions on a variety of local issues. In the first administration of the panel, the questions asked for voter preferences for an upcoming local election. In the second administration, questions submitted to the panel asked for their attitudes about the quality of the drinking water and air in your area. Which type of panel has your university created?

a. continuous panel

b. inquisitional panel

c. discontinuous panel

d. repeatability panel

e. exploratory panel

Answer: (c) Difficulty: (Moderate) Page: 124113. Mack Trucks decides to conduct an experiment to determine if a new oil additive actually results in increased fuel efficiency. They find a lab that contains 50 engines that are exactly alike. Mack randomly divides the 50 engines into two groupsan experimental group (which has the new oil additive) and the control group (which does not have the new oil additive). They then pour the exact same amount of fuel into all 50 engines and time how long each engine runs. Afterward, they average the length of time run by the 25 engines in the control group versus the 25 engines in the experimental group. Which of the following represents the experimental design in this study?

a. X O1

b. O1 X O2

c. (R) O1 X O2 (R) O3 O4 d. (R) O1 X O2 (R) O3 D O4

e. (R) O1 O2 (R) O3 D O4

Answer: (c) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 130114. Which of the following best describes the logic used in the BeforeAfter with Control Group experimental design that allows this design to be a true experimental design?

a. The experimental group change (O2 O1) contains the change in the independent variable

due to a. the dependent variable and b. extraneous variables. When we subtract from this the

control group (O4 O3), which is the change due to the extraneous variables, we are left

with the change due solely to the dependent variable.

b. The experimental group change (O2 O1) contains the change in the complex variable due

to a. the dependent variable and b. extraneous variables. When we subtract from this the

control group (O4 O3), which is the change due to the extraneous variables, we are left

with the change due solely to the complex variable.

c. The control group change (O2 O1) contains the change in the independent variable due to

a. the dependent variable and b. extraneous variables. When we subtract from this the

experimental group (O4 O3), which is the change due to the extraneous variables, we are

left with the change due solely to the dependent variable.

d. The experimental group change (O2 O1) contains the change in the dependent variable due

to a. the dependent variable and b. extraneous variables. When we subtract from this the

control group (O4 O3), which is the change due to the extraneous variables, we are left

with the change due solely to the dependent variable.

e. The experimental group change (O2 O1) contains the change in the dependent variable due

to a. the dependent variable and b. extraneous variables. When we subtract from this the

control group (O4 O3), which is the change due to the extraneous variables, we are left

with the change in the dependent variable due solely to the independent variable.

Answer: (e) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 130 115. TechTrician, Inc. makes a major breakthrough in cell phone technology and design. Their research and development department has created advanced micro-circuitry that is a hundred times more sensitive to cell signals than conventional cell phones. This means that there is almost never a break in cell phone signals even when the caller is several miles from what would be considered "in range" for conventional phones. The problem is that the new technology adds about $100 to the cost of the phone. TechTrician, Inc. must spend a considerable amount of funds to retool in order to produce the new phones. They decide to test market the new phones. The company is located in Los Angeles and several executives believe it would be less costly to run the test market in their own city. However, Bob Brobst, one of the marketing managers has argued for running at least two test markets; one in Phoenix, AZ, and one in Tulsa, OK. What criterion for test market selection is Bob Brobst using?

a. representativeness

b. degree of isolation

c. control over media

d. control over distribution

e. lower costs

Answer: (b) Difficulty: (Difficult) Page: 13658PAGE 78