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Statistics for Criminology and Criminal Justice Second Edition Test Bank

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    1. The process of gathering and analyzing data in a systematic and controlled way using techniques and procedures that are accepted by other scientists in a discipline is commonly referred to as . . . A. Speculation B. Counter - Intuitive Induction *C. Science D. Deductive Introspection @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts 2. Procedures used by scientists to gather and analyze scientific data are referred to as what? *A. Methods B. Modus Operandi C. Operational Nox D. Formation @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts 3. A h ypotheses is best described as . . . A. A set of p roposed and testable explanation s about reality that is bound together by logic and evidence B. A l aw governing the coherence of social and criminal phenomena C. A set of rules governing the application of statistical analytic techniques for examining quantitative data * D. A single proposition, deduced from a theory , that must hold true in order for the theory itself to be considered valid @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology 4. Which of the terms below can best be described as a set of proposed and testable explanations about reality that is bound together by logic and evidence? A. Validity B. Hypothesis C. Law * D. Theory @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology 5. Studies intending to assess whether policies, programs , or interventions are effective are referred to as what style of research? * A. Evaluation r esearch B. Exploratory r esearch

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    C. Confounding r esearch D. Matriculation r esearch @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology 6. A sample can best be described as . . . A. The grouping of people, places, and objects used to generalize to the population * B. A subset pulled from a population with the goal of ultimately using the people, objects, or places in the sample as a way to generalize to the population C. The entire set, or universe, of people, places, or objects used to generalize to a population D. A technique used by social science researchers in attempts to prove existing theoretical propositions true in the general population @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts 7. In order to ensure that a sample mirrors the population from which it was drawn a scientist would employ which type of sampling technique? A. Quota s ampling B. Purposive s ampling * C. Probability s ampling D. Snowball s ampling @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology 8. Despite suffering from a variety of problems , why is the NCVS considered so useful for research? A. The NCVS is actually not all that useful because it is replete with methodological errors . * B. The NCVS is useful due to the fact that it facilitates research into the characteristics of crime victims . C. The NCVS is only useful because it contains files that are quite small and easy to interpret . D. The NCVS is not useful at all , but because it is so widely published , researcher s make use of its limited information . @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Data Sources 1.2: The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) 9 . Two sources of actual, real - world data used in this text are . . . * A. UCR and NCVS B. MMPI and BJS C. ICPSR and MMPI D. DSM and ICPSR @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

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    Answer Location: Research Example 1.1: What Do Criminal Justice and Criminology Researchers Study? 1 0 . Crimes reported within the Uniform Crime Report are sorted into eight index offenses. Which of the following represent those specific indices? A. Aggravated manslaughter, vehicular homicide, pedophilia, human trafficking, drug possession, environmental offenses, piracy, and infanticide B. Terroristic assault, hate crimes, murder, manslaughter, infanticide, patricide, drug offenses, and suicide C. Pedophilia , necrophilia, kidnapping, white collar crime, airline hijacking, human trafficking, drug trafficking, and traffic offenses * D. Homicide , rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny - theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Data Sources 1.1: The Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) 1 1 . The organization that is responsible for the collection of data for the Uniform Crime Reports is the . . . * A. Federal Bureau of Investigation B. Central Intelligence Agency C. American University D. Bureau of Justice Statistics @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Data Sources 1.1: The Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) 1 2 . The Uniform Crime Reports conform to the “ hierarchy rule ,” meaning what? * A. In multiple - crime incidents , only the most serious offense is reported to the UCR . B. In multiple - crime incidents , every offense is recorded in official records . C. In multiple - crime incidents , each crime is reported , but the most serious offense is listed first . D. In all criminal incidents , larger metropolitan law enforcement organizations are given prominence with crimes committed in rural areas listed in special indices of the UCR . @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Data Sources 1.1: The Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) 1 3 . The most obvious weakness of the Uniform Crime Report rests on what? A. The fact that rural crime is too often relegated to lower ranking indices * B. The fact that only those crime s brought to the attention of the police are included in the database C. The fact that the continued use of multistage cluster sampling prevents serious analysis at the individual case level D. The fact that the vast majority of data collected and included in the UCR is relegated for use by specially designated federal agents only @ Question type: MC

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    Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Data Sources 1.1: The Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) 1 4 . The National Crime Victimization Survey is conducted by which agency? A. The Federal Bureau of Investigation B. The Central Intelligence Agency * C. The Bureau of the Census D. The Inter - University Consortium on Political and Social Research @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Data Sources 1.2: The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) 1 5 . GIGO, an acronym commonly used in both computer science and the discipline of statistics , is used to represent what phrase? A. Gig In Gig Out B. Going In Going Out C. Gang In Gang Out * D. Garbage In Garbage Out @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts 1 6 . Research that does not set out to test a theory or explore a new area of research but proposes to simply report characteristics or aspects of a given phenomenon is referred to as what type of research? A. Evaluation r esearch * B. Descriptive r esearch C. Expositional r esearch D. Neo - Investigative r esearch @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology 1 7 . A sampling technique in which all people, objects, or areas included within a population have an equal and known chance of being selected for inclusion into a sample is known as what type of sampling procedure? A. Purposive s ampling B. Snowball s ampling * C. Probability s ampling D. Multi s tage Cluster s ampling @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology 1 8 . Which of the following are commonly used statistical packages in the criminal justice sciences?

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    * A. SPSS, STATA, SAS B. Numbers, Microsoft Excel C. Run, SigmaPlot, Do, ESRI D. ADMB, CJEstat, DataPlot @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Software Packages for Statistical Analysis 19 . Data t hat are collected improperly or carelessly can be salvaged through which procedure? * A. Improperly collected data cannot be salvaged by high powered statistical operations . B. The best method to salvage bad data is through data mining . C. Negative binomial regression can render even the worst data useful . D. Data imputation can solve all problems associated with bad or “ dirty ” data . @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts 2 0 . Measures of ________ complement measures of central tendency by offering information about whether the data tend to cluster tightly around the center or whether they are very spread out. A. s tatistics B. r egression C. s ampling * D. d ispersion @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension; Application Answer Location: Organization of the Book 2 1 . With the exception of purely descriptive research, the ultimate goal in most statistical analyses is do what? A. Test a hypothesis B. Generalize from a population to a sample * C. Generalize from a sample to a population D. Test a theory @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology 2 2 . Nonscientific information is that which is collected A. Informally B. Without regard for correct methods C. Anecdotally * D. All of the Above @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts

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    2 3 . What is the Bureau of Justice Statistics responsible for? A. Evaluating other federal agencies’ use of statistics * B. Gathering, maintaining, and analyzing data on various criminal justice topics at the county, state, and national levels . C. Calculating statistics for the government to determine public opinion on political matters D. All of the a bove @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Research Example 1.1: What Do Criminal Justice and Criminology Researchers Study? 2 4 . Everybody who conducts a study bears an obligation to * A. Be very clear and open about the methods they used B. Provide brief outlines on the procedures used C. Conform to at least some of the proper scientific methods D. All of the a bove @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts 2 5 . Before a theory can be considered valid , it is first necessary that the hypothesis upon which it is built hold s true. *a. True b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology 2 6 . A key aspect of scientific research is replication, conducted for purposes of determining whether the original study’s results are reproduced when different samples are used. *a. True b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts 2 7 . According to the scientific method , it is vital to the integrity of a discipline that a researcher maintains strict secrecy with respect to the methods, samples, and techniques used in the analysis of data within any particular study. a. True *b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts Feedback: The scientific method requires researchers to be open and transparent regarding the

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    methods they use to collect and analyze data. 2 8 . Evaluation research is rarely conducted within the fields of criminal justice or criminology due to its inherent tendency to produce unreliable and often invalid results. a. True *b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology Feedback: When sound methods are used, evaluation research can produce reliable and valid results. 29 . Research conducted by social scientists treading into unfamiliar territory when there is limited knowledge regarding a certain phenomenon is referred to as “ exploratory ” research. *a. True b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology 3 0 . In most statistical analyses , the underlying purpose is to generalize from a population to a sample in order to provide the social science community with the best fitting data and results. a. True *b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology Feedback: Generalizations are made from samples to populations, not the other way around. 3 1 . The most highly prized statistical package used by researchers in the social sciences is Microsoft Excel due to its ability to perform high powered analytic procedures quickly and efficiently. a. True *b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension; Application Answer Location: Software Packages for Statistical Analysis Feedback : More sophisticated software packages like SPSS are preferred over Excel for most purposes. 3 2 . Learning statistics is a cumulative process because the concepts build upon each other, with the more basic analyses providing building blocks for the more complex ones. *a. True b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

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    Answer Location: Organization of the Book 3 3 . In order to be a successful student of statistics , a strong base of knowledge in arithmetic and basic algebra is necessary. *a. True b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension; Application Answer Location: Organization of the Book 3 4 . Statistical methods are the backbone of criminal justice research and enable the construction and expansion of knowledge about criminality and the criminal justice system. *a. True b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Introduction to the Use of Statistics in Criminal Justice and Criminology 3 5 . The Bureau of Justice Statistics is an important source of data and information on the criminal justice system. *a. True b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Research Example 1.1: What Do Criminal Justice and Criminology Researchers Study? 3 6 . Research that tests theories or examines issues related to criminal justice and is ultimately published in academic journals and books is the basis for most of what is known about criminal offending and the justice system. *a. True b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Introduction to the Use of Statistics in Criminal Justice and Criminology 3 7 . It is better to rely on the personal opinions and observations of people who have worked within the criminal justice system for a long time than on data gathered using scientific methods and analyzed with statistics. a. True *b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension; Application Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts Feedback: Anecdotal evidence (opinions and personal observations) can be useful and informative, but scientific data is a more reliable source of information and is preferable to

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    anecdotes. 3 8 . Science is grounded in theory. a. True *b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts Feedback: Science is grounded in methods. 39 . A hypothesis must hold true in order for the theory itself to be considered valid. *a. True b. False @ Question type: TF Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology Type: F 4 0 . _______________ occurs when there is limited knowledge about a certain phenomenon and researchers embark into unfamiliar territory as they attempt to study this social event. *a. Answer: Exploratory r esearch Question Type: F Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology Type: F 4 1 . The ________ contain annual data collected by the federal government on crimes reported to police agencies nationwide. *a. Answer: The Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) Question Type: F Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Data Sources 1.1: The Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) Type: F 4 2 . _____________ is repetition of a particular study that is conducted for purposes of determining whether the original study’s results remain true when new samples or measures are employed. *a. Answer: Replication Question Type: F Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts Type: F 4 3 . A _________ is a subset pulled from a population with the goal of using the people, objects, or places to make generalizations to that population. *a. Answer: Sample

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    Question Type: F Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts Type: F 4 4 . __________ are proposed explanations for certain events. *a. Answer: Theories Question Type: F Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology Type: E 4 5 . What is the relationship between science and methods? *a. Answer: Science is the process of gathering and analyzing data in a systematic and controlled manner using procedures and techniques that are generally accepted by others in a discipline. Methods are those procedures that are used in the task of gathering the desired data. Question Type: E Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts Type: E 4 6 . List the four types of research discussed in this chapter. *a. Answer: The four types of research discussed in this chapter are hypothesis testing , evaluation research , exploratory research , and descriptive research. Question Type: E Cognitive Domain: Comprehension; Application Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology Type: E 4 7 . What populations are excluded from the NCVS? *a. Answer: Childre n younger than 12 years of age, institutionalized populations, and the homeless. Question Type: E Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Data Sources 1.2: The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) Type: E 48 . Describe the various problems afflicting the Uniform Crime Reports . *a. Answer: (1) The UCR only includes those crime that have been brought to the attention of the police. Crimes that fail to be reported or are not detected by the police are not included in the UCR database. (2) The UCR conforms to the hierarchy rule, meaning that in instances in which multiple crimes are perpetrated , only the most serious offense is reported in the database; therefore, many criminal offenses are not included in the federal crime data. (3) Underreporting of crime by victims, combined with the hierarchy rule , is evidence that the UCR undercounts the true amount of crime that has actually occurred. Question type: ESS

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    Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Data Sources 1.1: The Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) Type: E 49 . Explain briefly why replication is vital to scientific inquiry. Include in your answer an explanation of the role that clarity and transparency of methods plays in replication. *a. Answer: Due to the fact that scientific studies within the social sciences never actually prove anything , a good amount of additional study is necessary to provide ample evidence that results obtained are generalizable, valid , and reliable. Firm conclusions can only be drawn once subsequent studies have verified results obtained in previous research endeavors. Full replication of scientific studies is possible through the scientific method’s requirement that researchers fully divulge the methods and procedures used in their studies. Question type: ESS Cognitive Domain: Comprehension; Application Answer Location: Science: Basic Terms and Concepts Type: E 5 0 . What are the differences between theories and hypotheses? *a. Answer: A theory is defined as a set of proposed and testable explanations about reality that is bound together by logic and evidence. A hypothesis is defined as a single proposition deduced from a theory that must hold true in order for the theory itself to be considered valid. Hypotheses can be understood as small bits of theories that must be true in order for the entire theory to hold up under scrutiny. In addition, one might envision a theory as a chain with the hypotheses forming the links of that chain. A theory is broad, whereas a hypothesis is a smaller entity. Question type: ESS Cogni tive Domain: Comprehension; Application Answer Location: Types of Scientific Research in Criminal Justice and Criminology

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    1. A constant is best defined as . . . * A. A c haracteristic that assume s only one value in a sample B. A characteristic whose values vary over categories C. A multiple - regression technique used to determine causality D. A binomial characteristic whose value alters with respect to specific categorization @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Introduction: Types of Variables and Levels of Measurement 2. Which of the following is defined as a characteristic that takes on multiple values in a sample or population? A. A constant * B. A variable C. A distribution D. A skew @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Introduction: Types of Variables and Levels of Measurement 3. A professor is undertaking a longitudinal research project into the criminal behavior of Irish women residing in Chicago. In this example Irish Women would be an example of which of the following? A. Accio a nalytic u nit B. Standard d eviation u nit C. A c onstant v ariable * D. Unit of a nalysis @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension , Application Answer Location: Units of Analysis 4 . A factor that is used to try to explain or predict a dependent variable is referred to as what in statistics and research? A. An empirical variable B. A skewed variable * C. An i ndependent variable D. An effectual variable @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Independent and Dependent Variables 5 . Which level of measurement is the most basic and least descriptive ? A. Ordinal B. Ratio C. Interval * D. Nominal @ Question type: MC

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    Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Levels of Measurement 6 . Which of the following lists the levels of measurement in statistics ? A. Categorical and o rdinal B. Categorical, o rdinal, and q uantitative * C. Nominal, o rdinal, i nterval, and r atio D. Nominal, c ategorical, f requency, and e mpirical @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Levels of Measurement 7 . A ruler could be described as which type of level of measurement? * A. Interval B. Categorical C. Nominal D. Ratio @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: The Continuous Level of Measurement: Interval and Ratio Variables 8 . A researcher has collected data for her most recent study into criminal incidents in rural areas. She has one variable that has a ranked characteristic . This variable would be described as belonging to what level of measurement? * A. Ordinal B. Binomial C. Nominal D. Ratio @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension , Application Answer Location: The Categorical Level of Measurement: Nominal and Ordinal Variables 9 . For a study into rural crime, a researcher has a good amount of descriptive data. One variable is a basic demographic data point indicating a subject’s racial/ ethnic origin. This variable is composed of classifications indicating Hispanic , Caucasian , Pacific Islander , and African - American . What type of data is this variable? A. Ratio * B. Categorical C. Continuous D. Binomial @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension , Application Answer Location: The Categorical Level of Measurement: Nominal and Ordinal Variables

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    10 . What study is conducted by the Bureau of Justice statistics as a supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey in which respondents are asked questions regarding recent experiences with police? * A. The Police - Public Contact Survey B. The National Law Enforcement Quality Survey C. The General Social Survey D. The National Police Survey @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Data Sources 2.1: The Police - Public Contact Survey 11 . What is th e Department of Justice’s data r epository? A. The Inter - University Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) B. The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Programs (OJJDP) C. The Library of Congress * D. The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Data Sources 2.3: The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) 12 . The only level of data that contains a TRUE zero is _________. A. i nterval B. n ominal * C. r atio D. c ategorical @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: The Continuous Level of Measurement: Interval and Ratio Variables 13 . The level of measurement that is numeric, rank - orderable, and has equal intervals between adjacent points but that does not have a true zero is _________. A. n ominal B. r atio * C. i nterval D. o rdinal @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: The Continuous Level of Measurement: Interval and Ratio Variables 14 . Which of the following words describes a phenomenon that is measured, observed, or tangible? * A. Empirical B. Independent C. Dependent D. Didactic @ Question type: MC

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    Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Independent and Dependent Variables 1 5 . A researcher has started analyzing data in a project investigating urban crime. Unbeknownst to him, he has inadvertently omitted one very important variable that would have explained the dependent variable very well . What error has been committed in this study? A. Eliminated v ariable d ilemma B. Ecological f allacy C. There has been no error as the researcher will simply manipulate the data and arrive at meaningful results * D. Omitted v ariable b ias @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension , Application Answer Location: Relationships between Variables: A Cautionary Note 16 . The results of a study on police use of conducted energy devices (CE D. indicated that police were more to likely to use CEDs for what race of suspects? A. Blacks B. Whites * C. Hispanics D. There was no difference in suspects’ race for CED deployment @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Research Example 2.1: Choosing Variables for a Study on Police Use of Conductive Energy Devices 17 . Categorical variables are generally divided into two distinct types. What are the two types? A. C ategorical and d iscrete * B. Nominal and o rdinal C. Nominal and c ategorical D. Interval and r atio @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Levels of Measurement 18. Continuous variables are generally divided into two types. What are the two types? * A. Categorical and d iscrete B. Nominal and o rdinal C. Nominal and c ategorical D. Interval and r atio @ Question type: MC Cognitive Domain: Comprehension Answer Location: Levels of Measurement 1 9 . The General Social Survey (GSS) is one of the most important sociological questionnaires proctored. The GSS is conducted by which organization?

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