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Case Study

Based on the definition of a proprietary measure, explain why Dr. Ramirez's plan to use these specific assessments by printing them from the internet is inappropriate.

Case context: Dr. Ramirez is designing a clinical psychology study to evaluate a new therapy. She wants to measure participants' depression and personality traits using the Beck Depression Inventory and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI). She finds copies of the test questions online and plans to print them out for her participants to save money.

Question: Based on the definition of a proprietary measure, explain why Dr. Ramirez's plan to use these specific assessments by printing them from the internet is inappropriate.

Sample answer: Dr. Ramirez's plan is inappropriate because both the Beck Depression Inventory and the MMPI are proprietary measures. This means that a publisher owns the legal rights to these tools. Researchers cannot simply print copies found online; they are legally required to purchase the assessments from the publisher prior to using them in their research.

Key points:

  • Identifies the Beck Depression Inventory and MMPI as proprietary measures.
  • Explains that a publisher owns the legal rights to these tools.
  • Concludes that researchers must purchase the tools rather than copying them for free.

Rubric: Full credit is awarded for correctly identifying the assessments as proprietary measures and explaining that their legal rights are owned by a publisher, meaning they must be purchased rather than copied from the internet.

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Updated 2026-05-27

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Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU

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