UGC NET Questions (Paper – 1)

Statements A, B, C and E accurately describe the two designs. Cross-sectional studies take a snapshot of different groups at one time, whereas longitudinal studies repeatedly observe the same individuals, making them suitable for developmental questions. Longitudinal designs indeed face challenges such as participant attrition. Statement D is false because cross-sectional designs are less appropriate than longitudinal ones for examining change within individuals over time.

Option A:
Option A is incomplete because it omits E, thereby failing to recognise a major practical limitation of longitudinal research, namely attrition. Without E, the comparison between the two designs lacks a key practical dimension.

Option B:
Option B is incorrect because it includes D, which contradicts the accepted view that longitudinal designs are more appropriate for studying individual change, and it also omits E. This combination therefore misrepresents the strengths and weaknesses of the designs.

Option C:
Option C is correct as it groups all the true statements about how data are collected, what questions can be answered and what difficulties may arise in longitudinal research. It excludes D, which wrongly elevates cross-sectional designs for studying individual change over time.

Option D:
Option D is wrong because it includes D and omits A, thereby misclassifying the suitability of cross-sectional designs for change studies and neglecting a basic definition of cross-sectional data collection. This leads to an inaccurate comparison of the two designs.

Statements A, B, C, D and F correctly describe threats to internal validity, while E is false. Statement A is true because events between measurements can influence outcomes. Statement B is correct as maturation refers to participant changes over time, and statement C rightly defines the testing effect. Statement D accurately explains instrumentation changes, and statement F is true for attrition or mortality, whereas E is false because random assignment is a control technique that strengthens, not threatens, internal validity.

Option A:
Option A includes all the genuine threats named (A, B, C, D and F) and excludes E, which misinterprets the role of random assignment. It thus presents a complete and accurate set of internal validity threats mentioned in the list. Therefore this option is the correct answer.

Option B:
Option B leaves out F, ignoring the issue of differential dropout across groups. Since attrition can seriously bias results, omitting it gives an incomplete picture of internal validity threats. As a result, this combination is not acceptable.

Option C:
Option C contains E in addition to B, C, D and F, thereby treating random assignment as a threat. This is incorrect because random assignment is used to control extraneous variables and enhance internal validity. Including a false statement disqualifies this option.

Option D:
Option D omits B, which is an important threat related to participant changes, and therefore fails to recognise the full range of threats in the list. By leaving out a true statement, it offers only a partial account and cannot be considered correct.