Final Exam Qs Flashcards
A social psychologist would tend to look for explanations of a young man’s violent behavior primarily in terms of __________.
A. his aggressive personality traits
B. how his peer group behaves
C. what his father taught him
D. possible genetic contributions
B
The topic that would most interest a social psychologist is __________.
A. how the level of extroversion of different presidents affected their political decisions
B. what passers-by on the street think of global warming
whether people’s decision about
C. whether to cheat on a test is influenced by how they imagine their friends would react if they found out
D. the extent to which people’s social class predicts their income
C
Which of the following is true about evolutionary psychology?
A. Evolutionary approaches can generate novel hypotheses about social behavior that can then be tested with experiments.
B. Most social behaviors are genetically determined with little influence by the social environment.
C. It is easy to test evolutionary hypotheses by doing experiments.
D. Natural selection works differently in humans than other animals.
A
How does social psychology differ from personality psychology?
A Social psychology provides general laws and theories about societies, whereas personality psychology studies the characteristics that make people unique.
B Social psychology focuses on individual differences, whereas personality psychology focuses on how people behave in different situations.
C Social psychology focuses on individual differences, whereas personality psychology provides general laws and theories about societies.
D Social psychology focuses on the shared processes that make people susceptible to social influence, whereas personality psychology focuses on individual differences.
D
What is the “level of analysis” for a social psychologist?
A A person’s level of reasoning
B The social situation itself
C A person’s level of achievement
D The individual in the context of a social situation
D
Which of the following research topics about violence is one that a social psychologist might investigate?
A Brain abnormalities that produce aggression when a person is provoked
B Why some situations are more likely to provoke aggression than others
C How rates of violence change over time within a culture
D Why murder rates vary across cultures
B
The fundamental attribution error is best defined as the tendency to __________.
A explain our own and other people’s behavior in terms of the social situation, thereby underestimating the power of personality factors
B believe that people’s group memberships influence their behavior more than their personalities
C explain our own and other people’s behavior entirely in terms of personality traits, thereby underestimating the power of social influence
D believe that people’s personalities influence their behavior more than their group memberships
C
What does the Wall Street Game reveal about personality and situation?
A The name of the game makes no difference in how people play the game.
B The name of the game strongly influences how people play the game.
C Cooperative people will try hard to get competitive opponents to work with them.
D Competitive people will compete fiercely no matter what a game is called.
B
A stranger approaches Emily on campus and says he is a professional photographer. He asks if she will spend 15 minutes posing for pictures next to the student union. According to social psychologists, Emily’s decision will depend on which of the following?
A Whether the man has a criminal record
B Whether the man offers to pay her
C How well dressed the man is
D How Emily construes the situation
D
Social psychology had its origins in __________.
A behavioral psychology
B biological psychology
C Gestalt psychology
D Freudian psychology
C
“Naïve realism” refers to the fact that __________.
A most people believe they perceive things accurately
B few people are realistic
C most people are naïve (uneducated) about psychology
D most people would rather be naïve than accurate
A
Researchers who study social cognition assume that people __________.
A distort reality in order to view themselves favorably
B try to view the world as accurately as possible
C are driven by the need to control others
D can’t think clearly with other people around them
B
Which of the following does NOT reflect the motive to maintain high self-esteem?
A Janetta did poorly on the first test in her psychology class. She admits that she didn’t study enough and vows to study harder for the next test.
B Zach has been involved in several minor traffic accidents since getting his driver’s license. “There sure are a lot of terrible drivers out there,” he says. “People should learn to be good drivers like me.”
C After Sarai leaves Hiroko for someone else, Hiroko decides that he never really liked her much anyway.
D Students who want to take Professor Lopez’s seminar have to apply by writing a 10-page essay. Everyone who is selected ends up loving the class.
A
What is Social Cognition?
A The study of an individuals’ place in society.
B How people think about the roles of others in the social world.
C How people select, interpret, remember, and use information to make judgements and decisions.
D How people view themselves as good, competent, and decent.
C
Which of the following is true about the study of culture in social psychology?
A All social psychological processes are universal; culture has little influence on these processes.
B Cross-cultural research demonstrates the universality of social psychological theories and the ways in which culture influences people’s construals of themselves and the social world.
C People who grow up in different cultures have different cognitive “tools” with which they understand the world.
D Social psychological research has been conducted exclusively with “weird” participants.
B
Social psychology is the study of __________.
A social events, such as football games and dances
B the real or imagined influence of other people
C psychological processes, such as dreaming
D social institutions, such as the church or school
B
For social psychologists, the likely explanation of the mass suicide at Jonestown was __________.
A the cult leader used hypnotism or drugs to coerce his followers into obedience
B processes that could ensnare almost any healthy person
C members of the cult were mentally unstable or clinically depressed
D the open, welcoming nature of the cult that made members feel it was safe to obey their leader
B
In social psychology, the level of analysis is __________.
A society at large
B groups and organizations
C the individual in a social context
D cognitive and perceptual brain processes
C
Which of the following comments does not illustrate the fundamental attribution error?
A “The people who died by suicide at Jonestown were socially isolated and thus cut off from other points of view about their leader.”
B A woman reads about high unemployment in poor communities and says, “Well, if those people weren’t so lazy, they would find work.”
C A man says, “My wife has sure become a grouchy person” but explains his own grouchiness as a result of having a hard day at the office.
D “The people who died by suicide at Jonestown were mentally ill.”
A
What do social psychology and personality psychology have in common?
A They both focus on personality traits.
B They both focus on the individual.
C They both focus on formative childhood experiences.
D They both focus on genetic contributions to personality.
B
What do social psychology and sociology have in common?
A They both examine demographic trends in society.
B They both are concerned with group processes.
C They both study national institutions.
D They both are concerned with personality differences.
B
In social psychology, why is construal so important?
A People are aware of their biases in perceiving events.
B People realize that other reasonable people see things the way they do.
C People’s behavior is primarily determined by the objective circumstances they are in.
D People’s behavior is affected by their interpretation of events, not only the events themselves
D
What was the main contribution of Gestalt psychology to social psychology?
A It added an understanding of how the brain works.
B It emphasized how people perceive the physical world.
C It added historical perspective to the study of behavior.
D It showed that the whole is larger than the sum of its parts.
D
Which of the following motives are central to how we construe the world?
A The needs for self-expression and creativity
B The needs to feel good about ourselves and to feel our opinions are accurate
C The needs to feel superior to others and to discriminate against them
D The needs to be accurate in our perceptions and convince others that they are wrong
B
Eleanora gets a bad grade on the first paper in her English class. To predict whether she will drop the course or stick with it, which question would a social psychologist be most likely to ask?
A What is her explanation for why she got the bad grade?
B What were her SAT scores?
C How did she do in the English class she took the previous semester?
D How did she score on a personality test of persistence?
A
Which of the following is a basic assumption that social psychologists make?
A It is hard to study what effect looking at pornography has on people, because everyone is different.
B Many social problems can be studied scientifically.
C Social problems have complex causes and we will never know why they occur.
D Many people fail to help others in emergencies because they don’t care about other people.
B
Which of the following is true about social psychological findings?
A Most people could easily predict them in advance of knowing how the studies turned out.
B Most people who live in the culture in which the studies were conducted could predict the findings in advance of knowing how the studies turned out.
C They sometimes seem obvious after we learn about them, because of a hindsight bias.
D Wise people such as our grandparents could easily predict them in advance of knowing how the studies turned out.
C
How do social psychologists formulate hypotheses and theories?
A They are inspired by previous theories and research.
B They disagree with a previous researcher’s interpretations of their study.
C They construct hypothesis and theories based on personal observations in everyday life.
D All of the above
D
A researcher is interested in whether moods vary by the day of the week. She codes the postings on thousands of Facebook pages to see whether people express more positive comments on some days than others. Which research method has she used?
A Survey
B Archival analysis
C Ethnography
D Correlational method
B
The observational method is best at answering which of these questions?
A Are people from the southern United States more polite in public places than people from the northern United States?
B What makes people act politely or rudely in public places?
C Does music played in department stores influence how polite people are in those stores?
D How polite are people in public places?
D
The correlational method is best at answering which of these questions?
A Does music played in department stores influence how polite people are in those stores?
B Are people from the southern United States more polite in public places than people from the northern United States?
C What makes people act politely or rudely in public places?
D How polite are people in public places?
B
The experimental method is best at answering which of these questions?
A Are people who play violent video games more likely to be rude to someone who cuts in line in front of them?
B Are people who play violent video games more likely to drive aggressively?
C How aggressively do people drive during rush hours in major U.S. cities?
D Does playing violent video games cause people to be more rude to someone who cuts in line in front of them?
D
Suppose a researcher found a strong positive correlation between the number of tweets people send each day and their reported happiness. Which of the following is the best conclusion they can draw from this finding?
A Sending tweets makes people happy.
B Feeling happy makes people want to tweet more.
C There is a third variable that makes people happy and send a lot of tweets.
D Happy people are more likely to send a lot of tweets than sad people.
D
A researcher wants to see whether people are more likely to donate money to a charity when they receive a small gift from that charity. She sends an appeal for money from the charity to 1000 people. For half of the people (randomly chosen) the letter includes free address labels and for half it does not. The researcher then sees whether those who got the address labels donate more money. Which of the following is true about this study?
A The independent variable is how much money people donate and the dependent variable is whether they got address labels.
B The study is low in internal validity because the people who got the address labels may differ in other ways from the people who did not.
C The independent variable is whether people got address labels and the dependent variable is how much money they donate.
D It uses the correlational method.
C
Which of the following is the best way to increase the external validity of a study?
A Make sure it is low in psychological realism.
B Replicate the study with a different population of people in a different setting.
C Conduct the study in the laboratory instead of the field.
D Make sure you have at least two dependent variables.
B
Social psychologists often do experiments in the laboratory, instead of the field, in order to __________.
A conduct a meta analysis
B increase internal validity
C decrease psychological realism
D increase external validity
B
Which of the following is true about cross-cultural research?
A Most social psychological findings have been found to be universal; that is, true in virtually all cultures that have been studied.
B To conduct a cross-cultural study a researcher travels to another country, translates the materials into the local language, and replicates the study there.
C It is relatively easy to conduct a study that is interpreted and perceived similarly in different cultures.
D The purpose of cross-cultural research is to see which social psychological findings are universal and which are culture-bound.
D
Which of the following is true about social neuroscience?
A This field is concerned exclusively with how different kinds of brain activity correlate with social information processing.
B Social psychologists are increasingly interested in the connection between biological processes and social behavior.
C When it comes right down to it, the brain is not very related to behavior and there is not much to be learned by measuring its electrical activity or blood flow.
D This field is concerning primarily with how hormones influence social behavior.
B
What is the best “take home” message about the open science movement?
A Researchers should keep their data to themselves so that other scientists don’t steal their ideas.
B Social psychological findings rarely replicate.
C Social psychologists should copyright the materials they develop for a study and charge other researchers for access to them.
D Social psychologists have taken the lead in examining research practices and proposing reforms.
D
Which of the following is true about cross-cultural research?
A Most social psychological findings have been found to be universal; that is, true in virtually all cultures that have been studied.
B To conduct a cross-cultural study a researcher travels to another country, translates the materials into the local language, and replicates the study there.
C It is relatively easy to conduct a study that is interpreted and perceived similarly in different cultures.
D The purpose of cross-cultural research is to see which social psychological findings are universal and which are culture-bound.
D
Which of the following is true about social neuroscience?
A This field is concerned exclusively with how different kinds of brain activity correlate with social information processing.
B Social psychologists are increasingly interested in the connection between biological processes and social behavior.
C When it comes right down to it, the brain is not very related to behavior and there is not much to be learned by measuring its electrical activity or blood flow.
D This field is concerning primarily with how hormones influence social behavior.
B
What is the best “take home” message about the open science movement?
A Researchers should keep their data to themselves so that other scientists don’t steal their ideas.
B Social psychological findings rarely replicate.
C Social psychologists should copyright the materials they develop for a study and charge other researchers for access to them.
D Social psychologists have taken the lead in examining research practices and proposing reforms.
D
Which of the following is true about the ethical conduct of psychological research?
A Darley and Latané could have easily tested their hypotheses about helping behavior by telling participants in advance that they would hear someone pretending to have a seizure.
B If research participants are misled about a study, they must be fully debriefed at the end of the study.
C It is never permissible to use deception.
D It is good scientific procedure to tell participants about the research hypotheses before they participate.
B
Which of the following is true about institutional review boards (IRBs)?
A The purpose of IRBs is to review research after it is conducted and review any complaints.
B IRBs review psychological studies before they are conducted to make sure they meet ethical guidelines.
C IRBs must be made up entirely of nonscientists.
D Universities can decide whether to have an IRB to approve psychological research.
B
Which of the following is one of the ethical principles of the American Psychological Association?
A Psychologists may not use minors (those under age 18) as participants in research.
B Psychologists are not responsible for protecting the confidentiality of information they obtain from participants.
C Psychologists respect the dignity and worth of all people, and the rights of individuals to privacy, confidentiality, and self-determination.
D If a study is conducted over the internet, psychologists need not obtain informed consent from participants.
C
Megan reads a research study which shows that children who see a lot of violence on television are more likely to be aggressive on the playground. Megan thinks, “This is obvious; I could have predicted that!” Megan’s reaction to the study is probably an example of __________.
A psychological realism
B the hindsight bias
C internal validity
D external validity
B
Suppose a researcher found a strong negative correlation between college students’ grade point average (GPA) and the amount of alcohol they drink. Which of the following is the best conclusion from this study?
A People who are intelligent get higher grades and drink less.
B Drinking a lot interferes with studying.
C Students with a high GPA study more and thus have less time to drink.
D If you know how much alcohol a student drinks, you can predict his or her GPA fairly well.
D
A team of researchers wants to test the hypothesis that drinking wine makes people like jazz more. They randomly assign college students who are 21 or over to one room in which they will drink wine and listen to jazz or to another room in which they will drink water and listen to jazz. It happens that the “wine room” has a big window with nice scenery outside, while the “water room” is windowless, dark, and dingy. The most serious flaw in this experiment is that it __________.
is low in external validity
is low in psychological realism
did not randomly select the participants from all college students in the country
is low in internal validity
D
Misha wants to find out whether eating sugary snacks before an exam leads to better performance on the exam. Which of the following strategies would answer her question most conclusively?
Identify a large number of students who perform exceptionally low and exceptionally high in exams, ask them whether they eat sugary snacks before exams, and see whether high performers eat more sugary snacks before exams than do low performers.
Wait for exam time in a big class, give a random half of the students M&Ms before the exam, and see whether the students who ate M&Ms perform better.
Wait for exam time in a big class, ask everyone whether they ate sugary snacks before the exam, and see whether those who ate sugary snacks before the exam do better compared to those who didn’t.
Pick a big class, give all students sugary snacks before one exam and salty snacks before the next exam; then see whether students score lower on average in the second exam.
B
A researcher conducts a study with participants who are college students. The researcher then repeats the study using the same procedures but with members of the general population (i.e., adults) as participants. The results are similar for both samples. The research has established __________ through __________.
internal validity, replication
external validity, replication
external validity, psychological realism
internal validity, psychological realism
B
Professor X wants to make sure their study of gifted youngsters will get published, but they’re worried that their findings could have been caused by something other than the independent variable, which was a new teaching method they introduced. They are concerned with the __________ of their experiment.
probability level
internal validity
replication
external validity
B
Suppose a psychologist decides to join a local commune to understand and observe its members’ social relationships. This is __________.
cross-cultural research
applied research
ethnography
an experiment
C
The basic dilemma of the social psychologist is that __________.
there is a trade-off between internal and external validity in most experiments
it is nearly impossible to use a random selection of the population in laboratory experiments
almost all social behavior is influenced by the culture in which people grew up
it is hard to teach social psychology to students because most people believe strongly in personality
A
Which of the following is true about new frontiers in social psychological research?
Social psychologists use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to correlate different kinds of brain activity with social information processing.
The purpose of cross-cultural research is to show that all social psychological findings are universal with no cultural variations.
Social psychologists are interested in the role of culture but not in evolutionary processes.
Social psychologists are interested in evolutionary processes but not the role of culture
A
All of the following except one are part of the guidelines for ethical research. Which is not?
All research is reviewed by an IRB (institutional review board) that consists of at least one scientist, one nonscientist, and one person unaffiliated with the institution.
When deception is used in a study, participants must be fully debriefed.
There must be a cover story for every study, because all studies involve some type of deception.
A researcher receives informed consent from a participant unless deception is deemed necessary and the experiment meets ethical guidelines
C
Which of the following is the best summary of the function of schemas?
Schemas are always beneficial because they help people organize the world and fill in the gaps in their knowledge.
Schemas are very useful in helping people organize information about the world, but they are problematic when they result in self-fulfilling prophecies.
Schemas are useful for helping us organize information about other people but not about events such as what we should do when eating in a restaurant.
Schemas usually result in erroneous judgments because of the self-fulfilling prophecy.
B
Which of the following is NOT a way in which schemas can become accessible in people’s minds?
Schemas can become temporarily accessible due to priming.
Schemas can be accessible if they are related to our current goals.
Schemas can be accessible due to people’s past experience.
The more negative in content a schema is, the more likely it is to be accessible
D
Which of the following is the best example of a self-fulfilling prophecy?
A teacher believes that boys are better at math than girls, but boys in his class do worse than girls in math.
Hassan thinks that members of the Alpha Beta Psi sorority are unfriendly and snobby. Whenever he meets members of this sorority, they are friendly toward him.
Freya thinks her daughter is not a very good reader and doesn’t spend much time reading to her. As a result, her daughter falls behind in reading at school.
Sarah is worried that her son is not gifted in music, but he does better at his piano lessons than she expected.
C
Suppose you’re driving home from watching a scary movie about a hitchhiker who was a murderer when you see someone talking loudly with a friend. Because you saw the movie, you assume that you are witnessing an argument that will probably end in a fight. This is an example of __________.
belief perseverance
priming
base rate information
controlled thinking
B
Rob is definitely not the most attractive guy in the dorms, but he is extremely confident about who he is and how he looks. He is convinced that most women find him to be very attractive, and he in fact usually gets dates with women who are much more attractive than he is. What is the best explanation of Rob’s success?
Self-affirmation theory
Self-fulfilling prophecy
The representativeness heuristic
Holistic thinking
B
Which of the following is the best summary of research on automatic goal pursuit?
People never choose their goals consciously; they only pursue automatically primed goals.
People can only select which goals are the most important to them.
Getting people to think about religion makes people more likely to help others, even if they are not religious.
People are more likely to pursue goals that have been recently primed
D
Suppose you are raising money for a charity and have set up a table at the student union. Which of the following actions is likely to increase the likelihood that people will donate to your charity?
Putting nice-smelling flowers on the table
Unwrapping some candy bars and putting them in a bowl so that the smell of chocolate permeates the air
Spraying the table with a citrus-scented cleaning fluid
Making sure there are no strong odors around your table
C
Over Thanksgiving break, your parents ask you if you can think of 12 reasons why your college is better than its archrival. You find it hard to come up with so many reasons and so end up thinking, “Hmm, maybe the schools aren’t all that different.” Which of the following mental strategies did you probably use to reach this conclusion?
The availability heuristic
Base rate information
The anchoring and adjustment heuristic
The representativeness heuristic
A
According to research in social psychology, why do many people believe that their horoscopes are accurate descriptions of who they are and what is likely to happen to them?
Horoscopes trigger automatic decision making.
People find it difficult to bring to mind examples that are similar to the horoscope.
Horoscopes are written in a vague way so that most people view them as representative of their personalities and past behaviors.
Horoscopes automatically prime people’s life goals
C
Which of the following is true of the holistic thinking style?
People living in the West can think holistically if they are primed with pictures taken in Japan.
It may have its roots in the Greek philosophic traditions of Aristotle and Plato.
It involves a focus on the properties of objects without considering their surrounding context.
The holistic style of thinking has a genetic basis
A
Which of the following is most true about cultural differences in social thinking?
Schemas influence what people notice in the world but have no influence on what they remember.
Schemas influence what people remember but have no influence on what they notice in the world.
Although everyone uses schemas to understand the world, the content of those schemas is influenced by the culture in which they live.
Culture has no influence on automatic thinking
C
Which is the definition of analytic thinking?
A type of thinking in which people focus on the properties of objects without considering their surrounding context
Thinking that is nonconscious, unintentional, involuntary, and effortless
Thinking that is conscious, intentional, voluntary, and effortful
A type of thinking in which people focus on the overall context, particularly the ways in which objects relate to each other
A
Where do differences in holistic versus analytic thinking come from?
Different weather patterns in the East versus the West
Different philosophical traditions of the East versus the West
Genetic differences between Asians and non-Asian Westerners
Different educational systems in the East versus the West
B
Researchers took photographs in randomly chosen locations in cities in Japan and the United States. They found that on average, city scenes in Japan contained more __________.
people and residences
businesses and advertisements
objects that competed for people’s attention
buildings and concrete
C
Sam is playing a carnival game challenging him to guess which of the 20 cups is hiding the red ball. Unfortunately, he picked the cup directly to the left of the winning cup and thus did not win the stuffed donkey he wanted. According to social psychological research, he is most likely to __________.
subsequently avoid similar games
blame his mistake on the noise of the crowd
experience cognitive dissonance
engage in counterfactual thinking
D
Which of the following is TRUE about research on free will?
People rarely overestimate the amount of control they have over their behavior.
Studies have shown that people have free will over almost everything they do.
The more people believe in free will, the more likely they are to engage in immoral actions such as cheating.
Sometimes people underestimate the amount of control they have over their behavior
D
Which of the following is the best description of facilitated communication?
The facilitators believe that it is the communication impaired person who is choosing what to type, but are probably wrong and are unknowingly determining the answers themselves.
Facilitated communication helps people with mild versions of autism to communicate but does not help those with severe cases.
The facilitators, who hold the fingers and arm of communication-impaired people on a keyboard, are deliberately faking the answers.
It is a promising new way of letting communication-impaired people, such as those with autism, express their thoughts
A
Enrolling in which of the following graduate programs would be most likely to improve your statistical reasoning ability about problems in everyday life?
Law
Chemistry
Psychology
History
C
According to this chapter, which is the best analogy to describe people’s thinking abilities?
People are flawed scientists.
People are cognitive misers.
People are skilled detectives.
People are motivated tacticians
A
Which of the following is the best summary of research on automatic thinking?
Automatic thinking works best when it occurs consciously.
Automatic thinking is a problem because it usually produces mistaken judgments.
Automatic thinking is vital to human survival, but it is not perfect and can produce mistaken judgments that have important consequences.
Automatic thinking is amazingly accurate and rarely produces errors of any consequence
C
Jennifer and Nate are walking along the street when they see a man walk out of a convenience store clutching a bag. The owner of the store runs out and shouts for the man to stop and come back. Jennifer immediately assumes that there has been a robbery, whereas Nate immediately assumes that the man forgot to get his change and that the store owner wants to give it to him. What is the best explanation for why Jennifer and Nate interpreted this event differently?
Different schemas were accessible in Jennifer and Nate’s minds, perhaps because they had different recent experiences that primed different schemas.
Jennifer and Nate were engaged in controlled thinking that resulted in different assumptions about what was going on.
Jennifer and Nate fell prey to the self-fulfilling prophecy.
Jennifer and Nate have different personalities.
A
Which of the following is true about the use of schemas?
The schema we use is influenced only by what information is chronically accessible and not by our goals or by what has been primed recently.
Although schemas can lead to errors, they are a very useful way of organizing information about the world and filling in gaps in our knowledge.
Schemas are an example of controlled thinking.
When people have an incorrect schema, rarely do they act in a way to make it come true
B
Tiffany has a hard time trusting her friends because she believes they are irresponsible. Accordingly, when she makes dinner plans with one friend, she also makes backup plans with someone else, and she goes to one or the other. Her friends soon in turn begin to “blow off” their arrangements with Tiffany, because they are never sure whether she will show up. Tiffany thinks to herself, “See, I was right, my friends are irresponsible.” Which of the following best explains why Tiffany made this conclusion?
Accurate social perception due to controlled processes
Accurate social perception due to automatic processes
A self-fulfilling prophecy
Holistic thinking
C
Suppose you wanted your friend Stephan to feel like a more assertive person. According to research on __________, you should ask him to think of __________ times in the past when he acted in an UNassertive manner.
representativeness heuristic; 12
availability heuristic; 12
availability heuristic, 3
representativeness heuristic; 3
B
Which one of the following involves the least amount of automatic thinking?
Acting according to goals that have been primed
Counterfactual reasoning
Self-fulfilling prophecies
Using metaphors about the body to make judgments
B
Which of the following is true?
American college students were more likely to notice changes in the background of a picture whereas Japanese college students were more likely to notice changes in the main objects in the foreground of the picture.
All human beings have the same cognitive “tools” that they can use.
When people move from one culture to another they generally do not learn to think like people in the new culture.
East Asians tend to think more holistically and Westerns tend to think more analytically because of genetic differences between East Asians and Westerners
B
Research on controlled thinking and free will shows that __________.
some primates have just as much free will as human beings
people definitely do not have free will
there is a disconnect between our conscious sense of how much we are causing our actions and how much we are really causing our actions
it doesn’t really matter w
C
Suppose you are trying to raise money for your favorite charity and you set up a table in the lobby of a campus building. Which of the following is likely to increase the likelihood that passersby will donate money?
Showing them pictures of Japanese cities so that they think holistically
Spraying some citrus-scented cleaning solution on the table
Giving them a very light clipboard with information about your charity
Asking people to hold a cold bottle of water while they listen to what you have to say
B
Based on everything you’ve read in this chapter, what is the best conclusion about social cognition?
People would be better off if we could turn off automatic thinking and rely solely on controlled thinking.
Social cognition is pretty much the same throughout the world in all cultures that have been studied.
One purpose of controlled thinking is to set goals for ourselves; that cannot be done with automatic thinking.
Whereas people are very sophisticated social thinkers who have amazing cognitive abilities, there is also plenty of room for improvement.
D
All of the following are examples of an internal attribution except for which one?
After winning close to $100 playing poker, Fred explains that he’s always been a very skilled gambler.
Daphne thinks that the reason her brother is never able to hold a steady job is that he’s lazy and quick to get angry with others.
Shaggy says that the only reason for his recent van accident is that the road he was traveling on that day was wet from a recent rainfall.
Velma blames her poor grade on her biology exam on the idea that she’s never been good at taking multiple-choice exams.
C
Although he claims to hate reality TV, Simon never misses an episode of The Bachelor. Simon’s behavior (i.e., watching The Bachelor) is __________.
high in distinctiveness
low in consensus
low in distinctiveness
low in consistency
A
The two-step process of attribution suggests that __________.
people first make an internal attribution and then correct for situational influences
if the attribution process is disrupted at either step, no attribution will be made
people make attributions for negative behavior before they make attributions for positive behavior
people first make an external attribution and then correct for dispositional influences
A
Which of the following is the most accurate conclusion based on the Jones and Harris (1967) Castro essay study?
We are less generous with ourselves when making attributions for negative events than we are when others are the actors.
We are more likely to make an internal attribution for a chosen action versus a forced action.
When a target’s behavior is forced, perceivers do not attribute it to any sort of internal cause.
We are more likely to make an internal attribution when the actor in question is perceptually salient
B
Who of the following individuals is most likely to make a self-serving attribution?
Mariano, a baseball player who has won multiple championships in the past
Rory, a golfer in the very early stages of his career
Roger, a professional tennis player with over a decade of experience
LeBron, a basketball player who has been playing since he was very young
B
In Masuda and colleagues’ (2008) study of cross-cultural perceptions of emotion __________.
American participants begin by looking at the peripheral individuals before shifting their attention to the central individuals.
eye-tracking technology is used to demonstrate that American participants spend less time looking at the peripheral individuals surrounding the central figure than do Japanese participants
context has little influence on the social perception processes of the participants.
American participants’ perceptions of the central figure’s emotional state are significantly influenced by the emotions of the peripheral individuals
B
Research using fMRI brain scanning technology indicates which of the following?
Neither East Asian nor American participants are able to overcome their typical, learned ways of attending to (or overlooking) context.
Participants from both cultures demonstrate greater activation in higher order cortical regions when asked to perceive objects in a way that is unusual for them.
Social neuroscience data provide no support for the hypothesis that holistic versus analytic thinking styles tend to vary by cultural background.
East Asian participants use a greater percentage of their frontal and parietal regions when making judgments than do American participants.
B
In Miller’s (1984) cross-cultural investigation of attribution style in the United States and India __________.
among young children, Americans were more likely to make internal attributions and Indians were more likely to make external attributions, but few cultural differences emerged with adult participants
among young children, Americans were more likely to make external attributions and Indians were more likely to make internal attributions, but few cultural differences emerged with adult participants
few cultural differences emerged with children, but among adults, Americans were more likely to make external attributions and Indians were more likely to make internal attributions
few cultural differences emerged with young children, but among adults, Americans were more likely to make internal attributions and Indians were more likely to make external attributions
D
Who among the following individuals would you predict would be most likely to make an external attribution for any given behavior observed?
A Hong Kong Chinese college student who had just been shown images related to Chinese culture
An 8-year-old born and raised in India
A U.S.-born American adult
A Hong Kong Chinese college student who had just been shown images related to American culture
A
Whereas individuals in Western cultures tend to think more like __________, individuals in Eastern cultures tend to think more like __________.
personality psychologists; social psychologists
introverts; extraverts
psychologists; sociologists
children; adults
A
What is a major assumption of Kelley’s (1967, 1973) covariation model of attribution?
People infer the cause of others’ behaviors through introspection.
People make causal attributions using cultural schemas.
We make quick attributions after observing one instance of someone’s behavior.
People gather information to make causal attributions rationally and logically
D
Which of the following psychological phenomena shows the least cultural variation?
Anger facial expressions
Self-serving attributions
Fundamental attribution error
Preferences regarding eye contact and personal space
A
Suppose that Mischa has found that when she sits in the first row of discussion classes she gets a better participation grade, regardless of how much she actually participates. Her positioning in front of the teacher could have an effect on how large of a role the teacher thinks Mischa has in discussion, due to __________.
the teacher’s use of schemas
the “what is beautiful is good” schema
perceptual salience
the two-step process of attribution
C
Which of the following best illustrates the idea of belief perseverance?
Buster was shy and awkward as a young boy and remains much the same now as an adult.
Gob is quite smitten with Marta when he first gets together with her, but once they begin an exclusive dating relationship he feels that he has made a big mistake.
Michael’s first impression of Anne is a negative one and even though he comes to observe her in a variety of scenarios displaying a variety of skills, he remains convinced that she will never amount to very much.
The first time Lindsay meets Tobias, she is impressed with his intellect and ambition, but quite quickly she comes to sour on him and see him as lazy and ineffectual
C
Marielle and Vivian meet on a blind date. They get along well until they get into Marielle’s black convertible to go to a movie. Vivian is quiet and reserved for the rest of the evening. It turns out that Vivian’s brother had recently been in a serious accident in that same type of car and seeing it brought up those unwanted emotions. Marielle doesn’t know this, however, and assumes that Vivian has a cold and reserved personality, thereby demonstrating _____.
Perceptual salience
Insufficient justification
A belief in a just world
The fundamental attribution error
D
Suppose a certain student, Seung-hyun, falls asleep during every chemistry class. Further suppose that Seung-hyun is the only one who falls asleep in this class, and he falls asleep in all of his other classes. According to Kelley’s covariation theory of attribution, how will people explain his behavior?
It is due to something peculiar about the circumstances on a particular day, because his behavior is high in consensus.
It is due to something unusual about Seung-hyun, because his behavior is low in consensus, low in distinctiveness, and high in consistency.
Chemistry is really a boring class, because Seung-hyun’s behavior is high in consensus, high in distinctiveness, and high in consistency.
It is due to something unusual about this particular class, because his behavior is low in consensus, high in distinctiveness, and high in consistency
B
Imagine that you are in Hong Kong reading the morning news and you notice a headline about a double murder that took place overnight. A suspect is in custody. Which of the following headlines is most likely to accompany the story?
Crazed Murderer Slays Two
Homicidal Maniac Stalks Innocents
Dispute over Gambling Debt Ends in Murder
Bloodthirsty Mobster Takes Revenge
C
Ming is from China; Jason is from the United States. Both participate in an experiment in which they take a test, are given feedback, and are told that they did very well. They are then asked to make attributions for their performance. Based on cross-cultural research on the self-serving bias, you would expect that __________.
both Ming and Jason will say that they succeeded due to their high ability
neither Ming nor Jason will say that they succeeded due to their high ability
Ming, but not Jason, will say that he succeeded due to his high ability
Jason, but not Ming, will say that he succeeded due to his high ability
D
Which of the following statements best describes cultural differences in the fundamental attribution error?
Members of collectivist cultures rarely make dispositional attributions.
Members of Western cultures rarely make dispositional attributions.
Members of collectivist cultures are more likely to go beyond dispositional explanations, considering information about the situation as well.
Members of Western cultures are more likely to go beyond dispositional explanations, considering
C
It is 10:00 a.m. and Daveon, an American college student, is dragging himself to his next class to turn in a paper for which he pulled an all-nighter. Through a haze of exhaustion, on the way to class he sees a student slip and fall down. How would Daveon be most likely to interpret the cause of the student’s behavior?
Given what we know about Daveon’s current cognitive capacity and cultural background, he will likely assume that the student fell because he or she was clumsy.
Daveon would probably attribute the cause to the situation, such as the fact that it was raining and the sidewalks were slippery.
Daveon’s attribution will most heavily be influenced by his own personality.
Daveon would be so tired that he would not make any causal attributions.
A
Which of the following is least likely to pass the “mirror” test suggesting they have at least a rudimentary self-concept?
A chimpanzee
A 3-year-old human child
A 12-month-old human infant
An orangutan
C
When thinking about other people, which of the following will we see as most central to their self-concept?
Their preferences and attitudes
Their physical attributes
Their morals
Their memories
C
Which is the best definition of an independent view of the self?
Defining oneself in terms of one’s relationships to other people
Someone who enjoys activities such as dancing and team sports
Someone who enjoys activities such as reading and writing poetry
Defining oneself in terms of one’s own internal thoughts, feelings, and actions
D
Which is the best definition of an interdependent view of the self?
Defining oneself in terms of one’s own internal thoughts, feelings, and actions
Someone who enjoys activities such as reading and writing poetry
Defining oneself in terms of one’s relationships to other people
Someone who enjoys activities such as dancing and team sports
C
When people focus attention on themselves, they __________.
almost always like what they see about themselves.
evaluate and compare their behavior to their internal standards and values.
are less likely to drink alcohol or engage in binge eating.
are less likely to follow their moral standards
B
Suppose that your friend Meghan says, “If I get less than 8 hours of sleep, I’m in a terrible mood the next day.” Based on research in social psychology, what is the best conclusion about her statement?
She is probably right because people generally know why they feel the way they do.
She is likely to be right only if she first made a list of all the reasons why she is in a good mood or bad mood on a typical day.
She is probably wrong because people rarely know why they feel the way they do.
Her statement is probably based on a causal theory that may or may not be true
D
Which of the following statements best illustrates self-perception theory?
“I might not know why, but I know what I like.”
“I get a warm feeling inside when I listen to my favorite songs.”
“I like classical music because my wife is always playing it.”
“I often don’t know what I like until I see what I do
D
Suppose you are a parent and want your children to do well in school. Which of the following is likely to work the best?
When they are young, give them money for every book they read.
Tell them that they were born with a lot of academic talent.
Tell them that academic ability is something that they can cultivate and grow if they work hard.
Tell them that intelligence is inherited and that there is a lot of it in your family.
C
Under which of the following conditions is Khalid most likely to feel romantic attraction toward Heather?
Khalid isn’t sure whether he wants to go out with Heather, but he agrees to do so after Heather’s roommate says she will help him with his calculus homework if he does.
Khalid and Heather nearly get into a serious car accident, and both are terrified. Then Heather gives Khalid a hug and tells him that she really likes him.
Khalid isn’t sure whether he wants to go out with Heather but decides he does after making a list of pros and cons.
Khalid and Heather go for a long run together. Heather waits for a couple of hours, until she is sure that they are rested, then gives Khalid a hug and tells him that she really likes him
B
Mariana is a sophomore in high school who is trying out for the varsity softball team. In order to get an accurate assessment of her softball abilities, she should compare her abilities to __________.
a sophomore who has less experience playing softball than Mariana has
the coach of the team
a sophomore who has about the same amount of experience playing softball as Mariana has
a senior who was the best player on the team last year
C
Why does spending time on social networking sites make many people unhappy?
They misattribute their arousal.
They fail to engage in accurate introspection.
They engage in upward social comparison.
They engage in downward social comparison
C
One afternoon at work Rachel has a meeting with her boss, who is wearing the silliest-looking outfit Rachel has ever seen. Rachel is tempted to laugh and make fun of her boss, but she knows this would be a bad idea. Under which of the following conditions would Rachel be most likely to resist the temptation to make fun of her boss?
Rachel says to herself, “Remember that the most important thing is not to insult my boss.”
Rachel spent all morning writing a difficult report and believes that willpower is a limited resource.
Rachel says to herself over and over, “Don’t think about the boss’s outfit!”
Rachel spent all morning writing a difficult report, but she believes that willpower is an unlimited resource and that she thus has a lot of it.
D
Eduardo is tempted to eat some of his roommate’s cookies, even though his roommate told him not to. Under which of the following conditions would Eduardo be mostly likely to resist the temptation to eat the cookies?
Eduardo puts the cookies in a cupboard so he doesn’t have to look at them.
Eduardo went to the gym that morning and had a good workout.
Eduardo believes that willpower is fixed resource and that people have a limited amount of it.
It’s the afternoon, and Eduardo has had a busy morning
A
Eduardo is tempted to eat some of his roommate’s cookies, even though his roommate told him not to. Under which of the following conditions would Eduardo be mostly likely to resist the temptation to eat the cookies?
Eduardo puts the cookies in a cupboard so he doesn’t have to look at them.
Eduardo went to the gym that morning and had a good workout.
Eduardo believes that willpower is fixed resource and that people have a limited amount of it.
It’s the afternoon, and Eduardo has had a busy morning
D
Amanda is at a team picnic with her coach and fellow soccer players. Which of the following is the best example of ingratiation?
Amanda tells the 10-year-old brother of one her teammates that she likes his sneakers, which she thinks look great.
The coach tells Amanda that she is a good player but should keep practicing to improve her skills.
Amanda tells her coach that the quinoa salad he made was delicious, even though she thinks it tasted like dirt.
Amanda tells her coach that he might want to consider taking cooking lessons.
C
Ben is worried that he will do poorly on his psychology test. Which of the following is the best example of behavioral self-handicapping?
Right before the test, Ben tells the professor that their class is the best one he’s ever taken.
Instead of studying the night before, he stays up late watching movies on his computer. Right before the test, he tells his friends that he saw some great movies instead of studying.
He spends a couple of extra hours studying. Then, right before the test, he tells his friends that he isn’t feeling very well.
He spends a couple of extra hours studying, and right before the test, he tells his friends that he studied really hard
B
Ben is worried that he will do poorly on his psychology test. Which of the following is the best example of reported self-handicapping?
Right before the test, Ben tells the professor that their class is the best one he’s ever taken.
He spends a couple of extra hours studying, and right before the test, he tells his friends that he studied really hard.
Instead of studying the night before, he stays up late watching movies on his computer. Right before the test, he tells his friends that he saw some great movies instead of studying.
He spends a couple of extra hours studying. Then, right before the test, he tells his friends that he isn’t feeling very well.
D
Which of the following statements is least true, according to research on self-knowledge?
Sometimes the best way to know ourselves is to see what we do.
The best way to “know thyself” is to look inward, introspecting about ourselves.
One way we know ourselves is by using theories we learn from our culture.
We often try to figure out ourselves by comparing ourselves to others.
B
Which of the following is not a function of the self?
Impression management
Self-control
Self-criticism
Self-knowledge
C
In which state are people most likely to have an independent sense of self?
Alabama
Connecticut
Massachusetts
Oklahoma
D
On Halloween, you decide to do an experiment. When the trick-or-treaters arrive at your house, you have them stand in a line on your front porch. You stay outside with the group and let each child enter your house individually. You tell them they can take one piece of candy from the bowl that is sitting on a table. Half of the time you put the candy bowl in front of a big mirror. The other half of the time there is no mirror present. All of the children may be tempted to take more than one piece of candy. Which children will be LEAST likely to give in to temptation?
Those in the no-mirror condition
Those who are between 7 and 9 years old
Those in the mirror condition
Those who experience downward social comparison
C
Which of the following is most true?
Every member of a Western culture has an independent view of the self, and every member of an Asian culture has an interdependent view of the self.
People with independent selves can easily appreciate what it is like to have an interdependent self.
People who live in parts of the United States and Canada that were settled by Europeans more recently have more of an independent sense of self than people who live in parts of those countries that were settled earlier.
Members of Western cultures are more likely to have an interdependent sense of self than are members of Asian cultures.
C
Your little sister enjoys taking time out of her day to make bead necklaces. A birthday party is coming up, and you decide you want to give a necklace to each person at the party. She offers to make a necklace for each of your friends, but for added motivation you give her a dollar for each one she makes. Which of the following is most likely to happen?
After the party, your sister will enjoy making beads less than she did before because you rewarded her for something she already liked to do.
Paying your sister for making the beads will increase her self-awareness.
After the party, your sister will enjoy making beads more than she did before because you gave her a reward.
Because your sister already enjoys making beads, paying her for making them will have no effect on how much she enjoys the activity.
A
Catherine did very well on her math test. Which of the following statements should her mother tell her to increase the chances that Catherine will not give up on math if it later becomes more difficult for her?
“You are such a smart kid; you excel in everything you do!”
“You really worked hard for this test, and your hard work paid off!”
“You are so good in math; you obviously have a gift for this!”
“I’m so glad to see you are doing better than all your classmates!”
B
Your friend Jamie is interning at a law firm. When you ask them how it’s going, they say, “I’m feeling good about it because I’m doing much better than the intern who started a month after me.” What kind of social comparison is Jamie making?
Upward social comparison
Downward social comparison
Impression comparison
Self-knowledge comparison
B
Which of the following is most true about self-handicapping?
Women are more critical of people who self-handicap than are men and are less likely to engage in behavioral self-handicapping than are men.
People who self-handicap tend to try harder at a task.
East Asians are more likely to engage in behavioral self-handicapping than are westerners.
Women are more likely to engage in reported self-handicapping than are men.
A
Elise wants to increase her ability at self-control, such as by spending more time studying. Which of the following is most likely to work?
She should eat a small, sugary snack before studying.
When she is studying, she should try hard to suppress thoughts about the party she could have gone to.
She should adopt the belief that willpower is an unlimited resource.
Just before it is time for her to study, she should do something that requires a lot of concentration, such as a difficult puzzle.
C
Which of the following conclusions is the most consistent with research on the heritability of attitudes?
Fraternal twins are just as likely to share attitudes as are identical twins.
Our attitudes are inherited and dictated by our genetic makeup, with little influence from environmental factors.
Our attitudes are shaped by our surroundings and do not seem to have any genetic component to them.
We often inherit a temperament or personality that renders us likely to develop similar attitudes to those held by our genetic relatives.
D
People’s emotional reaction to a target is referred to as the __________ component of attitudes.
behavioral
affective
operant
cognitive
B
Which component of an attitude is most related to the process of examining facts and weighing the objective merits of a target?
Cognitive
Affective
Behavioral
Operant
A
Adults’ tendency to experience happy, nostalgia-filled feelings when they hear the music of an ice cream truck can be best explained by the relationship of attitudes to __________.
values
operant conditioning
self-perception
classical conditioning
D
Newman is currently overweight, but as a child he was quite thin. His current explicit attitude toward the overweight is likely to be more __________ and his current implicit attitude toward the overweight is likely to be more __________.
behaviorally based; cognitively based
positive; negative
cognitively based; behaviorally based
negative; positive
B
The major finding of LaPiere’s (1934) classic study on attitudes and behavior involving prejudice and hotel/restaurant owners is that __________.
when it comes to racial prejudice, people’s attitudes are particularly strong predictors of their behaviors
people’s attitudes are not always reliable predictors of their behaviors
the less accessible an attitude is, the more likely it is to shape behavior
people are always more prejudiced than their self-reported attitudes would lead us to believe
B
When is attitude accessibility a particularly good predictor of behavior?
When the attitude in question is general
When the attitude in question is an unpopular one
When the behavior in question is spontaneous
When the behavior in question is deliberative
C
Which of the following is the best example of a deliberative behavior?
Telling a salesperson who calls you on the phone that you aren’t interested in the item they’re selling
Making a decision regarding where you want to travel over your next vacation break
Deciding at the last minute to skip a class because your friends just told you that they’re going to a movie you want to see
Buying a candy bar from the rack next to the check-out line at the grocery store
B
Wendy is a member of a political group on your campus and is interested in finding out how many students plan to vote in the next presidential election. According to the theory of planned behavior, which of the following attitude questions Wendy could ask would be the best predictor of whether or not a particular student will vote in the next presidential election?
“What are your attitudes about former U.S. President Donald Trump?”
“What are your attitudes about voting?”
“What are your attitudes about U.S. politics?”
“What are your attitudes about voting in the next U.S. presidential election?”
D
In trying to predict deliberative behaviors, what three considerations must we evaluate?
Attitude accessibility, explicit attitudes, implicit attitudes
Attitude specificity, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control
Classical conditioning, operant conditioning, self-perception theory
Cognitively based attitudes, behaviorally based attitudes, affectively based attitudes
B
One way to change someone’s attitude is to get that person to give a speech arguing against their actual viewpoint. This strategy can lead to attitude change through cognitive dissonance as long as __________ is/are present.
a motivated audience that feels a sense of personal relevance
two-sided arguments
peripheral cues to persuasion
insufficient justification for making the speech
D
Which of the following is not one of the three factors considered by the Yale Attitude Change Approach?
Nature of the audience
Message source
Fear
Nature of the communication itself
C
A debate breaks out at the town hall meeting over whether local real estate taxes should be raised in order to pay for a new public school building. Which of the following individuals is most likely to process the persuasive information raised during this debate through the peripheral route?
Lindsay, whose daughter still has 3 years left of public school
Michael, who is a real estate executive whose business is affected by local tax rates
Gob, who has no school-aged children of his own and owns no real estate
Buster, a local teacher, who is working in a temporary classroom because the current school building is too small for the number of students enrolled
C
The physical attractiveness of the source of a persuasive communication would be best described as which of the following?
Peripheral cue
Rational cue
Central cue
Systematic cue
A
Fear-arousing persuasive communication is most likely to be effective when __________.
very high levels of fear are induced
a plan for reducing the fear is provided.
the target of the communication is a utilitarian or functional object.
very low levels of fear are induced.
B
Briñol and Petty (2003) conducted a study in which participants tried on headphones while listening to a persuasive editorial. Half of the participants shook their head side to side while listening; the other half nodded up and down while listening. Which group of participants expressed the greatest agreement with the arguments expressed in the editorial at the end of the study?
The head-nodders who heard weak arguments in the editorial
The head-shakers who heard weak arguments in the editorial
The head-nodders who heard strong arguments in the editorial
The head-shakers who heard strong arguments in the editorial
C
Research on public service ads designed to promote healthy behavior indicates that such efforts __________.
are more effective at changing the attitudes of men versus women
almost always fail
are most effective when they are subliminal
are more effective via television than print ads when their target is young people
D
The best way for an advertisement to change an affectively based attitude is to use a(n) __________ appeal.
behavioral
cognitive
fact-filled
affective
D
Serafina, an advertising executive, is trying to figure out the best way to market a product that does not evoke a strong emotional, personal response from people. Her most effective strategy would be to adopt a campaign that focuses on __________.
creating such an emotional connection
subliminal strategies
logical, fact-based arguments
avoiding behavioral references
C
Research on subliminal influence in advertising demonstrates that subliminal efforts at persuasion are __________.
more effective in individualistic versus collectivistic cultures
less effective than people assume them to be
more effective than people assume them to be
more effective in collectivistic versus individualistic cultures
,
B
Which of the following is true regarding cross-cultural comparisons of advertising?
Korean ads are more likely than American ads to focus on utilitarian products like shoes.
Korean ads are more likely than American ads to portray women and men in a state of complete or partial undress.
Korean magazines have fewer ads than American magazines.
Korean ads are more likely than American ads to focus on family and concern for others.
D
The concept of attitude inoculation indicates that we are better able to resist a later attempt to change our attitudes when we are first exposed to arguments that __________.
are weakened versions of arguments we might hear later
lead us to pay more attention to peripheral cues
support our existing attitude
prevent us from considering alternative viewpoints ahead of time
A
Which of the following is the best explanation for why product placement can be effective at changing attitudes?
It usually leads to a reactance response.
Cognitively based efforts at persuasion tend to have longer-lasting effects.
The audience is often unaware that an effort at attitude change is occurring.
It tends to operate via the central route to persuasion
C
Peer pressure effects tend to be linked most often to what type of attitude?
Negative attitudes
Affectively based attitudes
Inoculated attitudes
Cognitively based attitudes
B
Which of the following concepts relates to the ironic research finding that the stronger the warning against a certain attitude or behavior, the more people sometimes wish to exhibit it?
Implicit attitude
Attitude inoculation
Peer pressure
Reactance theory
D
Cameron and Mitchell want to convince their daughter to stop leaving her toys scattered all around the floor, so they leave her a sign by her toy box. According to reactance theory, which of the following signs would be most effective?
“All toys MUST be put away after they are used”
“Please try to remember to clean up your toys when you are done with them”
“Do not leave toys lying around!”
“Your job is to clean up after yourself”
B
All of the following are true about attitudes except one. Which one is false?
Under the right conditions, attitudes predict people’s behavior.
Attitudes are related to our temperament and personality.
Attitudes can be changed with persuasive communications.
Attitudes rarely change over time.
D
Paige wants to buy a puppy. She does some research and decides to buy an English Springer Spaniel rather than a Great Dane because they are smaller, more active, and good with children. Which type of attitude influenced her decision?
Explicitly based attitude
Behaviorally based attitude
Affectively based attitude
Cognitively based attitude
D
On a survey, Marquel reports that he agrees with wearing a seatbelt. According to the theory of planned behavior, which of the following would be the best predictor of Marquel wearing a seatbelt on a given day?
He generally agrees that safe driving is important.
His attitude toward seatbelts is never very accessible.
Marquel believes that it is hard to remember to wear his seatbelt.
His best friend, Trevor, who is always talking about how important it is to wear a seatbelt, is in the car with him.
D
People will be most likely to change their attitudes about smoking if an antismoking advertisement __________.
uses extremely graphic pictures of how smoke can harm the body and warns of the risks of smoking
uses graphic pictures of the damages of smoking on the body and then provides specific recommendations on how to quit smoking
gives people subliminal messages about the risks of smoking as well as recommendations of how to quit
uses success stories of how people quit smoking
B
Emilia would be most likely to pay attention to facts about the danger of AIDS during a school assembly and remember the facts for a long time if __________.
the speaker emphasized how the disease has spread in her community and there isn’t anything distracting Emilia from listening
the speaker emphasized how the disease has spread in her community and at the same time Emilia’s best friend is whispering to her about a big party that weekend
the speaker is a nationally known expert on AIDS
the speaker emphasized statistical information about AIDS throughout the world
A
You are trying to sell a new electronic toothbrush at the airport to busy, distracted travelers. Which of the following strategies is least likely to be successful at getting people to buy a toothbrush?
Make a large sign that says, “9 out of 10 dentists recommend this toothbrush!”
Stop people and say, “Do you know that this is the toothbrush that is used the most by movie stars?”’
Make up a brochure that gives convincing reasons why the toothbrush is so good.
Put up a large banner featuring a picture of your friend who looks like a movie star posing with the toothbrush.
C
Under which of the following conditions would people be most likely to vote for a political candidate? They __________.
like the candidate’s policies but have negative feelings toward the candidate
see television ads supporting the candidate while they are distracted by their children
know little about the candidate’s policies but have positive feelings toward the candidate
see subliminal ads supporting the candidate on national television
C
Under which of the following conditions would people be most likely to vote for a political candidate? They __________.
like the candidate’s policies but have negative feelings toward the candidate
see television ads supporting the candidate while they are distracted by their children
know little about the candidate’s policies but have positive feelings toward the candidate
see subliminal ads supporting the candidate on national television
C
All of the following are examples of ways to resist persuasion except __________.
forbidding people to buy a product
role-playing using milder versions of real-life social pressures
warning people about advertising techniques such as product placement
making people immune to change of opinions by initially exposing them to small doses of arguments against their position
A
According to reactance theory, which of the following public service messages would be least likely to get people to wear seatbelts?
“Buckle up your children—you might save their lives.”
“Please wear your seatbelt every time you drive.”
“It’s the law—you must wear your seatbelt.”
“Wear your seatbelt to save lives.”
C
Which of the following techniques relating to post-decision dissonance could a clothing store use to increase customer satisfaction?
Make all sales final.
Charge a membership fee to shop at the store.
Cut all prices in half.
Ask customers to make a radio ad saying how great the store is.
A
Jake’s professor tells Jake that if he is caught cheating on an exam, he will be expelled. Amanda’s professor tells her that if she is caught cheating, she will have only to write a short paper about why cheating is wrong. If both students don’t cheat, dissonance theory would predict that __________.
Amanda and Jake will feel equally dishonest because were both threatened in advance
Jake will feel more honest than Amanda will
Amanda will feel more honest than Jake will
Amanda and Jake will feel equally honest
C
After spending 2 years of tedious work fixing up an old house themselves, Abby and Brian are even more convinced that they made the right choice to buy the place. Their feelings are an example of __________.
counterattitudinal advocacy
justifying their effort
insufficient punishment
the Ben Franklin effect
B
Briana undergoes treatment for drug addiction. After she leaves the clinic, Briana is most likely to stay off drugs if the treatment at the clinic was __________.
involuntary (she was ordered to undergo treatment) and a difficult ordeal
voluntary (she chose to undergo treatment) and a difficult ordeal
involuntary (she was ordered to undergo treatment) and an easy experience
voluntary (she chose to undergo treatment) and an easy experience
B
Your friend Amy asks you what you think of the shoes she just bought. Privately, you think they are the ugliest shoes you have ever seen, but you tell her you love them. In the past, Amy has always valued your honest opinion and doesn’t care that much about the shoes, which were inexpensive. Because the external justification for your fib was __________, you will probably __________.
high; decide you like the shoes
low; decide you like the shoes
low; maintain your view that the shoes are ugly
high; maintain your view that the shoes are ugly
B
Based on the “Ben Franklin effect,” you are most likely to increase your liking for Tony when __________.
Tony lends you $10
Tony finds $10
Tony returns the $10 you loaned him
you lend Tony $10
D
Amanda’s parents tell her that if she texts while driving, they will take away her car for a year. Erin’s parents tell her that if she texts while driving, they will take her car away for one weekend. Both Amanda and Erin decide not to text while driving. What would dissonance theory predict?
Amanda and Erin will both think that texting while driving is OK; they avoided it so that they wouldn’t be punished.
After they go to college and are away from their parents, Erin is more likely to text while driving than Amanda is.
Amanda and Erin will both come to believe that texting while driving is bad.
After they go to college and are away from their parents, Amanda is more likely to text while driving than Erin is.
D
Which of the following statements about culture and cognitive dissonance is true?
Dissonance occurs everywhere, but culture influences how people experience it.
Cognitive dissonance is more likely to occur in collectivist rather than individualist cultures.
Japanese people rarely experience dissonance.
Cognitive dissonance is a uniquely American phenomenon.
A
Suppose Juan is in a long-term, romantic relationship but chooses to flirt with someone else. He experiences dissonance because he sees himself as loving and trustworthy, and his flirtatious behavior is incongruent with that self-perception. According to dissonance theory he could reduce his dissonance by __________, whereas according to self-affirmation theory he could reduce his dissonance by __________.
convincing himself that the flirting was harmless; breaking up with his girlfriend
convincing himself that the flirting was harmless; thinking about how proud he is to be a premed student
thinking about how proud he is to be a premed student; convincing himself that the flirting was harmless
breaking up with his girlfriend; convincing himself that the flirting was harmless
B
Fatima is one of the few women in her computer science class and gets a poor grade on the first test. According to self-affirmation theory, which of the following would help her do better in the class?
Joining a study group of other students in the class
Getting tutoring in the class
Getting study tips from the professor
Doing a values-affirmation writing exercise
D
Suppose that you and your best friend are both psychology majors and both want to go to grad school in psychology. Your friend is also a talented athlete, whereas athletics is not that important to you. One day you find out that your friend won an intramural free throw shooting contest. Which of the following is MOST likely to happen, according to self-evaluation maintenance theory?
You will decide that you are not that interested in psychology.
You will become less close to your friend.
You will study really hard for the next psychology test in order to do better than your friend.
You will bask in your friend’s reflected glory and congratulate them on winning the free throw contes
D
Imagine that you and your sister are both psychology majors and that you are very close to your sister. Suppose you learn that your sister’s GPA in psychology classes is a lot higher than yours. According to self-evaluation maintenance theory, which of the following is LEAST likely to occur?
You will bask in your sister’s reflected glory and congratulate her on her high GPA.
You will study really hard for the next psychology test in order to do better than your sister.
You will decide that you are not that interested in psychology.
You will become less close to your sister.
A
Which of the following people is most likely to be able to admit a major mistake?
A prosecutor, because they are trained to pursue justice at all costs
A political leader, because otherwise they would be voted out of office
A member of a religious sect, because they can leave at any time
All of the above will find it hard to admit having been wrong.
D
Which of the following is most true about self-esteem?
People who are optimistic try harder, persevere more in the face of failure, and set higher goals than do people who are not.
It’s good to have low self-esteem because that motivates people to improve.
The higher a person’s self-esteem, the better off he or she is.
In general, women have lower self-esteem than men.
A
The basic tenet of terror management theory is that __________.
self-esteem protects people against thoughts about their own mortality
people are less terrified of dying if they are religious
it is important for governments to protect its citizens from terrorist attacks
people are becoming increasingly narcissistic
A
Which of the following is most true about narcissism?
It is characterized by excessive self-love and a lack of empathy toward others.
In general, college students are becoming less narcissistic.
People who are narcissistic have more friends and a better social life than those who are not.
People who are narcissistic do better academically than those who are not.
A
You know you’re eating too much junk food and that it’s bad for your energy and health. Which of the following will not reduce your dissonance?
Deciding that all those health warnings are stupid exaggerations.
Cutting out your favorite afternoon sweets.
Admitting you are eating too many sweets but claim that they boost your energy for studying.
Accepting the fact that your attitudes and behavior simply conflict.
D
Aliyah and Kim are both taking a social psychology class. Aliyah got in right away without any trouble. Kim got in at the last minute after weeks of being on the waiting list and tracking down the professor to get the right forms signed. Which student will probably like the class the most?
Kim, because of effort justification
Aliyah, because of insufficient punishment
Kim, because of post-decisional dissonance
Aliyah, because she exerted the least effort to get into the class
A
Rachel was accepted at both University A and University B. She has a hard time making up her mind because she sees pros and cons to attending either university. Which of the following is true, according to dissonance theory?
She will experience the most dissonance right before making up her mind because it is such a difficult choice.
Because the choice is so difficult, she is unlikely to fully commit herself to the university she chooses to attend.
She will experience the most dissonance right after making up her mind.
Whichever university she chooses, she is likely to regret her choice.
C
When does “saying become believing”?
When what you say is what you believe
When you claim to have an opinion that differs from your true beliefs for no strong reason
When you’re paid a lot of money to lie
When someone forces you to say something you don’t believe
B
What is the “hypocrisy paradigm” in experimental research?
Requiring participants to write essays that are critical of hypocrisy
Making participants aware of their own hypocrisy in not practicing what they preach
Making participants understand that everyone is a hypocrite
Choosing participants who are hypocrites in order to study their rationalizations
B
In terms of dissonance theory, what is the primary reason that “we” (our side) often dehumanizes “them,” the enemy, seeing them as animals, brutes, or monsters?
The enemy is violent and cruel and deserves whatever we do to them.
Our side has treated the enemy brutally and needs to justify these actions.
The enemy started the war.
Our side is more moral and humane than their side.
B
Your best friend has joined a cult called “The Fellowship of Feeling.” They had to spend a month in a set of increasingly severe hazing rituals, pay an $8,000 membership fee, and go along to watch older members find homeless people to harass and beat up. Your friend loves this group and keeps urging you to join. What principle of dissonance is likely operating on your friend?
Low self-esteem
Insufficient justification
The justification of effort
Hypocrisy induction
C
Harold has smoked cigarettes for several years. He has tried to quit but failed, and knows how bad the cigarettes are for his health. Which of the following is most likely to be true?
Harold will not experience much dissonance, because he doesn’t feel hypocritical about his behavior.
Harold will not experience much dissonance, because he grew up in a culture where dissonance theory doesn’t apply.
According to self-affirmation theory, Harold will reduce the dissonance by focusing on other values and achievements that are important to him, such as the fact that he is a talented musician.
Harold will just have to live with the dissonance caused by his smoking.
C
Destiny and Joelle are best friends and also in the high school choir. Both of them consider themselves to be talented singers and singing is very important to them. They both try out for an important solo in the choir, which Joelle wins. Which of the following is Destiny least likely to do, according to self-evaluation maintenance theory?
Destiny will be very happy for Joelle and tell all their friends about her success in winning the solo.
Destiny will feel less close to Joelle as a friend.
Destiny will decide that singing isn’t as important to her as she thought.
Destiny will practice even harder for the next solo in order to do better than Joelle
A
Which of the following is true about self-esteem and narcissism?
People who are optimistic (but not narcissistic) persevere more in the face of failure and set higher goals than do other people.
The best way to be happy is to focus on ourselves and our own needs.
Narcissism has been decreasing among college students in the United States over the past 30 years.
Narcissists are disliked by others but do better academically and in business than other people
A
Which of the following is the most direct and powerful example of social influence?
Conforming to a group norm
Obedience to an order from an authority figure
Emotion-based attitudes
Complying with a polite request made by a friend
B
Which of the following statements best captures the relationship between cultural beliefs and conformity?
Compared to many cultures, Americans tend to have relatively negative attitudes toward conformity.
Compared to many cultures, Americans tend to have relatively positive attitudes toward conformity.
There is little variability in how people from different cultures think about conformity.
Americans’ beliefs about conformity have become more and more negative as the years go by.
A
Conformity always includes __________.
negative and immoral behavior
positive and moral behavior
the real or imagined influence of other people
an authority figure
C
Informational social influence occurs __________.
through public but not private conformity
when we believe that other people’s reactions can help us arrive at an accurate reading of a situation
autokinetically
only in a crisis
B
Which of the following statements regarding Sherif’s 1936 study of perceptions of the autokinetic effect is true?
Participants conformed because they believed the other people’s responses were accurate.
Participants did conform, but the effects of this conformity were short lived as they reverted to their previous, individually given responses once they were no longer part of a group.
Participants conformed because they were in a group with their friends, and they simply wanted to fit in with the group.
Participants conformed publicly but not privately
A
