Psych/Soci Flashcards
A patient who is experiencing severe marital problems reports having no memory of any life events surrounding the marriage and the spouse. The patient’s memory for other life events is intact. This patient is most likely to be diagnosed with:
A.a conversion disorder.
B.schizophrenia.
C.retrograde amnesia.
D.a dissociative disorder.
The answer to this question is D. The patient is selectively forgetting distracting elements of his/her life, which indicates a dissociative disorder.
Which type of psychoactive drug has the lowest risk of dependence?
A.Stimulants
B.Hallucinogens
C.Alcohol
D.Sedatives
The answer to this question is B. Hallucinogens have low risk of dependence, whereas the other substances listed as possible answers carry a moderate to high risk of physical or psychological dependence (the question does not require making a distinction between either).
Social stratification
Social stratification refers to a society’s categorization of its people into rankings of socioeconomic tiers based on factors like wealth, income, race, education, and power.
To determine the effectiveness of brainstorming, a researcher designs a study in which participants are asked to produce alternatives to an existing marketing strategy on their own or with a group. Which pattern of results is most likely based on research on group processes?
A.Groups arrive at the improved alternatives more often than individuals.
B.Groups are more likely to critically evaluate alternatives than individuals.
C.On average, participants generate more alternatives alone than in a group.
D.On average, participants produce more alternatives in a group than alone.
The answer to this question is C. Social loafing refers to the fact that people are more productive alone than in a group. Research also suggests that individuals are less critical and less creative in groups.
Individuals who have the ability to delay gratification in pursuit of long-term rewards are most likely to be categorized as having which type of intelligence?
A.Analytical
B.Creative
C.Interpersonal
D.Emotional
The answer to this question is D. Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to perceive, express, understand, and manage one’s emotions. Emotionally intelligent people are self-aware and can delay gratification in pursuit of long-term rewards, rather than being overtaken by immediate impulses. None of the other answer choices is related to delaying gratification.
A researcher is interested in how anxiety disorders affect escape learning. Which procedure is most appropriate for assessing the dependent variable in this study?
A.Having the participants fill out a validated questionnaire that screens for anxiety disorders
B.Having a trained practitioner assess the participants for anxiety disorders
C.Monitoring how many trials it takes for participants to avoid a response that results in an electric shock when the electric shock is signaled with a tone
D.Monitoring how many trials it takes for participants to be conditioned to perform a response that results in the termination of an electric shock
The answer to this question is D. The purpose of the study was to determine how anxiety disorders affect escape learning, and this option is the only one that refers to an empirical observation of escape behavior.
A researcher conducts observational research on the study habits of college students. When students are aware of the researcher’s presence, they are more attentive, focused, and structured. When students are not aware of the researcher’s presence, they are inattentive, unfocused, and distracted. Which concept best describes this phenomenon?
A.Impression management
B.The Hawthorne effect
C.Self-fulfilling prophecy
D.The Thomas theorem
The answer to this question is B. The Hawthorne effect describes changes in research participants as a result of their awareness that they are being observed. The changes to the students’ study habits are best explained by the Hawthorne effect, which was first observed among workers. The incorrect options refer to related but distinct concepts. A self-fulfilling prophecy is an individual’s internalization of a label that leads to a fulfillment of that label. Impression management refers to individuals actively managing how they are perceived by others. The Thomas theorem states that if an individual believes something to be real, then it is real in its consequences.
