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A test bank for chapter 1 of a social psychology textbook. It includes multiple-choice questions and answers covering key concepts such as the influence of situations on behavior, the fundamental attribution error, and the role of construal in social perception. The questions are designed to assess understanding of core principles and their application in real-world scenarios.
Typology: Exams
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CHAPTER 1: An Invitation to Social Psychology MULTIPLE CHOICE Social psychologists differ from personality psychologists because social psychologists tend to a. rely primarily on correlational research. b. argue that genetics do not exert causal effects on social behavior. c. examine the influence of situations on behaviors. d. stress individual differences in behavior. ANS: C DIF: Medium REF: Characterizing Social Psychology OBJ: Factual Which of the following is LEAST characteristic of the goals of social psychology? a. understanding how people in different cultures think, feel, and behave b. understanding how people control each others’ behaviors c. evaluating the accuracy of folk theories about how situations influence behavior d. understanding how personality traits predispose people to respond to social situations ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: Characterizing Social Psychology OBJ: Conceptual Jacquie and Karen are both interested in the topic of divorce. Jacquie is
a social psychologist and Karen is a sociologist. Compared to Karen, which of the following questions is Jacquie most likely to ask? a. Do different divorce laws influence divorce rates? b. Are divorce rates higher among people who are more educated? c. Why does infidelity lead to divorce? d. Is divorce more prevalent in Northern states relative to Southern states? ANS: C DIF: Medium REF: Characterizing Social Psychology OBJ: Conceptual Which of the following phenomena best illustrates the relationship between social influence and behavior? a. acting more cooperative when you are in a good mood (as opposed to a bad mood) b. preferring to drive with the car radio on (as opposed to off) c. cycling faster when people are watching you (as opposed to when you are alone) d. getting into more arguments when the temperature is above 80 degrees (as opposed to under 80 degrees) ANS: C DIF: Difficult REF: Characterizing Social Psychology OBJ: Conceptual Kurt Lewin’s concept, the field of forces, emphasizes that underlie(s) much of human behavior. a. genetics c. the characteristics of a situation
b. physical stimulation d. natural selection ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: The Power of the Situation OBJ: Factual Kurt Lewin, the founder of modern social psychology, argued that the effects of psychological forces can be understood in the same way that are understood. a. physical forces c. personality forces b. attribute forces d. armed forces ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: The Power of the Situation OBJ: Factual Research on suggests it is for people to assume that dispositions are the underlying causes of most behaviors. a. the fundamental attribution error; common b. the fundamental attribution error; uncommon c. obedience to authority; common d. obedience to authority; uncommon ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: The Power of the Situation OBJ: Factual The classic Milgram study showed that about
a. 1 percent of participants delivered a 330-volt shock to the “learner.” b. 10 percent of participants delivered no shocks to the “learner.” c. 20 percent of participants delivered a 450-volt shock to the “learner.”
d. 60 percent of participants delivered a 450-volt shock to the “learner.” ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: The Power of the Situation OBJ: Factual Which of the following concepts is most relevant to people who want to get someone to act on his o r her intentions? a. channel factors c. tension systems b. the fundamental attribution error d. naturalistic fallacy ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: The Power of the Situation OBJ: Conceptual psychology stresses the fact that objects are perceived by active, usually unconscious, interpretations of what the object represents as a whole. a. Behavioral c. Cognitive b. Gestalt d. Personality ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: The Role of Construal OBJ: Factual The term construal refers to a. an expectation about how group members should behave.
b. a personal interpretation about situations and other people’s behaviors. c. perceiving situations by means of an automatic registering device. d. generalized knowledge about the physical and social world. ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: The Role of Construal OBJ: Factual Schemas are important because they a. are elaborate stores of systematized knowledge. b. guide our expectations for a wide range of situations. c. influence our judgments. d. All of the above are true. ANS: D DIF: Easy REF: The Role of Construal OBJ: Factual Pro–affirmative action advocates try to activate schemas related to , whereas anti–affirmative action advocates try to activate schemas related to. a. fairness; diversity. c. African Americans; Caucasians. b. diversity; fairness. d. Caucasians; African Americans. ANS: B DIF: Medium REF: The Role of Construal OBJ: Factual
Judy is always complimenting people she works with. Bob, one of Judy’s best friends, thinks that Judy is genuinely thoughtful and friendly. Sarah, who does not know Judy well, thinks that Sarah is shallow and fake. This example suggests how friendship influences a. behaviors. c. construals. b. personality. d. folk theories. ANS: C DIF: Medium REF: The Role of Construal OBJ: Applied Which of the following scenarios best illustrates how a construal can be changed by a life event? a. Lisa got a “B” on her paper and jumped for joy. When she learned that her friends got a better grade, she cried over her “B.” b. Lisa got a “B” on her paper and felt confused. She decided to ask her teacher why she did not receive a higher grade. c. Lisa worked on her paper for ten days. She cried when she found out she got a “B.” d. Lisa cried when she got a “B” on her paper, even though she knew the paper was not all that great. ANS: A DIF: Difficult REF: The Role of Construal OBJ: Applied
According to research discussed in the textbook, which of the following methods is most clearly suited for testing whether construals exert a causal effect on game performance? a. manipulating the name of a game b. manipulating room temperature during the game c. manipulating moods after a game has been played d. manipulating the age of study participants ANS: A DIF: Difficult REF: The Role of Construal OBJ: Applied Professor Hansen expects that students will sit quietly and take notes during his large lecture course. Thus, a student who talks in class and never opens a notebook violates Professor Hansen’s about students. a. theory of mind c. construal b. automaticity d. schema ANS: D DIF: Easy REF: The Role of Construal OBJ: Conceptual A stereotype is best characterized as a type of. a. schema. c. attribution.
b. channel factor. d. theory of mind. ANS: A OBJ: Conceptual DIF: Easy REF: The Role of Construal The mind processes information in two different ways when you encounter a social situation. Autom atic processing is often based on , whereas controlled processing is ofte n based on. a. careful thought; emotional factors. b. emotional factors; careful thought. c. dispositional factors; situational factors d. situational factors; dispositional factors. ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: Automatic versus Controlled Processing
OBJ: Factual Studies that show that unprejudiced people can still show negative implicit attitudes toward people o f different races highlight the importance of distinguishing between a. conscious and unconscious processing. b. unconscious and automatic processing. c. conscious and explicit processing. d. stereotypes and schemas. ANS: A DIF: Medium REF: Automatic versus Controlled Processing OBJ: Conceptual The main difference between unconscious processes and controlled processes is that unconscious processes a. are more accurate. b. run only serially. c. are more likely to influence behavior. d. can operate in parallel. ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: Automatic versus Controlled Processing OBJ: Factual Research conducted by Bargh, Chen, and Burrows (1996) illustrates how
seemingly trivial aspects of a situation can influence behavior in ways that people are not aware of. These researchers showed that a. people will walk more slowly after hearing words related to the elderly (for example, “cane,” “Florida”) than words unrelated to the elderly. b. when people encounter novel stimuli with their arm extended away from their body, their attitudes toward these stimuli tend to be more favorable than when their arm is flexed (be nt back toward the shoulder). c. people are more cooperative when they play “The Wall Street Game” than the “Community Game.” d. people process different facial features in parallel. ANS: A DIF: Medium REF: Automatic versus Controlled Processing OBJ: Factual You are driving home from school, and suddenly you realize that you haven’t noticed anything you’ve driven past for the last few minutes. Which type of unconscious processing is this? a. Explicit processing. b. Generating beliefs without being aware of the cognitive processes involved. c. Schema-based processing. d. Skill acquisition. ANS: D DIF: Easy REF: Automatic versus
Controlled Processing OBJ: Factual While boarding a plane, Doug feels fear when he notices another passenger sitting in his seat looking agitated and sweating profusely. In this situation, a. his emotional reaction is probably controlled by careful, systematic thought. b. his emotional reaction probably occurs before careful, systematic thought takes over. c. careful, systematic thought is probably controlled by his emotional reaction. d. careful, systematic thought probably occurs before his emotional reaction takes over. ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: Automatic versus Controlled Processing OBJ: Conceptual
operates to mold animals and plants so that traits that enhance the probability of survival are passed on to subsequent generations. a. Social Darwinism c. Natural selection b. Naturalistic fallacy d. Connectionism ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: Evolution and Human Behavior: How We Are the Same OBJ: Factual Which of the following practices do people share with animals, especially higher primates? a. facial expressions c. wariness around spiders b. group living d. Both a and b are correct. ANS: D DIF: Easy REF: Evolution and Human Behavior: How We Are the Same OBJ: Factual The naturalistic fallacy refers to the claim that a. things should be different from the way they are now. b. people can overcome many things they are predisposed to do. c. the process of evolution can select for disadvantageous characteristics. d. the way things are is the way they should be. ANS: D DIF: Easy REF: Evolution and Human Behavior: How We Are the Same OBJ: Factual
The text describes a study in which children were shown a candy box with the lid closed. The researc her asked them to predict what was in the box. Naturally, the children said, “Candy.” Next, the resear cher showed the children that, in reality, there were pencils in the box. Finally, the researcher asked th e children to predict what a friend will say is in the box. tend to say . a. Normal 4-year-olds; “pencils.” b. Normal 4-year-olds; “candy.” c. Autistic 4-year-olds; “candy.” d. Autistic 4-year-olds; nothing, because they have not acquired language. ANS: B DIF: Medium REF: Evolution and Human Behavior: How We Are the Same OBJ: Factual According to evolutionary theory, males put investment in their offspring than females because males. a. less; have more opportunities to produce offspring. b. more; have fewer opportunities to produce offspring. c. less; are more likely to die before their offspring reach maturity. d. more; are less likely to die before their offspring each maturity. ANS: A DIF: Medium REF: Evolution and Human Behavior: How We Are the Same OBJ: Factual
One of the most commonly used social neuroscience techniques is known as functional magnetic r esonance imaging. This technique detectsto determine which parts of the brain are active during certain activities. a. electrical activity c. blood flow b. radio active isotopes d. neurotransmitter levels ANS: C DIF: Difficult REF: Evolution and Human Behavior: How We Are the Same OBJ: Factual
Why is Social Darwinism a distorted application of Darwin’s theory? a. It assumes that some groups of people are more deserving of survival than others. b. It assumes that many characteristics that people share are the result of natural selection. c. It assumes that some groups of people are stronger than others. d. It assumes that many human behaviors and institutions are universal. ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: Evolution and Human Behavior: How We Are the Same OBJ: Conceptual Which of the following statements is NOT consistent with the evolutionary perspective? a. People share many practices and institutions with animals, especially higher primates. b. Behavioral propensities are subject to selection pressures. c. Physical characteristics are subject to selection pressures. d. What we are biologically predisposed to do is what we inevitably will do. ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: Evolution and Human Behavior: How We Are the Same OBJ: Conceptual Theory of mind is important for group living because it a. is necessary for language acquisition. b. can treat autism.
c. can prevent misunderstandings that could lead to aggression or death. d. decreases selection pressures. ANS: C DIF: Medium REF: Evolution and Human Behavior: How We Are the Same OBJ: Conceptual What advantage do social neuroscience techniques (such as functional magnetic resonance imagin g) have over other research methods used in social psychology? a. Neuroscience techniques distinguish between proximal and distal causes of behavior. b. Neuroscience techniques correlate social behavior with regions of brain activity. c. Neuroscience techniques distinguish between cultural and evolutionary causes of beha vior. d. Neuroscience techniques correlate individual behavior with evolutionary causes. ANS: B DIF: Difficult REF: Evolution and Human Behavior: How We Are the Same OBJ: Conceptual In an individualist culture, a person’s sense of self tends to be based largely on a. personal achievements. c. political or religious values. b. bringing credit to his or her family. d. group membership. ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: Culture and Human Behavior: How We Are Different OBJ: Factual
Societies may differ from each other in many ways, but it is important to recognize that a. there are still regional and subcultural differences within any large society. b. people living within the same society tend to think and behave similarly. c. there are few individual differences within a society. d. broad generalizations about psychological differences between societies rarely are supported by research findings. ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: Culture and Human Behavior: How We Are Different OBJ: Applied
In the United States, a large luxury sedan is marketed by the slogan, “Feel good about yourself. Drive a Lexmark.” According to broad generalizations surrounding the individualist-collectivist distinction, why might this slogan be less successful in Japan? a. because people in Japan already have extremely high levels of self-esteem b. because people in Japan do not have a strong need to feel good about themselves c. because people in Japan are less materialistic than Americans d. because people in Japan prefer smaller, more intimate cars ANS: B DIF: Medium REF: Culture and Human Behavior: How We Are Different OBJ: Applied Which of the following is a fundamental difference between individualist and collectivist cultures? a. Independent cultures tend to value status and success, whereas collectivist cultures do not. b. Independent cultures have few social norms, whereas collectivist cultures do. c. Independent cultures tend to view relationships with other people as voluntary, whereas collectivists do not. d. Independent cultures tend to emphasize hierarchical relationships with others, whereas collectivist cultures do not. ANS: C DIF: Medium REF: Culture and Human Behavior: How We Are Different OBJ: Conceptual
Which statement is most consistent with the beliefs of an individualist culture? a. Eat, drink, and be merry. b. Live by the sword, die by the sword. c. Different strokes for different folks. d. The nail that stands out gets pounded down. ANS: C DIF: Medium REF: Culture and Human Behavior: How We Are Different OBJ: Conceptual Pat has listed ten things that describes who he is. The first three are, “I am a son,” “I am fun when I am with my friends,” and “I am a manager.” Pat is most likely part of an culture. a. evolutionary c. interdependent b. independent d. universal ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: Culture and Human Behavior: How We Are Different OBJ: Applied Social psychology can be defined as the study of the of individuals in social situations. a. intuitive; behaviors b. scientific; behaviors c. scientific; feelings, thoughts, and behaviors
d. behavioral; thoughts and feelings ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: Characterizing Social Psychology OBJ: Factual Which of the following Supreme Court rulings was heavily influenced by social psychological research? a. Roe v. Wade c. Marbury v. Madison b. Brown v. Board of Education d. Miranda v. Arizona ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: Characterizing Social Psychology OBJ: Factual “Absence makes the heart grow fonder” and “out of sight, out of mind” are both common sayings. A(n) is most likely to conduct an experiment to identify the conditions or situations under which each of these assertions is accurate. a. personality psychologist c. sociologist b. social psychologist d. anthropologist ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: Characterizing Social Psychology OBJ: Factual Sandra thinks that smiling a lot during a job interview increases a person’s chances of getting a job off er. The main difference between Sandra’s folk
theory and social psychological theories is that social ps ychological theories are a. always more complicated. c. based on logic. b. almost always counterintuitive. d. put to the test. ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: Characterizing Social Psychology OBJ: Factual According to social psychologists, which of the following conditions is most likely to make someone do what an authority figure says to do—even if it involves hurting someone? a. when people know ahead of time that an authority figure will be ordering them around b. when people have been raised in abusive families c. when people can blame an authority figure for their actions d. when people are used to hurting other people ANS: C DIF: Medium REF: The Power of the Situation OBJ: Factual The “Good Samaritan” study conducted by Darley and Batson (1973) examined helping behavior in s eminary students at Princeton University. These students were either rushed or not rushed to get to an appointment. Results of this study showed that a. participants who viewed religion as a means toward personal gain
were less likely to help someone than participants who viewed religion as a means toward moral and spiritual values. b. when rushed, only participants who viewed religion as a means toward personal gains were less likely to help someone. c. when rushed, only participants who viewed religion as a means toward moral and spiritual v alues were less likely to help someone. d. the nature of participants’ religious orientation did not predict helping behavior; only being rushed or not predicted helping. ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: The Power of the Situation OBJ: Factual Your waiter seems to be doing everything wrong. He has forgotten to take your drink order. He delive rs someone else’s food to your table. He does not come out and say it, but his facial expressions seem to say he’d rather be someplace else. If you assume his behavior is caused primarily by , your assumption is consistent with the fundamental attribution error. a. channel factors b. situational factors he can control c. his disposition d. situational factors beyond his control ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: The Power of the Situation OBJ: Applied
Which of the following scenarios is LEAST consistent with the fundamental attribution error? a. When someone swerves into your lane while driving, you think to yourself, “This person is a terrible driver!” b. When someone at a party smiles at you, you think to yourself, “This person smiles at everyone.” c. When you slip and fall down at a shopping mall, you think to yourself, “I was born clumsy!” d. When someone talks loudly to his or her friend on the bus, you think to yourself, “This person might be talking to someone who has a hearing problem.” ANS: D DIF: Difficult REF: The Power of the Situation OBJ: Applied
The president of a fraternity wants to increase the number of fraternity members who volunteer fo r nonprofit organizations in the community. Kurt Lewin’s concept of channel factors suggests the president should a. induce guilt among members who are not currently volunteering. b. provide information about when and how members might volunteer. c. offer a prize to the member who volunteers the most hours. d. ask members to publicly commit to a particular volunteering opportunity. ANS: B DIF: Difficult REF: The Power of the Situation OBJ: Applied A reader for American schoolchildren from the 1930s shows a little boy running, whereas a reader for Chinese children from the same time period shows a boy with his brother. According to the textbook, what cultural difference does this highlight? a. Individualistic cultures place a higher value on self-esteem than collectivistic cultures. b. Individualistic cultures emphasize action, whereas collectivistic cultures emphasize relationships. c. Individualistic cultures emphasize active relationships, whereas collectivistic cultures emphasize passive relationships. d. This example does not relate to any consistent cultural difference.