Deck 31: Social Behavior Part 1

Question 1

People who are physically attractive are viewed as ____ than less attractive people.

A) more conceited and insecure and less competent
B) more sociable and poised and less competent
C) more friendly, well adjusted, and competent
D) more arrogant, insecure, and competent

Answer 1

more friendly, well adjusted, and competent

Question 2

Joel and Kirk both work with a stock brokerage firm. Joel is considered to be extremely attractive, and Kirk is considered to be average in appearance. Based on research that has investigated the effects of physical appearance in person perception, you should predict that

A) Joel will tend to receive better performance evaluations than Kirk, for equivalent work.
B) Kirk will tend to receive better performance evaluations than Joel, for equivalent work.
C) Joel will be perceived as having greater integrity and being more honest.
D) Kirk will be perceived as being more submissive and naïve.

Answer 2

Joel will tend to receive better performance evaluations than Kirk, for equivalent work.

Question 3

Widely held beliefs about groups of people based on their group membership defines

A) cognitive structuring.
B) cultural direction.
C) stereotypes.
D) schematizing.

Answer 3

stereotypes.

Question 4

The subfield of psychology that studies attitudes, the attribution process, person perceptions, interpersonal attraction, conformity and obedience and group behavior is known as

A) environmental psychology.
B) neuropsychology.
C) sociocultural psychology.
D) social psychology.

Question 5

Person perception refers to the process of

A) forming impressions of others.
B) developing an implicit personality theory.
C) predicting the behavior of others.
D) monitoring the impressions you make on other people.

Question 6

One of your friends brings her cousin Eric to a party. Eric is very attractive. You are MOSTlikely to view Eric as also being

A) friendly and competent or smart.
B) arrogant and competent or smart.
C) conceited and incompetent or dumb.
D) sexy and incompetent or dumb.

Question 7

When people estimate that they have encountered more confirmations of an association between social traits then they have actually seen they have

A) created a stereotype.
B) made an illusory correlation.
C) made a covariation inference.
D) created a social schema.

Question 8

Marsha believes that all news reporters are cynical, doubting individuals who would sell their souls for an exclusive story. In this case, Marsha's beliefs about the traits and behaviors of news reporters are one example of

A) the fundamental attribution error.
B) a confirmation bias.
C) stereotypes.
D) the matching hypothesis.

Question 9

All of the following statements concerning stereotypes are accurate EXCEPT

A) stereotyping is a normal cognitive process.
B) all social schemas are stereotypes.
C) common stereotypes are based on gender, ethnicity, and occupation.
D) stereotypes are frequently broad overgeneralizations.

Question 10

Person perception refers to

A) positive feelings toward another person.
B) widely held beliefs that people have certain characteristics because of their membership in a particular group.
C) the process of forming impressions of others.
D) inferences that people draw about the causes of their own behavior and the behavior of others.

Question 11

The illusory correlation effect occurs when we

A) incorrectly assume that one social trait is the cause of another, simply because we have observed that they are correlated.
B) are motivated to accurately estimate the frequency with which some pattern of social traits occurs.
C) see correlations between social traits that really aren't there, because our expectations distort our memories.
D) fail to see true correlations between social traits, because our expectations distort our memories.

Question 12

A stereotype is

A) an organized cluster of ideas about categories of social events attributions.
B) a widely held belief that people will behave in a certain way.
C) an estimate as to the correlation between a social trait and its association with behavior.
D) a widely held belief that people will have certain characteristics because of their membership in a specific group.

Question 13

Widely held beliefs that people have certain characteristics because of their membership in a particular group are BEST described as

A) person perception.
B) prejudice.
C) social schemas.
D) stereotypes.

Question 14

Which of the following people are MOST likely to be viewed as more competent?

A) older people
B) people who wear conservative attire
C) people who are physically attractive
D) people who mimic our own mannerisms

Question 15

John observed Gracie, an executive for a large accounting firm, behave in an aggressive and pushy manner with her subordinates. John now believes that most women executives are basically aggressive and pushy with their subordinates. John's overestimation of the relationship between women executives and the social traits of "pushy" and "aggressive" is referred to as

A) an illusory correlation.
B) a contravened stereotype.
C) a heuristic overbias.
D) a self-serving attribution.

Question 16

In terms of personality characteristics, people who are good looking tend to be viewed as

A) sociable, friendly, and warm.
B) dominant and perceptive.
C) intelligent and nonconforming.
D) honest and truthful.

Question 17

Research on physical attractiveness has shown that

A) most people disregard physical attractiveness when forming first impressions of people.
B) judgments of women's personalities are affected by their physical attractiveness, but judgments of men's personalities are not.
C) we tend to ascribe desirable personality characteristics to good-looking people.
D) men are more likely than women to make biased judgments of others based on physical appearance.

Question 18

Newton believes that all airline pilots are calm, cool individuals who never get excited or show any strong emotional responses. In this case, Newton's beliefs about the traits and behaviors of airline pilots are one example of

A) the fundamental attribution error.
B) a confirmation bias.
C) stereotypes.
D) the matching hypothesis.

Question 19

The branch of psychology concerned with the way individuals' thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by others is

A) individual psychology.
B) social psychology.
C) abnormal psychology.
D) cultural psychology.

Question 20

If many Americans were to believe that all Muslims are terrorists, it would be BEST described as

A) a stereotype.
B) person perception.
C) an attribution.
D) a logical assumption.

Question 21

What is the main reason we tend to make attributions about the causes of events, others' behavior, and our own behavior?

A) We have a strong need to understand our experiences.
B) Attribution making was selected for at some point in our ancestral past.
C) We have an unconscious urge to psychoanalyze the behavior of others.
D) Having access to information about others tends to fulfill our need for power.

Question 22

Tally just heard that her neighbor, Rupert, was involved in an automobile accident. If Tally concludes that Rupert's reckless driving habits caused the accident, she has

A) made an internal attribution.
B) made a self-serving attribution.
C) made an external attribution.
D) been influenced by an illusory correlation.

Question 23

A group that one belongs to and identifies with is known as

A) a stereotype.
B) a social schema.
C) an outgroup.
D) an ingroup.

Question 24

Attribution refers to

A) positive feelings toward another person.
B) widely held beliefs that people have certain characteristics because of their membership in a particular group.
C) the process of forming impressions of others.
D) inferences that people draw about the causes of their own behavior and the behavior of others.

Question 25

Harper is 35 years old, and he has just enrolled in his first university course. On the first day of class he looks over the individuals in the room, and sits next to another male student who appears to be in his early 30s. In this case, Harper has likely classified the other student

A) using a self-serving bias.
B) as a member of his ingroup.
C) as the teaching assistant for the class.
D) as someone who has more university experience than Harper.

Question 26

A group that one does not belong to or identify with is known as

A) a stereotype.
B) a social schema.
C) an outgroup.
D) an ingroup.

Question 27

Which of the following statements BEST reflects an evolutionary explanation of why we tend to be influenced by physical attractiveness in our perception of others?

A) We have a tendency to identify with those we perceive as attractive.
B) Physically attractive individuals are also likely to be intelligent and hard working.
C) Being around attractive people tends to make us view ourselves more favorably.
D) At one time in our history, physical attractiveness was associated with reproductive potential.

Question 28

A father suggests that his son's low marks in school are due to the child's laziness. The father has made

A) an external attribution.
B) a distinctive attribution.
C) an internal attribution.
D) a situational attribution.

Question 29

Patty is a member of a jury, and she has voted "guilty." All the other jury members have voted "not guilty." At this point in time, the other jury members should classify Patty

A) as a member of their ingroup.
B) using a confirmation bias.
C) as a member of their outgroup.
D) as outside their latitude of acceptance.

Question 30

Evolutionary psychologists ascribe much of the bias in person perception to cognitive mechanisms that have been shaped by

A) parental attitudes.
B) natural selection.
C) childhood experiences.
D) relationships with others.

Question 31

You believe that short men have a tendency to be insecure. The concept of illusory correlation implies that you will

A) overestimate the frequency of insecure short men.
B) underestimate the frequency of insecure short men.
C) accurately estimate the frequency of insecure short men.
D) falsely assume that tall men are naturally secure.

Question 32

In making a causal attribution, we first tend to decide if an event was due to

A) subjective or objective causes.
B) usual or unusual causes.
C) positive or negative causes.
D) internal or external causes.

Question 33

Inferences that people draw about the causes of events and theirs and others' behaviors are known as

A) prejudices.
B) attributions.
C) self-serving biases.
D) stereotypes.

Question 34

Eric has joined a new fraternity. Based on the research conducted by Krebs and Denton, if the other fraternity members now consider Eric as part of their ingroup, they are more likely to

A) view him in somewhat negative terms.
B) pay less attention to his actions and ideas.
C) remember things that he does with greater accuracy.
D) view him in a generally positive light.

Question 35

When we make assumptions about why people do the things they do we are making

A) an attribution.
B) a first impression.
C) a stereotype.
D) an actor observer bias

Question 36

Sharon has only actually met three musicians who have had full beards, and she has also met three musicians who were clean-shaven. Still, she believes that MOST musicians have beards. Sharon's belief reflects

A) an egocentric slant.
B) an illusory correlation.
C) a confirmation bias.
D) the fundamental attribution error.

Question 37

According to evolutionary psychologists, we tend to view members of outgroups

A) as role models.
B) as superior to us.
C) as potential mates.
D) in terms of various negative stereotypes.

Question 38

Daniel started watching a movie that was half over. He thought the male lead in the movie was a private detective, however the lead character was actually a medical doctor. Later, when Daniel is discussing the movie with his friends, he remembers the character's beat-up old car and the fact he ate a lot of fast food. His friends focus more on the character's logical assessment of the facts involved in the case. These differences in memory may result from

A) the fundamental attribution error.
B) an actor-observer bias.
C) the matching hypothesis.
D) confirmation biases.

Question 39

Which of the following is NOT a reason evolutionary psychologists propose to explain the biases associated with person perception?

A) there was a need to quickly categorize others as friend or foe
B) physical attractiveness was associated primarily with friends and not foes
C) physical attractiveness was associated with reproductive potential of females
D) physical attractiveness was associated with health and vigor of males

Question 40

If Tom believes that college football players are "dumb jocks" he would be MOST likely to ____ he has encountered.

A) overestimate the number of dumb football players
B) overestimate the number of smart football players
C) underestimate the number of dumb football players
D) underestimate the number of football players

Question 41

Martha wins three games of backgammon in a row, even though she has never played before. If Martha assumes she has "beginner's luck," she is making an ____ attribution about her success; if she decides backgammon is an easy game, she is making an ____ attribution about her success.

A) internal-stable; internal-unstable
B) internal-unstable; external-unstable
C) external-unstable; internal-stable
D) external-unstable; external-stable

Question 42

Celine just heard that her neighbor, Rodney, was involved in an automobile accident. If Celine concludes that Rodney's children distracted him for a few seconds, and that was the reason for the accident, she has

A) made an external attribution.
B) made an internal attribution.
C) made the fundamental attribution error.
D) been influenced by an illusory correlation.

Question 43

Ralph watches as a customer with at least 40 items lines up at his express checkout line. He decides the customer must be a real "idiot" to miss the sign that indicates Ralph's checkout line is an express line with a limit of 10 items. Ralph's attribution for the cause of the customer's behavior is consistent with

A) the fundamental attribution error.
B) drawing an illusory correlation.
C) a self-serving bias.
D) a defensive attribution.

Question 44

Dallas watches as Rhoda missteps in the cafeteria and spills coffee on herself and two other students. If Dallas concludes that Rhoda is an uncoordinated "klutz" who wasn't paying attention to what she was doing, he has

A) been influenced by an illusory correlation.
B) made an internal attribution.
C) made a self-serving attribution.
D) made an external attribution.

Question 45

According to Bernard Weiner people also focus on the ____ of the causes of underlying behavior.

A) stability
B) personal nature
C) positive or negative aspect
D) correctness

Question 46

If you tend to overemphasize internal characteristics in explaining the behavior of others, you are evidencing the

A) false consensus effect.
B) situational attributional tendency.
C) self-serving bias.
D) fundamental attribution error.

Question 47

When the causes of a person's behavior are attributed to situational demands and environmental constraints, it is referred to as

A) a stable attribution.
B) an unstable attribution.
C) an external attribution.
D) an internal attribution.

Question 48

Tina recently lost over half the money she had put away for her retirement. If Webster concludes that Tina lost the money because the stock market took a significant downturn, he has

A) made an internal attribution.
B) made the fundamental attribution error.
C) been influenced by an illusory correlation.
D) made an external attribution.

Question 49

Weiner suggested that when making attributions for success and failure, people focus on the ____ dimension concerning causes that contribute to the behavior.

A) stable-unstable
B) internal-external
C) unique-common
D) optimistic-pessimistic

Question 50

Which of the following reflects a clear dispositional attribution?

A) "Something got the best of him"
B) "He did what he felt was right"
C) "He did what he had to do"
D) "He went along with the crowd"

Question 51

Jane's eight-year-old son brought a note home from school today stating that he was involved in a fight at recess. Which of the following is an example of an external attribution that Jane might make to explain her son's behavior?

A) he's just like his father
B) he always gets in fights
C) the other child probably started the fight and he was protecting himself
D) he probably couldn't help himself since he doesn't have much self-control

Question 52

When the causes of a person's behavior are attributed to personal dispositions, traits, abilities, and feelings, it is

A) an external attribution.
B) an internal attribution.
C) a stable attribution.
D) an unstable attribution.

Question 53

The fundamental attribution error refers to the tendency of

A) observers to favor external attributions in explaining the behavior of others.
B) observers to favor internal attributions in explaining the behavior of others.
C) actors to favor external attributions in explaining the behavior of others.
D) actors to favor internal attributions in explaining the behavior of others.

Question 54

You see on the news that a local high school athlete just received a college scholarship to play basketball while none of his teammates received scholarships. If you believe he received a scholarship due to his outstanding natural ability, you would be making an ____ attribution.

A) external-unstable
B) internal-unstable
C) external-stable
D) internal-stable

Question 55

You've just been awarded a full scholarship for next year, which you perceive as confirmation of your superior intellectual ability. According to Weiner's model, you are making an ____ attribution about your success.

A) internal-stable
B) internal-unstable
C) external-stable
D) external-unstable

Question 56

Skye scored 100% on her statistics midterm. According to Weiner's attributional model, if Skye makes an internal-stable attribution for her success, she is MOST likely to say

A) "It was just good luck that most of the exam was on the material I had time to study."
B) "I was calm and relaxed the day of the exam because I was able to get a good night's sleep the night before the exam."
C) "I have always been good at statistics, I guess I just have a natural ability in that area."
D) "The professor makes the whole course so easy to understand that it is virtually impossible to do poorly in the class."

Question 57

Imagine that you recently obtained a job that you applied for. According to Weiner's attributional model, if you state: "I knew I would get the job because I just seemed to do everything right on the day of the interview," you have made an

A) external-unstable attribution.
B) internal-unstable attribution.
C) external-stable attribution.
D) internal-stable attribution.

Question 58

Alphonse failed his geology midterm. According to Weiner's attributional model, if Alphonse makes an external-unstable attribution for his failure, he is MOST likely to say

A) "It was just bad luck that most of the exam was on the one chapter I didn't study."
B) "I was really tired during the exam because I had to work the late shift the night before the exam."
C) "I just can't seem to catch on in my geology classes, and I don't think I'll ever learn all those terms."
D) "That professor has impossible exams; if I retake the class with a different professor I'll probably do much better."

Question 59

Blaming your friend's auto accident on the weather conditions is an example of

A) a self-serving attribution.
B) a defensive attribution.
C) an external attribution.
D) a dispositional attribution.

Question 60

When you see a classmate in class or at a study session, they are always very friendly towards you. However, when you run into them at an upscale party, they act as if they do not know you. Since you know they are really a friendly person, you are MOST likely to attribute your classmate's behavior to

A) a fundamental attribution error.
B) a stereotype.
C) external attributions.
D) internal attributions.

Question 61

You are likely to attribute your own failing grade on a test to ____; your roommate is more likely to attribute your failing grade to ____.

A) an unfair test; your poor study habits
B) your poor study habits; an unfair test
C) a poor teacher; an unfair test
D) your own stupidity; a poor teacher

Question 62

The tendency to attribute other people's behavior to internal factors and our own behavior to situational influences is known as

A) the fundamental attribution error.
B) a stereotype.
C) the actor-observer effect.
D) the foot in the door technique.

Question 63

Observers tend to attribute actors' behavior to ____ factors and actors tend to attribute their own behavior to ____ factors.

A) situational; dispositional
B) dispositional; situational
C) dispositional; dispositional
D) situational; situational

Question 64

According to the fundamental attribution error, actors tend to attribute their own behavior to ____ factors, and observers tend to attribute the behavior of others to ____ factors.

A) personal; personal
B) personal; situational
C) situational; personal
D) situational; situational

Question 65

Recent research has shown that the tendency to explain actors' behavior with internal attributions is reduced if the observer

A) has never experienced the same situation as the actor.
B) is in a state of high self-esteem.
C) has experienced the same situation as the actor.
D) is in a state of low self-esteem.

Question 66

As a result of the fundamental attribution error, if you observe a construction worker relaxing under a tree, you would be MOST likely to conclude that the worker

A) is taking his scheduled work break.
B) is lazy.
C) is taking a well-deserved break after strenuous work.
D) is taking a break because it is hot and humid today.

Question 67

According to the self-serving bias, when people experience success, they tend to make ____ attributions and when they experience failure, they tend to make ____ attributions.

A) external; external
B) internal; internal
C) external; internal
D) internal; external

Question 68

When an individual has a tendency to blame victims for their misfortune, so that they feel less likely to be victimized in a similar way, the individual is demonstrating

A) a defensive attribution.
B) a rationalization attribution.
C) the self-effacing bias.
D) the self-serving bias.

Question 69

Consistent with the fundamental attribution error, when an acquaintance fails an exam, you would tend to attribute their failure to the ____ and if you fail an exam, you would tend to attribute your failure to the ____.

A) lack of intelligence; difficulty of the exam
B) difficulty of the exam; lack of intelligence
C) lack of intelligence; lack of intelligence
D) difficulty of the exam; difficulty of the exam

Question 70

Observers tend to attribute actors' behavior to ____ factors and actors tend to attribute their own behavior to ____ factors.

A) external; internal
B) internal; external
C) external; external
D) internal; internal

Question 71

According to the notion of defensive attribution, we tend to explain the setbacks that befall other people in terms of

A) internal causes.
B) external causes.
C) stable causes.
D) defensive causes.

Question 72

The tendency to blame victims for their misfortune, so that one feels less likely to be victimized in a similar way, defines

A) defensive attributions.
B) offensive attributions.
C) the self-serving bias.
D) the fundamental attribution error.

Question 73

When an individual has a tendency to attribute her success to personal factors and her failure to situational factors, the individual is demonstrating

A) the fundamental attribution bias.
B) the self-effacing bias.
C) the self-serving bias.
D) defensive attribution.

Question 74

Actors and observers tend to give different explanations for the same instance of behavior because

A) only actors themselves can accurately explain their own behavior.
B) only outside observers can accurately explain actors' behavior.
C) observers tend to possess more knowledge than the actors.
D) situational pressures may not be readily apparent to an observer.

Question 75

Warren tells Cokie that he can't believe it, but he scored 98% on his linear algebra midterm. Cokie decides that Warren must be very bright if he earns such high grades in math courses. Cokie's attribution for the cause of Warren's high grade is consistent with

A) drawing an illusory correlation.
B) a self-serving bias.
C) a defensive attribution.
D) the fundamental attribution error.

Question 76

An actor tends to attribute the cause of his behaviors differently than observers, in large part, because an actor has

A) less knowledge concerning situational factors.
B) less knowledge concerning his personality.
C) more knowledge concerning situational factors.
D) more knowledge concerning his personality.

Question 77

When Darren's classmate earns a "D" on an essay for their history class, Darren figures the classmate is unmotivated, and should have spent more time working on the paper and less time socializing. The classmate is disappointed with her grade, but she knows she didn't have much time to work on the essay because she had to work double-shifts the entire week before the paper was due. The different attributions for the low grade on the essay illustrate

A) the actor-observer bias.
B) defensive attributions.
C) the self-serving bias.
D) cognitive dissonance.

Question 78

The "Ask Elsa" advice columnist is reading a letter from "Concerned" describing a friend who is failing at school. "Concerned" writes that most of the friend's problems result from a lack of personal responsibility and maturity. The "Ask Elsa" columnist realizes that many times people invent "friends" in order to ask for advice about their own problems. In this case the columnist should conclude that, because "Concerned" has made

A) external attributions for the friend's behavior, the letter really is about a friend and not about "Concerned."
B) internal attributions for the friend's behavior, the letter is really about "Concerned," and not about a friend.
C) external attributions for the friend's behavior, the letter is really about "Concerned," and not about a friend.
D) internal attributions for the friend's behavior, the letter really is about a friend and not about "Concerned."

Question 79

When an observer is biased in favor of making internal attributions in explaining others' behavior, the observer is making

A) a stereotypical error.
B) the self-serving error.
C) the self-effacing error.
D) the fundamental attribution error.

Question 80

Doug feels that he has worked very hard to get his promotion. However when his last sales pitch did not end up in a sale he attributed the failure to the fact that the company he was "pitching to" was having financial difficulties. Doug's behavior is an illustration of ____.

A) the actor-observer effect.
B) the foot-in-the-door technique.
C) the self-serving bias.
D) a fundamental attribution error.