Deck 16: Social Psychology in Action 3: Social Psychology and the Law

Question 1

If you were a prosecutor, what would you be most likely to do to convince the jury that the defendant is guilty?

A) mention the defendant's criminal record
B) explain the defendant's motives for committing the crime
C) describe the circumstantial evidence that places the defendant at the crime scene
D) have an eyewitness testify that she saw the defendant commit the crime

Answer 1

have an eyewitness testify that she saw the defendant commit the crime

Question 2

Sally was working the night shift at a convenience store. A man came in, pulled out a gun, and demanded that Sally give him all of the money in the cash register. When the police interview Sally about the crime, what would she be most likely to tell them?

A) the color of the man's eyes
B) the height of the man
C) that the man wielded a gun
D) the type of clothes the man wore

Answer 2

that the man wielded a gun

Question 3

________ refers to the process by which people store some-but not all-information from the environment in memory.

A) Acquisition
B) Storage
C) Selective encoding
D) Retrieval

Answer 3

Storage

Question 4

Jake, a convenience store cashier, was extremely afraid when he was held up at gunpoint. The robbery took several minutes, there was little distance between him and the robber, and the lighting was good. Why is it that Jake had trouble remembering details about the crime?

A) Men tend to remember fewer details of events than women.
B) Jake is not very intelligent.
C) Jake did not get a good look at the robber.
D) Jake was very emotional and fearful.

Question 5

You come home from work and find pieces of broken glass on the floor. You realize that your favorite vase was broken. Immediately you blame your new puppy, without even noticing that your toddler's teddy bear is lying on the floor near the broken glass. The fact that you didn't see the teddy bear is probably due to

A) your poor vision.
B) your schema that puppies are destructive.
C) unconscious transference.
D) source-monitoring errors.

Question 6

Kim witnessed a robbery that occurred over the course of an hour across a rather wide street at night. Which of the following is not a factor hindering Kim's acquisition of the event?

A) the crime was unexpected
B) the crime took place over the course of an hour
C) the crime took place at night
D) the crime happened some distance away

Question 7

Complete the analogy about memory processes. Retrieval: acquisition :: ________: ________.

A) put away; take out
B) keep safe; remove
C) withdrawal; deposit
D) input; output

Question 8

The authors of your text describe an incident in which a friend of theirs, Alan, found the body of an elderly neighbor. Despite obvious signs that she was murdered, Alan insisted that she died of old age. Why?

A) He was not particularly adept at social perception.
B) His expectations that she died of old age led him to ignore evidence that she was murdered.
C) Only a very experienced police officer would have had the skills to determine if a murder took place.
D) He was the real murderer, but wanted to cover up his crime.

Question 9

According to the authors of your text, the most common cause of an innocent person being convicted of a crime is that the

A) jury is stymied by groupthink.
B) police officers were prejudiced.
C) suspect looked as though he or she was lying.
D) eyewitness was incorrect.

Question 10

The introduction to Social Psychology and the Law tells a true story about Randall Adams, who was falsely convicted of murdering a police officer, and who languished on death row for twelve years until he finally won his freedom. This introduction was designed to illustrate

A) the unreliability of eyewitness testimony.
B) that the criminal justice system is far from colorblind.
C) that the legal system is much in need of reform.
D) the power of circumstantial evidence.

Question 11

________ refers to the process by which people recall information stored in memory.

A) Recovery
B) Acquisition
C) Retrieval
D) Recognition

Question 12

One reason why the legal process is an important application of social psychology is because

A) many social psychologists are legal consultants.
B) police officers are trained to avoid the fundamental attribution error.
C) processes like prejudice and first impressions influence jury decisions.
D) suspects can use social psychology to their advantage and be found "not guilty."

Question 13

According to the authors, accurate eyewitness identification results from a series of three stages:

A) attention, memory, and credibility.
B) acquisition, attention, and retrieval.
C) acquisition, storage, and retrieval.
D) accuracy, confidence, and credibility.

Question 14

Margo was frightened and confused when a robber appeared at the convenience store where she works. It seemed that the only thing she could see was the gun he had pointed right in her face. Later, when Margo serves as an eyewitness, she may not be reliable because of problems she had at the ________ stage of memory processing.

A) acquisition
B) storage
C) retrieval
D) attentional

Question 15

After an armed robbery, witnesses aren't often able to describe the culprit. Which of the following are most likely the reasons why?

A) The event was unexpected, and they were frightened.
B) The lights were too bright, and they saw everything but can't put it into words.
C) The event seemed planned and was distracting.
D) They were looking somewhere else and thinking about other things.

Question 16

Which of the following is out of place?

A) selective attention
B) storage
C) retrieval
D) acquisition

Question 17

Marvin was convicted of a robbery several years ago and has recently been exonerated based on DNA evidence. According to the authors of your text, which of the following is the most likely reason that he was falsely convicted?

A) Marvin is African American.
B) The eyewitness to the crime reported incorrect information.
C) The jury was made up of mostly women.
D) The defense attorney was not very persuasive.

Question 18

Four men have been indicted for robbing $20,000 from a bank. After the trial, the jury will be most likely to convict

A) Art, who has a criminal record for petty theft
B) Brian, who recently purchased a new car for $10,000 cash
C) Cliff, who was the only one identified by an eyewitness
D) Matt, whose fingerprints were found at the scene

Question 19

Which of the following is a factor that can hinder an eyewitness's memory during the acquisition stage?

A) poor lighting conditions
B) the event happens in full daylight
C) They are waiting and watching for a crime to happen.
D) the event takes awhile

Question 20

When a crime happens quickly and under poor viewing conditions, what stage of memory processing is most likely to be hindered?

A) acquisition
B) storage
C) retrieval
D) reconstruction

Question 21

There were two independent variables in the Loftus and colleagues (1978) experiment. What were they?

A) what type of traffic sign they saw and whether the question they were asked matched or didn't match the sign they saw
B) what sign they identified as seeing from a group of 30 slides and what type of traffic sign they saw
C) whether or not a gorilla walked past the traffic sign and what kind of car was in the pictures
D) whether the question they were asked matched or didn't match the sign they saw and whether the driver was Black or Hispanic

Question 22

Julia's natural parents are Ethiopian, but she was raised by white parents in California. Chances are, she most easily recognizes

A) white faces.
B) African faces.
C) mixed-race faces.
D) white and African faces equally well.

Question 23

One day, your roommate asks you if you like the new sculpture outside of the Fine Arts building. You tell him that you like the sculpture there, but you later realize that the sculpture actually is in front of the Administration building. It seems your roommate's ________ question yielded a ________.

A) misleading; false memory
B) misleading; reconstructed memory
C) directive; false memory
D) rhetorical; reconstructed memory

Question 24

Own-race bias may occur because when people look at same-race faces, they focus on ________, whereas when they look at different-race faces, they focus on ________.

A) the whole face all together; features one at a time
B) individual features; the whole face all together
C) features that distinguish individuals from each other; features that distinguish the races from each other
D) noses and mouths; eyes

Question 25

James was sitting outside at a café, leisurely watching pedestrians wander by, and trying to see how many people were walking dogs that morning. Based on research presented in your text, how likely would it be that James notices a mime walking down the street?

A) 100 percent chance that he would notice
B) 50 percent chance that he would notice
C) 25 percent chance that he would notice
D) no chance that he would notice something so subtle

Question 26

Research presented in your text on the own-race bias has shown that in general, people are better at recognizing faces of people

A) who are white.
B) who are similar in age and race to themselves.
C) of the same gender as themselves.
D) who look distinctive or unusual in some way.

Question 27

Which of the following is the most accurate statement about the storage process of memory?

A) Once an event is acquired, it is placed in storage, much like a photo album.
B) Memories in storage can be edited dramatically.
C) Memories in storage cannot be altered.
D) Memories in storage can only be altered slightly over time.

Question 28

Arla is a 30-something, white female who works in an office downtown. She saw a pizza delivery person being beaten for his pizza and cash. Based on the own-race bias, she will be most accurate in recognizing the culprit if the suspect is

A) Hispanic
B) African American.
C) female.
D) 30-something.

Question 29

Christian, a Caucasian man, and Sung-Yee, a Korean man, are walking to their cars when an Asian man pulls out a knife and demands their wallets. In a lineup, Christian cannot tell which man is the one who attacked him, but Sung-Yee has no problem identifying the culprit. This is an example of

A) source-monitoring.
B) bystander apathy.
C) selective attention.
D) the own-race bias.

Question 30

In court, the prosecuting attorney asks an eyewitness several very leading questions. Such questioning is most likely to cause which of the following memory problems?

A) own-race bias
B) focus on weapons
C) the "best guess" phenomenon
D) source monitoring error

Question 31

Jeffrey is a returning student who is 40 years old. He sees a crime happen at the student center. Based on the own-race bias, Jeffrey will be most accurate in recognizing the culprit if the suspect is

A) white.
B) African-American.
C) female.
D) middle-aged.

Question 32

You remember learning in elementary school that Topeka is the capital of Kansas. However, you don't remember whether you learned that fact from your third grade teacher, Mr. Rodriguez, or your fourth grade teacher, Ms. Cesario. It seems you may be have problems with

A) differential thinking.
B) acquisition.
C) schematic thinking.
D) source monitoring.

Question 33

The own-race bias refers to the finding that

A) jurors are unlikely to convict a member of their own race.
B) people are better at recognizing faces from members of their own race.
C) crime rates are lower in neighborhoods in which same-race police patrol.
D) lawyers are more successful in defending people of their own race.

Question 34

One explanation for own-race bias is that when people look at faces of their own race, they focus on the features that distinguish the face from the other faces in the group; when they look at faces of people of other races, they focus on the features that distinguish that race from other races. This distinction between how people view their own group and how they view other races is most reminiscent of

A) the in-group favorability bias.
B) the out-group homogeneity bias.
C) the ultimate attribution error.
D) the illusory correlation.

Question 35

If the research presented in the text (Simons & Chabris, 1999) applies, what could be missed when everyone is watching the car accident that just took place?

A) Nothing. The accident will make everyone's attention more acute.
B) The young woman who is making her way through the crowd stealing cell phones and wallets.
C) The looks of the driver of the first car.
D) Subliminal messages written into the paint of the cars.

Question 36

Recall that Loftus and her colleagues (1978) showed participants a series of slides that depicted an automobile accident. Some participants saw a yield sign in the photos and other participants saw a stop sign. Later, participants were asked questions that contained information that either did or did not match what they had actually seen (i.e., a stop sign versus a yield sign). Results demonstrated that participants were least accurate in remembering what they had actually seen when

A) they had a very short time to view the slide series.
B) question contents contradicted what they had actually seen.
C) question contents reflected what they had actually seen.
D) they reported what they had seen after being questioned, rather than before.

Question 37

What is the most likely source of the own-race bias?

A) Familiar stimuli are easier to recognize than unfamiliar stimuli.
B) Prejudice biases attention and memory.
C) Arousal impedes attention and subsequent memory accuracy.
D) Much of memory is reconstructive.

Question 38

One key factor that determines how strongly someone is falling subject to the own-race bias is

A) prejudicial attitude.
B) stereotype threat.
C) the mere exposure effect.
D) the amount of contact with other races.

Question 39

The process whereby information obtained after an event alters memories of the event is known as

A) reconstructive memory.
B) unconscious transference.
C) selective memory.
D) node integration.

Question 40

It is possible that before eyewitnesses came forward to identify Randall Adams as the man who murdered a police officer, they had seen his face on television or in the newspaper. Because they saw Adams in the media, they might have come to believe that he was the man they saw on the road where the murder occurred. This is an example of

A) the own-race bias.
B) erroneous source monitoring.
C) the power of schemas to bias attention.
D) racial misidentification.

Question 41

Julie is very confident that she has correctly identified the suspect in a robbery. What should jurors conclude about the accuracy of her identification of the suspect?

A) That she is probably very accurate.
B) That her confidence has very little to do with how accurate she is.
C) That she is probably dead wrong.
D) That it is completely irrelevant information.

Question 42

In lineups, witnesses often chose the person who most resembles the image they have stored in memory. This can yield inaccurate identifications, and suggests that the ________ stage of memory is affected by the typical lineup procedure.

A) acquisition
B) storage
C) retrieval
D) reconstructive

Question 43

According to your text, composite face programs are to be avoided. Why is this?

A) They are more costly in terms of time and monetary expenses and they are only as effective as lineups.
B) They are more effective than lineups, but only if the witness was less than thirty feet from the crime.
C) Witnesses typically produce less accurate faces because they focus too much on specific features.
D) Witnesses usually cannot recall enough detail to use these programs in cases of violent crime.

Question 44

You've just read Social Psychology and the Law and have been summoned for jury service. Assuming that you were assigned to the jury trying a rape case, unlike most other jurors, you would be most likely to trust the testimony of a witness who

A) is confident about his identification.
B) "just knew" that a suspect was the culprit when she saw him in a lineup.
C) carefully examined each person in a lineup before making an identification.
D) took a long time making an identification.

Question 45

All things being equal, which of the following suspects is most likely to be falsely convicted based on lineup identifications?

A) Tim, who is in line with foils who do not resemble witnesses' descriptions
B) Alana, who is allowed to speak during the lineup procedure
C) Wesley, who has just seen the witness refuse to pick a suspect in a previous lineup
D) Eunice, who heard the police say, "Now, the suspect may not be in this lineup"

Question 46

Which of the following procedures would lead to more accurate identification in a lineup?

A) Insist that the suspect and foils remain silent during the lineup.
B) Ensure that the suspect and foils differ greatly in appearance.
C) Present the suspect and foils sequentially.
D) Assure the witness that the suspect is in the lineup.

Question 47

To make lineups more accurate, why should police officers tell witnesses that the lineup may not include the suspect?

A) because it is difficult for witnesses to admit that the culprit is not present
B) because the witnesses may be afraid
C) to increase their feeling of confidence in their decision
D) to get them to pay attention to the instructions they are given

Question 48

A mechanic at a truck rental office described a muscular man with a baseball cap and black T?-shirt as the person who rented the truck that was eventually used in the bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City. However, Timothy McVeigh was convicted, most likely worked alone, and did not resemble that description at all. The mechanic realized he had been confused and instead had described an innocent man who was at the truck rental office the day before McVeigh appeared there. This is a real-world example of faulty

A) questioning of eyewitnesses.
B) acquisition of relevant information.
C) source monitoring.
D) retrieval of relevant information.

Question 49

Social psychological research has revealed a ________ relation between eyewitness confidence and accuracy.

A) negative
B) nonexistent
C) strong
D) weak

Question 50

According to the authors of your text, the process whereby people try to identify the source of their memories is the best definition of

A) retrieval.
B) source monitoring.
C) reconstructive memory.
D) storage.

Question 51

Lila explains to a police officer that she identified a suspect out of a lineup by taking her time, comparing their faces, and then using process of elimination. According to information from your text, Lila's identification

A) is most likely accurate.
B) has a 50/50 chance at being accurate.
C) is no better than random chance.
D) is probably mistaken.

Question 52

According to your text, why should a police officer who is unaware of who the suspect is conduct the lineup?

A) They will not unintentionally "hint" at who the suspect is.
B) They will not exhibit the own-race bias.
C) They will not badger the witness.
D) They will be more efficient than an officer working in-depth on the case.

Question 53

Your friend was just arrested for robbing a drug store downtown. Based on a failure of source monitoring, why might the cashier think your friend was the robber?

A) He visits the coffee store next door almost every morning.
B) He fits the description of one of the FBI's most wanted.
C) He is of a different race than the cashier.
D) He is several years older than the cashier.

Question 54

Austin is a social psychologist working for the police department. As he advises department detectives about procedures for a police lineup, what is he least likely to advise?

A) "Don't always include the suspect in the initial lineup."
B) "Ask your witnesses for confidence ratings about their identifications before you say anything to them about their performance."
C) "Make sure that the lineup contains a wide variety of people who look quite different from each other."
D) "Tell the witness that the suspect may or may not be in the lineup."

Question 55

When a witness chooses someone from a lineup because he or she looks the most like the suspect compared to the others in the lineup, the witness is exemplifying the ________ problem.

A) own-race bias
B) reconstructive memory
C) false consensus
D) best guess

Question 56

You are an assistant district attorney trying to decide which suspect to try for a burglary case. Each of four eyewitnesses picked a different suspect from a photo lineup. Based on research conducted by Dunning and Stern (1994), which eyewitness would you find most credible?

A) Beth, who carefully compared each of the faces against the others
B) Diana, who reported that the suspect's face just "popped out" at her
C) Edward, who has just provided a written description of the suspect
D) Larry, who took longer than the other witnesses to pick his suspect

Question 57

When police officers perform lineups with witnesses, they should consider witnesses who are ________ and ________ to be more likely to be accurate.

A) quick; use process of elimination
B) slow; use process of elimination
C) quick; confident
D) slow; methodical

Question 58

Which of the following is an error in eyewitness testimony that occurs in the storage phase of memory?

A) the own-race bias
B) the best-guess phenomenon
C) source monitoring errors
D) focus on weapons

Question 59

What should police officers do to prevent false identifications during lineups?

A) Show all the potential perpetrators at once.
B) Decrease witnesses' stress levels by only showing them mug shots.
C) Tell witnesses that the lineup may not include the suspect.
D) Use foils with a wide range of physical characteristics.

Question 60

The authors of your text present evidence that suggest that witnesses who can identify a suspect in a lineup in under ________ are probably more likely to correctly identify the suspect.

A) one hour
B) ten minutes
C) one minute
D) ten seconds

Question 61

Based on the research by Geraerts and colleagues (2007) which of the following is most likely to have corroborating evidence about their experience of childhood sexual abuse?

A) William, who has never forgotten his abuse
B) Emily, who remembered her abuse last year during marriage counseling
C) Carla, who remembered her abuse during college
D) Sharon, who had repressed her abuse until undergoing psychoanalysis

Question 62

A polygraph test measures ________ to determine whether people are lying when they answer questions.

A) heart rate and breathing
B) brainwaves
C) thermal brain imaging
D) skin conductance

Question 63

________ is a recollection of a traumatic past event that had previously been forgotten or repressed.

A) An autobiographical memory
B) The false memory syndrome
C) A recovered memory
D) An autobiographical fiction

Question 64

Keep in mind experimental research on eyewitness accuracy conducted by Dunning and Stern (1994) and Schooler and Engstler-Schooler (1990). Now, assume that you are a juror in a robbery trial. All things being equal, of which of the following eyewitnesses should you be most skeptical?

A) Mr. Latz, who had a good view of the robber
B) Mrs. Jones, who remembers that the robber had a beard
C) Ms. Mabry, a bank teller who immediately wrote down a description of the robber
D) Mr. Collins, a guard who picked the robber out of a sequential lineup

Question 65

With regard to recovered memories, on which point are nonscientific writers and research psychologists most likely to agree?

A) Sexual abuse is more common than many people would like to think.
B) The repression of memories is a major source of depression and eating disorders.
C) Recovered memories, in the absence of other evidence, are not sufficient to prove past abuse.
D) Many people who allegedly recover memories of abuse are making up stories.

Question 66

While on the witness stand at a child neglect trial, Billy was asked several leading questions by a crafty attorney. This attorney managed to get Billy to report that he had remembered seeing his mother drunk on several occasions. After the trial, Billy remained convinced that his mother was an alcoholic even though this was never true. This is an example of

A) the false memory syndrome.
B) a recovered memory.
C) a distorted self-schema.
D) auto-suggestive memory.

Question 67

Research has shown that typical law officers (those not identified as particularly outstanding investigators) are ________ college students at determining when witnesses are lying.

A) no better than
B) a lot better than
C) worse than
D) a little better than

Question 68

Based on what a polygraph is designed to do, is it possible to "trick" a polygraph and make it less valid?

A) yes, if you do things to affect your heart rate and breathing
B) yes, if you convince yourself that you aren't lying
C) no, polygraphs pick up on a number of subtleties
D) no, polygraphs are not reliable anyway; there is no way to make them less valid

Question 69

Which of the following groups performs best in telling whether or not actors are lying or telling the truth?

A) women
B) men
C) law officers in general
D) all groups perform about the same

Question 70

Joan has been seeing a therapist for several months. At one session, her therapist suggests that Joan's emotional difficulties may be due to sexual abuse as a child. Initially, Joan is unable to recall any such abuse. However, at a later session, she recalls an incident of abuse that she had suppressed for many years. Based on social-psychological research findings, Joan's claims should be

A) viewed seriously but cautiously due to false memory syndrome concerns.
B) believed wholeheartedly, without reservations.
C) viewed seriously but cautiously due to social desirability concerns and transference processes.
D) totally discounted.

Question 71

Based on evidence from a report by the National Research Council (2003), the authors of your text report that polygraph results are accurate at detecting lies about ________ of the time.

A) 10 percent
B) 33 percent
C) 54 percent
D) 86 percent

Question 72

Elaine has been falsely accused of embezzling $250,000 from her company. Her boss wants her to take a lie detector test, but she has read the research literature and is afraid to do so. If Elaine is innocent, why would she hesitate to take the test?

A) Lie detectors inflict rather painful shocks that may have adverse consequences on people with heart conditions.
B) Lie detector tests necessarily require people to tell intimate details about private issues unrelated to the question at hand.
C) It is easy for a skilled operator of a lie detector test to implant a false memory of actually having committed the embezzlement.
D) There is a 14 percent probability that the test will falsely conclude that she is lying.

Question 73

Nancy takes a polygraph test to prove she is telling the truth in her testimony. When her attorney goes to submit the polygraph as evidence, which of the following is most likely to happen?

A) It cannot be accepted as admissible evidence.
B) It will be used as the primary evidence in the case.
C) It will be trusted by jurors more than direct testimony.
D) It can be used as a form a circumstantial evidence.

Question 74

According to the authors of your text, there are many factors that make eyewitness testimony inaccurate. One way to make the justice system fairer might be to require ________, as is the case in other countries.

A) eyewitnesses to be cross-examined
B) multiple eyewitnesses
C) eyewitnesses to provide drawings of what they saw
D) jurors to take into consideration eyewitnesses' confidence

Question 75

Jason is a jury member hearing a robbery case. He listens to a witness testify against the suspect. Based on evidence by Bond and DePaulo (2006) presented in your text about people's ability to tell when someone is lying, how accurate would Jason be in telling if the witness was lying?

A) He would definitely be able to detect a liar.
B) He would be very likely to be able to tell if the witness was lying.
C) He would be somewhat more likely than chance to tell if the witness was lying.
D) He would have no idea whether or not the witness was lying.

Question 76

Four people have just observed a suspect deny that she committed a theft. Which observer is most likely to detect whether the suspect is lying?

A) Andy, who has worked for the CIA
B) Frank, who is a rookie on the police force
C) Bobby, who is visiting the police station as part of a university assignment
D) Actually, none of the above observers have an edge in detecting lies.

Question 77

In social psychology, ________ refers to recollections of a past traumatic event that are objectively false, but that people believe really occurred.

A) autobiographical memories
B) recovered memories
C) false memory syndrome
D) confabulatory memories

Question 78

You have just read the section on recovered memories in your text. Based on your reading, what would you say to a psychotherapist who suspects that her client has repressed memories of prior sexual abuse?

A) "By suggesting past abuse, you may actually be creating false memories."
B) "Don't take seriously any clients' claims that they have recovered a memory of past abuse."
C) "Without objective corroborating evidence, it is unethical to suggest that abuse occurred."
D) "The notion of 'repression' is as outdated as Sigmund Freud's other ideas."

Question 79

Evidence presented in your text by Bond and DePaulo (2006) suggests that people are able to correctly identify when someone is lying about ________ of the time.

A) 90 percent
B) 72 percent
C) 54 percent
D) 12 percent

Question 80

Recall that Schooler and Engstler-Schooler (1990) conducted an experiment in which participants viewed a film of a bank robbery. Immediately after the film, some participants wrote a detailed description of the robber, whereas others completed an unrelated task. Those participants who wrote a detailed description were later less accurate in picking the robber out of a photo lineup. According to Schooler and Engstler-Schooler, why would participants who first provided a written description be less accurate in their later identifications?

A) Putting a face into words interferes with the visual memory of the face.
B) Writing a description is stressful, and stress interferes with memory.
C) The longer the period between exposure and retrieval, the less accurate the memory.
D) Using words increases confidence in eyewitnesses' faulty storage.