Deck 7: Social Influence

Question 1

________ is the tendency to change one's beliefs or behaviors in ways that are consistent with group standards.

A) Conformity
B) Compliance
C) Obedience
D) Acceptance

Answer 1

Conformity

Question 2

The similarity of clothing and hairstyles among adolescent peer groups is evidence of

A) obedience
B) compliance
C) conformity
D) informational influence

Answer 2

conformity

Question 3

The autokinetic effect is

A) more pronounced among males than females
B) the apparent movement of a stationary point of light
C) the tendency to misjudge the length of lines
D) a result of obedience to authority

Answer 3

the apparent movement of a stationary point of light

Question 4

In Muzafer Sherif's study using the autokinetic effect, subjects concentrated on a small point of light in a dark room and called out estimates of the distance it had moved. As time passed, the subjects

A) gave answers that became more similar
B) failed to agree on common perceptions
C) discovered that the apparent movement was an illusion
D) exhibited psychological reactance

Question 5

After the initial autokinetic effect study was completed, Sherif's subjects were retested alone, and their distance estimates were

A) larger than before
B) smaller than before
C) unrelated to the previous estimates
D) similar to the initial estimates

Question 6

Sherif's (1936) studies found that

A) participants would obey a legitimate authority
B) in an uncertain and ambiguous situation, people tend to conform to the norm
Established by a consistent peer
C) participants conformed to a group 75% of the time
D) none of the above

Question 7

Asch (1955) designed his line judgment study to test whether people will conform to group norms when

A) the situation is more simple than in Sherif's autokinetic effect study
B) the situation is more threatening than in Sherif's autokinetic effect study
C) the situation is less ambiguous than in Sherif's autokinetic effect study
D) the situation is more anxiety-provoking than in Sherif's autokinetic effect study

Question 8

In the Asch (1955) line judgment study, subjects gave the wrong answer about ______ of the time.

A) 5%
B) 35%
C) 65%
D) 95%

Question 9

Follow-up studies of the Asch (1955) line judgment research have shown that

A) subjects will agree to extremely inaccurate statements
B) the original effects occur only with the line task and not other physical stimuli
C) people only conform in the presence of people they know and like
D) all of the above

Question 10

Cross-cultural research on conformity shows that

A) conformity is much more important in the United States than in other cultures
B) conformity is more important in collectivist cultures than in individualist
Cultures
C) informational influence is most common in the United States
D) obedience is valued most in individualistic cultures

Question 11

People conform for two major reasons: to be ________ and to be ________.

A) consistent; in control
B) seen as intelligent; seen as popular
C) healthy; well adjusted
D) right; liked

Question 12

Pressure to conform that emanates from our assumption that others have knowledge we lack is called

A) obedience
B) acceptance
C) informational influence
D) normative influence

Question 13

The tendency to conform based on informational influence depends on how well-informed we believe the group is and

A) how much we like the group members
B) how physically attractive the group members are
C) how much we want to exercise personal control
D) how confident we are in our own judgment

Question 14

At a commencement ceremony, graduates who have received their diplomas return to their seats and wait to take their seats again. No one knows when to sit and, after looking around at what others are doing, everyone remains standing. This is an example of

A) informational influence
B) compliance
C) normative influence
D) the autokinetic phenomenon

Question 15

You are in a foreign country and have no idea what the proper etiquette is for introducing yourself to strangers. You see your host make a deep bow to a new acquaintance, so you do the same. This is an example of

A) normative influence
B) compliance
C) informational influence
D) the autokinetic effect

Question 16

Normative influence is defined as conformity to gain

A) self-esteem
B) control
C) social approval
D) all of the above

Question 17

Why do people conform?

A) informational influence
B) normative influence
C) desire to be seen as an individual
D) a and b

Question 18

If we change our behavior to conform to group norms, we may be likely to change our beliefs as well. This result of conformity would be predicted by

A) social learning theory
B) reactance theory
C) self-perception theory
D) cognitive dissonance theory

Question 19

Which of the following factors does NOT affect when people conform?

A) commitment to the group
B) group unanimity
C) the desire to differentiate one's self from others
D) norms of social responsibility

Question 20

In Asch's (1955) line judgment studies, the minimum number of people needed to produce maximum amounts of conformity was

A) 3
B) 6
C) 9
D) not consistent across different versions of the study

Question 21

Studies of the effect of group unanimity on conformity have shown that

A) conformity is reduced only when many people express dissenting opinions
B) conformity is reduced regardless of who the dissenter is
C) people usually conform to the majority opinion regardless of the number of
Dissenters
D) dissenters only reduce conformity in unambiguous situations

Question 22

Rachel is a member of her local swim team. Which of the following would be likely to increase Rachel's commitment to the group?

A) high morale among group members
B) having trained especially hard to make the team
C) having few other outside interests
D) all of the above

Question 23

A person who says that he or she would be willing to present a personal opinion on a controversial topic to a group of strangers is high in

A) psychological reactance
B) the need for conformity
C) compliance
D) the desire for individuation

Question 24

To be effective in changing the majority group opinion, a minority must be

A) attractive
B) informed
C) consistent
D) likable

Question 25

Research has shown that a minority will be most influential

A) when he or she differs in many respects from the majority
B) when he or she suggests a point of view, rather than advocating it forcefully
C) regardless of the logic of his or her arguments
D) when the issue is not very relevant to group members

Question 26

Maass and Clark (1984) found that the minority arguing for gay rights who was most influential with heterosexuals was

A) gay
B) heterosexual
C) unbiased
D) male

Question 27

The dual-process hypothesis argues that minority influence leads to changed attitudes through

A) systematic processing
B) peripheral route processing
C) compliance
D) obedience to authority

Question 28

Compliance is defined as

A) people willingly changing their behavior to be consistent with that of others
B) people doing what they are asked to do, even if they don't want to
C) people behaving in accordance with the requests of a legitimate authority figure
D) all of the above

Question 29

A person approaches others waiting in line to use a photocopying machine and asks to go first because "I have to make copies."Many will comply with the request due to

A) low self-esteem
B) psychological reactance
C) mindlessness
D) the low-ball technique

Question 30

Which of the following is NOT one of Raven's six bases of social power?

A) reward
B) expertise
C) legitimate authority
D) logic

Question 31

A boss who uses the hope of a big Christmas bonus as a way to encourage workers to put forth extra effort is using

A) referent power
B) legitimate authority
C) reward power
D) coercion

Question 32

A mother who wants to persuade her child to brush her teeth might say, "Your big brother Stan always brushes twice a day."This illustrates the use of

A) reward power
B) expertise power
C) legitimate authority
D) referent power

Question 33

Legitimate authority may be conveyed by

A) social roles
B) family ties
C) uniforms
D) all of the above

Question 34

Students who wear a school uniform because the administration requires it are engaging in

A) acceptance
B) compliance
C) conformity
D) obedience to legitimate authority

Question 35

A child throws down his pencil and yells, "I can't do it!"His mother steps in to help him finish writing his name. According to Raven, the child has

A) no power
B) negative referent power
C) the power of helplessness
D) the power of reciprocity

Question 36

A father gets tired of telling his son not to pull the books out of the bookcase and removes all the books from the lower shelves. The father is demonstrating

A) legitimate authority
B) environmental manipulation
C) negative referent power
D) the power of helplessness

Question 37

According to Richmond and McCroskey (1992), which two forms of influence are most effective in U.S. classrooms?

A) expert and referent
B) information and legitimate authority
C) reward and coercion
D) reward and information

Question 38

Which theory has been used to explain the effectiveness of the foot-in-the-door technique?

A) cognitive dissonance theory
B) social identity theory
C) reactance theory
D) self-perception theory

Question 39

A requester asks you for a big favor, but you refuse because it is too demanding. The requester than says, "Well, then, how about just doing this other little thing for me?"Relieved that this request is smaller, you quickly agree and feel better about yourself. You have just fallen for the ______ technique.

A) foot-in-the-door
B) door-in-the-face
C) bird-in-the-hand
D) that's-not-all

Question 40

You are about to go into the boss' office to negotiate for your yearly raise, when your co-worker advises you to "ask for the moon and then settle for less."Your co-worker is describing the

A) low-ball technique
B) door-in-the-face technique
C) foot-in-the-door technique
D) that's-not-all technique

Question 41

Both the foot-in-the-door and the door-in-the-face techniques work best when the request

A) is initially large
B) is made by a friend or acquaintance
C) involves prosocial behavior
D) all of the above

Question 42

A sales representative comes to your home and asks you to try a water filter system for a week, absolutely free, so you agree. He returns the next week and tells you that it will cost a substantial amount of money to permanently install the system. He is using

A) cognitive dissonance
B) the low-ball technique
C) the foot-in-the-door phenomenon
D) impression management

Question 43

A television "infomercial"Offers customers a new exercise bicycle for $198.00. Then viewers are informed that if they buy now, they will also receive a free video and stopwatch. This demonstrates the

A) pique technique
B) that's-not-all technique
C) door-in-the-face technique
D) low-ball technique

Question 44

A panhandler who wants to use the pique technique to get change from a passerby would say which of the following?

A) "Can you spare a quarter?"
B) "I need money for food."
C) "Do you know what time it is?"
D) "Can you spare 17 cents?"

Question 45

Reactance theory describes the tendency of some people to respond to influence techniques by

A) doing the opposite of what the influencer desires
B) doing more than the influencer requested
C) ignoring the influencer's requests
D) making their own request

Question 46

Bensley and Wu (1991) compared the effects of strongly and moderately worded anti-drinking messages. They found that

A) strongly worded messages were most effective with heavy drinkers
B) strongly worded messages were most effective with all subjects
C) students who heard the strongly worded message intended to drink more
D) students who heard the moderately worded message intended to drink more

Question 47

Soldiers following orders, parents getting their children vaccinated, and people following traffic laws are all engaging in

A) acceptance
B) compliance
C) conformity
D) obedience

Question 48

Which statement illustrates the "Eichmann defense"?

A) "I wanted to fit in."
B) "I was following orders."
C) "I was afraid to disagree."
D) "I assumed they were right."

Question 49

The Milgram experiments were designed to understand the issues involved in

A) conformity
B) referent power
C) informational influence
D) obedience to authority

Question 50

What percentage of subjects in the initial Milgram experiment continued shocking the "learner"To the final 450-volt level?

A) 15%
B) 35%
C) 65%
D) 85%

Question 51

Which factor was determined by Milgram to increase obedience?

A) placing the learner in the same room
B) reminding subjects of their own personal responsibility for their actions
C) having the experimenter in the room with the subject
D) the presence of a confederate who refused to obey

Question 52

Milgram found that subjects were more likely to obey the experimenter's requests to continue if they thought that

A) the victim was exaggerating
B) the experimenter had little authority
C) the experimenter was responsible
D) all of the above

Question 53

The "normality thesis"Refers to the belief that

A) obedience is a normal and adaptive response to authority
B) evil acts are not necessarily performed by abnormal people
C) obedience is often motivated by a desire to appear normal
D) normal people will refuse to obey when another is being harmed

Question 54

Milgram asked a sample of psychiatrists to guess what percentage of subjects would give the highest level of shock. The psychiatrists' prediction was

A) less than 1%
B) 25%
C) 65%
D) 95%

Question 55

Conformity is the tendency to change one's beliefs or behaviors to match the behaviors of others.

Question 56

Social psychologists use the terms compliance and conformity interchangeably.

Question 57

Sherif's autokinetic effect study was an illustration of informational influence.

Question 58

In the Asch line judgment study, subjects conformed approximately 50% of the time.

Question 59

When individuals are faced with a unanimous group decision, the pressure exerted by the majority is often strong enough to produce conformity.

Question 60

People conform, sometimes even when doing so means contradicting their own perceptions of the world.

Question 61

Overall, cultures around the world tend to be pretty similar in the value they place on conformity versus independence.

Question 62

Research shows that Americans tend not to conform to informational influence.

Question 63

Cross-cultural research has shown greater conformity to group norms in individualist cultures than in collectivist cultures.

Question 64

Informational influence occurs when we alter our behavior to conform to group norms or standards.

Question 65

Normative influence occurs when a person is uncertain of the correct response and so uses group behavior as a guide.

Question 66

Conformity usually increases as the size of the majority increases - at least up to a point.

Question 67

Asch concluded from his line judgment study that the optimum size of a unanimous majority for producing conformity is three or four people.

Question 68

The research on minority influence might be used to explain why totalitarian governments allow no dissent.

Question 69

In order to be successful in influencing the majority, a minority must be consistent and forceful.

Question 70

Contemporary social psychologists are in agreement that the processes by which majorities and minorities exert influence are essentially the same.

Question 71

Raven refers to the power that is generated by the persuasive content of a message as referent power.

Question 72

According to Raven, a group that we admire and identify with has referent power over us.

Question 73

Police have the power of legitimate authority to require a person to produce a driver's license.

Question 74

We are more willing to comply with a request when we are feeling sad than when we are feeling happy.

Question 75

Getting a person to agree to a small request first and a larger one later is known as the foot-in-the-door technique.

Question 76

When someone is asked to agree to something on the basis of incomplete information and is later told the full story it is referred to as the "that's-not-all"
technique.

Question 77

At the mall, the girl at a kiosk you pass asks you if you have natural nails. You are startled and stop to respond. You have just fallen prey to the pique technique.

Question 78

Reactance refers to people's attempts to restore their freedom when they feel it has been threatened.

Question 79

About a third of all the subjects in the Milgram obedience study continued to deliver shocks to the highest level.

Question 80

Psychologists predicted that over 60% of participants would deliver 450 volt shocks to another person in Milgram's study.