Deck 13: Social Psychology: Meeting of the Minds

Question 1

Which of the following terms is associated with social cognition?

A) using information
B) action
C) obedience
D) objective

Answer 1

using information

Question 2

You want to visit Argentina but your attitude about Argentina is changing as you read the news about the kidnappings that have occurred there. Which component of attitude is being affected?

A) affective
B) cognitive
C) behavioral
D) situational

Answer 2

cognitive

Question 3

Your attitudes are most likely to influence specific behaviors when the attitudes are __________.

A) only moderately important
B) relatively stable
C) not relevant to the behavior
D) difficult to access from memory

Answer 3

relatively stable

Question 4

An attitude has ______ major components.

A) one
B) two
C) three
D) four

Question 5

The three basic components of attitudes are ________, ________, and ________.

A) person; brain; group
B) effective; behavioral; personal
C) strength; consistency; duration
D) affective; behavioral; cognitive

Question 6

Which of the following is NOT one of the three major components of attitudes?

A) thoughts
B) feelings
C) goals
D) behaviors

Question 7

A state of tension that occurs when a person's attitudes do not match the person's actions is called __________.

A) cognitive dissonance
B) the validity effect
C) the fundamental attribution error
D) routinization

Question 8

If Professor Jameson is most interested in studying what you believe about an object or topic, then she is focusing on the ________ component of attitudes.

A) behavioral
B) affective
C) cognitive
D) informational

Question 9

An overall evaluation about some aspect of the world is known as a(n) ________.

A) opinion
B) belief
C) attitude
D) inference

Question 10

Social psychology differs from psychology in its focus on ______.

A) people's susceptibility to clever advertising
B) the influences of the social world in which we exist
C) abnormal behavior
D) conformity

Question 11

What do we call judgments about people, issues, or objects?

A) cognitions
B) stereotypes
C) attitudes
D) attributions

Question 12

When there is an inconsistency between an attitude and a behavior or two attitudes, the end result is usually ________.

A) cognitive dissonance
B) attitudinal confusion
C) persuasion
D) the mere exposure effect

Question 13

Roberta is trying to decide whether to vote for a political candidate. Based on what she has read about him, she has concluded that he is not qualified for the position, but she agrees with his political positions. Also, she trusts him and likes his decisive personality. In fact, she likes him so much that she sent a small donation to his campaign. Her trust of the candidate represents the ______ component of her attitude toward him.

A) affective
B) cognitive
C) behavioral
D) situational

Question 14

The field of ________ psychology primarily considers our thoughts and interactions with other people and groups.

A) clinical
B) personality
C) health
D) social

Question 15

Roberta is trying to decide whether or not to vote for a political candidate. Based on what she has read about him, she has concluded that he is not qualified for the position, but she agrees with his political positions. Also, she trusts him and likes his decisive personality. In fact, she likes him so much that she sent a small donation to his campaign. Her sending a donation to the campaign represents the ______ component of her attitude toward him.

A) affective
B) cognitive
C) behavioral
D) situational

Question 16

The two broad areas of focus in social psychology pertain to ________ and ________.

A) prejudice; discrimination
B) liking; hating
C) social cognition; social behavior
D) attitudes; beliefs

Question 17

Which of the following is the correct definition of cognitive dissonance?

A) a state of tension that occurs when a person's behavior does not correspond to the his or her attitude
B) the tendency for members of a group to avoid taking responsibility for their actions because they assume that others will do so
C) the tendency for members of a close-knit group to think alike for the sake of harmony and to suppress disagreement
D) a belief that a statement is true just because the person has heard it repeated over and over again

Question 18

A wide-sweeping opinion, either positive or negative, toward a certain person, idea, object, or situation is called _____________.

A) bystander apathy
B) an attitude
C) groupthink
D) conformity

Question 19

Which of the following is the best example of the behavioral component of an attitude?

A) Bea feels recycling is a great concept.
B) Bob is upset when he hears a corporation plans to build a polluting plant near his home.
C) Bill struggles to understand the arguments both sides present in a debate over a new manufacturing plant.
D) Betty writes a letter to her senator asking for support of a law making corporations responsible for the pollution they cause.

Question 20

Roberta is trying to decide whether to vote for a political candidate. Based on what she has read about him, she has concluded that he is not qualified for the position, but she agrees with his political positions. Also, she trusts him and likes his decisive personality. In fact, she likes him so much that she sent a small donation to his campaign. Her opinion that the candidate is not qualified represents the ______ component of her attitude toward him.

A) cognitive
B) feeling
C) intuition
D) behavioral

Question 21

Dr. Cirillo divided her first-period class into two groups. Group one had to read 20 pages in a boring psychology text but would get 2 extra points on the next test. Group two also read 20 pages but were given 25 points added to the next test. The class members were then asked to tell the second-period class how interesting the book was. According to the results of the Festinger and Carlsmith study, what predictions could one make about the remarks of the first-period class?

A) Both groups would say the pages were boring.
B) Group one would say the pages were boring but Group two would not.
C) Both groups would say the pages were interesting.
D) Group one would say the pages were interesting but Group two would say the pages were boring.

Question 22

In Festinger and Carlsmith's (1959) classic study on cognitive dissonance, participants who were paid $20 for doing a boring task, in contrast to those who were paid $1 for doing the same task, ________.

A) liked the task more
B) liked the task less
C) liked the task equally as much
D) were more likely to tell their friends to do the task

Question 23

Which of the following would result in cognitive dissonance?

A) I believe smoking is bad for my health; I love to smoke.
B) I believe exercising is healthy; I love to exercise.
C) I believe dresses are feminine; Nicole Kidman sometimes wears pants.
D) I believe profanity is childish; my father uses profanity.

Question 24

Central route is to peripheral route as ________.

A) careful is to superficial
B) superficial is to careful
C) right is to wrong
D) error is to correct

Question 25

A local car insurance company advertises their products with television commercials. During those spots, there are flashy lights, attractive dancers wearing skin-tight outfits, and local celebrities talking about how they have that company's insurance. The advertisement does not, however, mention any of the features or costs associated with the product. This company is attempting to earn customers through which path of processing?

A) central-route
B) tertiary-route
C) secondary-route
D) peripheral-route

Question 26

Which one of the following activities will NOT reduce cognitive dissonance?

A) changing the behavior to match the attitude
B) changing the thought to justify the behavior
C) developing new thoughts to justify the behavior
D) continuing the behavior in spite of the conflicting thoughts

Question 27

Which communicator would likely be the most persuasive?

A) an attractive person who is an expert
B) a moderately attractive person who is an expert
C) an attractive person who has moderate expertise
D) a moderately attractive person who has moderate expertise

Question 28

Due to the mere exposure effect, people often develop ________ attitudes about something through the ________ route.

A) positive; central
B) negative; central
C) positive; peripheral
D) negative; peripheral

Question 29

Which of the following would result in cognitive dissonance?

A) Wearing glasses is dignified; a respected political leader wears glasses.
B) Dresses are feminine; Britney Spears wears dresses.
C) Pink shirts are effeminate; Bruce Willis wears pink shirts.
D) Orange juice is healthy; I love orange juice.

Question 30

Persuasion is defined as ________.

A) encouraging an inconsistency between one's attitudes and behaviors
B) convincing an individual that he or she is holding the wrong views
C) an active attempt to change another person's attitudes
D) an automatic feeling about a topic or person

Question 31

What is the relationship between expertise and persuasion?

A) Expertise has no effect on persuasion.
B) Nonexperts tend to be the most persuasive.
C) Greater expertise leads to greater persuasion.
D) Communicators with moderate expertise are the most persuasive.

Question 32

The advice to "keep it simple stupid" suggests that political and other messages should be simple so that the audience will understand the content without distractions. This is an example of which type of processing suggested by the elaboration likelihood model?

A) under-route processing
B) peripheral-route processing
C) central-route processing
D) classic-route processing

Question 33

Carl tries to justify cheating on his taxes by saying "The government can always print more money." Carl's statement is most consistent with the dissonance reduction technique of________.

A) denying his immoral character
B) blaming the victim
C) minimizing his responsibility
D) disregarding the negative consequences

Question 34

Luis picks up a pack of cigarettes and reads, "Cigarette smoking is harmful to your health." Which one of the following statements leads one to believe Luis is actually having cognitive dissonance?

A) "I've been smoking my whole life and I don't have health problems."
B) "No one I know who smokes is sick."
C) "I know these cigarettes are killing me but I just can't stop."
D) "That is not true. Cigarettes are not that harmful."

Question 35

When George Bush said, "Everything in Iraq is going as planned. Trust me, I am the president," he was using what form of the elaboration likelihood model?

A) under-route processing
B) peripheral route processing
C) central-route processing
D) classic-route processing

Question 36

Which of the following is an example of cognitive dissonance?

A) You are a lousy cook but you keep trying different recipes.
B) You believe that reality TV is for morons but are addicted to American Idol and watch every episode.
C) You dislike doing exercise but do it anyway to improve your health.
D) You are polite and civil to people you dislike.

Question 37

Which of the following statements about persuasion is correct?

A) Fast speakers are less persuasive than slow speakers.
B) Arousal of strong emotions, such as fear, is not persuasive if the message includes specific advice about how to produce a positive outcome.
C) People with high self-esteem are more susceptible to persuasion.
D) People who are perceived as honest are more persuasive.

Question 38

An example of an indirect strategy designed to reduce cognitive dissonance would be ________.

A) trying to feel good about ourselves in other domains of life
B) changing our attitudes
C) changing our behaviors
D) obtaining additional information to support an attitude or behavior

Question 39

What process describes the use of social influence to cause other people to change their attitudes and behavior?

A) enticement
B) persuasion
C) conversion
D) affectance

Question 40

Social cognitive neuroscience __________.

A) attempts to understand social cognition by specifying the underlying mental events and their roots in the brain
B) is an oxymoron, because it is impossible to study both a mental and physiological phenomenon simultaneously
C) has demonstrated conclusively that our psychological and physiological processes function independently of each other
D) is a field that has yet to garner any real attention in the scientific community

Question 41

The Robber's Cave experiment showed that _____________.

A) playing athletic games, such as football and baseball, reduces us-them hostility
B) watching movies together, and similar quiet interactions, reduces us-them hostility
C) engaging in mutually exciting activities, such as tug-of-war, reduces us-them hostility
D) interdependence in solving crises together reduces us-them hostility

Question 42

There is currently a long history of fighting between the Israelis and Palestinians, and many attempts to resolve these conflicts have failed. According to the ____________ theory, the prejudice and discrimination that exists between the two groups will continue to rise as the conflict over limited land in Israel continues.

A) realistic conflict
B) social diffusion
C) prosocial inhibition
D) genesis of bias

Question 43

Why do we engage in the stereotyping of people?

A) to validate our assumptions
B) to help us perceive people more accurately
C) to reduce the amount of information we need to process
D) to provide more complete information about individuals

Question 44

Information that is inconsistent with our stereotypes is ________.

A) more likely to be remembered
B) generally attended to as much as information consistent with our stereotypes
C) more carefully processed
D) less likely to be remembered

Question 45

Prejudice is to discrimination as ________.

A) attitude is to behavior
B) behavior is to attitude
C) neutral is to negative
D) stereotype is to feeling

Question 46

According to social identity theory, individuals view their own group favorably so as to ________.

A) create prejudice toward members of the other group
B) think of themselves more favorably
C) promote their outgroup
D) expand the boundaries of social categorization

Question 47

Which term refers to a set of characteristics believed to be shared by all members of a particular group?

A) stereotype
B) expectation
C) classification
D) categorization

Question 48

A bank loan officer thinks people who speak with an accent are lazy; consequently, he refuses to grant them loans. The loan officer's belief is an example of _____ . His refusal to grant them loans is an example of _____.

A) discrimination; prejudice
B) stereotyping; attribution
C) attribution; stereotyping
D) prejudice; discrimination

Question 49

Which of the following is a true statement regarding stereotypes?

A) They are always negative.
B) They can be useful shortcuts.
C) They are general beliefs about people without regard for social category.
D) They are often accurate.

Question 50

Dave believes all college professors are irritable, impatient, and uninterested in whether students learn. His belief is an example of _______________.

A) consensus
B) impressions
C) an attitude
D) a stereotype

Question 51

Realistic conflict theory suggests that prejudice arises from ________.

A) learned behavior
B) competition over scarce resources
C) social categorization
D) self-fulfilling prophecies

Question 52

________ is a generally negative attitude toward members of a group.

A) A stereotype
B) An attribution
C) Prejudice
D) Discrimination

Question 53

The classic Robber's Cave study showed that prejudice can be reduced by ________.

A) mere exposure
B) relearning social norms
C) cooperating to meet a mutually beneficial goal
D) rethinking one's stereotypes

Question 54

An example of a research question that has been answered by social cognitive neuroscience is __________.

A) "What factors predict divorce?"
B) "When is an individual most likely to make an internal attribution?"
C) "How are we able to perceive depth?"
D) "Are there specific parts of the brain that are activated when one is experiencing cognitive dissonance?

Question 55

Ralph, a white student who grew up in Maine, is about to enter the University of Southern California on an athletic scholarship. He is aware that many of his teammates will be black and assumes that they will dislike him and ostracize him. Ralph's attitude is best described as an example of______.

A) prejudice
B) ambiguity
C) nonconformity
D) discrimination

Question 56

Prejudice is a(n) _________, whereas discrimination is a(n) ________.

A) dislike; hatred
B) hatred; dislike
C) behavior; attitude
D) attitude; behavior

Question 57

The issue of racial profiling has been a controversial topic in the United States for many years, and it was particularly widespread after the events of September 11, 2001. When an individual engages in profiling and assumes that one person must possess certain qualities because of their race or ethnicity, (s)he is engaging in _______.

A) attributing
B) discrimination
C) stereotyping
D) social loafing

Question 58

The realistic conflict theory focuses on conflict ______.

A) within an in-group
B) between two groups
C) within an out-group
D) between two members of an in-group

Question 59

Luther operates a small nightclub that specializes in soul music and features up-and-coming African American singing groups. He actively discourages white couples from coming in and always gives them the worst seats if they insist on being admitted. Luther's behavior is BEST described as an example of ______.

A) prejudice
B) ambiguity
C) discrimination
D) oppression

Question 60

"We" have all different types of personalities and lots of endearing little quirks, whereas "they" all think and act alike. This assumption would be an example of the cognitive schema called______________.

A) mindlessness
B) a stereotype
C) a fundamental attribution error
D) mental set

Question 61

Your best friend has been acting rather cool toward you lately. As you try to figure out why, you are engaging in the process called ________________.

A) attribution
B) causal analysis
C) ascribing values
D) nonverbal communication

Question 62

The social group viewed as the one a person identifies with is called a (an) ________.

A) pariah
B) ingroup
C) threat-group
D) outgroup

Question 63

Our tendency to interpret others' behavior as due to internal causes rather than external ones is called the ________.

A) self-serving bias
B) hostile attributional bias
C) fundamental attribution error
D) general attributional bias effect

Question 64

A group of Ray's friends have been waiting for Ray for an hour. One says, "He never remembers anything." Another says, "He's probably caught in rush hour traffic." What are these friends doing that might be of interest to a social psychologist?

A) They are making attributions.
B) They are reducing dissonance levels.
C) They are conforming to the group's norms.
D) They are forming initial impressions of Ray.

Question 65

Which of the following statements concerning social categorization is correct?

A) It occurs without conscious awareness.
B) It is deliberate and conscious.
C) People who do it tend to be young and naïve.
D) Social categorization is a relatively new phenomenon.

Question 66

An explanation for the cause of an event or behavior is called a(n) ________.

A) attitude
B) attribution
C) stereotype
D) prejudice

Question 67

"Look, Officer, I didn't see the stop sign back there because the sun was in my eyes." The police officer responds, "You were not paying attention." How would a social psychologist describe this situation?

A) Both individuals were making fundamental attribution errors.
B) Both individuals were making situational attributions.
C) The driver was making a dispositional attribution; the officer was making a situational attribution.
D) The driver was making a situational attribution; the officer was making a dispositional attribution.

Question 68

A social group of people viewed as competitors, enemies, or different and unworthy of respect is an example of a(n) ______.

A) pariah
B) ingroup
C) threat-group
D) outgroup

Question 69

If a person explains someone's behavior in terms of the situation, then they are making a(n)________ attribution.

A) external
B) correct
C) general
D) internal

Question 70

The jigsaw method has proven to be a very effective means of reducing prejudice and encouraging cooperation particularly in the context of ________.

A) legal settings
B) classrooms
C) political or governmental meetings
D) disputes among neighbors

Question 71

Which of the following is an example of an external attribution?

A) "I did a good job because I'm smart."
B) "I did a good job because the task was easy."
C) "I did a bad job because I'm inept."
D) "She did a good job because she's talented."

Question 72

Increased contact between two warring groups has a tendency to ________.

A) reinforce the belief that the outgroup is homogenous
B) solidify preexisting stereotypes
C) showcase similarities between the groups
D) prevent prejudicial beliefs from worsening at best

Question 73

Alex is standing in line at Wal-Mart waiting to pay for his purchases. A man cuts in front of the line and drops his items on the counter. Alex says to his friend, "That man is incredibly rude." A social psychologist who is within earshot jots down a note so she can use the example in class. What does she write concerning Alex?

A) he made a situational attribution
B) he made a dispositional attribution
C) his remark is based on a stereotype
D) his remark is considered a collectivistic remark

Question 74

The benefit of attributional biases is that they ________.

A) are nonexistent
B) rarely lead to errors
C) enhance our social relationships
D) lessen our cognitive load

Question 75

Which of the following is a way to reduce prejudice?

A) mutual interdependence
B) groupthink
C) scapegoating
D) diffusion of responsibility

Question 76

Which statement is the best explanation of the fundamental attribution error?

A) We attribute most of what people do to the influence of situations.
B) We rely on the first information we receive to make internal attributions.
C) We are more likely to attribute another's behavior to internal rather than to situational causes.
D) We tend to attribute our successes to our own efforts and failures to the shortcomings of others.

Question 77

Attributions are __________________.

A) explanations that account for one's own behaviors and/or the behaviors of others
B) innate personality traits
C) genetic predispositions to behave a certain way
D) physical qualities people have such as attractiveness

Question 78

The study of the judgments people make as to whether someone else's behavior is due to something about that person or due to the person's situation is called ______.

A) the primacy effect
B) cognitive dissonance
C) attribution theory
D) stereotyping

Question 79

When we make situational attributions we are identifying the cause of an action as something _________.

A) in the environment
B) in the person's disposition
C) that is a biological trait
D) with an unconscious motivation

Question 80

How does the jigsaw classroom operate?

A) Students compete to win a top award.
B) Students are each given a piece of information that must be shared to solve a problem.
C) Students are told that one student holds the key to solving a problem and they must find out who it is.
D) Students are all given separate puzzles to solve.