Question 1

A variable other than the variable intended to be manipulated that may be responsible for an observed effect is called a(n) _____.

Accepted Answer

A confound is an extraneous variable that is not controlled for in a study and may be responsible for an observed effect. The other options are not applicable in this context.

Question 2

An experiment is specifically a study in which a researcher:

Accepted Answer

An experiment specifically involves the manipulation of an independent variable by the researcher, while observing its effect on a dependent variable. Choices A, B, and C describe other types of research designs.

Question 3

Dispositions are defined as:

Accepted Answer

Dispositions refer to consistent patterns of preferences, ways of thinking, and behavior that are exhibited across different situations and over time. Dispositions can include personality traits, values, and attitudes, among other things. Choices A, B, and C do not accurately reflect the definition of dispositions.

Question 4

A researcher manipulates a person's level of death anxiety by showing some participants footage of a gruesome car accident. In this study, footage of the car wreck is the _____ and death anxiety is the _____.

Accepted Answer

The answer of A researcher manipulates a person's level of...

Question 5

Which of the following is NOT an official ethical requirement for research with human subjects?

Accepted Answer

While it is a good practice to solicit and incorporate participant feedback and opinions, it is not an official ethical requirement. The other options listed (confidentiality, IRB approval, informed consent) are all required by institutional review boards and ethical guidelines for research with human subjects.

Question 6

_____ refers to the possibility that the association between two variables is driven by their mutual association with another variable, whereas _____ refers to the difficulty in determining which variable influences the other in a correlation.

Accepted Answer

Third variable refers to the possibility that the association between two variables is driven by their mutual association with another variable. Reverse causality refers to the difficulty in determining which variable influences the other in a correlation.

Question 7

Humans interpret events and experiences through a lens of symbols (e.g., language) that are largely inherited from the prior generations that created and built upon them. For this reason, humans can be uniquely referred to as:

Accepted Answer

The fact that humans interpret events and experiences through a lens of symbols inherited from prior generations suggests a strong connection to culture. Therefore, humans can be best referred to as "cultural animals".

Question 8

Which of the following assumptions is one of the four core assumptions of social psychology?

Accepted Answer

Social psychology assumes that all human thought is inherently social, meaning that our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the social context and interactions with others.

Question 9

A researcher finds a positive correlation between a measure of community involvement and a measure of life satisfaction. How should we interpret the relationship between these variables?

Accepted Answer

A positive correlation between two variables means that as one variable increases, so does the other variable. In this case, as community involvement increases, so does life satisfaction. Therefore, the higher a person scores on involvement, the higher they tend to score on life satisfaction.

Question 10

Which of the following is NOT one of the major perspectives that provide an integrated view of human social behavior in contemporary social psychology?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following is NOT one...

Question 11

Compared to other early approaches to human behavior in psychology, social psychology has always tended to emphasize _____.

Accepted Answer

Social psychology has always tended to emphasize the interaction between situational forces and an individual's understanding of those forces based on personal characteristics. This means that social psychologists believe that people's behavior is influenced by the situation they are in as well as their personal characteristics and perception of the situation. This emphasis on the interaction between person and situation is a key feature of social psychology and distinguishes it from other early approaches to human behavior in psychology that focused more on internal factors like unconscious drives or instincts.

Question 12

Describe the three major perspectives on human behavior that were prominent prior to the rise of social psychology. What did each of these perspectives primarily emphasize as the explanatory force driving social behavior?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Describe the three major perspectives on human...

Question 13

In an experiment, an interaction is defined as:

Accepted Answer

An interaction occurs when the effect of one independent variable on a dependent variable depends on the level of another independent variable. This means that the relationship between the independent variable and dependent variable changes based on different levels of another independent variable. Therefore, option A is the correct choice. Option B refers to a correlation, not an interaction. Option C refers to a mean difference, which does not necessarily indicate an interaction. Option D describes experimenter bias, which is not related to an interaction.

Question 14

The tendency to process information to conform to what we desire and expect is referred to as:

Accepted Answer

The tendency to process information to conform to what we desire and expect is known as confirmation bias, which is the inclination to search for, interpret, and recall information in a way that confirms our preexisting assumptions and beliefs.

Question 15

In the scientific method, _____ generate _____ which are proposed relationships between variables that should be observable.

Accepted Answer

Theories generate hypotheses. A theory is a well-substantiated explanation acquired through the scientific method that logically leads to the generation of hypotheses. These hypotheses are then testable predictions or propositions about how variables are related, which can be supported or refuted through experimentation or further observation.

Question 16

Explanations that people give for their behavior, acquired from culture or situationally salient factors, are referred to as:

Accepted Answer

Explanations that people give for their behavior, acquired from culture or situationally salient factors, are referred to as a priori causal theories.

Question 17

Social psychology is defined as _____.

Accepted Answer

Social psychology is the scientific study of how people think, feel, and behave in social situations. It focuses on the individual's perspective within a group, analyzing how that person's thoughts, feelings, and actions are influenced by other group members. It also examines how the individual's thoughts, feelings, and actions can, in turn, influence others within the group.

Question 18

Researchers observe the number of people who go to a bar alone on the days before and after Valentine's Day. They find that the number of people increases leading up to Valentine's Day, drops significantly on Valentine's Day, and then rises quickly back up again on the day afterwards. This is best conceptualized as an example of:

Accepted Answer

This is an example of field research, as the researchers observed and analyzed the behavior and trends of people in a real-world setting (a bar) over a specific period of time (the days before and after Valentine's Day). This study was not experimental in nature because the researchers did not manipulate any variables, nor was it longitudinal because it did not involve tracking the same people over a longer period of time. It also was not pilot research, since it was not conducted as a preliminary study to inform the design of a larger-scale research project.

Question 19

When participants are assigned to experimental conditions in such a way that they have an equal chance of being in any condition, this is called _____.

Accepted Answer

Random assignment is the process of assigning participants to experimental conditions in a way that every participant has an equal chance of being in any condition. This helps to minimize the effects of extraneous variables and increases the chances of making valid causal inferences about the effects of the independent variable on the dependent variable. Experimental control refers to the ability to manipulate and control the variables in an experiment. Quasi-experimental design refers to a type of research design that lacks random assignment, whereas random sampling refers to the process of randomly selecting participants from a population to be included in a study.

Question 20

A researcher conducts a study in which students in Germany and in the United States are asked to rate the extent to which they would be disappointed if they weren't accepted into the college of their choice. The researcher predicts that there will be differences between the two groups of students on these variables. This study is best characterized as:

Accepted Answer

This study is a quasi-experiment because the researcher is comparing two groups of students (in Germany and the United States), but cannot randomly assign participants to each group. Additionally, the researcher is predicting that there will be differences between the two groups, which suggests that this is not just a descriptive study (correlational) or a study in which the researcher is manipulating an independent variable (experiment). Finally, there is no mention of collecting data at multiple time points (longitudinal research).

Quiz 1: The Revealing Science of Social Psychology