Question 1

Recall that a group of researchers interviewed people who had suffered the loss of a spouse or child. They found that the more __________, the more distress the survivors reported.

Accepted Answer

The researchers found that the more easily the survivors could imagine how the death could have been prevented, the more distress they reported, likely due to feelings of regret or guilt.

Question 2

Recall Medvec and her colleagues' (1995) study of the emotions experienced by Olympic athletes who won bronze and silver medals. If silver medalists outperformed bronze medalists, why were they less happy?

Accepted Answer

According to Medvec et al. (1995), silver medalists were less happy than bronze medalists because they were more likely to focus on the missed opportunity to win gold, whereas bronze medalists were just happy to have won a medal at all. Silver medalists were closer to achieving their ultimate goal of winning gold, so the disappointment of falling short was more pronounced. In contrast, bronze medalists were further from achieving that goal and may have been more content with their achievement.

Question 3

At the grocery store, mothers often keep children busy by letting them "drive" the cart. Little do the children realize that the steering wheel they are playing with does not control anything. This example demonstrates our sometimes misplaced sense of control over __________.

Accepted Answer

The example given highlights our misplaced sense of control over free will and our own behavior. The children believe they are steering the cart, but in reality, they have no control over where it goes. This is similar to how we often believe we have complete control over our own behavior and choices, despite the influence of external factors and our subconscious.

Question 4

In a study on facilitated communication, headphones were used to ask the communication-impaired person one question and the facilitator a different question (unbeknownst to the two parties). Then the answers provided by the communication-impaired person with the help of the facilitator were examined. Findings indicated that the technique was __________.

Accepted Answer

The study found that the technique of facilitated communication was ineffective. The communication-impaired person and their facilitator were asked different questions, but the facilitators answered the question they were asked and believed they were answering the question asked of the communication-impaired person. This suggests that the facilitators were not effectively communicating the answers of their partners, and may have been unconsciously influencing or even controlling their responses.

Question 5

Wegner (2002, 2004) compared the illusion of free will to which of the following?

Accepted Answer

Wegner compared the illusion of free will to the "correlation does not equal causation" problem, meaning that people often assume that their choices and actions are the cause of certain outcomes when there may be other factors at play.

Question 6

Tom and Julius are both in line for a movie, but it sells out before either of them can get tickets. Tom is the last person in line, but Julius is directly behind the person who got the last ticket. Based on the idea of counterfactual reasoning, why will Julius be more upset than Tom?

Accepted Answer

Counterfactual reasoning refers to imagining alternative scenarios and outcomes that could have happened, but did not. In this case, since Julius was directly behind the person who got the last ticket, it is easier for him to imagine how he could have gotten the ticket if he had just been a little faster or if the person in front of him had hesitated. Tom, on the other hand, was the last person in line and may feel like there was nothing he could have done differently to get a ticket. Therefore, Julius is more likely to feel regret and frustration from imagining the missed opportunity.

Question 7

A mother who has tragically lost a daughter in a car accident spends her days rehearsing "if onlys." "If only I had made her stay home that night"; "If only she had taken Route 78 instead of Route 22"; "If only I had offered to chauffeur her instead of letting her drive herself." The mother is engaging in the process known as __________.

Accepted Answer

The mother is engaging in counterfactual thinking, which involves imagining how past events could have turned out differently if different actions had been taken. She is imagining different scenarios and outcomes based on different choices she or her daughter could have made.

Question 8

What is the major advantage of processing information automatically?

Accepted Answer

Processing information automatically frees up our cognitive resources so we can focus on other important matters.

Question 9

Based on your reading of Chapter 3 (Social Cognition), who would you predict would be more frustrated: Katie, who missed an A by one point, or James, who missed an A by five points?

Accepted Answer

Katie would likely be more frustrated because it's easier for her to imagine a scenario where she could have earned just one more point to get an A, making her situation seem almost successful but just out of reach. This concept is related to counterfactual thinking in social cognition, where individuals imagine alternative outcomes that could have happened, often feeling stronger emotions about situations that were close to a different outcome.

Question 10

Which of the following is NOT true about the difference between automatic and controlled thinking? Automatic thinking tends to be __________, whereas controlled thinking tends to be __________.

Accepted Answer

The statement "automatic thinking tends to be inaccurate, whereas controlled thinking tends to be accurate" is not true. Both types of thinking can be either accurate or inaccurate depending on the situation and the individual's cognitive processes. The other three statements are true: automatic thinking is nonconscious, unintentional, and involuntary, while controlled thinking is conscious, intentional, and voluntary.

Question 11

People tend to have __________ emotional reactions the __________ it is to "mentally undo" an outcome.

Accepted Answer

The closer an outcome is in time, the stronger the emotional reaction tends to be. It is also easier to mentally undo outcomes that are recent or fresh in our minds.

Question 12

Assume that the winning lottery ticket was purchased at the convenience store just around the corner from your house. According to research on counterfactual thinking, you would probably feel worse than if the winning ticket had been purchased all the way across the state, because __________.

Accepted Answer

According to research on counterfactual thinking, people tend to imagine alternative scenarios that could have led to different outcomes. In this case, if the winning lottery ticket was purchased at a convenience store just around the corner from your house, it would be easy to imagine how your life could have been different if you had just bought a ticket on a different day or at a different time. This kind of thinking can lead to regret, disappointment or frustration.

Question 13

It is __________ to miss a bus by five minutes than to miss it by an hour because __________.

Accepted Answer

Missing a bus by a mere five minutes is often more distressing because it's easier to imagine the small changes you could have made to catch it, such as leaving a few minutes earlier or walking a bit faster, which can lead to feelings of frustration or regret.

Question 14

When Jana was chiding herself for losing her favorite necklace and reciting a list of all the things she could have done to prevent the loss, her grandmother said, "Now, Jana. Don't cry over spilled milk." In essence, Jana's grandmother was advising her to __________.

Accepted Answer

Jana's grandmother was advising her to stop engaging in counterfactual thinking, which is when someone imagines alternative outcomes to what actually happened and then dwells on what could have been. The phrase "don't cry over spilled milk" is commonly used to encourage people to not worry about things that have already happened and cannot be changed.

Question 15

You were supposed to make an important presentation at work but you overslept, the bus was late, and you missed the meeting. If you are able to generate many ways in which to "undo" this terrible outcome, you will experience __________ emotional reaction.

Accepted Answer

Generating many ways to "undo" the outcome can lead to a strong emotional reaction because it highlights the missed opportunities and increases feelings of regret or frustration.

Question 16

The textbook discusses facilitated communication, a technique that has been touted as allowing communication-impaired people to express themselves via a keyboard operated with the help of a facilitator. In fact, the technique __________.

Accepted Answer

Facilitated communication was discredited by scientific evidence showing that facilitators were, often unknowingly, the ones generating the responses attributed to the communication-impaired individuals.

Question 17

When Ashley first starts typing, she uses the "hunt and peck" method and finds typing very effortful. Now, after taking a typing class, she feels like her papers practically type themselves, once she figures out what she wants to say. This change in her typing reflects a shift from __________.

Accepted Answer

The "hunt and peck" method requires conscious thought and effort to locate and press each key. This is an example of controlled thinking. After taking a typing class, Ashley has likely developed automaticity in typing, allowing her to type without consciously thinking about each key she needs to press. This shift from controlled to automatic thinking is reflected in her improved typing ability.

Question 18

In short, counterfactual thinking can be described as __________.

Accepted Answer

Counterfactual thinking involves mentally reconstructing the past and imagining alternative outcomes to events that have already taken place, often "what if" scenarios. It does not necessarily involve putting a positive spin on things or assuming things couldn't have turned out differently. While it may be a rational response, it is not necessarily the "most rational" response to an undesirable outcome as there are other coping mechanisms and strategies that could be utilized.

Question 19

Researchers had college students read statements about the existence or absence of free will. They were interested in the impact of __________ on the students' willingness to cheat on rewarding themselves for accuracy on an exam.

Accepted Answer

The researchers were interested in the impact of belief in free will on the students' willingness to cheat or reward themselves, which suggests that the answer is B. The other options, while potentially related to cheating behavior or decision-making, are not the specific focus of the study described.

Question 20

You stayed up all night cramming for this examination and didn't do as well as you had hoped. "If only I had started studying sooner and gotten a good night's rest, I'd have done much better," you think to yourself. You have just engaged in __________.

Accepted Answer

This scenario describes counterfactual thinking, which involves imagining different outcomes of past events and considering how things might have turned out differently. The person is imagining a different outcome (doing better on the exam) and considering the alternative actions they could have taken (starting to study earlier and getting a good night's rest). Self-justification involves rationalizing or defending one's own actions or decisions, and wish fulfillment and unrealistic fantasy both involve imagining positive outcomes without a basis in reality.

Quiz 3: Social Cognition: How We Think About the Social World