Question 1

Which of the following people is most likely to engage in self-esteem-protective cognitive strategies?
A) Alex, who received an A on his final exam
B) Cielle, who has just finished writing an essay about what happens after death
C) Chris, who has just finished writing an essay about the biggest success in his life
D) Yoko, who is from Japan and has just moved to the U.S.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following people is most...

Question 2

When Richard Nixon was elected to the U.S.House of Representatives,he attributed his victory to his personal strengths.When defeated by John Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election,however,Nixon's explanations focused on external reasons like the pro-Kennedy bias of the media.This is an example of
A) the fundamental attribution error.
B) the self-serving bias.
C) a self-fulfilling prophecy.
D) the actor-observer difference.

Accepted Answer

This is an example of the self-serving bias, which is the tendency for individuals to attribute their successes to internal factors (such as personal strengths or abilities) and their failures to external factors (such as biases or circumstances beyond their control). Nixon attributed his victory to his personal strengths (internal factor) but blamed his defeat on external factors such as the pro-Kennedy bias of the media.

Question 3

In a study on mortality salience,one group of students with Christian beliefs was made highly aware of their mortality by writing about what will happen to them when they die.In the control group,similar students completed a questionnaire that did not mention death.Researchers found that
A) students in the mortality salience condition experienced a rebound effect of higher self-esteem than students in the control group.
B) students in the mortality salience condition rated everyone unfavorably because of their depressed mood.
C) students in the mortality salience condition rated more favorably someone who validated their views than someone who did not.
D) students in the mortality salience condition became self-critical rather than self-enhancing.

Accepted Answer

Mortality salience often leads individuals to more strongly favor those who validate their worldview, as a way to manage the existential anxiety triggered by thoughts of death. This is consistent with Terror Management Theory, which suggests that cultural worldviews and self-esteem serve as a buffer against the fear of mortality.

Question 4

A healthy self-concept and self-esteem are benefited when we ________ ability to control important aspects of our lives.
A) forget that we have the
B) seldom have the
C) occasionally have the
D) believe in our

Accepted Answer

Believing in our ability to control important aspects of our lives can lead to a sense of agency and empowerment, which in turn can boost our self-concept and self-esteem. Forgetting, seldom having, or occasionally having control would not have the same positive impact.

Question 5

Downward social comparison helps people ________,whereas upward social comparison helps people ________.
A) conserve mental energy; reduce their stress
B) be accurate; enhance their self-esteem
C) achieve goals; conserve effort
D) feel better about themselves; work toward self-improvement

Accepted Answer

Downward social comparison, where individuals compare themselves to those they consider to be worse off, can boost self-esteem and make them feel better about their own situation. Upward social comparison, on the other hand, involves comparing oneself to those perceived as better off, which can motivate individuals to improve themselves and work toward personal goals.

Question 6

Who is most likely to enhance and protect his/her personal self-esteem?
A) a Canadian citizen
B) a Chinese citizen
C) a Japanese citizen
D) All of these people are equally likely to enhance and protect their personal self-esteem.

Accepted Answer

In individualistic cultures like Canada, personal self-esteem is often emphasized and individuals are encouraged to enhance and protect it. In contrast, collectivist cultures like China and Japan may focus more on group harmony and interdependence rather than individual self-esteem.

Question 7

As a self-enhancement strategy,people tend to value quite highly those characteristics and abilities that
A) prominent leaders possess.
B) they don't possess.
C) they happen to possess.
D) are made salient by the media.

Accepted Answer

People tend to value highly those characteristics and abilities that they personally possess as part of a self-enhancement strategy, which helps to boost their self-esteem and self-image.

Question 8

People who have ________ are greatly concerned with the self-implications of life's everyday events and are particularly likely to respond to these events with attempts to enhance or protect the self.
A) high self-esteem
B) low self-esteem
C) unstable self-esteem
D) self-esteem based on the perceptions of specific others

Accepted Answer

Unstable self-esteem is characterized by significant fluctuations in how individuals perceive themselves, leading them to be more sensitive to life's events in terms of their self-view. This sensitivity often results in heightened efforts to protect or enhance their self-esteem in response to daily occurrences.

Question 9

Is positive self-regard a universal desire? A recent study by Sedikides,Gaertner,and Toguchi (2003)found that
A) members of collectivistic countries self-enhance less than members of individualistic countries.
B) members of collectivistic countries and members of individualistic countries both self-enhance on traits valued by their respective cultures.
C) members of collectivistic countries self-enhance more than members of individualistic countries.
D) members of collectivistic countries self-enhance just as much as members of individualistic countries, but they do so in a more secret manner.

Accepted Answer

The study found that both collectivistic and individualistic cultures engage in self-enhancement, but they do so on traits that are valued within their respective cultures.

Question 10

As an example of the self-serving bias,researchers who reviewed newspaper articles regarding sports contests found that coaches tended to explain victories in terms of ________ and defeats in terms of ________.
A) home-court advantage; unfair referees
B) supportive fans; a lack of teamwork
C) their team's luck; the other team's abilities
D) their team's ability; the other team's luck

Accepted Answer

This follows the pattern of the self-serving bias, where individuals tend to attribute their successes to their own abilities and efforts, while their failures are attributed to external factors such as luck or the actions of others. In this case, coaches attribute victories to their own team's ability, but attribute defeats to the other team's luck.

Question 11

Taking personal credit for successes and blaming external forces for our failures is called the
A) actor-observer difference.
B) self-serving bias.
C) correspondence bias.
D) fundamental attribution error.

Accepted Answer

The self-serving bias refers to the tendency for individuals to take personal credit for successes and attribute failures to external factors, such as luck or the actions of others. This bias allows individuals to protect their self-esteem and maintain a positive self-image. The other options refer to different biases, such as the actor-observer difference (attributing behavior based on the situation or person), correspondence bias (attributing behavior to personality traits rather than situational factors), and fundamental attribution error (overestimating dispositional attributions and underestimating situational factors).

Question 12

During a five-game winning streak,Coach Kay attributed the victories to teamwork and good coaching.However,during a six-game losing streak,she attributed the losses to bad luck and unfair referees.Coach Kay's pattern of attributions is an example of the
A) delusion of control.
B) fundamental attribution error.
C) actor-observer difference.
D) self-serving bias.

Accepted Answer

Coach Kay's pattern of attributions, where she attributes success to internal factors (teamwork and good coaching) and failures to external factors (bad luck and unfair referees), is an example of self-serving bias. This bias is common among individuals who want to protect their self-esteem, and it allows them to take credit for their successes while avoiding blame for their failures.

Question 13

Uyen has an A-minus grade point average.She compares herself to her roommate who has an A grade point average in order to motivate herself to study even harder.Uyen has made a/an
A) self-serving attribution.
B) upward social comparison.
C) downward social comparison.
D) other-serving attribution.

Accepted Answer

Uyen is engaging in upward social comparison by comparing herself to someone who has a higher GPA than her. This can motivate her to work harder and strive for better grades.

Question 14

Which of the following people is most likely to make self-serving attributions?
A) a person from a collectivistic country
B) a person with a stable low self-esteem
C) a person with an unstable high self-esteem
D) none of the above

Accepted Answer

People with unstable high self-esteem are more likely to make self-serving attributions, as they are motivated to maintain their self-esteem and may attribute their successes to internal factors while blaming external factors for their failures. People from collectivistic cultures are typically less individualistic and may be more likely to make attributions based on social factors rather than personal ones. A person with stable low self-esteem may have more negative views of themselves and may attribute both successes and failures to internal factors.

Question 15

Gabriel participated in a study where he was given an IQ test described as an excellent predictor of future academic and financial success.Gabriel performed poorly on the test.Gabriel is likely to attribute his low scores to
A) bad luck, thereby misapplying the representativeness heuristic.
B) the invalidity of the test, thereby protecting his self-esteem.
C) unclear instructions, thereby making the fundamental attribution error.
D) his own ability, thereby demonstrating the actor-observer bias.

Accepted Answer

Gabriel is likely to protect his self-esteem by attributing his low scores to the invalidity of the test rather than to his own ability. This is a common defensive attribution pattern known as the self-serving bias.

Question 16

A person says,"I'm going to pick my own numbers for the lottery because it gives me a better chance of winning." This person is creating for himself/herself
A) a better chance of winning.
B) a worse chance of winning.
C) the perception of control.
D) a locus of power.

Accepted Answer

The person is creating the perception of control by choosing their own numbers, but it does not actually increase their chances of winning. The odds of winning the lottery are purely based on chance, and choosing certain numbers does not give any advantage over others.

Question 17

When we are motivated to be accurate,we are likely to
A) judge our own behavior as caused by situational factors.
B) rely on cognitive shortcuts.
C) gather more information than normal.
D) focus on enhancing our self-image.

Accepted Answer

When we are motivated to be accurate, we tend to process information more thoroughly and carefully, which often involves gathering more information than normal. This motivation for accuracy can come from a variety of factors, such as a desire to make a good impression or a personal investment in the outcome. However, it does not lead to relying on cognitive shortcuts (B) or enhancing our self-image (D), as these are more characteristic of motivations for self-enhancement or efficiency. Additionally, judging our own behavior as caused by situational factors (A) may reflect a motivation for self-justification or external attribution, rather than accuracy.

Question 18

People who have high self-esteem engage in ________,whereas people who have low self-esteem tend to focus on ________.
A) a variety of direct self-enhancing strategies; protecting the esteem they have
B) protecting the esteem they have; a variety of self-enhancing strategies
C) downward social comparison; exaggerating their strengths
D) seeking accuracy; social comparison

Accepted Answer

People with high self-esteem tend to engage in a variety of direct self-enhancing strategies, such as pursuing challenges, seeking out positive feedback, and celebrating their successes, which serves to enhance their self-esteem even further. On the other hand, people with low self-esteem tend to focus on protecting the low self-esteem they already have and may avoid challenging themselves or seeking out positive feedback.

Question 19

When postoperative hospital patients are given responsibility for giving themselves pain-killing drugs,
A) they experience too much stress from the responsibility.
B) they typically give themselves higher doses of the painkiller than doctors would prescribe.
C) they often have a quicker recovery.
D) they often report experiencing more pain.

Accepted Answer

Studies have found that patients who have control over their pain management have a quicker recovery and require less medication overall compared to those who rely solely on healthcare providers for pain relief. This approach, called patient-controlled analgesia (PCA), has been shown to be safe and effective in managing postoperative pain. Patients who use PCA also typically report feeling more in control and experience less anxiety and stress related to managing their pain.

Question 20

Which of the following statements about high self-esteem people (relative to low self-esteem people)is FALSE?
A) High self-esteem people are more likely to use social comparison to boost their esteem.
B) High self-esteem people are more likely to put down others to feel better about themselves.
C) High self-esteem people are more likely to exaggerate their sense of control.
D) High self-esteem people are more likely to avoid using the self-serving bias.

Accepted Answer

High self-esteem individuals are actually more likely to engage in the self-serving bias, which involves attributing positive events to their own character but attributing negative events to external factors. This bias helps maintain or enhance their self-esteem. Therefore, the statement that they are more likely to avoid using the self-serving bias is false.

Quiz 3: Social Cognition: Understanding Ourselves and Others

Which of the following people is most likely to engage in self-esteem-protective cognitive strategies?

When Richard Nixon was elected to the U.S.House of Representatives,he attributed his victory to his personal strengths.When defeated by John Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election,however,Nixon's explanations focused on external reasons like the pro-Kennedy bias of the media.This is an example of

In a study on mortality salience,one group of students with Christian beliefs was made highly aware of their mortality by writing about what will happen to them when they die.In the control group,similar students completed a questionnaire that did not mention death.Researchers found that

A healthy self-concept and self-esteem are benefited when we ________ ability to control important aspects of our lives.

Downward social comparison helps people ,whereas upward social comparison helps people .

Who is most likely to enhance and protect his/her personal self-esteem?

As a self-enhancement strategy,people tend to value quite highly those characteristics and abilities that

People who have ________ are greatly concerned with the self-implications of life's everyday events and are particularly likely to respond to these events with attempts to enhance or protect the self.

Is positive self-regard a universal desire? A recent study by Sedikides,Gaertner,and Toguchi (2003) found that

As an example of the self-serving bias,researchers who reviewed newspaper articles regarding sports contests found that coaches tended to explain victories in terms of and defeats in terms of .

Taking personal credit for successes and blaming external forces for our failures is called the

During a five-game winning streak,Coach Kay attributed the victories to teamwork and good coaching.However,during a six-game losing streak,she attributed the losses to bad luck and unfair referees.Coach Kay's pattern of attributions is an example of the

Uyen has an A-minus grade point average.She compares herself to her roommate who has an A grade point average in order to motivate herself to study even harder.Uyen has made a/an

Which of the following people is most likely to make self-serving attributions?

Gabriel participated in a study where he was given an IQ test described as an excellent predictor of future academic and financial success.Gabriel performed poorly on the test.Gabriel is likely to attribute his low scores to

A person says,"I'm going to pick my own numbers for the lottery because it gives me a better chance of winning." This person is creating for himself/herself

When we are motivated to be accurate,we are likely to

People who have high self-esteem engage in ,whereas people who have low self-esteem tend to focus on .

When postoperative hospital patients are given responsibility for giving themselves pain-killing drugs,

Which of the following statements about high self-esteem people (relative to low self-esteem people) is FALSE?