Question 1

Bella is a teacher who suspects that a student is trying to deceive her. Under which of the following conditions does Bella have the best chance of being accurate in her attempts to detect whether or not the student is lying?

Accepted Answer

Asking someone to recount their story in reverse chronological order increases cognitive load, making it more difficult for liars to maintain consistency in their fabricated stories, thereby improving the chances of detecting deception.

Question 2

What is the purpose of an emoticon?

Accepted Answer

Emoticons are used to convey nonlinguistic communication, such as emotions or facial expressions, in text form.

Question 3

A group of theories that describe how people explain the causes of behavior is known as

Accepted Answer

Attribution theory is a group of theories that describe how individuals infer the causes of their own and others' behavior. It focuses on understanding how people explain events and how this affects their thinking and behavior.

Question 4

The importance of nonverbal behavior to social perception can be seen by the fact that e-mail messages

Accepted Answer

Nonverbal cues, such as tone of voice and facial expressions, are absent in email, making it easier for humor or sarcasm to be misinterpreted compared to communication methods that include these cues.

Question 5

The term "gaze disengagement" tends to lead perceivers to

Accepted Answer

The answer of The term "gaze disengagement" tends to lead...

Question 6

Jerry makes frequent eye contact with the person to whom he is talking. This is most likely to elicit a(n)

Accepted Answer

Eye contact can be interpreted in various ways depending on its nature (e.g., intensity, duration) and the social or cultural context. It doesn't solely convey dominance, insecurity, or vary strictly based on the gender of the person being addressed.

Question 7

The "anger superiority effect" states that angry faces are detected more efficiently than friendly faces by people who

Accepted Answer

The "anger superiority effect" refers to the phenomenon where individuals are quicker and more accurate at detecting angry faces in a crowd compared to neutral or happy faces. This is believed to be an evolutionary adaptation for threat detection.

Question 8

Cross-cultural differences in the perception of nonverbal behavior are least prevalent in which of the following types of judgments?

Accepted Answer

Evaluations of emotions and facial features are considered to be the most universal aspect of nonverbal communication, with basic emotions such as happiness, sadness, anger, fear, surprise, and disgust being recognized across different cultures.

Question 9

In 1965, Jones and Davis suggested that people prefer to make internal attributions because

Accepted Answer

Jones and Davis's theory suggests that people prefer internal attributions because they believe these attributions are more useful for predicting future behavior.

Question 10

Deception is most likely to be detected by attending to which channel of communication?

Accepted Answer

Voice pitch is often a reliable indicator of deception, as changes in pitch can occur when a person is lying due to stress or nervousness.

Question 11

Which of the following assertions is supported by research on deception?

Accepted Answer

Research indicates that cues from body movements can be more revealing of deception than facial expressions, as people are generally better at controlling their facial expressions than their body movements. Facial expressions can be easily manipulated, making them less reliable indicators of deception compared to involuntary body language.

Question 12

What is the adaptive significance of being able to identify the emotion of disgust in others' faces?

Accepted Answer

Identifying the emotion of disgust in others can serve as a warning mechanism, particularly in contexts related to food. When someone displays disgust, it might indicate that a food is potentially harmful or contaminated, thus helping observers to avoid consuming something that could lead to food poisoning. This adaptive response has likely evolved to enhance survival by preventing illness.

Question 13

What do psychologists mean by the term "thin slices?"

Accepted Answer

Thin slices refer to the concept that people can make accurate judgments based on very brief snippets of behavior or information.

Question 14

A meta-analysis conducted by Elfenbein and Ambady (2002) found that the emotion that is most accurately judged across cultures on facial expressions is

Accepted Answer

Happiness is the emotion most accurately judged across cultures on facial expressions, as found by Elfenbein and Ambady (2002) in their meta-analysis. This is because expressions of happiness tend to be universally recognized and understood, making it easier for people from different cultural backgrounds to accurately interpret this emotion.

Question 15

According to cross-cultural research on perception of emotion conducted by Elfenbein and Ambady (2002),

Accepted Answer

Elfenbein and Ambady's research found that while people can perceive emotions across cultural lines, they are more accurate at interpreting the emotions of those from their own cultural background. This suggests a cultural specificity in understanding emotional expressions.

Question 16

____ gets activated when we sniff a disgusting odor as well as when we watch others sniffing the disgusting odor.

Accepted Answer

The insula is activated both when we experience a disgusting odor ourselves and when we observe others experiencing it. This brain region is involved in processing emotions and empathetic responses, among other functions.

Question 17

Which of the following research findings is most consistent with Darwin's hypothesis that the ability to interpret emotion from facial expressions has survival value?

Accepted Answer

Darwin's hypothesis suggests that interpreting emotions, especially those signaling potential threats like anger, has survival value. Recognizing angry faces better than happy faces aligns with this idea, as it could help individuals respond to potential threats more effectively.

Question 18

____ is not considered to be a primary emotion.

Accepted Answer

Anxiousness is not considered a primary emotion because primary emotions are thought to be universal and innate, including sadness, fear, and anger. Anxiousness is more complex and can be seen as stemming from these primary emotions.

Question 19

Why are we not very successful at detecting deception?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Why are we not very successful at...

Question 20

According to Ekman and O'Sullivan's (1991) research, who would be able to detect a liar accurately?

Accepted Answer

Ekman and O'Sullivan's research found that U.S. Secret Service agents were significantly better at detecting deception than other groups, including local police, judges, and psychiatrists. This was attributed to their specialized training and experience.

Quiz 4: Perceiving Persons