Question 1

A picture of a Coke bottle is flashed on a computer monitor, but too briefly for a viewer to notice. According to the concept of priming, which result is most likely?

Accepted Answer

The concept of priming suggests that exposure to a stimulus (in this case, the Coke bottle) can influence the processing of subsequent related stimuli (in this case, words related to sodas). Research has shown that even brief exposures to stimuli can have an effect on subsequent processing. Therefore, it is likely that the viewer will recognize related words more quickly than unrelated words on a test a few seconds later. However, there is no evidence to suggest that altered states of consciousness or repeated exposure would have an effect in this particular scenario.

Question 2

Chang listens to music by Live Bait that is supposed to contain the backward message, "It is fun to read my psychology textbook." If Chang's experience is consistent with the research on subliminal messages, how will he be affected?

Accepted Answer

Research on subliminal messages suggests that they do not have a significant impact on behavior or attitudes. Therefore, Chang is unlikely to be affected by the message, and may not even be aware of its existence.

Question 3

Cartman is unaware that he is having inappropriate thoughts about how to kill Kenny. Freud would explain that these thoughts occur at a(n)____ level of consciousness.

Accepted Answer

Freud believed in the idea of the unconscious mind, which holds thoughts, memories, and desires that we are not aware of. In Cartman's case, these thoughts about killing Kenny would be occurring at the unconscious level of consciousness, as he is not consciously aware of them.

Question 4

On the computer, Demetrius is presented with pictures of birds below his conscious awareness. Then Demetrius is presented with a second set of pictures, including birds, dogs, and airplanes. He is asked to call out what he sees in each picture. According to priming experiments, Demetrius should call out ____.

Accepted Answer

Priming experiments have shown that when presented with pictures below conscious awareness, individuals will respond to those stimuli more rapidly if they are presented with the same or similar stimuli later on. In this case, Demetrius was presented with pictures of birds below his awareness, so when he is presented with the second set of pictures that includes birds, he should call out the birds more rapidly than the other pictures.

Question 5

The activities ofthe liver, such asthe removal of impurities from the bloodstream, occur at the ____ level.

Accepted Answer

The liver's activities, such as removing impurities from the bloodstream, are automatic and not under conscious control, making it an example of a nonconscious process.

Question 6

A middle-aged man accosts you in a campus building and insists on telling you that several horses must have gotten into the building because he can hear them whinnying wherever he goes. This man is probably suffering from ____.

Accepted Answer

The man is experiencing a hallucination, which is a sensory perception that is not based on reality. In this case, he thinks he can hear horses in the building, but there are likely no horses present.

Question 7

Art says he can feel the wheels in his mind turning when he is thinking. Of course, he cannot actually sense the activity in his brain because it occurs at the ____ level.

Accepted Answer

The activity in Art's brain is occurring at the nonconscious level, which refers to mental processes that occur outside of conscious awareness and cannot be directly perceived. Therefore, he cannot physically feel the activity in his brain. The other answer choices (subconscious, unconscious, and preconscious) all refer to levels of consciousness, but none of them accurately describe the situation described in the question.

Question 8

Judy is an avid cyclist. She often likes to ride her bicycle after work to unwind. One evening, while reflecting on her day, she realizes that she has broken her normal leg rhythm. This perception of her leg movements is now being processed by Judy at the ____ level.

Accepted Answer

Judy is consciously reflecting on her leg rhythm, indicating that it is being processed at a conscious level.

Question 9

According to the research cited in your text, at ____ of consciousness do backward messages in music affect listeners.

Accepted Answer

The research cited in the text states that backward messages in music have no effect on listeners at any level of consciousness.

Question 10

Your mother asks you to pick up a book at the library that explores the awareness of the outside world and one's own mental activity. If you want to pick up the correct book, you should make sure the book focuses on exploring all aspects of ____.

Accepted Answer

Exploring the awareness of the outside world and one's own mental activity falls under the realm of consciousness, so a book that focuses on consciousness would be the correct choice.

Question 11

Jess memorizes a list of words. One week later, he is asked to write as many of the words as he can recall, but he remembers only a few of the words. Then Jess is asked to fill in the missing letters of word fragments. Some of the words on this task are from the list he had been asked to memorize a week ago, and some are not. Jess fills in the blanks of the words he had seen a week ago faster and more accurately, compared to words that had not been on the list. This study demonstrates the effect of ____.

Accepted Answer

This study demonstrates the effect of priming, where exposure to a stimulus (the list of words) influences the processing of subsequent related stimuli (the word fragments). Jess was primed to remember the words he had seen before, leading to faster and more accurate completion of the word fragments related to those words. Parallel distributed processing, mnemonic strategies, and mental models do not fully explain the observed effect in this study.

Question 12

You call up a potential date and get an answering machine message. In leaving your message, you mean to say "I'd like to see you," but instead say "I'd like to feel you." This Freudian slip is caused by impulses originating in the ____.

Accepted Answer

Freudian slips are believed to result from unconscious impulses or desires that are struggling to become conscious. Therefore, the slip in this scenario was likely caused by impulses originating in the unconscious mind.

Question 13

While reading her psychology book in her room on Saturday morning, Lakeisha remembered how much fun class was the day before. Lakeisha's memory of her class was in what level of awareness before she started reading?

Accepted Answer

The preconscious level of awareness refers to information that is not currently the focus of attention but can easily be brought to consciousness. Lakeisha's memory of her fun class from the day before is likely stored in her preconscious mind and can easily be brought to consciousness.

Question 14

Which aspect is least likely to be part of a definition of consciousness?

Accepted Answer

While the function and structure of cognition may be related to consciousness, it is not a necessary component of a definition of consciousness. The other aspects - awareness of internal mental activity, mental processes of which people are unaware, and awareness of external stimuli - are more directly related to defining consciousness.

Question 15

Cognitive neuroscientists are interested in using neuroimaging techniques to differentiate between thoughts that take place both above and below a person's awareness. In other words, cognitive neuroscientists are studying ____.

Accepted Answer

Cognitive neuroscientists are studying consciousness, specifically attempting to differentiate between conscious and unconscious thoughts using neuroimaging techniques. Personality, intelligence, and sensation are not directly related to this specific research question.

Question 16

As Desmond puts on his glasses in the morning, he is keenly aware of the sensation of the frames touching his nose. However, as the day goes on and he gets absorbed in other activities, the sensation of his glasses resting on his nose fades from his awareness. At this point, the sensations of the glasses on Aaron's nose are ____.

Accepted Answer

The sensations of the glasses on his nose become preconscious because they are not in his immediate awareness but can be brought into consciousness if he focuses on them.

Question 17

While appearing on the game show The Weakest Link , Helen tries to remember the answer to a Greek literature question. She successfully remembers that the answer is Euripides. When Helen calls out the answer to the host, the information is at the ____ level of consciousness.

Accepted Answer

The information about the answer to the Greek literature question is currently in Helen's conscious level of consciousness because she is actively thinking about and retrieving the answer.

Question 18

A sensory experience in the absence of the appropriate external stimuli is known as a(n)____.

Accepted Answer

A hallucination is a sensory experience in the absence of appropriate external stimuli. Delusion refers to a fixed false belief, obsession is a persistent thought or impulse, and compulsion is a repetitive behavior or mental act.

Question 19

Silas participated in a psychology experiment in which he was shown a series of word pairs and was asked to rate them on the basis of how well they fit together. Two days later, he was shown the same pairs of words, but this time, one of the words in the pair was missing. Nevertheless, Silas recalls almost all the missing words even though he was not asked to remember them. The type of study that he participated in was most likely interested in the effects of ____.

Accepted Answer

The experiment described in the scenario is a classic example of priming - the effect of exposure to a stimulus on response to a later stimulus. In this case, Silas's initial exposure to the word pairs primed him to recall the missing word when he encountered the same pair again. Heuristics refer to mental shortcuts and strategies used for problem-solving, the law of effect is related to operant conditioning, and perceptual organization involves how sensory information is interpreted and organized by the brain. None of these concepts are directly relevant to the scenario described.

Question 20

When your mental processes are sufficiently different from normal waking experience, such that you or an observer notice significant behavior changes, you are in a(n)____ state of consciousness.

Accepted Answer

An altered state of consciousness is one where mental processes are significantly different from normal waking experience, and observable behavior changes may occur. Examples include hypnosis, meditation, and drug-induced states. Nonconscious and preconscious refer to levels of awareness below the level of focused attention, while hallucinogenic refers specifically to substances that produce hallucinations.

Quiz 9: Consciousness