Question 1

Tim,Tam and Tom (known to all as the three Ts)beaver away in their separate work offices.Their boss has a brain wave: he puts the three Ts together for the first time to work on a project.To his surprise,their output drops dramatically.But all is not lost,because the boss has been reading social psychology! He knows that what he now needs to do is to

Accepted Answer

The drop in productivity when the three Ts were put together suggests that there may be coordination and communication problems between them. Providing a clear performance standard can help to ensure that each member of the team knows what is expected of them, and reduce conflicts that may arise due to different working styles or expectations. Offering a bonus (A) may motivate the team, but does not address the root cause of the drop in productivity. Replacing all (C) or some (D) members of the team may not be necessary if the underlying issues can be resolved with better communication and coordination.

Question 2

With reference to group tasks,Steiner argues that the group output is always less than the group's potential due to

Accepted Answer

Steiner's theory of group tasks suggests that the potential output of a group is always less than the sum of its members' abilities due to process loss, which refers to any inefficiencies or barriers that reduce the group's effectiveness in achieving its goals. This can include poor communication, individual differences in motivation, and coordination problems. While leadership, intergroup conflict, and group conflict can also impact group performance, they are not the primary factor identified by Steiner.

Question 3

An example of social loafing is

Accepted Answer

The Ringelmann effect describes the phenomenon where individual members of a group become less productive as the group size increases, which is an example of social loafing.

Question 4

In an important psychology group assignment,Connie works extra hard because she assumes that the other members in her group will not put in the necessary effort and she wants to get a good mark.Connie's effort is an example of

Accepted Answer

Connie's effort is an example of social compensation, which occurs when individuals increase their effort in a group task to compensate for the lack of effort by other members. This suggests that Connie recognizes the importance of the task and is willing to put in extra effort to ensure the success of the group. The free-rider effect (A) refers to individuals who benefit from the group's effort without contributing much themselves. The martyr effect (B) is not a recognized term in psychology. Family ties (C) may be relevant in some group situations, but it is not applicable to the given scenario.

Question 5

The construction and assembly of a shiny black Porsche convertible,according to Steiner's taxonomy,would be the outcome of a(n)

Accepted Answer

A convertible Porsche requires multiple components to be assembled and constructed, making it a divisible task according to Steiner's taxonomy.

Question 6

The main difference between social 'loafing' and 'free-riding' is that

Accepted Answer

Social loafing refers to the decrease in effort of an individual when they are working in a group, assuming that others will compensate for their lack of effort. However, they still contribute to the group product to some extent. Free-riding, on the other hand, refers to individuals exploiting the group product while contributing nothing to it. Therefore, the main difference between social loafing and free-riding is that social loafers still contribute to the group product, while free riders do not.

Question 7

The finding that participants can name the colour a word is presented in,even when the word may be incongruent with the colour (e.g.,the word 'RED' displayed in a yellow colour),with less delay when they are in the presence of others than when they are alone demonstrates

Accepted Answer

The finding suggests that the attentional consequences of social presence can improve performance on the Stroop Task.

Question 8

In Steiner's taxonomy of group tasks,when comparing the performance of groups with that of individuals an underlying question is:

Accepted Answer

Steiner's taxonomy of group tasks focuses on how the group's product is related to the members' inputs. Therefore, the underlying question compares the performance of groups with that of individuals in terms of their product and inputs relationship.Irrespective of the number of tasks or whether there is a reward or punishment, the central question remains the same.

Question 9

Interestingly,a theory that deals with how one perceives oneself can be applied to account for social facilitation.This theory is based on

Accepted Answer

The theory in question is social identity theory, which falls under the umbrella of self-awareness. This theory posits that when an individual is in a group setting, they become more aware of how they are perceived by others (i.e. their social identity). As a result, this increased self-awareness can lead to enhanced performance on simple or well-learned tasks (social facilitation), but impaired performance on difficult or novel tasks (social inhibition). Therefore, the best choice would be C) self-awareness.

Question 10

Evaluation apprehension,matching to standard and output equity are terms relating to

Accepted Answer

These terms are related to explanations of why individual productivity can drop when working in a group, as they describe factors that can influence group performance and individual contributions.

Question 11

Becoming more aware of oneself can occur by

Accepted Answer

Being with co-actors can help one become more aware of how they interact and present themselves in social situations. Looking in a mirror can help one become more aware of their physical appearance and nonverbal cues. Having an audience can also make one more self-conscious and aware of how they are being perceived. Therefore, all of the above options can contribute to becoming more self-aware.

Question 12

Monique,Juliette and Harold want to hire a car during their overseas holiday.Monique argues for a campervan with a cooker,Juliette for a small cheap-to-run vehicle,and Harold for a station wagon with plenty of room for luggage.They finally agree on Harold's suggestion.The task of deciding on a suitable car was

Accepted Answer

The answer of Monique,Juliette and Harold want to hire a...

Question 13

Because there is a compulsory student union fee at her university,Linda decided not to be a financial member.However,she happily claims a discount on what she buys at the university bookshop,eats cheap meals at the student cafeteria and makes use of club room space.In social psychological terms,Linda is a

Accepted Answer

Linda is benefiting from the services and resources provided by the student union without contributing financially, which makes her a free rider.

Question 14

According to Steiner's taxonomy of group tasks,a disjunctive task is one where

Accepted Answer

In disjunctive tasks, the group is required to select one individual's input as its product. This is in contrast to conjunctive tasks where the group output is determined by the least able member, additive tasks which involve averaging individual inputs, and divisible tasks which involve a division of labour.

Question 15

A drop in individual effort on a task as the number of people working together on the task increases can be explained by

Accepted Answer

Both coordination loss and motivation loss can contribute to a drop in individual effort as the number of people working together on a task increases. Coordination loss occurs when individuals struggle to work together efficiently, leading to duplication of effort, communication breakdowns, and delays. Motivation loss occurs when individuals feel less accountable for their performance, or when they perceive that their contributions are less valuable in a group setting. Both of these factors can lead to a decrease in individual effort as the size of the group increases.

Question 16

According to Steiner,a discretionary task is one that

Accepted Answer

Steiner's model of group productivity suggests that a discretionary task allows group members to decide how to combine their efforts, which means they have the discretion to determine individuals' inputs into the task.

Question 17

While studying human efficiency using a rope and a dynamometer,Ringelmann found that

Accepted Answer

Ringelmann found that each person pulled a little less as others joined in, which is known as the Ringelmann effect. This phenomenon suggests that individuals may exert less effort when working in a group compared to when working alone.

Question 18

Suppose that,in an exercise,your psychology class had to think of as many household items as they could that started with the letter 'W'.One half of the class worked as individuals and the other half as an interacting group.If the group output was poorer than the sum of the individuals,you would have a fairly clear example of

Accepted Answer

Social loafing refers to the phenomenon where individuals exert less effort in a group setting compared to when working alone. This can result in poorer group output compared to the sum of the individuals' output. The scenario described in the question fits this definition, making social loafing the best choice.

Question 19

Following Steiner's task taxonomy,a task whose success is determined by the performance of the weakest group member is a(n)

Accepted Answer

A conjunctive task is one in which the success of the team is dependent on the successful completion of all aspects of the task. In this case, the weakest group member would be the bottleneck, meaning that the success of the task is determined by their performance. Therefore, the correct choice is A - conjunctive task.

Question 20

Ebenezer is self-employed,lives in his mother's house,and somehow manages to avoid paying any form of tax.He swans off for summer holidays in the national parks,uses public toilets (but only the free ones),and has even managed to obtain free medical insurance.Ebenezer is a(n)

Accepted Answer

Ebenezer is benefiting from public goods and services without contributing his fair share through taxes. This behavior is characteristic of a free rider.

Quiz 8: People in Groups