Deck 8: Social Influence and Persuasion

Question 1

The tendency for people to separate the message from the messenger as time passes is called the sleeper effect.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Suppose that you are on a committee that is deciding how to allocate the yearly budget. And suppose that many people on the committee seem to just be "going along with the crowd" rather than expressing their opinions or concerns. Based on Asch's line-judging research on conformity, you can encourage more dissent and debate in the group by ____.

A)making sure that the group consists of no fewer than five people
B)playing "devil's advocate" and disagree with the majority view
C)finding a way to have same-sex group members meet separately
D)providing the group with a common bond and strong group identity

Answer 2

playing "devil's advocate" and disagree with the majority view

Question 3

In one study, research participants were asked to discuss the case of supposed juvenile delinquent named Johnny Rocco. Each discussion group consisted of five real participants and three confederates-a "mode" confederate (who adopted the majority viewpoint), a "deviant" confederate (who held extreme views that were different from the majority viewpoint), and a "slider" (who started out extreme, but eventually adopted the majority viewpoint). When participants were asked, at the end of the discussion, to "vote one group member out of the group," who was MOST often voted out?

A)the "mode" confederate
B)the "deviant" confederate
C)the "slider" confederate
D)both "slider" and "deviant" confederates (equally)

Answer 3

the "deviant" confederate

Question 4

Informational social influence helps produce private acceptance, while normative social influence may elicit mere public compliance.

Question 5

Compared to advertisers who communicate using repetition with variation, advertisers who use simple repetition are more likely to run the risk of advertising wearout.

Question 6

People who are processing persuasive messages via the central route tend to rely on surface cues such as source attractiveness and the reactions of others.

Question 7

Social psychologists distinguish between two forms of social influence: ____.

A)implicit and explicit
B)social and cultural
C)normative and informational
D)internal and external

Question 8

Asch's line-judging studies on conformity found that conformity declined when ____.

A)groups were closer in age rather than diverse
B)a "dissenter" in the group always gave an incorrect response
C)a "dissenter" in the group always gave the correct response
D)groups were mixed-sex rather than all-male

Question 9

People who are in a good mood are more receptive to persuasive messages than people who are in a bad or neutral mood.

Question 10

Well-educated and analytical people (as opposed to poorly-educated and non-educated people)are more responsive to arguments based on logic and reason.

Question 11

Asch's line-judging studies on conformity suggests that people engage in normative conformity ____ when in the presence of larger groups (groups of three to seven people)as opposed to smaller groups (groups of two to three people).

A)more often
B)about as frequently
C)slightly less often
D)far less often

Question 12

Jonah is pan-handling on the busy streets of Chicago. He keeps asking "spare some change?" to passers-by. No one gives him the time of day. To get better results, he starts saying, "spare twelve cents?" Jonah is using the pique technique.

Question 13

Psychological reactance tends to interfere with one's ability to process information carefully.

Question 14

According to the text, fear-based messages (e.g., messages about the dangers of smoking)are almost always highly effective.

Question 15

The limited-number technique is based on consistency principles.

Question 16

Advertisements with explicit conclusions are more persuasive than advertisements with omitted conclusions (which require viewers to come up with conclusions on their own).

Question 17

Compared to other people, people with a high need for cognition tend to have attitudes that are more resistant to change (more difficult to change).

Question 18

People who come to an inner belief that others are right have experienced pluralistic ignorance.

Question 19

Kelly is collecting money for the March of Dimes by going door-to-door in her neighborhood. At each door, she explains what the March of Dimes is for, and then asks for a donation, saying, "Even a penny would help!" Adding this comment to her request will increase the likelihood of people donating.

Question 20

The low-ball technique does NOT appear to actually be effective in influencing people or changing their behavior.

Question 21

In one study, groups of subjects discuss the punishment appropriate for "Johnny Rocco," a juvenile delinquent. In this experiment, subjects LEAST liked a confederate when he played the role of a person who ____.

A)agreed with the group ("mode")
B)disagreed with the group ("deviant")
C)originally agreed and then came to disagree with the group ("lost soul")
D)disagreed and then came to agree with the group ("slider")

Question 22

Your cousin asks you to pledge $5.00 for a school charity one year. The next year, she asks you to pledge $20.00. And the following year she asks you to pledge $50.00. Even though you would have never agreed to pledge $50.00 the first year, her "gradual buildup approach" is successful. In social psychology, this approach to persuasion is known as the ____.

A)bait-and-switch technique
B)low-ball technique
C)labeling technique
D)foot-in-the-door technique

Question 23

A number of social psychological studies have made use of the autokinetic effect in order to understand ____.

A)the so-called sleeper effect
B)why convert communicators are so effective
C)how alpha and omega strategies work
D)informational influence and the formation of group norms

Question 24

Which scenario best illustrates someone soliciting information, and as a result, being affected by informational influence?

A)A man is interested in buying a pickup truck, and goes online to different truck blogs and websites to gather information. He uses this information to help guide his decision-making about what trucks to test drive.
B)A teenager asks her friends if they like a certain store. When they say yes, she declares that she likes it too, because she wants to seem cool.
C)A professor asks her students whether they believe there are instances in which genocide is "justified." She listens to their opinions and corrects them when they make inaccurate statements about history.
D)A father asks his seven-year-old how she knows that it's dinnertime (he is testing her ability to read Roman numerals on the kitchen clock). When she explains what some of the numerals mean, he nods appreciably and pretends to have learned something.

Question 25

Informational social influence helps to produce ____, while normative social influence may merely elicit ____.

A)private acceptance; public compliance
B)public conformity; private acceptance
C)pluralistic ignorance; the bystander effect
D)the bystander effect; pluralistic ignorance

Question 26

Social psychologists use the term ____ to refer to beliefs and behaviors that a group of people accept as normal.

A)central beliefs
B)peripheral beliefs
C)group norms
D)yielding information

Question 27

Preceding a request to someone with a smaller request to which they are very likely to agree is a good way to get them to say yes to the second, more important request. This strategy is known as the ____.

A)foot-in-the-door technique
B)low-ball technique
C)bait-and-switch technique
D)labeling technique

Question 28

Samuela never pays attention in class or studies, and tends to fail most of the tests she takes in school. However, she constantly looks for opportunities to cheat during tests; she looks at her neighbors' answers and then writes down what she sees, assuming that her neighbors know the test material better than she does. In these cases, Samuela's test answers are based on ____.

A)normative influence
B)informational influence
C)implicit social norms
D)elaboration likelihood

Question 29

In one study, one group of homeowners was asked if they would put a small sign on their doors that said, "BE A SAFE DRIVER." Another group of homeowners was not asked to display this sign. Then, a few weeks later, everyone in both groups was asked if a large, poorly lettered sign stating, "DRIVE CAREFULLY," could be displayed in their yard. Most people who had received and granted the first request were quite willing to have the larger sign in their yard. In contrast, those who had not had the first request with the small sign tended to say "no" to displaying the larger sign. This study was about which social influence technique?

A)foot-in-the-door
B)low-balling
C)bait-and-switch
D)labeling

Question 30

In one well-known social psychological experiment, research participants were brought into a dark room where an experimenter projected dots of light. These dots of light appeared to move slightly as they were projected-though exactly how far they moved the participants couldn't say. When asked to estimate the distance that the light traveled, participants tended to look to others in the room, and ask them what they thought (not because they wanted to gain others' approval, but because they assumed that others knew more than they did). It would therefore be MOST accurate to say that participants' final estimates were based on ____.

A)normative influence
B)informational influence
C)implicit social norms
D)elaboration likelihood

Question 31

If you look at a pinpoint of light in a dark room, the light appears to move even though it is in fact stationary. This illusion of movement is called the ____ effect.

A)autokinetic
B)omega
C)sleeper
D)visual pique

Question 32

Josephine is at the park with her kids. Another child falls off the monkey bars and is unconscious. Josephine doesn't immediately react because she assumes the injured child's mother is nearby and knows what to do. In fact, the child's mother doesn't know any more than Josephine does. Josephine's assumption that the mother will know more than she does is an example of ____.

A)pluralistic ignorance
B)group norms
C)labeling
D)persuasion

Question 33

Mark has been attending a religious study with friends from his dorm. After several months of attending and debating issues with the others in this group, Mark is persuaded that their understanding of the sacred text is the correct one. Mark has most likely experienced ____.

A)private acceptance
B)public compliance
C)the autokinetic effect
D)normative influence

Question 34

Private acceptance of a belief tends to be facilitated by ____ rather than by ____.

A)informational influence; normative influence
B)normative influence; informational influence
C)pluralistic ignorance; diffusion of responsibility
D)diffusion of responsibility; pluralistic ignorance

Question 35

The so-called foot-in-the-door technique is MOST related, conceptually speaking, to ____.

A)the idea of cognitive dissonance
B)attribution theory
C)the notion of normative social influence
D)social identity theory

Question 36

Two types of situations tend to produce informational influence: ____.

A)ambiguous situations and situations where people seek social approval
B)ambiguous situations and crisis situations
C)non-ambiguous (clear-cut)situations and situations where people seek social approval
D)non-ambiguous (clear-cut)situations and crisis situations

Question 37

Mark has been attending a religious study with friends from his dorm. He really likes these people, although he thinks that their interpretation of the sacred text is dead wrong. Yet in the meetings, he tends to agree with them to avoid conflict because he enjoys their friendship so much. Mark is most likely experiencing ____.

A)private acceptance
B)public compliance
C)persuasion
D)repetition with variation

Question 38

The tendency to assume that others know more than you do in a crisis or ambiguous situation, when in reality, no one knows anything, is called ____.

A)the autokinetic effect
B)the sleeper effect
C)pluralistic ignorance
D)yielding

Question 39

Which factor would make you relatively MORE likely to conform in a group situation?

A)You are good at the task at hand.
B)There are no experts in the group.
C)The other members of the group are not important to you.
D)The group is medium-sized (5-7 people)rather than small (2-3 people).

Question 40

In one well-known social psychological experiment, research participants were brought into a dark room where an experimenter projected dots of light. These dots of light appeared to move slightly as they were projected-though exactly how far they moved the participants couldn't say. When asked to estimate the distance that the light traveled, participants tended to look to others in the room, and ask them what they thought. All of the participants thus ended up giving somewhat similar answers-thereby establishing ____.

A)group norms
B)an autokinetic effect
C)a sleeper effect
D)an omega strategy

Question 41

When stores have only a few items out on display-as opposed to piles of items-the merchandise appears to be more valuable. This is probably due to the ____ principle.

A)reciprocity
B)consistency
C)commitment
D)scarcity

Question 42

According to the text, which influence techniques have historically been most used by car salespeople?

A)the foot-in-the-door and door-in-the-face techniques
B)the low-ball and bait-and-switch techniques
C)the legitimization-of-paltry-favors and disrupt-then-reframe techniques
D)the pique and labeling techniques

Question 43

Which principle(s)best explains why adding "even a penny will help" will increase the success of fundraising requests?

A)commitment and consistency
B)scarcity
C)capturing and disrupting attention
D)reciprocity

Question 44

According to the text, one good way of defending oneself against persuasive endeavors that are based on the principles of commitment and consistency is to ____.

A)state your personal beliefs publicly prior to the attempted persuasion
B)pay attention to signs of social proofing
C)engage in psychological reactance
D)act based on the norm of reciprocity during the attempted persuasion

Question 45

An infomercial advertises a Swedish pillow for $49.99. The voiceover then announces, "But wait! If you call within the next thirty minutes, you will also receive a Swedish eye mask, valued at over $14.00, along with a pair of Swedish evening candles. And wait, we are now throwing in-for a limited time only-a special booklet of Swedish bedtime stories, all for just $49.99." This infomercial appears to be using the ____.

A)door-in-the-face technique
B)that's-not-all technique
C)pique technique
D)disrupt-then-reframe technique

Question 46

Suppose that you are having a garage sale, and have decided to negotiate with buyers rather than display fixed prices. Your technique is to quote an astronomically high price (e.g., $500 for a broken exercise bicycle), and then "bargain" by coming down to a lower, more reasonable price. You hope that the lower price will then appear to be supremely fair. You are apparently using the ____.

A)foot-in-the-door technique
B)door-in-the-face technique
C)disrupt-then-reframe technique
D)that's-not-all technique

Question 47

Which social influence technique is based on reciprocation?

A)the labeling technique
B)the pique technique
C)the door-in-the-face technique
D)the foot-in-the-door technique

Question 48

The so-called ____ is based on consistency, in which one assigns a tag to an individual and then requests a favor that is consistent with that tag.

A)labeling technique
B)pique technique
C)disrupt-then-reframe technique
D)legitimization-of-paltry-favors technique

Question 49

Which pair of social influence techniques are both based on the principle of reciprocation?

A)the disrupt-then-reframe technique and the pique technique
B)the that's not all technique and the pique technique
C)the door-in-the-face technique and the that's not all technique
D)the foot-in-the-door technique and the door-in-the-face technique

Question 50

The low-ball technique operates, at least partially, on the principle of ____.

A)reciprocity
B)consistency
C)confusion
D)scarcity

Question 51

How can individuals defend themselves against social influence techniques that are based on reciprocation?

A)by stating their position publicly
B)by being aware of the so-called favor and not feel obligated to repay it
C)by simply remaining calm and nonjudgmental
D)by attempting to pause the interaction and eliminate distractions

Question 52

An apartment manager lists a "luxury penthouse" in the newspaper for an astoundingly low price, even though he has no such units available. The idea is to lure people in, and then try to sell them his relatively mediocre apartments. The manager is apparently using an influence technique known as the ____.

A)foot-in-the-door technique
B)bait-and-switch technique
C)legitimization-of-paltry-favors technique
D)disrupt-then-reframe technique

Question 53

The door-in-the-face technique starts with a(n)____.

A)inflated request
B)small request
C)concession
D)discount

Question 54

The ____ is based on commitment, wherein the influencer first gets a person to comply with a seemingly low-cost request and only later reveals hidden additional costs to the person.

A)labeling technique
B)legitimization-of-paltry-favors technique
C)foot-in-the-door technique
D)low-ball technique

Question 55

People who are told that they are "generous souls" are more likely to donate money to charity than people who are not. Similarly, people who are told that they are "stylish and cutting edge" are more likely to be persuaded to buy new trendy items in a store. Salespeople who capitalize on this technique are using the ____.

A)labeling technique
B)pique technique
C)disrupt-then-reframe technique
D)legitimization-of-paltry-favors technique

Question 56

The labeling technique is most related, conceptually speaking, to the idea of ____.

A)pluralistic ignorance
B)the social allergy effect
C)the self-fulfilling prophecy
D)diffusion of responsibility

Question 57

Suppose that your friend Victor gives you a bottle of red wine for your birthday, and tells you that only 100 bottles of that wine exist in the world. Suddenly the wine seems very important and special. This would seem to be due to the ____ principle.

A)reciprocity
B)consistency
C)commitment
D)scarcity

Question 58

The that's-not-all technique operate based on the principle of ____.

A)reciprocal concessions and a sense of personal obligation
B)consistency and a sense of moral obligation to society
C)capturing and disrupting attention
D)scarcity and commodities

Question 59

Carlos is a freelance graphic designer. Last month, a client hired him to design a website, at a flat rate of $1000. Carlos met with the client numerous times to sketch out the project, and engaged in a fair amount of background research. Just as he was getting ready to sign a contract for the job, the client mentioned, "Oh, by the way, I also need you to design three catalog covers under your contract." Even though Carlos would never design a website AND three catalog covers for just $1000, he had already invested so much time and energy in this client that he ended up just saying yes to everything. Carlos told his friends that he was "tricked" by the client. Social psychologists would say that he was a victim of the ____.

A)legitimization-of-paltry-favors technique
B)low-ball technique
C)labeling technique
D)foot-in-the-door technique

Question 60

Which social influence technique is based on commitment and consistency?

A)the door-in-the-face technique
B)the pique technique
C)the disrupt-then-reframe technique
D)the foot-in-the-door technique

Question 61

Which term best describes an attempt to change a person's mind?

A)induction
B)manipulation
C)persuasion
D)assimilation

Question 62

A large furniture store puts an advertisement in the Sunday paper stating that a sale will occur on a holiday weekend and only for that weekend. Which social influence strategy is being used?

A)limited-number technique
B)fast-approaching deadline
C)pique technique
D)disrupt-then-reframe technique

Question 63

Which social influence technique is based on capturing and disrupting attention?

A)The labeling technique
B)The bait-and-switch
C)The low-ball technique
D)The pique technique

Question 64

The sleeper effect refers to the finding that, over time, ____.

A)people tend to become more and more stubborn about their opinions (and less easily persuaded to adopt alternative points of view)
B)people tend to become more open to, or accepting of, persuasive arguments that they hear repeatedly
C)people tend to become inoculated against (better able to counter-argue)persuasive arguments that they hear repeatedly
D)people tend to forget where (or from whom)they heard a persuasive argument or piece of information

Question 65

Research suggests that there are two main factors that make a source credible: ____.

A)trustworthiness and likeability
B)likeability and expertise
C)expertise and trustworthiness
D)similarity and expertise

Question 66

The ____ technique is a social influence technique in which the influencer interferes with a person's critical thinking by introducing an unexpected element, and then recasts his or her message in a positive light.

A)labeling
B)bait-and-switch
C)door-in-the-face
D)disrupt-then-reframe

Question 67

Social psychologists who study persuasion use the term "source" to refer to the ____.

A)individual who delivers a message
B)core reason why a person is persuaded
C)starting point of a persuasive argument
D)data, or information, used to back up a persuasive argument

Question 68

Vince is trying to pick up a woman at a bar. Instead of approaching her with a boring "standard line" (e.g., "Can I buy you a drink?"), he tries something new. He asks, "Can I buy you a diamond?" Even though he has no intention of buying the woman a diamond (at least not right away), he hopes that this will capture her attention. Social psychologists would say that Vince is using the ____ social influence technique.

A)legitimization-of-paltry-favors
B)labeling
C)disrupt-and-reframe
D)pique

Question 69

The social influence technique known as the pique technique operates ____.

A)according to the scarcity principle
B)by capturing and disrupting attention
C)based upon the consistency principle
D)based upon the reciprocity principle

Question 70

How can individuals best defend themselves against social influence techniques based on scarcity?

A)by stating their position publicly
B)by not feel obligated to repay a favor
C)by trying to calm down
D)by engaging in a debate

Question 71

The limited-number technique is based upon the principle of ____.

A)scarcity
B)reciprocity
C)disruption and reframing
D)consistency

Question 72

Kirby thinks that her professor is tremendously smart and knows a lot. Which element of source credibility is this?

A)trustworthiness
B)likeability
C)expertise
D)receptivity

Question 73

The fast-approaching-deadline technique is a persuasive technique based upon the principle of ____.

A)scarcity
B)reciprocity
C)disruption and reframing
D)consistency

Question 74

Instead of using the standard queries-"Spare any change?" or "Spare a dollar?"-a homeless person asks passerby, "Spare four hundred dollars and thirty-seven cents?" She is apparently making use of the ____ technique of social influence.

A)door-in-the-face
B)labeling
C)foot-in-the-door
D)pique

Question 75

How can a person defend against social influence techniques based on capturing and disrupting attention?

A)by stating their position publicly
B)by being aware of the so-called favor and not feel obligated to repay it
C)by simply remaining calm and nonjudgmental
D)by attempting to pause the interaction and eliminate distractions

Question 76

The finding that, over time, people tend to separate messages from their sources-and forget where or from whom they heard certain things-is known as the ____.

A)omega effect
B)sleeper effect
C)discontinuity effect
D)boomerang effect

Question 77

Which social influence technique is based on capturing and disrupting attention?

A)the labeling technique
B)the bait-and-switch
C)the door-in-the-face technique
D)the disrupt-then-reframe technique

Question 78

People are more likely to buy cupcakes when they are described as "halfcakes, priced at a bargain price," as opposed to when they are simply described as "cupcakes." This is an example of people being influenced via the ____.

A)labeling technique
B)bait-and-switch
C)door-in-the-face technique
D)disrupt-then-reframe technique

Question 79

Social psychologists who talk about a persuasive communicator as having "expertise" are referring to ____.

A)whether the source will honestly share what she or he knows
B)how much the source knows
C)whether the source is a well-known individual
D)how confident and authoritative the source appears to be

Question 80

The earliest scientific studies in social psychology on persuasion were conducted by ____.

A)Leon Festinger
B)Carl Hovland
C)Elliot Aronson
D)Richard Petty