Question 1

Following the Sept. 11, 2001 Twins Towers attacks, many Americans elected to drive rather than fly: The media coverage of the hijackings caused Americans to overestimate the danger of flying. This example illustrates the ____________.

Accepted Answer

The availability heuristic is a mental shortcut in which people rely on readily available information to make decisions. In this case, the media coverage of the terrorist attacks made the danger of flying more available in people's minds, leading them to overestimate the risk and choose to drive instead.

Question 2

Nigel often cites newspaper editorials favoring the presidential candidate he supports; he appears to ignore editorials critical of the candidate. Nigel appears prone to:

Accepted Answer

Confirmation bias is the tendency to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information that confirms one's preexisting beliefs or values, while ignoring or disputing information that does not. In this case, Nigel is only paying attention to editorials that support his preferred candidate and disregarding any editorials that are critical of that candidate.

Question 3

Which of the following alternatives best summarizes your text's discussion of the influence of emotion on decision making?

Accepted Answer

The text discusses how people often rely on emotion to guide decision making and that sometimes this can be a good idea. Therefore, option C is the best summary of the text. Options A and D suggest that relying on emotions for decision making is always either good or bad, which is an oversimplification. Option B implies that relying on emotions for decision making is mostly a good idea, which is not entirely accurate based on the information presented in the text.

Question 4

Shannon is trying to determine how she might earn a better grade on her next German vocabulary test. She realizes that mental images seem to help her remember lists of unfamiliar items, so she tries to form a distinct image in her mind for each word she tries to learn. Shannon is demonstrating:

Accepted Answer

Shannon is demonstrating problem solving by trying to find a way to improve her grade on her vocabulary test. She is also using metacognition by reflecting on her own learning style and trying a new strategy that she thinks might work better for her.

Question 5

Which of the following statements best expresses the relationship between mental and functional fixedness?

Accepted Answer

Functional fixedness is a specific type of mental set where an individual is limited to using an object only in the way it is traditionally used, thus it is a specific instance of a broader mental set.

Question 6

A developmental psychologist investigates the reasons that elementary-school children lie. Which of the following coefficients is she most likely to find between age and lying to avoid punishment on the one hand, and lying to make others feel better, on the other?

Accepted Answer

Based on research, it is likely that the coefficient for age and lying to avoid punishment will be negative, indicating that as children get older they are less likely to lie to avoid punishment. On the other hand, the coefficient for age and lying to make others feel better is likely to be positive, indicating that as children get older they may become more skilled at telling white lies to spare others' feelings. A possible coefficient pairing that would reflect these trends is -.28 for lying to avoid punishment and +.25 for lying to make others feel better, which is consistent with choice B.

Question 7

We are often prone to judge an individual by the extent to which they resemble our representation of a group or category of people; that is, we are prone to the _________ when forming impressions or making decisions about others.

Accepted Answer

The question is describing the tendency to use the representativeness heuristic, which involves judging the likelihood of an event based on how well it matches a prototype or stereotype in our minds. This heuristic can lead to stereotyping and biases. The availability heuristic involves making judgments based on how easily instances come to mind, while confirmation bias involves seeking out information that confirms our existing beliefs.

Question 8

You decide which course to take at 11 on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays the following semester by multiplying, for each course option, the priority level of the course and your estimated likelihood of getting into the course. You attempt to enroll in the course with the highest product. You are following the _______ model of decision making.

Accepted Answer

The answer of You decide which course to take at...

Question 9

Which of the following impediments to effective problem solving is INCORRECTLY matched with an illustrative problem?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following impediments to effective...

Question 10

Stereotypes spring to mind easily. Therefore, we sometimes use them to judge the frequency of certain events, such as crimes in a given neighborhood. This example BEST describes the use of the ________ heuristic.

Accepted Answer

The availability heuristic involves judging the frequency or likelihood of an event based on how easily examples come to mind. Stereotypes can make certain examples more readily available in our memory, leading us to overestimate their frequency.

Question 11

Obsession is to compulsion as _______ is to ________.

Accepted Answer

Obsession and compulsion are related to behavior, so the best parallel pair would also involve behavior. Choice C pairs cognition with behavior, which makes the most sense.

Question 12

The public might think the economic situation is not as bad as it really is if the government reported employment at 88 percent, rather than saying that the unemployment rate is 18 percent. Which of the following factors is influencing the public's judgment in this situation?

Accepted Answer

The framing effect refers to how information is presented or framed, which can influence people's judgments and decisions. In this situation, presenting employment at 88 percent rather than framing it as a high unemployment rate of 18 percent could lead people to perceive the economic situation as less negative or not as bad as it really is, due to the way the information is framed.

Question 13

A fairly sophisticated theory of mind emerges in children by the time they are ______ years old.

Accepted Answer

By the age of 3-5 years, children typically develop a theory of mind, which is the ability to understand that others have thoughts, beliefs, and perspectives different from their own.

Question 14

Katie is weighing several job offers. She multiplies each job's score on several criteria by the importance of the criteria, then sums the products. In the terminology of problem solving, Katie is attempting to use a(n) ________ to make her decision.

Accepted Answer

Katie is using an algorithm, which is a step-by-step procedure or formula for solving a problem, to systematically evaluate and compare her job offers based on weighted criteria.

Question 15

We take evidence that is consistent with our beliefs more seriously than evidence inconsistent with our beliefs. This is known as the:

Accepted Answer

The confirmation bias refers to the tendency to search for, interpret, and remember information in a way that confirms one's pre-existing beliefs or hypotheses. This bias can lead people to selectively attend to information that supports their beliefs, while ignoring or dismissing information that contradicts their beliefs.

Question 16

Which of the following impediments to effective problem solving is CORRECTLY matched with its definition?

Accepted Answer

Confirmation bias is the tendency to favor existing hypotheses and to ignore evidence favoring alternatives. Functional fixedness (option A) is the tendency to use objects or concepts only in their typical/established way, while mental set (option B) is the tendency to think about a problem only in the way one has solved similar problems before. Option D is incorrect as it describes functional fixedness.

Question 17

According to your text, metacognitive abilities reflect:

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to your text, metacognitive abilities reflect:
...

Question 18

You always clam up when I ask you what's wrong," Iris tells her boyfriend. Iris is probably making this frequency judgment because she can remember a few times that her boyfriend wouldn't tell her what was bothering him. Iris is using the _______ heuristic.

Accepted Answer

Iris is using the availability heuristic because she is making a judgment based on the ease with which she can recall specific instances of her boyfriend not sharing his feelings.

Question 19

Lying to avoid punishment is essentially universal among children by the time they are about ____ years of age.

Accepted Answer

According to research, children typically begin to develop the ability to tell lies between the ages of 3 and 5. By age 5, nearly all children have the cognitive ability to tell lies to avoid punishment or get something they want.

Question 20

Making several minor household repairs, Alyssa uses a shoe as a hammer and a butter knife as a screwdriver. Which of the following statements best characterizes Alyssa's problem solving?

Accepted Answer

Alyssa has overcome functional fixedness, which is the tendency to see objects only in their typical and traditional roles. By using a shoe as a hammer and a butter knife as a screwdriver, she has shown creativity in finding alternative uses for these objects.

Quiz 9: Language and Thought