Risen and Gilovich (2007) conducted an experiment in which participants estimated the chances that a student in a large lecture class would be called on to answer a question based on assigned reading if the student had either done the assigned reading or not. Which outcome BEST describes what participants tended to estimate when the student had not done the reading?
A) They correctly estimated that the student would be more likely to be called on.
B) They incorrectly estimated that the student would be more likely to be called on.
C) They correctly estimated that the student would be less likely to be called on.
D) They correctly estimated that the student would be neither more nor less likely to be called on.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Participants tended to incorrectly estimate that the student who had not done the reading would be more likely to be called on. This phenomenon is known as illusory superiority, where people believe that they are better than others in certain ways, such as being more prepared or knowledgeable. In this case, participants may have projected their own habits of doing the assigned readings onto others and assumed that those who did not do the reading were in the minority and therefore more likely to be called on.

Risen and Gilovich (2007) Conducted an Experiment in Which Participants