Question 1

When Dirk fails his calculus exam,he is most likely to explain the result as being due to:

Accepted Answer

People often attribute failures to external factors, such as the exam being too difficult, to protect their self-esteem.

Question 2

Human beings have evolved as social animals who live in groups,in part because:

Accepted Answer

Living in groups provides safety from competing groups and predators, which increases the chances of individual survival and reproduction. This is a widely accepted hypothesis for the evolution of sociality in animals, including humans. A and D are not necessarily true, as there can still be dangers and competition within a group. B may be a potential benefit, but it is not the primary reason for group living in humans.

Question 3

People are often advised not to make hasty decisions about other people.The research on thin slices of behavior would suggest that this advice is:

Accepted Answer

Research on thin slices of behavior indicates that people can make surprisingly accurate judgments about others with very limited information.

Question 4

Which of the following questions would NOT be investigated in social psychology?

Accepted Answer

Social psychology focuses on how individuals' thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the presence of others. The difficulty of losing weight or stopping smoking is more related to health psychology and individual behavior change rather than social influences.

Question 5

Babies begin to prefer to look at a picture of a face,rather than a blank outline of a head,when they are less than:

Accepted Answer

Research indicates that newborns, even within the first hour of life, show a preference for looking at faces over other stimuli, such as a blank outline of a head.

Question 6

Human beings have evolved as social animals who live in groups.As a consequence,we have also evolved mechanisms to:

Accepted Answer

Humans have evolved to detect danger from within one's own group and to distinguish members of their own group in order to protect themselves and their social bonds. These mechanisms are important for survival and social cohesion.

Question 7

A prosecutor in a rape trial needs to be aware of the fact that some members of the jury will likely believe that the woman who was raped must have done something to deserve or provoke the attack.This type of attribution is part of the:

Accepted Answer

The just-world hypothesis refers to the belief that people get what they deserve in life, and that injustice and suffering happen only to those who deserve it. In the context of a rape trial, some jurors may attribute blame to the victim by believing that she must have done something to provoke or deserve the attack. This is an example of the just-world hypothesis at work.

Question 8

Weiner's theory argues that in addition to being either personal or situational,attitudes can vary on which dimensions?

Accepted Answer

Weiner's attribution theory suggests that attitudes can vary on the dimensions of stable/unstable and controllable/uncontrollable, which influence how individuals perceive and react to events.

Question 9

If you had been consulted when Abu Ghraib was being developed for use by the U.S.military,what advice could you have given about minimizing the probability that the prisoners would be mistreated?

Accepted Answer

The answer of If you had been consulted when Abu...

Question 10

Guilia is a second-grade teacher.In her class this year,she has a young boy from another country.When she tries to make eye contact with him,he always looks away.What would be the most reasonable thing for Guilia to conclude from this?

Accepted Answer

Different cultures have different norms regarding eye contact. In some cultures, avoiding direct eye contact is a sign of respect, while in others it may be seen as disrespectful or dishonest. Given that the boy is from a different country, it is possible that he comes from a culture where maintaining eye contact with authority figures is not the norm.  This would be the most reasonable conclusion for Giulia to make without more information.

Question 11

Among the factors contributing to the mistreatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib was that the guards:

Accepted Answer

The mistreatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib was largely driven by the dehumanization of the prisoners by the guards. This was apparent in the way the guards referred to the prisoners and the conditions they were kept in, and it likely played a role in the guards' willingness to engage in abusive behavior. Factors such as insufficient psychological screening and pressure to obtain intelligence may have contributed to the situation, but they were not the primary drivers of the mistreatment.

Question 12

The main reason that people make "just-world hypothesis" attributions is that these attributions:

Accepted Answer

The main reason people make "just-world hypothesis" attributions is to create a sense of order and predictability in the world. By believing that good things happen to good people and bad things happen to bad people, individuals feel safer and the world becomes more understandable. This helps individuals feel more in control of their environment, reducing anxiety and increasing a sense of well-being.

Question 13

Which explanation would you be LEAST likely to give for your own behavior?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which explanation would you be LEAST likely...

Question 14

The statements "I failed the quiz because I was tired" and "She failed the quiz because she is dumb" are examples of:

Accepted Answer

The statement "I failed the quiz because I was tired" is an example of actor/observer discrepancy, which occurs when we attribute our own behaviors to external factors (such as being tired), while attributing the behaviors of others to internal factors (such as being dumb). The statement "She failed the quiz because she is dumb" is an example of stereotyping and prejudice, as it illustrates a negative and unfair attitude towards another individual based on a perceived characteristic.

Question 15

The Stanford prison study illustrates that people:

Accepted Answer

The Stanford prison study showed that participants who were randomly assigned to the role of guards or prisoners quickly fell into their roles and exhibited corresponding behaviors, such as guards becoming increasingly sadistic and prisoners becoming submissive. This suggests that people behave in accord with their roles in a given situation, regardless of their individual personality traits or values.

Question 16

The actor/observer effect is most likely to occur in the case of a negative event.This is due to the:

Accepted Answer

The self-serving bias leads individuals to attribute their own negative behaviors to external factors while attributing others' negative behaviors to internal factors, which aligns with the actor/observer effect.

Question 17

Attributions are our attempts to explain:

Accepted Answer

Attributions are our attempts to explain the motives, traits, and preferences of other people. Therefore, all of the above options (motives, traits, and preferences) are included in the explanation of attributions.

Question 18

Gamiel takes Aliyah out to dinner for the first time.She is very surprised when he does not leave a tip for the waiter.If Aliyah decides that Gamiel did not leave a tip because he is stingy,she is making a _____ attribution.If Aliyah decides that Gamiel did not leave a tip because the service was terrible,she is making a _____ attribution.

Accepted Answer

Aliyah is making a personal attribution if she thinks Gamiel is stingy, attributing his behavior to his character. If she thinks the service was terrible, she is making a situational attribution, attributing his behavior to external circumstances.

Question 19

The tendency to overemphasize personality and underestimate the situation is referred to as:

Accepted Answer

The tendency to overemphasize personality and underestimate the situation is referred to as fundamental attribution error. This means that people tend to attribute others' behavior to their inherent traits or characteristics, rather than taking into account situational factors that may have influenced their actions.

Question 20

In a recent study,participants were shown 30-second clips of two candidates in a past election with which they were not familiar.The person was asked to determine which candidate had won that election.How accurate do you think the participants were at predicting the winner of the election and why?

Accepted Answer

Research has shown that people can make surprisingly accurate judgments about others based on very brief observations, as these "thin slices" of behavior can provide significant information about a person's competence and likability, which are often factors in election outcomes.

Quiz 12: Social Psychology