Question 1

What do we call the roles that one attains voluntarily?

Accepted Answer

Achieved roles are those that individuals attain voluntarily, often based on personal choice, effort, and merit.

Question 2

Katrina, a criminal judge, was caught shoplifting. Among other things, what is she likely experiencing?

Accepted Answer

Katrina is likely experiencing role conflict, as her actions as a shoplifter are in direct conflict with her professional role as a criminal judge, which requires upholding the law.

Question 3

What do we call the "rules," or expectations, for appropriate behaviour in a particular social situation?

Accepted Answer

Norms are the rules or expectations for appropriate behavior in a particular social situation.

Question 4

What do we call the explanations given for someone's behaviour or beliefs?

Accepted Answer

Attributions are the explanations we give for the causes of people's behavior or beliefs.

Question 5

Ginny sees a beautiful young woman on the arm of the local billionaire who is several years this woman's senior. Ginny believes the woman is associated with the billionaire only for his money. What does Ginny's explanation illustrate?

Accepted Answer

Ginny's explanation illustrates making an attribution, as she is attributing the woman's association with the billionaire to his wealth, rather than considering other possible reasons for their relationship.

Question 6

Which of the following is an example of the fundamental attribution error?

Accepted Answer

The fundamental attribution error involves attributing someone's behavior to their character while ignoring situational factors. In choice B, Johnny attributes his classmate's failure to a lack of motivation, ignoring the situational factor of a family loss.

Question 7

A friend is walking toward you but doesn't acknowledge your presence. You are thinking she is very rude. What have you attributed her behaviour to?

Accepted Answer

You have attributed her behavior to an internal cause, assuming her rudeness is due to her personality or disposition rather than external factors.

Question 8

Claude feels that he is the most qualified candidate for the job. When he fails to get the job, he states that the interviewer was biased and didn't ask the right questions. What is Claude's attribution based on?

Accepted Answer

Claude's attribution is based on external causes because he is attributing his failure to get the job to factors outside of himself, such as the interviewer's bias and the nature of the questions asked.

Question 9

What do we generally attribute others' behaviour to?

Accepted Answer

We generally attribute others' behavior to internal characteristics, such as personality traits or intentions, due to the fundamental attribution error.

Question 10

When judging the behaviour of others we often make the "fundamental attribution error." In doing so, which of the following do we overestimate?

Accepted Answer

The fundamental attribution error refers to the tendency to overestimate the role of internal causes, such as personality traits or intentions, while underestimating situational factors when evaluating others' behavior.

Question 11

Terrance believes that Britta, who is overweight, is unconcerned about her health and fitness. However, he fails to take into account that Britta has serious thyroid problems and recently gained 25 kilograms. What is Terrance exhibiting?

Accepted Answer

Terrance is exhibiting the fundamental attribution error, which is the tendency to attribute others' behaviors to internal factors (like lack of concern for health) while ignoring external factors (such as Britta's thyroid problems).

Question 12

People often affect each other's behaviour when they interact. What is this basic fact called?

Accepted Answer

Social influence refers to the way individuals change their behavior to meet the demands of a social environment, which is the basic fact that people affect each other's behavior when they interact.

Question 13

In Asch's experiment, what percentage of subjects yielded to group judgment at least once?

Accepted Answer

In Asch's conformity experiments, about 75 percent of participants conformed to the group's incorrect judgment at least once.

Question 14

In Solomon Asch's experiment, subjects judged a "standard line" and a "comparison line." Which social dynamic was this experiment intended to test?

Accepted Answer

The experiment was designed to test conformity, examining how individuals yield to or defy a majority group and the effects of such influences on beliefs and opinions.

Question 15

Andy is at a party when someone makes a racist joke and everyone laughs. Even though Andy thought it wasn't funny, he laughed because he didn't want to stand out. Which of the following does Andy's behaviour illustrate?

Accepted Answer

Andy's behavior illustrates conformity, as he is aligning his actions with the group to avoid standing out, despite his personal disagreement with the joke.

Question 16

When Solomon Asch asked research participants to make judgments about the lengths of lines, which social dynamic was he studying?

Accepted Answer

Solomon Asch's conformity experiments involved asking participants to make judgments about the lengths of lines in the presence of a group of confederates who gave incorrect answers. Asch was studying the extent to which individuals would conform to the opinions of the group, even when they knew that the group was wrong.

Question 17

What percentage of the subjects in the Solomon Asch study conformed to the majority's unanimous, incorrect responses?

Accepted Answer

In the Solomon Asch study, 75% of subjects conformed to the majority's unanimous, incorrect responses.

Question 18

A group of Ray's friends have been waiting for Ray for an hour. One says, "He never remembers anything." Another says, "He's probably caught in rush hour traffic." What are these friends doing that might be of interest to a social psychologist?

Accepted Answer

The friends are making attributions by trying to explain Ray's behavior through internal factors (forgetfulness) and external factors (traffic).

Question 19

What would explain someone receiving threats of ridicule, ostracism, and social disapproval due to their nonconformity?

Accepted Answer

Group sanction refers to the social consequences imposed by a group on individuals who do not conform to its norms, such as ridicule, ostracism, and disapproval.

Question 20

When harmony among members becomes more important to the group than the pursuit of wise decision making, what is the group experiencing?

Accepted Answer

Groupthink occurs when a group's desire for harmony overrides its ability to make rational decisions.

Quiz 14: Social Behaviour