Question 1

In a field study by Shultz and his colleagues (2007), several households in a neighborhood received weekly feedback about their level of energy consumption relative to their neighbors.Feedback about how much energy they used relative to their neighbors provided participants with ________ norms.

Accepted Answer

Descriptive norms refer to perceptions of what most people typically do in a given situation. In this case, participants received feedback about their energy consumption relative to their neighbors, which provides information about what their neighbors typically do (i.e. use more or less energy). Therefore, the feedback provided descriptive norms.

Question 2

The "social norms" approach to reducing binge drinking on college campuses relies primarily on the use of

Accepted Answer

The answer of The "social norms" approach to reducing binge...

Question 3

If you wanted to alter the cleaning behavior of your roommates using a technique similar to Shultz and his colleagues (2007), you could give them feedback about injunctive norms using which of the following methods?

Accepted Answer

Shultz and colleagues (2007) used feedback about injunctive norms by providing symbols (like smiley or sad faces) to indicate approval or disapproval of behaviors. This method directly relates to choice C, where a smiley or sad face drawing is used as feedback on a report about behavior, indicating whether the behavior is socially approved (smiley face) or disapproved (sad face).

Question 4

Complete the following analogy: injunctive norm: ________ :: descriptive norm: ________.

Accepted Answer

Injunctive norms are related to approval or disapproval of behaviors, while descriptive norms are related to what is observed as common behavior.

Question 5

Recall that in a field experiment described in the text, participants were more likely to properly dispose of a handbill left on their windshields when they saw a confederate pick up and dispose of a fast food bag.The researchers suggest that the role of the confederate in this study was to

Accepted Answer

The confederate in the study made the norms salient to participants by demonstrating the appropriate behavior (disposing of trash properly), thereby highlighting the expected behavior in that context.

Question 6

Recall that in a field experiment described in the text, participants were more likely to properly dispose of a handbill left on their windshields when they saw a confederate pick up and dispose of a fast food bag.Results of this experiment reveal the power of ________ to reduce littering behaviors.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Recall that in a field experiment described...

Question 7

Which student below is being exposed to an attempt to change behavior based on the "social norms" approach?

Accepted Answer

Tabitha is being exposed to the "social norms" approach because she is seeing a poster that displays the actual behavior of the majority of the students. The approach believes that individuals tend to conform to the behaviors they perceive as typical within their social group.

Question 8

In a field study by Shultz and his colleagues (2007), several households in a neighborhood received weekly feedback about their level of energy consumption relative to their neighbors.Some households received only descriptive norm feedback, and some received descriptive and injunctive norm feedback.Which method of feedback was most effective in producing energy conservation?

Accepted Answer

The study found that households that received both descriptive and injunctive norm feedback had the greatest reduction in energy consumption, indicating that this method was the most effective in promoting energy conservation.

Question 9

Emilio is designing an ad aimed at increasing seat belt use.He decides to incorporate slogans like, "It's great to buckle up!" rather than "35 percent of adults do not regularly wear a seat belt." Emilio is using ________ in this ad.

Accepted Answer

Emilio is using injunctive norms, which refer to the perception of what behaviors are approved or disapproved by others. By promoting the behavior in a positive light ("It's great to buckle up!"), he's suggesting that wearing a seat belt is socially approved, rather than focusing on the statistics of those who do not wear seat belts, which would be an example of descriptive norms.

Question 10

Public safety officials want to increase the use of seat belts among drivers, and have decided to show a television ad documenting the rising use of seat belts among drivers.This represents the use of ________ norms to change safety behaviors.

Accepted Answer

Descriptive norms focus on what is commonly done or accepted behavior among a group, and the TV ad showing the rising use of seat belts among drivers is an example of using descriptive norms to encourage more people to also use seat belts.

Question 11

Freedman and Fraser (1966) asked homeowners to put a large, unattractive sign in their yards.They were very successful in getting people to agree if

Accepted Answer

This is a classic example of the foot-in-the-door technique. By first getting the homeowners to agree to put up a small sign in the window, they had already committed to a smaller request and were more likely to agree to a larger request like putting up the big sign in their yard. The other options given are not related to the request and would not be as effective in increasing compliance.

Question 12

Based on the field study by Shultz and his colleagues (2007) in which several households in a neighborhood received weekly feedback about their level of energy consumption relative to their neighbors, if you wanted to encourage people to use less electricity, what would you do?

Accepted Answer

The field study by Shultz and his colleagues found that providing feedback in the form of smiley or sad faces based on energy consumption was effective in encouraging households to use less electricity. This suggests that using a form of social comparison, such as comparing energy usage to that of neighbors, and providing immediate feedback can be effective in promoting energy conservation. Options A and B may not provide a clear incentive for households to change their behavior, and option D may not be feasible for all utility providers.

Question 13

The social influence strategy in which getting people to agree first to a small request makes them more likely to agree later to a second, larger request is known as

Accepted Answer

The foot-in-the-door technique involves making a small request at first and then building up to a larger request later. This strategy works by creating a sense of consistency in a person's behavior and making it more likely that they will agree to the larger request after already agreeing to the smaller one.

Question 14

Dr.Hammerstein is a college dean and wants to design a program to help deal with the problem of binge drinking on her campus.The technique currently in favor, and which you'd suggest, is based on the use of

Accepted Answer

Presenting information on campus norms that are lower than students expect, also known as the "social norms approach," has been found to be effective in reducing binge drinking on college campuses. This approach emphasizes the fact that the majority of students on campus do not engage in excessive drinking, contrary to what some students may believe. This can help to shift perceived norms and reduce the pressure to conform to excessive drinking behaviors. The other techniques listed may have limited effectiveness or even backfire, such as expert persuasion leading to reactance and disobedience to authority.

Question 15

Catherine and Gabriel are picnicking in the park.They would be least likely to litter when

Accepted Answer

The answer of Catherine and Gabriel are picnicking in the...

Question 16

In a field study by Shultz and his colleagues (2007), several households in a neighborhood received weekly feedback about their level of energy consumption relative to their neighbors.How are these results being applied?

Accepted Answer

The study found that households who received feedback with a smiley or sad face on their bills reduced their energy consumption by 2-3% compared to a control group who did not receive the feedback. As a result, some utility companies have implemented this practice to encourage energy conservation among their customers.

Question 17

In the field experiment described in the text, city library patrons were approached by a confederate in the parking lot.This experiment had two independent variables.What were they?

Accepted Answer

The two independent variables in the experiment were the confederate's behavior and the cleanliness of the parking lot. These variables were manipulated to observe their effects on the patrons' behavior.

Question 18

Steph reads an anti-drinking ad in the student newspaper that states, "Students at this school, on average, only drink three drinks per week." She typically drinks no alcoholic beverages per week, but after seeing the ad she starts consuming more because she is "below average." Steph is exhibiting the

Accepted Answer

Steph is experiencing the boomerang effect, where instead of conforming to the norm, she behaves in the opposite way. She drinks more because she perceives herself as deviating from the norm.

Question 19

Injunctive norms tend to be more powerful than descriptive norms because they are based on

Accepted Answer

Injunctive norms are based on normative social influence, which is the pressure to conform to the expectations of others in order to gain social approval or avoid social disapproval. This type of influence is often more powerful than informational social influence, which is the pressure to conform to others' opinions or behavior because we believe they are correct. Minority influence and obedience to authority are not directly related to injunctive norms.

Question 20

Researchers have concluded that in general, ________ norms are more effective than ________ norms in producing desirable behaviors, such as reducing litter.

Accepted Answer

Injunctive norms, which are perceptions of what behaviors are approved or disapproved by others, tend to be more effective than descriptive norms, which are perceptions of what behaviors are common or popular, in influencing individuals to engage in desirable behaviors like reducing litter. This is because injunctive norms carry an implied approval or disapproval from others, making the behavior more or less attractive based on societal or group standards.

Quiz 8: Conformity: Influencing Behavior

In a field study by Shultz and his colleagues (2007) , several households in a neighborhood received weekly feedback about their level of energy consumption relative to their neighbors.Feedback about how much energy they used relative to their neighbors provided participants with ________ norms.