Question 1

You have heard that the teacher believes that men perform better in oral presentations than women. What shortcut has the teacher used in this case?

Accepted Answer

The teacher has used stereotyping, which is a shortcut where people categorize individuals based on their gender, race, or religion, and assume that they have certain characteristics and behaviors associated with that group. This type of bias can lead to discrimination and unfair treatment of individuals who do not fit the stereotype.

Question 2

Your boss never gives you the benefit of the doubt. When you arrived late from lunch, he assumed that you had simply taken too much time. He never considered that the elevators were not working that day and the fact that you had to walk up 10 flights of stairs. Your boss is guilty of ________.

Accepted Answer

The boss is committing the fundamental attribution error, which is the tendency to attribute someone's behavior to their character or disposition rather than considering situational factors that may have influenced their behavior. In this case, the boss did not consider the possibility that the elevators were not working and instead assumed that the employee was simply taking too much time.

Question 3

Whenever Jane is successful she takes full credit for her success, but whenever she is unsuccessful she attributes her failure to bad luck or blames one of her fellow employees. She is guilty of the ________.

Accepted Answer

Jane is exhibiting the self-serving bias, which is a cognitive bias where individuals take credit for their successes but blame external factors for their failures.

Question 4

When we judge someone on the basis of our perception of the group to which he/she belongs, it is called ________.

Accepted Answer

When we judge someone based on our perception of the group they belong to rather than on their individual characteristics, it is called stereotyping. Confirmation bias is the tendency to seek out information that confirms our existing beliefs and ignore information that contradicts them. Framing effect occurs when the way information is presented affects how it is perceived. Distinction bias refers to the tendency to view two options as more different than they actually are. The bandwagon effect is the tendency to conform to the actions or beliefs of others.

Question 5

Which of the following is an example of a shortcut used in judging others?

Accepted Answer

Stereotyping is a shortcut used in judging others. This involves assuming that all individuals within a particular group share the same characteristics or traits.

Question 6

Because it is impossible for us to assimilate everything we see, we engage in ________.

Accepted Answer

Selective perception refers to the way our mind processes and filters the information we receive, focusing on some aspects and ignoring others. This is a natural way of coping with the overwhelming amount of stimuli we encounter daily.

Question 7

Which of the following statements is not an example of stereotyping?

Accepted Answer

Statement C is not an example of stereotyping as it is based on an individual's past performance and not a broad generalization about a group of people. The other statements make assumptions about people based on their gender, age, or other characteristics, which is stereotyping.

Question 8

You are more likely to notice cars like your own due to ________.

Accepted Answer

Selective perception refers to the tendency to selectively attend to certain cues and ignore others based on our interests, expectations, and attitudes. In this case, because we own a particular car, we are likely to be more familiar with its features, colors, and design, which we then use as reference points to spot similar models on the road. This phenomenon can also be observed in other contexts, such as identifying people with similar dress styles or accents.

Question 9

Students living in one residence come to feel that their residence is the "best" and then believe that the smartest and most socially engaging students live there. This is an example of ________.

Accepted Answer

This is an example of the social identity effect, where individuals associate their own identity with a particular group (in this case, their residence), and then attribute positive qualities to that group. This can lead to a sense of group pride and exclusion of individuals outside of the group.

Question 10

It was Marisol's first day at work. At first she was very nervous, but when she was introduced to her cubicle neighbour, Hanna, she was reassured by Hanna's soothing smile. Marisol thought that a person with such a beautiful smile could not be bad, and that she would enjoy having her in such close proximity. Which of the following concepts best describes this example?

Accepted Answer

The halo effect is the tendency to assume that all of a person's qualities are good or bad because of one specific characteristic. In this case, Marisol assumes that Hanna is a good person because she has a beautiful smile.

Question 11

Which of the following statements best represents a halo effect?

Accepted Answer

The halo effect refers to the tendency to draw a general impression about an individual on the basis of a single characteristic, such as intelligence, sociability, or appearance. This means that if we perceive someone as intelligent, for example, we may also tend to assume that they are sociable, attractive, and even trustworthy, even if we have no evidence to support these assumptions. This can lead to biased judgments and inaccurate perceptions of others.

Question 12

We don't evaluate a person in isolation. Our reaction to a person is influenced by other persons we have recently encountered. This is known as the ________.

Accepted Answer

The contrast effect refers to how we evaluate someone based on comparisons to other individuals we have encountered recently. This can skew our perception and judgment of a person. The other options (halo effect, confirmation bias, framing effect, impact bias) do not specifically refer to the influence of recent encounters on our evaluation of a person.

Question 13

________ indicates the tendency of an individual to attribute his own successes to internal factors while putting the blame for failures on external factors.

Accepted Answer

Self-serving bias refers to the tendency to attribute one's own successes to internal factors such as personal qualities and abilities while blaming external factors such as luck or other people for one's failures. It is a common cognitive bias that serves to protect one's self-esteem and maintain a positive self-image.

Question 14

Which of the following statements is true regarding a contrast effect?

Accepted Answer

The contrast effect refers to the phenomenon where a person appears more appealing or less appealing than usual due to the presence of another person who is more or less appealing, respectively. Option A describes the self-serving bias, option B refers to the halo effect, option D describes stereotyping, and option E is the anchoring and adjustment heuristic.

Question 15

Which of the following terms best describes the tendency to underestimate the influence of external factors and overestimate the influence of internal factors when making judgments about the behaviour of others?

Accepted Answer

The fundamental attribution error refers to the tendency to overemphasize the role of personal characteristics and underemphasize the influence of situational factors when explaining the behavior of others.

Question 16

We use a number of shortcuts when we judge others. All of the following are shortcuts that we use to judge others except ________.

Accepted Answer

The self-serving bias is not a shortcut we use to judge others, but rather a cognitive bias that we exhibit towards ourselves. The other options (stereotyping, the halo effect, the contrast effect, and selective perception) are all shortcuts that we use to judge others.

Question 17

William believes Ronnie is a hardworking individual because Ronnie always dresses nicely and wears well-tailored suits. Which shortcut is William using to judge Ronnie?

Accepted Answer

William is using the halo effect, which is a cognitive bias where a positive overall impression of a person influences how one perceives their specific traits or actions. In this case, Ronnie's nice dressing and well-tailored suits are causing William to believe that Ronnie is hardworking, without any direct evidence or observation of Ronnie's work ethic.

Question 18

Samantha's rating in a job interview is high in contrast to the candidate who was interviewed directly before her, who was rated extremely low. In this case, Samantha's high rating can be partially attributed to the ________.

Accepted Answer

The contrast effect occurs when people's evaluation of one person is based on the comparison with another person encountered just before or after. In this case, Samantha's high rating in the job interview is influenced by the low rating of the candidate who was interviewed before her.

Question 19

Jennifer has already presented two excellent reports. The third report she has just presented is clearly not as good as the first two reports, yet she is given the same high grade as before. What shortcut has the teacher used in this case?

Accepted Answer

The teacher has used the halo effect, which is the tendency to generalize a positive impression of a person based on a single trait or characteristic. In this case, Jennifer's first two reports were excellent and therefore the teacher gave her the same high grade for the third report, despite it not being as good.

Question 20

Allison has just presented her paper and has done a really good job. Why should you not want to present your own paper directly after she does?

Accepted Answer

Presenting your paper directly after someone who has done a really good job may lead to the contrast effect, where the audience may compare your performance unfavorably with Allison’s. It is better to present at a later time when the audience has had a chance to reset their expectations.

Quiz 6: Perception and Individual Decision Making