Review questions

• According to the definition provided in your text, which of the following qualifies as a true group?

a. people riding in an elevator togetherb. members of a large church congregationc. an author, an illustrator, and an editor working

on a book together over the internetd. six students studying different topics at the

same table in the library

• Recall that in the Stanford Prison Study conducted by Philip Zimbardo and his colleagues (1973), guards became increasingly aggressive and prisoners became increasingly submissive and withdrawn, all in under a week. Results of this (aborted) study suggest that

a. social roles can take on a power all their own.b. norms in the real world are often adopted in artificial

settings.c. humans are inherently aggressive and will “act out” in the

appropriate situation.d. interdependence can be reduced in powerful situations.

When people or roaches undertake a difficult task, the presence of others _____ performance; when theyundertake a simple task, the presence of others ______ performance.a. enhances; impairsb. diminishes; has no effect onc. has no effect on; enhancesd. impairs; enhances

• Dozens of social-psychological experiments on the topic of social facilitation have employed people and a variety of animals and insects. One consistent finding has emerged from these many studies:

a. Simple tasks are not affected by the presence of others, but complex tasks are.

b. The presence of others enhances performance on simple tasks.

c. Simplicity is the most dominant response in the presence of others.

d. Difficult tasks are more arousing than simple tasks.

• Which of the following individuals is most likely to engage in social loafing?

a. Amanda, who sits alone in her office, licking stamps and placing them on envelopes

b. Tim, who washes a car with his friendsc. Phoebe, who works with her classmates on a

difficult assignmentd. Danny, who struggles alone with a difficult

calculus problem

• Consider the following destructive acts: soccer fans bludgeoning one another, fans at rock concerts trampling one another to death to secure good seats, and Klansmen lynching African Americans. All of these are examples of the dangerous effects of

a. hysterical contagion.b. anti-social contagion.c. anti-social anonymity.d. deindividuation

• Under what conditions will groups tend to make better decisions than individuals?

a. when the conditions are stressfulb. when cohesiveness is highc. when they rely on the person with the most

expertised. when there is a strong directive leader

• The phenomenon of groupthink is most likely to occur when a group is under stress, highly

________________, and when the leader is very ________________.

a. cohesive; directiveb. cohesive; diplomaticc. motivated; fearedd. motivated; relationship-oriented

• Members of the school board were tentatively considering a proposal to institute the wearing of uniforms in the elementary and middle school grades. After their last meeting, they are now strongly in favor of the proposal. This illustrates the phenomenon known as

a. groupthink.b. group polarization.c. deindividuation.d. social facilitation.

• Ted is a manager who effectively motivates his employees to complete their short-term projects in a timely manner without sacrificing quality. Ted always rewards the employees who meet these goals. Ted has a __________ leadership style.

a. paternalisticb. transactionalc. relationship-orientedd. transformational

• Which of the following provides the best example of a commons dilemma?

a. conserving water during a droughtb. donating blood at a local hospitalc. avoiding the use of threats during an

argumentd. negotiating to prevent a labor strike

• Katie and Jon are in the same accounting class, they live in the same wing of their dormitory, and they usually both study at the campus coffeehouse in the morning before class. Over time, Katie and Jon become attracted to each other. What force is most likely at work here?

a. complementarityb. propinquityc. reciprocal likingd. similarity

• Perhaps the most crucial determinant of whether we like someone is whether he or she likes us. This best illustrates the power of

a. reciprocal liking.b. similarity.c. complementarity.d. propinquity.

All of the following are true excepta. there is general agreement across cultures on what constitutes an attractive face.b. infants tend to prefer the same faces that adults do.c. averaged faces (e.g., computer-generated composites) are the most highly attractive faces.d. large eyes, prominent cheekbones, and big noses are attractive features in both sexes.

• Explain ‘what is beautiful is good’ stereotype?

• Social exchange theory posits that relationship satisfaction depends on our perceptions of the rewards and cost associated with the relationship, what kind of relationship we believe we deserve, and whether

a. we believe that a relationship with someone else would be better.

b. our partner makes comparable investments in the relationship.

c. relationship resources are distributed equally.d. relationship resources are distributed equitably.

• ________ theory holds that people are happiest in their relationships when their rewards and costs are comparable to the rewards and costs of their partners.

a. Social exchangeb. Equityc. Equalityd. Distributive justice

• Ainsworth and his colleagues (1978) identified three basic attachment styles which they termed

a. anxious/ambivalent; avoidant; insecure.b. anxious; avoidant; ambivalent.c. secure; ambivalent; anxious/avoidant.d. secure; avoidant; anxious/ambivalent.

• Which of the following statements is true about communal versus exchange relationships? In communal relationships, partners

a. are unconcerned about issues of equity.b. are more likely to redefine costs as rewards.c. assess equity over the long haul, rather than day-

to-day.d. are more willing to distort reality in order to keep

the relationship alive.

• Whereas ______ is any act performed to benefit another, _____ is such an act performed with no regard for one’s safety or interests.

a. altruism; prosocial behaviorb. prosocial behavior; self-helpc. prosocial behavior; altruismd. altruism; self-sacrifice

• The idea that natural selection favors behaviors that help a genetic relative is known as

a. kin selection.b. familial selection.c. kinship bias.d. familial reciprocity.

• A principal theory in social psychology is social exchange theory (Homans, 1961; Thibaut and Kelley, 1959). According to this theory, we will be most likely to help others

a. when the benefits outweigh the costs.b. who are closely related to us.c. who have already helped us.d. for whom we feel empathy.

• _____ refers to the ability to experience events or emotions from another person’s perspective.

a. Empathyb. Identificationc. Altruismd. Transference

• Men are more likely to help in _____, whereas women are likely to help in ______.

a. heroic ways; altruistic waysb. ways that involve a long-term commitment;

heroic waysc. communal ways; exchange waysd. heroic ways; ways that involve a long-term

commitment

• A number of studies have revealed that doing well on a test, receiving a gift, and listening to pleasant music can increase helping. These consistent findings across investigations suggest that there is a _____ relation between ______ and helping.

a. negative; self-attentionb. positive; rewardsc. negative; positive moodd. positive; positive mood

• Which of the following best describes the urban-overload hypothesis (Milgram, 1970)?People who

a. live in cities feel out of touch with others, so use helping as a way to “reach out.”

b. live in cities often feel overwhelmed, so simplify things by keeping to themselves.

c. visit cities from rural areas feel overwhelmed, so avoid the urban dwellers.

d. visit cities from rural areas feel isolated, so use helping as way to “reach out” to others.

• The bystander effect refers to the finding thata. bystanders will be more likely to help when

they feel they are competent to do so.b. the greater the number of bystanders, the less

likely individuals are to help.c. people in crowds are distracted, so they don’t

interpret emergencies correctly.d. witnesses to an emergency are more likely to

help victims similar to them.

• According to Sigmund Freud, which of the following is an essential function that society serves?

a. making people more aggressiveb. turning aggressive energy into acceptable

behaviorc. eliminating aggression from peopled. creating many outlets for sexual energy

• A neurotransmitter (brain chemical) whose lack is associated with aggression is

a. dopamine.b. norepinephrine.c. serotonin.d. acetylcholine.

• Well-controlled laboratory experiments and field studies (e.g., McDonald, Zanna, & Fong, 1996) have revealed that alcohol consumption contributes to aggression by

a. increasing testosterone.b. reducing social inhibitions and restraints.c. increasing hostility.d. decreasing frustration tolerance.

• Research on the effects of aggressive stimuli shows thata. the mere presence of guns is enough to trigger

aggressive behavior.b. the presence of guns increases the probability of

aggressive behavior in the presence of a frustration or provocation.

c. people only aggress in the presence of an aggressive stimulus.

d. aggressive behavior triggers an aversion to aggressive stimuli.

• A little girl watches a television cartoon in which a woman yanks a child by the hair and screams at her. After seeing the cartoon, the little girl acts out this same interaction with her doll. This is an example of

a. catharsis.b. imagined aggression.c. social learning.d. the frustration-aggression link.

• Which of the following is false?a. Watching television violence can strengthen people’s

learned inhibitions against violent behavior.b. Watching television violence can prime feelings of

anger and make people likely to misattribute feelings of mild irritation as intense anger.

c. Watching television makes people think that the world is a dangerous and hostile place.

d. Watching television violence reduces people’s sympathy for the victims of violence.

• In their classic “doll studies” with African-American children, social psychologists Kenneth and Mamie Clark (1947) demonstrated the negative effects of prejudice on _____ even early in life.

a. consumer choiceb. altruismc. empathyd. self-esteem

• ____ refers to a negative attitude toward a distinguishable group of people based solely on their group membership.

a. Discriminationb. Stereotypesc. Racismd. Prejudice

• _____ are generalizations about a group of people in which identical characteristics are ascribed to all members of the group, regardless of within-group variations.

a. Schemasb. Stereotypesc. In-group biasesd. Negative stereotypes

• Discrimination is the _____ component of negative attitudes toward a group of people.

a. cognitiveb. pejorativec. affectived. behavioral

• _____ refers to our tendency to view members of____ as more similar to one another than they really are.

a. In-group bias; our in-groupb. In-group heterogeneity; our in-groupc. Out-group homogeneity; an out-groupd. Out-group heterogeneity; an out-group

• You have seen few people with nose rings, and few car accidents in your life. You happen to observe several car accidents involving people with nose rings, and come to the conclusion that people with nose rings drive badly. You have just created a(n)

a. illusory correlation.b. plausible judgment.c. incidental inference.d. artifactual connection.

• The underlying reason why stereotype threat can undermine the performance of members of a group with respect to some ability is that the experience of stereotype threat fosters

a. depression and low self-esteem.b. anger and aggression.c. evaluation apprehension.d. the self-verification motive.

• According to realistic conflict theory, prejudice and discrimination often follow from

a. negative stereotypes.b. scarce resources.c. losing out-group status.d. frustration.

• _____ refers to the idea that because people have learned to hide prejudiced attitudes to avoid allegations of racism, they reveal their prejudice in more subtle and indirect ways.

a. Realistic conflict theoryb. Scapegoatingc. Modern racismd. Displacement

• Which of the following statements is false? Hostility between two groups can be reduced by

a. having the two groups work together to achieve a common goal.

b. making sure that the two groups are of equal status.c. having the groups interact in a formal setting with

each group occupying half of the room.d. making sure that it is clear that norms favor equality.

• ______ norms address people’s perceptions of what other people approve of whereas _____norms address people’s perceptions of what other people actually do.

a. Descriptive; injunctiveb. Proscriptive; descriptivec. Injunctive; descriptived. Proscriptive; injunctive

• Recycling, although good for all of us, can be an inconvenient and effortful activity for individuals. In this sense, recycling represents a kind of

a. injunctive norm.b. social dilemma.c. normative conflict.d. dissonance-arousing activity.

• Three of the controllable aspects of a person’s life that can influence their happiness discussed in your text are

a. satisfying relationships, financial wealth, and having children.

b. having children, pursuing a worthwhile goal, and helping others.

c. satisfying relationships, pursuing something you love, and helping others.

d. having many friends, monetary wealth, and being physical attractive.

• Research using the Holmes and Rahe Social Adjustment Rating Scale suggests that people’s health isinfluenced by ____________.

a. positive events in their livesb. negative events in their livesc. both positive and negative events in their livesd. hardly any life events

• According to stress research pioneer Richard Lazarus (1966, 1993), it is ______ and not ______ stress that causes problems for people.

a. physical; emotionalb. negative; positivec. subjective; objectived. social; personal

• If people have a strong internal locus of control, they tend to believe that

a. their fate is a matter of happenstance.b. they can control their fate.c. if you want a job done right, you must do it

yourself.d. self-control is a valuable quality.

• _____ refers to people’s belief that they can influence their environment, and thus can influence the odds of positive or negative outcomes.

a. Self-efficacyb. Learned helplessnessc. Social supportd. Perceived control

• ______ is a state of pessimism that results when people think their negative outcomes are due to stable, internal, and global factors.

a. A maladaptive attributionb. Dejectionc. Learned helplessnessd. Low self-efficacy

• According to the authors of your text, not only do jurors rely _______ on eye witness testimony, they also_______ how accurate it is.

a. heavily; overestimateb. very little; questionc. solely; correctly estimated. fairly; properly estimate

• Which of the following is a factor that can hinder an eyewitness’s memory during the acquisition stage?

a. poor lighting conditionsb. the event happens in full daylightc. They are waiting and watching for a crime to

happen.d. the event takes awhile

• Christian, a Caucasian man, and Sung-Yee, a Korean man, are walking to their cars when an Asian man pulls out a knife and demands their wallets. In a lineup, Christian cannot tell which man is the one who attacked him, but Sung-Yee has no problem identifying the culprit. This is an example of

a. source-monitoring.b. bystander apathy.c. selective attention.d. the own-race bias.

• Recall that Elizabeth Loftus and her colleagues (1978) showed participants a series of slides that depicted an automobile accident. Some participants saw a yield sign in the photos and other participants saw a stop sign. Later, participants were asked questions that contained information that either did or did not match what they had actually seen (i.e., a stop sign versus a yield sign). Results demonstrated that participants were least accurate in remembering what they had actually seen when

a. they had a very short time to view the slide series.b. question contents contradicted what they had actually seen.c. question contents reflected what they had actually seen.d. they reported what they had seen after being questioned,

rather than before.

• According to the authors of your text, the process whereby people try to identify the source of their memories is the best definition of

a. retrieval.b. source monitoring.c. reconstructive memory.d. storage.

• ____ is a recollection of a traumatic past event that had previously been forgotten or repressed.

a. An autobiographical memoryb. The false memory syndromec. A recovered memoryd. An autobiographical fiction

• _________ theory posits that people refrain from criminal activity because of the threat of severe, certain, and swift legal punishment.

a. Cognitive dissonanceb. Realistic threatc. Preventiond. Deterrence