Psychological Scenarios Test

1. Tina attributes her poor performance on the quiz to her teacher’s inability to teach the material. However, she believes that other students who did not do well on the quiz failed because they did not study hard enough. Tina’s reasoning illustrates: a. the actor/observer discrepancy. b. the fundamental attribution error. c. self-fulfilling prophecy. d. ingroup favoritism. 2. Adriana was assigned to do a class project with Jim. Jim rarely spoke in class, and Adriana didn’t expect him to contribute much, so she took over and assigned herself most of the tasks including the role of presenting their project.

As a consequence, Jim thought that Adriana did not want to work with him. Therefore, Jim remained quiet even though in other classes he is talkative and does his part in group work. This scenario is an example of: a. a self-fulfilling prophecy. b. an actor/observer discrepancy. c. prejudice. d. ingroup favoritism. 3. Waylon doesn’t like clowns, but he doesn’t change his behavior around them. In contrast, Mike’s negative attitude toward clowns compels him to throw popcorn at them at the circus. Waylon exhibits __________ while Mike exhibits __________. a. prejudice; discrimination b. discrimination; prejudice . subtyping; prejudice d. subtyping; discrimination 4. Karen’s roommate hung one of her paintings from art class in their dorm room. Initially, Karen hated the painting and thought it was hideous. But by the end of the year, Karen had grown to like the painting and even wanted to take it home with her. The best explanation for Karen’s change in attitude is: a. the mere exposure effect. b. the elaboration likelihood model. c. attitude accessibility. d. persuasion. 5. Lisa used to dislike people who drank alcohol. However, she recently started to date Mike who sometimes likes to drink a few beers after work.

Instead of breaking up with Mike, she tells herself that drinking isn’t bad after all. Lisa’s change in attitude illustrates: a. cognitive dissonance. b. actor-observer discrepancy. c. the elaboration likelihood model. d. attitude accessibility. 6. Six-year-old Wendy sees a cereal box with her favorite cartoon character on the front and immediately wants to buy the cereal. Her mother Terri picks up the box, looks at the nutrition label, and decides the cereal is worth purchasing. Wendy was convinced to purchase the cereal by the __________ route, whereas Terri was convinced by the __________ route. a. peripheral; central . central; peripheral c. cognitive; elaborative d. elaborative; cognitive 7. Lindsay won her first leading role in a Broadway musical. She rehearsed her songs and lines numerous times alone in front of a mirror, and her performance in front of the mirror was mediocre. However, on opening night her performance was so sensational that she got a standing ovation. The difference in her performance can be best explained by social: a. facilitation. b. loafing. c. norms. d. impairment. 8. Payton and his friends all go to his school’s wearing matching team shirts, and they sit together in a group.

When his friends start cursing at supporters from the other college, Payton starts cursing too because he feels like he is part of a group, even though normally Payton is very conscientious and seldom yells at anyone. Payton’s yelling is an example of: a. deindividuation. b. social loafing. c. groupthink. d. obedience. 9. On the first day of class, Seung-Ming was the first student to arrive. The classroom was empty, but because the light was off, he decided to wait outside the classroom. When his classmates arrived, they also waited outside the class until the instructor came.

The behavior of Seung-Ming’s classmates is an example of: a. conformity. b. cooperation. c. compliance. d. obedience. 10. Jerry is waiting in line for his pizza slice when a stranger cuts in line. Ordinarily Jerry wouldn’t mind, but he was having a bad day today so he gets very angry and punches the stranger on the chin. Jerry’s actions can be explained by: a. the frustration-aggression hypothesis. b. the bystander intervention effect. c. the elaboration likelihood model. d. Kluver-Bucy syndrome. 11. George is walking down the street when he sees someone lying motionless on the ground.

George is most likely to help that person if he is walking: a. alone, and the person asks him for help. b. alone, and he hears the person groaning. c. with a stranger, and the person asks him for help. d. with a stranger, and he hears the person groaning. 12. Micah comes home to find his . According to kin selection, Micah is more likely to go into the house and try to rescue the people inside if those people are: a. his children. b. his stepchildren. c. his friends. d. his mother-in-law and father-in-law. 13. Justin joined an online dating service that allows him to meet and date other people.

Justin is most likely to date someone who is __________ attractive and has __________ interests. a. equally; similar b. equally; different c. more; similar d. more; different 14. Doug and Danni have been a couple for several years. They are very devoted to helping and taking care of each other. Marcy and Martin have only been dating for a month but feel a very strong desire to be together. Doug and Danni are experiencing __________ love, while Marcy and Martin are experiencing __________ love. a. compassionate; passionate b. passionate; compassionate c. accommodating; compassionate d. assionate; accommodating 15. Sheldon and Sandy are in marriage counseling. When Sandy complains that Sheldon doesn’t help with housework, their therapist asks her if his behavior could be explained by the situation, such as being busy taking care of their children. Their therapist is trying to teach the couple: a. a different attribution style. b. passionate love. c. compassionate love. d. the matching principle. 16. Which of the following statements is the best example of the fundamental attribution error? a. “People live in ghettos because they lack the motivation to make anything of themselves. b. “She was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. ” c. “Prison guards are not mean people; they are just victims of a very difficult situation. ” d. “There, but for the grace of God, go I. ” 17. People make just world attributions mainly to: a. increase their senses of self-esteem b. make them feel safer c. let them avoid their own errors d. ease their consciences 18. In explaining her failure to be admitted to the graduate school of her choice and the failure of a classmate to get into graduate school, Cynthia uses the actor/observer discrepancy.

Her reasoning involves which of the following sets of attributions? a. “I didn’t get in because I’m not motivated to do well; my classmate isn’t adequately motivated either. ” b. “I didn’t get in because I was so swamped with coursework that I didn’t have enough time to prepare my application packet; my classmate didn’t get in because she’s not motivated to do well. ” c. “I didn’t get in because I’m not motivated to do well; my classmate didn’t get in because she didn’t have enough time to prepare her admissions packet. ” d. I didn’t get in because I didn’t have enough time to prepare; my classmate didn’t have enough time to prepare either. ” 19. Dr. Norton had heard from other teachers that five of his algebra students might require extra help. As a consequence, he tended to hover around these students, checked their answers more than he checked other students’ answers, seemed to doubt their ability to understand the material, and often stopped them in the middle of their problem solving to tell them that they were working the problem incorrectly. All five students failed the class.

Which of the following factors would, in part, explain their failure? a. positive attributional bias b. self-serving bias c. self-fulfilling prophecy d. group stereotype 20. In working on the campaign of the student body president, Tom wants to present his candidate in the best light to specific audiences. He has divided his audiences into two categories: those who are paying attention to the issues (the concerned or skeptical) and those who are not really concerned with the relevant issues (the unconcerned or gullible). If he were to structure speeches for each of these groups, which types of messages might be most appealing? . concerned: two-sided argument; unconcerned: two-sided argument b. concerned: two-sided argument; unconcerned: one-sided argument c. concerned: one-sided argument; unconcerned: two-sided argument d. It is impossible to predict without knowing the cultural and religious backgrounds of the audience. 21. Terriers were bred to chase small animals and in the process to dig holes. Susan adopted a terrier, but it played happily in her backyard without digging holes. To give that dog company, Susan adopted a second terrier. Within a week, both dogs were digging holes throughout the yard.

The dogs’ behavior exemplifies: a. social loafing b. deindividuation c. social facilitation d. the autokinetic effect 22. After Hurricane Katrina, people committed many acts of valor and bravery and many acts of looting and theft. According to the concept of deindividuation, all of the following factors probably contributed to the criminal acts EXCEPT: a. arousal b. anonymity c. confusion d. diffusion of responsibility 23. Human beings typically engage in prosocial, altruistic behavior. Why, according to your book, do we engage in these behaviors? . to manage our public image b. to relieve our negative mood c. to help individuals in our gene pool d. all of the above 24. As discussed in your textbook, a psychology study conducted in the 1970s compared men raised in the northern part of the United States to men raised in the South. When a confederate in the study was verbally aggressive, southern men responded by: a. exhibiting increases in cortisol and testosterone b. acting violently toward the confederate c. refusing to participate in the study d. challenging the confederate’s bad behavior 25.

Before she got married, Su-lin sought the advice of her grandmother, who had been happily married for over 50 years to a man who, Su-lin knew, could be difficult at times. Which of the following pieces of advice, according to your textbook, would Su-lin have received from her grandmother that might explain her years of happy marriage? a. “Live your own life, find your own interests, and ignore him as much as possible. ” b. “I always try to find the good things about him, and believe me, they’re there. ” c. “You have to remember that he’s a man and consequently has many weaknesses. ” d. “If you let him make the