Psychology Exam 5

In his classic study on conformity, Solomon Asch reported that _____ of participants conformed at least once to the incorrect answer of the confederates.

75%

In the Gawkers study, the percentage of those who conformed (looked up) was _____ when 15 people were looking up.

80%

The _____ study was conducted to determine if group size influenced conformity.

Gawkers

Bill gets Jon to agree to do something that Jon dislikes because Jon previously agreed to do something similar that he did like, though the first request was smaller and far more reasonable. This is an example of the _____ technique.

foot in the door techique

Alia is prone to attribute others' behaviors to aspects of their personality; in most cases, she tends to ignore the situation. Alia often: Please choose the correct answer from the following choices, and then select the submit answer button.

fundamental attribution error

A researcher wants to conduct a conformity study using a variant of Solomon Asch's study. The researcher is interested in finding participants who are NOT likely to conform. Which potential subject should the researcher choose for the study?

a male from a culture that values individualism

When there is no clear correct behavior, people often feel pressure to imitate the behavior of those around them. This demonstrates the power of:

ambiguity.

There is some evidence that suggests that when people conformed to the responses of confederates in the Solomon Asch task, the participants may have actually changed their visual perceptions. This evidence is based on:

an fMRI study using the Solomon Asch-type method.

Miranda had a very busy day at work, and she forgot to stop at the store to buy something her partner, Steve, wanted. She explained to him that she forgot because of her busy day, but Steve said it was because she is a forgetful person. Steve's explanation is based on:

an internal attribution

People develop _____ when they generate an explanation for their own or others' behavior.

attributions

An illusion in which a stationary pinpoint of light in a completely dark room appears to move is known as the:

autokinetic phenomenon.

Social facilitation refers to the:

boosting of a dominant response on a task because of social arousal, leading to improved performance on simple tasks and worse performance on complex tasks when other people are present. Submitanswer

John is a thrifty person and values saving his money. He just began a new relationship with Jane, who is not responsible with her money. This initially bothered John, but later he decides that he actually enjoys spending money on superfluous consumer goods because it allows the two of them to enjoy their time together. Which BEST explains John's change in attitude?

cognitive dissonance theory

The theory that states that people tend to change their attitudes to reduce the mental discomfort created by the inconsistencies between their attitudes and their behavior is called:

cognitive dissonance theory

Studies of cultural and gender factors in conformity have found:

collectivist countries show higher levels of conformity than individualist countries.

Adjusting thoughts or behaviors to coincide with a group standard is known as:

conformity.

Which is NOT a condition increasing the likelihood of conformity?

group size of 10 or more

Tamika attends a group meeting at her organization to discuss a policy change that her employer is considering. Although Tamika and a few of her colleagues have serious misgivings about the policy change, they decide not to voice them because most people at the meeting are in favor of the change. Unfortunately, Tamika's concerns were correct and the policy change resulted in a catastrophic loss of profits for the company. Which BEST explains why Tamika and her colleagues did not express their concerns? Please choose the correct answer from the following choices, and then select the submit answer button.

groupthink

Social psychology is usually defined as the study of:

how we influence one another's behavior and thinking.

Milgram's studies on obedience (as well as other experimenters' replications) suggest that:

human cruelty can be committed by otherwise well-meaning people who are influenced by a sense of obligation to an authority figure.

Conformity can be motivated by _____ when a person wants to do the right thing and others seem to have necessary information.

informational social influence

Shelby has been invited to attend a banquet dinner. She has never been to one before and watches others around her for cues on how to behave. She is seeking:

informational social influence.

A researcher had participants judge the speed of passing cars. The participants' speed estimates varied a great deal when they made judgments alone. However, when the participants were able to hear the other participants' speed estimates, their estimates were all very similar. Which BEST explains this result?

informative social influence

A primary factor that differentiates obedience from conformity is that obedience:

is based on an authority figure.

People are often surprised when bad things happen to good people. This BEST supports the:

just-world hypothesis.

After Milgram surveyed the participants in his studies, he claimed that:

most said they had positive feelings about participating.

The likelihood that a victim will receive help in an emergency is _____ related to the number of bystanders present.

negatively

People like to consider themselves:

nonconformists

Conformity can be motivated by _____ when a person does not want to be different from others.

normative social influence

Jonathan's friends are talking about a new video game that was recently released. Although Jonathan is not interested in video games, he acts as if he is very excited about the game because his friends are excited about it. Which BEST explains why Jonathan would act this way?

normative social influence

Solomon Asch found that when accomplices unanimously agreed on an obviously incorrect answer, the real participants conformed _____ of the time.

one-half

Avani practiced her violin solo every day for 2 hours until she knew the music by heart. Due to a phenomenon called _____, the presence of an audience at the upcoming recital should _____ her performance.

social facilitation; improve

When the behavior of others affects personal behavior _____ has occurred.

social influence

A salesperson comes to Arvo's house and offers to sell him a yard maintenance package. Before Arvo can turn the offer down, the salesperson says that if he buys the package right now, the company will also include a heating and cooling system maintenance package for no additional charge. The salesperson is using the _____ technique.

that's-not-all technique

A student performs well on her math exam and assumes that she is better than the rest of the class when in reality the exam was easy and most of the class did well. Her assessment of her math abilities appears to be influenced by:

the false uniqueness effect.

From a social psychology standpoint, the Kitty Genovese murder was important because it raised questions about:

the forces that would cause an ordinary group of people to totally fail to help a bystander in obvious distress.

The criticism of Zimbardo's situationist explanation of the Stanford Prison Experiment do NOT include the idea that:

the roles were not realistic enough, so the participants did not take them seriously.

People are MOST likely to resist social influence when:

their personal sense of freedom is threatened.

In Solomon Asch's study, what was the error rate when participants were tested individually?

1%

In the Gawkers study, the percentage of those who conformed (looked up) was _____ when one accomplice was looking up.

20%

Solomon Asch found that approximately _____ of real participants conformed to the group at least once.

37%

The pressure to conform increases with group size, up to about _____ people.

5

_____ is a researcher of social influence who took advantage of the autokinetic phenomenon.

Muzafer Sherif

_____ is the desire to protect or restore one's freedom of action.

Reactance

A researcher tests a variant of Stanley Milgram's study. In Milgram's original study, about 65% of participants delivered a shock. In the researcher's version of the study, multiple participants are put in a room together while they are blindfolded. The participants can hear each other speak, but they cannot see each other. In this version of the study, all the participants administer the shock. Which BEST explains the increase in shock administration?

deindividuation

After the verdict was returned in the Rodney King trial in 1992, people in Los Angeles rioted and looted stores. Because so many people were involved, the rioters could not be identified. This unusual behavior was attributed to the aroused and charged reaction to the verdict. Which BEST explains why people would behave in this way?

deindividuation

A researcher asks participants to either explain a time when they were honest or a time when they were dishonest. Half of the participants explain a time when they were honest, and the other half explain a time when they were dishonest. Next, the researcher has the participants rate themselves on their honesty. The researcher finds that those participants who provided an example of when they were honest, rather than dishonest, rated themselves as more honest than did the participants who provided an instance of dishonesty. This result is BEST explained by:

self perception theory

Jason turned in two papers recently for a grade in a class. He received an "A" grade on one paper but a "C" on the other paper. He explained to his friend that both papers were very well-written but that he received a "C" because the professor must have been in a bad mood and graded that paper more harshly. Jason's explanation is consistent with:

self serving bias

The _____ theory holds that, when we are unsure of our attitudes, we infer them by examining our behavior and the context in which it occurs.

self-perception

Stacey is asked a question in front of six other people who have already answered the question. While she disagrees with what the other six people have said, she answers in the same way. This demonstrates the power of:

unanimity

Participants in Muzafer Sherif's study were exposed to a stationary point of light in a dark room and were asked to estimate, in inches, how much the light moved on four separate occasions. On the first day, the participants' estimates

varied widely