Ch. 1: Introducing Social Psychology

A stranger approaches Emily on campus and says he is a professional photographer. He asks if she will spend 15 minutes posing for pictures next to the student union. According to social psychologists, Emily's decision will depend on which of the following? a. how well dressed the man is b. whether the man offers to pay her c. how Emily construes the situation d. whether the man has a criminal record

c. how Emily construes the situation

Social psychology has its origins in a. Gestalt psychology b. Freudian psychology c. behavioral psychology d. biological psychology

a. Gestalt psychology

How many of the following comments illustrate the fundamental attribution error? a. a man says, "My wife has sure become a grouchy person," but explains his own grouchiness as a result of having a hard day at the office b. a woman reads about high unemployment in poor communities and says, "Well, if those people weren't so lazy, they would find work" c. "The people who committed suicide at Jonestown were socially isolated and thus cut off from other points of view about their leader" d. "The people" who committed suicide at Jonestown were mentally ill"

a. a man says, "My wife has sure become a grouchy person," but explains his own grouchiness as a result of having a hard day at the office b. a woman reads about high unemployment in poor communities and says, "Well, if those people weren't so lazy, they would find work" d. "The people" who committed suicide at Jonestown were mentally ill"

Which of the following reflect(s) the motive to maintain high self-esteem? a. after Sarah leaves Bob for someone else, Bob decides that he never liked her much anyway b. Students who want to take Professor Lopez's seminar have to apply by writing a 10-page essay. Everyone who is selected ends up loving the class c. Janetta did poorly on the first test in her psychology class. She admits that she didn't study enough and vows to study harder for the next test. d. Zach has been involved in several minor traffic accidents since getting his driver's license. "There sure are a lot of terrible drivers out there," he says. "People should learn to be good drivers like me."

a. after Sarah leaves Bob for someone else, Bob decides that he never liked her much anyway b. Students who want to take Professor Lopez's seminar have to apply by writing a 10-page essay. Everyone who is selected ends up loving the class d. Zach has been involved in several minor traffic accidents since getting his driver's license. "There sure are a lot of terrible drivers out there," he says. "People should learn to be good drivers like me."

How does social psychology differ from personality psychology? a. social psychology focuses on individual differences, whereas personality psychology focuses on how people behave in different situations b. social psychology focuses on the shared processes that make people susceptible to social influence, whereas personality psychology focuses on individual differences c. social psychology provides general laws and theories about societies, whereas personality psychology studies the characteristics that make people unique d. social psychology focuses on individual differences, whereas personality psychology provides general laws and theories about societies.

b. social psychology focuses on the shared processes that make people susceptible to social influence, whereas personality psychology focuses on individual differences

In social psychology, the level of analysis is a. society at large b. the individual in a social context c. groups and organizations d. cognitive and perceptual brain processes

b. the individual in a social context

What two central motives influence the way we construe the world? a. the need to feel our opinions are right b. the need to maintain reasonably high self-esteem c. the need to feel superior to others d. the need to be accurate in our perceptions and decisions e. the need for self-expression

b. the need to maintain reasonably high self-esteem d. the need to be accurate in our perceptions and decisions

The topic that would most interest a social psychologist is a. how the level of extroversion of different presidents affected their political decisons b. whether people's decision about whether to cheat on a test is influenced by how they imagine their friends would react if they found out c. the extent to which people's social class predicts their income d. what passers-by on the street think about global warming

b. whether people's decision about whether to cheat on a test is influenced by how they imagine their friends would react if they found out

A social psychologist would tend to look for explanations of a young man's violent behavior primarily in terms of: a. his aggressive personality traits b. possible genetic contributions c. how his peer group behaviors d. what his father taught him

c. how his peer group behaviors

What was the main contribution of Gestalt psychology to social psychology? a. it added an understanding of how the brain works b. it emphasized how people perceive the physical world c. it showed that the whole is larger than the sum of its parts d. it added historical perspective to the study of behavior

c. it showed that the whole is larger than the sum of its parts

The fundamental attribution error is best defined as the tendency to a. explain our own and other people's behavior entirely in terms of personality traits, thereby underestimating the power of social influence b. explain our own and other people's behavior in terms of the social situation, thereby underestimating the power of personality factors c. believe that people's group memberships influence their behavior more than their personalities d. believe that people's personalities influence their behavior more than their group memberships.

a. explain our own and other people's behavior entirely in terms of personality traits, thereby underestimating the power of social influence

In social psychology, why is contrual so important? a. people's behavior is affected by their interpretation of events, not only the events themselves b. people's behavior is primarily determined by the objective circumstance they are in c. people are aware of their biases in perceiving events d. people realize that other reasonable people see things the way they do

a. people's behavior is affected by their interpretation of events, not only the events themselves

What is the "level of analysis" for a social psychologist? a. the individual in the context of a social situation b. the social situation itself c. a person's level of achievement d. a person's level of reasoning

a. the individual in the context of a social situation

Social psychology is the study of a. the real or imagined influence of other people b. social institutions, such as the church or school c. social events, such as football games and dances d. psychological processes, such as dreaming

a. the real or imagined influence of other people

What do social psychology and personality psychology have in common? a. they both focus on the individual b. the both focus on personality traits c. they both focus on formative childhood experiences d. they both focus on genetic contributions to personality

a. they both focus on the individual

Researchers who study social cognition assume that people a. try to view the world as accurately as possible b. can't think clearly with other people around them c. distort reality in order to view themselves favorably d. are driven by the need to control others

a. try to view the world as accurately as possible

For social psychologists, the likely explanation of the mass suicide at Jonestown was a. members of the cult were mentally unstable or clinically depressed b. the cult leader used hypnotism or drugs to coerce his followers into obedience c. processes that could ensnare almost any healthy person. d. the open, welcoming nature of the cult that made members feel it was safe to obey their leader

c. processes that could ensnare almost any healthy person.

The "self-fulfilling prophecy" is the reason that many people a. love Doomsday predictions b. make a prophecy that they will fail their exams c. create a prophecy that they will succeed on their exams. d. act in ways to make predictions of their own behavior or others' come true.

d. act in ways to make predictions of their own behavior or others' come true.

"Naive realism" refers to the fact that a. most people are naive (uneducated) about psychology b. few people are realistic c. most people would rather be naive than accurate d. most people believe they perceive things accurately.

d. most people believe they perceive things accurately.

What does the Wall Street Game reveal about personality and situation? a. competitive people will compete fiercely no matter what a game is called b. cooperative people will try hard to get competitive opponents to work with them c. the name of the game makes no difference in how people play the game d. the name of the game strongly influences how people play the game

d. the name of the game strongly influences how people play the game

What do social psychology and sociology have in common? a. they both examine demographic trends in society b. they both study national institutions c. they both are concerned with personality differences d. they both are concerned with group processes

d. they both are concerned with group processes

Which of the following research topics about violence is one that a social psychologist might investigate? a. how rates of violence change over time within a culture b. why murder rates vary across cultures c. brain abnormalities that produce aggression when a person is provoked d. why some situations are more likely to provoke aggression than others

d. why some situations are more likely to provoke aggression than others

To get people to change self-destructive behavior, social psychologists would be likely to a. persuade them by offering useful information b. scare the living daylights out of them c. threaten them with punishment d. all of the above e. none of the above

e. none of the above