Exam 2 Review
A basic tenet of self-perception theory is that we infer, our feelings from our behavior when A. the reasons for our attitudes or feelings are ambiguous. B. the reasons for our attitudes or feelings are clear. C. we can easily identify external reasons for our feelings. D. we think about how others perceive us
A.
According to research by Tim Wilson and his colleagues (1989, 1992, 1995), analyzing the reasons for why we feel what we do is not always the best strategy for making sense of our feelings. This is because A. reasons that are available in mind are not always the "correct" reasons. B. self-enhancement motives are more powerful than accuracy motives. C. we are likely to fall prey to the fundamental attribution error. D. such introspections can feel paralyzing, and thus negatively affect our mood
A.
According to the authors of your text, ______________ explains why providing young children large rewards for reading (e.g., money, prizes) might actually backfire and convince them that they don't really like reading as much as they thought at first. A. the overjustification effect B. self-perception processes C. reasons-generate attitude change D. intrinsic motivation theory
A.
According to the elaboration likelihood model of persuasion, people who _____ are most likely to take the _____ route to persuasion. A. are motivated to pay attention; central B. are motivated to pay attention; peripheral C. do not pay close attention; central D. do not care about the issue; central
A.
According to the theory of planned behavior (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980), the best predictor of riding a roller coaster would be A. one's intention to ride the roller coaster. B. one's attitude toward amusement parks. C. one's fear of heights. D. the number of other people waiting in line
A.
Because they provide the potential offender _________, threats of harsh punishment seldom produce positive attitude change. A. ample external justification for restraint B. an excuse for psychological reactance C. sufficient internal justification for restraint D. an internal attribution for restraint
A.
Daryl Bem's self-perception theory suggests that we form attitudes about an object based more on our _____ toward that object than our _____ toward that object. A. behavior; thoughts and feelings B. thoughts and feelings; behavior C. beliefs; past experience D. social group's behavior; own behavior
A.
In a clever experiment by Claude Steele and his colleagues (1986), why did some participants wearing white lab coats fail to exhibit typical dissonance effects by rating a chosen alternative higher than they did before making the choice? A. They were science majors, and the coat served a "self-affirmation function." B. The clean white coat served to increase self-awareness. C. They became uncomfortable due to their concern for keeping the coat clean. D. Their coats were clean, while others' were dirty, so their self-esteem was enhanced.
A.
In general, the more _______ a decision between alternatives, the ______ post-decision dissonance. A. permanent; greater B. revocable; greater C. trivial; greater D. freer; less
A.
People are most likely to form behaviorally based attitudes when ____________ and _____________. A. the initial attitude is weak or ambiguous; there are no external justifications for the behavior B. the initial attitude is weak or ambiguous; there is no internal justification for the behavior C. the initial attitude is strong and clear; there are no external justifications for the behavior D. the initial attitude is strong and clear; there are no internal justifications for the behavior
A.
Recall that Elliot Aronson and J. Merrill Carlsmith (1963) told preschoolers that they were not allowed to play with a toy that the children had already rated as more attractive than other toys. Half of the children were threatened with mild punishment if they disobeyed, and the other half with severe punishment. When the experimenter left the room, none of the children played with the forbidden toy. When the experiment returned and asked children to rate all the toys again, those children who received A. mild threats reduced their dissonance by rating the forbidden toy as less attractive than before. B. severe threats increased their dissonance by rating the forbidden toy as more attractive than before C. mild threats increased their dissonance by rating the toy as more attractive than before. D. severe threats reduced their dissonance by rating the toy as less attractive than before
A.
Recall that Howard Leventhal and his colleagues (1967) showed one group of smokers a film depicting the ravages of lung cancer, gave another group of smokers a pamphlet with instructions on how to quit smoking, and exposed a third group to both the film and the pamphlets. People in the last group reduced their smoking significantly more than people in the other two groups because A. fear was aroused and they were provided a means to reduce that fear. B. they were relatively light smokers. C. the combination increased their confidence in their ability to quit. D. prior to the study, they reported more failed attempts to quit
A.
Recall that Leon Festinger and J. Merrill Carlsmith (1959) paid participants either $1 or $20 to tell another person that a boring, tedious task was really fun and interesting. The results of their experiment demonstrated that A. inadequate external justification can lead to attitude change. B. when people experience dissonance, they work to justify their effort. C. the decision to engage in attitude-discrepant acts must be voluntary. D. people often refuse to say in public what they privately believe.
A.
Schachter's (1964) two-factor theory of emotion suggests that we first experience ________ and then subsequently seek to ________. A. physiological arousal; label the emotion appropriately B. compunction; reduce cognitive dissonance C. cognitive dissonance; label the emotion appropriately D. physiological arousal; reduce self-awareness
A.
Self-affirmation theory posits that the cause of attitudes changing to match behavior is due to A. the need to protect or recover self-esteem arising from attitude-behavior inconsistency. B. inferences we make by observing our own behavior and the context in which it occurs. C. the need to verify our beliefs about ourselves. D. the need to reassure ourselves that we are similar to other people.
A.
Source credibility is a ____route persuasion cue, and is most likely to influence the attitude of a target who A. peripheral; is cognitively busy B. central; is cognitively busy C. peripheral; cares a great deal about the topic
A.
The cornerstone of Leon Festinger's (1954) social comparison theory is that people A. have a need to evaluate their own opinions and abilities. B. are motivated to see themselves in the most positive light. C. prefer subjective feedback to objective feedback. D. prefer to compare themselves to others more talented or accomplished than they are.
A.
The development of our sense of self is partly influenced by the culture in which we grow up. For example, in Western cultures people tend to have an _____ view of the self, whereas in non-Western cultures people tend to have an _____ view of the self. A. independent; interdependent B. interdependent; independent C. intrinsic; extrinsic D. extrinsic; intrinsic
A.
The theory of cognitive dissonance is a motivational theory. Specifically, the motivation involved is that A. discomfort and arousal cause people to change their attitudes. B. people are motivated to experience dissonance. C. self-perception processes underlie attempts to reduce dissonance. D. people are motivated to correct the bad impression dissonance processes create
A.
There is an exception to the general rule that logical, informative messages will be highly persuasive when the issue is relevant to the audience. What is that exception? A. Logical, informative messages will not work well when values and feelings are the basis of the attitude in question. B. When people are in a bad mood, they do not see information as relevant to their attitudes. C. When people are in a good mood, any and all information seems relevant to their attitudes. D. When people are in a bad mood, they are skeptical about all information, including logical information.
A.
Threats of severe punishment are not likely to change behaviors in the absence of the person who punishes, because such severe threats provide A. external justification for halting the undesirable behavior. B. sufficient internal justification for halting the undesirable behavior. C. a means to justify the problem behavior. D. a large amount of cognitive dissonance.
A.
When people don't attend carefully to the substance of a persuasive communication, but instead pay attention to irrelevant cues, they are using the _____ route to persuasion. A. peripheral B. systematic C. central D. indirect
A.
When there are no objective criteria to measure achievement, people often rely on _____ to evaluate how well they performed. A. social comparison B. introspection C. cognitive appraisal processes D. attribution of arousal
A.
A number of social psychological studies have revealed that compared to people in a bad mood, those in a good mood are less likely to pay close attention to the quality of persuasive messages. Why? People in A. good moods are more sympathetic to the goals of the communicator. B. good moods don't want to be distracted from their mood. C. good moods process information systematically. D. bad moods are not motivated to process information centrally
B.
According to the research of Bushman and Baumeister that was depicted in the video we viewed, what were the findings with respect to self-esteem (SE) and aggression? A. those with the lowest SE were the most aggressive after being criticized B. those with the highest SE were the most aggressive after being criticized. C. there was no difference between high and low SE subjects - they were equally aggressive after being criticized. D. low SE subjects were more aggressive than higher SE subjects, but only after being criticized. When there was no criticism, there was no difference in aggression.
B.
Assume that you were a participant in the experiment conducted by Leon Festinger and J. Merrill Carlsmith (1959), in which participants were paid either a large or small sum of money to tell an innocent stranger that the boring, tedious task you had just completed was really enjoyable and very interesting. Further assume that you were paid a large amount of money to tell the stranger that lie. In this situation, you would be most likely to A. convince yourself that the boring task was actually more interesting than you had previously thought. B. maintain your original assessment of the task as dull and boring. C. convince yourself that the stranger deserved to be lied to. D. ask to complete the task again, given that you had high internal justification for doing so
B.
Consider the following statements: "I would prefer complex to simple problems" and "I like tasks that require little thought once I've learned them." People's responses to those statements capture their A. attitudes toward intelligence. B. need for cognition. C. reliance on peripheral cues. D. cognitive complexity
B.
Fear-arousing communications are most likely to result in attitude change when A. they are sufficiently strong to induce perceptions of threat. B. people think that attending to a message will reduce the fear. C. people process fear appeals peripherally. D. people are in a good mood, and the message takes them by surprise
B.
Good moods tend to cause people to take the ______ route to persuasion, whereas bad moods tend to cause people to take the _____ route. A. central; peripheral B. peripheral; central C. systematic; heuristic D. direct; subtle
B.
People are unlikely to change their attitude after saying something they don't truly believe if there is ______ for the lie. A. insufficient justification B. external justification C. post-decision regret D. insufficient rationalization
B.
People engage in self-handicapping strategies in order to avoid A. failure. B. an internal attribution for failure. C. an external attribution for failure. D. a misattribution of failure.
B.
Recall that Donald Dutton and Art Aron (1974) had an attractive confederate approach men either on a high, narrow, swaying suspension bridge, or else on a low, steady masonry bridge. More men called the woman when she approached them on the scary bridge. Why? A. Men appraised the confederate as attractive before they became aroused. B. Men misattributed their fear as sexual attraction. C. Only men with high self-esteem would attempt to cross the suspension bridge. D. Men on the suspension bridge were more likely to have broken up with their romantic partners
B.
Recall that Elliot Aronson and Judson Mills (1959) had some women read sex-related words aloud, had others read lurid passages and obscene words aloud, and still others undergo no initiation to join a group discussing various aspects of sex. According to cognitive dissonance theory, why did the women who underwent a severe initiation like the (boring) discussion more? A. They were randomly assigned to the interesting discussion. B. They interpreted ambiguous aspects of the discussion in the most positive light possible. C. They were sexually aroused from doing the readings, but misattributed their arousal to the group discussion. D. They were less sexually experienced than the other women, but didn't want the experimenters to know that
B.
Recall that Jack Brehm (1956) asked women to rate the desirability of a number of appliances, and then allowed them to choose one of those appliances as a gift. Twenty minutes later, all women re-rated the same appliances, including the one they chose. Women tended to rate the alternatives they rejected lower than they had originally, and to rate their chosen appliance more positively. These results suggest that people A. seldom collect enough information before making decisions. B. reduce dissonance by overestimating differences between chosen and rejected alternatives. C. are more likely to experience cognitive dissonance when decisions are irrevocable. D. experience more dissonance when their decisions implicate their self-concepts as rational and reasonable
B.
Recall that in the l930s, when anti-Asian prejudice was commonplace in the United States, Richard LaPiere (1934) had no trouble finding pleasant accommodations for himself and his Chinese traveling companions. Surprised, LaPiere later sent letters to the establishments they visited, asking whether Chinese visitors would be welcome. More than 90% of those who responded replied that they definitely would not accommodate Chinese. This study is noteworthy because it suggested that A. rational persuasive appeals reduce prejudice. B. the link between attitudes and behaviors is often tenuous. C. people often "tell" more than they can know. D. contact with people against whom we are prejudiced can actually reduce prejudice.
B.
Social psychologists have found that attitudes do predict behavior, but only under certain specifiable conditions. According to the authors of your text, one key factor is knowing whether the behavior in question is A. positive or negative B. spontaneous or deliberate C. easy or difficult D. a current or future behavior
B.
When it comes to designing a persuasive message, the authors assert that "it is best to fight fire with fire." By this, they meant that A. emotion is a much more powerful persuasive force than is logic. B. it is effective to match the type of message appeal to the basis of the attitude. C. before trying to persuade people, be sure to get their attention first. D. before people can be persuaded, they must be convinced to abandon prior attitudes.
B.
Who is more likely to use the central route to persuasion when attending to a communication about health insurance reform? A. Tammy, who is doing her homework as she watches Meet The Press B. James, who is undergoing extensive treatments after his auto accident C. Rachel, who has never had any health problems D. Raul, who has little interest in public policy issues
B.
Why, according to research by William McGuire (1964), does attitude inoculation work to increase resistance to subsequent persuasion attempts? Attitude inoculation A. generates psychological reactance, so people ignore subsequent messages. B. encourages people to think about the issues and to generate counter-arguments. C. raises self-esteem and thus makes people less vulnerable to later persuasion attempts. D. increases fear and thus make people less responsive to logical arguments.
B.
________ refers to the dissonance aroused after we have chosen between two or more alternatives. A. Justification of effort B. Post-decision dissonance C. Insufficient justification D. Decisional regret
B.
According to Stanley Schachter's (1964) two-factor theory of emotion, because it is often difficult to label our physiological states, we often look to _____________ to help us infer how we're feeling and why we're feeling that way. A. similar others B. our self-schemas C. the situation D. visceral cues
C.
According to both cognitive dissonance and self-perception theories, which of the following parental techniques should be most effective in changing a child's behavior permanently (i.e., even behavior that occurs in the absence of the parent)? A. ignoring the child's troublesome behavior B. threat of severe punishment C. threat of mild punishment D. modeling the more desirable alternative behavior
C.
According to dissonance theorists, what is the problem with the threat of severe punishment to control behaviors? Severe punishment A. leads to frustration. B. models inappropriate behavior that is then learned. C. serves as an external justification for behavior change. D. cannot be consistently carried out by authority figures.
C.
According to the tenets of cognitive dissonance theory, people are most likely to change their attitudes when they have _____ justification for an attitude-discrepant behavior. A. ample external B. ample internal C. insufficient external D. insufficient internal
C.
Although affectively based attitudes can be derived from a number of different sources, they are alike in that they tend to be A. based on rational examination of relevant information. B. logically organized. C. linked to personal values. D. unrelated to past experience
C.
Consider the following quote from Friedrich Nietzsche cited in the introduction to Chapter 5 (Self-Knowledge): "We are all unknown, we knowers, ourselves to ourselves; this has its own good reason." A social psychologist would likely agree because A. it is impossible to gain self-knowledge. B. we know things about ourselves that no outside observer would know. C. it is not always clear what we feel or why we feel it. D. when the environment provides no clues, we turn inward
C.
People who had already placed their $2 bets were more confident of winning than people who were waiting in line to place their bets (Knox & Inkster, 1968). These findings suggest that decisions that are ______ generate more cognitive dissonance than decisions that are not. A. important B. coerced C. irrevocable D. trivial
C.
Self-affirmation theory posits that when people experience a threat to some aspect of their self-concept, they will A. compare themselves to others who are worse on that dimension. B. compare themselves to similar others. C. focus their attention and efforts on some other self-aspect. D. seek praise or affirmation from others.
C.
The ______ route to persuasion is to enduring attitude change as the ______ route to persuasion is to transient change. A. central; systematic B. peripheral; heuristic C. central; peripheral D. systematic; central
C.
To produce the biggest attitude change, you should use the __________ incentives that _________________________. A. biggest; change the behavior B. biggest; provide a sufficient rationale for the change C. smallest; change the behavior D. smallest; provide a sufficient rationale for the change
C.
When asked to explain our own behaviors, self-perception processes are more likely to operate when our feelings are ____ and when we _____. A. weak or unclear; list the reasons for those feelings B. clear; engage in introspection C. weak or unclear; think about the situation in which we behaved D. clear; think about the situation in which we behaved
C.
When we introspect about the reasons underlying our attitudes or feelings, the explanations we arrive at A. were previously suppressed, but brought to light. B. are generally correct, assuming that the reasons are objective. C. seem plausible and may be easy to articulate, but may sometimes be incorrect D. are self-serving and serve to enhance self-esteem.
C.
Which if any of the following is the way social psychologists measure attitude strength? A. how important people say the attitude is to them B. how much people know about the attitude topic C. how quickly people evaluate the attitude object D. none of the above
C.
With respect to the combined effect of message discrepancy and source credibility (the Agnes Stearns vs. T. S. Eliot study), what do the data suggest? A. Only high source credibility has any effect on persuasion, since only T. S. Eliot's arguments changed subjects' attitudes toward the poem, regardless of level of message discrepancy. B. Only messages of small discrepancy have any persuasive effect, independent of source credibility, since high discrepancy messages from either source had no effect on subjects' attitudes. C. Messages of large discrepancy have the greatest persuasive effect, but only when the source credibility is high. D. People's attitudes toward poetry are strictly affectively based, and persuasion of any type has no effect on them.
C.
_____ theory posits that when our attitudes or feelings are ambiguous, we infer our internal states by observing our own behaviors and the situation in which they occur. A. Impression management B. Introspection C. Self-perception D. Self-enhancement
C.
_______ theory provides the best explanation for the overjustification effect, and the results of facial and kinesthetic feedback studies A. cognitive dissonance B. self-affirmation C. self-perception D. social identity
C.
Research by Mark Zanna and Joel Cooper (1974), in which participants were misled about the effects of a placebo (sugar pill), suggests that ______ is an important component of the cognitive dissonance phenomenon. A. anger toward the target person B. uncertainty regarding the source of arousal C. guilt caused by the potential for others' opprobrium D. attributing arousal to the attitude-behavior inconsistency
D.
Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy once wrote, "We do not love people so much for the good they have done us as for the good we have done them." This quote is most closely related to the concept of A. post-decision dissonance. B. self-verification. C. esteem enhancement. D. self-perception processes
D.
When people act contrary to their self-perceptions as reasonable and sensible people or in ways that conflict with their attitudes, they experience an uncomfortable feeling known as _____________. A. defensive attribution B. low self-esteem C. affective ambivalence D. cognitive dissonance
D.
Which of the following examples of inconsistencies is likely to generate the most cognitive dissonance and to cause the most distress? A. Betty forgets her umbrella on a day for which bad rainstorms were forecast. B. Leslie wanted to arrive on time, but is caught in traffic and arrives late. C. Mitch exceeds the posted speed limit and is given an expensive fine. D. Ned, who perceives himself as a gentle parent, hollers at his son.
D.
