Psych Ch. 7 Quiz

Malena is asked to choose between two music CDs she likes equally well. After she finally makes her choice, her attitude toward the CD she didn't choose is likely to

Change such that she reports liking the CD less than she initially did

In response to the recent talk about a worldwide flu epidemic, Quita develops a strong attitude in favor of getting a flu shot, even though she has never had one before. Darrell shares her opinion and has regularly received flu shots each year. Which person's attitude will be a more reliable predictor of his or her behavior?

Darrell's attitude will predict his behavior; Quita's attitude will not predict her behavior.

According to the logic of cognitive dissonance theory, which of the following would be the best strategy to help Dale adopt a lifelong new diet in which he eats less junk food and loses weight?

Give Dale small rewards each day for eating a healthy, moderate amount of food

What is NOT a potential flaw of using survey methods to understand whether or not a certain behavior can predict attitudes?

It is possible to survey a large sample of participants.

Jim spends three years in graduate school training to become a clinical social worker. His first job out of graduate school is, in actuality, horrible. Briefly, Jim worries that he has made the wrong choice for his career. But he quickly changes his mind and decides that, although it isn't his dream job, the position is not that bad after all. The most likely social psychological explanation for this attitude change is that

Jim's need to justify the effort he put into his traininghas altered his attitude to be more favorable toward the job.

Natalia participates in a study in which she writes an essay in favor of legalizing marijuana, although she is actually opposed to such legalization. Nate, who is also opposed to legalizing marijuana, participates in the same study. In Natalia's condition of the study, she is told that high school students will read her essay. In Nate's condition of the study, he is told that the researchers in charge of the study will read his essay. What scenario is most likely?

Natalia will experience more dissonance than Nate because there is a chance that impressionable high school students might be convinced by her essay.

After writing a counterattitudinal essay, a group of participants is asked to reflect on their best qualities and core values. These participants, unlike those in a control condition, do not show any dissonance-reducing attitude change. What can explain this seeming resilience to the effects of dissonance?

Participants were able to self-affirm, and thus restored their sense of being rational, competent people.

Researchers surveyed fraternity members from "severe initiation" and "mild initiation" fraternities about their levels of commitment. They found that fraternity members who experienced severe initiation practices reported higher levels of commitment than those who experienced more mild initiation practices. What is NOT a possible explanation for this finding?

People in mild initiation fraternities are disappointed if they do not experience a painful initiation.

Katie has a positive attitude about Paris. Based on the information presented on the components of attitudes in the chapter, what is NOT a component of her attitude toward Paris?

She does not speak French.

Tim participates in a psychology experiment about the aesthetics of various impressionist painters. At the end of the study, he is given a thank-you gift and is allowed to choose between a poster of a cute kitten barely hanging onto a tree and a Monet landscape. Prior to making his final choice, Tim is asked to list reasons in favor of each picture. He is able to list several reasons for choosing the kitten picture (for example, "it is cute,""reminds me of my cat at home," "my girlfriend will like it"). Although he knows he likes the Monet poster better, Tim can't articulate any reason for choosing the Monet landscape other than "I just like it."According to research done by Wilson and his colleagues, which of the following scenarios is most likely to result from Tim's introspection?

Tim will choose the kitten poster and regret the choice later

Maria wants to teach her daughter, Lisa, to value and enjoy reading. According to the logic of cognitive dissonance theory, which of the following strategies would be the best way to cultivate such an attitude?

When she chooses to read books, reward Lisa with small rewards, preferably simple verbal praise.

According to the information presented, what would be the best research method to establish that cognitive dissonance reduction is at the root of severe hazing in fraternities?

a true experiment in which participants are randomly assigned to either a "severe initiation" or a "mild initiation" condition

Which of the following attitudes would be the best indicator of whether a person would buy the environmentally friendly Toyota Prius hybrid automobile in the next six months?

attitude toward buying a Prius in the near future

Self-perception theory is most applicable in cases in which

attitudes are weak and ambiguous.

Chun Hsien "Michael" Deng is a young man who was pledging a fraternity. During the fraternity's hazing process, he suffered major brain trauma and died. Many other students in the United States also have died due to fraternity hazing. According to the information presented, what might explain why fraternities engage in such violent hazing practices?

cognitive dissonance theory

According to terror management theory, one reason people strive to have high self-esteem is because

high self-esteem means you are meeting the standards dictated by your worldview.

A researcher wants to measure people's attitudes about abortion. Given the sensitive nature of the topic, she has reason to believe that participants may not be willing to report their true feelings. What should she use to capture their attitudes?

implicit attitudes measure

Nyla has a strongly held cognition that donating blood is a good and worthy activity. Her feelings about donating blood, however, are more mixed. In this instance, Nyla's attitude about donating blood will probably

not be a good predictor of whether she will donate blood

Participants are asked to write a counterattitudinal essay. Dissonance is most likely to occur when

participants write an essay of their own free will

According to system justification theory,

people are motivated to see the world as desirable and fair.

In 1934, Richard LaPiere published a study reporting how he had toured theUnited Stateswith a Chinese couple and later asked the restaurants they had visited about their general policy toward serving "Orientals." His work revealed

prejudiced attitudes toward "Orientals" and a lack of correspondence between attitudes and behavior.

Elliot Aronson found that cognitive dissonance was more likely in cases where inconsistency

reflected poorly on a person's self-image

The main difference between self-perception theory and cognitive dissonance theory is

the role of arousal

People from independent cultures are most likely to experience dissonance in situations when they are making decisions for ____________, while people from interdependent cultures are likely to experience dissonance when making decisions for ____________.

themselves; their friends