social psy ch 5 pt 2

Which of the following would be least helpful in debiasing your thinking? A) Take a statistical reasoning class. B) Think reflectively on your problem-solving strategies. C) Use explicit decision rules. D) Rely more on your memories.

Rely more on your memories.

Suppose that you are trying to guess how much money a co-worker of yours makes. You have no idea how much she makes off-hand. To try to guess, you start with your own salary and then add on a few dollars since she has been at your workplace longer than you have. That is, you make use of the ________________ heuristic.

anchoring and adjustment

The tendency to judge the frequency or likelihood of an event by the ease with which relevant instances come to mind is called the ________________ heuristic.

availability

Letha has just met her first Mormon missionary. In conversation, she finds out that he is a collector of rare books. If Letha commits the one-shot illusory correlation, she will ____. A) think that the missionary believes he is better than her because of his hobby B) believe she can persuade the missionary that her religion is the better world view C) believe many Mormons collect rare books D) attribute his collection behavior to his scholarly character

believe many Mormons collect rare books

Research shows that people tend to engage in fewer cognitive errors and biases in everyday thinking ____. A) as a result of having had graduate training involving statistical reasoning, but not when they are simply encouraged to carefully consider different alternatives B) when they are encouraged to carefully consider different alternatives, but not as a result of having had graduate training involving statistical reasoning C) both as a result of graduate training involving statistical reasoning, and when they are encouraged to carefully consider different alternatives D) neither as a result of having had graduate training involving statistical reasoning, nor when they are encouraged to carefully consider different alternatives

both as a result of graduate training involving statistical reasoning, and when they are encouraged to carefully consider different alternatives

When buying a new car, people tend to look at statistical information and case history information. Research shows that they tend to be more influenced by ____. A) case history information-regardless of whether or not it is the first time they have purchased a car B) statistical information-regardless of whether or not it is the first time they have purchased a car C) case history information if it is the first time they have purchased a car, but statistical information if they have purchased cars in the past D) statistical information if it is the first time they have purchased a car, but case history information if they have purchased cars in the past

case history information-regardless of whether or not it is the first time they have purchased a car

The term ________________ was coined to refer to people's general unwillingness to do much extra conscious thinking (i.e., people's mental "laziness").

cognitive miser

Suppose that you meet someone who is smart, adventurous, and highly knowledgeable about rockets and outer space. Even though there are not many astronauts in the world, you might immediately assume that this person is an astronaut just because he or she fits your image of what an astronaut is like. That is, you might ____ and rely on the ____. A) commit the base rate fallacy; representativeness heuristic B) commit the conjunction fallacy; representativeness heuristic C) engage in the confirmation bias; availability heuristic D) engage in the false consensus effect; availability heuristic

commit the base rate fallacy; representativeness heuristic

Erica intensely dislikes a particular coworker and seems only to notice her negative qualities. For example, when the coworker is late for work but happens to bring in donuts, Erica assumes that the coworker brought donuts because he knew he was going to be late and is trying to deflect attention his lateness. It does not occur to her that her coworker is late because he stopped to buy donuts. Erica's conclusions illustrate ____. A) confirmation bias B) the gambler's fallacy C) the conjunction fallacy D) illusory correlation

confirmation bias

Jules and Jim are reading a book review about a book that both of them have read. Jules hated the book, and seems to feel that the reviewer also hated it. Meanwhile, Jim thought the book was witty and provocative, and he seems to think that the reviewer shares HIS views. It seems as though both Jules and Jim are "seeing" different things when reading the book review. That is, both of them seem to be engaging in the ____. A) confirmation bias B) self-fulfilling prophecy C) false consensus effect D) illusory correlation

confirmation bias

The simulation heuristic tends to invoke ____ thinking. A) debiasing B) magical C) counterregulatory D) counterfactual

counterfactual

"If only I had decided to take a different route home, I wouldn't have hit that stupid tree and ended up getting this huge ticket! Argh!" This thought is an example of ____. A) the false uniqueness effect B) illusory correlation C) magical thinking D) counterfactual thinking

counterfactual thinking

Which of the following kinds of thinking can help explain the first instinct fallacy? A) ironic processing B) counterfactual thinking C) illusion of control D) automatic processing

counterfactual thinking

Once a dieter has slipped up and indulged at the Dairy Queen, he or she is likely to engage in ________________.

counterregulation

Madison's is taking a freshman seminar at her university. In that class, the teacher works with students to help them identify the criteria they use to make decisions, and points out how some of the criteria might not produce the desired outcomes. The teacher is probably trying to ____. A) develop a script B) prime the students for success C) promote heuristic processing D) debias the students' thinking

debias the students' thinking

Reducing errors and biasing by getting people to use deliberate rather than automatic processing is called ____. A) debiasing B) meta-cognition C) ironic processing D) anchoring

debiasing

The actor-observer bias holds that actors tend to make _________________ attributions.

external

Jack read about the swine flu in the papers for the past two weeks. When he comes down with fever, chills, and a bad cough, he is absolutely certain that he has the swine flu because of all the media coverage it has received. Jack is illustrating the simulation heuristic. True or False

false

Malle's research has supported the traditional notion of the actor-observer bias. True or False

false

People tend to want to explore most issues thoroughly before making decisions. True or False

false

The fact that men and women report having had very different numbers of sex partners can be almost completely explained by the fact that men have engaged in more homosexual sex. True or False

false

The older students get, the more variance there is in their reading test scores. This pattern can be attributed to statistical regression. True or False

false

The self-serving bias refers to people's tendency to think that others are more similar to them than they really are when it comes to their faults and weaknesses. True or False

false

Monique tends to spend more money than she should on shoes. However, she makes the mistake of thinking that most people spend lots of money on shoes. This makes her feel better about the fact that she herself overspends. It appears that Monique is engaging in the cognitive bias known as the ________________ effect.

false consensus

When engaged in debate over especially contentious issues such as racism, religious bias, or marriage equality, people who have polar opposite views often believe that their own views of those the majority. This illustrates the ____ effect. A) external attribution B) illusory correlation C) false uniqueness D) false consensus

false consensus

Tom believes that he is exceptionally insightful when it comes to understanding and helping others. In fact, he brags that he is probably one in a million when it comes to insight. Assuming Tom is not quite as special as he thinks he is, Tom's perception of himself most likely reflects the ____ effect. A) external attribution B) illusory correlation C) false uniqueness D) false consensus

false uniqueness

People apply the ____ exclusively to their own desirable behaviors. A) gain-loss effect B) fundamental attribution error C) false uniqueness effect D) self-fulfilling prophecy

false uniqueness effect

The ________________ fallacy refers to the false belief that it is better not to change one's first answer even if one starts to think that a different answer is correct.

first instinct

The belief that one should not change an answer on a test, even if additional consideration has led one to believe another answer might be the correct one, is called the ____. A) false consensus effect B) magical thinking C) contamination D) first instinct fallacy

first instinct fallacy

Social psychologists call how information is presented to others ________________, while politicians call it ________________.

framing spin, spin framing

The "correspondence bias" is another term that is used to refer to the ____. A) ultimate attribution error B) self-serving error C) covariation principle D) fundamental attribution error

fundamental attribution error

You flip a coin ten times in a row. Every single time it comes up heads. On the eleventh flip, is it more likely to be heads, tails, or are heads and tails equally likely? If you are a hot hand player, you will answer ____. A) heads B) tails C) heads and tails are equally likely D) that you need time to think it over

heads

Sometimes people blow on dice when playing a board game to make sure they get the numbers they need to advance in the game. When people believe they can affect the dice by blowing on them they are experiencing the ____. A) gambler's fallacy B) illusory correlation C) conjunction fallacy D) illusion of control

illusion of control

The belief that people can control totally chance situations is the ____. A) illusion of control B) fundamental attribution error C) availability heuristic D) first instinct fallacy

illusion of control

In informal surveys, people always overestimate the number of lesbians who have AIDS. Lesbians actually have extremely low rates of AIDS, but people tend to associate lesbians with gay men (who have relatively high rates). Thus, people tend to think that they see a lesbian-AIDS relationship when in fact there is no such relationship. This is a good example of the ____. A) false consensus effect B) illusory correlation C) belief in a just world hypothesis D) contrast effect

illusory correlation

The day after the Supreme Court issued a decision on a particular divisive issue, the Senate and House pass a bill that is unpopular with the same segment of the population that was unhappy with the Supreme Court decision. The disgruntled segment of the population then claims that the decision was issued at this particular time to distract people from the bill's passage. This assumption reflects ____. A) confirmation bias B) the gambler's fallacy C) the conjunction fallacy D) illusory correlation

illusory correlation

The tendency for people to overestimate the link between variables that are related only slightly or not at all is known as the ____. A) conjunction fallacy B) illusory correlation C) representativeness heuristic D) base rate fallacy

illusory correlation

The state of having too much information to make a decision or remain informed about a topic is known as ____. A) statistical regression B) the gambler's fallacy C) the conjunction fallacy D) information overload

information overload

The state of having too much information to make a decision or remain informed about a topic is known as ________________.

information overload

Recent research suggests that the basic distinction people make in attribution processes is between _________________ and _________________ behavior.

intentional, unintentional; unintentional, intentional

Hilda is on a low carbohydrate diet, which restricts her from eating foods such as white bread, potato chips, and pretzels. The more Hilda thinks about the fact that she cannot eat such foods, however, the more desperately she begins to crave them. Social psychologists refer to this kind of pattern as a(n) __________________.

ironic process

People who think they have a "hot hand" after winning five poker hands in a row tend to think that ____. A) it is more likely they will win the next hand than is actually the case B) it is more likely they will lose the next hand than is actually the case C) they are equally likely to win versus lose the next hand D) their winning is due to having better traits than the other players

it is more likely they will win the next hand than is actually the case

Thinking about thinking is called ____. A) magical thinking B) meta-cognition C) counterregulation D) information overload

meta-cognition

Wing Tung is reading his textbook for history class. At the end of each paragraph, he stops and asks himself what the paragraph was about. Once he feels like he knows that, he goes on. Wing Tung is using ____ to improve his thinking. A) meta-cognition B) contamination C) conjunction D) attribution

meta-cognition

The illusion of control tends to produce ____. A) more risky behavior B) more conservative behavior C) covariation D) distinctiveness

more risky behavior

In his research, Malle concluded that there is ____. A) no consistent tendency for observers to make stronger dispositional attributions than actors B) strong evidence for the actor-observer bias C) no such thing as social cognition, and psychology should return to its behaviorist roots D) no need to distinguish between drawing conclusions about self versus others

no consistent tendency for observers to make stronger dispositional attributions than actors

Theory perseverance is the idea that ____. A) once the mind draws a conclusion, it tends to stick with it, even if evidence points to the need for a change B) theories in science will only persevere as long as evidence supports them C) social conformity plays the biggest role in the success of a theory D) the most consistent theory will naturally weed out weaker theories

once the mind draws a conclusion, it tends to stick with it, even if evidence points to the need for a change

Elenita is from a relatively sheltered background. When she goes to college, she meets a Hispanic student. This student is the only Hispanic person she has ever known. The student is very independent and outspoken on their first meeting. After that meeting, Elenita decides that Hispanics in general must be independent and outspoken. Elenita's reaction illustrates the ____. A) base-rate fallacy B) false consensus effect C) illusory correlation D) one-shot illusory correlation

one-shot illusory correlation

The tendency to overestimate the link between variables that are related only slightly or not at all after just one exposure to a group member performing a behavior illustrates the ____. A) illusory correlation B) one-shot illusory correlation C) hot hand D) magical thinking

one-shot illusory correlation

When the illusory correlation occurs after only one exposure to a behavior performed by a member of an unfamiliar group, the ________________ has occurred.

one-shot illusory correlation

Research indicates that ____ engage in counterfactual thinking; and that ____ engage in meta-cognition. A) both humans and other animals; both humans and other animals B) both humans and other animals; only humans C) only humans; both humans and other animals D) only humans; only humans

only humans; only humans

The false consensus effect refers to the tendency for people to ____. A) overestimate the number of people who agree with them B) underestimate the number of people who agree with them C) rely too heavily on the primacy effect D) not rely heavily enough on the primacy effect

overestimate the number of people who agree with them

According to the false consensus effect, most people ____. A) overestimate the proportion of people who would respond the same way as them in a situation B) hide the way they truly feel about an issue in order to reach a consensus C) lean toward the most popular opinion of a group regardless of how they feel D) assume that they will be in the minority because they are nonconformist

overestimate the proportion of people who would respond the same way as them in a situation

Given the research on cognitive errors and biases, it can be concluded that ____. A) people are not nearly as smart as they are usually given credit for B) people can be extremely unpredictable in terms of when and why they will engage in rational versus irrational decision-making styles C) people rely on irrational thinking much of the time, but are still capable of engaging in careful, conscious thought when they need to make important decisions D) these errors are extremely serious, and tend to have cumulatively biasing effects across time

people rely on irrational thinking much of the time, but are still capable of engaging in careful, conscious thought when they need to make important decisions

Research on the anchoring and adjustment heuristic indicates that ____. A) people usually do not "adjust" enough away from their anchors B) people usually "adjust" too much away from their anchors C) people will not engage in this heuristic if they know that the anchors are arbitrary D) people will not engage in this heuristic if they know that it can lead to faulty decisions

people usually do not "adjust" enough away from their anchors

Feeling sorry for misfortunes, limitations, losses, transgressions, shortcomings, or mistakes is called ____. A) counterfactual thinking B) counterproductive thinking C) regret D) optimism

regret

Suppose that a coin is flipped 20 times. The first 19 flips are all heads. Is the last flip more likely to be heads, more likely to be tails, or equally likely to be heads or tails? When people engage in the gambler's fallacy, they ____. A) say that the last flip is more likely to be heads B) say that the last flip is more likely to be tails C) say that the last flip is more likely to be heads OR say that the last flip is more likely to be tails D) say that the last flip is equally likely to be heads or tails

say that the last flip is more likely to be heads OR say that the last flip is more likely to be tails

Polina is three years old. She is just beginning to understand concepts such as "dog," "cat," "chair," and "sofa," and to understand how these concepts differ from one another. In other words, she is just beginning to develop ________________.

schemas

Within the field of social cognition, the term ________________ essentially refers to schemas that are about events.

scripts

"Heuristic" is another word for ____. A) causation B) network C) pathway D) shortcut

shortcut

Suppose that Mr. Yipol gives 100 students a reading exam. He then selects the five students with the highest scores for a special reading program. At the end of the reading program, he administers the same reading exam again. To Mr. Yipol's astonishment, though, the students actually perform worse this time. While it might well be the case that the reading program actually negatively impacted the students' reading ability, Mr. Yipol would be wise to consider that the decrease could be due to ____. A) false consensus B) false uniqueness C) statistical regression D) illusion of control

statistical regression

The so-called "Sports Illustrated jinx"-the tendency for athletes to experience a dip in performance directly after appearing on the cover of Sports Illustrated-can be best explained by ____. A) statistical regression B) magical thinking C) illusory correlation D) the base rate fallacy

statistical regression

People who receive extremely low scores on IQ tests almost always perform better the second time around. This pattern can be attributed to ________________.

statistical regression or regression to the mean

Suppose that you meet an old man named Al. You have no idea how old he is. To try to guess his age you start with your grandfather's age (80), and then add on a few years since Al seems to be a little older. That is, you make use of ____. A) priming B) counterfactual thinking C) the anchoring and adjustment heuristic D) the simulation heuristic

the anchoring and adjustment heuristic

Even though stomach cancer kills more people than plane crashes do, most people tend to assume that plane crashes cause more deaths. This misconception seems to arise from ____, since plane crash fatalities tend to be widely publicized and are therefore relatively easy for people to recall. A) the representativeness heuristic B) the availability heuristic C) the anchoring and adjustment heuristic D) information overload

the availability heuristic

In a famous early study in social psychology, fans of two rival football teams were asked to watch footage of an actual game that was very close. Researchers found that fans of the two teams literally "saw" different games; things that were deemed "out" by fans of one team, for example, were deemed "in" by fans of the other. This was early evidence of the phenomenon known as ____. A) counterfactual thinking B) the illusory correlation C) the confirmation bias D) the simulation heuristic

the confirmation bias

Jacob is taking his economics final exam. He answers question #31 with "D" but isn't sure about it. After answering all the other questions, he goes back to 31 and starts to believe that perhaps "C" was the right answer. He decides to stick with "D," most likely because of ____. A) downward counterfactual thinking B) upward counterfactual thinking C) debiasing D) the first instinct fallacy

the first instinct fallacy

Research indicates that people are especially likely to engage in the false consensus effect when it comes to ____, and especially likely to engage in the false uniqueness effect when it comes to ____. A) their undesirable characteristics; their desirable characteristics B) their desirable characteristics; their undesirable characteristics C) their unusual characteristics; their more common characteristics D) their more common characteristics; their unusual characteristics

their undesirable characteristics; their desirable characteristics

Joe takes on his sister's view that all people from "up north" are snobs. Later, Joe learns that his sister's opinion was based on the fact that her boyfriend from "up north" recently dumped her. Yet Joe persists in his belief that people from "up north" are snobby. This best illustrates the ____ effect. A) theory perseverance B) availability heuristic C) false consensus D) false uniqueness

theory perseverance

Counterregulation occurs when people indulge in a behavior they are trying to regulate after an initial regulation failure. True or False

true

If a moderately liberal person watches a lot of liberal news media television and listens to liberal news radio programs, her viewpoints will probably become more liberal. True or False

true

One explanation for the false consensus effect is that people use their own attitudes and behaviors as "anchors" for predicting others' attitudes and behaviors. True or False

true

People who receive extremely low scores on IQ tests almost always perform better the second time around. This pattern can be attributed to statistical regression. True or False

true

The first instinct fallacy refers to the false belief that it is better not to change one's first answer even if one starts to think that a different answer is correct. True or False

true

The tendency to think that all African Americans are likely to be great athletes because LeBron James (2008-09 NBA League MVP) is such a great athlete illustrates the illusory correlation. True or False

true

Research demonstrates that, in counterfactual thinking, people engage in far more ____ than ____. A) upward counterfactual thinking; downward counterfactual thinking B) downward counterfactual thinking; upward counterfactual thinking C) counterfactual thinking about past events; counterfactual thinking about future events D) counterfactual thinking about future events; counterfactual thinking about past events

upward counterfactual thinking; downward counterfactual thinking

The so-called illusory correlation can most directly help explain ____. A) why people tend to think that they are "better than average" on most traits and abilities B) why people tend to overestimate the degree to which members of minority groups engage in criminal behaviors C) why people tend to continue to gamble even when they have hit an "unlucky streak" D) why people tend to assume that it is more common for people to die from plane crashes than from lung cancer

why people tend to overestimate the degree to which members of minority groups engage in criminal behaviors

Suppose that Greg and Marsha both apply for a prestigious scholarship program, and both get rejected. Greg finds out that his application was flat out rejected (he never had a chance), while Marsha finds out that she was the first runner up (she nearly won). Who is likely to be more disappointed? Why? A) Greg-because of the simulation heuristic B) Greg-because of the confirmation bias C) Marsha-because of the simulation heuristic D) Marsha-because of the confirmation bias

Marsha-because of the simulation heuristic

Which of the following is an explanation for the false consensus effect, but not an explanation for the false uniqueness effect? A) People use themselves as an "anchor" when judging others. B) People want to feel good about themselves. C) People want to feel that they are consistent across time. D) People tend to ignore base rate information when making probability estimates.

People use themselves as an "anchor" when judging others.

Jason is buying a new iPhone this semester, as are most of his friends. According to Malle's work on attribution, what will Jason most likely think when he sees his friends buying an iPhone? A) "Maybe I won't buy the iPhone." B) "I want to be just like them!" C) "What a bunch of conformists!" D) "My friends have done their research."

"What a bunch of conformists!"

The so-called "gambler's fallacy" refers to the ____. A) (false) belief that chance events are affected by previous events, and that chance events will "even out" across a relatively short period of time B) (false) belief that one is far more skilled or gifted than are others C) (false) belief that one can control or change situations that are completely (or almost completely) due to chance D) tendency to compare oneself to people who are far, far worse off in order to feel better about oneself

(false) belief that chance events are affected by previous events, and that chance events will "even out" across a relatively short period of time