Final Psychology Exam

Which of the following responses is most reflective of a positive solution for someone who is upset with their partner's lack of time at home?

"I also realize that's an issue and I've decided to stop going every morning. I can limit it to just once a week and it will allow me to focus more on you and the kids."

Jack and Kate are unhappy in their relationship. Robbie and Sawyer are happy in their relationship. One night, Jack and Robbie find themselves sitting at a restaurant waiting for their very late partners to arrive for dinner. According to research on attributions in relationships, Jack is likely to think ________, and Robbie is likely to think ________.

"she doesn't care about our family"; "she is probably having trouble finding parking"

In a study with 11,000 adults between the ages of 18 and 28, approximately ________ percent reported experiencing some type of physical aggression.

25

Lucian and Andrea have been married for 15 years. Which group of individuals is Lucian most likely to regard as closest to him?

Andrea's family members

Which description below reflects an enhancement bias in a relationship?

Bob sees Beth in the best possible light.

Whose relationship is most likely to end?

DeAnda and Kevin's, because they have high substitutability in their social network

Dr. Okiro is studying social networks. One participant, Mandy, has described several individuals in her network: Sue, a casual acquaintance at work; Manuel, her best friend; and Gustavo, her cousin who lives in Venezuela but with whom she chats regularly on her computer. Which statement is correct?

Gustavo and Manuel are part of Mandy's interactive network and her psychological network.

What appears to be true about stress, stressor salience, and the health of the relationship?

High levels of stress are more noticeable, and partners are able to recognize that relationship problems are due to the stress.

Coercion arises in relationships by _____ reinforcing the _____ behaviors of one's partner.

NOT-unintentionally; desirable

Which of the following statements about the relationship between mismanaged conflict and relationship satisfaction is accurate?

Negative skills have a negative effect on relationship satisfaction only when combined with low levels of positive affect.

Samantha and Carmine, like many couples, have experienced declining satisfaction over the years. However, Samantha is quite adamant that their relationship is "the best it's ever been!" How is this possible?

Samantha has a memory bias.

_____________ refers to an individual's willingness to have sex with another person without being in a committed relationship.

Sociosexuality

The textbook describes a study where researchers collected blood samples from newlywed participants while they discussed an important problem in their marriage. The blood samples were then analyzed for the presence of stress hormones. What is the most important conclusion from this study?

Stress hormones were far more predictive of relationship status and quality 10 years later compared to the negative behaviors partners displayed during these discussions.

Which of the following statements about Bronfenbrenner's social ecological model is FALSE?

The direct effects of proximal and distal factors on relationships are equally large.

What is TRUE with regard to Bronfenbrenner's social ecological model applied to the context of relationships?

The effects of proximal factors on a relationship are affected by distal factors.

Which of the following statements is FALSE about the effect of media messages on our standards and beliefs about intimate relationships?

The effects of watching sexually violent films tend to fade within a few hours.

According to the chapter, which of the following is NOT a reason low-income couples experience more difficulties in maintaining enduring relationships?

They do not value marriage as an institution.

Cohan and Cole (2002) studied the effects of Hurricane Hugo on births, divorces, and marriages by examining the rates in the 14 years prior to the hurricane and the 8 years following. What did they find?

They found increases in birth, marriage, and divorce rates; people evaluated their commitments, leading some to increase their levels of involvement and others to end their relationships.

_________, a hormone involved in mating behavior, is associated with marital crises and threats to divorce.

Vasopressin

What role does coercion play in relationships?

While coercion may appease partners temporarily, it will likely lead to discontent.

Uncertainty and suspicion about a partner's faithfulness can eventually lead to:

a decrease in trust.

Which type of approach will be LEAST effective in eliciting change in one's relationship?

a negative, indirect approach

Sarita is extremely close to her older sister, Magdalena, and spends hours talking to her sister on the phone about every aspect of her life, including her marriage. Sarita's husband is not as thrilled about Sarita's close relationship with her sister because Magdalena does not think that he is good enough for Sarita and takes every opportunity to let him know it. In this situation, Sarita's relationship with her sister would be considered:

a resource for Sarita but not for her husband.

Thao is trying to decide whether to ask Sue out. What information processing bias will be most likely operating when he makes his decision?

accuracy bias

When studying relationship conflict, social exchange theorists are more interested in examining _____ than _____.

actual statements; partner's perceptions of the situation

According to the _________ perspective, acts of aggression almost always involved men as perpetrators and women as victims.

advocacy

The explanations an individual makes about a partner's behavior are:

attributions

Perpetrators of coercive controlling violence are sometimes referred to as:

batterers

Lucas is high in self-esteem. He expects others will like him, so he behaves in ways that, in fact, elicit positive responses from others. This best illustrates:

behavioral confirmation.

A ________ is an idea or a theory about what the world is actually like; a ________ is an idea about what the world should be like.

belief; value

Imagine you are a couples counselor, and a couple comes to your office for a counseling session. During the session, they both report having been aggressive to one another. This would be an example of:

bilateral aggression.

Research on chronic and acute stressors shows that:

both are associated with negative relationship outcomes, but the kinds of outcomes that result from each type of stressor differ.

Penelope has been dating Umberto throughout college. How did Penelope most likely meet Umberto?

by being introduced to him by a friend

Nonso and Manj have been married 5 years. They are more likely to disagree about ________ than about ________.

chores; intimacy

Our most serious lies are told to ________ and not to our _________.

closest companions; friends

Relationship characteristics, such as ______________, can put an individual on the "slippery slope" for engaging in infidelity.

conflict avoidance

Richie often stays late at the office to interact with his coworker, Anna. Based on this, which risk factor is mostly likely to predict his likelihood for infidelity?

context

Following a violent altercation between Michael and Julia, Michael vows to change and begs Julia to stay in their relationship. Which phase does this represent in the cycle of violence?

contrition

Research regarding the origins of our beliefs and values about intimate relationships shows that:

cultural and media influences both play an important role.

Annie has been married to her husband for 1 year. What is Annie likely to identify as the main stressor in her relationship?

debt brought into marriage

Relationship scientists commonly turn to which principle to explain infidelity?

evolutionary biology

Jasmine's partner comes home from work with a bouquet of flowers for her. Jasmine thinks, "Sarah hardly ever brings me flowers. She's so cheap; they must have been on sale." Because Jasmine is ________, we can conclude that she and Sarah are in a ________ relationship.

finding external reasons for Sarah's positive behaviors and likely blaming her for negative ones; distressed

Relationship researchers recognize that disagreements between partners in intimate relationships are inevitable. Consequently, researchers assume that ________ is more consequential to their relationship than ________.

how couples disagree; what they disagree about

Research on biases of individuals who are happy in their relationships shows that:

individuals believe that their relationships have more positive attributes and fewer negative attributes than the relationships of others.

Mia and Georges have been married for 2 years. Georges works long hours in a high paying job so that they can afford their home, while Mia spends her time taking care of their newborn son and completing the household chores. Because of their schedules, they do not spend a lot of time together. What attribute of their relationship is a powerful predictor of divorce?

lack of shared leisure time

Cognitive editing occurs when a partner hears something ________ but responds in a ________ way.

negative; neutral or positive

Attachment anxiety is characterized by negative views of _____, whereas attachment avoidance is characterized by negative views of ________.

one's self; others

Vince is extremely dissatisfied in his relationship and feels sexually disconnected from his partner. Based on this, which risk factor is mostly likely to predict his likelihood for infidelity?

relationship

Individuals who adhere to a(n) ____________ perspective of aggression are likely to think about social and cultural factors as causes of aggression.

sociocultural

Emotional infidelity tends to be more upsetting than emotional infidelity for:

straight women.

Xavier and Juanita both work full-time at low-wage jobs to pay the rent on their apartment. While they are at work, Juanita's mother cares for their 18-month-old son. In this scenario, the low wages represent a ________, and Juanita's mother's care represents a ________.

stressor; resource

According to Bronfenbrenner's social ecological theory, which of the following elements is most distal in context for a couple living in Chicago?

the couple's cultural background and gender norms

Avery continually yells at Sue in a heated conflict and is not able to calm down. Sue, feeling cold and indifferent, does not respond and eventually leaves the room. This type of communication is called:

the demand/withdraw pattern.

Men are ______ times more likely to engage in online sexual infidelity online compared to women.

three

According to the commitment calibration hypothesis, people who are in ______ marriages rated dating service photos of attractive alternate partners as significantly _________attractive compared to ratings of ______ married individuals.

unhappy; less; happily

Which of the following is an example of an individual characteristic that may lead a partner to "cross the line" to infidelity?

unmet need for closeness

When couples take turns speaking, each speaking turn needs to be coded not only for ________ but also for ________.

verbal content; emotional tone

When are efforts to improve the lives of low-income couples most likely to succeed?

when they acknowledge the challenges couples face