Unit 13
Which of the following is not an element identified with the process of indoctrination? A person has a sudden change of mind without being aware of what is happening. A person is subjected to entrapment. A person's access to disconfirming information is severely controlled. A person's problems are explained by one simple attribution.
A person has a sudden change of mind without being aware of what is happening.
When Abdallah met Emmanuelle for the first time, he was struck by three things: She was pretty, she had a French accent, and she kept backing away from him. Emmanuelle also was struck by three things: Abdallah was handsome, he was tall, and he stood really, really close to her—uncomfortably close, as a matter of fact. What might account for the major difference in their initial impressions? Making and holding eye contact is a social rule that each of them violated. Cultural rules modified the social roles that each person was required to "play." Each of them adopted a social role that was incorrect for their interaction. Appropriate conversational distance is a norm that varies from culture to culture.
Appropriate conversational distance is a norm that varies from culture to culture.
You see a blind pedestrian starting to veer into a busy street. Although you could just as easily go about your business, you instead offer assistance and guide the person back to the safe and correct path. Why the sudden burst of helpfulness? Altruism is largely genetic; your hereditary tendency to help others overruled the situational impulse to look after your own interests first. Diffusion of responsibility took hold; although you felt little responsibility to take action, it was still more than the amount felt by other passersby. Cultural norms encouraged you to take action; in this case, a norm that holds "we should help those who need our help." The bystander effect was at work; as a bystander, you felt morally obligated to help.
Cultural norms encouraged you to take action; in this case, a norm that holds "we should help those who need our help."
Tomas is asked to play the role of a guard in a realistic simulation of an actual prison setting. What would Zimbardo and colleagues predict that Tomas's behavior will be like in this environment over time? He will disobey the unreasonable requests of those in power over him. He will adopt many of the mannerisms, attitudes, and behaviors of actual prison guards. He will start to act more like a prisoner than like a guard. He will stay true to his own beliefs and personal values.
He will adopt many of the mannerisms, attitudes, and behaviors of actual prison guards.
Marcie has joined a cult and has been instructed by her Supreme Leader to conduct a political assassination. She is convinced that this is the only means to bring about world peace and install the Supreme Leader in his rightful position of world domination. Marcie knows she will no doubt be shot on sight for her actions, but she looks forward to the eternal salvation and promised heavenly rewards for completing her mission. How likely will Marcie be to follow through on her assignment? Likely; she has made a dispositional attribution to the effects of the situation. Not very likely; entrapment is easily overcome. Not very likely; she does not seem to believe in her own cause. Likely; she shows many characteristics of being indoctrinated.
Likely; she shows many characteristics of being indoctrinated.
Which of the following statements about social identities is true? Having more social identities tends to predict poorer psychological well-being. Sometimes social identities can collide and be in conflict with one another. Most people only have one social identity. Social identities create strong bonds with the out-group.
Sometimes social identities can collide and be in conflict with one another.
The Plain-Bellied Sneeches and the Star-Bellied Sneeches have a history of hostility and intergroup conflict. Which of the following events would have the greatest chance of reducing their conflicts? The central Sneechatorium (gym) burns down and the two groups cooperate to rebuild it. The city builds a park for the Star-Bellied Sneeches. The local minister asks members of both groups to attend sermons on harmony and togetherness. The local neighborhood center sponsors a bocce ball competition between the two groups.
The central Sneechatorium (gym) burns down and the two groups cooperate to rebuild it.
According to the contact hypothesis, which of the following conditions must be present in order to reduce prejudice and intergroup hostility between two groups? There must be an opportunity to get to know rival group members as individuals. Laws, mandates, or prohibitions should govern the behavior of one of the groups. Groups with a history of intergroup hostility should have limited contact with one another. Laws, mandates, or prohibitions should govern the behavior of both of the groups.
There must be an opportunity to get to know rival group members as individuals.
What conclusion can we reach about the nature of stereotypes? They provide an objective, unbiased view of a group of people. They hold the same meaning across cultures. They are always completely false and unrelated to real tendencies. They are mental tools that can allow us to process social information efficiently.
They are mental tools that can allow us to process social information efficiently.
Which of the following statements about social identity is true? We often think first about specific social identities that make us stand out in a particular situation. Most people have one social identity. Having multiple social identities does not lead to increased psychological well-being. Having multiple social identities often makes us less creative.
We often think first about specific social identities that make us stand out in a particular situation.
An Albanian family has moved to Barry's neighborhood. When Barry and his next-door neighbor are talking over the fence one day, Barry remarks, "Yeah, all those Albanians are the same—real standoffish" (even though Barry does not know any other Albanians, has not interacted with any Albanians, and cannot even find Albania on a world map). What is Barry promoting with his viewpoint? deindividuation a stereotype acculturation an ethnic identity
a stereotype
Mary believes that all Asian people excel at mathematics. Although that might be considered a complimentary view, it is also nonetheless __________. acculturative a stereotype discriminatory prejudicial
a stereotype
Which of the following is not a symptom of groupthink? self-censorship an illusion of invulnerability an illusion of unanimity an inclusive leader
an inclusive leader
Paul calls women "babe" or "honey," applauds their efforts to become better homemakers, and generally views them as the delicate sex. Although he might be well intentioned, Paul's attitudes have many of the markers of __________ sexism. benevolent ascendant hostile national
benevolent
The violence instigated during a riot by otherwise respectable citizens may best exemplify __________. cross-cultural differences in leadership behavior the effects of social inhibition deindividuation felt by the participants the familiarity effect
deindividuation felt by the participants
The more people who are around you in an emergency, the less likely it is that any one of them will offer assistance. Which of the following is an explanation for this curious and disturbing finding? obedience just-world hypothesis groupthink diffusion of responsibility
diffusion of responsibility
Gradual commitment to the requests of an authority figure can eventually lead to __________. entrapment conformity resistance resentment
entrapment
When people escalate their commitment to a course of action in order to justify their investment in that course of action—even if the actions are wrong or destructive—the process of __________ has taken place. entrapment engagement conformity compliance
entrapment
Morris is an intelligent individual who values his health and understands that smoking cigarettes is bad for him. And yet he smokes a pack of cigarettes a day. Cognitive dissonance theory suggests that Morris will __________. feel comfortable smoking even more and more cigarettes as time goes by make an internal attribution for his tendency to smoke persuade himself to stop smoking through a peripheral route to persuasion find the inconsistency between his attitudes and behaviors here to be uncomfortable
find the inconsistency between his attitudes and behaviors here to be uncomfortable
The just-world hypothesis holds that __________. favorable outcomes are due to dispositional causes, whereas unfavorable outcomes are due to the effects of the situation good things happen to good people and bad things happen to bad people people will behave in response to the situation and downplay their dispositional tendencies there is just this world, and no afterlife
good things happen to good people and bad things happen to bad people
The tendency for group members to strive for consensus and agreement at the expense of realistically considering other viewpoints and relevant information is called __________. groupthink group mind social loafing group polarization
groupthink
One explicit measure of prejudice might be obtained by recording __________. how people respond to the Implicit Association Test how people respond to questionnaires asking about their prejudicial attitudes brain-wave activity when people view photos of other races what people do when they are angry or stressed
how people respond to questionnaires asking about their prejudicial attitudes
What strategy does the Robbers Cave study suggest for reducing "us-them" thinking and hostility between groups? "time-sharing" of power positions dialogue and debate between representatives of each group competition for scarce resources interdependence in reaching mutual goals
interdependence in reaching mutual goals
Which of the following is the name given to a type of classroom created to build cooperation between individuals from diverse backgrounds? jigsaw out-group belonging patchwork quilt
jigsaw
Blaming the victim is a means of __________. entrapment restoring one's belief in a just world making a situational attribution for someone's misfortune producing the false consensus effect
restoring one's belief in a just world
Arlo walks home from work every day. However, he opts for a longer route to avoid walking through what he describes as "a rough part of town." Police statistics show that the crime rate in the avoided area is no higher than in neighboring areas, but Arlo sticks to his principles. Arlo's behavior could be an example of how __________ might be a useful measure of prejudicial attitudes. brain activity social distance measures of unequal treatment implicit contempt
social distance
According to the elaboration likelihood model, which of the following would be most consistent with a central route to persuasion? an attitude that is explicit but not implicit being more influenced by a speaker's appearance than by her arguments the desire to take cognitive shortcuts the motivation to think carefully about an issue
the motivation to think carefully about an issue
What did Solomon Asch discover in his famous research on judging the lengths of lines? Many people asserted their informational authority and swayed the group to their own beliefs. The vast majority of people dissented when the group's opinions were at odds with their own. Many people conformed to the opinions of a group, despite those opinions being obviously wrong. Only "weak-willed" individuals, defined as such by their friends, conformed to the group's opinions.
Many people conformed to the opinions of a group, despite those opinions being obviously wrong.
Which of the following criticisms has been leveled at Milgram's obedience study? Milgram did not place enough emphasis on the parallels that could be drawn between the study's participants and Nazis. Milgram's conclusion that personality traits are virtually irrelevant to whether people obey authority is questionable. Milgram should not have told participants in advance what the study was designed to measure. Milgram should not have debriefed the participants afterward to indicate that no shocks had actually been administered.
Milgram's conclusion that personality traits are virtually irrelevant to whether people obey authority is questionable.
Which of the following is a psychological cause of prejudice? People dislike members of a group because those members are seen as unfairly taking limited resources. People derive a greater sense of national pride by actively combatting another group. People increase their own sense of self-worth by seeing other groups as inferior. People dislike members of a group because their parents and grandparents have also disliked that same group.
People increase their own sense of self-worth by seeing other groups as inferior.
Which of the following statements is true of Zimbardo's prison study? The researcher's briefing of the "guards" may have predisposed them to treat the "prisoners" brutally. The "prisoners" in the study had too much say in how they were treated. The study has been replicated many times, using less suggestible instructions with the "guards"; the more recent studies have produced the same type of pathological behavior produced in the original. The study illustrates that the social situation affects behavior only under highly unusual circumstances.
The researcher's briefing of the "guards" may have predisposed them to treat the "prisoners" brutally.
Henry conducts a study in which he divides participants into two groups at random. He tells them, though, that the groups have been determined by personality type, with one group being "Type J" and one group being "Type R." He then asks them to read a series of facts about a variety of hypothetical individuals, some of whom are described as Type Js and some of whom are Type Rs. He then tests them on their memory for the series of facts. Based on previous research, which of the following findings is most likely for Henry's study? Type J participants will be more likely to remember positive acts associated with other Type Js than positive acts associated with Type Rs. Type J participants will be more likely to remember negative acts associated with Type Rs than negative acts associated with other Type Js. These group assignments are based on such minimal and arbitrary criteria that they will not influence individuals' perceptions and memory. Type J participants will be more likely to remember anything that another Type J did compared to anything that a Type R did.
Type J participants will be more likely to remember negative acts associated with Type Rs than negative acts associated with other Type Js.
Rules that regulate social life, such as explicit laws and implicit cultural conventions, are referred to as __________. customs regulations norms roles
norms
The fundamental attribution error occurs when __________. we perceive others to be more similar to ourselves than they really are observers fail to discount the effects of dispositional qualities of the other person observers overestimate situational influences and underestimate dispositional influences on another person's behavior observers underestimate situational influences and overestimate dispositional influences on another person's behavior
observers underestimate situational influences and overestimate dispositional influences on another person's behavior
Research on obedience, prejudice, helping others, groupthink, and conformity illustrates that sometimes people can do really bad things when norms, roles, and situations impact them. But the same research also points a way to understanding that __________. people can also do really good things when norms, roles, and situations dictate personality differences are a stronger predictor of behavior than are situational factors people can do even more atrocious things when social pressures are lifted humans are fundamentally good, and it is society that leads us to behave badly
people can also do really good things when norms, roles, and situations dictate
Stanley Milgram's research on obedience found that "teachers" tended to deliver less shock to "learners" if __________. Milgram himself stood near the teacher and gave the orders the study took place in a prestigious setting the experimenter was not physically present the experimenter was presented as a legitimate authority figure
the experimenter was not physically present
Tonia attended a cocktail party at a business conference, and she was not sure if she should tip the bartender or if gratuities were the responsibility of the event organizers. She asked a waiter for advice, who replied, "It is up to individual attendees to tip the bartender," so Tonia did. Which aspect of conformity do Tonia's actions illustrate? the need for social acceptance the need for information the need for equity the need for dissonance rebuttal
the need for information
Helping can be increased by __________. increasing feelings of deindividuation among those present the presence of an ally who is the first one to offer help increasing the number of people available to offer assistance waiting for a leader to emerge from the group of bystanders
the presence of an ally who is the first one to offer help
In his famous series of studies of conformity, Solomon Asch set out to discover what people would do when a group unanimously contradicted an obvious fact. Seventy-five percent of the individual respondents who participated in the Asch line study __________. refused to change a correct answer in order to conform to the group's wrong answer truly changed their private beliefs to fall in line with the wrong answer given by the group gave inaccurate answers when they made line comparisons in private, without anyone else around went along with the wrong answer at least once
went along with the wrong answer at least once