Question 1

Lucas believes that because women take longer to learn mechanical skills at his factory, they have less mechanical aptitude, and therefore he is justified in not hiring any women. Lucas's belief system is best thought of as an example of:

Accepted Answer

Lucas's belief system is an example of the self-fulfilling prophecy, where a belief about a group of people leads to behavior that perpetuates the belief. By not hiring any women, Lucas is denying them the opportunity to learn and improve their mechanical skills, thus reinforcing his belief that women have less mechanical aptitude.

Question 2

Dissonance effects are greatest when:

Accepted Answer

Dissonance effects are greatest when people's actions are inconsistent with their self-concept. When a person's actions go against a central aspect of their self-concept, they experience greater cognitive dissonance as it challenges their beliefs about themselves. The other options may also contribute to dissonance, but they are not the primary factor.

Question 3

Suppose you had volunteered to be in an experiment in which you believe you have just given painful electric shocks to another person. According to cognitive dissonance theory, you would:

Accepted Answer

According to cognitive dissonance theory, when individuals perform an action that contradicts their beliefs or values (such as causing harm to another person), they experience discomfort (dissonance). To reduce this discomfort, they may devalue the victim to justify their actions, leading to a lower opinion of the victim after the experiment.

Question 4

Darrin Lehman and Shelley Taylor studied college students who lived in Los Angeles, the site of an impending earthquake. In their interviews with students, they found that:

Accepted Answer

Lehman and Taylor found that students living in seismically unsafe buildings tended to underestimate the damage that would result from a major quake.

Question 5

In a study by Mettee and Aronson, subjects whose self-esteem had been temporarily lowered were more likely to cheat at a card game than subjects whose self-esteem was temporarily increased. According to Aronson, the results of this study suggest that:

Accepted Answer

The study suggests that individuals with high self-esteem find acting immorally more dissonance arousing because it conflicts more with their positive self-image, compared to those with low self-esteem.

Question 6

Which of the following conclusions is supported by Aronson and Mills's experiment in which subjects underwent either a severe or a mild initiation to join a boring discussion group?

Accepted Answer

The experiment showed that subjects who underwent a severe initiation to join the boring discussion group rated the group more positively after the experience than those who underwent a mild initiation. This suggests that the harder they worked for it (through the severe initiation), the more they liked it (the discussion group). This supports the conclusion that the harder you work for something, the more you will like it.

Question 7

Dissonance reduction processes can make:

Accepted Answer

Dissonance reduction processes can lead us to justify our actions by altering our attitudes, such as disliking someone we hurt to justify our behavior.

Question 8

In a study by Davis and Jones, subjects volunteered to insult a "fellow student" by telling him he was a shallow, untrustworthy, and dull person. How did these subjects justify their hurtful behavior toward the other student, who had done nothing to deserve criticism?

Accepted Answer

The subjects justified their hurtful behavior by finding the other student less attractive than before they had insulted him. This is a psychological mechanism known as cognitive dissonance, where individuals change their attitudes or beliefs to justify their actions.

Question 9

Suppose you are responsible for planning the initiation of new members to a group to which you belong. Generalizing from Aronson and Mills's study on the effects of initiation on liking the group, you would do well to make the initiation process:

Accepted Answer

Aronson and Mills's study found that individuals who underwent a difficult or unpleasant initiation process tended to value the group more highly and liked it better than those who had an easy initiation. This is due to the justification of effort, where people tend to ascribe more value to outcomes for which they have had to make significant efforts.

Question 10

Research on self-esteem and narcissism has shown that people with high self-esteem but low narcissism ________, while people with high self-esteem coupled with high narcissism ________.

Accepted Answer

Research has shown that people with high self-esteem but low narcissism tend to have more empathy and concern for others, while people with high self-esteem coupled with high narcissism tend to lack empathy and may even derive pleasure from causing pain to others. Therefore, people with high self-esteem but low narcissism are less likely to use the most painful stimuli on others, while those with high self-esteem and high narcissism may be more likely to do so.

Question 11

Research participants were less likely to blame the victim in Harber's research that used a sexual assault scene from the movie The Accused when:

Accepted Answer

Participants were less likely to blame the victim when they were instructed to freely express their deepest thoughts and feelings, as this approach allows for a more empathetic and personal engagement with the content.

Question 12

In his text, Aronson argues that Jim Jones was able to persuade people to comply with his demands by first making small demands and then increasing them. This analysis is most similar to the research conducted by:

Accepted Answer

Aronson's description of Jim Jones' persuasive technique is most similar to the "foot-in-the-door" technique studied by Freedman and Fraser. This technique involves making a small request to gain compliance and then gradually increasing the demands. This is precisely what Jones did with his followers - he started with small requests for donations and obedience, and gradually escalated to more extreme actions like communal suicide. Therefore, choice A is the best answer.

Question 13

How did Aronson and Mettee manipulate self-esteem in their article on self-esteem and dishonest behavior?

Accepted Answer

Aronson and Mettee manipulated self-esteem by giving subjects false feedback about their personalities based on results of a personality test they had taken, which directly influenced the subjects' perceptions of their own self-esteem.

Question 14

Why is it, according to dissonance theory, that we evaluate favorably those goals we've had to suffer for?

Accepted Answer

According to dissonance theory, when we have to expend considerable effort to achieve a goal, we experience cognitive dissonance. To reduce this dissonance, we may come to believe that the goal was worth the effort. This is known as effort justification. By justifying the effort we've put in, we can reduce the discomfort of having to work so hard and feel more positive about the outcome.

Question 15

How does cognitive dissonance explain a husband beating up his wife while he still sees himself as a decent human being?

Accepted Answer

Cognitive dissonance can explain how the husband justifies his violent behavior and maintains a positive self-image by convincing himself that his wife somehow deserves the beating. This is a common strategy used to reduce the internal psychological discomfort that arises from holding two contradictory beliefs or values, such as the belief that one is a decent human being and the value of not committing violence.

Question 16

In comparison to people with low self-esteem, cognitive dissonance theory suggests that persons with high self-esteem are ________ likely to experience dissonance if they hurt someone and ________ likely to derogate a victim whom they have hurt.

Accepted Answer

The answer of In comparison to people with low self-esteem,...

Question 17

Aronson and his colleagues found that he was best able to convince students to use condoms regularly when:

Accepted Answer

The Aronson and colleagues study found that reminding students of their own failures to use condoms and having them make a speech advocating condom use was the most effective method for convincing them to use condoms regularly. This technique is known as the "foot-in-the-door" technique, where individuals are more likely to comply with a larger request (using condoms regularly) after they have first complied with a smaller request (making a speech about condom use).

Quiz 3: Mass Communication, Propaganda, and Persuasion