Question 1

Psychologists once regarded morality as a set of arbitrary,learned rules,such as learning to stop at a red light and go at a green light.

Accepted Answer

In the past, psychologists did indeed view morality as a set of learned rules, which were thought to be arbitrary and culturally specific. However, more recent research has highlighted the universality and emotional basis of moral decision making, challenging this earlier view.

Question 2

The basic lesson from Zimbardo's simulated prison study and from Milgram's teacher-learner study is that humans are crueler than previously realized.

Accepted Answer

The basic lesson from these studies is that situational and systemic factors can greatly influence individuals' behavior, often leading them to act in ways that are contrary to their personal morals and ethics.

Question 3

Couples that divorce within the first seven years of marriage actually begin their marriages with more love and affection than do couples that remain married.

Accepted Answer

This statement is false. Research shows that couples who remain married have stronger feelings of love and affection towards each other compared to those who divorce within the first seven years of marriage.

Question 4

Hank falls to the sidewalk among many other pedestrians-he's having a heart attack! Harry falls to the sidewalk in the presence of just one other pedestrian-he's having a heart attack! Hank is more likely to receive help than Harry is.

Accepted Answer

This scenario illustrates the bystander effect, where people are less likely to offer help to a victim when other people are present. Harry, being in the presence of just one other pedestrian, is more likely to receive help than Hank, who is surrounded by many pedestrians.

Question 5

According to the door-in-the-face technique,an effective way to get you to agree to a big request (take a group of juvenile delinquents to the zoo on Saturday)is to first ask you to do an even larger request (serve as a counselor to the delinquents for two hours,every week for the next two years).

Accepted Answer

The door-in-the-face technique involves making a large request that is likely to be refused, and then following it up with a smaller, more reasonable request. This can make the second request seem more appealing and easier to agree to. In the given scenario, asking someone to serve as a counselor for two years is the larger request, while taking the delinquents to the zoo is the smaller request that is more likely to be agreed to after the initial refusal.

Question 6

Two groups have a history of prejudice and hostility between them.The research has found that the best way to reduce this prejudice is to have members from each group talk and try to get to know each other.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Two groups have a history of prejudice...

Question 7

Tony,a sophomore,listens to a speech favoring a tuition increase at his college for next year.Because Tony intends to return for his junior year,he is more likely to follow the central route to persuasion in listening to the speech than the peripheral route.

Accepted Answer

The central route to persuasion involves thoughtful consideration and evaluation of arguments and evidence, and is more likely to be used when someone has a personal interest or investment in the topic. Since Tony intends to return for his junior year and the tuition increase will directly impact him, he is more likely to listen to the speech using the central route to persuasion.

Question 8

Solomon Asch had participants choose which line was the same length as a comparison line in the presence of confederates who chose obviously wrong answers.Asch found about twice as much conformity when the number of confederates was large (about 10)as when it was smaller (about 5).

Accepted Answer

Asch found that conformity increased with the number of confederates up to a point, but not significantly after three or four confederates, indicating that increasing the number of confederates beyond three or four does not significantly increase conformity.

Question 9

The Implicit Association Test,taken by over 600,000 people,finds that even Whites who claim to have little or no prejudice,link White-pleasant and Black-unpleasant more quickly.

Accepted Answer

The statement accurately summarizes the findings of the Implicit Association Test.

Question 10

Proximity refers to a feeling of warmth,affection,and closeness to another person.

Accepted Answer

Proximity refers to the physical or geographical closeness between people, not the emotional closeness or feelings of warmth and affection.

Question 11

To measure the maturity of someone's moral judgments,Kohlberg devised a series of moral dilemmas,which are problems that pit one moral value against another.

Accepted Answer

Kohlberg's theory of moral development is based on his measurement of an individual's moral judgments, which he tests through a set of moral dilemmas. These dilemmas are designed to test a person's reasoning and moral response, specifically by presenting them with a situation in which they must choose between conflicting moral values.

Question 12

A group of volunteers and paid staff work for a political campaign.The candidate loses the election.According to the theory of cognitive dissonance,the volunteers are more likely to be upset and feel that they have wasted their time than the paid staff.

Accepted Answer

According to the theory of cognitive dissonance, volunteers are more likely to rationalize their efforts and maintain a positive view of their participation to resolve the dissonance between their efforts and the outcome, whereas paid staff might not experience the same level of dissonance since their efforts are compensated, making them less likely to feel they wasted their time.

Question 13

According to research on the sleeper effect,persuasion attempts are much more likely to be successful when we hear them subconsciously,such as when we are asleep.

Accepted Answer

According to the sleeper effect research, persuasion attempts can still be effective even if we forget the source of the message over time. It does not mean that we are more likely to be persuaded when we hear them subconsciously such as when we are asleep.

Question 14

Your professor is passing back exams,and as you are waiting to receive your exam,you notice that the student sitting next to you has a big,red "F" at the top of her exam.You think,"Wow,this must have been a really difficult exam." Your thinking illustrates the fundamental attribution error.

Accepted Answer

The fundamental attribution error involves overestimating the influence of personality and underestimating the influence of situations when explaining others' behaviors. In this scenario, attributing the failure to the exam's difficulty rather than the student's abilities or personality traits does not illustrate the fundamental attribution error.

Question 15

Researchers have found that composite photos that produce average facial features are rated as highly attractive.

Accepted Answer

Studies have shown that composite photos that average out the facial features of multiple individuals tend to be rated as highly attractive. This is due to the fact that these average features represent traits that are considered "typical" or "normal," making the composite photo more appealing to a wider range of people.

Question 16

On the average,first impressions are more influential than information learned later.

Accepted Answer

Research has shown that first impressions have a strong influence on our perception of and attitudes towards others, and are harder to change than information learned later. This is known as the "primacy effect."

Question 17

Altruistic behavior refers to helping others despite some cost or risk to others.

Accepted Answer

Altruistic behavior refers to helping others despite some cost or risk to oneself, not to others.

Question 18

You are going to play a prisoner's dilemma game with the same partner every day for a week.According to the research,the choice that is most likely to lead to a big pay-off over the course of the week is for you to choose to compete as frequently as possible.

Accepted Answer

Research on the prisoner's dilemma, especially in repeated games, suggests that cooperative strategies, like "tit for tat" (where you initially cooperate and then replicate your partner's previous move), tend to lead to better outcomes over time compared to consistently competitive approaches.

Question 19

The vast majority of students at Really Big State University wear backpacks with straps over both shoulders.The vast majority of students at the University of Some Distant State wear backpacks with just a single strap over one shoulder.Students at both universities say they wear their backpacks that way because it is the most comfortable for them.The students' backpack wearing behavior at both schools reflects normative influence.

Accepted Answer

The statement correctly describes normative influence, which refers to conforming to the norms and behaviors of a group to fit in and be accepted. The backpack wearing behavior of students at both universities reflects this as they conform to the norm of their respective schools.

Question 20

The term aversive racism refers to a blatant,obvious form of hostility for people of other races.

Accepted Answer

Aversive racism refers to a more subtle, unconscious form of prejudice and discrimination towards people of other races.

Quiz 13: Social Psychology