SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY
PSY 330 - Fall 2003
Test 5

Multiple Choice:  Circle the letter corresponding the single most correct answer (@ 1 point).

[NOTE: Answers to the multiple choice questions can be found at the end of this test.]

1. According to the authors, one nearly inevitable consequence of being the target of  relentless prejudice is
 A. genocide                                 C. lower self-esteem
 B. discrimination                           D. rebellion

2. __________ refers to a negative attitude toward a distinguishable group of people, based solely on their group membership.
 A. Discrimination                         C. Racism
 B. Stereotypes                             D. Prejudice

3. Which of the following examples best captures the social-psychological concept of a stereotype?
 A. Arlene refuses to enter an elevator in which men are riding
 B. Mitch believes that women are seductive, duplicitous, and not to be trusted.
 C. Aaron becomes uncomfortable when a man sits too close to him
 D. Nicole avoids homeless people on the street.

4. Stereotypes are the ____________ component of a negative attitude toward a group of people.
 A. denotative                         C. cognitive
 B. behavioral                         D. affective

5. “Female humans are more nurturant than males, because throughout time, females who were poor nurturers did not successfully pass on ‘non-nurturant’ genes.”  This assertion would have been made by a(n) _________ psychologist.
 A. personality                           C. evolutionary
 B. comparative                         D. cognitive

6. By __________, third-grade teacher Jane Elliot generated negative stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination among elementary school children.
 A. providing a new criterion for categorization
 B. generating competition for attention
 C. reinforcing existing beliefs
 D. contradicting existing beliefs

7. According to the authors of your text, it is primarily the ___________ aspect of prejudiced attitudes that make them relatively impervious to rational or logical arguments.
 A. esteem-enhancing                         C. emotional
 B. cognitive                                       D. motivational

8. You have seen few people with nose rings, and few car accidents in your life.  You happen to observe several car accidents involving people with nose rings, and come to the conclusion that people with nose rings drive badly.  You have just created a(n)
 A. illusory correlation                         C. incidental inference
 B. plausible judgment                         D. artifactual connection

9. Recall that Muzafer Sherif and his colleagues (1961) created conflict between two groups of boys in a summer camp.  This field study provided support for the ______ theory of prejudice.
 A. scapegoat                                     C. out-group disparagement
 B. realistic conflict                             D. ultimate attribution theory

10. What does the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (Holes & Rahe, 1967) measure?
 A. job satisfaction                       C. mental health
 B. life changes                             D. social support

11. Recall that researchers often employ correlational designs to assess the relation between stress and physical health.  One problem with this approach is that researchers using this method
 A. cannot make definitive causal statements.
 B. rely solely on respondents’ self-reports
 C. do not often use representative samples
 D. do not sample adequately from all age groups

12. Based on Ellen Langer’s and Judith Rodin’s (1976) study of nursing home residents, which of the following residents is most likely to feel happier, be more active, and live longer?
 A. Bess, who makes her own bed and has a choice of a vegetarian meal
 B. Aron, who has his own personal aide to attend to his wishes
 C. Catherine, who is often escorted outside for walks
 D. Jack, whose room is full of lush plants

13. Bonita wants to get in good physical shape.  She believes that she can eliminate fats from her diet, jog three times a week, avoid temptations when shopping for groceries, and distract herself when she gets a craving for cheese cake.  In this case, Bonita is likely to _____________ because she is ____________.
 A. fail….falling prey to an optimistic bias
 B. succeed…..high in self-efficacy
 C. succeed…..low in learned helplessness
 D. fail….making a global attribution

14. After the termination of a romantic relationship, Sari explains the situation to a friend, and says, “I don’t know what to do.  It’s all my fault.  I can’t ever make people I love happy.  I guess no one could ever love me, and I’m destined to die alone.  Sari’s attribution for the break-up is ___________   _____________.
 A. stable, and global                                    C. stable, and specific
 B. pessimistic, and global                             D. unstable, and pessimistic

15. Learned helplessness theory is most related to which of the following?
 A. attribution theory                                     C. self-perception theory
 B. cognitive dissonance theory                      D. social comparison theory

16. Which of the following aspects of a Type A personality is most strongly associated with vulnerability to heart disease?
 A. competitiveness                             C. impatience
 B. hostility                                          D. control-orientation

17. One source of cultural differences in coronary disease is
 A. an individualistic value in Western cultures that encourages Type A behavior
 B. the faster pace of life in Western cultures that encourages Type B behavior
 C. a collectivist value that discourages self-help groups in Asian cultures
 D. the greater density of urban areas in Western cultures

18. ____________ proposes that we need social support only when we are under stress.
 A. Learned helplessness theory                         C. The “Go-it-Alone” hypothesis
 B. The Buffering hypothesis                               D. The coping Style hypothesis

19. Recall that research shows how message framing influences people’s health-related behaviors.  If you wanted to use results of that research to encourage people to use sun screen to prevent skin cancer, which of the following messages would you use?
 A. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure
 B. Skin cancer is one of the easiest to prevent
 C. Skin cancer is one of the biggest killers of young people
 D. More people die from skin cancer than from heart attacks

20. When they think of a number of environmental problems, people don’t often think about social psychologists’ potential contributions.  In fact, social psychologists provide a unique perspective because they believe that
 A. overpopulation is a decidedly social problem
 B. social behaviors destroy the environment, and social causes call for social solutions
 C. it is important to understand how people construe their environments
 D. noise, pollutants, and other noxious environmental stimuli affect social behavior

21. Research by social and environmental psychologists suggests that in general, because noise in modern society is _______, it contributes to stress, physical problems, and performance deficits in humans.
 A. constant                                 C. inescapable
 B. loud                                       D. harmful to hearing

22. Which of the following is most likely to be affected by people’s attributions?
 A. crowding                             C. density
 B. decibel levels                        D. sensory overload

23. Professor Martinez always throws paper and soft drink cans into the garbage.  Based on research related to water conservation, how might he be encouraged to recycle?
 A. Give him information about what can and cannot be recycled
 B. Have him lecture to his students about recycling, then make him aware of his own behavior
 C. Point out that it is in his own self-interest to recycle
 D. Put signs on recycling bins to make them stand out

24. In what sense does the problem of littering represent a social dilemma?
 A. Littering has increased steadily over the last fifteen years.
 B. Norms can be made salient to reduce littering
 C. Each citizen may not litter a lot, but it all adds up.
 D. Litter pollutes water and endangers wildlife.

25. Nancy is listening to the radio while she drives.  At the same moment she hears a message from the “Keep America Beautiful” campaign, she notices a fast-food bag on the side of the road.  The difference between what Nancy hears and sees reflects the difference between ________ norms and _______norms.
 A. descriptive…..objective                         C. injunctive…..descriptive
 B. descriptive…..injunctive                         D. objective…..descriptive

***KEEP THIS SHEET - you may record your multiple-choice answers on it to compare with the Answer Key after the test.  You will need these questions to prepare for the Final.

Write answers to these questions in your blue-book.

KEY TERMS & NAMES.  Select 5.  For each term, supply a precise definition including the context and a clear example.  For each name, supply the context and 2 other pieces of information (@ 3 points).

                Glass & Singer                                        Patricia Devine

                Sanism                                                    Implicit Associations Test

                Secondary Territory                                Locus of Control

                Eustress                                                  Dovidio's Missing Letter

SHORT ANSWER.  Select and answer 2 (@ 6 points).

1.  Identify any 3 theories of prejudice discussed in class.  Then use each theory to explain sexism, including technical terms wherever appropriate.

2.  From our discussion of the stress process, identify any 2 different stressor factors and any 2 types of individual differences.  Then use each of those 4 to analyze how final exams affect you.

3.  Identify any 2 major social psychological theories that can be applied to improving healthy behaviors and to conserving energy.  Then discuss a specific example of each.

ANSWERS TO MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS:

  1.  C          2.  D          3.  B          4.  C          5.  C          6.  A          7.  C
  8.  A          9.  B        10.  B        11.  A        12.  A        13.  B        14.  A
15.  A        16.  B        17.  A        18.  B        19.  B        20.  C        21.  C
22.  A        23.  B        24.  C        25.  C