AP Psychology
Name____________________________Date_______Per_____
COGNITION PRACTICE QUESTIONS
Select the best answer for the following
questions.
___ 1. When someone mentions Ivy League
colleges, Trisha immediately thinks of Harvard
University. In this instance, Harvard University is a
a. fixation
b. algorithm
c. heuristic
d. prototype
e. mental set
___ 2. Kevin did not know whether the locker
room was located own the short hallway to his right
or down the long hallway to his left. Crossing his
fingers, he decided to try the short hallway. His
problem strategy best illustrates
a. confirmation bias
b. functional fixedness
c. trial and error
d. belief perseverance
e. the availability heuristic
___ 3. Jamilla systematically tried each successive
key on her dad’s key ring until she found the one
that unlocked his office door. This best illustrates
problem solving by means of
a. belief perseverance
b. an algorithm
c. the representative heuristic
d. the availability heuristic
e. functional fixedness
___ 4. Simple thinking strategies that allow us to
solve problems and make judgments efficiently are
called
a. semantics
b. heuristics
c. prototypes
d. algorithms
e. fixations
___ 5. After spending two hours trying to solve an
engineering problem, Armira finally gave up. As she
was trying to fall asleep that night, a solution to the
problem popped into her head. Armira’s experience
best illustrates
a. the belief perseverance phenomenon
b. the availability heuristic
c. insight
d. a mental set
e. the framing effect
___ 6. Generating multiple possible answers to a
problem illustrates
a. the representative heuristic
b. the availability heuristic
c. belief perseverance
d. divergent thinking
e. functional fixedness
___ 7. Because she believes that boys are naughtier
than girls, Mrs. Zumpano, a 2nd grade teacher,
watches boys more closely than she watches girls
for any signs of misbehavior. Mrs. Zumpano’s
surveillance strategy best illustrates
a. mental set
b. confirmation bias
c. functional fixedness
d. the framing effect
e. divergent thinking
___ 8. Some people are unable to arrange six
matches to form four equilateral triangles because
they fail to consider a three-dimensional
arrangement. This best illustrates the effects of
_____ on problem solving.
a. fixation
b. heuristics
c. algorithms
d. framing
e. overconfidence
___ 9. Raul and Sophia were having a picnic when
it started to rain. They did not think of using their
big plastic tablecloth as a temporary rain shelter
and so were drenched within minutes. Their
oversight best illustrates
a. the availability heuristic
b. confirmation bias
c. belief perseverance
d. functional fixedness
e. overconfidence
___ 10. A mental set is a
a. methodical step-by-step procedure for
solving problems
b. mental grouping of similar objects, events,
or people
c. tendency to approach a problem in a way
that has been successful in the past
d. group of conclusions derived from certain
assumptions or general principles
e. specific way an issue is described that can
significantly alter decisions
AP Psychology
Name____________________________Date_______Per_____
COGNITION PRACTICE QUESTIONS
___ 11. Which of the following best illustrates
confirmation bias?
a. Roger can’t find his 1-cup measuring cup
and fails to realize he could use a tea cup
b. Jeannette refuses to fly after seeing a news
story about a recent plane crash
c. Brett believes he is an outstanding driver,
although most people are average
d. A radio advertisement for a fast-food chain
claims its hamburgers are made with 80%
lean ground beef instead of saying 20
percent fat
e. Asked to write an opinion paper on capital
punishment, MacKenzie primarily searches
for evidence that supports her opposition to
the practice
___ 12. Miss Jan de Jong is orderly, neat, fairly
quiet, and shy. She enjoys reading in her spare time
and belongs to a social club that includes three
librarians, nine real estate agents, and eight social
workers. A tendency to conclude that Jan must be
one of the three librarians would illustrate the
powerful influence of
a. confirmation bias
b. the framing effect
c. the representative heuristic
d. the belief perseverance phenomenon
e. the availability heuristic
___ 13. Many people feel they are more likely to die
from homicide than diabetes because those
instances stand out more in their memories. This
demonstrates
a. functional fixedness
b. mental set
c. the belief perseverance phenomenon
d. the availability heuristic
e. overconfidence
____ 14. Although Steve was certain that he
answered between 70 and 80 items correctly on his
biology test, he actually was right on only 55 items.
Steve’s misjudgment of his test performance
illustrates
a. the representative heuristic
b. confirmation bias
c. the belief perseverance phenomenon
d. the framing effect
e. overconfidence
___ 15. Despite overwhelming and highly
publicized evidence that Senator McEwan was not
guilty of serious political corruption and
misconduct, many who had supported her in past
elections remained convinced of her political
integrity. Their reaction best illustrates
a. functional fixedness
b. the representative heuristic
c. belief perseverance
d. the availability heuristic
e. the framing effect
___ 16. If a stranger looks like someone who
previously harmed or threatened us in some way,
we may – without consciously recalling the earlier
experience – react warily. This illustrates that our
reactions to others may be influenced by
a. critical periods
b. algorithms
c. intuition
d. functional fixedness
e. framing
___ 17. Ojinska sold many more raffle tickets when
she told potential buyers they had a 10% chance of
winning a prize than when she told them they had a
90% chance of not winning. This best demonstrates
a. the representative heuristic
b. divergent thinking
c. confirmation bias
d. the availability heuristic
e. the framing effect
___ 18. Daniel was asked to write down as many
words as he could think of that contained the letter
“d”. To complete this task, Daniel would rely on
a. divergent thinking
b. framing
c. convergent thinking
d. belief perseverance
e. the availability heuristic
___ 19. Many people perceive carjackings as more
serious threats to their lives than failing to use
seatbelts because carjackings are so much more
memorable. This best illustrate the importance of
a. belief perseverance
b. the representative heuristic
c. confirmation bias
d. the availability heuristic
e. functional fixedness