Study Guide
Final Exam – Psychology 360
Fall 2005
Final Exam: December 17 (Saturday), 1:30pm, Boyden Gym
Chapter 1
1. Know generally the kinds of issues social psychologists study. (You really do not need to
review Chapter 1.)
Chapter 2
2. Be able to identify an independent and dependent variable.
3. What does a positive correlation look like? A negative correlation? No correlation?
4. What are the strengths and weaknesses of correlational research?
5. How do researchers avoid bias and confounds in a controlled experiment? (Hint: Know
the meaning of random assignment.)
6. In what ways are random assignment and random sampling different?
7. What is a p-value? Why do psychologists want to know whether two groups differ at a
statistically significant level?
Chapter 3
8. Compare and contrast the hindsight bias, availability heuristic, representativeness
heuristic, fundamental attribution error.
9. What is a schema? What does it do?
10. What are the “ironic effects” of thought suppression? Specifically, what is the main point
of Wegner’s theory of ironic processes? What happens when people are busy or distracted?
11. Know the findings of Rosenthal & Jacobson’s work on teacher expectations. Explain the
relevance of the concept of self-fulfilling prophecy.
12. Compare and contrast the perseverance effect, self-fulfilling prophecy, counterfactual
thinking, representativeness heuristic.
13. What is priming?
Chapter 4
14. What is attribution theory? What kinds of causal attributions do people make?
15. Define the actor-observer bias. What explanations have been offered for this bias?
16. What is the fundamental attribution error?
Chapter 5
17. What is the self-concept? What is a self-schema? (Know the difference between
schematic and aschematic.)
18. In what ways do self-views differ by culture, specifically Western versus Eastern
cultures?
19. In general, do most people see themselves in a positive way or a negative way? Also,
what is a self-serving attributions? How is it related to internal vs. external attributions?
20. What is self-awareness theory?
21. Explain the overjustification effect and its relationship to extrinsic and intrinsic
motivation.
22. Define and distinguish among: self-handicapping, defensive pessimism, ingratiation,
downward social comparison, impression management.
Chapter 6
23. Explain the main idea of Festinger’s cognitive dissonance theory. What were the
findings of Festinger and Carlsmith’s classic experiment ($1 versus $20 for telling a lie,
etc.)?
24. What is insufficient justification? Insufficient punishment?
Chapter 7
25. What is the bogus pipeline? Why is it used?
26. Compare and contrast: foot-in-the-door, low-balling, door-in-the-face, and that’s not all
technique. Be able to identify each from a description.
27. Compare the peripheral route to persuasion with the central route. Under what conditions
is each one most likely to be used?
28. What factors determine the strength of an attitude and, as a consequence, how well it
predicts behavior?
29. What is the principle of social proof? How does it apply to the mass suicide at
Jonestown?
30. What is the idea of attitude inoculation?
31. When will attitudes predict behavior?
Chapter 8
32. What were the main findings of Asch’s classic line judgment study? What was the role of
normative influence? (Note the difference between normative versus informational
influence.) What factors lowered conformity in the Asch paradigm?
33. Compare informational social influence versus normative social influence.
34. Define conformity and obedience.
35. Discuss the main findings of Milgram’s research on obedience. What ethical issues arose
from his work?
Chapter 9
36. What is the main finding for social facilitation? Which theoretical explanations can best
account for the effect in humans and other species?
37. What is deindividuation?
38. What is the “group polarization” effect?
39. What is groupthink? What are its symptoms? What measures help to prevent it?
40. Define and explain social loafing.
Chapter 10
41. What is the main idea of Zajonc’s notion of “mere exposure?”
42. What is the what-is-beautiful-is-good stereotype? How is it related to the classic study by
Snyder, Tanke, and Berscheid (men expected to talk to an attractive or unattractive woman,
etc.)? Know the main findings of this study.
43. Does research on liking and interpersonal attraction generally support “Birds of a feather
flock together” or “Opposites attract?”
44. Compare and contrast: attachment style, triangular theory of love, social exchange theory,
equity theory, exchange relationships and communal relationships.
45. Explain the concept of “excitation transfer” as applied to romantic attraction.
46. What is the role of propinquity, similarity, and familiarity in attraction?
Chapter 11
47. What are situational determinants of helping? (Hint: know about being in a hurry,
bystander effect)
48. Why might people not help in an emergency when several bystanders are present? (Know
main points of Darley and Latane’s theory, including diffusion of responsibility and
pluralistic ignorance.)
49. Compare and contrast: empathy-altruism and negative state relief model.
50.When are people in a negative mood less likely to help? More likely to help?
51. What is the role of similarity in helping?
52. What is the link between positive mood and helping?
Chapter 12
53. What are instinct theories of aggression? What are their major problems?
54. How is testosterone related to aggression? How is serotonin related to aggression?
55. What is Nisbett and Cohen’s theory of the “culture of honor?” Why do they think this
behavioral pattern developed?
56. What is the typical association between watching violence on TV and aggression in
children?
Chapter 13
57. Compare and contrast the following theories: social identity theory, realistic conflict
theory. (Know the main feature of each theory and be able to know how it is different from
the others.)
58. How is modern racism different from old-fashioned racism?
59. What is the jigsaw classroom technique? Why is it used?
60. What were the main findings of the Robbers Cave study? (Hint: understand the roles of
intergroup conflict and common goals.)
61. Explain Claude Steele’s concept of stereotype threat. What are the typical findings of a
study on stereotype threat in which Whites and Blacks are compared?
62. Explain the outgroup homogeneity bias.
63. Discuss the affective, cognitive, and behavioral components of attitudes toward a group.
How do prejudice, stereotype, and discrimination map onto each of these components?
64. What is the role of social categorization in stereotyping and prejudice? In general, what
is the role of social cognition (e.g., schemas, heuristics) in stereotyping and prejudice?
65. Given your knowledge of social psychological approaches, what general idea is similar
across the work of Milgram (on obedience), Zimbardo (Stanford Prison Simulation), and
Darley and Latane (bystander effect)? (Hint: This is a major point of the course.)