Psychology 2C03 – Sample Questions Midterm 1
***This is by no means a cross section of all the questions I will ask, nor should you use
these questions as a ‘guide’ to exactly what I will ask on the first midterm. These
questions are representative of the types of things I might ask, the kind of language that is
used etc. It is NOT my opinion that if you can answer these 20 questions that you should
stop studying…….if you can answer these 20 questions then you are probably studying in
the right direction but I wouldn’t stop if I were you. Answers on last page
1) Social psychology is the scientific study of
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
how people perceive, think about, and communicate with one another.
how people observe, predict, and control one another.
social groups, organizations, and institutions.
Social cultures and philosophical ideals
how people think about, influence, and relate to one another.
2) Cinderella's Prince had trouble recognizing her in her home, as opposed to the
ballroom where they met. This observation reflects
a) the power of the situation.
b) the importance of cognition.
c) the power of the person.
d) common sense psychology.
e) More than one of the above
3) "The way things are is the way they ought to be." This statement reflects the
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
hindsight bias.
social representation bias.
naturalistic fallacy.
correlation-causality bias.
None of the above
4) How you answer the question "Who am I?" defines your
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
self-esteem.
possible self.
self-concept.
social identity.
self-identity
5) What type of self would feel most threatened by arriving alone to study at a foreign
university?
a) An interdependent self.
b) A looking-glass self.
c) A possible self.
d) An individualist self.
e) A pantry chef
6) Research on self-knowledge suggests that
a) you are the best judge of how your romantic relationship will turn out.
b) your mother is a better judge than you of how your romantic relationship will turn
out.
c) your romantic partner is the best judge of how your romantic relationship will
turn out.
d) none of the above.
e) more than one of the above
7) The prolonged debates that surround major events, such as the car crash that killed
Princess Diana, illustrate how people attempt to
a) make judgements about who is responsible for such events.
b) make attributions about others' behaviors.
c) explain why people act the way they do.
d) all of the above
e) only A and B above
8) Glenda has turned in an assignment late, so her instructor concludes Glenda is lazy
and unmotivated. The instructor's assumption is an example of
a) a situational attribution.
b) an external attribution.
c) self-handicapping.
d) the false consensus effect
e) a dispositional attribution.
9) According to theorist Harold Kelley, in making commonsense attributions to explain
others' behavior, people use information about
a) consistency, distinctiveness, and consensus.
b) cognition, emotion, and motivation.
c) arousal, attention, and animation.
d) complementarity, commonality, and closure.
e) clothing, food, hockey cards
10)
Without noticing the cell phone the passerby held to his ear, you decide that this
man mumbling to himself must be mentally ill. You have just made a(n)
a) external attribution.
b) situational attribution.
c) culturally-biased attribution.
d) fundamental attribution error.
e) both A and B
11)
Steve is typically very confident about his opinions and beliefs--in fact he is
usually more confident than he is accurate about certain things. Steve's thinking
illustrates
a) illusory correlation.
b) the I-knew-it-all-along phenomenon.
c) the overconfidence phenomenon.
d) belief perseverance.
e) none of the above
12)
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
13)
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
Which of the following is a component of Peter's attitude toward classical music?
Peter believes that listening to classical music raises one's IQ.
Peter likes the fact that a local radio plays only classical music.
Peter buys classical music recordings with any extra money he earns.
Only A and C
All of the above are part of Peter's attitude toward classical music.
Which of the following is a technique for measuring attitudes?
self-monitoring pipeline
foot-in-the-door phenomenon
bogus pipeline
low-ball technique
none of the above
14)
Experiments suggest that if you want people to do a big favor for you, one
technique is to get them to do a small favor first; this is known as the _____
technique.
a) foot-in-the-door
b) insufficient justification
c) over-justification
d) door-in-the-face
e) kinship
15)
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
Aggressors are likely to hate and blame their victims, illustrating
the power of the low-ball technique.
the principle of self-presentation.
the insufficient justification effect.
the power of actions to influence attitudes.
more than one of the above
16)
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
Evolutionary psychology
involves studying how natural selection predisposes traits and social behaviors.
is the study of diversity within evolutionarily-linked species.
involves studying animal social behavior.
is the study of prehistoric behavior and mental process.
all of the above describe Evolutionary Psychology
17)
Although there are many unoccupied tables in the restaurant, Rudolph decides to
sit at the same table in the chair right next to James. James feels uncomfortable
because Rudolph has violated
a) his social role.
b) his personal space.
c) Brown's universal norm.
d) the personal rights taboo.
e) both A and B
18)
After seeing victims of an earthquake on television, women are more likely than
men to
a) inform others of the event.
b) demonstrate the just world phenomenon.
c) distract themselves with some leisure activity.
d) turn off the TV
e) express empathy.
**answers on following page
1. e
2. a
3. c
4. b
5. a
6. b
7. d
8. e
9. a
10. d
11. c
12. e
13. c
14. a
15. d
16. a
17. b
18. e