PYC3701
EXAM PACK
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MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the
question.
Answers and feedback for Assignment 01 (Unique no: 886108)
1. People’s personal identities, and their various social identities, require them to be different people
in different contexts. This results in - - - - -.
A. people having false selves depending on the context
B. people often have a distorted view of who they “really are”
C. people often operate from a less-than-principled position
D. a potentially variable but coherent self-definition
Alternative D is correct. Despite such potential variability in self-definition, most of us manage to
maintain a coherent image of ourselves, while recognising that we may define ourselves and
behave differently in different situations. See Chapter 4, page 135.)
2. When thinking about a bad or happy event and predicting our future level of happiness, we tend to
- - - - -.
A. neglect all the other factors that will contribute to our future state of mind over time
B. assume the bad or happy event will change us in some meaningful way
C. assume others will view us differently as the result of some bad or happy event
D. underplay the fact that a bad or happy event will likely change us in meaningful ways
Alternative A is correct. When we think about something terrible happening to us and try to predict
how we would feel 1 year after the event, we are likely to focus exclusively on the awfulness of that
event and neglect all the other factors that will almost certainly contribute to our happiness level as
the year progresses (Gilbert & Wilson, 2000). Consequently, people tend to predict that they would
feel much worse than they feel when the future arrives. Likewise, for positive events, if we focus
on only that great future event, we will mispredict our happiness as being considerably higher than
the actual moderate feelings that are likely 1 year later. In the case of predicting our responses to
such positive events in the future, miscalculation would occur because we are unlikely to consider
the daily hassles, we are also likely to experience in the future, and those would most definitely
moderate how we feel. See Chapter 4, page 131, on why we have so much difficulty predicting our
future responses.
3. The personal-social identity continuum recognizes that we - - - - -.
A. see ourselves as being more consistent across situations than we really are
B. can see ourselves differently, depending on circumstances
C. are part of a number of different social groups
D. see ourselves primarily as individuals
Alternative B is correct. The personal-social identity continuum recognises that we see ourselves
differently, depending on circumstances. Most people tend to maintain a rational image of
themselves, while accepting that others may define themselves and behave differently in different
situations. (See Chapter 4 in the textbook on page 135 for more information).
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,4. Having not met any members of a new social group, you hear a person expressing negative views
of that group. Your attitude toward the new group would not be likely influenced by hearing
this negative message if - - - - -.
A. you like the person expressing the view but believe his or her view to be unsubstantiated
B. you do not expect to be meeting any members of the new social group in the near future
C. the person expressing the attitude is someone you dislike and see as dissimilar to yourself
D. you are generally oriented toward taking contrarian views
Alternative C is correct. As a result of observing the attitudes held by others who we identify with,
new attitudes can be formed. Conversely, we are less likely to be influenced by the views of those
we dislike or see as dissimilar to ourselves. See Chapter 5 page 172 on our tendency to adjust our
attitudes to hold views closer to those of others whom we value and identify with (our reference
groups).
5. Jason has been listening to a talk show concerning animal rights. This is an issue that he cares
deeply about, and he is very knowledgeable about the topic. Jason is most likely to be persuaded
by - - - - -.
A. strong, convincing arguments
B. any message delivered by an attractive and competent speaker
C. emotional appeals
D. irrational arguments delivered by an attractive and competent speaker
Alternative A is correct. When messages are relevant, and the arguments that they contain are
strong and convincing, inducing persuasion is more likely to be successful. See Chapter 5, page
188.
6. People can become more resistant to attitudinal changes if they are first presented with opposing
views and - - - - -.
A. counterarguments to the opposing views
B. counterarguments to the currently held views
C. factual information without any emotional appeals
D. arguments· that support the opposing views
Alternative A is correct. Forewarning provides us with more opportunities to formulate
counterarguments that refute and lessen the impact of persuasive messages. See Chapter 5,
page 190.
7. Suppose John has completed a study where he engaged in “stereotype negation training.” Given
this scenario, John will likely - - - - -.
A. be extremely confused by the procedure and, consequently, offer neutral responses
B. feel guilty about the fact that he associated certain racial stereotypes with the racial group
toward which the stereotypes are typically targeted
C. continue to associate the racial stereotype with the member of the race in question
D. be much less inclined to associate the racial stereotype with the picture of the member of
the matching race
Alternative D is correct. Stereotype negation training involves forms of affirmations to describe
stereotype-consistent behaviour or a negation, when target behaviour is inconsistent with the
activated stereotype. Read research on chapter 5 pages 216 – 217.
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8. Jessica has worked her way up in her organisation and is now a mid-level manager. She has treated
her subordinates the same way her male counterparts treat theirs. Recently, Jessica has been
passed over for several promotions. The jobs went to male coworkers who were possibly not quite
as well qualified as Jessica. This situation probably represents - - - - -.
A. shifting standards
B. the glass ceiling effect
C. benevolent racism
D. gender stereotypes
Alternative B is correct. Glass ceiling is the invisible barrier used to prevent certain groups,
particularly women and minorities, from advancing in the workplace, irrespective of their
qualifications or skills. See the definition of the glass ceiling effect in Chapter 6 pages 208-209.
9. The stereotype for women shows them as being relatively high on - - - - - and relatively low on
- - - - -.
A. warmth; competence
B. competence; warmth
C. self-confidence; friendliness
D. sensitivity; warmth
Alternative A is correct. Gender stereotypes are beliefs concerning the characteristics of women
and men. They consist of both negative and positive traits. The positive trait in the case in point is
that women are warm. The negative- they are incompetent. (See Chapter 6, page 208).
10. Which is the MOST useful tactic for making complex decisions in a swift and effective way,
especially when dealing with large amounts of information under conditions of uncertainty?
A. heuristics
B. schemas
C. priming
D. automatic processing
Alternative A is correct. See Chapter 2, page 57, for the definition of heuristics.
11. Neo is complaining to Jake about the slow speed of his new iPhone 14. Jake is quick to say, “They
should stop messing with things, iPhone 6 is the best ever,” This tendency illustrates - - - - -
heuristic.
A. representative
B. prototype
C. status quo
D. availability
Alternative C is correct. Status quo heuristics is when people act as though they believe the way
things are currently is better than any other alternative (See Chapter 2, page 63).
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