,CHAPTER 01: The Science of Psychology
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Which of the following is the best definition of psychological science?
A. the study of the brain and its function
B. the study of the mind, the brain, and thought processes
C. the study of the mind, the brain, and behavior
D. the study of the mind, the psyche, and behavior
ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: 1.1 What Is Psychological Science?
OBJ: 1.1A NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology
MSC: Remembering
2. Psychological science is the study of:
A. the mind. C. behavior.
B. the brain. D. all of the above.
ANS: D DIF: Easy REF: 1.1 What Is Psychological Science?
OBJ: 1.1A NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology
MSC: Remembering
3. Trying to understand the relationship between the actions of neurons and a thought is an example of
the connection between:
A. the brain and the mind. C. genes and the mind.
B. nature and nurture. D. the brain and emotion.
ANS: A DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 What Is Psychological Science?
OBJ: 1.1A NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology
MSC: Applying
4. Based on your textbook’s definition of psychology, which statement best reflects the relationship
between the mind and the brain?
A. The brain is the same thing as the mind.
B. The brain influences the mind.
C. The brain is unrelated to the mind.
D. The brain reflects the mind.
ANS: B DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 What Is Psychological Science?
OBJ: 1.1A NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology
MSC: Applying
5. Barry and Candace are disagreeing. Barry states that psychology is the study of the mind. Candace
believes that psychology is the science of behavior. Given your knowledge of psychology, how would
you resolve this argument?
A. Barry is correct. Psychology only studies the mind.
B. Candace is correct. Psychology only studies behavior.
C. Both are correct. Psychology studies both the mind and behavior.
D. Both are incorrect. Psychology only studies emotions.
ANS: C DIF: Difficult REF: 1.1 What Is Psychological Science?
OBJ: 1.1A NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology
MSC: Understanding
, 6. Allanah is a psychology major. Which of the following best describes what Allanah will learn about?
A. the structure and function of the brain
B. mental disorders and their treatments
C. feelings and other subjective states
D. the mind, the brain, and behavior
ANS: D DIF: Easy REF: 1.1 What Is Psychological Science?
OBJ: 1.1A NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology
MSC: Understanding
7. For much of its history, psychologists focused mostly on:
A. the brain. C. behaviors.
B. disorders. D. the mind.
ANS: C DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 What Is Psychological Science?
OBJ: 1.1A NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology
MSC: Remembering
8. Which of the following is an example of a psychologist who is studying the mind?
A. Dr. Chu, who studies how weather influences children’s actions on the playground
B. Dr. Well, who studies neural activity during sleep cycles of elderly adults
C. Dr. Mann, who studies the accuracy of traumatic memories over time
D. Dr. East, who studies the facial expressions of relationship partners during a fight
ANS: C DIF: Difficult REF: 1.1 What Is Psychological Science?
OBJ: 1.1A
NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology | APA Goal 5, Professional Development
MSC: Applying
9. Which of the following is an example of a psychologist who is studying the brain?
A. Dr. Fields, who studies the purchasing habits of impulsive individuals
B. Dr. Joe, who studies how neural activity changes as newborn babies develop
C. Dr. Perez, who studies how our feelings can influence our thought processes
D. Dr. Ladd, who studies the training activities of professional athletes
ANS: B DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 What Is Psychological Science?
OBJ: 1.1A
NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology | APA Goal 5, Professional Development
MSC: Applying
10. Which of the following is an example of a psychologist who is studying behavior?
A. Dr. Wick, who studies how certain smells can trigger certain feelings
B. Dr. Woods, who studies patterns of neural activity related to drug use
C. Dr. Paul, who studies the thought processes involved in decision making
D. Dr. Hull, who studies the facial expressions of relationship partners during a fight
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 What Is Psychological Science?
OBJ: 1.1A
NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology | APA Goal 5, Professional Development
MSC: Applying
11. According to your text, amiable skepticism is an important element in a type of reasoning called:
A. scholarly inquiry. C. analytic argumentation.
B. nay-sayerism. D. critical thinking.
ANS: D DIF: Easy
, REF: 1.1 Psychological Science Teaches Critical Thinking OBJ: 1.1B
NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology | APA Goal 2, Scientific Inquiry and Critical
Thinking MSC: Remembering
12. Which of the following is a characteristic of a good consumer of scientific research?
A. open to new ideas C. wary of scientific findings
B. carefully considers the facts D. all of the above
ANS: D DIF: Easy
REF: 1.1 Psychological Science Teaches Critical Thinking OBJ: 1.1B
NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology | APA Goal 2, Scientific Inquiry and Critical
Thinking MSC: Remembering
13. Critical thinking is best defined as thinking that:
A. is systematic and reasonable.
B. is open-minded and creative.
C. criticizes others’ opinions.
D. uses inferences but does not solve problems.
ANS: A DIF: Moderate
REF: 1.1 Psychological Science Teaches Critical Thinking OBJ: 1.1B
NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology | APA Goal 2, Scientific Inquiry and Critical
Thinking MSC: Remembering
14. Which of the following is an example of using critical thinking and scientific reasoning?
A. believing that sugar causes ADHD because you feel hyper after eating a candy bar
B. concluding that listening to Mozart improves learning in children after reading an article
about this topic in a popular magazine
C. using a personal example to show how a psychological principle must be wrong
D. conducting research to investigate the effectiveness of left brain/right brain games in
improving memory
ANS: D DIF: Moderate
REF: 1.1 Psychological Science Teaches Critical Thinking OBJ: 1.1B
NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology | APA Goal 2, Scientific Inquiry and Critical
Thinking MSC: Applying
15. Why is critical thinking important in evaluating psychological research?
A. Researchers deliberately lie about their research findings.
B. There might be significant limitations to the research findings.
C. Research findings are rarely influenced by political and personal agendas.
D. There is always a single clear explanation and the researchers may not have found it.
ANS: B DIF: Moderate
REF: 1.1 Psychological Science Teaches Critical Thinking OBJ: 1.1B
NAT: APA Goal 1, Knowledge Base in Psychology | APA Goal 2, Scientific Inquiry and Critical
Thinking MSC: Applying
16. Which of the following is an important goal of your psychology textbook?
A. to teach you how to be a therapist by using methods of psychology
B. to provide you with an education about the methods of psychological science
C. to help you define normal versus abnormal behavior so you can recognize mental illness
D. to help you predict how people will interact in novel situations
ANS: B DIF: Easy