Question 1

Which occupation is more likely to include a higher proportion of people who engage in a superstitious ritual?

Accepted Answer

A)  Jet fighter pilots 
B)  Grocery store clerks 
C)  Office workers 
D)  Carpenters 
A)  Jet fighter pilots 
B)  Grocery store clerks 
C)  Office workers 
D)  Carpenters A

Question 2

Rozen and his colleagues found that study participants often would not eat some good chocolate when it had been shaped to look like a turd or an insect. This response is MOST related to:

Accepted Answer

A)  the law of similarity. 
B)  not wanting to tempt fate or push your luck. 
C)  people's mistaken ideas about coincidence. 
D)  apparent mental causation. 
A)  the law of similarity. 
B)  not wanting to tempt fate or push your luck. 
C)  people's mistaken ideas about coincidence. 
D)  apparent mental causation. A

Question 3

Humans' ability to rapidly develop conditioned aversions to foods that have made them sick and the seemingly natural discovery of quarantine are MOST related to the law of:

Accepted Answer

A)  large numbers. 
B)  small numbers. 
C)  similarity. 
D)  contagion. 
A)  large numbers. 
B)  small numbers. 
C)  similarity. 
D)  contagion. D

Question 4

The BEST explanation of how the Hall-of-Fame baseball player Wade Boggs acquired his belief that he should eat chicken as part of his pre-game ritual is that he:

Accepted Answer

A)  began to perceive that when he ate chicken, he tended to get hits, forming an illusory correlation. 
B)  observed other players engaging in similar rituals and imitated their behaviors through social learning theory. 
C)  tried many different strategies to improve his hitting and settled on eating chicken before each game. 
D)  grew up in a family that believed in many superstitions and observed many superstitious rituals. 
A)  began to perceive that when he ate chicken, he tended to get hits, forming an illusory correlation. 
B)  observed other players engaging in similar rituals and imitated their behaviors through social learning theory. 
C)  tried many different strategies to improve his hitting and settled on eating chicken before each game. 
D)  grew up in a family that believed in many superstitions and observed many superstitious rituals.

Question 5

In a park, Maci saw one pigeon that would turn in a circle one way and then turn in a circle the opposite way before it approached any person who was about to feed it. She wondered why it engaged in this pattern of behavior. Based on the studies by B. F. Skinner, which explanation BEST accounts for the pigeon's behavior?

Accepted Answer

A)  The pigeon was showing post hoc ("after this, therefore because of this") reasoning. 
B)  The sight of food in Maci's hand motivated the pigeon. 
C)  The pigeon learned the superstitious behavior through operant conditioning. 
D)  A park visitor shaped and reinforced the pigeon's behavior. 
A)  The pigeon was showing post hoc ("after this, therefore because of this") reasoning. 
B)  The sight of food in Maci's hand motivated the pigeon. 
C)  The pigeon learned the superstitious behavior through operant conditioning. 
D)  A park visitor shaped and reinforced the pigeon's behavior.

Question 6

What do superstitions and psychological misconceptions have in common?

Accepted Answer

A)  Both are kinds of pseudoscience. 
B)  Both are often associated with commonsense belief and intuition. 
C)  Both are plausible and based on what we know from science. 
D)  They both claim to have a scientific basis by those who believe in them. 
A)  Both are kinds of pseudoscience. 
B)  Both are often associated with commonsense belief and intuition. 
C)  Both are plausible and based on what we know from science. 
D)  They both claim to have a scientific basis by those who believe in them.

Question 7

How do superstitions differ from pseudosciences?

Accepted Answer

A)  People who believe in superstitions do not have mistaken ideas about probability. 
B)  Superstitions are not associated with scientifically implausible claims. 
C)  People do not claim that a superstition has a scientific basis. 
D)  Superstitions are what uneducated people believe. 
A)  People who believe in superstitions do not have mistaken ideas about probability. 
B)  Superstitions are not associated with scientifically implausible claims. 
C)  People do not claim that a superstition has a scientific basis. 
D)  Superstitions are what uneducated people believe.

Question 8

B. F. Skinner studied how pigeons began bobbing their heads and twirling around in the "Skinner box" after being operantly conditioned with a food reward. His research is most consistent with the idea that superstitions are:

Accepted Answer

A)  irrational and based on paranormal beliefs. 
B)  based on thinking errors. 
C)  innate. 
D)  learned behaviors. 
A)  irrational and based on paranormal beliefs. 
B)  based on thinking errors. 
C)  innate. 
D)  learned behaviors.

Question 9

Which statement is TRUE about belief in superstition?

Accepted Answer

A)  Belief in superstition is not found in scientifically educated people. 
B)  Superstitions are irrational beliefs and so have no benefit to people. 
C)  Superstitions are found in many people who endorse scientific ideas. 
D)  Superstitions should always be promoted because they reduce stress. 
A)  Belief in superstition is not found in scientifically educated people. 
B)  Superstitions are irrational beliefs and so have no benefit to people. 
C)  Superstitions are found in many people who endorse scientific ideas. 
D)  Superstitions should always be promoted because they reduce stress.

Question 10

Superstitions are:

Accepted Answer

A)  essentially pseudoscientific beliefs. 
B)  irrational and always should be resisted because they do not help people. 
C)  heuristics that people use to explain difficult everyday situations. 
D)  often attributed to the beliefs of other people's religion. 
A)  essentially pseudoscientific beliefs. 
B)  irrational and always should be resisted because they do not help people. 
C)  heuristics that people use to explain difficult everyday situations. 
D)  often attributed to the beliefs of other people's religion.

Question 11

The example of the Martin Luther, the sixteenth-century founder of Protestantism who criticized the Catholic Church and papacy, illustrates how people:

Accepted Answer

A)  have mostly replaced superstitious belief with a scientific approach to nature. 
B)  like Luther rejected superstitious beliefs such as witchcraft. 
C)  who adhere to one belief system often say people who adhere to another belief system are superstitious. 
D)  in the modern era have largely rejected the superstitions of earlier times, such as those in Luther's time. 
A)  have mostly replaced superstitious belief with a scientific approach to nature. 
B)  like Luther rejected superstitious beliefs such as witchcraft. 
C)  who adhere to one belief system often say people who adhere to another belief system are superstitious. 
D)  in the modern era have largely rejected the superstitions of earlier times, such as those in Luther's time.

Question 12

The psychological misconception that some people are left-brained and some people are right-brained is used in the text to:

Accepted Answer

A)  demonstrate how a superstition could at the same time be a psychological misconception. 
B)  distinguish between superstitious beliefs and incorrect ideas derived from science. 
C)  illustrate how superstitious beliefs differ from psychological misconceptions because superstitious beliefs do not try to explain behavior and mental processes. 
D)  explain how this superstitious belief began as a psychological misconception and became a superstition. 
A)  demonstrate how a superstition could at the same time be a psychological misconception. 
B)  distinguish between superstitious beliefs and incorrect ideas derived from science. 
C)  illustrate how superstitious beliefs differ from psychological misconceptions because superstitious beliefs do not try to explain behavior and mental processes. 
D)  explain how this superstitious belief began as a psychological misconception and became a superstition.

Question 13

Not wanting to put on a mass murderer's sweater but wanting to hold a pen owned by Albert Einstein is MOST related to:

Accepted Answer

A)  the law of sympathetic magic. 
B)  the law of contagion. 
C)  people's mistaken ideas about coincidence. 
D)  apparent mental causation. 
A)  the law of sympathetic magic. 
B)  the law of contagion. 
C)  people's mistaken ideas about coincidence. 
D)  apparent mental causation.

Question 14

The BEST explanation of why the Hall-of-Fame baseball player Wade Boggs engaged in so many superstitious behaviors before and during a game is that he:

Accepted Answer

A)  was a very religious person and so was more prone to hold superstitious beliefs and engage in superstitious rituals. 
B)  had a tendency to be obsessive-compulsive and, therefore, his psychological condition made him prone to superstitious rituals. 
C)  followed superstitious rituals that may have helped him make his time at bat seem less risky and more predictable. 
D)  grew up in a family that believed in many superstitions, and so from a young age he learned to be superstitious. 
A)  was a very religious person and so was more prone to hold superstitious beliefs and engage in superstitious rituals. 
B)  had a tendency to be obsessive-compulsive and, therefore, his psychological condition made him prone to superstitious rituals. 
C)  followed superstitious rituals that may have helped him make his time at bat seem less risky and more predictable. 
D)  grew up in a family that believed in many superstitions, and so from a young age he learned to be superstitious.

Question 15

If a person believes that the Haitian voodoo ritual of sticking pins into a doll that looks like an enemy will produce actual physical harm to the enemy, then that person's behavior seems to be influenced by:

Accepted Answer

A)  "after this, therefore because of this" reasoning. 
B)  inappropriate reasoning by representativeness. 
C)  inappropriate use of the availability heuristic. 
D)  the law of contagion. 
A)  "after this, therefore because of this" reasoning. 
B)  inappropriate reasoning by representativeness. 
C)  inappropriate use of the availability heuristic. 
D)  the law of contagion.

Question 16

Which statement is true about reducing the superstitious belief that witches cause AIDS, especially as this belief is found in Africa?

Accepted Answer

A)  Science education will eventually eliminate this irrational belief once people are shown it is inconsistent with science. 
B)  Science education may reduce this belief, but some people go to both traditional healers and practitioners who use evidence-based medicine. 
C)  Science education has not even been tried in Africa, so we cannot yet know if it will eradicate the irrational belief in witchcraft as a cause of AIDS. 
D)  It is an ethical problem and not a problem for science education, so science education is not relevant. 
A)  Science education will eventually eliminate this irrational belief once people are shown it is inconsistent with science. 
B)  Science education may reduce this belief, but some people go to both traditional healers and practitioners who use evidence-based medicine. 
C)  Science education has not even been tried in Africa, so we cannot yet know if it will eradicate the irrational belief in witchcraft as a cause of AIDS. 
D)  It is an ethical problem and not a problem for science education, so science education is not relevant.

Question 17

People who hold superstitious beliefs tend to engage more in:

Accepted Answer

A)  disordered thinking usually associated with mental disorders. 
B)  Type 1 thinking. 
C)  Type 2 thinking. 
D)  emotional thinking. 
A)  disordered thinking usually associated with mental disorders. 
B)  Type 1 thinking. 
C)  Type 2 thinking. 
D)  emotional thinking.

Question 18

Scientific-minded people often object that individuals who believe in witchcraft and the supernatural are superstitious. Which reason BEST supports this objection as either valid or not valid?

Accepted Answer

A)  It is not valid because scientific-minded people are using an approach that cannot substantiate its claims. 
B)  The objection of scientific-minded people is not valid because scientists are known to be biased in their opinions, too. 
C)  It is valid because the objection of scientific-minded people is based on high-quality research demonstrating that superstitious beliefs are likely wrong. 
D)  Scientific-minded people hold beliefs that are more modern, while people who endorse superstitions are maintaining very old ideas. 
A)  It is not valid because scientific-minded people are using an approach that cannot substantiate its claims. 
B)  The objection of scientific-minded people is not valid because scientists are known to be biased in their opinions, too. 
C)  It is valid because the objection of scientific-minded people is based on high-quality research demonstrating that superstitious beliefs are likely wrong. 
D)  Scientific-minded people hold beliefs that are more modern, while people who endorse superstitions are maintaining very old ideas.

Question 19

Damisch, Stroberock, and Mussweiller (2010) conducted a series of experiments on whether having a lucky charm could improve performance. Half of the college student participants had a lucky charm available during performance of experimental tasks, such as remembering pairs of cards, while the other half did not. Which statement BEST describes the study findings?

Accepted Answer

A)  The students with the lucky charm performed no better than at chance levels, as would be expected if superstitions are irrational and ineffective. 
B)  The students with the lucky charm performed worse than students who did not have a lucky charm available because they were overconfident. 
C)  The students with the lucky charm performed significantly better than students who did not have a lucky charm available. 
D)  Those students in both groups who believed in lucky charms performed better than those who did not. 
A)  The students with the lucky charm performed no better than at chance levels, as would be expected if superstitions are irrational and ineffective. 
B)  The students with the lucky charm performed worse than students who did not have a lucky charm available because they were overconfident. 
C)  The students with the lucky charm performed significantly better than students who did not have a lucky charm available. 
D)  Those students in both groups who believed in lucky charms performed better than those who did not.

Question 20

Damisch, Stroberock, and Mussweiller (2010) conducted an experiment that had college students remember cards in a memory game. One group did this in the presence of a lucky charm of their choosing, and another group did the task without the charm. Participants also rated their self-efficacy after the task. The results of the experiment showed that the group with the lucky charm performed _____ on the task and gave themselves a _____ rating for self-efficacy.

Accepted Answer

A)  worse; higher 
B)  better; higher 
C)  worse; lower 
D)  better; lower 
A)  worse; higher 
B)  better; higher 
C)  worse; lower 
D)  better; lower

Which occupation is more likely to include a higher proportion of people who engage in a superstitious ritual?

Rozen and his colleagues found that study participants often would not eat some good chocolate when it had been shaped to look like a turd or an insect. This response is MOST related to:

Humans' ability to rapidly develop conditioned aversions to foods that have made them sick and the seemingly natural discovery of quarantine are MOST related to the law of:

The BEST explanation of how the Hall-of-Fame baseball player Wade Boggs acquired his belief that he should eat chicken as part of his pre-game ritual is that he:

What do superstitions and psychological misconceptions have in common?

How do superstitions differ from pseudosciences?

B. F. Skinner studied how pigeons began bobbing their heads and twirling around in the "Skinner box" after being operantly conditioned with a food reward. His research is most consistent with the idea that superstitions are:

Which statement is TRUE about belief in superstition?

Superstitions are:

The example of the Martin Luther, the sixteenth-century founder of Protestantism who criticized the Catholic Church and papacy, illustrates how people:

The psychological misconception that some people are left-brained and some people are right-brained is used in the text to:

Not wanting to put on a mass murderer's sweater but wanting to hold a pen owned by Albert Einstein is MOST related to:

The BEST explanation of why the Hall-of-Fame baseball player Wade Boggs engaged in so many superstitious behaviors before and during a game is that he:

If a person believes that the Haitian voodoo ritual of sticking pins into a doll that looks like an enemy will produce actual physical harm to the enemy, then that person's behavior seems to be influenced by:

Which statement is true about reducing the superstitious belief that witches cause AIDS, especially as this belief is found in Africa?

People who hold superstitious beliefs tend to engage more in:

Scientific-minded people often object that individuals who believe in witchcraft and the supernatural are superstitious. Which reason BEST supports this objection as either valid or not valid?

Introduction to Critical Thinking in Psychology and Everyday Life

Deductive Reasoning, Prediction, and Making Assumptions

Inductive Reasoning in Psychology and Everyday Life

Critical Thinking and Scientific Reasoning

Pseudoscience, Science, and Evidence-Based Practice

Errors in Attention, Perception, and Memory That Affect Thinking

Can the Mind Leave the Body the Mindbrain Problem

Critical Thinking and the Internet

Emotion, Motivated Reasoning, and Critical Thinking

Critically Analyzing a Psychological Question: Are People Basically Selfish

Judgment, Decision Making, and Types of Thinking

Critical Thinking in Clinical Reasoning and Diagnosis

Language, Writing, and Critical Thinking

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Exam 12: Superstition, Magic, Science, and Critical Thinking

Which occupation is more likely to include a higher proportion of people who engage in a superstitious ritual?

Rozen and his colleagues found that study participants often would not eat some good chocolate when it had been shaped to look like a turd or an insect. This response is MOST related to:

Humans' ability to rapidly develop conditioned aversions to foods that have made them sick and the seemingly natural discovery of quarantine are MOST related to the law of:

The BEST explanation of how the Hall-of-Fame baseball player Wade Boggs acquired his belief that he should eat chicken as part of his pre-game ritual is that he:

What do superstitions and psychological misconceptions have in common?

How do superstitions differ from pseudosciences?

B. F. Skinner studied how pigeons began bobbing their heads and twirling around in the "Skinner box" after being operantly conditioned with a food reward. His research is most consistent with the idea that superstitions are:

Which statement is TRUE about belief in superstition?

Superstitions are:

The example of the Martin Luther, the sixteenth-century founder of Protestantism who criticized the Catholic Church and papacy, illustrates how people:

The psychological misconception that some people are left-brained and some people are right-brained is used in the text to:

Not wanting to put on a mass murderer's sweater but wanting to hold a pen owned by Albert Einstein is MOST related to:

The BEST explanation of why the Hall-of-Fame baseball player Wade Boggs engaged in so many superstitious behaviors before and during a game is that he:

If a person believes that the Haitian voodoo ritual of sticking pins into a doll that looks like an enemy will produce actual physical harm to the enemy, then that person's behavior seems to be influenced by:

Which statement is true about reducing the superstitious belief that witches cause AIDS, especially as this belief is found in Africa?

People who hold superstitious beliefs tend to engage more in:

Scientific-minded people often object that individuals who believe in witchcraft and the supernatural are superstitious. Which reason BEST supports this objection as either valid or not valid?

Introduction to Critical Thinking in Psychology and Everyday Life

Deductive Reasoning, Prediction, and Making Assumptions

Inductive Reasoning in Psychology and Everyday Life

Critical Thinking and Scientific Reasoning

Pseudoscience, Science, and Evidence-Based Practice

Errors in Attention, Perception, and Memory That Affect Thinking

Can the Mind Leave the Body the Mindbrain Problem

Critical Thinking and the Internet

Emotion, Motivated Reasoning, and Critical Thinking

Critically Analyzing a Psychological Question: Are People Basically Selfish

Judgment, Decision Making, and Types of Thinking

Critical Thinking in Clinical Reasoning and Diagnosis

Language, Writing, and Critical Thinking

Filters