Deck 12: Groups

Question 1

According to the textbook,a dynamical system

A) strives for homeostasis but does not change over time.
B) is composed of elements that are near each other but don't interact much.
C) is made up of many interacting elements that change over time.
D) has structure that is imposed from outside the system.

Answer 1

is made up of many interacting elements that change over time.

Question 2

Mark,a shy and sensitive student,finds himself yelling obscenities and performing highly aggressive acts when involved in a large student demonstration against a proposal to increase his college's tuition fee by 50%.Mark's behavior is most likely an example of

A) social loafing.
B) social facilitation.
C) social interference.
D) deindividuation.

Answer 2

deindividuation.

Question 3

Factors that increase the extent to which a collection of individuals is "group-like" include all of the following EXCEPT

A) sharing similar attitudes.
B) interdependence.
C) sharing a common identity.
D) possessing structure.

Answer 3

sharing similar attitudes.

Question 4

According to Postmes and Spears (1998),people in groups become deindividuated as a result of their increased sensitivity to

A) the group's structure.
B) the actions of others in the group.
C) the personal values of others in the group.
D) social facilitation processes.

Question 5

In one of the earliest social psychological experiments,Triplett (1897-1898)found that

A) children wound their fishing reels more quickly when adults were watching than when they were not.
B) children wound their fishing reels more slowly when adults were watching than when they were not.
C) children wound their fishing reels more slowly when other children were also winding their fishing reels.
D) children wound their fishing reels more quickly when other children were also winding their fishing reels.

Question 6

Deindividuation can be caused by

A) frustration, heat, and pain.
B) anonymity, large crowds, and darkness.
C) hostile attributional style and threats to self-esteem.
D) all of the above

Question 7

According to the concept of social facilitation,the presence of other people ________ physiological arousal,which improves performance on ________ tasks.

A) increases; unmastered
B) increases; well-learned
C) decreases; unmastered
D) decreases; well-learned

Question 8

Imagine you were a public official who lived in the early part of the 20th century when the Ku Klux Klan frequently harassed minorities.Now imagine you had the ability to pass a law designed to diminish the frequency of Klan harassment.Based on the concept of deindividuation,which of the following ideas might you consider in order to significantly reduce undesirable Klan behavior?

A) require all members of mobs to wear nametags
B) make the public wearing of hoods and masks illegal
C) prohibit mobs from gathering when it is dark
D) all of the above

Question 9

As discussed in the text,evaluation apprehension and distraction may contribute to

A) social facilitation.
B) groupthink.
C) social loafing.
D) deindividuation.

Question 10

The theory of social facilitation states that the presence of others improves performance on ________ and hinders performance on ________.

A) well-mastered tasks; unmastered tasks
B) creative tasks; logical tasks
C) complex tasks; simple tasks
D) conjunctive tasks; additive tasks

Question 11

A group,in the broadest sense,is two or more individuals

A) who are proximal to each other.
B) who influence each other.
C) who have similar opinions.
D) who have similar goals.

Question 12

Groups become deindividuated by

A) making people likely to join the groups.
B) masking individual identities and distracting members from their personal values.
C) enhancing positive feelings toward the groups.
D) facilitating expression of individual desires and attitudes in the group.

Question 13

Supporting the theory of social facilitation,Michaels et al (1982)watched pool players and found that

A) good players performed better and poor players performed more poorly when observed.
B) good players performed worse and poor players performed better when observed.
C) both good and poor players performed better when observed.
D) both good and poor players performed worse when observed.

Question 14

According to research on deindividuation,when people are in a group they are more likely to

A) increase their sense of personal identity.
B) increase their individual effort.
C) adhere to their personal values.
D) behave inconsistently with their personal values.

Question 15

Imagine you are required to give a presentation to your social psychology class on social facilitation,with a partner.You are quite comfortable speaking in front of class,whereas your partner has little practice and is very anxious about it.The two of you practice several times in an empty room.During the actual presentation,you are likely to perform ________ than during the practice,and your partner is likely to perform ________ than during the practice.

A) about the same; better
B) better; better
C) better; worse
D) worse; better

Question 16

In the computer simulation of the Westgate neighborhood referred to in your text,the residents of the community initially had a variety of opinions about the council.The result of the computer simulation showed that

A) similar opinions cluster by residence location over time.
B) people become even more mixed in their opinions.
C) no change will occur because of the different influences each person will be exposed to.
D) no final pattern could be predicted because there are too many interconnected people having too many opinions.

Question 17

Deindividuation is

A) the process through which the presence of others increases the likelihood of dominant responses.
B) the process of losing one's sense of personal identity.
C) the process through which the presence of other group members leads to decreased individual effort.
D) the process through which a group's initially negative opinion becomes even more negative after discussion.

Question 18

Johnson is an accomplished high school basketball player,but Franklin is still learning basketball.Whereas Johnson usually hits 75% of his free throws during practice,Franklin makes only 25% of his.However,during the last big game,Johnson made 85% of his free throws and Franklin made only 15% of his.This finding is predicted by research on

A) social polarization.
B) social facilitation.
C) social loafing.
D) deindividuation.

Question 19

Which of the following is the most "group-like"?

A) a boxing team in which each person's performance and success is independent of the performance of other members
B) 3 strangers standing at a bus stop who don't even notice each other
C) a golf team where each player's score is critical to overall team success
D) a classroom in which each person's grades depend only on his/her achievement

Question 20

Social facilitation is the process

A) of losing one's sense of personal identity when in a group.
B) through which the presence of others increases the likelihood of dominant responses.
C) through which the presence of other group members leads to decreased individual effort.
D) through which a group's initially negative opinion becomes even more negative after discussion.

Question 21

During the Cold War years,the collective Russian farms had spectacularly low yields,whereas small,private plots kept by Russian citizens had phenomenally high yields.One reason for the poor production output of large,collective Soviet farms is

A) social loafing.
B) social facilitation.
C) collectivistic orientation.
D) groupthink.

Question 22

Aspects of "real" groups include

A) group structure.
B) ill-defined or no structure.
C) interdependence.
D) both A and C

Question 23

Ringelmann (1913)proposed that social loafing could partly be a result of

A) overly enthusiastic employees who worked too fast and made mistakes.
B) reduced efficiency due to poor coordination among workers.
C) reduced efficiency due to negative stereotypes among workers.
D) workers who were poorly trained.

Question 24

One effective way to reduce social loafing is to

A) tell group members that their personal effort won't have a large impact on group performance.
B) give the task special meaning.
C) keep the task as simple as possible.
D) recruit group members who are individualistic.

Question 25

Lisa works on a team where all of the members are highly sociable.Her team should do particularly well on ________ tasks,but poorly on ________ tasks.

A) teaching; accounting
B) problem-solving; teaching
C) engineering; problem-solving
D) routine; artistic

Question 26

Social loafing is LESS likely to occur when

A) group members are from an individualistic culture.
B) the task is boring and unimportant.
C) each member's contributions are identifiable.
D) the people who work together are strangers.

Question 27

Working in groups can increase overall effectiveness or productivity when

A) all members have similar tasks.
B) the task is routine.
C) it is possible to identify the contributions of each member of the group.
D) social loafing occurs.

Question 28

Roles,status hierarchy,and a communication network are components of

A) group structure.
B) group facilitation.
C) group polarization.
D) group identity.

Question 29

Social loafing is

A) the process of losing one's sense of personal identity.
B) the process through which the desire for group harmony leads to poor decision making.
C) the process through which the presence of other group members leads to decreased individual effort.
D) the process through which a group's initial opinion becomes more extreme after discussion.

Question 30

Interdependence,group identity,and structured relations contribute to

A) social facilitation.
B) minimal group effects.
C) group polarization.
D) defining a collection of individuals as a group.

Question 31

Whereas ________ are expectations for how all group members should behave,________ are expectations for how particular group members should behave.

A) injunctive norms; descriptive norms
B) injunctive norms; roles
C) roles; injunctive norms
D) descriptive norms; injunctive norms

Question 32

The text lists all of the following as goals for joining groups EXCEPT

A) to gain positions of leadership.
B) to seek mental efficiency.
C) to get things done.
D) to make accurate acquire and share information.

Question 33

The two types of cohesiveness described in the textbook are

A) social and interpersonal cohesiveness.
B) task and group cohesiveness.
C) ingroup and outgroup cohesiveness.
D) task and interpersonal cohesiveness.

Question 34

People in individualistic societies are more likely to join multiple performance groups because

A) they have stronger need "to belong."
B) they are in general more interdependent.
C) they are more likely to subordinate their own needs to the group needs.
D) they are interested in satisfying their particular needs at the moment.

Question 35

People are more likely to join performance groups when

A) they worry they may fail as individuals.
B) they believe that their partners will be less skilled at the task.
C) the task is stereotypically "male."
D) the task is stereotypically "female."

Question 36

Teams with high interpersonal cohesiveness are good at ________ but susceptible to ________.

A) decision making; poor coordination
B) communication; poor decision making
C) problem-solving; poor communication
D) generating alternative solutions; unstable group structure

Question 37

Imagine you are an efficiency consultant with social psychological training and the local pickle company asks you to help it increase individual pickle packing productivity.Considering the phenomenon of social loafing,you should recommend

A) that the number of employees packing pickles should be increased quickly.
B) that the number of employees packing pickles should be increased slowly over time.
C) that the employees packing pickles should wear uniforms.
D) that individual packing productivity be made identifiable in some way.

Question 38

Social scientists have found that computer simulations of human social behavior

A) tend not to be very useful.
B) are useful in the laboratory but rarely generalize to the external world.
C) tend to have too many confounds to be useful at this point in time.
D) are useful for explaining current data and generating novel predictions.

Question 39

Joey is hoping to get an A in his social psychology class,but is concerned about his low grade on the first exam.What will make it more likely that Joey will join a study group with Rachel and Monica?

A) if he is particularly individualistic
B) if he believes that studying with the group will help improve his grade
C) if the group cohesiveness is low
D) if studying is not particularly meaningful for Monica

Question 40

In the Phi Upsilon Nu sorority at Upstate University,sisters expect each other to party hard on the weekends,to get multiple navel piercings,and to wear the color pink.This set of shared expectations of how group members ought to behave is called

A) a descriptive norm.
B) a postscriptive norm.
C) an injunctive norm.
D) a proscriptive norm.

Question 41

Stanley Schachter's (1959)classic studies on fear and affiliation concluded that

A) "Fear makes people want to be alone to avoid embarrassment."
B) "Misery doesn't love just any kind of company, it loves only miserable company."
C) "Friends are friends only when they are worse off than you are."
D) "Uncertainty reduces affiliation, but certainty increases it."

Question 42

Suppose that you are in a hospital where you are waiting for surgery.According to research,you would prefer to share a room with a person who

A) has never had surgery before.
B) recently had surgery that was different from yours.
C) recently had surgery that was similar to yours.
D) is about to have surgery similar to yours.

Question 43

Group discussion is likely to lead members to make decisions that are

A) extreme in the direction that they individually favored before the discussion.
B) more extreme in the direction that the group initially favored.
C) less extreme in the direction that the group initially favored.
D) extreme in the direction that the group initially opposed.

Question 44

Why do scientists perform better when their collaborators span a wide range of scientific disciplines (Pelz,1956)?

A) social facilitation effects are reversed for members of the scientific community
B) each member of a scientific team typically must perform his or her job well in order for the group to succeed
C) their jobs require innovation and creativity
D) communication among members is vital

Question 45

Which of the following is NOT a potential barrier to group decision-making?

A) when individuals hold specialized positions in the group
B) when the group does not possess accurate information
C) when information is not shared effectively
D) when information is shared in a biased manner to group members

Question 46

Dave is working on a problem solving task with five other students from his class.Most of the members of this team are very sociable and they get along very well.They are considering including a new person,Steve,on their team.Steve,although conscientious,is not very sociable.Using your knowledge about social groups,what would you advise this team?

A) not to take Steve because they might not get along very well with him
B) not to take Steve because people who lack social skills are good for routine tasks, but not for problem-solving tasks
C) to include Steve because he might help the team stay focused on the task
D) to include Steve because he might help to create the rapport needed to generate new ideas freely

Question 47

Uncertain circumstances motivate people to join groups in order to

A) engage in social comparison.
B) reduce anxiety.
C) gain information.
D) all of the above

Question 48

The company officers are experts in different fields: finance,sales,etc.If they can effectively share information throughout the company,the company will make superior decisions relative to individuals as a result of the concept of

A) group polarization.
B) diversity sharing.
C) social facilitation.
D) transactive memory.

Question 49

Anna is working on a team with people from 4 different countries.Which of the following is likely to initially occur in this group?

A) more commitment to the group
B) increased misunderstandings
C) fewer workdays missed by group members
D) successful performance

Question 50

The advantages of culturally diverse groups in the workplace include

A) the generation of a wider range of solutions.
B) an easier working environment.
C) more frequent communications.
D) less formal communications.

Question 51

The disadvantages of diverse groups in the workplace include

A) excessive commitment to the group.
B) too much communication.
C) fewer solutions to problems generated.
D) lack of cohesion.

Question 52

According to your text,heterogeneous groups of people seem to do better on tasks requiring ________,whereas diversity in experience can hurt the performance of groups when success is determined by ________.

A) precision and accuracy; flexibility and quick adjustments
B) adherence to deadlines; flexibility and quick adjustments
C) intelligence and high levels of education; traditional ways of achieving success
D) new solutions and quick adjustments; each member of the group performing his or her role well

Question 53

Group discussion may lead members to make decisions that are more extremely on the side of the issue that the group initially favored.This phenomenon is known as

A) social loafing.
B) social facilitation.
C) group polarization.
D) groupthink.

Question 54

Imagine a group of moderately pro-feminist women having a discussion about feminism.Can you predict the typical attitude change (if any)of these women after the discussion?

A) They will probably have the same attitudes after the discussion as before.
B) They will probably become less pro-feminism.
C) They will probably become more pro-feminism.
D) They will initially become more pro-feminism but over time will become less pro-feminism than they were before the discussion.

Question 55

Transactive memory is more likely to lead to more accurate decisions if

A) the group has a very strict hierarchy.
B) group members are relatively independent.
C) group members possess accurate information.
D) the group is very concerned about its image.

Question 56

As an architect,Rita and her partners are concerned about handicapped access to buildings.Recently,she attended a design meeting where she heard her colleagues make a number of strong,new arguments for increased access.As the group discussion continued,the partners seemed to develop an even stronger attitude favoring handicapped access.Which of the following best describes what Rita's group experienced?

A) social facilitation
B) social loafing
C) group polarization
D) group inoculation

Question 57

Your textbook discussed a study (Watson et al,1993)that compared ethnically homogeneous versus ethnically heterogeneous classroom groups.The study found that

A) at the beginning, the heterogeneous group performed worse than the homogeneous group, but at the end both groups were performing equally.
B) at the beginning, both groups were performing equally, but at the end the homogeneous group was performing better.
C) at the beginning, the homogeneous group performed worse than the heterogeneous group, but at the end both groups were performing equally.
D) both groups were performing equally from the beginning to the end.

Question 58

Because of later research,the term "risky shift" has been replaced by the term

A) social facilitation.
B) group polarization.
C) social loafing.
D) groupthink.

Question 59

Early research on group decision making seemed to demonstrate that groups tended to make ________ decisions than individuals.

A) more conservative
B) riskier
C) better
D) poorer

Question 60

Which of the following features of group discussions is most likely to make the group decision better than individual decisions?

A) group polarization
B) transactive memory
C) groupthink
D) social loafing

Question 61

According to the text,holding steadily to their views,appearing to have little personal stake in an issue,and having an audience that wants to make an accurate decision contribute to

A) success in ethnically diverse groups.
B) complex dynamical systems.
C) successful minority influence.
D) effective transformational leadership.

Question 62

Which of the following motivates competition for status?

A) salicylic acid
B) estrogen
C) testosterone
D) progesterone

Question 63

After a group discusses an issue,the group members are likely to have a ________ extreme position on the side of the issue that the group initially favored because they are likely to ________.

A) more; avoid social comparison
B) more; hear more persuasive arguments
C) less; engage in social comparison
D) less; experience risky shift

Question 64

When minorities successfully argue their positions,which of the following is most likely to happen?

A) People will drastically shift toward the minority view.
B) The minority influence will be indirect or hidden.
C) People will not be likely to reassess their views.
D) Group polarization will occur.

Question 65

Your text discusses two primary reasons that motivate people to become leaders despite the great costs of leadership.Which are they?

A) to appear likable and to establish family bonds
B) to acquire information and to choose correctly
C) to gain resources and to achieve social status
D) to manage moods and emotions and to cope with feelings of annoyance

Question 66

Whereas ________ helps groups to make better decisions than individuals alone,________ can make groups susceptible to poor decision making.

A) groupthink; minority influence
B) transactive memory; groupthink
C) accommodating leadership; groupthink
D) social comparison; social facilitation

Question 67

Research on minority influence suggests that all of the following are successful strategies EXCEPT

A) minority group members should be willing to compromise a bit.
B) minority group members who once held the majority opinion are especially persuasive.
C) minority group members should highlight the strong differences between themselves and the majority group opinion.
D) the minority group will be more persuasive if there are more than one or two members.

Question 68

Which of the following personality characteristics is discussed in the text as common among people who seek leadership positions?

A) need for power
B) need for structure
C) need for consistency
D) need for cognition

Question 69

According to research on group decision making,groups may be more susceptible to groupthink when their leaders

A) hold the minority position.
B) do not provide strong and clear leadership.
C) emphasize group harmony as the primary goal.
D) are not present during the discussion.

Question 70

In which of the following circumstances might a group decision be worse than an individual decision?

A) Group members focus on group harmony.
B) Leaders encourage people to air alternative perspectives.
C) Leaders refrain from presenting their own positions.
D) The group is encouraged to gather information from the outside.

Question 71

The space shuttle Columbia disaster,the Bay of Pigs invasion,and the decision to cover up the Watergate break-in were all mentioned in your text as examples of

A) social facilitation.
B) deindividuation.
C) groupthink.
D) group polarization.

Question 72

Concerning gender and leadership,your text states that

A) men are generally more interested in becoming leaders than women.
B) women are generally more interested in becoming leaders than men.
C) desires to attain leadership are equivalently high for both men and women.
D) women are more interested in leadership than men in individualistic Western cultures, but men are more interested in leadership than women in collectivistic Eastern cultures.

Question 73

According to research (Baltes et al,2002),under which of the following conditions is computer-mediated discussion (such as email or instant messaging)as effective as face to face discussion?

A) when the group has unlimited discussion time
B) when the group is very large
C) when the decision is a complex one
D) when the group is high in diversity

Question 74

A style of group decision making that is characterized by a greater desire among members to get along than to generate and critically evaluate alternative viewpoints and positions,is referred to as

A) groupthink.
B) group identity.
C) group polarization.
D) social loafing.

Question 75

You are about to go into a meeting with other students in your social psychology class in order to vote on whether to have an in-class or a take home final exam (your very kind professor has allowed students to decide this).You know walking in that only 8 or so of the 28 students favor an in-class exam,and you are one of them.Given your knowledge of social psychology,what strategies would you recommend to your fellow minority members in order to maximize your chances of "winning" the vote?

A) tell the majority that they should help you avoid group polarization by becoming unified
B) explain that the professor is on your side
C) tell the majority that you really like them but believe they are wrong in this instance
D) hold steadily to your views and present the in-class exam as meeting the goals the majority believes the take home exam will achieve

Question 76

Imagine that you are the CEO and respected leader of a large,successful firm.You want your employees to be able to discover and reject poor ideas during an important meeting.Because you know social psychology,you decide to

A) start the meeting by letting employees know what you think about the issue, and then encourage employees to disagree with you.
B) start the meeting by letting your employees discuss the issue, and then rewarding employees who take your perspective.
C) start the meeting by pointing out the importance of group harmony.
D) start the meeting by letting your employees discuss the issue, being careful to keep your opinion to yourself.

Question 77

Your text discusses a particular combination of personality qualities that facilitate becoming a leader.Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher,who won a degree from Oxford and ran for Parliament at the age of 26,illustrates these personality qualities.Those qualities are

A) collectivism and independence.
B) individualism and creativity.
C) authoritarianism and risk-taking.
D) ambition and the ability to work hard.

Question 78

Individuals holding a minority view will be most persuasive when they

A) are able to show why they have a personal stake in the issue.
B) use high-quality arguments and come across as credible.
C) never compromise in their views.
D) demonstrate that their group has always rejected majority opinions.

Question 79

Group polarization in decision making occurs as a result of

A) individuals hearing additional persuasive arguments from others in the group.
B) social comparison.
C) arousal causing biased processing of information.
D) both A and B

Question 80

Which of the following decreases the power of jurors holding minority views in the courtroom?

A) videotapes in courtrooms
B) smaller juries
C) the requirement that the jury should reach unanimity
D) increasing the diversity of the members of the jury