Deck 1: Adjusting to Modern Life

Question 1

One of the criticisms of self-help books is that they tend to use psychobabble rather than empirical evidence.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Societal advances have provided us the increased freedom to choose between multiple alternatives in a variety of contexts. This choice overload appears to be positively correlated with rumination, postdecision regret, and anticipated regret.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Many theorists agree that the basic challenge of modern life involves struggling with such problems as

A) forming a solid sense of identity.
B) arriving at a coherent set of values.
C) developing a clear vision of a future that realistically promises fulfillment.
D) all of these.

Answer 3

all of these.

Question 4

Modern Western society has made extraordinary technological progress

A) and, therefore, has seen decreases in social problems.
B) but social and personal problems seem more prevalent and more prominent than ever before.
C) and, therefore, has seen a boom in time spent engaging in leisure activities.
D) but social and personal problems are just as prevalent as they were in the past.

Question 5

On the way to work, Brice went to a new coffeehouse. The barista told him that there were seven different ways that his morning cup of coffee could be prepared. According to research, it is MOST reasonable to expect that he will experience__________ .

A) choice overload.
B) postdecision regret.
C) a depletion of mental resources.
D) irritation.

Question 6

Despite having information at our fingertips through smartphone devices, most of us still complain about not having enough access to information.

Question 7

It appears people enroll in "self-realization" programs because these programs appear to provide_____

A) profound enlightenment.
B) a new circle of friends.
C) countless things to do.
D) new technological advances.

Question 8

In general, women are less happy than men; this is evident in the statistics indicating that women are treated for depression about twice as often as men.

Question 9

According to research, many commonsense notions about happiness appear to be accurate.

Question 10

Which of the following should you look for in self-help books?

A) Provide explicit directions about how to alter behavior.
B) Focus on a particular kind of problem.
C) Some mention of the theoretical or research basis for the advice.
D) all of these.

Question 11

The paradox of progress is the notion that__________

A) for every step forward, we take two steps back.
B) despite unparalleled advances in technology, we seem to have more social and personal difficulties.
C) our biggest problems now involve making technology work properly.
D) technology has prolonged life for many people, causing environmental problems.

Question 12

According to Schwartz, increased freedom of choice available in modern societies

A) has resulted in improved mental health.
B) has enhanced tranquility.
C) has led to fewer postdecision regrets.
D) has contributed to depression and anxiety.

Question 13

"Psychobabble" is best defined as

A) professional psychological terminology.
B) textbook definitions.
C) ill-defined terminology.
D) technical terminology.

Question 14

The technological advances of the past century, impressive though they may be, have not led to perceptible improvement in our collective health and happiness. This issue is known as the

A) approach-avoidance conflict.
B) paradox of progress.
C) self-realization dilemma.
D) correlation limitation.

Question 15

Modern technology has provided us with

A) less control in our lives.
B) lower costs financially and within our personal lives as well.
C) countless time-saving devices.
D) improved mental health and happiness.

Question 16

With technology such as Facebook available, Americans report

A) more friends than ever before.
B) a sense of loneliness and isolation related to the superficial communication in the online world.
C) a decreased number of people suffering from an intimacy deficit.
D) we spend more time with each other instead of with technology.

Question 17

You can reasonably expect some assistance from a book that is intended to help you to

A) lose 20 pounds every month.
B) learn to eat more healthily and gradually include more exercise in your weekly routine.
C) reject societal expectations for our bodies.
D) find the thin person trapped inside of you.

Question 18

Many social critics believe that the quality of our lives

A) has increased and our sense of personal fulfillment has declined.
B) has decreased and our sense of personal fulfillment has increased.
C) and our sense of personal fulfillment have declined.
D) and our sense of personal fulfillment have increased.

Question 19

Surveys exploring psychotherapists' opinions of self-help books suggest

A) there are some excellent books that offer authentic insights and sound advice.
B) there are some good books that offer adequate insights and advice.
C) there are some excellent books that offer good general advice, but very few that offer good specific advice for particular problems.
D) psychotherapists don't endorse the use of self-help books because it's bad for business.

Question 20

The range of life choices has

A) barely changed in the past century.
B) made life much easier for everyone.
C) increased in recent decades.
D) decreased in recent decades.

Question 21

Many self-help books

A) encourage a narcissistic approach to life.
B) encourage a focus on other people.
C) place others first, over the reader.
D) encourage self-effacement.

Question 22

Which of the following is NOT a guideline to choose a good self-help book?

A) Find out about the author or authors' credentials.
B) Look for books that do not promise too much in the way of immediate change.
C) Avoid books with explanations of theories or research.
D) Look for books with detailed directions on how to alter your behavior.

Question 23

Which of the following is NOT one of the underlying assumptions of this textbook?

A) You can change your behavior only by consulting a professional psychologist.
B) You should think of this text as a resource that can introduce you to other books, techniques, or therapies.
C) Critical thinking involves skeptical scrutiny.
D) Knowledge of psychological principles may be of value in everyday life.

Question 24

A condition or event that an experimenter varies to see its impact on another variable is called a(n)_____ variable.

A) control
B) dependent
C) independent
D) experimental

Question 25

Which of the following is the basis of empiricism?

A) Correlation
B) Logic
C) Systematic observation.
D) Common sense.

Question 26

Which of the following is the best definition of psychology?

A) The study of consciousness.
B) The study of behavior and the profession that applies knowledge from these studies to solving practical problems.
C) The study of abnormal behavior and the profession that applies knowledge from these studies to diagnosing and treating people with mental illness.
D) The study of motivation, emotion, and memory.

Question 27

Clinical psychology is primarily concerned with

A) discovering the mechanisms of learning.
B) the physiological processes involved in behavior.
C) research dealing with the structure of consciousness.
D) the diagnosis and treatment of psychological problems.

Question 28

The process of adjustment relates to

A) how people deal with stress.
B) behavior in groups.
C) friendship and love.
D) all of these.

Question 29

Psychology confines itself to the study of human behavior.

Question 30

According to your text, the two main types of research methods in psychology are_____ research methods and_____ research methods.

A) biased; unbiased.
B) experimental; control.
C) dependent; independent.
D) experimental; correlational.

Question 31

Brenda's mother told her to stop her overt behavior. To which behavior might her mother be referring?

A) Daydreaming
B) Thinking
C) Dreaming
D) Tapping her foot.

Question 32

The rapid growth of clinical psychology was stimulated mainly by

A) the demands of World War II.
B) the growing interest in self-help approaches.
C) the inability of physicians to cure most psychological disorders.
D) psychological problems resulting from the Great Depression of the 1930s.

Question 33

The branch of psychology concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of psychological problems and disorders is called_____psychology.

A) social
B) clinical
C) cognitive
D) physiological

Question 34

Until the 1950s, psychologists were found almost exclusively in

A) private industry.
B) academic institutions.
C) mental health facilities.
D) the psychiatric wards of hospitals.

Question 35

"Any overt response or activity by an organism" defines the term

A) behavior
B) empiricism
C) psychology
D) mental process.

Question 36

Stephen was trying to choose a good self-help book. He noticed that one book seemed touchingly human in tone and he found himself thinking the examples of problems were just like what he was facing. Stephen is most likely to find that

A) this is the right book for him.
B) the book only provides some vague advice or common sense.
C) it will give him sound, explicit advice.
D) all of these.

Question 37

An experiment is a research method in which the investigator manipulates the_____ variable and observes whether any changes occur in a(n)_____ variable as a result.

A) control; experimental
B) experimental; control
C) independent; dependent
D) dependent; independent

Question 38

When people take an empirical approach, they are asking for evidence.

Question 39

Social psychologist Stanley Schachter hypothesized that increases in anxiety would cause increases in the desire to be with others. In this study, the independent variable was

A) level of anxiety.
B) desire to be with others.
C) anxious subjects.
D) affiliation.

Question 40

The process of adjustment involves a person's coping with life challenges.

Question 41

An experimental group consists of subjects who

A) are unaware of the purpose of the study.
B) merely act as if they are unaware of the purpose.
C) receive some special treatment in regard to the dependent variable.
D) receive some special treatment in regard to the independent variable.

Question 42

A correlation coefficient indicates the_____ and the_____ of the relationship between two variables.

A) cause; effect.
B) control; manipulation.
C) strength; direction.
D) positive; negative.

Question 43

A(n)_____ is a numerical index of the degree of relationship between two variables.

A) independent variable.
B) correlation coefficient.
C) survey coefficient.
D) experimental coefficient.

Question 44

A correlation coefficient of -0.80 indicates a

A) mild, inverse correlation.
B) strong, inverse correlation.
C) strong, direct correlation.
D) nonexistent correlation.

Question 45

The experimental and control groups should be the same in every respect except for the

A) number of subjects in each group.
B) variation created by the manipulation of the independent variable.
C) assumptions underlying the research question.
D) method of measuring the dependent variable.

Question 46

As ice cream consumption increases… so does the incidence of drowning. This relationship is an example of

A) a positive correlation.
B) a negative correlation.
C) cause and effect.
D) an experiment.

Question 47

A psychological researcher is best able to draw conclusions about cause-and-effect relationships by using which of the following research methods?

A) Survey
B) Case study
C) Experiment
D) Naturalistic observation.

Question 48

Dr. Prather randomly assigns 100 student volunteers who experience test anxiety to either a group that will receive training in relaxation exercises or a group that will sit in a waiting area for the same length of time as those learning relaxation. She will then measure their symptoms of test anxiety. Based on her results, Dr. Prather will have evidence of

A) how well relaxation exercises work in the treatment of various mood disorders.
B) how students with test anxiety behave in a classroom setting.
C) how effective the waiting time is.
D) whether or not relaxation exercises may cause an alleviation of symptoms of test anxiety.

Question 49

A control group consists of subjects who

A) are controlled by the experimenter.
B) are allowed to control the manipulation of the variables.
C) do not receive the special treatment given to the experimental group.
D) receive some special treatment in regard to the independent variable.

Question 50

A correlation exists when

A) two variables are related to each other.
B) two variables have the same underlying cause.
C) two variables are affected by a third variable.
D) a cause-and-effect relationship exists between two variables.

Question 51

The dependent variable is the variable manipulated by the researcher.

Question 52

A research wants to know whether children eating a high-protein breakfast will have a higher test grade. Half of the children in the study eat a high-protein breakfast while the other half eat their normal diet. The control group consists of the children who

A) are not being tested.
B) eat low-protein breakfasts.
C) eat their normal diet.
D) eat the high-protein breakfast.

Question 53

Which of the following correlation coefficients indicates the strongest relationship between two variables?

A) -0.36
B) -0.97
C) +0.75
D) +0.15

Question 54

Mario found a +0.80 correlation coefficient between height and diet. He was able to conclude that

A) a particular diet causes people to grow.
B) people who are taller eat more.
C) there is a strong relationship between height and diet.
D) should be careful what they feed their children because it could stunt their growth.

Question 55

Which of the following best describes correlational research?

A) Exerting experimental control.
B) Manipulating an independent variable.
C) Manipulating a dependent variable.
D) Making systematic observations.

Question 56

An educational researcher wants to determine whether diet causes children to learn better in school. In this study, the dependent variable is

A) the children.
B) the type of diet.
C) the age of the children.
D) a measure of learning.

Question 57

The textbook authors write "[people] who perform poorly in high school tend to perform poorly in college" as an example of a(n)

A) positive correlation.
B) negative correlation.
C) inverse correlation.
D) indirect correlation.

Question 58

An educational researcher wants to determine whether diet causes children to learn better in school. In this study, the independent variable is

A) the children.
B) the type of diet.
C) the age of the children.
D) a measure of learning.

Question 59

The experimental method rests heavily on the assumption that

A) two variables are positively correlated.
B) experimental and control groups are alike in all important matters except for the independent variable.
C) experimental and control groups are alike in all important matters except for the dependent variable.
D) the independent variable is quantifiable and measurable.

Question 60

A positive correlation coefficient indicates the two variables covary in the_____, and a negative coefficient indicates that the variables covary_____ .

A) same direction; in the opposite direction.
B) opposite direction; directly.
C) same direction; directly.
D) opposite direction; in the same direction.

Question 61

Self-report measures consistently find that the vast majority of respondents characterize themselves as

A) fairly happy.
B) very unhappy.
C) moderately unhappy.
D) unconcerned about their personal happiness.

Question 62

Research indicates that

A) married men are happier than married women.
B) married women are happier than married men.
C) both married men and women are happier than single or divorced men and women.
D) both single and divorced men and women are happier than married men and women.

Question 63

A teacher takes notes while watching students on the playground to see if differences in play behavior are associated with discipline problems in class. The teacher is using which of the following research methods?

A) Survey
B) Case study.
C) Experimentation
D) Naturalistic observation.

Question 64

Research indicates that people who have heartfelt religious convictions are

A) more likely to be happy than people who are non-religious.
B) less happy than people who are non-religious.
C) neither more nor less happy than people who are non-religious.
D) less happy than people who are non-religious because they have less community support.

Question 65

Research results suggest that which of the following is NOT very important in determining one's happiness?

A) Parenthood
B) Age
C) Money
D) None of these are very important.

Question 66

The "third-variable problem" is associated with the

A) experimental method.
B) correlational method.
C) multivariate model.
D) placebo effect.

Question 67

A graduate student gives you a questionnaire to fill out about your attitudes on abortion, school prayer, and drug legalization. This graduate student is using which of the following research methods?

A) Experimental
B) Case study
C) Survey
D) Naturalistic observation.

Question 68

Which of the following is the best description of the relationship between health and happiness?

A) Good health may not, by itself, produce happiness because people tend to take good health for granted.
B) Good health is one of the best predictors of happiness.
C) Individuals who develop serious health problems have difficulty adjusting and therefore are less happy than those who are healthy.
D) People born with serious health problems are happier than others because they do not take their health for granted.

Question 69

Research indicates that

A) people with high IQs are happier than people with low IQs.
B) people with low IQs are happier than people with high IQs.
C) there is no association between IQ and happiness.
D) people with really high IQs and really low IQs are not as happy as people with average IQs.

Question 70

An individual's personal assessment of overall happiness or life satisfaction is called

A) subjective well-being.
B) delusional happiness.
C) depression level.
D) personality analysis.

Question 71

Which of the following best characterizes the correlation between attractiveness and subjective feelings of happiness?

A) Negligible
B) Negative, but weak.
C) Positive, but weak.
D) Positive and strong.

Question 72

In a case study,

A) an individual participant is studied in depth.
B) systematic observation is used to see if a link exists between variables.
C) behavior is carefully observed without intervening directly with subjects.
D) a variable is manipulated while another variable is observed for changes.

Question 73

Suppose your professor reports that across all of her classes over the past 10 years, she found a -.63 correlation between number of absences and final exam score. This statistic means that_____

A) final exam scores are caused by absences.
B) students who scored highest on the final examination were not absent.
C) students who were absent more frequently tended to score lower on the final exam than those who were absent less frequently.
D) students who are absent more frequently tended to score higher on the final exam than those who are absent less frequently.

Question 74

The way to determine if a study is correlational rather than experimental is that

A) a causal relationship exists between the variables.
B) researchers cannot control the variables under study.
C) the subjects must constitute a representative sample.
D) control of one variable interferes with control of another variable.

Question 75

In naturalistic observation the researcher must be careful to set up interventions in a naturalistic environment.

Question 76

Case studies

A) provide strong bases for developing laws of behavior.
B) can provide general conclusions through consistencies between cases.
C) are of little use when treating and diagnosing psychological problems.
D) all of these.

Question 77

Drew administered a survey to his Human Sexuality classmates. After analyzing the data, he found a strong positive correlation between relationship satisfaction and sexual satisfaction. This pattern of data

A) indicates that high sexual satisfaction causes people to have high relationship satisfaction.
B) indicates that high relationship satisfaction causes people to have high sexual satisfaction.
C) warns that he may have biased his own study.
D) cannot determine if there is a third variable that causes both of the satisfaction levels.

Question 78

Which of the following statements is NOT true of correlational research methods?

A) Correlational research methods allow exploring questions that are not possible to examine with experimental procedures.
B) Correlational studies broaden the scope of what psychologists can study.
C) Correlational methods demonstrate that two variables are causally related when the results are good.
D) Correlational research can have a third-variable problem.

Question 79

Which of the following is very important to overall happiness?

A) Socioeconomic status.
B) Relationship satisfaction.
C) Prestige
D) Physical attractiveness.

Question 80

All of the following appear to have a moderate impact on subjective feelings of well-being EXCEPT

A) health
B) physical attractiveness.
C) religious belief.
D) leisure activity.