Deck 9: Understanding Persuasion, Attribution, and Social Cognition in Advertising and Psychology

Question 1

Which of these is NOT the kind of question that a social psychologist would ask?

A) How can we convince people to change their attitudes?
B) What can we do to improve our health and wellness?
C) In what ways do we come to understand what others are like?
D) Why do some people display so much violence, aggression, and cruelty?

Answer 1

What can we do to improve our health and wellness?

Question 2

When advertisers hired Sidney Crosby to sell Gatorade, they were making use of the:

A) message source.
B) characteristics of the message.
C) characteristics of the target.
D) halo effect.

Answer 2

message source.

Question 3

An ad agency creates an ad for a particular car. It stresses the car's safety and gas mileage. This ad relies on the ________ route to persuasion.

A) peripheral
B) central
C) primary
D) secondary

Answer 3

central

Question 4

An ad agency creates an ad for a particular car. It shows how fun the car is to drive. This ad relies on the________ route to persuasion.

A) peripheral
B) central
C) primary
D) secondary

Question 5

Advertisers who design a fear-evoking advertising campaign know that messages are most effective when:

A) they frighten people into buying the product.
B) they reach a small and indifferent audience.
C) viewers' cognitive dissonance is activated.
D) they include advice for steps to avoid the described danger.

Question 6

The advertising industry draws on findings from __________ regarding persuasion.

A) experimental psychology
B) abnormal psychology
C) social psychology
D) psychometrics

Question 7

In __________ route processing, people are swayed in their judgments by the logic, merit, and strength of arguments.

A) evaluation
B) central
C) persuasion
D) peripheral

Question 8

In __________ route processing, people are persuaded on the basis of factors unrelated to the nature or quality of the content of a persuasive message.

A) evaluation
B) central
C) persuasion
D) peripheral

Question 9

Carter loves philosophical discussions and theoretical debates. Carter is most likely to be persuaded via the _________ route.

A) primary
B) secondary
C) central
D) peripheral

Question 10

Dante is interested in the practical and the concrete, and becomes impatient with hypothetical speculations. Dante is most likely to be persuaded via the _________ route.

A) primary
B) secondary
C) central
D) peripheral

Question 11

A high __________ is a person's habitual level of thoughtfulness and cognitive activity.

A) need for evaluation
B) need for processing
C) need for cognition
D) need for persuasion

Question 12

People who have a high __________ are more likely to use central route processing.

A) need for evaluation
B) need for processing
C) need for cognition
D) need for persuasion

Question 13

In their classic cognitive dissonance study, Festinger and Carlsmith (1959) paid participants either $1 or $20 to say a task was interesting. The percentage of the $20-participants that said the task was interesting was _______ than the percentage of $1 participants.

A) lower
B) slightly greater
C) the same as
D) much greater

Question 14

Erin uses cocaine recreationally. The drug is beginning to affect her job performance; deep down she knows this. What might Erin tell herself to resolve the dissonance between the notion that she enjoys using cocaine and the knowledge that it's affecting her work?

A) "I use drugs only on occasional weekends."
B) "If my work has slipped lately, it's not the drugs-it's the extra pressure and the lack of recognition around here."
C) "Drugs have no effect on my job."
D) Any of these

Question 15

Sets of cognitions known as schemas serve as __________ for social cognitions.

A) organizing frameworks
B) defenses against stereotypes
C) emotional concepts
D) social pressures

Question 16

The processes that underlie the way people understand and make sense of themselves and others are called

A) social cognitions.
B) schemas.
C) central traits.
D) stereotypes.

Question 17

The task of __________ is to explain how people decide and understand the causes of behaviour.

A) discrimination theory
B) social cognition
C) attribution theory
D) directive-behaviour theory

Question 18

__________ causes of behaviour are perceived causes of behaviour that are based on environmental factors.

A) Evaluative
B) Dispositional
C) Situational
D) Persuasive

Question 19

Which of these phrases would complete the sentence "She cheated on the exam, because . . ." to reflect a situational attribution?

A) ". . . the test was so important to her GPA."
B) ". . . she just didn't have time to study fully."
C) both of these options
D) neither of these options

Question 20

Which of these is the best example of a dispositional cause of your behaviour?

A) Being good, because the teacher is watching.
B) Going to a party with a friend even though you don't feel sociable.
C) Becoming anxious when other people criticize your friend.
D) Staying up all night studying, because you are a conscientious student.

Question 21

Which of these situations best describes a situational cause of behaviour?

A) Straightening up the guest room, which is normally messy, because relatives are coming to visit.
B) Helping an older lady across the street because I am always thoughtful.
C) Someone who is normally grumpy, frowning about an exam as he walks out of the classroom.
D) Being on time for school every morning, because I am a punctual person.

Question 22

The __________ is an initial impression that an individual has some positive traits that leads us to infer that she/he has many other positive characteristics as well.

A) halo effect
B) self-serving bias
C) assumed-similarity bias
D) fundamental attribution error

Question 23

The __________ occurs when we assume that other people are like us, even when we first meet them.

A) halo effect
B) self-serving bias
C) assumed-similarity bias
D) fundamental attribution error

Question 24

The __________ occurs when we attribute success to personal factors and attribute failure to outside factors.

A) halo effect
B) self-serving bias
C) assumed-similarity bias
D) fundamental attribution error

Question 25

Ron submits a major report to his boss ahead of the deadline. His boss assumes that Ron is conscientious, rather than that he simply had more time than usual to devote to the assignment. She believes not only that Ron is conscientious but also that he is creative and intelligent. This example illustrates

A) the assumed-similarity and self-serving biases.
B) the assumed-similarity bias and the halo effect.
C) the fundamental attribution error and the halo effect.
D) the fundamental attribution error and the self-serving bias.

Question 26

In determining the causes of others' behaviour, we overemphasize dispositional factors; this is the___________.

A) self-serving bias
B) fundamental attribution error
C) halo effect
D) assumed-similarity bias

Question 27

Yuko is a college student in Kyoto, Japan. Yuko has grown up in a(n) _________ culture.

A) individualist
B) collectivistic
C) conformist
D) nonconformist

Question 28

Peyton is a sophomore at her hometown university, Washington University of St. Louis. She has grown up in a(n) _________ culture.

A) individualist
B) collectivistic
C) conformist
D) nonconformist

Question 29

Groups consist of __________ who interact with one another, perceive themselves as part of a group, and are interdependent.

A) two or more people
B) same gender people only
C) gender different people only
D) at least three people

Question 30

Conformity is a change in behaviour or attitude brought about by:

A) an increase in knowledge.
B) a desire to follow the beliefs or standards of others.
C) intense pressure to be a distinct individual.
D) an insecure self-image.

Question 31

The social rank held within a group is called __________.

A) status
B) class
C) social standing
D) social position

Question 32

Which of the following compliance techniques is CORRECTLY matched with its description?

A) foot-in-the-door-we are more likely to comply with a request if we have already complied with a smaller request.
B) door-in-the-face-we are more likely to comply with a request if we have already complied with a smaller request.
C) foot-in-the-door-having refused a large request, we are likely to comply with a small request.
D) None of these is correctly described

Question 33

Which of these criticisms have been levelled against Milgram's study?

A) The procedure was unethical.
B) The experiment did not mirror real-world situations involving obedience.
C) both of these options
D) neither of these options

Question 34

On hearing you describe Milgram's results, your friend remarks that the participants must have been really weak-willed. This explanation of the participants' behaviour reflects a(n) _________attribution.

A) dispositional
B) situational
C) central
D) peripheral

Question 35

Beliefs and expectations about group members held simply on the basis of their group membership are called:

A) self-fulfilling prophecies.
B) culture bias.
C) stereotypes.
D) contingencies.

Question 36

Your text defines prejudice as an evaluation. Thus, it is best seen as a type of

A) attitude.
B) behaviour.
C) schema.
D) feeling.

Question 37

When stereotypes are attributed to a particular group, they may induce members of that group to act in ways that confirm the stereotype. This is known as:

A) the ingroup-outgroup bias.
B) reverse discrimination.
C) a self-fulfilling prophecy.
D) the fundamental attribution error.

Question 38

The __________ account of the origin of prejudice focuses on the potential role of prejudice in maintaining self-esteem.

A) social identity
B) resource competition
C) observational learning
D) social neuroscience

Question 39

According to your text, several studies reveal that children as young as 3 show a preference for their own race over others. This most immediately supports the _______ account of the origin of prejudice.

A) resource competition
B) social identity
C) observational learning
D) Any of these

Question 40

A young boy who overhears his father tell his mother that "girls can't play sports well" may grow up to believe this opinion as a result of the process of:

A) observational learning.
B) central route learning.
C) cognitive dissonance.
D) persuasive communication.

Question 41

The Implicit Association Test was developed because:

A) people may not be consciously aware of their own racial attitudes.
B) people may be reluctant to report their racial attitudes.
C) both of these options
D) neither of these options

Question 42

Which of these situations involve(s) contact that is likely to reduce prejudice and discrimination?

A) Several African-Canadian servers begin working at a restaurant in an overwhelmingly White neighbourhood.
B)A White adult lives in his African-Canadian partner's hometown. He and his partner live a few miles . from the neighbourhood in which the partner's parents and siblings live.
C) Jasmine, an African Canadian, has a new boss, a White woman.
D) all of these options

Question 43

Proximity is defined as:

A) nearness to others.
B) distance from others.
C) the tendency to like those who like us.
D) the tendency of those we like to like us.

Question 44

"Birds of a feather flock together." "Opposites attract." Which of these sayings does psychological research support?

A) birds
B) opposites
C) Support for both of these statements may be found in the psychological literature.
D) Neither; psychologists don't study proverbs.

Question 45

Which of these situations is NOT a strong influence on the formation of friendships?

A) the people are like me
B) the people live near me
C) I see these people frequently
D) the people know my family

Question 46

A state of intense absorption in someone, with physiological arousal, psychological interest, and care for the other's needs, is __________ love.

A) the intimacy component of
B) the commitment component of
C) compassionate
D) passionate or romantic

Question 47

Instinct theorist Konrad Lorenz would argue that opportunities to exercise and to play sports ought to be given to prisoners because they:

A) provide models of prosocial behaviour.
B) present violent models to be seen and imitated by other prisoners.
C) enable natural aggressive energy to be released harmlessly.
D) reduce the frustration that causes aggression.

Question 48

Mark Zanna looked at whether watching a movie where the main character smoked would elicit favourable thoughts towards smoking, if people identified with that character. After participants watched the movie where the character smoked, and completed an Implicit Attitudes Test, what did the results find was true for smokers and non-smokers?

A) Only smokers implicitly associated themselves with smoking
B) Only non-smokers implicitly associated themselves with smoking
C) Both smokers and non-smokers implicitly associated themselves with smoking
D) Neither smokers nor non-smokers implicitly associated themselves with smoking

Question 49

When groups make decisions that are more extreme than when people make decisions on their own, they are participating in which of the following?

A) group think
B) group polarization
C) deindividuation
D) none of these options

Question 50

When highly cohesive groups filter out unwanted input in order to reach a consensus, they are participating in which of the following?

A) group think
B) group polarization
C) deindividuation
D) none of these options

Question 51

Dr. Burger from Santa Clara University in California replicated Stanley Milgrim's famous obedience study. What did Dr. Burger find was true in his study?

A) most people did not obey orders given by authority figures if it meant another person would be hurt
B) most people did obey orders given by authority figures even if it meant another person would be hurt
C) only about 50% of people obey orders given by authority figures even if it meant another person would get hurt
D) Dr. Burger was not allowed to replicate Milgrim's study because of ethical issues

Question 52

Which of the following is one of the four motivations for acting for the public good based on individuals' goal in helping?

A) altruism
B) egoism
C) collectivism
D) all of these options

Question 53

Social psychologists study __________, which is the way people understand and make sense of othersand themselves.

Question 54

Your text suggests that individuals in collectivist cultures are _________ susceptible to the fundamentalattribution error than are people in individualistic cultures.

Question 55

The ___________ Test allows the measure of unconscious attitudes.

Question 56

New lover is to long-time friend as passionate love is to _________ love.

Question 57

________ occurs when people feel less personally responsible and self-conscious when in a group.

Question 58

Kitty Genovese was sexually assaulted and murdered. Although many of her neighbours reported hearing her scream, nobody tried to help her. This is an example of the ________.

Question 59

Reciprocal altruism (helping others because we expect that others will help us in return) is a form of________.

Question 60

The empathy-altruism hypothesis suggests that we help others when we feel empathy and ________ towards them and their situation.

Question 61

"It's just human nature to be aggressive." Provide a thoughtful evaluation of this popular notion by considering three major psychological theories regarding aggression. To what extent can we lessen human aggression, given these accounts?

Question 62

Fully 75% of Canadians report having been angry in the past week. Anger can be destructive, leaving ruptured relationships, substance abuse, and so on in its wake. Identify several strategies psychologists have suggested for the effective management of anger.