Deck 20: How Do Groups Intensify Decisions

Question 1

suggested that the Internet is an effective means to rally like-minded people and mobilize lethal consequences,such as recruiting individuals for terror organizations.Which concept in social psychology best explains this trend?

A)group polarization
B)pluralistic ignorance
C)social loafing
D)social facilitation

Answer 1

group polarization

Question 2

Individuals who believe that physician-assisted suicides should be legalized meet to discuss the issue.Research on group interaction suggests that after the discussion the individuals will be

A)more likely to question the wisdom of legalizing physician-assisted suicides.
B)even more convinced that physician-assisted suicides should be legalized.
C)sharply divided over whether physician-assisted suicides should be legalized.
D)opposed to the legalization of physician-assisted suicides.

Answer 2

even more convinced that physician-assisted suicides should be legalized.

Question 3

The text suggests that the extremism of terrorist organizations,such as those involved in the September 11^th attacks on the United States,is very likely the result of the naturally occurring process of

A)group polarization.
B)pluralistic ignorance.
C)social loafing.
D)social facilitation.

Answer 3

group polarization.

Question 4

Group polarization occurs when group discussion _______ group members' initial inclinations.

A)challenges
B)reverses
C)neutralizes
D)strengthens

Question 5

Research on group polarization began with the erroneous conclusion that group discussion leads to

A)a risky shift.
B)groupthink.
C)pluralistic ignorance.
D)group moderation.

Question 6

Teresa has joined the campus Amnesty International Group and after attending a few of the meetings,now feels even more passionate about human rights.Social psychologists would explain the change in Teresa's opinions using

A)social facilitation.
B)groupthink.
C)minority influence.
D)group polarization.

Question 7

Which of the following is an example of group polarization in one's community?

A)gang delinquency
B)cheering wildly at a football game
C)an isolated,troubled teenager being aggressive towards his classmates
D)a looting mob

Question 8

On what issues do persuasive arguments sway responses?

A)issues that have a factual element.
B)moderate,rather than severe,issues.
C)value-laden judgments.
D)complex,rather than simple issues.

Question 9

,it is human nature to want to evaluate our opinions by

A)comparing ourselves with others.
B)designing everyday tests of validity.
C)engaging in frequent introspection.
D)actively studying the results of scientific research.

Question 10

Students who join extracurricular groups on campus tend to find their attitudes regarding the groups' purpose increase if they stay in the group.This is an example of

A)social facilitation.
B)groupthink.
C)minority influence.
D)group polarization.

Question 11

Evaluating one's opinions and abilities by comparing oneself to others is called

A)informational influence processing.
B)normative influence processing.
C)the reactance theory.
D)the social comparison theory.

Question 12

According to social comparison theory,we are most persuaded by

A)experts.
B)people in our reference group.
C)people who hold opinions which are different than ours.
D)leaders.

Question 13

organized groups of prejudiced and nonprejudiced high school students and asked them to respond to issues involving racial attitudes,both before and after group discussion.Results showed that after within-group discussion,_______ became _______.

A)all students;more prejudiced
B)all students;less prejudiced
C)between-group differences;smaller
D)between-group differences;greater

Question 14

Which one of the following is NOT an explanation for group polarization?

A)informational influence
B)normative influence
C)social facilitation
D)desire to be accepted

Question 15

Maggie favors the death penalty.In discussing this issue with some like-minded classmates,she hears arguments for this position that she has never considered before.After the discussion,her opinion is more extreme.This outcome is best explained by

A)informational influence processes.
B)normative influence processes.
C)the reactance theory.
D)the social comparison theory.

Question 16

The fact that active participation in discussion produces more polarization is best explained by

A)informational influence processes.
B)normative influence processes.
C)the cognitive miser theory.
D)a decrease in pluralistic ignorance.

Question 17

Social comparison is more likely to sway responses on

A)issues that have a factual element.
B)moderate,rather than severe,issues.
C)value-laden judgments.
D)complex,rather than simple issues.

Question 18

The fact that people associate mostly with others whose attitudes are similar to their own,suggests the prevalence of naturally occurring

A)social facilitation.
B)groupthink.
C)minority influence.
D)group polarization.

Question 19

What underlying processes help to explain the occurrence of group polarization?

A)informational influences and normative influences
B)minority influences and social facilitation
C)psychological reactance and deindividuation
D)social comparison and self-censorship

Question 20

found that on federal appellate court cases,a Republican judge sitting with two other Republican judges voted _____ than when sitting with one Democratic judge.

A)more liberally
B)more conservatively
C)more predictably
D)less predictably

Question 21

Which of the following is a comment you are LEAST likely to hear being made within a group characterized by groupthink?

A)"Our critics are not very smart."
B)"Our past decisions have always been right."
C)"Let's weigh all the alternatives carefully before we proceed."
D)"It seems to me we are all in agreement on this,so let's proceed."

Question 22

You are hesitant to ask questions in class because you assume everyone else understands and you would therefore seem foolish.Your thinking best exemplifies

A)groupthink.
B)pluralistic ignorance.
C)social loafing.
D)self-handicapping.

Question 23

Which of the following comments is most likely to be made in a group characterized by groupthink?

A)"We have been in agreement on matters in the past and I hope that will continue."
B)"Joe,why don't you play devil's advocate and challenge the course of action most of us seem to prefer?"
C)"I think we need some outsiders to come in and critique our decision before we proceed."
D)"We have made some stupid mistakes in the past.Let's work carefully to not make the same errors again."

Question 24

When people learn about others' positions,without making a prior commitment and without discussing their own position,they will

A)often take a reverse position.
B)not adjust their own position.
C)adjust their responses to be more in line with the others' position.
D)pretend they "knew it all along."

Question 25

According to the text,groupthink symptoms can be viewed as a form of dissonance reduction as group members

A)try to maintain their positive group feelings.
B)try to persuade other group members of their opinions.
C)underestimate their group's might.
D)discuss their group's vulnerability.

Question 26

Which of the following is NOT a prescriptive strategy to prevent groupthink from developing?

A)One or more members should be assigned the position of devil's advocate.
B)Group members should be kept together as one unit and not divided into separate discussion subgroups.
C)Outsiders should attend the meetings and challenge the group's views.
D)After reaching a preliminary decision,the group should call a second-chance meeting and ask each member to express remaining doubts.

Question 27

Describe the ways to prevent groupthink.

Question 28

view of how groupthink symptoms contributed to the Iraq war.

Question 29

"Mindguards" protect group leaders from

A)unfair criticism.
B)disagreeable facts.
C)susceptibility to illusions.
D)stereotyped views of the opponents.

Question 30

Closed-mindedness is most clearly fostered by which of the following symptoms of groupthink?

A)rationalization
B)unquestioned belief in the group's morality
C)an illusion of unanimity
D)conformity pressure

Question 31

A false impression of what other people are thinking,feeling or responding is what social psychologists call

A)an imaginary audience.
B)social comparison.
C)pluralistic ignorance.
D)groupthink.

Question 32

The illusion of unanimity in a group is one aspect of

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

Question 33

Describe how normative and informational influence processes can help us understand group polarization.

Question 34

Which two symptoms of groupthink lead group members to overestimate their group's right and might?

A)rationalization and conformity pressure
B)rationalization and a stereotyped view of the opponent
C)an illusion of invulnerability and self-censorship
D)an illusion of invulnerability and an unquestioned belief in the group's morality

Question 35

Groupthink can be defined as

A)a tendency to suppress dissent in the interests of group harmony.
B)a tendency to sacrifice group cohesiveness in favor of task orientation and problem focus.
C)enhancement of problem-solving capacity as a result of several persons joining together to work on the same problem.
D)reduced self-awareness as a result of group immersion and social anonymity.

Question 36

According to Janis,groupthink grows from all of the following except

A)the group's isolation from dissenting viewpoints.
B)having an amiable,cohesive group.
C)being assigned an additive task with a transformational leader.
D)having a directive leader who signals what decisions he/she favors.

Question 37

Julio is a directive leader of a highly cohesive student group on campus.When discussing important policy decisions,the group will be at greatest risk for groupthink if it is also

A)isolated from dissenting viewpoints.
B)composed of majority and minority students.
C)well-informed regarding both sides of the issue.
D)aware of the dangers of making wrong decisions.

Question 38

List and describe each of the symptoms of groupthink.