Question 1

Everyone has the ability to take the perspective of another person. In all countries and cultures, adults and children can reflect upon the mental states of other people. Nevertheless, people in some cultural groups use that ability more often and more naturally. Why?

Accepted Answer

In cultures of interdependence (e.g., in Asia), the self is defined in relation to other people, so it's especially important to consider the perspective of others and to know what they are thinking. In cultures of independence (e.g., in the United States, Canada, and Australia), people are taught to be autonomous, so it's less important for them to consider the perspective of others. They struggle a bit when asked to see the world through someone else's eyes.

Question 2

Imagine a young girl who does not like the taste of broccoli. Her parents tell her that she will be eating a lot of broccoli in the weeks to come. The girl comes to believe that she likes the taste of broccoli more than she did before. This vignette illustrates a principle derived from cognitive dissonance theory. Which one?

Accepted Answer

A)   post-decision dissonance reduction
B)   the principle of inevitability
C)   the justification of effort
D)   none of the above B

Question 3

According to expert Joel Cooper, cognitive dissonance is a general phenomenon experienced by people everywhere.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False  True

Question 4

An unpackaging study is designed to identify specific features of culture that can explain an observed difference between two or more nationalities or cultural groups.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 5

In one study, Chinese students were, on average, less skilled than American students at taking the perspective of another person because they failed to separate their own perspective from their partner's perspective.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 6

In 1897, an American anthropologist tested the memory capabilities of 500 Black and 500 White schoolchildren. What did he do when he saw that the Black students outperformed the White students?

Accepted Answer

A)   He decided that the memory test was not a valid measure of intelligence.
B)   He taught White children to use memory tricks used by Black children.
C)   He tried to share his findings, but academic journals refused to publish them.
D)   He repeated the study with a new set of test materials and found no differences between Black and White schoolchildren.

Question 7

To reduce cognitive dissonance, a person must change one of the contradictory cognitions.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 8

In studies of perspective taking, the attentional hypothesis states that _______________.

Accepted Answer

A)   people with interdependent selves will make fewer errors because they focus their attention on others and away from themselves.
B)   people with interdependent selves will make more errors because they mistakenly believe that their friend or partner knows what they know
C)   people with interdependent selves will make more errors because they are strongly motivated to not lose face
D)   none of the above

Question 9

Which of these is NOT characteristic of holistic thinking?

Accepted Answer

A)   a tendency to focus on background elements in the visual field
B)   a tendency to believe that a trend will persist and not reverse direction
C)   a tendency to struggle to position the rod vertically in the Rod-and-Frame Test
D)   a tendency to believe that events are the products of external forces

Question 10

When designing a culture-fair test of intelligence, why should the test maker avoid using a task that requires test takers to memorize a series of words or numbers?

Accepted Answer

The answer of When designing a culture-fair test of intelligence,...

Question 11

The temporal focus hypothesis states that _________________________________.

Accepted Answer

A)   persons who think a lot about the passage of time are more likely to be future-oriented
B)   persons who think a lot about the passage of time are more likely to be present-oriented
C)   persons who think a lot about the passage of time are more likely to be past-oriented
D)   none of the above

Question 12

Most Americans and Arabs think of time as moving from left to right, but Arabs also think of time as moving up and down.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 13

According to studies, Asians are more likely than Westerners to ___________________, and Westerners are more likely than Asians to ___________________.

Accepted Answer

A)   report first-person memories; report third-person memories
B)   commit the fundamental attribution error; be a victim of self-serving bias
C)   adopt a prevention orientation; adopt a promotion orientation
D)   all of the above

Question 14

List three examples of how culture and language shape the way people think about the relationship between time and space.

Accepted Answer

The answer of List three examples of how culture and...

Question 15

What are the essential elements of Leon Festinger's theory of cognitive dissonance?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What are the essential elements of Leon...

Question 16

According to studies conducted by Gerd Lüer and his colleagues, why can Chinese students, as a group, retain more items in short-term memory than German students can?

Accepted Answer

A)   Chinese students, on average, are more intelligent than German students.
B)   Chinese students have more practice memorizing information than German students do.
C)   Mandarin Chinese words often have fewer speech syllables than German words.
D)   none of the above

Question 17

Describe a hypothetical study that would determine if individuals can shift between culturally conditioned ways of thinking.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Describe a hypothetical study that would determine...

Question 18

What is a promotion orientation? What is a prevention orientation? Why are Asians more likely than Westerners to adopt a prevention orientation?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What is a promotion orientation? What is...

Question 19

In one study, Asian students were more likely than White students to report first-person memories, but only when they were the center of attention in the remembered event.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 20

Can different cultural values trigger different kinds of dissonance experiences? If so, how so? If not, why not?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Can different cultural values trigger different kinds...

Exam 5: Cognitive Processes

Everyone has the ability to take the perspective of another person. In all countries and cultures, adults and children can reflect upon the mental states of other people. Nevertheless, people in some cultural groups use that ability more often and more naturally. Why?

According to expert Joel Cooper, cognitive dissonance is a general phenomenon experienced by people everywhere.

An unpackaging study is designed to identify specific features of culture that can explain an observed difference between two or more nationalities or cultural groups.

In one study, Chinese students were, on average, less skilled than American students at taking the perspective of another person because they failed to separate their own perspective from their partner's perspective.

In 1897, an American anthropologist tested the memory capabilities of 500 Black and 500 White schoolchildren. What did he do when he saw that the Black students outperformed the White students?

To reduce cognitive dissonance, a person must change one of the contradictory cognitions.

In studies of perspective taking, the attentional hypothesis states that _______________.

Which of these is NOT characteristic of holistic thinking?

When designing a culture-fair test of intelligence, why should the test maker avoid using a task that requires test takers to memorize a series of words or numbers?

The temporal focus hypothesis states that _________________________________.

Most Americans and Arabs think of time as moving from left to right, but Arabs also think of time as moving up and down.

According to studies, Asians are more likely than Westerners to _, and Westerners are more likely than Asians to _.

List three examples of how culture and language shape the way people think about the relationship between time and space.

What are the essential elements of Leon Festinger's theory of cognitive dissonance?

According to studies conducted by Gerd Lüer and his colleagues, why can Chinese students, as a group, retain more items in short-term memory than German students can?

Describe a hypothetical study that would determine if individuals can shift between culturally conditioned ways of thinking.

What is a promotion orientation? What is a prevention orientation? Why are Asians more likely than Westerners to adopt a prevention orientation?

In one study, Asian students were more likely than White students to report first-person memories, but only when they were the center of attention in the remembered event.

Can different cultural values trigger different kinds of dissonance experiences? If so, how so? If not, why not?