BAPSY Social and Behavioral Psychology 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which concept describes the tendency for people to exert less effort when working in a group than when working alone?
- Social loafing (Correct answer)
- Groupthink
- Deindividuation
- Diffusion of responsibility
Correct answer: Social loafing
Social loafing occurs because individual contributions are less identifiable in group settings, reducing personal accountability.
Question 2: In Milgram's obedience studies, what factor most significantly reduced participants' willingness to administer shocks?
- Increasing the physical proximity of the victim (Correct answer)
- Decreasing the salary offered
- Increasing the number of confederates
- Changing the experimenter's uniform
Correct answer: Increasing the physical proximity of the victim
When participants could see or touch the victim, obedience dropped sharply because the victim's suffering became more salient.
Question 3: The 'just-world hypothesis' refers to the belief that:
- People get what they deserve and deserve what they get (Correct answer)
- The world is fundamentally unfair to marginalized groups
- Justice systems are biased toward the powerful
- Good deeds are always rewarded eventually
Correct answer: People get what they deserve and deserve what they get
The just-world hypothesis leads people to blame victims for their misfortune as a way of maintaining the belief that the world is fair.
Question 4: Which persuasion route in Petty and Cacioppo's Elaboration Likelihood Model involves deep cognitive processing of message arguments?
- Central route (Correct answer)
- Peripheral route
- Heuristic route
- Systematic route
Correct answer: Central route
The central route involves careful evaluation of the quality and logic of arguments, leading to more durable attitude change.
Question 5: Festinger's social comparison theory proposes that people evaluate their opinions and abilities by:
- Comparing themselves to similar others (Correct answer)
- Reflecting on past personal achievements
- Seeking feedback from authority figures
- Observing environmental outcomes
Correct answer: Comparing themselves to similar others
When objective standards are unavailable, people use similar others as a reference point to assess their own standing.
Question 6: Which term describes the phenomenon where a group makes riskier decisions than any individual member would make alone?
- Risky shift (Correct answer)
- Group polarization
- Conformity bias
- Deindividuation effect
Correct answer: Risky shift
Risky shift is a specific instance of group polarization where shared responsibility and persuasive arguments push groups toward riskier choices.
Question 7: What does the term 'pluralistic ignorance' describe in social psychology?
- A situation where everyone privately disagrees but assumes others agree with the norm (Correct answer)
- A collective failure to notice an emergency situation
- The spread of false information through a group
- Ignoring minority viewpoints in group decision-making
Correct answer: A situation where everyone privately disagrees but assumes others agree with the norm
Pluralistic ignorance occurs when individuals misread the private attitudes of others, assuming the norm reflects true majority opinion.
BAPSY Social and Behavioral Psychology 2
Which concept describes the tendency for people to exert less effort when working in a group than when working alone?