Psychology Flashcards

Which personality theory uses the acronym OCEAN to describe five broad dimensions of personality?

Answer: Big Five (Five-Factor Model)

The Big Five model describes personality across Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism.

The 'foot-in-the-door' technique exploits which psychological principle to gain compliance?

Answer: Commitment and consistency

People who agree to a small request feel committed to being consistent, making them more likely to comply with larger follow-up requests.

Which disorder involves at least two distinct identity states, each with its own pattern of perceiving and interacting with the world?

Answer: Dissociative Identity Disorder

Dissociative Identity Disorder (formerly Multiple Personality Disorder) involves two or more distinct personality states.

A psychologist measures how consistently a test produces the same results across repeated administrations. This property is called:

Answer: Reliability

Reliability refers to the consistency and repeatability of a measurement instrument over time or conditions.

Milgram's obedience studies found that a majority of participants were willing to administer what they believed were severe electric shocks primarily because of:

Answer: Obedience to a legitimate authority figure

Milgram showed that situational authority — represented by a researcher in a lab coat — powerfully overrides personal moral judgment.

Which psychoactive drug class works primarily by enhancing the inhibitory effects of GABA in the brain?

Answer: Benzodiazepines

Benzodiazepines (e.g., Xanax, Valium) bind to GABA-A receptors and potentiate the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA.

The fundamental attribution error refers to the tendency to:

Answer: Overestimate dispositional factors and underestimate situational factors when explaining others' behavior

The fundamental attribution error is the bias toward attributing others' behavior to personality traits while ignoring situational context.