Contemporary Issues in Social Psychology Study Guide Questions
Course Introduction
This course explores current topics and debates within social psychology, examining how contemporary social, cultural, and technological changes influence individual and group behavior. Students will engage with recent empirical research and theoretical perspectives on issues such as social identity, discrimination, intergroup conflict, media influence, stereotype formation, and the psychological impact of social movements. The course emphasizes critical analysis and application, encouraging students to consider how social psychological knowledge can address real-world challenges in diverse societies.
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Applied Social Psychology 3rd Edition by Jamie A. Gruman
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Chapter 1: Defining the Field of Applied Social Psychology
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Q1) Explain what is meant by level of analysis in social psychology,and name the different levels at which interventions may be directed.
Answer: In social psychology,the term level of analysis refers to the explanation level or focus point at which one assesses the social situational determinants of individual behavior.Interventions may be directed at one of five levels; these include interpersonal,group,organizational,community,or societal/cultural.Drawing on the example given in the text,if one seeks to explain a person's behavior by investigating the effects of individuals on him or her,the level of analysis in question would be interpersonal.Likewise,if one seeks to explain a person's behavior by investigating the effects of groups on him or her,the level of analysis in question would be group.
Q2) Which of the following guides the decisions made by applied social psychologists and scientists in their work?
A) personal values
B) merit
C) equality
D) equivalence
Answer: A
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Chapter 2: Social Psychological Theory
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Q1) Central to cognitive dissonance theory is the idea that human beings are motivated to maintain ______ among their cognitions.
A) accuracy
B) reasonableness
C) comfort
D) consistency
Answer: D
Q2) Ajzen (1985)decided to extend the theory of reasoned action by introducing which of the following variables?
A) subjective norms
B) behavioral control
C) behavioral intention
D) attitude
Answer: B
Q3) The theory of reasoned action is concerned with four key features: subjective norms,behavioral intention,attitude,and norms and effort justification.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
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Chapter 3: Research Methods in Applied Social Psychology
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Q1) Descriptive research is a qualitative research methodology in which researchers describe the characteristics of the population or phenomenon in question.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q2) Ethnographic research focuses on
A) gathering detailed stories and then restorying them (e.g., to produce a biography)
B) gathering stories to find out what they have in common
C) formulating a theory of people's actions, interactions, and social processes
D) describing and interpreting shared values, beliefs, behaviors, and language
Answer: D
Q3) Chapter 3 reviews the basic dimensions of research in applied social psychology.Which is NOT one of the basic dimensions?
A) research settings
B) qualitative studies
C) research designs
D) methods of data collection
Answer: B
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Chapter 4: Intervention and Evaluation
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Q1) Although interventions can be directed at different levels (e.g.,individual,group,organization,or community),they are ultimately directed toward individuals,as for change to occur,whether in a group or in an organization,individual members must change in some way.
A)True
B)False
Q2) An intervention may be defined as a ______.
A) philosophy
B) research method
C) procedure
D) set of attainable objectives
Q3) Over a 10-year span using the social norm intervention,Northern Illinois University experienced a ______% decrease in perceived high-risk drinking,a ______% decrease in actual high-risk drinking,and a ______% decrease in alcohol-related injuries.
A) 87; 80; 70
B) 67; 70; 40
C) 37; 30; 20
D) 7; 10; 5
Q4) List three possible reasons why some interventions may prove to be ineffective.
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Chapter 5: Applying Social Psychology to Clinical and Counseling Psychology
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Q1) As highlighted in the text,self-presentational motivation describes the degree to which people are concerned with how others perceive them.When self-presentational motivation is low,people are not very concerned with how others view them; however,when self-presentational motivation is high,people are very concerned with ensuring that others have a particular image of them.
A)True
B)False
Q2) According to self-presentation theory,which of the following relationships is most accurate?
A) High negative outcome expectancies lead to high self-presentational motivation.
B) High positive outcome expectances lead to low self-efficacy.
C) Low self-efficacy leads to high self-presentational motivation.
D) High negative outcome expectancies lead to social anxiety.
Q3) The term hopelessness depression refers to a unique type of depression.Describe how this differs from clinical depression by outlining the main symptoms.
Q4) The anchoring effect and confirmation bias are two types of bias experienced by clinicians.Describe both in detail.
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Chapter 6: Applying Social Psychology to Sports Teams
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Q1) Groups are best characterized by certain key features.These features include structured patterns of communication,interdependence among members,shared identity,and identifiable roles and structures.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Team performance,coach satisfaction,and motivation are three important consequences or outcomes of chemistry.
A)True
B)False
Q3) In the ______ framework,messages between teammates are part of a larger process that contributes to the development and functioning of a team mental model.
A) social comparison
B) fundamental attribution
C) social cognitive exchange
D) social learning theory
Q4) As outlined in the text,performance goals focus strictly on the competitive result of an event.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 7: Applying Social Psychology to the Media
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Q1) Many different factors can cause a person to be aggressive.A behavior is said to be overdetermined when it has one cause.
A)True
B)False
Q2) In relation to violent TV programs and movies,the cathartic effect refers to the process by which people relieve their stress and aggressive impulses from watching violence.
A)True
B)False
Q3) According to the text,erotica is defined as nonaggressive explicit sexual activity typically among casual acquaintances.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Agenda setting refers to the idea that the media can shape what issues we think about or what issues we think are important.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Identify three ways of reducing the harmful effects of exposure to violent sexual material.
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Chapter 8: Applying Social Psychology to Health
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Q1) Which model or theory,in particular,informs us about what individuals to target for a health change intervention?
A) transactional model
B) transtheoretical model
C) health belief model
D) theory of planned behavior
Q2) Research on the effectiveness of fear appeals suggests that inducing moderate levels of fear works better than inducing high levels of fear.According to the text,the explanation for this is that
A) people tune out high-fear messages
B) fear appeals have greater influence on intentions to behave than on actual behavior
C) fear appeals affect actual behavior
D) people tune out high-risk messages
Q3) Coping strategies to reduce stress include emotion-focused efforts,where we try to change the stressor itself,and problem-focused efforts,where we try to regulate our emotions to minimize the distress.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 9: Applying Social Psychology to Education
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Q1) According to the text,which of the following cooperative learning strategies has been shown to reduce conflict and other antisocial behaviors among students by promoting greater tolerance of diversity,empathy and compassion for others,and self-esteem?
A) student teams-achievement divisions
B) norm salience technique
C) jigsaw classroom technique
D) positive role modeling technique
Q2) The feelings,attitudes,and perceptions that students hold about their academic ability,especially when compared with those of other students,is called academic self-comparison.
A)True
B)False
Q3) What is meant by self-serving strategies? Give an example of a type of self-serving strategy.
Q4) What is the relationship between academic self-concept and academic achievement?
A) Academic self-concept causes academic achievement.
B) Academic achievement causes academic self-concept.
C) Academic self-concept is unrelated to academic achievement.
D) Academic self-concept and academic achievement are reciprocally related.
Page 11
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Chapter 10: Applying Social Psychology to Organizations
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Q1) Which of the following is false? Research on factors that influence a supervisor's causal attributions concerning an employee's work performance has found that
A) a supervisor is more likely to attribute an employee's poor performance to internal factors than to external factors
B) supervisors' reactions to the poor performance of employees are directly related to their attributions in that the more internal the attribution, the more likely they are to recommend disciplinary action
C) if an employee's high level of performance is attributed to effort rather than to ability, a supervisor will give the employee a more positive performance appraisal
D) a supervisor is more likely to attribute an employee's poor performance to external factors than to internal factors
Q2) With selective perception,people learn to automatically filter out what they consider to be unnecessary information.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Explain what is meant by the term groupthink.
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Chapter 11: Applying Social Psychology to the Criminal Justice System
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Q1) Forensic confirmation bias occurs when a prior expectation about the guilt (or innocence)of a suspect influences a witness's judgments and perceptions toward new evidence in a confirmatory manner.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Kassin and Kiechel (1996)conducted an experiment in which a participant was accused by the experimenter of carrying out an act that led to the loss of data.What did NOT characterize the research?
A) The participant was accused of hitting the wrong key on a computer.
B) In one condition, a confederate reported having seen the participant engage in the harmful act.
C) Initially, all participants denied that they had engaged in the harmful act.
D) Eventually, virtually all of the participants confessed to having engaged in the harmful act.
Q3) Research has linked antisocial attitudes to criminal behavior.Andrews and Bonta (2002),in particular,have identified five elements that compose an antisocial pattern of attitudes.List four.
Q4) Describe the social ecological perspective used to examine criminal acts.
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Q5) Explain what a therapeutic community is,and outline the core concept behind it.
Chapter 12: Applying Social Psychology to the Community
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Q1) Research by Russo and colleagues demonstrated that after women have abortions,they generally
A) immediately suffer from a condition known as postabortion trauma syndrome
B) suffer from postabortion trauma syndrome only after a period of time has elapsed
C) don't remember the experience
D) suffer no long-term ill effects to their well-being
Q2) Russo and colleagues examined women's self-esteem and adjustment in their study on youths' experiences in the labor market.Among other findings,the authors found that A) women who had abortions had higher overall levels of well-being on follow-up than did women who had not had abortions
B) delaying childbirth was not related to higher levels of self-esteem and well-being
C) having fewer children spaced farther apart was not related to higher levels of self-esteem and well-being
D) women who had abortions had lower levels of well-being on follow-up than did women who had not had abortions
Q3) Explain what is meant by the term intersectionality.
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Chapter 13: Applying Social Psychology to the Environment
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Q1) FISH 5 is an example of which type of dilemma?
A) resource dilemma
B) resource contingency trap
C) social trap
D) public goods problem
Q2) Two ways in which environmental psychologists work to improve the physical environment are physical design and community space.
A)True
B)False
Q3) According to the text,resource dilemmas
A) are rarely fatal because of the tendency for resources to replenish themselves
B) are almost always fatal because humans are greedy creatures
C) may not be fatal because of the cognitive capacity of humans to solve problems
D) have always been fatal in the past
Q4) Explain what is meant by tragedy of the commons,and describe the classic example of a commons dilemma.
Q5) Explain the premise of the equity theory.
Q6) Describe the defensible space theory.
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Chapter 14: Applying Social Psychology to Diversity
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Q1) The term sexism specifically refers to bias against women based on their sex.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Describe realistic group conflict theory (RGCT).
Q3) According to Allport's (1954)contact hypothesis,which of the following is necessary to reduce conflict between antagonistic groups?
A) unequal status
B) perception of common goals
C) individualism
D) collectivism
Q4) Idiocentric is the term given to someone who will tend to do what is seen as best for the group,even if it means giving up personal goals.
A)True
B)False
Q5) When an issue is simple and insignificant,avoidance is the most effective way of managing conflict.
A)True
B)False
Q6) Describe the theory of relative deprivation.
Page 16
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Chapter 15: Applying Social Psychology to Personal Relationships
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Q1) Which of the following most closely reflects environmental spoiling?
A) when a person overdoes the amount of contact with someone with whom he or she is trying to develop a relationship
B) when a person's attempts to get to know an attractive other are frustrated by the presence of social barriers to interaction
C) when a person's negative attitude about someone becomes even more negative due to increased contact with the individual
D) when a person's attempts to get to know an attractive individual are undermined by the fact that the individual has many attractive acquaintances
Q2) Explain the physical attractiveness stereotype.
Q3) At a party,you notice a very attractive stranger who is speaking with some other people,and you figure the stranger probably possesses the kinds of personal qualities that you value in others.In this scenario,your perceptions and thinking suggest the operation of the ______.
A) physical attractiveness stereotype
B) secondary effect
C) matching effect
D) proximity effect
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Chapter 16: Applying Social Psychology to the Classroom
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Q1) Suppose that you end up getting a very good grade on this test.Which pattern of attributions most clearly reflects the operation of the self-serving bias?
A) Both you and your instructor attribute the grade to your solid understanding of the material.
B) Both you and your instructor attribute the grade to effective teaching.
C) You attribute the grade to solid understanding of the material, and your instructor attributes the grade to effective teaching.
D) You attribute the grade to effective teaching, and your instructor attributes the grade to solid understanding of the material.
Q2) With the fundamental attribution error,people tend to focus on the influence of situational causes and downplay personal causes of other people's behavior.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Explain what is meant by the overjustification effect.
Q4) Explain what is meant by self-handicapping,and describe Berglas and Jones's classic study in which they used analogies to help them study self-handicapping.
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Chapter 17: Applying Social Psychology to the Good Life: Balancing Optimism and Pessimism
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Q1) Research suggests that having excessively high levels of optimism
A) is beneficial for romantic relationships
B) can be detrimental to psychological and physical health
C) is beneficial for psychological health only
D) is beneficial for physical health only
Q2) Which of the following is NOT true about what Krueger and Funder (2004)noted about social psychology research?
A) The majority of the most seminal (most important) studies in social psychology focus on positive phenomena.
B) Social psychological research is likely to lead us to believe that the power of the situation typically leads people to engage in negative, less-than-ideal behavior.
C) Some of the most seminal (most important) studies in social psychology focus on negative phenomena.
D) The seemingly irrational behavior often elicited in social psychological research settings, may, over the long-term, produce adaptive and effective social behavior.
Q3) Differentiate between internal and external attributions.
Q4) Differentiate between problem-focused coping and emotion-focused coping.
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