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Psychology 100
Exam 1: Chapters 1, 2, 3, & 4
Please mark your answers on your computer answer sheet with a #2 pencil.
Test 1
1. The scientific study of behavior and mental processes and how they are affected by an organism's physical state, mental state, and external environment is the definition of:
a. psychology.
b. sociology.
c. political science.
d. biology.
2. Psychobabble is to Psychology as:
a. action is to thought.
b. tradition is to innovation.
c. confirmation is to challenge.
d. emotion is to reason.
3. Which one of these refers to the result of doing the other three?
a. Define your terms
b. Think critically
c. Examine the evidence
d. Analyze assumptions and biases
4. Forerunners of psychology asked many questions of interest to psychologists but provided no solid answers. According to Wade and Tavris, why was this so?
a. They placed too much emphasis on the study of animals.
b. The mathematical equations they relied upon were faulty.
c. They were less likely to use scientific empirical methods.
d. They were incapable of using logic and reasoning.
5. The entertainer for a birthday party analyzes people's character and personality traits on the basis of the bumps on one's skull. With which historical perspective does this approach bear the most resemblance?
a. structuralism
b. phrenology
c. psychoanalysis
d. functionalism
6. Which early approach to psychology was most interested in determining how various behaviors help an individual adapt to his or her environment?
a. structuralism
b. functionalism
c. behaviorism
d. psychoanalysis
7. "You reveal the unconscious thoughts that guide your life with each careless slip of the tongue, and each dream you have." Most likely, this statement was made by a
a. behaviorist.
b. cognitive psychologist.
c. psychoanalyst.
d. socioculturalist.
8. Imagine yourself overhearing a behaviorist and a nonbehaviorist exchanging pleasantries. The nonbehaviorist says, "Think it will rain today?" The behaviorist replies, "I think so." The nonbehaviorist then cries out, "Did I hear you say that you THINK?" How is the behaviorist likely to reply?
a. "You caught me!"
b. "No, I am mistaken. People do not think."
c. "Yes, people think, but their thoughts do not explain their behaviors."
d. "Yes, people do think, and their thoughts cause them to act, too."
9. To which of these psychological approaches is the phrase "free will" best associated?
a. psychoanalytic
b. biological
c. humanistic
d. structuralism
10. Teresa says that she is very interested in how the findings of psychology can be used to help disadvantaged children perform better in school. She has an interest in
a. applied psychology.
b. basic psychology.
c. the "ivory-tower" approach.
d. the scientist-practitioner model.
11. Jimmy is fascinated with work motivation, employee morale, and personnel selection. If he were to pursue his interests in psychology, Jimmy should probably consider becoming a(n)
a. psychometric psychologist.
b. sociocultural psychologist.
c. industrial/organizational psychologist.
d. experimental psychologist.
12. Which statement best describes the relationship between the American Psychological Association (APA) and the American Psychological Society (APS)?
a. The APS was created long before the APA and had little to do with its formation.
b. The APA and APS were formed at about the same time; the APA was east of the Mississippi and the APS was west of the river.
c. The APA was founded by psychiatrists, the APS was founded by psychologists.
d. The APS was formed by scientists as an alternative to the APA which they thought gave too much emphasis to the art of therapy.
13. Why should introductory psychology students study research methodology?
a. to become more critical consumers of psychological findings
b. to learn how to develop emotionally-based arguments
c. to look for evidence that supports their ideas and to ignore evidence that does not
d. to underestimate the value of nonoccurrences
14. Why are operational definitions important?
a. They encourage the development of theories.
b. They allow for greater precision in psychological research.
c. They tend to reduce skepticism about psychological findings.
d. They lead to conclusions that are more appealing and imaginative.
15. Pam has just finished reading a fascinating book about a woman who had three distinct personalities, written by the therapist who treated her. Such a book would be an example of a(n)
a. experiment.
b. correlational study.
c. survey.
d. case study.
16. A critical aspect of observational studies is to count, rate or measure behavior in a systematic way in order to
a. keep the researcher busy instead of interfering with the subjects in the study.
b. prevent others from discovering the true purpose of the study.
c. help the researcher remember what happened when the study is finished.
d. minimize the tendency of observers to notice only what they want or expect to see.
17. Which coefficient of correlation is a mistake?
a. 0.0
b. +1.0
c. +2.1
d. -0.5
18. Every experiment must have
a. no more than one independent variable.
b. no more than one dependent variable.
c. at least one independent and one dependent variable.
d. either an independent or a dependent variable, but not both.
19. As it relates to experiments and researchers, what is a placebo?
a. A study in which all subjects are in the control group.
b. Something that occurs when the person conducting a study is unaware of who will be assigned to the treatment and control groups.
c. Something that occurs if people have an unequal probability of being chosen for a study.
d. A fake treatment given to the control group.
20. In an experiment, neither the subjects nor the researcher who deals with the participants know which is the control group and which is the experimental group. What is this called?
a. correlational
b. placebo
c. single-blind
d. double-blind
21. The most commonly used type of average is the
a. mode.
b. median.
c. variance.
d. arithmetic mean.
22. Inferential statistics inform the researcher as to
a. how likely it was for the differences found to have occurred by chance factors alone.
b. how spread out or clustered around the mean the scores of all the individuals in a group are.
c. how to best describe or summarize the overall behavior of the subjects in a study.
d. whether there were placebo or experimenter effects at work in the study.
23. Clint is using a questionnaire to compare the political attitudes of twenty-year-olds, forty-year-olds, and sixty-year-olds. Clint is carrying out a
a. case study.
b. naturalistic observation.
c. cross-sectional study.
d. longitudinal study.
24. The statistical technique that combines the results of many studies and tells the researcher how much of the variation in scores across a number of studies can be explained by a particular variable is called
a. meta-analysis.
b. correlational analysis.
c. descriptive statistics.
d. statistical significance.
25. Sandy, a philosophy student, is very interested in ethical problems. She asks you how psychologists deal with ethical issues. What should you tell her?
a. All psychologists must consult with philosophers when guidance is needed on ethical issues.
b. The American Psychological Association has a code of ethics that all members must follow.
c. As professionals, psychologists need not be concerned with ethical issues.
d. Clinical psychologists must adhere to ethical guidelines in dealing with their clients, but psychological researchers have no ethical guidelines at present.
26. Studies that look for patterns of inheritance of genetic markers in large families in which a particular condition is common are also called
a. correlational research.
b. genetic markers.
c. linkage studies.
d. adoption studies.
27. Which one of these is a process that depends on the other three?
a. natural selection
b. recombination
c. mutation
d. genetic crossover
28. A change in the gene frequencies within a population over many generations is
a. evolution.
b. genetic engineering.
c. learning.
d. sociobiology.
29. According to an evolutionary explanation of human behavior, what happens to an individual who possess characteristics that are not very adaptive in his or her environment?
a. They are more likely to die before passing on their genes than other more adaptive individuals.
b. Their genes mutate to more adaptive forms.
c. Through continued striving, their genetic makeup becomes more adaptive.
d. They find an equally non-adaptive mate and have successful offspring.
30. With which of these concepts is the idea of "mental modules" most compatible?
a. heritability studies
b. the human genome project
c. evolutionary psychology
d. set point theory
31. Can you say "a wuk is a wuk, but two of them are wuks"? If you know the proper rule of English grammar, how was the last letter pronounced?
a. with an S sound
b. with a GZ sound
c. with an IZ sound
d. It is not pronounced, the letter would be silent.
32. According to the view of sociobiologists, females would want to avoid this type of guy when they are fertile.
a. guys with status and resources
b. guys who are dominant
c. guys who are sensitive and caring
d. guys with superior genes
33. How do cross-cultural studies tend to describe men?
a. as more discriminating in their choice of partners
b. as more socially dominant than women
c. as likely to emphasize the status of a prospective mate
d. as inclined to be monogamous
34. Researchers in which field study the contribution of heredity to individual differences in personality, mental ability and other human characteristics?
a. psychoanalysis
b. behavioral genetics
c. inherited tendencies
d. cognition
35. With respect to heredity, which of the following is true?
a. A parent and child will be more alike than two unrelated people selected at random.
b. To say that a trait is "genetic" means that children will be just like their parents.
c. Genes are unrelated to most human attributes.
d. Each of us is genetically unique.
36. Over which of these body weight influence factors would the President of the United States have the most control?
a. genetics
b. culture
c. eating habits
d. exercise
37. What would be the best way to settle this question, "Are there inherent racial differences in intelligence? "
a. See if it would be possible to develop an IQ test that only blacks would score well on.
b. Collect information on blacks and whites who are raised in exactly the same environments.
c. Raise white children under conditions of racial discrimination and see if IQ scores drop for these children.
d. Compare white children who were adopted by black parents with black children who were adopted by white parents.
38. Tamara has been on the dance floor for a solid 30 minutes. The tired feeling in her legs, and the feel of the sweat on her body are messages being carried directly to her spinal cord by the
a. sensory nerves.
b. motor nerves.
c. hormones.
d. central nervous system.
39. The children in the classroom are pretending to be elephants. They lumber slowly across the room, swinging their arms like massive trunks. Their movements depend on their
a. somatic nervous system.
b. autonomic nervous system.
c. spinal reflexes.
d. sensory nerves.
40. Which division of the nervous system operates more or less automatically?
a. peripheral
b. somatic
c. autonomic
d. central
41. What is a safe conclusion to draw regarding biofeedback?
a. It has seen some success in treating physical disorders, but the actual reasons for its success are still unknown.
b. It has become the best alternative to drugs and surgery since the 1960s and is widely accepted and understood.
c. It is largely an illusion, a "smoke and mirrors" sideshow that has never been supported by scientific study.
d. The new emphasis on Eastern religions has finally enabled psychologists to explain the underlying causes of the biofeedback response.
42. The autonomic nervous system is itself divided into two parts. Which part of the nervous system dominates during relaxed states and conserves energy?
a. central
b. peripheral
c. parasympathetic
d. sympathetic
43. With respect to the firing of a neuron, the phrase "all or none" means that
a. a neuron does not always fire, but when it does, it fires to its maximum strength.
b. some neurons require stimulation by transmitter substances and some do not.
c. a neuron will send messages to all other neurons or it will send messages to none.
d. some neurons are capable of firing and some are not.
44. Which neurotransmitter is described as being implicated in sleep, eating and convulsive disorders?
a. Norepinephrine
b. GABA
c. Serotonin
d. Glutamate
45. Which of these chemical messengers is most likely to be involved in the uterine lining being prepared for a fertilized egg?
a. testosterone
b. estrogen
c. progesterone
d. androgen
46. Which method for analyzing biochemical activity in the brain uses injections that contain a harmless radioactive element?
a. MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)
b. PET (positron-emission tomography) scan
c. EEG (electroencephalography)
d. EP (evoked potentials)
47. A woman's ovary releases a mature egg after receiving a hormonal message from the pituitary gland. From which gland did the pituitary gland itself receive a chemical message?
a. thalamus
b. hippocampus
c. hypothalamus
d. thymus
48. In the context of hemispheric differences, which skill is out of place?
a. recognizing the face of an old classmate
b. solving a math puzzle
c. reading an interesting story
d. feeling happy
49. To what phenomenon does the term "plasticity" apply?
a. the ability of the brain to recover from severe trauma by seemingly reorganizing itself
b. the ability of an action potential to speed up by hopping from one gap in myelin to another
c. the ability of one hemisphere of the brain to function independently of the other hemisphere after split-brain surgery
d. the ability to recognize or identify man-made objects (versus natural) as a separate class of concepts
50. Research cited in your text on sex differences in the size or shape of the splenium
a. is inconclusive.
b. supports the notion that women are less lateralized for certain tasks.
c. refutes the claim that men are more left-brained and women are more right-brained.
d. has proven that women's brains are, in fact, different than men's.