Quiz 2: Chapters 2 (continued) and Chapter 10
Multiple Choice
Identify the letter of the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
____ 1. IQ score, age, weight, grade point average, and income are all examples of
| a. | constants |
| b. | correlations |
| c. | statistics |
| d. | variables |
____ 2. A researcher wants to see if a protein-enriched diet will enhance the maze-running performance of rats. One group of rats is fed the high-protein diet for the duration of the study; the other group continues to receive ordinary rat chow. In this experiment, the rats' maze-running performance is the
| a. | dependent variable |
| b. | correlated variable |
| c. | control variable |
| d. | independent variable |
____ 3. One of the disadvantages of the experimental method is
| a. | the inability to generate cause-and-effect conclusions |
| b. | the length of time necessary to complete the study |
| c. | the fact that only one variable can be studied at a time |
| d. | the artificial, contrived situations in which experiments are often conducted |
____ 4. The standard deviation is a measure of
| a. | central tendency |
| b. | the degree of relationship between two variables |
| c. | the difference between the largest and smallest scores in a data set |
| d. | the amount of variability in a data set |
____ 5. As interest rates increase, house sales decline, indicating
| a. | a negative correlation between the two variables |
| b. | a direct correlation between the two variables |
| c. | a positive correlation between the two variables |
| d. | no correlation between the two variables |
____ 6. Placebos are used in research to control for
| a. | nontreatment effects |
| b. | the subjects' expectations about treatment |
| c. | secondary drug effects |
| d. | random fluctuations in the independent variable |
____ 7. The tendency for survey subjects to provide answers that place them in a favorable light is referred to as
| a. | sampling bias |
| b. | response stereotyping |
| c. | a placebo effect |
| d. | socially desirable responding |
____ 8. The abstract of a journal article provides
| a. | an overview of the research problem, relevant theories, and previous research |
| b. | a description of the research methods used in the study |
| c. | a concise summary of the entire article |
| d. | a concise summary of the raw data and statistical analyses |
____ 9. Phonemes are
| a. | the same across all languages |
| b. | the smallest units of meaning in a spoken language |
| c. | the smallest units of sound in a spoken language |
| d. | rules for combining sounds to form meaning |
____ 10. A "mental rule of thumb" for problem solving is referred to as
| a. | a heuristic |
| b. | an algorithm |
| c. | a mental set |
| d. | a syllogism |
____ 11. Cognition refers to
| a. | focusing awareness of a narrow range of stimuli or events |
| b. | the use of language in a social context |
| c. | widely shared beliefs that are transmitted socially across generations |
| d. | the mental processes involved in acquiring and using knowledge |
____ 12. Which of the following is not a cognitive activity?
| a. | remembering something |
| b. | making a decision |
| c. | solving a problem |
| d. | blinking at something |
____ 13. The smallest unit of meaning in a language is
| a. | the phoneme |
| b. | the word |
| c. | the phrase |
| d. | the morpheme |
____ 14. Syntax refers to rules for
| a. | arranging words into phrases and sentences |
| b. | combining phonemes to form morphemes |
| c. | using words symbolically |
| d. | combining morphemes into words |
____ 15. Babies start babbling at about what age?
| a. | birth |
| b. | 1 month |
| c. | 3 months |
| d. | 6 months |
____ 16. Functional fixedness refers to
| a. | continued use of problem solving strategies that have worked in the past |
| b. | arriving at a particularly insightful solution to a problem |
| c. | focusing on information that is irrelevant to the solution of the problem |
| d. | not seeing a new function for a familiar object |
____ 17. If you tend to persist in using the same problem-solving strategy time after time you are evidencing
| a. | a delusion |
| b. | an illusion |
| c. | a mental set |
| d. | a generic insight |
____ 18. An algorithm is
| a. | the set of possible pathways to a solution considered by a problem solver |
| b. | a guiding principle or "rule of thumb" used in problem solving |
| c. | a methodical procedure for trying all possible solutions to a problem |
| d. | equivalent to a heuristic |
____ 19. Basing the estimated probability of an event on the ease with which instances come to mind is called the
| a. | law of small numbers |
| b. | representativeness heuristic |
| c. | conjunction fallacy |
| d. | availability heuristic |
____ 20. The representativeness heuristic refers to our tendency to
| a. | ignore subjective probabilities when making decisions |
| b. | estimate the probability of an event by judging the ease with which relevant instances come to mind |
| c. | estimate the probability of an event based on how similar it is to the typical prototype of that event |
| d. | ignore common stereotypes when estimating probabilities |