Social Psych 7th Ed TestBank - Ch08

CHAPTER 8: GROUP PROCESSES
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Which of the following is true of groups?

a. Groups differ from the sum of their parts.
b. Groups make better decisions than individuals.
c. People work harder in groups than they do alone.
d. Discussion moderates group opinions.
ANS: A REF: Introductory Section OBJ: 1
KEY: Factual
2. A group is defined as
a. a set of individuals who interact over time and have shared fate, goals, and identity.
b. a set of rigid boundaries and norms.
c. people engaged in a common activity with or without direct interaction.
d. a social category.
ANS: A REF: Fundamentals of Groups OBJ: 1
KEY: Factual NOT: New
3. Three people in the same place at the same time, but not interacting with one another, are best
described as a
a. social group.
b. minimal group.
c. collective.
d. conjunctive group.
ANS: C REF: Fundamentals of Groups OBJ: 1
KEY: Conceptual
4. Groups differ from collectives in that

a. groups, but not collectives, engage in common activities.
b. collectives, but not groups, engage in common activities.
c. groups have more direct interaction with one another than collectives.
d. collectives have more direct interaction with one another than groups.
KEY: Conceptual
5. Which of the following would most likely be described as a collective?

a. Students in a small, discussion-focused seminar
b. Members of a sports team
c. Passengers on a plane
d. A boy scout troop
KEY: Conceptual
6. People join groups for all of the following reasons except to
a. be protected from threat.
b. fulfill the need to belong.
c. reduce superordinate identities.
d. facilitate interactions with liked others.
KEY: Factual
7. The idea that a species’ brain size is related to the social complexity of their environment is called the
a. social identity hypothesis.
b. social brain hypothesis.
c. collective effort model.
d. entitativity norm.
ANS: B REF: Fundamentals of Groups OBJ: 1
KEY: Conceptual NOT: New
8. An important part of people’s self-worth is derived from group membership, according to

a. social identity theory.
b. the social brain hypothesis.
c. the escalation effect.
d. group support systems.
9. Groups include all of the following essential components except

a. roles.
b. norms.
c. cohesiveness.
d. status.
ANS: D REF: Fundamentals of Groups OBJ: 1
KEY: Factual
10. Roles are

a. the rules of conduct for group members.
b. dissimilar to norms in that only roles can be formal or informal.
c. similar to norms in that both must be present for group cohesiveness.
d. beneficial to a group if clear, but can create stress if ambiguous.
KEY: Factual
11. A role in a group that is focused on providing emotional support and maintaining group morale is
considered
a. instrumental.
b. expressive.
c. formal.
d. informal.
12. Deborah has just joined a sorority at her school. She is unsure what she should wear when she goes to
eat at the sorority’s dining hall. Her concern reflects Deborah’s uncertainty of the
a. informal role.
b. formal role.
c. informal norm.
d. formal norm.
KEY: Applied
13. A leader who focuses his or her group on the task(s) it needs to achieve is playing a(n)
a. facilitator role.
b. instrumental role.
c. normative role.
d. expressive role.
KEY: Factual
14. In her group, Melanie is always the one who breaks the tension with a funny story and provides a
shoulder to cry on when things go wrong. She can be described as playing a(n)
a. expressive role.
b. facilitator role.
c. instrumental role.
d. normative role.
KEY: Applied
15. Loss of productivity is least likely to occur in which of the following scenarios?
a. Daphne isn’t quite sure what her role in the group is.
b. Fred must play both an instrumental and an expressive role in the group.
c. Velma’s role in the group seems to be constantly changing.
d. Shaggy assumes a clearly defined instrumental role in the group.
KEY: Applied
16. The fact that members of an organization who blow the whistle on problematic practices are often
treated harshly by the rest of the group illustrates the power of group
a. roles.
b. norms.
c. status.
d. development.
KEY: Conceptual
17. Deviation from group norms is generally tolerated better if a group is seen as
a. homogeneous.
b. heterogeneous.
c. cohesive.
d. formal.
18. Research concerning the relationship between group cohesiveness and performance suggests that
a. cohesiveness has a greater effect on performance than vice versa.
b. performance has a greater effect on cohesiveness than vice versa.
c. the relationship is negative.
d. the relationship is stronger among men than among women.
KEY: Conceptual
19. Keren is in a work group in which everyone is excited about the job. They are bringing high-speed
Internet to low-income neighborhoods, and every single coworker she has feels the task is exciting,
inspirational, and world-changing. Keren’s work group has high _____ cohesion.
a. task
b. interpersonal
c. expressive
d. instrumental
KEY: Applied NOT: New
20. Cohesion does seem to exert a causal effect on group performance, but whether this effect occurs
depends upon
a. group size.
b. whether it is task or interpersonal cohesion.
c. the nature of the group task.
d. All of these
21. According to research by Nibler and Harris (2003), which of the following groups is most likely to
experience better performance when group members feel free to disagree with one another?
a. A group of friends in China
b. A group of friends in the U.S.
c. A group of strangers in China.
d. A group of strangers in the U.S.
KEY: Factual
22. Cross-cultural research suggests that when individuals fail to carry their own share of the weight for
the group,
a. cohesiveness suffers less in groups from collectivistic cultures because other people are
quick to pick up the slack.
b. collectivist groups are more likely to kick out these individuals than are more
individualistic groups.
c. cohesiveness suffers more in groups from collectivistic cultures.
d. collectivistic groups are more likely to seek increases in task complexity.
KEY: Factual
23. In one of the earliest social psychological experiments, Triplett (1898) had children wind fishing reels
as quickly as they could. He found that
a. the children were fastest when observed by the experimenter.
b. winding times were faster without an audience than with an audience.
c. the children were faster when working next to another child rather than alone.
d. the children were faster working alone than with a partner.
ANS: C REF: Individuals in Groups: The Presence of Others
OBJ: 2 KEY: Factual
24. The tendency for the presence of other people to increase performance on easy tasks and impair
performance on difficult tasks is known as
a. social loafing.
b. social facilitation.
c. group polarization.
d. groupthink.
ANS: B REF: Individuals in Groups: The Presence of Others
OBJ: 2 KEY: Factual
25. Vladimir, a basketball novice, makes about 60 percent of his free throws when practicing alone.
However, when playing with his friends, he only makes about 30 percent of his free throws. This
decrease is most likely the result of
a. social facilitation.
b. deindividuation.
c. group polarization.
d. social security.
ANS: A REF: Individuals in Groups: The Presence of Others
OBJ: 2 KEY: Applied
26. The facilitation of the dominant response from increased arousal will tend to
a. make easy tasks easier but difficult tasks more challenging.
b. make both easy and difficult tasks easier.
c. have no effect on easy tasks, but will make difficult tasks more challenging.
d. have no effect on challenging tasks, but will make easy tasks easier.
OBJ: 2 KEY: Conceptual
27. According to Zajonc’s model of social facilitation, the three steps in determining the influence of the
presence of others on performance are
a. arousal, dominant response, and task difficulty.
b. relaxation, elimination of apprehension, and task difficulty.
c. construal, arousal, and attribution.
d. social comparison, attribution, and justification.
28. Zajonc’s model for how the presence of others influences individual performance is known as social
facilitation. “Facilitation” refers to the fact that the presence of others facilitates a performer’s
a. ability to focus on the task at hand.
b. task performance.
c. evaluation apprehension.
d. dominant response.
ANS: D REF: Individuals in Groups: The Presence of Others
29. According to the theory of social facilitation, the presence of others should lead to all except which of
the following?
a. Improved performance on an easy task
b. Physiological arousal
c. A dominant response
d. More carefully deliberated behavior
30. Your psychology professor calls you in front of the class and asks you to answer practice exam
questions in front of everyone. You find the questions to be easy. According to the model of social
________, you should perform ________ than you would if you had worked on the questions alone.
a. loafing; better
b. loafing; worse
c. facilitation; better
d. facilitation; worse
OBJ: 2 KEY: Applied
31. Research by Zajonc et al. (1969) in which cockroaches run in simple or complex mazes alone, in pairs,
or with an audience provides support for which explanation of social facilitation?
a. The evaluation apprehension theory
b. The distraction-conflict theory
c. The persuasive arguments theory
d. The mere presence theory
32. According to Zajonc, social facilitation
a. occurs because of concerns about being evaluated by others.
b. results from the physical immediacy of others.
c. occurs in humans, but not in less intelligent animals.
d. can be explained by considering attentional processes.
33. All of the following accounts have been proposed to explain social facilitation except
a. the mere presence of others.
b. apprehension about being evaluated.
c. distraction, which can create attentional conflict.
d. a tendency for people to feel less accountable in a group context.
34. Better performance by an individual on difficult tasks in the presence of others can be encouraged the
most when the individual’s arousal level is _____ and evaluation pressure on the individual is _____.
a. high; high
b. low; low
c. high; low
d. low; high
35. A person who experiences social facilitation effects because he is worried about being judged supports
the _____ hypothesis.
a. mere presence
b. evaluation apprehension
c. distraction-conflict
d. process loss
OBJ: 2 KEY: Applied NOT: New
36. The theory that the presence of others will produce social facilitation effects only when those others
distract one’s attention from the task at hand is known as
a. mere presence theory.
b. evaluation apprehension theory.
c. distraction-conflict theory.
d. the transactive memory hypothesis.
OBJ: 2 KEY: Factual NOT: New
37. According to the model of ________, when the presence of others is physiologically arousing, a
person’s performance tends to ________ on a task that is difficult.
a. social loafing; decline
b. social loafing; improve
c. social facilitation; decline
d. social facilitation; improve
38. Ringelmann’s research in the 1880s demonstrated that

a. people exert less effort in simple group tasks than they would if working alone.
b. the presence of other people improves performance on simple group tasks.
c. groups tend to make more extreme decisions than individuals.
d. individual performance is impaired by the distraction of an audience.
OBJ: 3 KEY: Factual
39. Ingham (1974) asked participants to pull on a rope and found that participants pulled almost 20 percent
harder when they thought they were pulling alone than when they thought they were part of a group.
This finding best illustrates
a. social loafing.
b. a social dilemma.
c. groupthink.
d. social facilitation.
40. According to research by Kugihara (1999), social loafing is more likely to occur among
a. men.
b. women.
c. African Americans.
d. Asian Americans.
ANS: A REF: Individuals in Groups: The Presence of Others OBJ: 3
41. Which of the following conditions makes social loafing more likely to occur?
a. When peer evaluations are used
b. When the task is large and complex
c. When the group in question is small
d. When the task is small in scope
OBJ: 3 KEY: Conceptual NOT: New
42. Tommy needs to get his subordinates to all invest considerable time and energy into the development
of a new design for the company’s fall clothing line. If he wants to reduce the likelihood of social
loafing, he should
a. bring together a large group of diverse individuals.
b. keep the task big and inspirational rather than breaking it into parts.
c. make sure that people contribute anonymously to reduce evaluation apprehension.
d. allow the group members to evaluate each other’s contributions.
43. Aggarwal and O’Brien (2008) studied hundreds of college students and identified several keys to
reducing social loafing. All of the following are examples of the strategies they suggest except
a. breaking down complex projects into smaller components.
b. keeping groups small.
c. selecting group members low in achievement motivation.
d. using peer evaluations.
44. Esteban’s work group has been assigned a new project by management. Before deciding how much
effort to exert on this new assignment, Esteban considers how important the group goals are to him
and whether his input will help the group reach its goals. Esteban’s thinking is most consistent with
a. distraction-conflict theory.
b. the collective effort model.
c. the social identity model of deindividuation.
d. persuasive arguments theory.
OBJ: 3 KEY: Applied
45. Mr. Belding notices that his students seem to put more effort into their individual assignments than
into their group projects. This is most likely the result of
a. social loafing.
b. group facilitation.
c. groupthink.
d. group polarization.
OBJ: 3 KEY: Applied
46. According to the collective effort model, social loafing is more likely when people
a. see the group outcome as personally important.
b. believe the group outcome is important to other group members.
c. believe that their efforts will lead to the desired outcome.
d. feel that their input will not compensate for social loafing by others.
47. Henderson suspects that the other members of his work group may slack off, so he works late and puts
in extra time on their proposal. Henderson is engaging in
a. social compensation.
b. social facilitation.
c. social loafing.
d. deindividuation.
OBJ: 3 KEY: Applied
48. Research suggests that which of the following people would be most likely to engage in social loafing?
a. A woman from a collectivist culture
b. A man from a collectivist culture
c. A woman from an individualistic culture
d. A man from an individualistic culture
49. Individuals from collectivist cultures are more likely to engage in social loafing
a. when a group norm of low effort has already been established.
b. when tasks are difficult.
c. in groups with a majority of female members.
d. when task orientation is high.
50. All of the following factors have been suggested to contribute to deindividuation except
a. the presence of others.
b. reduced feelings of responsibility.
c. low arousal.
d. anonymity.
OBJ: 4 KEY: Factual
51. Deindividuation refers to the

a. loss of individuality and reduction of constraints against deviant behavior.
b. decrease in individual effort on simple group tasks.
c. tendency for group decisions to be more extreme than the decisions of the individuals
comprising the group.
d. impairment in group decision making that results from a concern with unanimity.
OBJ: 4 KEY: Factual
52. Attentional cues that decrease self-awareness should increase
a. deindividuated behavior.
b. social facilitation on an easy task.
c. cooperation in a prisoner’s dilemma.
d. groupthink in a decision-making process.
53. The fact that many assaults are committed by people wearing disguises—and that these disguised
assaults are often the most vicious ones—illustrates the concept of
a. social loafing.
b. entrapment.
c. deindividuation.
d. distraction-conflict.
54. Deindividuation is more likely when

a. accountability for behavior is high.
b. accountability for behavior is low.
c. the group is engaged in a conjunctive task.
d. the group is engaged in a disjunctive task.
55. Sheila and Peter are invited to a masquerade party. At the party, people start insulting and pushing
around Parker, another guest at the party. Given the research on deindividuation, which of the
following is most likely false?
a. If Sheila was dressed as a nun and Peter was dressed as a priest, their costumes would
decrease the likelihood that they would behave aggressively toward Parker.
b. If there was a loud band playing that made the floor shake, Sheila and Peter would be
more likely to behave aggressively toward Parker.
c. If Sheila and Peter were dressed in costumes in which they could not be recognized, Peter
would likely behave more aggressively toward Parker than Sheila would.
d. If Sheila and Peter believed that at the end of the party all the guests would have to reveal
their true identities, they would be less likely to behave aggressively toward Parker.
OBJ: 4 KEY: Applied
56. At crowded parties, Amy loses her sense of self and, as a result, often behaves in ways that she later
regrets. These parties seem to create in Amy a state of
a. deindividuation.
b. cohesiveness.
c. groupthink.
d. entrapment.
OBJ: 4 KEY: Applied
57. It seems that every Halloween night in Gotham is marred by violence and vandalism. In order to
reduce the likelihood of such behavior, the leaders of Gotham should
a. increase self-awareness by making sure everyone who goes out wears a name tag.
b. increase anonymity by making sure that everyone who goes out wears a mask.
c. make sure that people only venture outside in groups.
d. create a highly stimulating environment by playing loud Halloween music over all public
address systems.
OBJ: 4 KEY: Applied
58. Harriett goes trick-or-treating on Halloween. She arrives at her neighbor’s door just as the phone is
ringing. Her neighbor puts the candy on the table and says, “I need to get the phone, so help yourself to
whatever kind of candy you want, but please take only one piece.” Which of the following would most
encourage Harriett to take only one piece of candy?
a. If Harriet’s costume prevented the neighbor from recognizing her
b. If Harriett was dressed up as a pirate
c. If the candy was placed in front of a mirror
d. If Harriett was high in need for cognition
OBJ: 4 KEY: Applied
59. Johnson and Downing (1979) found that participants wearing nurses’ uniforms delivered lower levels
of shock when they were anonymous than when they were identifiable. This finding suggests that
deindividuation causes people to
a. feel that the normative standards of the group do not apply to them.
b. engage in destructive behavior when they are anonymous.
c. rely more heavily on personal standards of behavior when they are anonymous.
d. act in ways that are consistent with the norms of the most salient group.
60. In many anonymous online communities, accountability is ______ and attentional cues are _______.
a. low; low
b. low; high
c. high; low
d. high; high
OBJ: 4 KEY: Factual
61. According to the ___________, whether deindividuation affects people for better or for worse depends
on a group’s characteristics and norms.
a. process loss model
b. social identity model of deindividuation effects
c. emotional reciprocation model
d. conflict-distraction model of deindividuation
62. In conjunctive tasks, group performance is determined by the
a. sum of the performance of each individual in the group.
b. ratio of individual performance to group performance.
c. performance of the weakest group member.
d. performance of the strongest group member.
ANS: C REF: Group Performance: Problems and Solutions
OBJ: 5 KEY: Factual
63. Brainstorming is an example of a(n) _____ task.

a. additive.
b. conjunctive.
c. disjunctive.
d. unitary.
ANS: A REF: Group Performance: Problems and Solutions
64. A task in which the group’s performance is determined by the best group member is considered
a. additive.
b. conjunctive.
c. disjunctive.
d. divisible.
65. Sam, Diane, and Frasier are members of a team competing in a test of general knowledge. Any team
member can answer the moderator’s questions. The team’s task can be described as
a. additive.
b. conjunctive.
c. disjunctive.
d. collective.
OBJ: 5 KEY: Applied
66. Tendencies that interfere with a group’s ability to live up to its full potential are referred to as
examples of
a. disjunctive tasks.
b. process loss.
c. sample biases.
d. nonadditive effects.
ANS: B REF: Group Performance: Problems and Solutions
67. Groups tend to outperform individuals on
a. additive tasks, but not conjunctive tasks.
b. disjunctive tasks, but not conjunctive tasks.
c. conjunctive tasks, but not additive tasks.
d. additive, conjunctive, and disjunctive tasks.
68. An increase in group performance such that the group outperforms the individuals who comprise the
group is called
a. process loss.
b. process gain.
c. escalation.
d. polarization.
ANS: B REF: Group Performance: Problems and Solutions OBJ: 5
KEY: Factual NOT: New
69. When a task can be divided so various subgroups can work on different aspects of it, and the task has a
solution in which the correct answer is immediately evident when presented to the group, the group is
likely to experience
a. process loss.
b. synergy.
c. escalation.
d. group support.
ANS: B REF: Group Performance: Problems and Solutions OBJ: 5
70. Research on brainstorming in groups demonstrates that

a. people brainstorming together produce fewer and lower-quality ideas than those
brainstorming individually.
b. people believe that the ideas generated in group brainstorming sessions are not as good as
those generated by individuals.
c. group brainstorming can be enhanced by production blocking.
d. people feel more comfortable expressing unusual ideas in group brainstorming sessions.
71. Farooq and his coworkers are trying to develop a creative direct mail campaign that will increase sales
of their new snowboard. Which of the following strategies is least likely to yield high-quality ideas?
a. Hold a brainstorming session with a facilitator trained in group brainstorming
b. Form an interactive group employing electronic brainstorming
c. Hold a brainstorming session using Osborn’s ground rules for brainstorming
d. Create “nominal groups” and work independently
OBJ: 5 KEY: Applied
72. Research on brainstorming suggests that
a. it is typically an effective practice, even though people often dislike doing it.
b. it is typically an ineffective practice, even though people often enjoy doing it.
c. it works better among very large groups than among smaller groups.
d. it works better for disjunctive tasks than for conjunctive tasks.
73. De Dreu and others (2011) have found that _____ can enhance the performance of brainstorming
groups.
a. motivation toward the collective success of the group
b. motivation for personal success in individual performance
c. motivation for a thorough and accurate understanding of the problem at hand
d. All of these
74. All of the following appear to reduce the effectiveness of group brainstorming except
a. production blocking.
b. social compensation.
c. evaluation apprehension.
d. performance matching.
OBJ: 5 KEY: Factual
75. Electronic brainstorming may be more effective than face-to-face group brainstorming because it
a. enhances production blocking.
b. inhibits free riding.
c. promotes performance matching.
d. increases personal accountability.
76. The tendency for groups to become more extreme in their positions following discussion is called
a. group polarization.
b. social loafing.
c. a social dilemma.
OBJ: 6 KEY: Factual
77. Following group discussion, group decisions tend to _____ the positions of the individuals comprising
the group.
a. be more conservative than
b. be more risky than
c. reflect the average of
d. be more extreme than
ANS: D REF: Group Performance: Problems and Solutions
OBJ: 6 KEY: Factual
78. Before the meeting, each of several city council members was tentatively considering an air pollution
ordinance. After the meeting, they expressed strong support of the ordinance. This outcome is an
example of
b. social loafing.
c. a social dilemma.
OBJ: 6 KEY: Applied
79. A group of students is discussing whether same-sex couples should be allowed to marry. The students
begin the discussion with opinions that are somewhat in favor of gay marriage. If group polarization
occurs,
a. students will be more strongly supportive of gay marriage after the discussion.
b. students will be more strongly opposed to gay marriage after the discussion.
c. students’ attitudes will not change as a result of the discussion.
d. a great deal of disagreement and conflict will occur during the discussion.
OBJ: 6 KEY: Applied
80. Consider a study in which researchers created groups of relatively prejudiced and unprejudiced high
school students and asked them to respond to issues concerning racial attitudes, both before and after
discussion of these issues. Following the group discussions, you would expect that
a. both groups would become more prejudiced.
b. both groups would become less prejudiced.
c. those who were relatively unprejudiced would become less prejudiced and those who were
relatively prejudiced would become more prejudiced.
d. those who were relatively unprejudiced would become more prejudiced and those who
were relatively prejudiced would become less prejudiced.
OBJ: 6 KEY: Factual
81. Group polarization may, in part, stem from

a. an increase in dominant responses under conditions of high arousal.
b. lack of group cohesiveness.
c. deindividuation of group members.
d. the desire to distinguish one’s group from other groups.
82. Based on the social comparison explanation of group polarization, group members’ attitudes toward an
issue should be most influenced by
a. how different their attitudes are from those of an outgroup.
b. those in the ingroup who favor a cautious approach.
c. the number of people in their group who share that attitude.
d. those in the ingroup who offer the most arguments relevant to the issue.
83. Latasha joined a campus group called “Young Republicans.” Which of these outcomes is most
consistent with the persuasive arguments explanation for group polarization?
a. In the attempt to fit in, Latasha adjusts her attitudes to be even more conservative.
b. Latasha self-categorizes as a Republican, and her political beliefs become more extreme as
a result.
c. After exposure to ideas she has not thought of before, Latasha comes to possess even more
conservative beliefs.
d. In an attempt to convince others she is a “good” Republican, Latasha persuades herself to
be more conservative.
OBJ: 6 KEY: Applied
84. Which of the following is a strictly informational social influence explanation for group polarization?
a. Social comparison theory
b. Self perception theory
c. Persuasive arguments theory
d. None of these
85. Groupthink emerges when

a. the need for agreement takes priority over the desire to obtain correct information.
b. group members feel that they will be unable to compensate for social loafing.
c. individual benefits are in conflict with the needs of the group.
d. group norms overwhelm individual identities.
OBJ: 7 KEY: Factual
86. Groupthink is more likely to occur

a. when groups have systematic decision-making procedures.
b. if the group lacks a strong directive leader.
c. in low-stress situations.
d. in highly cohesive groups.
87. The characteristics of groups that contribute to groupthink include all of the following except
a. group cohesiveness.
b. group structure.
c. group size.
d. group stress.
OBJ: 7 KEY: Factual
88. Hendrika owns a small aerospace company and wants to make sure that she recognizes the signs of
groupthink if it crops up in her group meetings. She should be especially concerned that groupthink
may be occurring if the group exhibits
a. coalition formation.
b. social loafing.
c. divergent thinking.
d. closed-mindedness.
OBJ: 7 KEY: Applied
89. John, George, Paul, and Richard are air traffic controllers. They encounter a stressful, anxious situation
in which two planes might soon collide. Which of the following conditions would most encourage this
group of air traffic controllers to display groupthink when pondering their next step?
a. A majority decision is more acceptable than a unanimous decision.
b. There are systematic procedures in place to handle such situations.
c. None of them is considered to be a supervisor of any of the others.
d. They are a cohesive group.
OBJ: 7 KEY: Applied
90. Which of the following would be an effective way for a leader to reduce the possibility of groupthink?
a. Express her opinion only after other group members have voiced their opinions
b. Emphasize that the group decision must be a unanimous one
c. Take a more directive role in the group discussion
d. Appoint a few people in the group to act as “mindguards”
OBJ: 7 KEY: Applied
91. _______ is referred to as when a group increases its commitment to a failing course of action in order
to justify previous investments.
a. The escalation effect
b. Mindguarding
c. Graduated and reciprocated initiatives in tension reduction
d. Biased sampling
OBJ: 7 KEY: Factual
92. Though the new mentoring program doesn’t seem to be working very well, Principal McVickers
argues that the school should continue to invest in it because they have already committed so many
resources to it. This illustrates
a. social loafing.
b. groupthink.
c. the escalation effect.
d. the sucker effect.
OBJ: 7 KEY: Applied
93. Biased sampling is least likely to reduce group effectiveness when group members have _____ trust,
and unique information is known by _____.
a. high; only one group member
b. high; more than one group member
c. low; only one group member
d. low; more than one group member
94. Biased sampling is an example of

a. process loss.
b. process gain.
c. the risky shift.
d. deindividuation.
95. Research on information processing in groups suggests that

a. if the individuals who comprise the group are prone to rely on a particular heuristic, the
group will be even less likely to use this heuristic.
b. if the individuals who comprise the group are prone to rely on a particular heuristic, the
group will be even more likely to use this heuristic.
c. regardless of the information-processing propensities of individual group members, groups
are less likely than individuals to rely on heuristics.
d. regardless of the information-processing propensities of individual group members, groups
are more likely than individuals to rely on heuristics.
96. Biased sampling in groups is the process whereby

a. people tend to choose those they know well to be in a group.
b. information that is known by many group members tends to enter into the discussion more
than information known only by a few.
c. people tend to discuss negative information more than positive information in their
discussion about an important decision.
d. sharing information in a group can be impeded by the gender composition of the group.
OBJ: 8 KEY: Factual
97. Jai is allowed to speak to his supervisor, but not to report anything to his supervisor’s supervisor. This
describes the _____ in Jai’s work group.
a. communication network
b. escalation boundary
c. social dilemma
d. social facilitation
98. If it is important for your group to overcome biased information sampling in a decision-making task,
what goal should your group’s leader focus on?
a. Critical discussion and delay of consensus
b. Seeking common ground and high group morale
c. Quick agreement to settle the matter
d. Finding integrative solutions
99. A shared system for remembering information that allows groups to demonstrate more efficient
memory than individuals is known as
a. semantic memory.
b. transactive memory.
c. process loss.
d. facilitative memory.
OBJ: 8 KEY: Factual
100. Kelly always remembers the information about family events, birthdays, finances, and so forth. Her
spouse, Kirk, always remembers the information about world history, politics, news events, and so
forth. Together, they are able to remember much more than they would alone because they have
developed a(n) _____ system.
a. transactive memory
b. group support
c. electronic brainstorming
d. social facilitation
101. Coach Valentine does not think that his team is playing up to its full potential. To increase the
performance of the team, the coach should
a. build the team’s confidence by setting goals that are not challenging and easy to attain.
b. urge each team member to try to do his or her best.
c. set specific, challenging, and reachable goals for the team.
d. avoid giving the team any particular goals to minimize the pressure on the team.
OBJ: 9 KEY: Applied
102. Research by Woolley and colleagues (2008) suggest that when it comes to expertise and planning,
a. groups with experts can typically get away with not planning their strategy ahead of time,
with little adverse effect on performance.
b. groups that create a clear plan for how to address a problem don’t enjoy any extra benefits
from having experts as members.
c. expertise is much more important than planning when it comes to group performance.
d. None of these
OBJ: 9 KEY: Factual
103. Wagerman and others (2009) found that stability of membership

a. had no impact on team performance.
b. had high impact on team performance.
c. had low impact on team performance.
d. was irrelevant to team performance.
104. Creating training programs and team interventions for groups can be
a. a valuable investment.
b. worth a try, but their effectiveness is not yet clearly established.
c. a total waste of time.
d. helpful for virtual teams, but not face-to-face teams.
105. Specialized interactive computer programs that are used to guide group meetings, collaborative work,
and decision-making processes are called
a. group support systems.
b. social dilemmas.
c. SIDE supports.
d. transactive memory systems.
106. Computerized group support systems help to minimize the potential for groupthink by
a. providing more power to the leader of the group.
b. allowing group members to raise concerns anonymously.
c. focusing the attention of group members on their relationships with one another.
d. increasing the cohesiveness of the group.
OBJ: 9 KEY: Factual
107. Groups of people who work interdependently with shared purpose across time, space, and organization
boundaries are called
a. virtual teams.
b. brainstorming teams.
c. negotiating teams.
d. work crews.
108. Virtual groups are _____ susceptible to process loss than face-to-face groups.
a. more
b. less
c. equally
d. more and less
109. Research on diversity suggests that

a. even the mere expectation of being part of a diverse group can impact performance.
b. the benefits of diversity for group performance tend to be much greater in collectivist
versus individualistic cultures.
c. diversity is often associated with positive group dynamics.
d. diversity often has negative effects when it comes to outcomes like market share and
profits.
OBJ: 9 KEY: Factual
110. Cecile is very aware that, as a French woman, she brings certain assumptions to the table--she tends to
be more liberal both politically and socially. She is also aware that her coworker, who was raised as a
Southern Baptist in Indiana, brings a different set of assumptions to the table--the coworker tends to be
more conservative in a variety of ways. Cecile often checks the accuracy of her assumptions so that her
assumptions don’t negatively influence her interaction with her coworker. Cecile is displaying
a. high cultural meta-cognition.
b. an escalation effect.
c. a group support system.
d. a personal resource dilemma.
111. Viviana lives in an ethnically diverse community. She is attending a PTA meeting concerning how to
provide a complete and fair history curriculum. It is likely that
a. the members of the PTA will judge their own work more positively than will members of
PTAs in ethnically homogenous communities.
b. the PTA will come up with more creative solutions than will PTAs in ethnically
homogenous communities.
c. misunderstandings will be less likely among her PTA members than among PTA members
from ethnically homogenous communities.
d. cliques will be less likely to form in her PTA than in PTAs from ethnically homogenous
communities.
OBJ: 9 KEY: Applied
112. Consider the prisoner’s dilemma. You will receive the worst possible outcome in such a scenario if
you decide to be ________ and your partner decides to be ________.
a. selfish; selfish
b. selfish; cooperative
c. cooperative; selfish
d. cooperative; cooperative
ANS: C REF: Conflict: Cooperation and Competition Within and Between Groups
OBJ: 10 KEY: Factual
113. Teddi wants everyone in her department to do well. Jerry wants to make sure he does better than
everyone else in his department. Teddi has a(n) _____ social value orientation, while Jerry has a(n)
_____ social value orientation.
a. cooperative; competitive
b. individualist; competitive
c. cooperative; individualist
d. competitive; individualist
ANS: A REF: Conflict: Cooperation and Competition Within and Between Groups
114. People with a(n) _____ social value orientation are less competitive in social dilemmas.
a. cooperative
b. competitive
c. individualist
d. aggressive
115. Jean-Paul works for National Public Radio. He has been assigned to run the fund drive necessary to
keep NPR on the air in various communities. Suppose that keeping NPR on the air in a given
community is contingent upon the percentage of people in the community who donate money. It is
likely that
a. Jean-Paul will get more donations from people who have a collectivist orientation than
from those who have an individualist orientation.
b. Jean-Paul will be likely to get a greater percentage of donations from people living in the
city than from people living in smaller close-knit communities.
c. whether the people Jean-Paul speaks with are in a good mood or a bad mood will have no
influence on their willingness to donate.
d. if Jean-Paul is truthful and tells people that many others have already donated, people will
be less likely to donate their own money.
OBJ: 10 KEY: Applied
116. Five students—Jalen, Chris, Juwan, Jimmy, and Ray—move into a house together and discover they
share the odd habit of drinking milk with ice in it every night before bed. They own several ice trays
and make a pact to always refill the trays when they are emptied so that the supply of ice will never
run out. But the five often do not have the time or energy to refill the trays, and after a few weeks, it
becomes quite common for them to meet in the kitchen and discover that they have no ice. This would
best be characterized as what type of dilemma?
a. Prisoner’s dilemma
b. Normative dilemma
c. Tit-for-tat dilemma
d. Resource dilemma
ANS: D REF: Conflict: Cooperation and Competition Within and Between Groups
117. Chinese-American college students primed with Chinese images before playing a prisoner’s dilemma
game
a. cooperated more when playing with friends than when playing with strangers.
b. cooperated less than did Chinese Americans primed with American images.
c. endorsed collectivist ideals during the game, but tended to play in a rather competitive
manner.
d. endorsed individualistic ideals during the game, but tended to play in a rather cooperative
manner.
118. With regard to behavior during social dilemmas, groups tend to be more _____ than individuals.
a. cooperative
b. averse to risk
c. gullible
d. competitive
119. Who would cooperate the most in a social dilemma?
a. A woman playing a social dilemma game with another woman
b. A woman playing a social dilemma game with a man
c. A man playing a social dilemma game with another man
d. A man playing a social dilemma game in a large group of men.
ANS: B REF: Conflict: Cooperation and Competition Within and Between Groups
120. At Verbal High, the football players and cheerleaders do not get along at all. The cheerleaders think
the football players are vain and superficial. The football players feel the same way about the
cheerleaders. The football players and the cheerleaders seem to suffer from
a. a resource dilemma.
b. superordinate identities.
c. mirror image perceptions.
d. groupthink.
121. Bart hopes to employ the GRIT strategy with his opponent, Homer. In order for the strategy to work, it
is necessary that
a. Homer like Bart.
b. Homer has a cooperative orientation.
c. Bart retaliate equally if Homer acts competitively.
d. Bart carry out an initiative only after the previous one has been reciprocated.
122. A negotiated reduction to a conflict in which all parties obtain outcomes that are superior to those they
would have obtained from an equal division of contested resources is called a(n)
a. social dilemma.
b. superordinate identity.
c. integrative agreement.
d. prisoner’s dilemma.
123. Thompson and Hrebec (1996) found that in more than _____ percent of negotiations that could have
resulted in integrative agreements, the participants agreed to settlements that were worse for both
sides.
a. 90
b. 60
c. 40
d. 20
124. The perception that members of different groups belong to a larger whole that encompasses both
groups is called
b. an integrative agreement.
c. a superordinate identity.
125. A person from an individualist culture would prefer to

a. make concessions toward the end of the negotiation.
b. make concessions toward the beginning of the negotiation.
c. make concessions in the middle of the negotiation.
d. never make concessions at all.
ESSAY
1. Describe three key structural features of groups.
ANS:
Group structure is often described with regard to three features: roles, norms, and cohesiveness. Roles
refer to the sets of expected behavior for each individual group member, and they may be formal or
informal. Formal roles are explicitly stated: a person is the leader, another person is the group scribe,
and so forth. Informal roles are more implicit: a particular member evolves into the group “clown” or
“caretaker.” Norms refer to the group standards and expectations that apply to all members--in some
ways, the norms are unifying while the roles provide differentiation within that frame. Norms also may
be explicitly stated (formal) or implicit (informal). Finally, cohesion refers to how will the group
“sticks together.” Cohesive groups are characterized by high attraction among members, and is
associated with stronger adherence to group norms. Consequently, the relationship between cohesion
and performance often depends on the nature of the group norms.
REF: Fundamentals of Groups NOT: New
2. Explain how the presence of others affects performance on easy and hard tasks, and give three
explanations to account for these effects.
ANS:
The presence of others facilitates performance on easy tasks and impedes performance on hard tasks.
Three mechanisms have been proposed to account for this phenomenon, often referred to as social
facilitation: (1) the mere presence theory suggests that the mere presence of others is arousing, and it is
this general arousal that is responsible for the effects of social facilitation; (2) the evaluation
apprehension model suggests that it is the fear of being evaluated by others that is responsible for
social facilitation effects; and (3) the distraction-conflict theory suggests that other people are
distracting, and it is simply the distraction provided by their presence that enhances performance on an
easy task and impedes performance on a difficult task.
REF: Individuals in Groups: The Presence of Others

3. Explain how discussion of a topic with like-minded others can lead people to hold their views with
greater conviction, and why this happens.
ANS:
When people discuss a topic with like-minded others, they often experience an exaggeration of the
initial tendencies in their thinking. For example, individuals who enter a discussion with a slight
preference for a risky course of action often leave that discussion endorsing an even riskier position.
This phenomenon is called group polarization, for which at least two explanations have been proposed.
(1) Persuasive arguments theory suggests that people in a group discussion with like-minded others
hear novel informational arguments to support their initial views that then intensify these views. (2)
Social comparison theory suggests that once people get in a group, they compare themselves with
others and then adjust their own attitudes to be even more typical of the group norm so that they
appear to be “good” group members.
REF: Group Performance: Problems and Solutions
4. Define groupthink, and identify antecedents that contribute to the phenomenon as well as strategies for
preventing it.
ANS:
Groupthink is the tendency to prioritize agreement among group members over the motivation to get
accurate information and make appropriate decisions. In Janis’s model, there are three primary
antecedents to groupthink: (1) group cohesiveness, (2) group structure (e.g., unsystematic procedures,
isolation, etc.), and (3) stressful situations. It should be noted, however, that recent work indicates that
high cohesiveness may not by itself encourage groupthink. Rather, high cohesiveness in conjunction
with other conditions conducive to groupthink can encourage this tendency. Janis has offered several
strategies for preventing groupthink, including consulting with outsiders, having leaders encourage
open debate and refrain from taking a strong position, assigning an individual in the group the role of
challenging the group’s ideas, and meeting for a second time after a decision has been reached before
implementing a chosen action. Recent research suggests some additional strategies, including holding
members of the group personally accountable for the decision, having a member of the group assigned
the role of “reminder,” having leaders encourage information seeking and independent thinking and
discourage seeking agreement, and using computerized group support systems.
REF: Group Performance: Problems and Solutions
5. Discuss how GRIT can lead to the reduction of group conflict.
ANS:
GRIT (graduated and reciprocated initiatives in tension reduction) is a unilateral strategy aimed at
reducing conflict between groups. When using GRIT, an individual or group issues a general statement
of intention to reduce conflict and proposes an initiative aimed at reducing tension. The individual or
group then carries out the initiative as proposed. If the other party makes a cooperative move, the
initiator reciprocates with a more cooperative move, and so on. The initiator maintains a retaliatory
capability to avoid exploitation at the hands of an uncooperative partner. This tit-for-tat strategy has
been shown to have promise for conflict reduction.
REF: Conflict: Cooperation and Competition Within and Between Groups

Social Psych 7th Ed TestBank - Ch08

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Social Psych 7th Ed TestBank - Ch08

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CHAPTER 8: GROUP PROCESSES

1. Which of the following is true of groups?

4. Groups differ from collectives in that

5. Which of the following would most likely be described as a collective?

8. An important part of people’s self-worth is derived from group membership, according to

9. Groups include all of the following essential components except

10. Roles are

38. Ringelmann’s research in the 1880s demonstrated that

51. Deindividuation refers to the

54. Deindividuation is more likely when

63. Brainstorming is an example of a(n) _____ task.

70. Research on brainstorming in groups demonstrates that

81. Group polarization may, in part, stem from

85. Groupthink emerges when

86. Groupthink is more likely to occur

94. Biased sampling is an example of

95. Research on information processing in groups suggests that

96. Biased sampling in groups is the process whereby

103. Wagerman and others (2009) found that stability of membership

109. Research on diversity suggests that

125. A person from an individualist culture would prefer to

1. Describe three key structural features of groups.

REF: Fundamentals of Groups NOT: New

REF: Individuals in Groups: The Presence of Others

REF: Group Performance: Problems and Solutions

REF: Group Performance: Problems and Solutions

5. Discuss how GRIT can lead to the reduction of group conflict.

REF: Conflict: Cooperation and Competition Within and Between Groups

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