PSY 330 Study Guide for Final Exam (Fall 2004)
Unit 1 (Introduction)
1. What is meant by the emic-etic distinction? Give some examples of how a phenomenon could be studied from each vantage point. What implications does this concept have for the study of social psychology?
2. What is meant by the notion of historical embeddedness? What implications does this have for social psychology and for Kenneth Gergen's criticisms of the field? Summarize four models of history, with a detailed emphasis on the Strauss-Howe model and its application to social psychology. (At a minimum, you should know what is meant by the saecular cycle; what the four seasons of the saeculum are; what the four generational types are, how they differ, and their placement within the seasons of the saeculum.)
3. What is a tautology? What is a near tautology? Why are tautologies and near tautologies common in social psychological research? Why are they problematic? What can be done about them?
4. Summarize Walter Mischel's criticism of social psychology.
5. Summarize the debate surrounding the use of deception in social psychology.
6. What is meant by salience? Why is salience an important concept in social psychology?
Unit 2 (Psycholinguistics)
7. What is the Whorfian hypothesis? What implications does it have for social psychology?
8. How do the two kinds of boundary languages (pidgins and creoles) differ? What do boundary languages teach us about psycholinguistics and language development?
9. How do analog and digital reasoning differ? What problems might be associated with an excessive use of either type?
10. What is meant by pragmatics? Give some examples of pragmatic rules. What are verdictives? Summarize research on modes of address.
Unit 3a (Social perception and social cognition)
11. What is meant by a schema? Give some examples. How are schemata related to the notion of implicit personality theory?
12. What is a self-fulfilling prophecy? Give some examples of how self-fulfilling prophecies can influence person perception.
13. Discuss the nature of, and limits to, introspection as a process including two kinds of self-awareness (or self-consciousness) and how they differ.
14. Summarize research on affective forecasting.
15. Explain what the overjustification effect is and how it operates.
16. Summarize the basic elements of attribution theory including the three basic attributional dimensions as well as common attribution errors such as the fundamental attribution error, actor-observer difference, and egocentric bias.
17. What is the base-rate problem and what role does it play in person perception?
18. Summarize the Big Five model of nonclinical personality diversity and know how to utilize the Big Five shorthand (e.g., E-, O+) in responding to exam questions.
19. What is the halo effect?
20. What is the two-factor theory of emotion? Summarize experimental confirmation of the theory (Schachter and Singer).
21. Who are likely targets of social comparison and why? What is social handicapping? What is fusion? How can these seemingly opposite phenomena be synthesized?
Unit 3b (Stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination)
22. Compare and contrast the notions of stereotype, prejudice, and discrimination. To what extent can some of these elements exist in the absence of other elements? How so?
23. Discuss minimal group research as related to the ingroup bias phenomenon.
24. Contrast cognitive and motivational theories of prejudice.
25. What is the black sheep effect and when is it most likely to occur? What presumably is responsible for its existence?
26. What is meant by priming? Discuss the impacts of priming on prejudice and related behaviors.
27. Discuss the use of techniques to measure implicit prejudice.
28. Summarize the nature of the jigsaw classroom technique and comment on its effectiveness as an antidote to prejudice and discrimination.
Unit 4 (Attitude formation and attitude change)
29. Define what is meant by an "attitude" in social psychology.
30. What is cognitive dissonance? Summarize dissonance-based predictions related to the process of attitude change.
31. What is the sleeper effect? When, and why, is it likely to occur?
32. What is meant by the concept of central versus peripheral routes to persuasion? When is each likely to be activated or utilized? How might persuasion techniques differ depending on the route utilized?
33. What is the inoculation effect?
34. Summarize research related to the notion of subliminal persuasion. Why is the concept a controversial one?
35. What is the need for cognition (NC) and how does it relate to attitude change and persuasion?
Unit 5 (Interpersonal attraction)
36. Discuss the following influences on interpersonal attraction and liking: (a) propinquity, (b) similarity, (c) complementarity, (d) reciprocity. What is the mere exposure effect? In what sense does this idea challenge the notion of habituation?
37. What is the "beautiful-is-good" effect? What are the limits to this effect?
38. Discuss Lee and Hendricks' model of "seven kinds of love", including a discussion of their methodology and its limitations.
39. Discuss research results, as presented in class, relating to (a) intrinsic social motivation and age-related schematic influences, (b) longitudinal studies of social motivation and loneliness, (c) liking and reciprocity, (d) norms of physical attractiveness and the Strauss-Howe cycle.
Unit 6 (Equity and social exchange)
40. Explain the equity theory equation and discuss it from the standpoint of (a) hedonic value, (b) subjectivity and salience, (c) three responses to perceptions of inequity, (d) the notion of social referents and alternatives. Offer some criticisms of equity theory.
41. How do communal and exchange relationships differ? What relationship does this concept have to equity theory?
42. Summarize the findings and implications of the in-class rating exercise as related to equity theory. Under what circumstances do people appear to focus on efforts versus outcomes? What real-world implications might this have?
43. Summarize and explain research findings relating to gender differences in equity distributions.
Unit 7 (Aggression and altruism)
44. Discuss the 3 x 2 taxonomy of types of aggression as discussed in class. Be able to classify examples of aggressive behavior.
45. Compare and contrast the two major theories of aggression as presented in lecture. What might be some ways that the two theories could be synthesized?
46. Discuss influences on the inhibition or disinhibition of aggressive drive. What is the weapons effect? Summarize Zillman's objection to the frustration-aggression hypothesis.
47. Discuss three influences on the likelihood of observational learning of aggression.
48. Discuss deindividuation effects as related to aggression.
49. Compare and contrast the notions of prosocial behavior, helping, and altruism.
50. Summarize the nature of the "altruism debate".
51. Summarize gender differences in the willingness to be helped, as discussed in class.
52. Differentiate distress and empathy as motives for helping.
53. Summarize the Latane and Darley model of helping and discuss practical implications of that model.
54. Summarize the "Good Samaritan study" and its implications. Explain the findings in terms of the Latane-Darley model.
55. Discuss implications of the Zimbardo prison simulation study on understandings of aggression and altruism as mediated by situational and role-based factors.
Unit 8 (Conformity)
56. Define conformity. What are two types of conformity and how do they differ?
57. Summarize the Asch paradigm. What are two kinds of influences on conformity in the Asch situation? Discuss how each might be maximized (or minimized). What practical implications do these findings have? Discuss four general factors that heighten or hinder conformity in the Asch situation.
58. Summarize Milgram's research on pathological obedience. Explain the findings in terms of the diffusion-of-responsibility hypothesis. Discuss macrocultural and historical (saecular) factors that might be expected to influence the degree of conformity. Why might these effects be less than anticipated?
59. Summarize the conformity-anticonformity continuum. What is the "chameleon effect" and where does it fall on this continuum?
60. Discuss lecture material related to minority influence and disobedience.
Unit 9 (Social facilitation and social conflict)
61. Summarize elements of game theory as discussed in class. What is the "prisoner's dilemma" (PD)? Give some real-world examples of PD's. How do zero-sum and nonzero-sum games differ? Games with, or without, a determinate solution? What is meant by subjective expected utility? Give examples.
62. Discuss how the following can be explained in terms of game theory: (a) the Hugh Harman cartoon "Peace on Earth" as viewed in class; (b) the in-class simulation of the Cuban missile crisis.
Unit 10 (Law and psychology)
63. What is a voir dire? What are three ways jurors can be excused from being impaneled? What is a peremptory challenge? What is the Juror Bias Scale and how does it work?
64. Discuss the role of the black sheep effect (as discussed earlier in lecture) on juror reactions to defendants at trial.
65. Discuss the role of Type I vs. Type II errors as related to juror bias and juror selection.
66. Discuss research on constructive memory as related to the reliability of eyewitness testimony.
67. Discuss and explain the leniency bias in jury deliberations.
68. Discuss the merits of (a) smaller versus larger juries, (b) unanimity rules in jury decision making based on social psychological research.
69. How do modernism and postmodernism differ? What is the difference between objectivism and constructivism? What is a metanarrative? Discuss implications for the social psychology of law.
70. Provide concrete evidence that you have watched at least one rerun of Law and Order this semester. For instance, quote one wisecrack made by Jerry Orbach's character on the show.