Social Psychology | exam 1
PSYC 3306 – SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY | PRACTICE EXAM 1 | DR. STOCKS
– UT TYLER | EXAM QUESTIONS AND CORRECT ANSWERS | VERIFIED
SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 2026/2027
1. Social psychology is best defined as the scientific study of how
people:
A. Develop cognitive abilities across the lifespan
B. Think about, influence, and relate to one another
C. Respond to mental illness and its treatment
D. Process sensory information from the environment
B. Think about, influence, and relate to one another
The field focuses on how real or imagined others shape our thoughts,
feelings, and actions.
2. Which pioneer conducted what is often cited as the first social
psychology experiment, showing cyclists rode faster when racing
others?
A. Leon Festinger
B. Norman Triplett
C. Kurt Lewin
D. Floyd Allport
B. Norman Triplett
Triplett (1898) observed that the presence of competitors improved
performance, the earliest form of social facilitation research.
Page 1 of 53
, Social Psychology | exam 1
3. Kurt Lewin's formula B = f(P, E) proposes that behavior is a function
of:
A. Perception and expectation
B. Power and empathy
C. Personality and emotion
D. The person and the environment
D. The person and the environment
Lewin argued that behavior results from the interaction between
individual characteristics and the situation.
4. The tendency to believe, once an outcome is known, that one would
have predicted it is called:
A. Hindsight bias
B. Self-serving bias
C. Confirmation bias
D. Overconfidence effect
A. Hindsight bias
Hindsight bias makes findings seem obvious after the fact, which is one
reason social psychology can seem like common sense.
5. Social psychology differs from sociology mainly because social
psychology tends to focus on:
A. Individuals and how they are influenced by situations
B. Large groups and societal institutions
C. Historical trends in populations
D. Biological roots of behavior
A. Individuals and how they are influenced by situations
Sociology studies groups and structures, while social psychology
examines individuals in social contexts.
Page 2 of 53
, Social Psychology | exam 1
6. Social psychology differs from personality psychology because
personality psychology emphasizes:
A. The power of the situation to shape behavior
B. Individual differences that remain stable across situations
C. Brain structures that control emotion
D. Group-level norms and roles
B. Individual differences that remain stable across situations
Personality psychology studies traits that distinguish people, whereas
social psychology studies how situations affect most people.
7. A researcher who wants to establish cause and effect should use
which method?
A. Naturalistic observation
B. Experimental research
C. Correlational research
D. Case study
B. Experimental research
Only experiments manipulate an independent variable and control other
factors, allowing causal conclusions.
8. In an experiment, the variable the researcher manipulates is the:
A. Dependent variable
B. Mediating variable
C. Independent variable
D. Confounding variable
C. Independent variable
The independent variable is varied by the experimenter to see its effect
on the dependent variable.
9. In an experiment, the variable that is measured to see if it was
affected by the manipulation is the:
A. Dependent variable
B. Independent variable
C. Extraneous variable
D. Control variable
A. Dependent variable
The dependent variable is the outcome that may depend on the
manipulated independent variable.
Page 3 of 53
, Social Psychology | exam 1
10. Random assignment is important in experiments because it:
A. Makes groups equivalent at the start so differences can be attributed to
the manipulation
B. Guarantees high external validity
C. Eliminates the need for a control group
D. Ensures the sample represents the entire population
A. Makes groups equivalent at the start so differences can be
attributed to the manipulation
Random assignment distributes participant differences evenly across
conditions, protecting internal validity.
11. Random sampling differs from random assignment in that random
sampling primarily increases:
A. Statistical power only
B. Internal validity of an experiment
C. Reliability of measures
D. Generalizability of results to the population
D. Generalizability of results to the population
Random sampling gives everyone in a population an equal chance of
selection, which supports generalizing findings.
12. A correlation coefficient of -0.85 indicates:
A. A strong positive relationship
B. No relationship
C. A strong negative relationship
D. A weak negative relationship
C. A strong negative relationship
The sign shows direction and the magnitude shows strength; -0.85 is
strongly negative.
Page 4 of 53
PSYC 3306 – SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY | PRACTICE EXAM 1 | DR. STOCKS
– UT TYLER | EXAM QUESTIONS AND CORRECT ANSWERS | VERIFIED
SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 2026/2027
1. Social psychology is best defined as the scientific study of how
people:
A. Develop cognitive abilities across the lifespan
B. Think about, influence, and relate to one another
C. Respond to mental illness and its treatment
D. Process sensory information from the environment
B. Think about, influence, and relate to one another
The field focuses on how real or imagined others shape our thoughts,
feelings, and actions.
2. Which pioneer conducted what is often cited as the first social
psychology experiment, showing cyclists rode faster when racing
others?
A. Leon Festinger
B. Norman Triplett
C. Kurt Lewin
D. Floyd Allport
B. Norman Triplett
Triplett (1898) observed that the presence of competitors improved
performance, the earliest form of social facilitation research.
Page 1 of 53
, Social Psychology | exam 1
3. Kurt Lewin's formula B = f(P, E) proposes that behavior is a function
of:
A. Perception and expectation
B. Power and empathy
C. Personality and emotion
D. The person and the environment
D. The person and the environment
Lewin argued that behavior results from the interaction between
individual characteristics and the situation.
4. The tendency to believe, once an outcome is known, that one would
have predicted it is called:
A. Hindsight bias
B. Self-serving bias
C. Confirmation bias
D. Overconfidence effect
A. Hindsight bias
Hindsight bias makes findings seem obvious after the fact, which is one
reason social psychology can seem like common sense.
5. Social psychology differs from sociology mainly because social
psychology tends to focus on:
A. Individuals and how they are influenced by situations
B. Large groups and societal institutions
C. Historical trends in populations
D. Biological roots of behavior
A. Individuals and how they are influenced by situations
Sociology studies groups and structures, while social psychology
examines individuals in social contexts.
Page 2 of 53
, Social Psychology | exam 1
6. Social psychology differs from personality psychology because
personality psychology emphasizes:
A. The power of the situation to shape behavior
B. Individual differences that remain stable across situations
C. Brain structures that control emotion
D. Group-level norms and roles
B. Individual differences that remain stable across situations
Personality psychology studies traits that distinguish people, whereas
social psychology studies how situations affect most people.
7. A researcher who wants to establish cause and effect should use
which method?
A. Naturalistic observation
B. Experimental research
C. Correlational research
D. Case study
B. Experimental research
Only experiments manipulate an independent variable and control other
factors, allowing causal conclusions.
8. In an experiment, the variable the researcher manipulates is the:
A. Dependent variable
B. Mediating variable
C. Independent variable
D. Confounding variable
C. Independent variable
The independent variable is varied by the experimenter to see its effect
on the dependent variable.
9. In an experiment, the variable that is measured to see if it was
affected by the manipulation is the:
A. Dependent variable
B. Independent variable
C. Extraneous variable
D. Control variable
A. Dependent variable
The dependent variable is the outcome that may depend on the
manipulated independent variable.
Page 3 of 53
, Social Psychology | exam 1
10. Random assignment is important in experiments because it:
A. Makes groups equivalent at the start so differences can be attributed to
the manipulation
B. Guarantees high external validity
C. Eliminates the need for a control group
D. Ensures the sample represents the entire population
A. Makes groups equivalent at the start so differences can be
attributed to the manipulation
Random assignment distributes participant differences evenly across
conditions, protecting internal validity.
11. Random sampling differs from random assignment in that random
sampling primarily increases:
A. Statistical power only
B. Internal validity of an experiment
C. Reliability of measures
D. Generalizability of results to the population
D. Generalizability of results to the population
Random sampling gives everyone in a population an equal chance of
selection, which supports generalizing findings.
12. A correlation coefficient of -0.85 indicates:
A. A strong positive relationship
B. No relationship
C. A strong negative relationship
D. A weak negative relationship
C. A strong negative relationship
The sign shows direction and the magnitude shows strength; -0.85 is
strongly negative.
Page 4 of 53
