Psych 280 Midterm #2 Exam
Questions with Guaranteed Pass
Solutions (2025-2026) Updated.
Norms - Answer learned social rules
-help establish and maintain social order
-mindlessly following these can be a problem
Descriptive Norms - Answer How others are actually behaving
Injunctive Norms - Answer What is acceptable and unacceptable
Conformity - Answer A change in behavior or beliefs to agree with others; people acting in line
with norms
Informational Social Influence - Answer Conformity from accepting evidence provided by
other people
-Motivated by desire to be accurate
-Look to others when we don't know the right answer
-Taking comments/actions of others as a source of information about what is correct, proper or
effective
Jackie is going to the Michigan Theater ticket office to buy tickets for an upcoming concert.
When she gets there, a theater employee tells her to wait at the end of the line coming out of
the box office. She then goes and stands in line with the others. This is an example of what?
Normative Social Influence - Answer Conformity based on a desire to fulfill others'
expectations; motivated by desire to be accepted; Influence from others that comes from
avoiding their disapproval, being teased, etc
-Atencio is sixteen years old and has four very close friends, all of whom smoke. Atencio has
never had any particular desire to smoke cigarettes, and his friends have never asked or told
him to smoke. Nevertheless, he feels compelled to start smoking. The force that is pushing
Atencio to start smoking is known as:
,3. Cohesion: Members of cohesive groups conform more
4. Status: If group members are high status, more conformity
5. Public response: People conform more when they must respond publicly
6. Public commitment: Making a public commitment to your own position decreases
conformity
Public Compliance - Answer Yielding to a request for certain behaviors or agreement to a
particular point of view while privately disagreeing; using an explicit request to influence
behavior
Pierre joins the other concertgoers in giving the symphony a standing ovation, even though he
thought the performance was merely adequate. The next morning, Pierre confides to his
girlfriend that the performance was "satisfactory, but not overwhelming." In joining the
standing ovation, Pierre displayed what kind of conformity?
Foot-in-the-Door Technique - Answer Willingness to comply to a larger request after first
complying with a smaller request
Door-in-the-Face Technique - Answer Asking for a larger favor first and then retreating to a
smaller favor - "meeting someone halfway"
Norm of Reciprocity - Answer Expectation that people will help those who have helped them
Principle of Social Proof - Answer We determine what's correct by looking to others
Scarcity - Answer Things you do not or cannot have become more valuable
Obedience - Answer A change in behavior or beliefs as a result of the commands of others in
authority; using authority to influence behavior; Changing one's behavior/beliefs in response to
the commands of someone with power/authority
You ask your doctor to examine your sore throat. Surprisingly, she demands that you remove
your Detroit Tigers hat and coat. If you take off your hat and coat, you have performed:
, Factors that Decrease Obedience (Milgram study) - Answer -Prestige and Status of
Experimenter
-Presence of others who disobey
-Proximity of Victim
-Personality characteristics
Milgram Study: What characteristics of the situation lead to obedience? - Answer -Emotional
distance of the victim
-Can't hear the learner and shock by remote: nearly 100% obedience
-Institutional authority
-Bridgeport, CT instead of Yale: 48% obeyed
-Presence of resisters
-Two defiant teachers added, 10% obeyed
Reactance - Answer A motive to protect or restore one's sense of freedom; Arises when
someone threatens our freedom of action; Labels of "objectionable content" have the opposite
effect of
making this material more attractive (forbidden fruit)
Asserting Uniqueness - Answer People want to be somewhat different from others; Kids asked
to describe themselves mention unique traits first
Minority Influence - Answer Makes majority think more deeply about minority position;
Minority members may think more deeply about the issue--Strong arguments
Group - Answer Three or more people who interact and are interdependent in the sense that
their needs and goals cause them to influence each other
Minimal Groups Paradigm - Answer Even arbitrary and virtually meaningless distinctions
between
groups can trigger a tendency to favor one's own group at the expense of others
Why do groups form? - Answer Relationship between psychological needs and group
Questions with Guaranteed Pass
Solutions (2025-2026) Updated.
Norms - Answer learned social rules
-help establish and maintain social order
-mindlessly following these can be a problem
Descriptive Norms - Answer How others are actually behaving
Injunctive Norms - Answer What is acceptable and unacceptable
Conformity - Answer A change in behavior or beliefs to agree with others; people acting in line
with norms
Informational Social Influence - Answer Conformity from accepting evidence provided by
other people
-Motivated by desire to be accurate
-Look to others when we don't know the right answer
-Taking comments/actions of others as a source of information about what is correct, proper or
effective
Jackie is going to the Michigan Theater ticket office to buy tickets for an upcoming concert.
When she gets there, a theater employee tells her to wait at the end of the line coming out of
the box office. She then goes and stands in line with the others. This is an example of what?
Normative Social Influence - Answer Conformity based on a desire to fulfill others'
expectations; motivated by desire to be accepted; Influence from others that comes from
avoiding their disapproval, being teased, etc
-Atencio is sixteen years old and has four very close friends, all of whom smoke. Atencio has
never had any particular desire to smoke cigarettes, and his friends have never asked or told
him to smoke. Nevertheless, he feels compelled to start smoking. The force that is pushing
Atencio to start smoking is known as:
,3. Cohesion: Members of cohesive groups conform more
4. Status: If group members are high status, more conformity
5. Public response: People conform more when they must respond publicly
6. Public commitment: Making a public commitment to your own position decreases
conformity
Public Compliance - Answer Yielding to a request for certain behaviors or agreement to a
particular point of view while privately disagreeing; using an explicit request to influence
behavior
Pierre joins the other concertgoers in giving the symphony a standing ovation, even though he
thought the performance was merely adequate. The next morning, Pierre confides to his
girlfriend that the performance was "satisfactory, but not overwhelming." In joining the
standing ovation, Pierre displayed what kind of conformity?
Foot-in-the-Door Technique - Answer Willingness to comply to a larger request after first
complying with a smaller request
Door-in-the-Face Technique - Answer Asking for a larger favor first and then retreating to a
smaller favor - "meeting someone halfway"
Norm of Reciprocity - Answer Expectation that people will help those who have helped them
Principle of Social Proof - Answer We determine what's correct by looking to others
Scarcity - Answer Things you do not or cannot have become more valuable
Obedience - Answer A change in behavior or beliefs as a result of the commands of others in
authority; using authority to influence behavior; Changing one's behavior/beliefs in response to
the commands of someone with power/authority
You ask your doctor to examine your sore throat. Surprisingly, she demands that you remove
your Detroit Tigers hat and coat. If you take off your hat and coat, you have performed:
, Factors that Decrease Obedience (Milgram study) - Answer -Prestige and Status of
Experimenter
-Presence of others who disobey
-Proximity of Victim
-Personality characteristics
Milgram Study: What characteristics of the situation lead to obedience? - Answer -Emotional
distance of the victim
-Can't hear the learner and shock by remote: nearly 100% obedience
-Institutional authority
-Bridgeport, CT instead of Yale: 48% obeyed
-Presence of resisters
-Two defiant teachers added, 10% obeyed
Reactance - Answer A motive to protect or restore one's sense of freedom; Arises when
someone threatens our freedom of action; Labels of "objectionable content" have the opposite
effect of
making this material more attractive (forbidden fruit)
Asserting Uniqueness - Answer People want to be somewhat different from others; Kids asked
to describe themselves mention unique traits first
Minority Influence - Answer Makes majority think more deeply about minority position;
Minority members may think more deeply about the issue--Strong arguments
Group - Answer Three or more people who interact and are interdependent in the sense that
their needs and goals cause them to influence each other
Minimal Groups Paradigm - Answer Even arbitrary and virtually meaningless distinctions
between
groups can trigger a tendency to favor one's own group at the expense of others
Why do groups form? - Answer Relationship between psychological needs and group
