PSY 102 Exam 3 V1 | PSY 102 General Psychology | Actual Q&A with
Rationale (PSY102 Exam 3) | Grand Canyon University
1. According to Jean Piaget, during which stage of cognitive development do children begin to
understand the concept of object permanence?
A. Preoperational Stage
B. Formal Operational Stage
C. Concrete Operational Stage
D. Sensorimotor Stage
Answer: D
Rationale: Object permanence is the cognitive milestone where a child realizes that objects
continue to exist even when out of sight. This typically develops during the sensorimotor
stage, which spans from birth to roughly two years of age. Without this understanding,
objects that are hidden are essentially forgotten by the infant.
2. Which of Erikson’s psychosocial stages focuses on adolescents searching for a sense of self
and personal identity?
A. Trust vs. Mistrust
B. Autonomy vs. Shame
C. Generativity vs. Stagnation
D. Identity vs. Role Confusion
Answer: D
Rationale: During adolescence, individuals face the challenge of defining who they are and
what they want to do with their lives. Success in this stage leads to an ability to stay true to
oneself, while failure results in role confusion and a weak sense of self. This stage is critical
for forming a stable foundation for adulthood.
3. In Kohlberg’s theory of moral development, a person who makes decisions based on
avoiding punishment is in which level?
A. Principled Morality
B. Conventional Morality
C. Postconventional Morality
D. Preconventional Morality
Answer: D
,Rationale: Preconventional morality is the earliest level of moral development and is
common in children. At this level, morality is externally controlled and based on the
physical consequences of actions. Therefore, behavior is driven primarily by the desire to
avoid punishment or gain rewards.
4. What is the term for the tendency for people to exert less effort when they are pooling
their efforts toward a common goal than when they are individually accountable?
A. Social Facilitation
B. Groupthink
C. Social Loafing
D. Deindividuation
Answer: C
Rationale: Social loafing occurs when individuals feel less noticed or accountable within a
large group. This phenomenon suggests that collective action can sometimes decrease
individual motivation. It is often countered by making individual contributions identifiable
to the rest of the group.
5. When an observer underestimates the impact of the situation and overestimates the
impact of personal disposition on another’s behavior, they are committing:
A. The Fundamental Attribution Error
B. The Self-Serving Bias
C. The Confirmation Bias
D. Cognitive Dissonance
Answer: A
Rationale: The fundamental attribution error describes our tendency to explain others’
behavior through their character rather than their circumstances. For example, if someone
cuts us off in traffic, we assume they are a ‘bad person’ rather than considering they might
be in an emergency. This bias is a central concept in social psychology studies of human
perception.
6. Stanley Milgram’s famous experiments were designed to measure the willingness of
participants to obey an authority figure. What was the ‘task’ the participants were asked to
perform?
A. Delivering electric shocks to a learner
B. Playing a role as a prisoner or guard
C. Judging the length of lines
D. Completing complex mathematical equations
, Answer: A
Rationale: In Milgram’s study, participants were instructed by an authority figure to
administer increasingly severe electric shocks to another person. Although the shocks were
fake, the participants believed they were real, testing the limits of obedience. The results
showed that a high percentage of people would follow orders even if it caused harm to
others.
7. Which of the Big Five personality traits describes someone who is organized, careful, and
disciplined?
A. Openness
B. Agreeableness
C. Conscientiousness
D. Extraversion
Answer: C
Rationale: Conscientiousness is the trait that reflects a person’s level of self-discipline and
organization. Individuals high in this trait tend to be reliable and prefer planned rather
than spontaneous behavior. Research often links high conscientiousness to better job
performance and academic success.
8. In Freud’s theory of personality, which part of the mind operates on the ‘pleasure
principle’?
A. The Collective Unconscious
B. The Ego
C. The Superego
D. The Id
Answer: D
Rationale: The Id is the primitive and instinctive component of personality that contains
our basic urges. It operates solely on the pleasure principle, which demands immediate
gratification of all needs and desires. Freud believed the Id is present from birth and is
entirely unconscious.
9. Intelligence that reflects accumulated knowledge and verbal skills is known as:
A. Fluid Intelligence
B. Emotional Intelligence
C. Crystallized Intelligence
D. Spatial Intelligence
Rationale (PSY102 Exam 3) | Grand Canyon University
1. According to Jean Piaget, during which stage of cognitive development do children begin to
understand the concept of object permanence?
A. Preoperational Stage
B. Formal Operational Stage
C. Concrete Operational Stage
D. Sensorimotor Stage
Answer: D
Rationale: Object permanence is the cognitive milestone where a child realizes that objects
continue to exist even when out of sight. This typically develops during the sensorimotor
stage, which spans from birth to roughly two years of age. Without this understanding,
objects that are hidden are essentially forgotten by the infant.
2. Which of Erikson’s psychosocial stages focuses on adolescents searching for a sense of self
and personal identity?
A. Trust vs. Mistrust
B. Autonomy vs. Shame
C. Generativity vs. Stagnation
D. Identity vs. Role Confusion
Answer: D
Rationale: During adolescence, individuals face the challenge of defining who they are and
what they want to do with their lives. Success in this stage leads to an ability to stay true to
oneself, while failure results in role confusion and a weak sense of self. This stage is critical
for forming a stable foundation for adulthood.
3. In Kohlberg’s theory of moral development, a person who makes decisions based on
avoiding punishment is in which level?
A. Principled Morality
B. Conventional Morality
C. Postconventional Morality
D. Preconventional Morality
Answer: D
,Rationale: Preconventional morality is the earliest level of moral development and is
common in children. At this level, morality is externally controlled and based on the
physical consequences of actions. Therefore, behavior is driven primarily by the desire to
avoid punishment or gain rewards.
4. What is the term for the tendency for people to exert less effort when they are pooling
their efforts toward a common goal than when they are individually accountable?
A. Social Facilitation
B. Groupthink
C. Social Loafing
D. Deindividuation
Answer: C
Rationale: Social loafing occurs when individuals feel less noticed or accountable within a
large group. This phenomenon suggests that collective action can sometimes decrease
individual motivation. It is often countered by making individual contributions identifiable
to the rest of the group.
5. When an observer underestimates the impact of the situation and overestimates the
impact of personal disposition on another’s behavior, they are committing:
A. The Fundamental Attribution Error
B. The Self-Serving Bias
C. The Confirmation Bias
D. Cognitive Dissonance
Answer: A
Rationale: The fundamental attribution error describes our tendency to explain others’
behavior through their character rather than their circumstances. For example, if someone
cuts us off in traffic, we assume they are a ‘bad person’ rather than considering they might
be in an emergency. This bias is a central concept in social psychology studies of human
perception.
6. Stanley Milgram’s famous experiments were designed to measure the willingness of
participants to obey an authority figure. What was the ‘task’ the participants were asked to
perform?
A. Delivering electric shocks to a learner
B. Playing a role as a prisoner or guard
C. Judging the length of lines
D. Completing complex mathematical equations
, Answer: A
Rationale: In Milgram’s study, participants were instructed by an authority figure to
administer increasingly severe electric shocks to another person. Although the shocks were
fake, the participants believed they were real, testing the limits of obedience. The results
showed that a high percentage of people would follow orders even if it caused harm to
others.
7. Which of the Big Five personality traits describes someone who is organized, careful, and
disciplined?
A. Openness
B. Agreeableness
C. Conscientiousness
D. Extraversion
Answer: C
Rationale: Conscientiousness is the trait that reflects a person’s level of self-discipline and
organization. Individuals high in this trait tend to be reliable and prefer planned rather
than spontaneous behavior. Research often links high conscientiousness to better job
performance and academic success.
8. In Freud’s theory of personality, which part of the mind operates on the ‘pleasure
principle’?
A. The Collective Unconscious
B. The Ego
C. The Superego
D. The Id
Answer: D
Rationale: The Id is the primitive and instinctive component of personality that contains
our basic urges. It operates solely on the pleasure principle, which demands immediate
gratification of all needs and desires. Freud believed the Id is present from birth and is
entirely unconscious.
9. Intelligence that reflects accumulated knowledge and verbal skills is known as:
A. Fluid Intelligence
B. Emotional Intelligence
C. Crystallized Intelligence
D. Spatial Intelligence
