PSY 220 -Social Psych Midterm 1 Exam Questions and Answers Latest Update 2025-2026
3 Avenues of Social Psych - Answers 1. Social Thinking
2. Social influence
3. Social Relations
Social thinking Themes: - Answers 1. We construct our social reality
2. Our social intuitions are often powerful, but perilous
We construct our social reality - Answers ★ We like to explain our behaviours and our
surroundings
★Attributing behaviour to a cause allows for order and control
★ We all experience the world differently based on our identity and experiences
e.g. Intersectionality
Our social intuitions can be perilous - Answers ★ intuitions shape our views, fear, impressions
and relationships
★ We often misperceive others and fail to see how our expectations shape evaluations
★ We trust memory more than necessary and misread our own minds
e.g. in experiments subjects deny being affected by things that obviously affected them
Social Influence themes - Answers 1. We are social beings and want to belong
2. Dispositions shape behaviour
We're social beings and want to belong - Answers ★ This can sometimes cause conformity
ex. not speaking up in a situation where others have agreed on an opinion different from yours
★ We act in response to our social connections and environments
,To what extent do we conform? - Answers This depends on the group setting
e.g. Friends vs. Classmates vs. Strangers
Dispositions Shape Behaviour - Answers Our personality affects what we do and inner attitudes
influence our actions
e.g. when facing the same situation different people will have different reactions
Social Relations Themes - Answers 1. social behaviour is biologically rooted
2. relating to others is a basic need
Social behaviour is also biological behaviour - Answers ★ we are a result of nature and nurture
★ natural selection also predisposes our actions, reactions, and our capacity to learn and adapt
to varied environments
- we are sensitive and responsive to our social context
Social Neuroscience - Answers Integration of biological and social perspectives that explores
the neural and psychological bases of social and emotional behaviour
Relating to others is a basic need - Answers ★ We derive positivity or negativity from our
relationships
★ we want to belong and not belonging can actually manifest as physical issues
★ our relationships with others form the basis of our self-esteem
Explicit ways our values affect social psych - Answers ★ values influence research topics
★ values vary by time and culture
e.g. Study of prejudice was prevalent in the 1940s
★ influences data analysis
- depending on the research it also affects WHO they research
Implicit ways our values affect social psych - Answers 1. forming concepts
2. Labelling
Forming Concepts - Answers The way I view the world will influence how we form concepts
, Labelling - Answers Value judgements are usually hidden within our social-psychological and
everyday language
e.g. whether we label someone as a "terrorist" or a "freedom fighter" depends on our view of the
cause
naturalistic fallacy - Answers What is typical is normal and what's normal is good. Anything we
observe as normal is perceived as normal
e.g. only seeing straight couples on TV --> we see that as normal
Is Soc Psych common sense? - Answers No: we invoke common sense after we know facts.
Things seem more obvious in hindsight
Hindsight bias - Answers the tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would
have foreseen it
- the "i knew it all along phenomenon"
Theory: - Answers A broad and comprehensive statement of what is thought to be true and can
explain/ predict observed events
e.g. Gravity is a theory that explains the fact that your keys fall when dropped
Hypothesis - Answers A testable prediction, often implied by a theory that describes the
possible relationship btwn events
What makes a good theory? - Answers ★ It effectively summarizes observations
★ clear predictions that we can use to modify the theory, suggest practical applications, and
generate new ideas
Pros of Correlational Research - Answers 1. cheap and easy
2. variables are easily controlled
3. narrows down testing parameters
4. Helps you find out things you can't ethically do experiments on
Cons of Correlational Research - Answers Can't infer causality and there could be confounding
variables
Longitudinal Research - Answers A form of correlational research that takes place over a long
period of time:
- causes always happen before effects so we can sometimes root out confounding variables
3 Avenues of Social Psych - Answers 1. Social Thinking
2. Social influence
3. Social Relations
Social thinking Themes: - Answers 1. We construct our social reality
2. Our social intuitions are often powerful, but perilous
We construct our social reality - Answers ★ We like to explain our behaviours and our
surroundings
★Attributing behaviour to a cause allows for order and control
★ We all experience the world differently based on our identity and experiences
e.g. Intersectionality
Our social intuitions can be perilous - Answers ★ intuitions shape our views, fear, impressions
and relationships
★ We often misperceive others and fail to see how our expectations shape evaluations
★ We trust memory more than necessary and misread our own minds
e.g. in experiments subjects deny being affected by things that obviously affected them
Social Influence themes - Answers 1. We are social beings and want to belong
2. Dispositions shape behaviour
We're social beings and want to belong - Answers ★ This can sometimes cause conformity
ex. not speaking up in a situation where others have agreed on an opinion different from yours
★ We act in response to our social connections and environments
,To what extent do we conform? - Answers This depends on the group setting
e.g. Friends vs. Classmates vs. Strangers
Dispositions Shape Behaviour - Answers Our personality affects what we do and inner attitudes
influence our actions
e.g. when facing the same situation different people will have different reactions
Social Relations Themes - Answers 1. social behaviour is biologically rooted
2. relating to others is a basic need
Social behaviour is also biological behaviour - Answers ★ we are a result of nature and nurture
★ natural selection also predisposes our actions, reactions, and our capacity to learn and adapt
to varied environments
- we are sensitive and responsive to our social context
Social Neuroscience - Answers Integration of biological and social perspectives that explores
the neural and psychological bases of social and emotional behaviour
Relating to others is a basic need - Answers ★ We derive positivity or negativity from our
relationships
★ we want to belong and not belonging can actually manifest as physical issues
★ our relationships with others form the basis of our self-esteem
Explicit ways our values affect social psych - Answers ★ values influence research topics
★ values vary by time and culture
e.g. Study of prejudice was prevalent in the 1940s
★ influences data analysis
- depending on the research it also affects WHO they research
Implicit ways our values affect social psych - Answers 1. forming concepts
2. Labelling
Forming Concepts - Answers The way I view the world will influence how we form concepts
, Labelling - Answers Value judgements are usually hidden within our social-psychological and
everyday language
e.g. whether we label someone as a "terrorist" or a "freedom fighter" depends on our view of the
cause
naturalistic fallacy - Answers What is typical is normal and what's normal is good. Anything we
observe as normal is perceived as normal
e.g. only seeing straight couples on TV --> we see that as normal
Is Soc Psych common sense? - Answers No: we invoke common sense after we know facts.
Things seem more obvious in hindsight
Hindsight bias - Answers the tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would
have foreseen it
- the "i knew it all along phenomenon"
Theory: - Answers A broad and comprehensive statement of what is thought to be true and can
explain/ predict observed events
e.g. Gravity is a theory that explains the fact that your keys fall when dropped
Hypothesis - Answers A testable prediction, often implied by a theory that describes the
possible relationship btwn events
What makes a good theory? - Answers ★ It effectively summarizes observations
★ clear predictions that we can use to modify the theory, suggest practical applications, and
generate new ideas
Pros of Correlational Research - Answers 1. cheap and easy
2. variables are easily controlled
3. narrows down testing parameters
4. Helps you find out things you can't ethically do experiments on
Cons of Correlational Research - Answers Can't infer causality and there could be confounding
variables
Longitudinal Research - Answers A form of correlational research that takes place over a long
period of time:
- causes always happen before effects so we can sometimes root out confounding variables
