Behavioral Science Sample Exam Questions PDF

1 Behavioral Science – Sample exam questions Each multiple-choice question has four answer options. Exactly one of these answer options is correct. Therefore, given the rule that only one answer option is correct, your task is to select the one answer option which is the most appropriate. You can...

1 Behavioral Science – Sample exam questions Each multiple-choice question has four answer options. Exactly one of these answer options is correct. Therefore, given the rule that only one answer option is correct, your task is to select the one answer option which is the most appropriate. You can find the answer key on the last page of this document. 0. In the context of empirical research, what is the primary difference between a hypothesis and a prediction? a. A hypothesis is a testable statement that makes a claim about an expected outcome, while a prediction is a general statement about a future event. b. A hypothesis is stated in conceptual terms whereas a prediction is stated in observable terms. c. A prediction is a tentative explanation for an observed phenomenon, while a hypothesis is a statement that outlines the steps of an experiment. d. A prediction is a statement made before conducting an experiment, while a hypothesis is a statement made after analyzing the data collected. 1. In an experiment, which of the following statements best distinguishes between an independent variable and a dependent variable? a. An independent variable is the variable that is being measured or observed in the study, while a dependent variable is manipulated by the researcher. b. An independent variable is a variable that can change on its own, while a dependent variable is a variable that remains constant throughout the study. c. An independent variable is the outcome or result of the study, while a dependent variable is what the researcher changes to test its effects. d. An independent variable is a variable that the researcher intentionally varies or manipulates in an experiment, while a dependent variable is the variable affected by changes in the independent variable. 2. In the theory of attention, a necessary definitional feature of an attentional processing system is… a. …parallel processing. b. …serial processing. c. …automatic processing. d. …late selection. 3. We would classify a psychological process as “System 1” when it… a. …requires little attention, does not allow voluntary control, executes very quickly, and learns very quickly. b. …requires little attention, does not allow voluntary control, allows conscious access if at all only to its output, and executes very quickly. c. …requires little attention, does not allow voluntary control, feels as if caused by the environment, and learns very quickly. d. None of the above.  2 4. Imagine the following. A legal expert who works for an insurance company must decide on compensation for victims of accidents. Two scenarios involve a man being hit by a car: (1) on his way to a park where he usually goes running, (2) on his way to a park where he hardly ever goes running, but where he wanted to run because the park he normally runs in was closed off that day because of tree cutting work. Might the location of the park influence the compensation amount that expert assigns? a. No, because the person setting the compensation amounts has expertise in this type of task. b. Yes, but more so if the two scenarios are presented in a joint evaluation setting. c. Yes, but more so if the two scenarios are presented in a separate evaluation setting. d. No, neither in joint nor separate evaluation, because the likelihood of getting hit by a car is the same in both scenarios. 5. Recall Payne et al.'s (2016) experiment on betting decisions and the influence of a "wager" vs. "pass" subliminal prime. The results of this experiment show that: a. primes influence decisions the most when the outcome of the game is certain. b. primes influence decisions more when individuals have a more risk-seeking personality. c. "bet" primes influence decisions more than "wager" primes. d. None of the above. 6. Revealed preference is the same as… a. …experienced utility. b. …predicted utility. c. …decision utility. d. None of the above. 7. Respondents have a choice between (A) winning CHF 50 with p=1 and (B) winning CHF 100 with p=.5 or winning CHF 0 with p=.5. More respondents chose A than B. This can be explained in terms of.... a. Representativeness heuristic. b. Availability heuristic. c. The Prospect Theory value function. d. None of the above. 8. The frequent coverage of terrorism attacks in the media results in overestimating the objective likelihood of being the victim of such an attack. This effect is consistent with… a. Representativeness heuristic. b. Availability heuristic. c. The Prospect Theory value function. d. None of the above. 9. Respondents have a choice between (A) winning CHF 50 with p=1 and (B) winning CHF 100 with p=.5 or winning CHF 0 with p=.5. What result does Prospect Theory predict? a. More respondents choose A than B. b. More respondents choose B than A. c. Respondents choose A and B equally. d. Prospect Theory cannot make a prediction.  3 10. Which of the following increases the likelihood that people will compare a product they evaluate to the category norm of that product? a. Priming. b. Single evaluation. c. Joint evaluation. d. None of the above. 11. Your total assets are 1000 CHF. You have to play a lottery that has two possible outcomes: 25% probability of winning CHF 1000, and 75% probability of not winning nor loosing anything. Which one of the four points A, B, C, or D represents the expected psychological value of the lottery based on the Prospect Theory value function? (Note that I ask to predict only based on the value function, thus, not taking into account the probability weighting function. Assume people have accurate perceptions of objective probabilities.) a. A b. B c. C d. D 12. Your total assets are 1000 CHF. You have to play a lottery that has two possible outcomes: 25% probability of winning CHF 1000, and 75% probability of not winning nor loosing anything. Which one of the four points A, B, C, or D represents the expected utility of the lottery based on Expected Utility Theory?  4 a. A b. B c. C d. D  5 Correct Answers: 0. b 1. d 2. b 3. b 4. c 5. d 6. c 7. c 8. b 9. a 10. b 11. d 12. b