Social Science

Cognitive Biases and Decision Making

1,902 Questions

Explore a curated set of questions on cognitive biases, decision making, and behavioral economics. These concepts evaluate how social norms, emotions, and heuristics influence human judgment and group behavior. Master these topics to build a strong foundation for psychology and social science exams.

Behavioral economicsSocial group influencesEmotional decision makingConfirmation bias

Cognitive Biases and Decision Making Questions

Multiple choice

What is the term used for the phenomenon where a person's thoughts or emotions are influenced by the thoughts or emotions of a distant person?

  1. Telepathy

  2. Clairvoyance

  3. Psychokinesis

  4. Remote viewing
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Remote viewing is the phenomenon where a person's thoughts or emotions are influenced by the thoughts or emotions of a distant person. It is often associated with the ability to perceive information about a distant location or event without any physical contact.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the tendency to attribute our own successes to internal factors and our failures to external factors?

  1. Self-serving bias

  2. Fundamental attribution error

  3. Confirmation bias

  4. Illusory correlation
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The self-serving bias is a cognitive bias that leads us to attribute our own successes to internal factors, such as our ability or effort, and our failures to external factors, such as bad luck or the actions of others.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the tendency to seek out information that confirms our existing beliefs and to avoid information that challenges them?

  1. Confirmation bias

  2. Illusory correlation

  3. Selective perception

  4. Attitude polarization
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Confirmation bias is the tendency to seek out information that confirms our existing beliefs and to avoid information that challenges them. This bias can lead us to make inaccurate judgments and to become more entrenched in our beliefs.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the tendency to perceive people who are similar to us as being more trustworthy and likeable?

  1. In-group bias

  2. Out-group bias

  3. Similarity-attraction effect

  4. Halo effect
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The similarity-attraction effect is the tendency to perceive people who are similar to us as being more trustworthy and likeable. This effect is thought to be due to the fact that we are more comfortable with people who share our values, beliefs, and attitudes.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the tendency to perceive people who are different from us as being more untrustworthy and less likeable?

  1. In-group bias

  2. Out-group bias

  3. Similarity-attraction effect

  4. Halo effect
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Out-group bias is the tendency to perceive people who are different from us as being more untrustworthy and less likeable. This effect is thought to be due to the fact that we are more likely to fear and distrust people who are different from us.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the tendency to perceive people in a positive light, even when they have negative qualities?

  1. Halo effect

  2. Illusory correlation

  3. Selective perception

  4. Attitude polarization
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The halo effect is the tendency to perceive people in a positive light, even when they have negative qualities. This effect is thought to be due to the fact that we tend to focus on the positive aspects of people and to ignore or downplay their negative aspects.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the tendency to perceive people who are physically attractive as being more intelligent, trustworthy, and successful?

  1. Halo effect

  2. Illusory correlation

  3. Selective perception

  4. Physical attractiveness stereotype
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The physical attractiveness stereotype is the tendency to perceive people who are physically attractive as being more intelligent, trustworthy, and successful. This stereotype is thought to be due to the fact that we tend to associate physical attractiveness with positive qualities.

Multiple choice

Which of the following factors can influence the cognitive appraisal of an event or situation?

  1. Personal beliefs and values

  2. Past experiences

  3. Current goals and motivations

  4. Social and cultural context
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
Correct answer
Explanation

The cognitive appraisal of an event or situation can be influenced by a variety of factors, including personal beliefs and values, past experiences, current goals and motivations, and the social and cultural context in which the event occurs.

Multiple choice

Individuals who tend to make positive cognitive appraisals of events and situations are more likely to experience:

  1. Positive emotions

  2. Negative emotions

  3. Neutral emotions

  4. No emotions at all
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Individuals who tend to make positive cognitive appraisals of events and situations are more likely to experience positive emotions, such as joy, happiness, and contentment.

Multiple choice

Individuals who tend to make negative cognitive appraisals of events and situations are more likely to experience:

  1. Positive emotions

  2. Negative emotions

  3. Neutral emotions

  4. No emotions at all
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Individuals who tend to make negative cognitive appraisals of events and situations are more likely to experience negative emotions, such as anger, sadness, and fear.

Multiple choice

Which concept in cognitive economics emphasizes the limits of human rationality?

  1. Bounded rationality

  2. Prospect theory

  3. Heuristics and biases

  4. Mental accounting
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Bounded rationality recognizes that individuals have limited cognitive resources and make decisions based on simplified heuristics and rules rather than fully rational calculations.

Multiple choice

What is the name of the theory that describes how individuals evaluate gains and losses differently?

  1. Prospect theory

  2. Loss aversion

  3. Framing effects

  4. Anchoring bias
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Prospect theory proposes that individuals evaluate gains and losses relative to a reference point and exhibit different sensitivity to gains and losses.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the tendency to rely on mental shortcuts and simplified rules when making decisions?

  1. Heuristics

  2. Cognitive biases

  3. Mental models

  4. Framing effects
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Heuristics are mental shortcuts that individuals use to simplify decision-making by relying on rules of thumb and past experiences.

Multiple choice

Which cognitive bias describes the tendency to give more weight to recent information?

  1. Recency bias

  2. Confirmation bias

  3. Framing effects

  4. Anchoring bias
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Recency bias refers to the tendency to place more emphasis on recent information and events, which can influence decision-making.

Multiple choice

What is the phenomenon where individuals tend to stick to their initial beliefs even when presented with contradictory evidence?

  1. Confirmation bias

  2. Framing effects

  3. Anchoring bias

  4. Hindsight bias
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Confirmation bias describes the tendency to seek information that confirms existing beliefs and disregard evidence that contradicts them.