PSYC1001
Practice Examination
2023
Surname: __________________
| |Given Name(s): __________________
zID: __________________
Date: __________________
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
1. Which of the following statements is FALSE about psychological debriefing?
a. There was not an existing intervention to compare it to
b. It involves the discussion of one’s emotions and experiences following a traumatic event
c. Participants were not randomised into a treatment and non-treatment group
d. Controlled trials have shown that psychological debriefing was effective in reducing the
risk of developing a psychological disorder following trauma
2. Which of the following statements is MOST correct about the relationship between animal
models and investigation into PTSD?
a. The effects of extinction learning observed in animal models will be observed in humans
b. Animal models formed the foundation for human studies into treatments for PTSD
c. Investigating animal models of fear leads to the creation of greater preventative measures
for the development of PTSD in humans
d. Extinction learning in animal models is based on operant conditioning which can be
extended to humans when treating PTSD
3. Which neurotransmitter is primarily responsible in learning?
a. Glutamate
b. Acetylcholine
c. Norepinephrine
d. Cortisol
4. Which of the following limitations does NOT apply to the specified philosophy of the mind?
a. Introspection - self-reports from patients were not reliable
b. Functionalism - was not consistent with evolutionary framework
c. Radical behaviourism - neglected the impact of individual thoughts and emotions
d. Methodological behaviourism - one’s internal states cannot be linked to observable
behaviours
5. Which aspect is NOT needed to consider psychology as a natural science?
a. Experiments
b. Generation of theories
c. Empirical basis
d. Scientific equipment
~ 2 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
6. Which is the correct sequence of goals to be achieved in scientific psychology?
a. Description of behaviour, prediction of when a certain behaviour will be observed,
explaining the behaviour, and facilitating changes in behaviour
b. Description of behaviour, explaining the behaviour, predicting when a certain behaviour
will be observed, and facilitating changes in behaviour
c. Description of behaviour, facilitating changes in behaviour, predicting when a certain
behaviour will be observed, explaining the behaviour
d. Description of behaviour, explaining the behaviour, facilitating changes in behaviour,
predicting when a certain behaviour will be observed
7. Which of the following events best demonstrates social facilitation?
a. Ryan, a Tetris player, misdrops more pieces when watched by Matthew Andy Wong than
when playing alone
b. Radhika, a first-year hoodie lover, washes her hoodie more often when she needs to meet
people for 7 days a week rather than 5
c. Melani, a netball player, makes more shots in a netball game with a large audience than
when practising with her team
d. Selena, a rizzlord, can rizz up people in a one-on-one situation just as easily as in front of
a friend group
8. Which of the following statements about conformity is most correct?
a. When norms are unclear, individuals eventually reach a consensus when placed in the
same situation multiple times
b. Conformity typically has a negative effect due to the need to inhibit individual desires
c. More than half of individuals would conform to the majority despite the latter’s decision
being objectively incorrect
d. An authority figure is the only difference determining whether a situation represents
conformity or obedience
9. Which of the following is NOT a method in tackling pressure to conform?
a. Learning to handle dissent in a group setting.
b. Having the courage to represent one’s own opinions.
c. Providing logical arguments for why one’s opinion is objectively superior.
d. Seeking autonomy and authenticity through group discussions.
~ 3 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
10. Which of the following is an example of a consensual delusion?
a. Stephenie starts to believe that the moon landing is fake because she spent hours listening
to a podcast about it.
b. Michael accepts that climate change may not be “real” because he wants to fit in with his
friends' attitudes.
c. Cynthia starts to experience auditory hallucinations and now questions everything that
people say to her even if they are the truth.
d. Katherine stumbled on her lines when introducing herself to a group of people. She then
felt scared to talk to people and developed a phobia of social situations.
11. A new employee is joining a team at a marketing firm. In their first team meeting, the manager
presents a marketing campaign idea and asks for everyone's opinion. The idea presented is clearly
flawed and impractical, but the manager expresses their excitement for it and all the other team
members eagerly support it.
What is most likely to happen according to the Asch Paradigm?
a. The new employee will confidently express their opinion and provide constructive
criticism of the idea.
b. The new employee will refuse to give an opinion.
c. The new employee will feel pressure to conform and agree with the flawed idea to avoid
standing out or appearing critical of the manager.
d. The new employee will privately write down their constructive criticism but not say it out
loud.
12. In a group project, Victor believes that his contributions won't be significant enough to make a
difference, so he doesn't put in as much effort.
This is an example of
a. groupthink.
b. social facilitation.
c. deindividuation.
d. social loafing.
~ 4 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
13. Prithika, a university student, is approached by a student group on campus asking her to sign a
petition for better campus safety. After signing, the student group asks Prithika to also volunteer
for a safety committee.
Which technique/principle is the student group using to encourage Prithika to volunteer for a
safety committee?
a. Door-in-the-face technique
b. Foot-in-the-door technique
c. Low-balling technique
d. Scarcity principle
14. Which of the following is an accurate statement about individualism and collectivism?
a. Collectivism emphasises individual achievement and self-expression.
b. Individualism emphasises group harmony and loyalty.
c. Collectivism values the interests of the group over individual goals.
d. Individualism values social ties and obligations over personal goals.
15. Which of the following best describes the minimal group paradigm?
a. A method used to measure levels of conformity within groups
b. A psychological study that explores the relationship between individual and group
behaviour.
c. An experimental design used to test social identity theory.
d. An experimental technique that divides people into arbitrary groups to investigate
intergroup behaviour.
16. In attribution theory, which type of information is most likely to lead to an internal/dispositional
attribution?
a. High consensus, high consistency, high distinctiveness
b. Low consensus, high consistency, low distinctiveness
c. High consensus, low consistency, high distinctiveness
d. Low consensus, low consistency, high distinctiveness
~ 5 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
17. Which of the following best describes the correspondence bias?
a. Attributing others' behaviour to internal factors, while attributing our own behaviour to
external factors.
b. Attributing others' behaviour to external factors, while attributing our own behaviour to
internal factors.
c. Overemphasising situational factors when explaining others' behaviour, while ignoring
dispositional factors.
d. Overemphasising dispositional factors when explaining others' behaviour, while ignoring
situational factors.
18. Which of the following best describes the Pygmalion effect in education?
a. Students' prior achievement is the strongest predictor of future success.
b. Teachers' beliefs about students can influence their academic performance.
c. Students' self-efficacy is the most important factor in their academic success.
d. Teacher-student interactions have little effect on student outcomes.
19. Matina wants to buy a new speaker to sustain her love for listening to K-Pop. She recently
received her fortnightly paycheck and she typically deposits 20% of it into her savings account
shared by her family. However, the speaker she wants to buy costs the entire paycheck.
In which situation is Matina most likely to buy the speaker?
a. When she is aware that she needs to deposit and her parents are accompanying her
b. When she is alone and she is aware that she needs to deposit
c. When she is unaware that she needs to deposit and her parents are accompanying her
d. When she is alone and unaware that she needs to deposit
20. Which of the following is a cognition towards long lines at the Library Lawn coffee cart?
a. Long lines take a while
b. Why is the line so long?
c. Walking to the main library instead
d. Buying coffee from Little Marionette
~ 6 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
21. Jolene purchased a bowl of beef pho from Tropical Green.
In which situation would Jolene have the most positive attitude towards the bowl of beef pho?
a. When it was cheap and objectively good
b. When it was cheap and objectively bad
c. When it was expensive and objectively good
d. When it was expensive and objectively bad
22. Lynuel received a severe laceration on his knee by tripping on an escalator. As a result, he was
bleeding heavily and could not walk.
Which of the following actions should Lynuel do to maximise the chance of receiving help from
others?
a. Call out for help
b. Clutch the injury site with both hands
c. Ask a specific passerby to call an ambulance
d. Block the escalator path so people cannot pass through
23. In which situation is a Caucasian passerby most likely to provide financial aid to a homeless
individual?
a. When the homeless individual is Caucasian and carrying a packet of cigarettes
b. When the homeless individual is Caucasian and carrying a box of food
c. When the homeless individual is Asian and carrying a packet of cigarettes
d. When the homeless individual is Asian and carrying a box of food
24. Which of the following is NOT a step in Latane & Darley’s emergency intervention decision tree?
a. Interpreting a situation as an emergency
b. Observing one’s surroundings to check for any bystanders
c. Having the knowledge of how to respond
d. Noticing the emergency
25. Which set of common traits are friends and couples MOST likely to have?
a. Age, ethnicity, education
b. Attitudes, intelligence, economic status
c. Values, beliefs, interests
d. Smoking behaviour, religion, appearance
~ 7 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
26. Which of the following statements is FALSE?
a. Composite faces are typically found to be more attractive than individual faces.
b. People living close to each other are more likely to develop a closer relationship than
those living further away.
c. People tend to go for partners considered more attractive than them.
d. We are more likely to disclose intimate information to those we initially like.
27. Michael has been together with his wife for almost 10 years. Although the initial feelings and
desires that lead to physical attraction and sexual consummation have worn off, he still feels
closely bonded and affectionate towards her.
According to Steinberg’s triangular theory of love, what love is Michael most likely to be
experiencing?
a. Romantic love
b. Companionate love
c. Fatuous love
d. Consummate love
28. Brianna ran an experiment investigating how the amount of sleep obtained per night affects the
academic performance of high school students. She recruited 200 Year 7 students across different
high schools and tracked their sleep patterns using FitBits that they wore once per week until the
end of Year 12. Their assessment grades were also recorded.
Which of the following statements is FALSE about Brianna’s experiment?
a. Cohort effects can undermine the validity of her experiment.
b. It studies age-related changes.
c. It is susceptible to attrition.
d. It is able to establish correlations to lend insight into cause-effect relationships.
29. Pascalis et al.’s visual paired comparison study (2005) showed that
a. 6-month-olds spent the same amount of time looking at a monkey face that was seen
previously.
b. experience is important in perceptual narrowing.
c. untrained 9-month-olds spent more time looking at a novel monkey face than one that
was seen previously.
d. perceptual narrowing is inevitable when ageing from 6 months to 9 months.
~ 8 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
30. Which of the following statements is TRUE about continuity and discontinuity?
a. Continuity describes changes in the kinds of skills and behaviours.
b. Continuous change is qualitative.
c. The structural development of babies is discontinuous.
d. Human development involves both continuous and discontinuous changes.
31. Over the past few years, Clea has been studying the relationship between asthma and air
pollution. She found that a poorly functioning glutathione and epoxide hydrolase gene were
correlated to an increased likelihood of developing asthma at some point in an individual’s life.
However, this correlation was only present in individuals living in environments with
compromised air quality.
What do Clea’s findings suggest about the likelihood of the development of asthma?
a. Only genes affect the likelihood of developing asthma
b. Genes have a greater influence than the environment in the likelihood of developing
asthma
c. Without poorly functioning genes, the environment has no effect on the likelihood of
developing asthma
d. The development of asthma is a result of a gene-environment interaction
32. Three statements are listed below.
I. Genotype refers to observable physical or psychological attributes or qualities.
II. A zygote consists of 23 chromosomes.
III. Behaviour genetics involves the investigation of how genetic factors alone produce
individual differences in behaviour.
How many of the above statements are TRUE?
a. 0
b. 1
c. 2
d. 3
33. Which of the following statements is TRUE about degree of relatedness?
a. Dizygotic twins share the same degree of relatedness to monozygotic twins
b. Fraternal twins have a higher degree of relatedness than a parent and child
c. A grandparent and grandchild have a degree of relatedness of 0.25
d. Half-siblings have a lower degree of relatedness than first cousins
~ 9 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
34. Which statement best describes the embryonic period of prenatal development?
a. It lasts for the first eight weeks of prenatal development
b. It is critical for the development of major bodily structures and organs
c. Exposure to teratogens in this period will mostly lead to prenatal death
d. The neural tube closes four weeks into the period
35. Where does the fertilisation of an egg by a sperm cell occur?
a. Ovaries
b. Fallopian tubes
c. Uterus
d. Cervix
36. In which stage of prenatal development are facial abnormalities most likely to arise?
a. Embryonic period
b. Germinal period
c. Fetal period
d. Ectodermal period
37. Which of the following is an infant most likely to look at?
a. A black and white checkerboard pattern
b. A monochromatic red image
c. Their mother’s face
d. A complex abstract pattern
38. In an infant-controlled habituation study, if a baby cannot discriminate between the old stimulus
and the new one, what will happen to their looking time?
a. Increase
b. Remain the same
c. Decrease
d. Vary depending on the baby's temperament
~ 10 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
39. Infants' visual acuity is typically measured using the Teller acuity test, which capitalises on their
preference for what to test their acuity?
a. High contrast patterns
b. Low contrast patterns
c. Moving objects
d. Monochromatic images
40. Which of the following statements is true in regards to the ‘strangers at the door’ task?
a. There was a significant difference in proportion of children who left with FCG and NIG
group
b. There was a significant difference in proportion of children who left with CAUG and
FCG group
c. Children the NIG group more likely to leave with the stranger than children in EIG group
d. Children the EIG group more likely to leave than children in NIG group
41. Which of the following is NOT a valid conclusion from Harlow and colleagues’ monkey
experiment on attachment?
a. The experiment suggests that early deprivation of touch and social interaction can have
long-term negative effects on social and emotional development.
b. The experiment demonstrates that attachment to inanimate objects is possible and that
children can develop healthy attachments to transitional objects like blankets or stuffed
animals.
c. The experiment shows that attachment is not solely based on the satisfaction of
physiological needs.
d. The experiment shows that at a young age monkeys may prioritise developing attachment
over sustenance.
42. A child in a strange situation experiment shows no distress when the caregiver leaves the room
and shows little interest when they return. However, the child shows similar behaviour towards
the experimenter.
What attachment style is this child most likely displaying?
a. Secure attachment style
b. Insecure-anxious attachment style
c. Disorganised attachment style
d. Insecure-avoidant attachment style
~ 11 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
43. John is a 2-year-old child who is playing with his favorite toy truck. He pushes the truck off a
table, and it falls to the ground. When he goes to look for the truck he thinks that it has
disappeared. According to Piaget's theory of cognitive development, which stage of cognitive
development is John likely in?
a. Preoperational stage
b. Sensorimotor stage
c. Concrete operational stage
d. Formal operational stage
44. How can the concept of the assimilation of schemas be applied to improve learning in educational
settings?
a. By encouraging students to rely solely on their existing schemas to interpret new
information.
b. By exposing students to information that contradicts their existing schemas to challenge
their beliefs.
c. By encouraging students to create new schemas for each new topic they learn.
d. By building new information into existing schemas to enhance understanding.
45. Which of the following is NOT a common criticism of Piaget's research on the stages of cognitive
development?
a. Cognitive development is more of a continuous process and should not be viewed in
“stages”.
b. Piaget's theory overestimates the age at which object permanance is developed.
c. The sample bias and lack of sample size in his research.
d. Piaget's theory does not account for cultural and individual differences in cognitive
development.
46. The practice of wolves licking the mouths of the alpha wolves to show their submission to the
hierarchy of the pack was originally born out of the experience of baby wolves licking the mouths
of their mothers for food. This is an example of:
a. Adaptations
b. By-products
c. Exaptation
d. Spandrels
~ 12 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
47. Lillian enjoys going out with friends to social events, anticipating the pleasure of socialising and
experiencing new things. She is driven by the desire to seek out positive experiences and can
sometimes be impulsive when deciding to go out.
Which of the systems in Gray’s Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory is being activated?
a. Fight-flight-freeze system (FFFS)
b. Behavioural approach system (BAS)
c. Behavioral inhibition system (BIS)
d. Drive theory system (DTS)
48. Which of the following is the best example of preparedness theory?
a. A child develops a fear of snakes after seeing a scary movie featuring snakes.
b. A person develops a fear of flying after experiencing turbulence on a flight.
c. A person develops a fear of heights without ever having had a negative experience with
heights.
d. A person develops a fear of spiders after seeing a picture of a spider in a book.
49. Stephenie, a competitive swimmer, becomes increasingly aggravated as she fails to break her
50-metre freestyle record time after repeated attempts.
According to Deci & Ryan’s self-determination theory, which basic organismic need is Stephenie
displaying?
a. Need for competence
b. Need for achievement
c. Need for autonomy
d. Need for power
50. Veronica has the intense temptation to go ice skating. However, she has her BAR proposal
assignment due tonight to do.
Which of the following changes would be most effective in resisting her temptation to go ice
skating AND in motivating her to work on her assignment?
a. Placing roller skates and skateboards around the area where the ice skates are at
b. Placing her ice skates out of sight
c. Focusing her attention on her previously completed research summary
d. Imagining herself done with the assignment
~ 13 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
51. Sexual orientation is NOT related to
a. prenatal hormones.
b. a larger corpus callosum in men.
c. being reared by a gay parent.
d. genetics and heritability.
52. Victoria was studying in the main library when she received a notification that the grades for the
PSYC1001 BAR proposal were released. Her heartrate increased and she started sweating in
response to this information. Upon realisation of these changes, she concluded that she was
afraid.
Which emotional theory best represents Victoria’s situation?
a. James-Lange
b. Cannon-Bard
c. Schachter-Singer
d. Facial-feedback
53. Jeffrey was out clubbing when he realised that his new car was due for him to pick up.
About how many minutes after leaving the club would Jeffrey’s excitement for the car be a
maximum?
a. 0
b. 10
c. 20
d. He will be equally excited at any time.
54. According to Panksepp, in which basic emotional system does frustration belong to?
a. Rage
b. Panic
c. Fear
d. Seeking
~ 14 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
55. ‘Shameful experiences’ belongs to which level in Freud’s topographic model?
a. Conscious
b. Preconscious
c. Subconscious
d. Unconscious
56. Eitan is a very successful businessman who makes a salary sufficient to sustain his family, living
standards, and personal needs. One day, he receives a large bonus at work and decides to spend it
all on a sports car despite not having met his monthly savings goal.
Which component of Freud’s structural model can Eitan’s behaviour be attributed to?
a. Id
b. Superego
c. Ego
d. Superid
57. Which of the following is NOT a limitation of Freud’s psychoanalytical theory?
a. It assumes that all human motivation arises from two instincts.
b. It is based on personal experiences and the data is not publicly available.
c. It may encourage the discrimination of particular subsets of people.
d. The conclusions made by different psychologists could be unreliable.
58. Julian owns a Nerf gun that he enjoys firing at Iris. During a weekly meeting, Julian continually
fired Nerf bullets at Iris, saying ‘BRUH’ after each shot. Eventually, Iris began flinching when
Julian said BRUH without firing any Nerf bullets.
Which of the following is the conditioned stimulus in this situation?
a. The Nerf gun
b. Iris flinching
c. Firing Nerf bullets at Iris
d. BRUH
~ 15 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
59. One of Sophie’s courses this trimester had historically displayed poor attendance rates. To combat
this, Sophie’s tutor removed marks from students who did not show up to their classes.
Consequently, Sophie showed up to all her classes in that course.
This is an example of
a. Positive reinforcement
b. Positive punishment
c. Negative reinforcement
d. Negative punishment
60. Ripel does not enjoy doing her readings on law. Hakim tried to cheer her on by praising her for
every page of her reading she completed.
What schedule of reinforcement is being demonstrated in this situation?
a. Fixed interval
b. Fixed ratio
c. Variable interval
d. Variable ratio
61. Which of the following is NOT a fundamental component of a fully functioning person according
to Roger’s theory of personality?
a. Organismic trusting
b. Creativity
c. Existential living
d. Agreeableness
62. Which of the following statements is TRUE about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?
a. Safety and security is positioned higher than physiological needs
b. Love and belonging is positioned higher than self-esteem
c. Physiological needs are positioned higher than self-actualisation
d. Safety and security is positioned higher than love and belonging
~ 16 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
63. Humanism has NOT had a positive effect on
a. free will.
b. client-centred therapy.
c. child rearing.
d. job satisfaction.
64. Grace is a grudgeful individual stemming from her negative experiences with psychology
assignments. As someone who is ‘built different’, she does not enjoy the idea of traditional
dating.
Grace is likely to display
a. High agreeableness and high openness
b. High agreeableness and low openness
c. Low agreeableness and high openness
d. Low agreeableness and low openness
65. In which of the Big Five measures is an individual’s environment most likely to have the largest
influence in?
a. Extraversion
b. Neuroticism
c. Agreeableness
d. Conscientiousness
66. Dua is a very calm and collected individual that others can ask for opinions due to her
thoughtfulness.
According to humorism, which humor is Dua likely to have an excess of?
a. Blood
b. Yellow bile
c. Black bile
d. Phlegm
~ 17 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
67. According to Levine’s research, which of the following is NOT described as a fast-paced
country?
a. Ireland
b. Italy
c. Brazil
d. Japan
68. Which of the following statements are most accurate about handshaking and first impressions
based on the research by Chaplin et al. (2000)?
a. Weak shakers are less neurotic than strong shakers
b. Men are less likely to be firm shakers compared to women
c. Firm shakers are likely to be less open than weak shakers
d. Weak shakers more introverted than firm shakers
69. Which theory suggests that traits are fully formed as a child due to childhood rearing practices?
a. Psychodynamic Theory
b. Humanism
c. Behaviourism
d. Determinism
70. Mary is a 35-year-old woman who has been diagnosed with high blood pressure. She is hesitant
to take medication as she believes it may have negative side effects. Which component of the
health belief model is the reason Mary doesn’t want to take medication?
a. Perceived susceptibility
b. Perceived severity
c. Perceived benefits
d. Perceived barriers
71. Which of the following is an example of chronic stress?
a. Losing your job unexpectedly
b. Having a near miss while driving
c. Taking an exam in a difficult subject
d. Recovering from a minor injury
~ 18 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
72. According to Selye's general adaptation syndrome, which stage of stress response is characterised
by a depletion of physical and psychological resources and increased vulnerability to illness?
a. Alarm
b. Resistance
c. Exhaustion
d. Recovery
End of paper
~ 19 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
Answers & Rationales
Clinical Perspectives
1. D: Controlled trials had actually shown the opposite; controlled trials showed that the difference
in the risk of developing a psychological disorder following trauma with and without
psychological debriefing was insignificant.
2. B: This is the MOST correct; animal models did indeed introduce the concepts of classical
conditioning and extinction learning which prompted the investigation of exposure therapy. The
other statements are true to some extent, but all contain gaps; A and C are not always the case,
and D is untrue (classical conditioning, not operant conditioning).
3. A: This was stated in the Clinical Perspectives lecture in Week 1.
Psychological Perspectives
4. B: Functionalism treats each portion of the mind as having a specific function, focusing on the
steps needed to achieve a goal. This is in fact consistent with evolutionary framework.
5. D: Observational studies are large contributors to our knowledge about psychology and these
often do not need scientific equipment.
6. A: This sequence follows the structure of a scientific report; introduction (lays out knowledge
from previous literature and current observations), hypothesis, discussion, and future directions.
Social Psychology
7. C: Social facilitation refers to the improvement in the performance of a task when watched by
other people. This is true in Melani’s case. Ryan’s case demonstrates social inhibition, and B and
D are irrelevant.
8. A: This is observed by Sherif’s autokinetic effect experiment. B is incorrect as conformity is
sometimes useful; for example, shared conformity is needed to uphold socially acceptable
behaviours. Asch’s paradigm showed that 30% of participants had conformed to the confederates
despite being objectively incorrect, contradicting option C. D is incorrect as conformity typically
involves the need for social approval whereas obedience is due to the perception of power of the
other individual.
9. C: In certain situations, particularly those involving ethics, there is no objectively superior
opinion as there is no way to quantify the strength of one’s arguments when individuals share a
different set of values and beliefs.
~ 20 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
10. B: Consensual delusions are shared beliefs or perceptions that are not supported by objective
evidence or reality, and are often maintained through social influence and conformity pressures.
In option B, Michael's acceptance of climate change not being real is influenced by his desire to
conform to his friends' attitudes, which suggests that this belief is shared by his social group. This
example fits the definition of a consensual delusion, whereas the other options do not. Option A
describes an individual belief that was influenced by external information, but not necessarily
shared by a larger group. Option C describes a symptom of a mental health disorder, rather than
a shared belief. Option D describes a phobia, which is also not necessarily a shared belief.
11. C: This scenario is similar to the Asch conformity paradigm as it involves social pressure to
conform to the group's opinion. The new employee is likely to feel pressure to conform to the
manager's and other team members' opinion due to the desire to fit in and avoid social
disapproval or rejection. This is known as normative social influence, where the individual
conforms to gain social acceptance. The new employee may also feel uncertain about their own
opinion or lack confidence in expressing it in a new team environment.
12. D: Social loafing is the tendency for individuals to put in less effort when working in a group due
to a reduced sense of personal responsibility or motivation. In this scenario, Victor’s belief that
his contributions won't make a difference is leading to a decrease in effort, which is a hallmark of
social loafing.
13. B: The foot-in-the-door technique, by starting with a small request (signing the petition) and then
following with a larger request (volunteering for the safety committee) in order to increase
compliance.
14. C: Collectivism is a cultural orientation that emphasises the interdependence of individuals
within a group or society and values the interests of the group over individual goals. In contrast,
individualism emphasises individual autonomy, independence, and achievement.
15. D: The minimal group paradigm is an experimental technique that divides people into arbitrary
groups to investigate intergroup behavior, particularly in relation to in-group favoritism and
out-group discrimination. Option A is incorrect because the minimal group paradigm is not
specifically used to measure conformity. Option B is incorrect because it is too broad and does
not specifically relate to the minimal group paradigm. Option C is incorrect because the minimal
group paradigm is not specifically used to test social identity theory, although it is related to this
theory.
16. B: Stated in Week 2 Social Perception Lecture.
17. D: Overemphasising dispositional factors when explaining others' behaviour, while ignoring
situational factors. This bias is also known as the fundamental attribution error, and it refers to
the tendency to explain others' behaviour in terms of their personality traits or dispositions,
rather than taking into account situational factors that may have influenced their behaviour.
~ 21 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
18. B: Teachers' beliefs about students can influence their academic performance. The Pygmalion
effect refers to the phenomenon where if Person A believes that person B has a particular
characteristic, then Person B may begin to behave in accordance with that characteristic. This
can occur in education when teachers hold high expectations of their students, which can then
lead to improved academic performance.
19. D: Attitudes are most likely to guide our behaviour when we are very aware of the attitude and
outside influences are minimal. Hence, Matina is most likely to buy the speaker when she is
unaware of her attitude towards depositing and her parents are not around.
20. A: Cognitions are thoughts and beliefs toward a subject. In this case, the thought that long lines
take a while is a belief and hence is a cognition. B is an affect while C and D are behaviours.
21. D: According to the cognitive dissonance theory, tension, known as cognitive dissonance, is
created when behaviours are inconsistent with affective and cognitive attitudes. As a result, the
behaviour or attitude changes to minimise this dissonance. In this case, an expensive bowl of pho
that was objectively bad will create the most cognitive dissonance. Hence, Jolene would show the
most positive attitude towards the bowl of pho to minimise this dissonance.
22. C: Lynuel is most likely to receive help when it is clear that he needs it and the diffusion of
responsibility is minimised. The latter is achieved by singling out a certain person to help him. It
is also clear that he needs help due to his request for an ambulance.
23. B: We are more likely to help individuals that are similar to us and appear less responsible for
their situation. In this scenario, a Caucasian passerby is more likely to provide financial aid to
another Caucasian homeless individual. Also, carrying a pack of cigarettes may cause the
homeless individual to appear more responsible for their situation (irresponsible spending), and
thus reduce their likelihood of receiving help.
24. B: The five steps in the emergency intervention decision tree are noticing the emergency,
interpreting the emergency, assuming responsibility, knowing what to do, and deciding to help.
Here, observing one’s surroundings to check for any bystanders could play a role in assuming
responsibility, but it does not constitute a full step.
25. A: This was stated in the last lecture on Social Psychology.
26. C: According to the matching hypothesis, we tend to pair up with partners that are considered to
have similar attractiveness to ourselves, and not those that are more attractive. The other three
statements are true and listed in the final Social Psychology lecture.
27. B: As the feelings and desires for physical attraction and sexual consummation have worn off, the
passion component of the triangular theory of love is missing. However, Michael still feels closely
bonded and affectionate towards his wife and hence displays intimacy. Further, he has been with
her for almost 10 years, displaying commitment. Therefore, Michael is most likely to be
experiencing companionate love.
~ 22 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
Developmental Psychology
28. A: Brianna’s experiment is a longitudinal study as she recruits and follows the same group of
participants over a period of time. Longitudinal studies study age-related changes and NOT
differences. Further, as the same group of participants with different measurements per variable,
it can establish correlations between two factors. Due to their long duration, they are susceptible
to attrition. However, cohort effects are more so related to cross-sectional studies, where differing
social and contextual factors and not the independent variable may have an effect on the
dependent variable.
29. B: Pascalis et al.’s study (2002) involved showing 6-month-old babies a pair of monkey faces
before replacing one of the faces with one that is novel. They recorded the amount of time the
babies spent looking at each face. They repeated the experiment when these babies were 9 months
old, and found that only 6-month-olds spend a longer time looking at novel faces. However,
providing monkey face training to these 6-month-olds caused them to be able to distinguish
between old and novel faces when they were 9 months old, suggesting that experience was
important in perceptual narrowing.
30. D: Changes such as physical growth and comprehension ability are continuous while changes
such as learning how to walk and think abstractly are discontinuous changes. This suggests that
human development involves both continuous and discontinuous changes.
31. D: The development of asthma has both genetic and environmental components. It was stated that
asthma was linked to poorly functioning glutathione and epoxide hydrolase genes. However, this
link was only present in an environment with compromised air quality - this is an example of how
the environment activates otherwise inactive genes.
32. A: Statement I is referring to a phenotype, not a genotype. A zygote consists of 46 chromosomes,
23 each from the sperm and the egg. Behaviour genetics involves how genetic AND
environmental factors interact to produce individual differences in behaviour.
33. D: This was stated in the second lecture on Developmental Psychology.
34. B: The embryonic period occurs from the third to the eighth week in prenatal development. It
involves the development of major bodily organs, and exposure to teratogens is likely to cause
major structural abnormalities. The neural tube separates into the brain and spinal cord three
weeks into the embryonic period.
35. B: The germinal period begins when a sperm cell penetrates the egg in the fallopian tube to form
a single-celled zygote. This zygote divides to form a morula and then a blastocyst which implants
into the uterine wall.
36. C: Physiological defects and minor structural abnormalities are most likely to occur during the
fetal period. This includes facial abnormalities. Trauma during the germinal period typically
results in prenatal death, and during the embryonic period typically results in major structural
defects.
~ 23 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
37. D: Stated in Developmental Psychology lectures.
38. C: In infant-controlled habituation studies, researchers repeatedly present a stimulus until the
baby becomes habituated to it, meaning they become less interested in looking at it. Then, the
researchers present a new stimulus to test whether the baby can discriminate between the old and
new stimuli. If the baby cannot discriminate between the old and new stimuli, their looking time
will decrease, as they have become habituated to the old stimulus and show less interest in
looking at it. This decrease in looking time indicates that the baby is not perceiving the new
stimulus as significantly different from the old one.
39. A: Stated in Developmental Psychology lectures.
40. D: Stated in Developmental Psychology lectures.
41. B: B is incorrect because the study did not address the development of attachments to inanimate
objects. A is correct as the monkeys raised without contact comfort exhibited abnormal
behaviors, such as rocking back and forth, and had difficulty forming social bonds with other
monkeys later in life. These findings suggest that physical touch and social interaction are critical
for healthy attachment and social-emotional development in both monkeys and humans. C & D
are correct as the experiment demonstrated that the monkey’s developed attachment to soft
mother over wire monkey with cloth - hence will attach to mother not just for food but for contact
comfort and also show that they prioritise attachment over sustenance.
42. D: The child's behaviour of showing little distress when the caregiver leaves the room and little
interest when they return, while showing similar behavior towards the experimenter, is
characteristic of the avoidant attachment style. Children with this attachment style tend to have
learned to suppress their need for comfort and to avoid being rejected or criticized, leading them
to show little preference for the caregiver over strangers in unfamiliar situations.
43. B: According to Piaget's theory of cognitive development, infants between birth and 2 years of
age are in the sensorimotor stage. During this stage, infants learn about their environment
through their senses and motor actions. They have yet to develop object permanence, which
means they don’t understand that objects continue to exist even when they are out of sight.
44. D: Schemas are mental frameworks that help individuals organize and interpret information in
the world around them. Assimilation is fitting reality into existing schemas which in educational
settings, teachers can build upon students' existing schemas by introducing new information that
is related to their prior knowledge. On the other hand accommodation is adjusting schemas to fit
with reality, which would be option B.
45. B: Piaget’s theory actually underestimates the age at which object permanence is developed.
~ 24 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
Emotion & Motivation
46. C: Exaptation is a feature that now enhances fitness for one function and was originally adapted
for different functions.
47. B: Lillian is driven by the desire to seek out positive experiences, and this drive is associated with
approach behavior, optimism, reward responsiveness, and impulsiveness hence it is the
behavioural approach system.
48. C: Preparedness theory suggests that people are biologically prepared to develop fears of certain
stimuli that were historically threatening to human survival, such as heights, snakes, and spiders.
This means that some fears can develop without direct negative experience, as in the case of a
person who develops a fear of heights despite never having a negative experience with heights.
49. A: According to Deci and Ryan’s self-determination theory, the three basic organismic needs are
needs for competence, relatedness, and autonomy. A need for competence refers to self-efficacy,
mastery, and achievement. As Stephenie becomes aggravated after continually failing to achieve
her goal of breaking her record, she is displaying a need for competence. This is analogous to a
need for achievement in the thematic apperception test.
50. B: Removing the reward out of sight effectively reduces Veronica’s temptation to go ice skating.
As there are no other interesting/related objects around, she is more likely to work on her
assignment.
51. C: This was stated in the second Emotion & Motivation lecture.
52. A: Victoria’s emotion arose solely from her physiological responses, and hence is representative
of the James-Lange theory. The Cannon-Bard theory treats emotion and physiological responses
separately, while the Schachter-Singer theory states that cognitive appraisal along with
physiological responses leads to emotion.
53. B: This question relates to excitation transfer. Immediately after leaving the club, Jeffrey is aware
that his excitement is due to his clubbing. However, he is likely to redirect his excitement to other
objects and events as the number of minutes after he left the club increases. After 20 minutes,
Jeffrey’s excitement may have already worn off.
54. D: This was stated in the third Emotion & Motivation lecture.
Personality
55. D: This was stated in the first Personality lecture.
56. A: According to Freud’s structural model, Id functions on the premises of pleasure and immediate
gratification. Despite not meeting his monthly savings goal, Eitan sought pleasure by buying
himself a sports car, and thus his behaviour can be attributed to Id.
~ 25 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
57. C: Freud’s psychoanalytical theory implies that all human motivation arises from sex and death.
It lacks objectivity as conclusions are drawn from a patient’s personal experiences. Further,
different psychologists may interpret these experiences differently, creating unreliability. It does
not encourage any sociocultural discrimination.
58. D: Firing the Nerf gun at Iris will initiate the unconditioned response of flinching, and therefore
the former is the unconditioned stimulus. The unconditioned stimulus was paired with BRUH, the
neutral stimulus. With repetition, Iris learnt to associate the Nerf gun with BRUH, and hence it
became the conditioned stimulus.
59. C: Sophie’s behaviour of showing up to her classes was made more frequent, and hence
reinforcement occurred. This change in behaviour was due to the removal of a negative event,
that is, losing marks, and hence is an example of negative reinforcement.
60. B: Interval refers to a temporal measurement while ratio refers to an activity-related
measurement. In this situation, completing a page of Ripel’s law reading constitutes an
activity-related measurement. Further, Ripel received praise for a fixed amount of work she
completed.
61. D: The five components of a fully functioning person according to Roger’s theory of personality
are openness to experience, existential living, organismic trusting, experiential freedom, and
creativity.
62. A: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs in ascending order are physiological needs, safety and security,
love and belonging, self-esteem, and self-actualisation.
63. A: Humanism does promote free will, but there is no concrete evidence showing that the former
has had a positive effect on the latter. The other three were listed in the third lecture on
Personality.
64. C: According to McCullough and Hoyt (2002), individuals low on revenge-seeking and grudges
display high agreeableness. Also, Roberts and Robins (2000) posits that individuals high on
openness devalue traditional marriage. These ideas can be extrapolated to Grace, giving her low
agreeableness and high openness.
65. C: According to Loehlin’s study on the Big Five personality traits and twins, identical twins
showed the smallest correlation on agreeableness compared to the other traits.
66. D: Phlegmatic individuals have an excess of phlegm, and are said to be even-tempered, calm,
thoughtful, careful, peaceful, controlled, and reliable. These descriptions accurately match Dua.
Cultural Psychology
67. C: Stated in Genetic and Trait Approaches to Personality lecture.
68. D: Stated in Genetic and Trait Approaches to Personality lecture.
~ 26 ~
2023 PSYC1001 Practice Examination
69. A: Stated in Genetic and Trait Approaches to Personality lecture.
70. A: Perceived susceptibility refers to an individual's belief in the likelihood or risk of experiencing
a particular health condition or illness. In this case Mary is worried about how there may be
negative side effects if she takes the medication.
71. A: Chronic stress is characterized by ongoing or persistent stressors that continue over a long
period of time, such as job loss, financial difficulties, or relationship problems. The other options
listed are examples of acute stress, which are short-term stressors that occur suddenly and do not
last very long.
72. C: According to Selye's general adaptation syndrome, after the initial alarm reaction to stress
and the subsequent resistance stage, the body enters the exhaustion stage. This stage is
characterized by the depletion of physical and psychological resources, as well as increased
vulnerability to illness. Therefore, the correct answer is exhaustion.