Achariya is lost. She quickly scans the crowd and decides to ask an elderly woman for directions because she believes the woman will be kind. Which method of problem solving did Achariya most likely use?

• An algorithm

  
  

• The availability heuristic

  
  

• Representative Heuristic

  
  

• Divergent thinking

  
  

When Cory is given a logic problem to solve, he systematically tries every possible solution until he finds the correct answer. Cory’s strategy is to use

• an algorithm

  
  

• a heuristic

  
  

• cognitive restructuring

  
  

• insight

While vacationing at the beach Max watches a movie in which a shark is sighted in the ocean. The next afternoon Max is standing in shallow water at the beach and feels something glide past him in the water. He immediately runs back to shore while yelling a warning to fellow swimmers. Which cognitive process is contributing to his reaction?

• The fundamental attribution error

  
  

• The availability heuristic

  
  

• Divergent thinking

  
  

• The hindsight bias

  
  

Tom believes he performed poorly on his last three history exams because of bad luck. As a result, he believes he is due for a good score on the next exam and does not study because he is sure he will perform well. The error in his thinking is most likely attributable to

• the gambler’s fallacy

  
  

• the availability heuristic

  
  

• prospective memory

  
  

• overgeneralization

  
  

Average IQ scores have increased steadily over the past 100 years. It has been argued that this effect is most likely due to

• an increase in the average number of years in school

  
  

• a decrease in access to medical care, clean water, and nutritious food

  
  

• an increase in population

  
  

• an increase in genetic diversity

  
  

A test author most interested in ensuring that individuals receive similar scores on a personality test every time they take it is attempting to increase which of the following?

• Validity

• Reliability

• Experimenter-expectancy effects

• Standardization

Most intelligence tests are normed such that the mean score is 100 and the standard deviation is 15. Therefore, the discovery of the Flynn effect leads one to conclude that

• the tests may not have been valid when they were initially constructed

  
  

• the relatively high reliability coefficients for IQ tests may not be accurate

  
  

• IQ scores tend not to change over the course of a person’s life

  
  

• IQ tests should be renormed at periodic intervals

  
  

Which of the following refers to the potential of an individual to perform an as-yet-unlearned task?

• Projection

• Achievement

• Aptitude

  
  

• Interest

Research on stereotype threat indicates that students might not do as well as they can on a test if

• they are informed that people of their ethnicity, age, or gender usually do not perform well on the tests

• they are forced to take a test that is known to have low test-retest reliability
  

• other students perceive them to be of a minority ethnic group

• the test does not have standardized administration or scoring procedures

Which of the following is always true of standardized tests?

• They are projective.

• They are verified experimentally.

• They are supposed to be administered individually.

• They are supposed to be administered and scored in a consistent manner.