Self Test for the Persuasion

Note: These questions are part of a larger data base of questions on Chapter 7 The 
Questions are selected to represent the type of question you should expect on unit exam one. You 
can, in fact, expect to see many of these very same questions on that exam. Exam questions, however, 
may deal with topics not covered in the self tests or in lectures but are discussed in your textbook. You 
are responsible for the content of your text book plus the content of lectures, interactive activities, 
& material on the web site.

---- Use these sample questions to test yourself & to practice for the test. ----

1. People who are motivated & able to think through an issue are best persuaded by

 the elaboration likelihood model.
 peripheral route processing.
 central route processing
 heuristic route processing.

2. Which route of persuasion occurs when people are influenced by incidental cues, such as a 
speaker’s attractiveness? 

 central 
 emotional 
 peripheral 
 subconscious 

3. Which of the following is a characteristic of central route persuasion?
 
 It uses systematic arguments. 
 lt employs rule-of-thumb heuristics. 
 It relies heavily on the communicator’s attractiveness. 
 Its effectiveness depends on a two-step flow of communication. 

4. Which of the following list the primary components of credibility? 

 expertise & similarity. 
 expertise & trustworthiness. 
 confidence & attractiveness. 
 confidence & trustworthiness. 

5. Over time the impact of a message from a noncredible source may _______ , a phenomenon 
known as the _______. 

 increase; status effect. 
 increase; sleeper effect. 
 decrease; status effect. 
 decrease; sleeper effect. 

6. Physical appeal & similarity are two important factors that determine a communicator’s 

 status. 
 credibility. 
 attractiveness. 
 trustworthiness. 

7. Fear-arousing messages are more effective if they 

 also tell people how to avoid the danger. 
 raise a moderate but not high level of fear. 
 are presented by similar rather than dissimilar communicators. 
 follow the peripheral rather than the central route of persuasion. 

8. In the study of age differences in attitudes, there is very little evidence for 

 life cycle effects. 
 maturation effects. 
 generational effects. 
 conservatism effects. 

9. Which of the following techniques has been used to stimulate people’s thinking in response 
to a persuasive message? 

- making people in the audience feel responsible for passing along the persuasive message 
- using rhetorical questions such as, “Are you better off for having voted for so-and-so four 
  years ago?” 
- having different speakers present separate arguments rather than the same speaker present all 
  of the arguments 
-  all of these have been used to stimulate people’s thinking in response to a persuasive message 

10. Attitude change that has occurred as a result of thoughtful, central route persuasion is most likely 

•  to persist. 
 •  go back to baseline. 
  •  arouse positive emotions. 
   •  arouse negative emotions. 
   
11. According to the "sleeper effect" you might read an article, then•  dismiss it as "lies" 

 •  remember more of it the next day 
  •  say that you had dreamed the information 
   •  buy a product mentioned 4 or 5 times in the article 
    •  forget where you read it, while remembering the information 
    
12. Are high dosages of fear effective persuasion? 

•  No, only small dosages of fear have any effect. 
 •  Yes, scared people are always easier to persuade. 
  •  No, fear always causes people to panic & to tune out the message. 
   •  Yes, but only if the message contains strong arguments & advice on avoiding risks.
   
13. When people critically evaluate a message, they take the ________ route to persuasion. When they do 
not consider the message but focus on other cues, they are taking the ________ route to persuasion. 

•  peripheral; central 
 •  central; peripheral 
  •  impersonal; personal 
   •  personal; impersonal
   
14. As Bob listens to a speech advocating limits on campaign spending, he thinks about the arguments carefully. 
His approach reflects 

•  elaboration. 
 •  cognitive dissonance. 
  •  psychological resistance. 
   •  taking the peripheral route. 
   
15. A computer company wants people to buy its new software. For the central route to persuasion, what length & 
degree of discrepancy should the ads use?

•  The longer & more discrepant 
 •  Short but meaningful, with a great deal of discrepancy 
  •  Long, but without repetition & with moderate discrepancy 
   •  As short as possible & with as little discrepancy as possible
   
16. We are most inclined to perceive as likable those communicators who are 

•  educated & verbally fluent. 
 •  wealthy & socially established. 
  •  powerful & politically connected. 
   •  similar to us & physically attractive.
   
17. When faced with a counterattitudinal message, people in a positive mood are likely to 

•  increase their need for thinking. 
 •  use the central route to persuasion. 
  •  experience negative attitude change. 
   •  use the peripheral route to persuasion. 
   
18. The peripheral route to persuasion is more likely to be chosen than the central route when the 

•  source speaks expressively. 
 •  audience is distracted. 
  •  audience is interested & involved. 
   •  message is really important. 
   
19. Of the following, whether the communicator or the message has more impact on an audience depends 
most strongly on the audience's 

•  personality. 
 •  involvement. 
  •  social class. 
   •  educational level. 
   
20. 14-year-old Linda wants to persuade her parents to allow her to go on a camping trip with a group of older 
friends. Which of the following tactics would help her weak argument? 

•  Catch them in a good mood 
 •  State her message as succinctly as possible 
  •  Threaten to run away from home if she is not allowed to go 
   •  Be straightforward about all the reasons for them to say yes

21. The central route for persuasion presents information with

•  emotions. 
 •  image & style. 
  •  personal appeal. 
   •  strong arguments, analyses, logic, & facts.

22. You are presenting a scientific paper to a group of your professors, you would take 

•  the central approach because the audience is most interested in the facts. 
 •  the peripheral approach since your audience is likely to be much older than you are. 
  •  the central approach because the audience is most interested in your presentation skills. 
   •  the peripheral approach since the audience is most concerned with how interesting you can make the presentation.

23. If an audience is known to be initially opposed to a message, which type of communication will be most effective in 
changing the audience's attitudes?

•  one-sided 
 •  two-sided message 
  •  fear-inducing 
   •  a message from a non-credible source

24. The Yale Communication (1950s) model on persuasion focued on all of the following characteristics except 

•  source (communicator). 
 •  outcome. 
  •  audience. 
   •  message.

25. Central routes of persuasion generally work on the ____, whereas peripheral routes of persuasion work primarily 
on the ____.

•  disposition; situation 
 •  person schema; role schema 
  •  cognitive component; affective component 
   •  fundamental attribution error; self-serving bias

26. Exposing people to weak attacks on their attitudes that stimulate thinking in support of the initial 
attitude is known as

•  attitude inoculation. 
 •  the boomerang effect. 
  •  psychological reactance. 
   •  central route persuasion.
   
27. A psychology of religion that tells us why a theist believes in God & an atheist disbelieves 
reveals nothing about 

• the source of the beliefs. 
 • the accuracy of the beliefs. 
  • the functions of the beliefs. 
   • how the beliefs could be changed. 

28. Cults like the Unification Church & Jim Jones’s People’s Temple typically recruit & retain 
members by exploiting 

 • the sleeper effect. 
  •  the recency effect. 
   • attitude inoculation. 
    • the foot-in-the-door phenomenon. 

29. Successful cults nearly always have 

• a lot of money. 
 • a strong work ethic. 
  • a charismatic leader. 
   • an inordinate belief in the supernatural. 

30. People most vulnerable to cults are most often 

• middle class. 
 • under age 25. 
  • facing a personal crisis. 
   • All of these make them vulnerable. 

31. The success of cults can be explained by their effective use of 

 • persuasion principles. 
  • isolating group members. 
   • escalating behavioral commitments. 
    • All of these contribute to the success of cults. 

32. An analysis of cult indoctrination illustrates 
 
 • the immorality of cults. 
  • the blurry line between education & indoctrination. 
   • the inherent destructiveness of persuasion tactics. 
    • the average person’s invulnerability to indoctrination. 

33. Research on attitude inoculation suggests that religious educators are wise to avoid 

• the two-step flow of communication. 
 • using charismatic leaders to attract new converts. 
  • forewarning followers that outsiders will question their beliefs. 
   • creating a “germ-free ideological environment” in their churches & schools 

34. Inoculation research suggests that 

• that inoculation is ineffective. 
 • children are helpless victims of television advertising. 
  • ineffective persuasion can inoculate people against later persuasive appeals. 
   • the best way to inoculate attitudes is to mount an all-out strong attack on the attitude. 

35. Inoculation research indicates that one can build up resistance to persuasion by 

 • listening only to logical appeals. 
  • listening only to emotional appeals. 
   • seeking social support for one’s beliefs. 
    • being an active listener & a critical thinker. 


  
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                             Social Psychology
                               Robert C. Gates