You Are Sitting in Your Psychology Class, and You Do

question 162

Multiple Choice

You are sitting in your psychology class, and you do not understand what the professor is saying. You would like to ask a question, but as you look around the room, you see others quietly taking notes, and it looks like they understand. Nobody is asking questions, so you don't either. As it turns out, the majority of the students are thinking just as you are, so nobody asks any questions. This situation illustrates the concept of

• A) the diffusion of responsibility.
• B) pluralistic ignorance.
• C) social loafing.
• D) group polarization.

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Definitions:

Learned Taste Aversion

A defensive mechanism where an organism learns to avoid a food that previously caused an adverse reaction, such as nausea.

Preparedness

The state of being ready and able to deal with specific situations or emergencies, often through planning and training.

Nigrostriatal Dopamine Pathway

A neural pathway connecting the substantia nigra with the striatum, involved in the regulation of movement and implicated in Parkinson's disease.

Mesolimbic Dopamine Pathway

A neural pathway in the brain associated with the reinforcement of rewarding experiences and motivation, often implicated in addiction and pleasure.