APPSC Paper I · Probation Officer Paper II: Psychology · Topic 14

14 APPSC Paper I Social Behaviour questions with answers

18 questions from APPSC DPO 2023 Psychology question paper with answers and APPSC DPO Psychology Mock 1 with answers. Try each one, then tap Show answer.

Previous-paper questions are as in the original paper. Medha AI wrote the answers and explanations.

14.1Social cognition, person perception, stereotypes and prejudiceNotes

  1. Q1 DPO 2023 Psychology, Q127

    Match the following:

    TermFeature
    1. Impression FormationA. Social influence on observable behaviour
    2. Social CognitionB. Cognitive units
    3. SchemaC. Inference about personal qualities of people
    4. Social facilitationD. Mental process that realize social world
    1. A1-A, 2-C, 3-B, 4-D
    2. B1-C, 2-D, 3-B, 4-A
    3. C1-C, 2-A, 3-B, 4-D
    4. D1-D, 2-A, 3-B, 4-C
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer B. 1-C, 2-D, 3-B, 4-A

    Impression formation is inferring people's personal qualities (C); social cognition is the mental process of understanding the social world (D); schemas are cognitive units (B); social facilitation is social influence on observable behaviour (A).

    Source: APPSC DPO 2023 Psychology (Notification 11/2022), Q132, final key

  2. Q2 DPO 2023 Psychology, Q129

    In social cognition, category-based schemas that are related to groups of people are known with which of the following names?

    1. APrejudice
    2. BPrototype
    3. CStereotypes
    4. DAttitude
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer C. Stereotypes

    Schemas that work as categories are prototypes; when such category-based schemas are about groups of people they are called stereotypes.

    Source: APPSC DPO 2023 Psychology (Notification 11/2022), Q135, final key

  3. Q3 DPO 2023 Psychology, Q130

    Which of the following strategy is considered as best for reducing prejudice?

    1. AMotivation
    2. BEducation
    3. CPracticing Optimism
    4. DEquality
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer B. Education

    Education, especially knowledge that challenges stereotypes plus intergroup contact, is the main strategy for reducing prejudice.

    Source: APPSC DPO 2023 Psychology (Notification 11/2022), Q136, final key

  4. Q4 DPO 2023 Psychology, Q134

    Which among the following is the basic reason that Implicit Personality theories on testing likelihood of being found incorrect?

    1. AThese are based on factor analysis
    2. BThese are empirically designed
    3. CThese are based on construct validation
    4. DThese are based on person perception and experience
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer D. These are based on person perception and experience

    Implicit personality theories are lay beliefs about which traits go together. They come from personal perception and experience, not tested data, so they are often found wrong.

    Source: APPSC DPO 2023 Psychology (Notification 11/2022), Q140, final key

  5. Q5 DPO Psychology Mock 1, Q132

    Match the following items given in List-I with the items given in List-II.

    List – I (Term)List – II (Feature)
    a. Halo effect1. A goal that two groups can reach only by working together
    b. Primacy effect2. Blaming a weaker group for one's frustrations
    c. Scapegoating3. One trait colours the judgement of other traits
    d. Superordinate goal4. Information received first carries more weight
    1. Aa-3, b-2, c-4, d-1
    2. Ba-4, b-3, c-2, d-1
    3. Ca-3, b-4, c-2, d-1
    4. Da-1, b-4, c-2, d-3
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer C. a-3, b-4, c-2, d-1

    Halo: one trait spreads to others. Primacy: first information dominates. Scapegoating: displaced blame onto a weak group. Superordinate goal: a shared goal needing both groups (Sherif).

    Source: Medha AI, based on the APPSC District Probation Officer Paper II (Psychology) syllabus (12/2026)

  6. Q6 DPO Psychology Mock 1, Q134

    Which of the following are among the conditions Gordon Allport stated for intergroup contact to reduce prejudice?

    1. Equal status of the groups in the situation

    2. Cooperation towards common goals

    3. Support of authorities, law or custom

    4. Competition between the groups for scarce rewards

    Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

    1. A1 and 2 only
    2. B1, 2 and 3 only
    3. C2, 3 and 4 only
    4. D1, 2, 3 and 4
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer B. 1, 2 and 3 only

    Allport (1954): contact reduces prejudice under equal status, common goals, intergroup cooperation and the support of authorities, law or custom. Competition for scarce resources breeds conflict (Sherif).

    Source: Medha AI, based on the APPSC District Probation Officer Paper II (Psychology) syllabus (12/2026)

  7. Q7 DPO Psychology Mock 1, Q136

    Ravi explains his own late arrival by the heavy traffic, but explains his colleague's late arrival by her carelessness. This best illustrates the

    1. ASelf-fulfilling prophecy
    2. BActor–observer effect
    3. CHalo effect
    4. DOut-group homogeneity effect
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer B. Actor–observer effect

    The actor–observer effect (Jones and Nisbett, 1971): as actors we see the situation, as observers we see the person. The fundamental attribution error describes only the observer half.

    Source: Medha AI, based on the APPSC District Probation Officer Paper II (Psychology) syllabus (12/2026)

  8. Q8 DPO Psychology Mock 1, Q138

    The tendency to overestimate personal (dispositional) causes and underestimate situational causes when explaining other people's behaviour is called the

    1. ASelf-serving bias
    2. BHalo effect
    3. CPrimacy effect
    4. DFundamental attribution error
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer D. Fundamental attribution error

    The fundamental attribution error (Lee Ross, 1977), also called correspondence bias, is the tendency to blame a person's character for behaviour that was largely caused by the situation.

    Source: Medha AI, based on the APPSC District Probation Officer Paper II (Psychology) syllabus (12/2026)

  9. Q9 DPO Psychology Mock 1, Q140

    Who is regarded as the founder of attribution theory, with his idea of the 'naive psychologist'?

    1. AHarold Kelley
    2. BLeon Festinger
    3. CBernard Weiner
    4. DFritz Heider
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer D. Fritz Heider

    Fritz Heider's The Psychology of Interpersonal Relations (1958) distinguished internal (personal) and external (situational) causes, the base of all later attribution theories.

    Source: Medha AI, based on the APPSC District Probation Officer Paper II (Psychology) syllabus (12/2026)

14.1Attitudes: nature, formation, change and attitude scalesNotes

  1. Q10 DPO 2023 Psychology, Q128

    Which of the following statement is incorrect?

    1. AAttitude is a state of the mind
    2. BAttitude is a set of views
    3. CAttitude is a set of thoughts
    4. DAttitude is an inherited construct
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer D. Attitude is an inherited construct

    An attitude is a state of mind, a set of views or thoughts about a topic, with an evaluative feature. Attitudes are learnt through experience, not inherited.

    Source: APPSC DPO 2023 Psychology (Notification 11/2022), Q133, final key

  2. Q11 DPO 2023 Psychology, Q131

    Thurstone attempted to measure people's attitudes towards which of the following by his attitude scale?

    1. AAttitude towards immigrants
    2. BAttitude towards politics
    3. CAttitude towards religion
    4. DAttitude towards scientific development
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer C. Attitude towards religion

    Thurstone and Chave (1929) built the first equal-appearing-interval scale to measure attitude towards the church (religion).

    Source: APPSC DPO 2023 Psychology (Notification 11/2022), Q137, final key

  3. Q12 DPO 2023 Psychology, Q132

    Which of the following techniques was used by Likert in 1932 to develop Likert Scale?

    1. AFactor Analysis
    2. BItem Analysis
    3. CMultivariate Analysis
    4. DRegression Analysis
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer B. Item Analysis

    Likert's method of summated ratings (1932) kept items by item analysis: each item's correlation with the total score, or how well it separates high and low scorers.

    Source: APPSC DPO 2023 Psychology (Notification 11/2022), Q138, final key

  4. Q13 DPO 2023 Psychology, Q133

    The social distance scale constructed by Bogardus falls under which of the following categories?

    1. ACumulative scale
    2. BNon-aggregate scale
    3. CPartial aggregate scale
    4. DDecrescent scale
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer A. Cumulative scale

    The Bogardus social distance scale is a cumulative scale: accepting a closer relationship implies accepting all the more distant ones.

    Source: APPSC DPO 2023 Psychology (Notification 11/2022), Q139, final key

  5. Q14 DPO Psychology Mock 1, Q131

    Select the option that is true regarding the following two statements labelled Assertion and Reason.

    Assertion (A): A person who is made to argue publicly against his own view often shifts his private attitude towards what he said.

    Reason (R): Holding two inconsistent cognitions creates discomfort that people are motivated to reduce.

    1. ABoth (A) and (R) are correct and (R) is the correct explanation of (A)
    2. BBoth (A) and (R) are correct but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A)
    3. C(A) is correct but (R) is not correct
    4. D(A) is not correct but (R) is correct
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer A. Both (A) and (R) are correct and (R) is the correct explanation of (A)

    Counter-attitudinal behaviour with little external justification creates dissonance; the easiest way to reduce it is to bring the attitude into line with the behaviour.

    Source: Medha AI, based on the APPSC District Probation Officer Paper II (Psychology) syllabus (12/2026)

  6. Q15 DPO Psychology Mock 1, Q133

    Which of the following pairs of a function of attitudes (Katz) and its description is incorrectly matched?

    1. AEgo-defensive function: helps a person gain rewards and avoid punishment
    2. BKnowledge function: helps organise and make sense of the world
    3. CValue-expressive function: lets a person express central values
    4. DUtilitarian function: helps maximise rewards from the environment
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer A. Ego-defensive function: helps a person gain rewards and avoid punishment

    Daniel Katz (1960) described four functions: utilitarian (adjustive), ego-defensive, value-expressive and knowledge.

    Source: Medha AI, based on the APPSC District Probation Officer Paper II (Psychology) syllabus (12/2026)

  7. Q16 DPO Psychology Mock 1, Q135

    Which of the following statements about the Likert scale is incorrect?

    1. AIt needs a large panel of judges to give a scale value to every item
    2. BRespondents usually indicate agreement on a five-point scale
    3. CItems are selected through item analysis
    4. DA person's attitude score is the total of the item scores
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer A. It needs a large panel of judges to give a scale value to every item

    The Likert method is simpler than Thurstone's because it uses no judges; respondents' own ratings are summed, and item analysis decides which items are kept.

    Source: Medha AI, based on the APPSC District Probation Officer Paper II (Psychology) syllabus (12/2026)

  8. Q17 DPO Psychology Mock 1, Q137

    The beliefs and thoughts a person holds about the object of an attitude make up its:

    1. AAffective component
    2. BConative component
    3. CCognitive component
    4. DEvaluative component
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer C. Cognitive component

    Cognitive = what one thinks or believes about the object; affective = how one feels; conative = how one tends to act.

    Source: Medha AI, based on the APPSC District Probation Officer Paper II (Psychology) syllabus (12/2026)

  9. Q18 DPO Psychology Mock 1, Q139

    In constructing a Thurstone scale, the scale value of each statement is usually taken as which statistic of the judges' placements?

    1. AMode
    2. BStandard deviation
    3. CMedian
    4. DRange
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer C. Median

    Each statement's scale value is the median of the judges' ratings; statements on which judges disagree widely (large interquartile spread) are discarded as ambiguous.

    Source: Medha AI, based on the APPSC District Probation Officer Paper II (Psychology) syllabus (12/2026)

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