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Suppose a researcher wants to apply the ease-of-retrieval theory to self-judgments of cooperativeness. To lead participants to judge themselves as highly cooperative, should the researcher ask them to recall 2 instances of their cooperative behavior or 10 instances? Briefly justify your answer.
Question: Suppose a researcher wants to apply the ease-of-retrieval theory to self-judgments of cooperativeness. To lead participants to judge themselves as highly cooperative, should the researcher ask them to recall 2 instances of their cooperative behavior or 10 instances? Briefly justify your answer.
Sample answer: The researcher should ask participants to recall 2 instances of cooperative behavior. Recalling 2 instances is easy, and participants will interpret this ease of retrieval as a sign that they are highly cooperative. Conversely, trying to recall 10 instances is difficult, and participants would misinterpret that struggle as meaning they are not very cooperative.
Key points:
- Recommend asking for 2 instances (a small, easy-to-recall number of cooperative behaviors).
- Explain that the ease of retrieving 2 instances leads to a self-judgment of high cooperativeness.
- Explain that attempting to recall 10 instances would feel difficult, leading to a self-judgment of lower cooperativeness.
Rubric: The answer must recommend asking participants to recall a small number (e.g., 2) of cooperative behaviors and explain that the ease of retrieving these examples leads to a self-judgment of being highly cooperative, whereas a larger number (e.g., 10) would cause retrieval difficulty and a self-judgment of being less cooperative.
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Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU
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