Chapter 11: Empathy and Egotism: Portals to Altruism, Gratitude, and Forgiveness

Test Bank

Multiple Choice

1. The concept of egotism as a motive for helping others is most closely related to which term?

A. esteem

B. empathy

C. altruism

D. compassion

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Altruism
Difficulty Level: Easy

2. Because of the positive outcome, what is one of the most influential human motives that drives many human actions?

A. empathy

B. forgiveness

C. egotism

D. altruism

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Altruism
Difficulty Level: Easy

3. Helping behavior that is motivated by the likelihood of reciprocity of the person in need is known as ______.

A. kin-based altruism

B. reciprocity-based altruism

C. mutuality-based altruism

D. care-based altruism

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Defining Altruism
Difficulty Level: Easy

4. Aside from egoism and empathy, what is another contributor to altruistic actions?

A. hedonism

B. pride

C. forgiveness

D. collectivism

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Defining Altruism
Difficulty Level: Medium

5. Someone who engages in altruistic behavior out of empathy is demonstrating which type of helping behavior?

A. care-based altruism

B. kin-based altruism

C. reciprocity-based altruism

D. egotism-based altruism

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Defining Altruism
Difficulty Level: Medium

6. How does egotism fuel altruistic behavior?

A. Most people feel empathy for others.

B. People like to protect their feelings of self-worth.

C. Altruistic actions produce an underlying benefit.

D. It is rooted in our evolutionary history.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: The Egotism Motive
Difficulty Level: Medium

7. A business owner annually donates a large sum of money to a local charity, which publicly announces the donation. The business owner enjoys the advertisement. Which motive best explains this behavior?

A. empathy motive

B. egotism motive

C. altruism motive

D. gratitude motive

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Forms of Egotism-Motivated Altruism
Difficulty Level: Medium

8. A child is playing with her sibling and accidentally gets too rough. The sibling ends up falling and getting hurt. The child responsible immediately helps the sibling up and offers comfort to attempt to stop the crying for fear of being punished by her parents. What is this an example of?

A. empathy-motivated altruism

B. benefit finding

C. genetic foundations of empathy

D. egotism-motivated altruism

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Forms of Egotism-Motivated Altruism
Difficulty Level: Medium

9. Which of the following is one of the three motives for engaging in egotism-based altruism?

A. avoiding social or personal punishments for failing to help

B. for the betterment of society

C. to help others in need save face

D. abiding by religious guidelines

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Forms of Egotism-Motivated Altruism
Difficulty Level: Hard

10. What did Batson and colleagues suggest about altruism?

A. all altruistic behaviors are motivated by an underlying sense of egotism

B. being altruistic is an entirely learned behavior

C. individuals higher in empathy are more likely to help those in need

D. negative emotions motivate altruistic behavior only when physical or psychological escape is not possible

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: The Empathy Motive and the Empathy–Altruism Hypothesis
Difficulty Level: Medium

11. A student is walking in the hall and sees another student drop their books. The thought process behind helping the student who dropped the books included a feeling of slight sorrow for them. Which motive best explains this behavior?

A. egotism motive

B. empathy motive

C. altruism motive

D. gratitude motive

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: The Empathy Motive and the Empathy–Altruism Hypothesis
Difficulty Level: Medium

12. What does the increase in studies on empathy-based altruism mean for understanding motives for helping others?

A. It demonstrates that there is indeed interest in learning how to be empathetic.

B. It indicates that researchers want to discard the idea of egotism-based altruism.

C. It means that laypeople have a clear interest in learning how to help others without external motives.

D. It shows that egotism-based altruism is not the only explanation for helping behaviors.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: The Empathy Motive and the Empathy–Altruism Hypothesis
Difficulty Level: Hard

13. In the grocery store, a woman sees someone attempting to reach a box from the top shelf, which is clearly out of reach. The woman feels compassion for the person and gets the box down for them. What is this example best describing?

A. empathy motive

B. altruism motive

C. egotism motive

D. trim motive

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: The Empathy Motive and the Empathy–Altruism Hypothesis
Difficulty Level: Medium

14. How does emotion tie in with altruistic behavior?

A. People are more altruistic if the recipient is happy.

B. Altruistic actions are valued more when emotions are neutral.

C. Positive affect can help stimulate altruism.

D. People are more altruistic when their mood matches the recipient.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Correlates of Altruism
Difficulty Level: Easy

15. In the study by Dunn, Aknin, and Norton, what occurred with participants who were instructed to spend money on someone else?

A. They were not as happy as others who spent money on themselves.

B. They had higher well-being at the end of the day.

C. They did not express either positive or negative emotions about it.

D. They were satisfied if they also spent an equal amount on themselves.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Correlates of Altruism
Difficulty Level: Medium

16. What is the implication of altruism being eudaemonic?

A. It serves its own purpose and is not connected to satisfaction.

B. It is key to achieving transcendence.

C. It has more use for people who have their basic needs met.

D. It is linked to purpose in life and fulfillment.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Correlates of Altruism
Difficulty Level: Hard

17. What is the nature of the relationship between altruistic behavior and feelings of gratitude and happiness?

A. Someone who feels gratitude is more likely to help others.

B. Someone who is happy does not feel the need to be altruistic.

C. Altruism can lead to either gratefulness or happiness, but not both.

D. Happiness and gratefulness only explain 50% of altruistic behaviors.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Correlates of Altruism
Difficulty Level: Medium

18. Research on the genetic and neural foundations of empathy has indicated that empathy has ______.

A. virtually no degree of heritability

B. a small degree of heritability

C. a moderate degree of heritability

D. a substantial degree of heritability

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Genetic and Neural Foundations Related to Altruism Empathy
Difficulty Level: Easy

19. Which part of the brain is essential for empathy?

A. the temporal lobes

B. the prefrontal cortex

C. the amygdala

D. the hippocampus

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Genetic and Neural Foundations Related to Altruism Empathy
Difficulty Level: Easy

20. Which of the following factors is believed to underlie an evolutionary basis for human empathy?

A. Individuals who were able to evoke empathy in others gained a survival advantage.

B. Displays of altruism were more likely to result in gaining sexual favors.

C. Altruistic people were more likely to produce twins, and therefore increase total reproduction.

D. Being able to recognize altruistic traits resulted in selecting a similarly altruistic mate.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Genetic and Neural Foundations Related to Altruism Empathy
Difficulty Level: Medium

21. Research indicates that oxytocin is responsible for enhancing altruistic behavior, specifically ______.

A. care-based altruism

B. kin-based altruism

C. empathy-based altruism

D. egotism-based altruism

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Genetic and Neural Foundations Related to Altruism Empathy | Care-Based Altruism

Difficulty Level: Medium

22. What occurred in the “Dictator Game?”

A. Men gave more tokens than women.

B. Women gave more tokens to other women, but fewer tokens to men.

C. Women gave more tokens than men.

D. Men gave more tokens to other men, but fewer tokens other women.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Cultural Variations in Altruism
Difficulty Level: Easy

23. Which of the following statements is true about the relationship between gender and altruism?

A. Women were more appreciative of altruistic traits in short-term relationships, but less appreciative in long-term relationships.

B. Both men and women were more appreciative of altruistic traits in long-term relationships.

C. Men were more appreciative of altruistic traits in both short-term and long-term relationships than were women.

D. Both men and women were more appreciative of altruistic traits in short-term relationships.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Cultural Variations in Altruism
Difficulty Level: Medium

24. Which of the following terms regarding altruism has the greatest applicability to a collectivist society?

A. empathic venue

B. egoistic system

C. social strata

D. altruism niche

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Cultural Variations in Altruism
Difficulty Level: Easy

25. How is altruism embedded within collectivist cultures?

A. Collectivist cultures inherently prioritize focusing on the welfare of others.

B. Collectivism is based on helping others for personal gain.

C. Altruism in a collectivist culture depends on the fear of punishment for not helping.

D. Collectivist cultures use altruism to maintain orderliness.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Cultural Variations in Altruism
Difficulty Level: Hard

26. What does research on cultural differences in defining altruism suggest about societal engagement in altruistic behavior?

A. Social engagement in altruism is much more effective in Western cultures.

B. Altruistic behavior is normalized in small countries, where it is necessary for survival.

C. Helping behavior can be part of normal behavior within a society.

D. Large countries will not see the normalization of helping behaviors, as the rewards are not great enough.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Cultural Variations in Altruism
Difficulty Level: Medium

27. What condition must be in place for religious prosociality to occur?

A. There must be a relevant passage in holy texts to engage in this behavior.

B. The person receiving help is from the same religious group.

C. A religious holiday must be coming up.

D. The person helping needs to be high in spirituality.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Cultural Variations in Altruism
Difficulty Level: Medium

28. What phenomenon has led to lower volunteerism rates?

A. less people in need of help

B. fewer merits of acting altruistically

C. an increase in average income

D. the drop in unemployment rates

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Cultural Variations in Altruism
Difficulty Level: Medium

29. Teaching people that it is okay to feel good about helping others is one way to increase altruistic behaviors. What is another advantage associated with learning this concept?

A. People develop a higher sense of self-esteem.

B. People find religion.

C. People look for ways to be further rewarded.

D. People are more accepted by their peers.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Egotism-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions

Difficulty Level: Hard

30. By engaging in volunteer work, one can invoke which kind of feelings?

A. empathic feelings

B. feelings of forgiveness

C. egoistic feelings

D. nuanced feelings

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Egotism-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions
Difficulty Level: Easy

31. What can people engage in to experience the positive feelings associated with egotism-based altruism?

A. putting money in donation jars

B. community volunteer work

C. cleaning trash from a highway

D. donating to politicians

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Egotism-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions

Difficulty Level: Easy

32. When one feels the extreme need to consider oneself special and unique and different from others, it may create difficulty with others. Which of the following will desires such as these hinder?

A. altruism

B. gratitude

C. forgiveness

D. empathy

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Empathy-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions

Difficulty Level: Easy

33. Which of the following can help to enhance empathic behaviors?

A. pointing out similarities between oneself and others

B. teaching one that it is legitimate to feel good about helping others

C. showing that the behavior will relieve a feeling of guilt

D. increasing material rewards

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Empathy-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions
Difficulty Level: Medium

34. A person has been working many hours of volunteer work for the last 6 months. It began as a requirement for a class, but the person now feels closer to others and understands that they are similar. What does this realization due to increased interaction demonstrate?

A. increased gratitude

B. decreased aggression

C. increased empathy

D. decreased avoidance

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Empathy-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions
Difficulty Level: Medium

35. Which of the following is a way that the author suggests can help children develop empathy?

A. encourage children to develop their personal uniqueness

B. help children to develop a wide and diverse social circle

C. give children lots of help to understand the feeling of being helped

D. encourage children to examine their motives for helping others

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Empathy-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions
Difficulty Level: Medium

36. Directing empathy toward others outside of one’s ethnic group is referred to as ______.

A. multicultural competence

B. empathetic acculturation

C. cultural pluralism

D. ethnocultural empathy

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Empathy-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions
Difficulty Level: Easy

37. Someone’s car has broken down by the side of the busy highway and is starting to smoke. Which of the following individuals is most likely to stop and help?

A. a police officer

B. a teacher

C. a lawyer

D. a person on their way to work

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Values-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions
Difficulty Level: Medium

38. Who is most likely to help someone pick up dropped groceries?

A. someone who is retired

B. someone who is in college

C. someone volunteers at an animal shelter

D. someone who is financially well-off

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Values-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions
Difficulty Level: Medium

39. Someone who has incorporated altruism into their personal identity will likely see volunteering as ______.

A. something that can earn them praise

B. important to their self-esteem

C. the only way to be fulfilled

D. a way to spread their other values

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Values-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions
Difficulty Level: Easy

40. Which of the following is the best known measure of altruism?

A. the Helping Attitude Scale

B. the Volunteerism Assessment

C. the Voluntary Contributions Mechanism

D. the Self-Report Altruism Scale

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Measuring Altruism
Difficulty Level: Easy

41. What important condition do gratitude and altruism share?

A. the need for the ability to empathize

B. inequality between the people involved

C. a demonstrated need that exceeds someone’s ability to cope

D. a need for social interaction

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Defining Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Hard

42. Which of the following would predict higher levels of gratitude?

A. help given when no one else is around

B. repeated helping from the same person

C. events of larger magnitude

D. a close friend helping

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Defining Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Medium

43. Which of the following is a component of the definition of gratitude?

A. There is an expected return of something equally valuable.

B. The behavior is valuable to the recipient.

C. It is unintentional.

D. The recipient must be lower in power.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Defining Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Medium

44. Gratitude has been shown to exist in different magnitudes. According to Ortony and colleagues, when will gratitude be the greatest?

A. when the giving person continuously helps others

B. when the giving person is a friend or family member

C. when the giving person is a stranger

D. when the giving person does something unexpected

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Defining Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Medium

45. A man who had gotten into a terrible car accident was visited by his daughter whom he hadn’t talked to in years. This man had gratitude for getting into the car accident, as this event allowed him to reestablish his relationship with his daughter. What is this an example of?

A. benefit finding

B. altruism

C. gratitude meditation

D. optimism

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Defining Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Medium

46. Which of these statements best explains the reason that individuals from South Korea may see a decrease in well-being when participating in gratitude journaling?

A. Mindfulness can take place of the need to partake in journaling.

B. South Koreans are more cynical about behaviors that require someone to feel grateful.

C. Asians are more likely to experience both positive and negative feelings when they are grateful.

D. They are embarrassed about feeling grateful and do not desire to write about it.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Cultural Variations in Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Hard

47. Which phrase of gratitude has been shown to differ in perception between cultures?

A. “I owe you one.”

B. “Thank you.”

C. “You are very helpful.”

D. “I appreciate that.”

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Cultural Variations in Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Easy

48. Which of the following factors is positively correlated with general feelings of gratitude?

A. having been raised by socially conscious and empathetic parents

B. having had a history of deficit or hardship

C. having more than other people to whom one compares oneself

D. having a cultural identity as someone who is religious

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Cultural Variations in Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Medium

49. Which of the following factors has been found to be associated with someone who keeps a weekly gratitude journal?

A. the amount of exercise undertaken

B. the tendency to eat a healthier diet

C. cynicism about the coming week

D. feeling better about the lives of others

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Cultivating Gratitude

Difficulty Level: Medium

50. Which of the following does gratitude meditation address?

A. learning how to get motivated

B. learning to be more active

C. learning to appreciate blessings

D. learning to be more passive

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Cultivating Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Easy

51. In Froh and colleagues’ examination of the effectiveness of gratitude interventions, who was likely to increase levels of gratitude by writing letters?

A. people from individualistic cultures

B. youth who were low in positive affect

C. youth who were high in positive affect

D. people from collectivist cultures

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Cultivating Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Medium

52. What is an example of people building gratitude after times of strife?

A. feeling gratitude for a server who is rushing during lunch time

B. feeling grateful toward a teacher after passing a class

C. being grateful for safe drivers after crossing the street

D. having more positive feelings of gratitude toward firefighters after a wildfire

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Cultivating Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Medium

53. Which of the following is a measure of gratitude?

A. multidimensional prayer inventory

B. prosocial behavior questionnaire

C. the helping attitude scale

D. interpersonal motivations inventory

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Measuring Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Easy

54. The GRAT is a self-report measure used to tap into three factors of gratitude. Which of the following is one of these factors?

A. acceptance

B. pessimism

C. optimism

D. resentment

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Measuring Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Easy

55. Scores on the GQ-6 (Gratitude Questionnaire) relate to other positive psychology constructs. Which of the following has been shown to correlate positively with higher levels of gratitude on the GQ-6?

A. courageousness

B. positive affect

C. wisdom

D. love

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Measuring Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Easy

56. With regard to psychophysiology and gratitude, appreciation is different from gratitude in what way?

A. Appreciation is a long-term effect of helping.

B. Appreciation is similar across cultures.

C. Appreciation is more easily accomplished.

D. Appreciation may or may not include others.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: The Psychophysiological Underpinnings of Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Hard

57. Which term is conceptually similar to gratitude?

A. appreciation

B. honesty

C. empathy

D. acceptance

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: The Psychophysiological Underpinnings of Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Easy

58. What brain structure is involved in the experience of gratitude?

A. Heschl’s gyrus

B. the primary auditory cortex

C. the medial prefrontal cortex

D. the thalamus

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Empathy/Egotism and Altruism
Difficulty Level: Medium

59. Diffusion of responsibility for helping others is a phenomenon known as ______.

A. altruistic inaction

B. the innocent bystander effect

C. eyewitness indecision

D. situational uncertainty

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Empathy/Egotism and Altruism
Difficulty Level: Easy

60. In what way can gratitude be beneficial for a relationship?

A. Both parties can be indebted to each other.

B. It can help people in a relationship reflect on the good.

C. Practicing it outside of the relationship helps couples understand how to be grateful to each other.

D. Expressing it can enhance the view of the relationship for the recipient and expresser.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Empathy/Egotism and Altruism
Difficulty Level: Hard

True/False

1. Principilism is a potential contributor to altruistic actions.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Defining Altruism
Difficulty Level: Easy

2. Egotism is the motive to engage in a behavior to help others achieve personal gain.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: The Egotism Motive
Difficulty Level: Medium

3. Lessening one’s personal distress by helping others is one of the forms of egotism-based altruism.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Forms of Egotism-Motivated Altruism
Difficulty Level: Medium

4. Empathy includes being capable of matching someone else’s emotions.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: The Empathy Motive and the Empathy–Altruism Hypothesis
Difficulty Level: Easy

5. Research shows that altruism is state-like instead of trait-like.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Genetic and Neural Foundations Related to Altruism Empathy
Difficulty Level: Easy

6. People who exhibit prosocial behaviors receive significantly more social support from family and friends.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Care-Based Altruism
Difficulty Level: Easy

7. Dissimilar individuals may not spend much time around each other, which can lead to having less empathy for those viewed as different.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Empathy-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions
Difficulty Level: Medium

8. Gratitude takes place when the person who is helping is doing so without much cost to him or her.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Defining Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Easy

9. Grateful people can have a higher level of forgiveness.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Correlates of Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Easy

10. Older White Americans report feeling more grateful to God than older African and Mexican Americans.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Cultural Variations in Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Medium

11. “First, what did I receive” is one of the questions asked by people who practice Naikan, or gratitude meditation.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Cultivating Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Medium

12. The GQ-6 is an assessment that measures six different facets of gratitude.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Measuring Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Easy

13. The areas of the brain responsible for social relationships, bonding, and social rewards also appear to activate when someone experiences gratitude.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: The Psychophysiological Underpinnings of Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Medium

14. People in larger cities have managed to avoid the innocent bystander effect because of the large numbers of people who can help.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Empathy/Egotism and Altruism
Difficulty Level: Easy

15. Medical students and other people working in health care develop an increased sense of empathy as they are being educated.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Empathy/Egotism and Altruism
Difficulty Level: Easy

Essay

1. Explain how reciprocity-based, care-based, and kin-based altruism are distinguished from each other.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Defining Altruism
Difficulty Level: Hard

2. Describe one example of someone engaging in egotism-based altruism and one example of someone engaging in empathy-based altruism. Briefly explain how the motive of altruism is applicable to each example.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: The Egotism Motive | The Empathy Motive and the Empathy–Altruism Hypothesis
Difficulty Level: Medium

3. Identify the main facets of the values-based approach to enhancing altruism.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Values-Based Approaches to Enhancing Altruistic Actions
Difficulty Level: Hard

4. Describe how you would convince a friend to incorporate more gratitude into their life by explaining the correlates of gratitude that help improve daily life.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Correlates of Gratitude
Difficulty Level: Medium

5. Describe the issues that people are faced with when there are opportunities for altruistic actions.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Empathy/Egotism and Altruism
Difficulty Level: Hard