AP Psychology Practice Test

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Prepare for the AP Psychology Exam with a comprehensive practice test featuring detailed questions and explanations. Enhance your learning experience as you dive deep into psychological concepts, theories, and important figures in psychology. Get ready for your exam!

Each practice test/flash card set has 50 randomly selected questions from a bank of over 500. You'll get a new set of questions each time!

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What is the primary effect of confirmation bias?

It leads to novel solutions to problems
Impedes the ability to view problems from new perspectives
Prompts searches for information affirming one’s beliefs
Encourages overconfidence in decision-making

The correct answer is: Prompts searches for information affirming one’s beliefs

Confirmation bias is a cognitive bias that causes individuals to search, interpret, or remember information in a way that confirms their preconceptions and beliefs. This means that individuals tend to seek out and favor information that aligns with their existing beliefs and ignore or discredit information that contradicts their beliefs. Option A is incorrect because confirmation bias does not lead to novel solutions, but rather reinforces existing beliefs. Option B is incorrect because it suggests that confirmation bias simply hinders the ability to view problems differently, but it goes beyond that by actively seeking information to support one's beliefs. Option D is incorrect because while confirmation bias can lead to overconfidence, this is not its primary effect. Therefore, option C is the most accurate choice as it directly reflects the main effect of confirmation bias.