Practise AP Psychology 4.2.B by explaining belief perseverance, spotting confirmation bias, and predicting attitude change from cognitive dissonance.
Savannah is a junior in high school and is preparing for an exam in her beginning Japanese course. The exam
will consist of both written and spoken portions. Although it is her first course in Japanese, Savannah is
confident that she will do very well on the exam.
After the exam, Savannah tells her family and friends that she believes that she spoke fluently and did
extremely well on the exam. Describe how each of the following concepts may have influenced her opinion.
- Self-efficacy
Confirmation bias
Point 8: Confirmation bias
To earn this point students must accurately describe how confirmation bias may have influenced
Savannah's positive opinion of her test performance. They may explain that Savannah is:
A. Selectively attending to information that supports her preconceived beliefs, OR
B. Minimizing contradictory evidence, OR
C. Selectively recalling information to support her existing beliefs.
Example: "Savannah may only remember the questions she did well on."