INSTRUCTIONS: FOR THE MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS, HIGHLIGHT OR BOLD THE LETTER

THAT CORRESPONDS TO YOUR CHOICE OF THE CORRECT ALTERNATIVE. FOR THE ESSAY QUESTIONS, ANSWER THE TWO INDICATED IN RED FONT. EACH ESSAY ANSWER WILL BE EVALUATED ON A 10-POINT BASIS.

1. In learning environments, such as museums and zoos, it is believed that the amount learned is related positively to:

a. the exhibit’s academic power

b. the exhibit’s holding power

c. the exhibit’s distance from the entrance

d. the number of objects comprising the exhibit

2. Many museum visitors have difficulty finding their way to specific exhibits, which can result in:

a. more opportunistic learning, as opposed to structured learning

b. physical fatigue, reduced satisfaction, and poorer experiences

c. more people competing for the available rest areas, resulting in a high number of personal space violations

d. higher profits for the providers of food and drink (concessions), especially when located near exits

3. Museum fatigue, as defined by Robinson (1928), seems to be due primarily to:

a. the distance walked within the museum

b. the number of times visitors walk the stairs to different floors to view exhibits

c. the stimulus overload provided by the exhibits

d. eye strain that comes from reading the informative signs

4. According to Melton (1933), museum visitors have a tendency to do which of the following upon entering a rectangular exhibit area or gallery?

a. move quickly past the first few exhibits, then concentrate on those exhibits located near the door (e.g., the exit gradient)

b. move along the right-hand wall and exit as soon as possible

c. look at every exhibit for an equal amount of time

d. stand in the middle of the room and look at every item from the same distance

5. In zoos, visitors spend a lot of time viewing large animals, such as elephants, rhinoceros, and hippopotamuses. This finding highlights the holding power attributable to:

a. object factors

b. design factors

c. visitor factors

d. administrative factors

6. One design factor that can enhance the benefits of a learning environment, such as a zoo or museum, is:

a. post signs that have repeated information on them, so that the message will be conveyed to visitors no matter which signs they actually read

b. allow visitors choices as to the paths they take through the learning environment

c. always have visitors looking down at exhibits, so that the visitors can feel superior to whatever is being displayed

d. provide food and other amenities that compete for the visitor’s attention, thus increasing discontinuity and preventing visitors from giving all their attention to the exhibits

7. Learning in zoos and museums is likely to be enhanced by:

a. Making food and drink available near the exhibits

b. Including exhibits/animals that stimulate only one sensory systems at a time

c. Providing exhibits/animals in a way that fosters interaction and multisensory stimulation

d. Limiting the number of visitors that can view the exhibits/animals at a time

8. Traditional prisons are characterized by:

a. high density and hard architecture

b. low density and soft architecture

c. cell mates assigned based on Gans’ concept of “social proximity”

d. barracks-style housing and direct supervision style of management

9. Newer prisons [called “third generation prisons” or “Metropolitan Correctional Centers” (MCC)] were intended to:

a. place prisoners where they are more visible to the guards who patrol the perimeter fences

b. allow prisoners to choose the density in which they want to live

c. allow prisoners to work individually with guards with the expectation that prisoners will eventually be hired as guards, thus serving a rehabilitative function

d. allow prisoners more flexibility in, and control of, their environment, particularly their individual cells

10. In MCC-type prisons, as originally conceived rather than how they are used now,

a. inmates with short sentences were housed in cells with soft architectural features, while those with long sentences were housed in cells with hard architectural features

b. soft architectural features were provided and the inmates appreciated and cared for these features

c. soft architectural features were destroyed almost immediately, contributing to the eventual demise of this plan for prisons

d. individuals in the community committed crimes in order to be sentenced to these facilities, as the prison environments were usually better than the conditions in the respective communities

11. Which of the following has been shown to promote more favorable medical and psychological outcomes in hospital settings?

a. providing a view of nature

b. reducing territorial markers

c. minimizing wayfinding aids

d. adding windows to all the doors in the facility (or using Dutch doors)

12. What is the basis for the recommendation that residential facilities for the elderly be in urban or suburban environments?

a. residents prefer indoor activities, so outdoor space is not needed

b. smaller facilities have been found to be more beneficial than larger facilities, so these facilities can be built where there are smaller lots

c. the taxes paid by residents and the facilities will go to services provided by the city, and there is a greater need for these tax dollars in cities (vis-a-vis rural area)

d. residents might want to take advantage of the opportunities associated with cities, which are not readily available in more-rural areas

13. The physical arrangement of hospital rooms, nursing stations, and hallways can have some influence on patient health and worker satisfaction. Which design has produced the best results on these two variables?

a. long corridors

b. short corridors

c. radial designs

d. rectangular arrangement with one continuous hallway

14. The design of hospital rooms can influence the experience of both patients and staff. According to the results of Peavey’s and colleagues’ studies, which of the following designs was preferred by patients, nurses, and doctors?

a. mirror rooms

b. same-hand rooms

c. rooms with two beds (called “semi-private”)

d. rooms closest to the nurse station

15. While visitors at hospitals provided benefits to both patients and staff, they created some problems, as well. One problem, related to environmental psychology, was that they:

a. talked on their cell phones in hallways, creating obstacles for the staff

b. tended to turn the volume of the TV to higher levels, disturbing patients in adjacent rooms

c. moved chairs from waiting areas into patient rooms, creating a cluttered work space for staff

d. would ask questions of staff, effectively preventing staff from providing care to others

16. With respect to the design of hospital patient rooms, canted headwalls provided the extra benefit of:

a. orienting patients towards the doors of the room to give them a better view of other people

b. orienting patients towards windows to give them more access to views of the out-of-doors

c. allowing physicians to approach the patient from either side in order to perform their examinations

d. allowed visitors to enter unnoticed, and most patients reported appreciating the “surprise element” of this arrangement

17. Devlin (and colleagues) have studied factors that contribute to stress reduction in hospital environments. Which one of the following features (amenities) was found to be most effective in stress reduction?

a. Perceptions of control

b. Social support

c. Positive distraction

d. Simultaneous presence of all three of the above categories

18. In judging the qualifications of psychotherapists based on environmental features,

a. the number of credentials on display predicted higher ratings as to qualifications

b. the number of family photographs on display predicted higher ratings as to qualifications

c. the tidiness of the therapist’s desk predicted higher ratings as to qualifications

d. the absence of any personalization in the office predicted higher ratings as to qualifications

19. Which one of the following features is recommended especially for nursing homes or assisted living facilities housing patients with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias?

a. handrails installed in bathrooms

b. non-slip floors

c. ramps to accommodate residents with wheelchairs, walkers, or canes

d. signs or labels on doors to indicate the function of the room

20. In designing work environments, a key concept is workflow, which means:

a. private offices should be used to reward workers for jobs well done

b. private offices should reflect status and/or seniority

c. work stations should be arranged in the order in which paperwork or products are generated

d. the most basic work should be completed on ground floors, with the more advanced work

completed on upper floors or off-site in another building

21. Workers in windowless offices:

a. report more depression and tension than do those in offices with windows

b. believe that their job performance is enhanced because of fewer distractions

c. are generally given longer lunch breaks in order to spend more time outside

d. believe that the physical effects of “windowlessness” are more severe than the psychological effects

22. One advantage of open-plan offices is:

a. their flexibility in responding to changing space needs

b. their tendency to increase feelings or privacy and territoriality

c. their provision for quiet concentration

d. their popularity with workers

23. While the “open plan” design of offices and classrooms have many advantages, there are also disadvantages common to both. One of these disadvantages, relevant to environmental psychology, is:

a. damage to the semi-fixed features deemed to be “soft architecture”

b. continuous rearrangement of the semi-fixed features, which detracts from social stability

c. increased noise from office machines and social interactions

d. higher absenteeism due to feelings of constant scrutiny by supervisors

24. In which of the following conditions would there be the greatest amount of “architectural privacy”?

a. computer labs, such as what is found in Monroe Library

b. offices where the space is divided by low partitions

c. classrooms where there are clusters of desks in several parts of the room

d. workplaces where there are traditional offices with permanent walls and doors

25. Wilderness areas, including national parks, are generally under-used. However, increasing use of these areas is likely to:

a. decrease their attractiveness due to increased traffic, noise, litter, and other pollution

b. increase the attractiveness of, and number of visitors to, “urban parks” because city-dwellers will have abandoned areas closer to their homes

c. lead government officials to increase admission costs to these parks in an attempt to pay for needed increases in upkeep, including personnel (e.g., park rangers)

d. lead to increased incidents of wildlife attacking and injuring visitors as a result of wildlife being stressed in these more crowded parks

26. Playgrounds containing wooden, plastic, and/or rope structures, situated on soft ground, are most likely to be classified as:

a. adventure playgrounds

b. contemporary playgrounds

c. traditional playgrounds

d. suburbocentric playgrounds

27. The equipment provided on a playground should:

a. be intended for use by specific age groups

b. facilitate approved use of the equipment rather than creative use

c. enable use by a variety of age groups and abilities

d. be durable and long-lasting to save money by recreation departments

28. One problem associated with pedestrian malls is:

a. they tend not to be used in bad weather

b. the is an increased risk of crime

c. they draw only local residents, who tend to visit once, but then patronize other commercial areas

d. most local laws prohibit blocking of vehicular traffic, thus increasing the danger of accidents involving pedestrian shoppers

29. The location of a store in a shopping mall is related to the number of people entering the store (customers) and amount or volume of sales. In shopping malls:

a. stores at the intersections of the major “arms” of the mall are visited least

b. shoppers tend to visit stores that sell products that are not popular with adolescents/teens

c. fewer shoppers visit stores located next to the larger, anchor stores, typically located at the ends of the mall’s arms/wings

d. there is an interaction between sex of shopper and location; men tend to visit stores located near the centers of the malls, whereas women tend to visit stores closest to the entrances/exits, regardless of the products sold in those stores

30. One conflict inherent in the problem of the commons revolves around:

a. city planners vs. urban residents

b. pro-consumer groups vs. conservation groups

c. short-term gains vs. long-term gains

d. individuals vs. local governments

31. One proposed way to help manage resources representative of the problem of the commons is to:

a. put management in the hands of a centralized government

b. divide the commons, giving individuals control over their portion

c. sum, then equally divide, the profits of all who use the common resource

d. just allow the resource to be depleted to teach people this harsh lesson about resources

32. In designing a program to change behavior in a conservation-oriented direction, what is the appropriate first step?

a. determine and define the exact behavior to be changed

b. determine a reinforcer or reward that will work for all individuals

c. distribute printed information to all individuals in the area

d. advertise the program on television, billboards, radio, and internet

33. While prompts with contingencies or incentives (rewards) can be effective in changing behavior, prompts without contingencies also can be effective if:

a. the prompt uses forceful language

b. the prompt is for a behavior that is relatively easy to perform

c. the prompt is worded in general terms rather than specific terms

d. the prompt is for a behavior that is good for long-term outcomes but harmful for short-term outcomes

34. In order to encourage behavior that conserves resources, such as natural gas and electricity,

a. punishment, in the form of heavy fines, has been shown to be effective in reducing consumption

b. signs should be written in such a way as to promote psychological reactance

c. management of public utilities should be managed by private companies through a competitive bidding process

d. feedback regarding successful conservation should be provided to consumers

35. While disasters tend to be destructive, the magnitude of the impact of the disaster can be better understood in terms of which one of the following factors related to the behavior constraint theory of environment-behavior relationships?

a. event duration

b. amount of disruption

c. particulates (pollutants in the air)

d. toxic chemical index (TCI)

36. People are typically better able to cope with cataclysmic events, such as natural disasters, compared to personal stressors. Why?

a. cataclysmic events are inherently less stressful than personal stressors

b. personal stressors are of shorter durations than are cataclysmic events

c. more people experience cataclysmic events simultaneously, so with the shared experience, social support and coping can start more quickly

d. coping to either type of stressor is really determined by the number of background stressors being experienced at the time of the event

37. The belief that one is safe from natural or technological disasters once some preventive measure has been taken, is referred to as the:

a. levee effect

b. crisis effect

c. Gaia effect

d. NIMBY effect (NIMBY = Not in my Back Yard)

38. Weather factors that influence (and disrupt) behavior are generally considered to be:

a. personal stressors

b. impersonal stressors

c. palliative stressors

d. background stressors

39. Noise is generally more disruptive and annoying if:

a. it is predictable

b. present, but poses no risk to one’s physical or mental health

c. those making noise are not concerned about the noise being produced

d. one’s friends present in the same environment do not judge the sound as noise, e.g., there are mixed opinions on whether the sound is noise or not

40. The relationship between noise and mental illness (i.e., psychological disorders) is:

a. that noise has a direct effect on mental disorders, particularly schizophrenia

b. that noise may contribute to mental illness, but likely acts indirectly by increasing stress or reducing perceived control

c. nonexistent, except in those cases where mental hospitals are located within 5 miles of airports

d. that noise has a greater detrimental effect on men than it does on women

ESSAY QUESTIONS

(Please Answer the Questions Indicated in Red)

1. In museums and zoos, and any other environments in which there are visual displays intended to educate, describe the following concepts: Attracting power, holding power, exit gradients, and circulation routes. Also, for these environments, explain what “museum fatigue” is and how it can be minimized.

2. If Question 2 is chosen, answer either Part A or Part B:

2A. Peavey’s work on hospital design addressed a variety of topics, including same-hand rooms, canted headwalls, MRI waiting areas, visitors and chairs, and the locations of nursing stations and associated medications. Describe her findings for TWO of these areas as they relate to hospital environments as places for patients and/or physicians/staff.

2B. Devlin’s research about hospitals focused on stress reduction in hospital rooms (Andrade & Devlin, 2015) and the hospital experience for adolescent patients, including providing for privacy (Blumberg & Devlin, 2006). Summarize one of these studies, indicating the approach taken by the researchers, key concepts, and primary results, and remember to keep your summary relevant to environmental psychology.

3. Describe the relative advantages and disadvantages of open vs. closed (traditional) work environments, as well as addressing the issue of noise and architectural privacy in the workplace, and their relationship to job satisfaction.

4. Describe the three types of playgrounds and their features. What other design features should be included with playgrounds with respect to safety, supervision, and use of equipment (and why should they be included – do more than just list the features)? You should identify and describe at least three features.

5. With respect to the preservation of natural environments and resources, describe the “problem of the commons” and its relevance to environmental issues, giving an appropriate example and explaining two ways that this kind of problem can be addressed.

6. While many have “pro-environmental” attitudes, appropriate behaviors do not necessarily follow from those attitudes. First, describe (with examples) two conditions that predict that behaviors will follow from attitudes, then second, for a pro-environmental behavior of your choice, describe how the behavior of others can be changed (via established behavioral technologies) to increase the desired behavior or decrease the undesired behaviors.

7. The disruptive experience of noise, as an environmental stressor, depends upon its volume, predictability, and controllability. Explain the influences that each of these variables has on the detrimental effects of noise, providing an example for each of these variables/characteristics.