Kabir is known among his friends as loud and quick to argue. Whenever they plan an outing, he insists on his own choice and rarely gives in. Yet when Kabir is called to the principal's office, he speaks softly, nods and agrees with everything he is told. His classmates notice that two other students, one very shy and one very bold, also behave in the same quiet and obedient way whenever they are in the principal's office. Their psychology teacher says this pattern tells us something important about what shapes behaviour.
Which view of human behaviour best explains the pattern described in the passage?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Situationism
Option (1) Trait view — Incorrect. The trait view holds that our behaviour comes mainly from our personal traits. By that view, aggressive Kabir would stay argumentative everywhere, which is not what happens in the principal's office.
Option (2) Situationism — Correct. Situationism holds that the situation a person is placed in shapes behaviour. The principal's office makes the bold Kabir, the shy student and the bold student all act the same quiet way, so external factors outweigh their traits here.
Option (3) Individual differences — Incorrect. Individual differences are the distinctiveness and variations among people's characteristics and behaviour. The passage shows the opposite: very different students behaving alike in one setting.
Option (4) Information-processing approach — Incorrect. The information-processing approach is a way of studying intelligence. It looks at the mental processes used in reasoning and problem solving.
NCERT (2026-27): “INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES IN HUMAN FUNCTIONING … |