Deck 2: Theories of Human Development

Question 1

Because Dr. Smith falls on the "nurture" side of the nature-nurture controversy, she is most likely to believe that

A) if infants are given normal opportunities to move about, their motor skills will naturally unfold in a universal sequence.
B) teachers' expectations for their students' success will have little effect on how they actually achieve.
C) while a child's experiences in school will have an impact on his or her intellectual development, what the child is "born with" matters more.
D) a mother's care can greatly impact the development of a child.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

A list of the most influential psychoanalytic theorists would include the name

A) Erikson.
B) Bronfenbrenner.
C) Bandura.
D) Gottlieb.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

If asked to list the key issues on which developmental theorists tend to disagree, you would AVOID saying

A) activity-passivity.
B) longitudinal-cross-sectional.
C) universality-context specific.
D) goodness-badness of human nature.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

When John Locke referred to the mind of a human infant as like a tabula rasae, he meant that an infant's mind was

A) cursed with original sin that made it naturally evil.
B) more like that of chimps than human adults.
C) a set of connected living nerves.
D) empty and to be written on through experience.

Question 5

A list of the most influential systems theorists would include the name

A) Bronfenbrenner.
B) Skinner.
C) Freud.
D) Bandura.

Question 6

A parent who falls on the "activity" side of the "activity-passivity" issue is most likely to believe that

A) if a child is aggressive, the parents were not active enough in parenting.
B) if new skills are not regularly used, they will disappear.
C) we are naturally more active when young and become more passive with age.
D) children play an important role in shaping their own development.

Question 7

As a strong believer of the influence of experience, John Locke emphasized the role of _____ in human development.

A) fixations
B) nature
C) stages
D) nurture

Question 8

Which perspective argues that human development takes many paths and is minimally influenced by physiological factors?

A) Nature perspective only
B) Nurture perspective only
C) Both the nature and nurture perspectives
D) Neither the nature nor nurture perspectives

Question 9

The theorist most associated with cognitive developmental theory is

A) Bandura
B) Bronfenbrenner
C) Piaget
D) Freud

Question 10

The theorist most associated with a learning theory approach to development is

A) Erik Erikson.
B) Albert Bandura.
C) Jean Piaget.
D) Sigmund Freud.

Question 11

Which statement best describes the continuity approach to development?

A) Small steps without sudden change
B) The belief that children play no role in their development
C) Common development across humanity
D) Biologically driven maturation

Question 12

Miley is a strong believer in the power of nature in determining the way her son Cyrus acts. As a result, she is most likely to agree that Cyrus's aggression is the result of

A) watching violent television.
B) too much sugar in his diet.
C) bad parenting.
D) inheriting genes for violence.

Question 13

A theory guides all of the following EXCEPT

A) what is most important to study.
B) what can be hypothesized about.
C) how many times an issue should be studied.
D) how an issue should be studied.

Question 14

School refusal behavior

A) affects as many as 20 percent of school-age children at any one given time.
B) peaks in middle school.
C) can lead to academic difficulty and dropping out of school.
D) seldom involve emotional distress.

Question 15

The fact that Goober believes in different stages of development indicates that he views human development as reflecting

A) activity.
B) context-specificity.
C) discontinuity.
D) human agency.

Question 16

John Locke believed that human nature was

A) inherently selfish and aggressive.
B) innately good.
C) determined by a person's experiences.
D) determined equally by both genetic and environmental factors.

Question 17

What in the past was often called school phobia is now referred to as

A) academic passivity.
B) school refusal behavior.
C) academic discontinuity.
D) school paranoia.

Question 18

With regard to the nature-nurture debate, a strong believer in nature would suggest that

A) environmental influences are more important than genetic makeup in determining human behavior.
B) maturation forces are more influential than environmental experiences in determining human behavior.
C) teaching and enrichment of the environment are often more influential than genetics in determining human behavior.
D) humans are basically good.

Question 19

A theory that is falsifiable is

A) coherent.
B) testable.
C) discontinuous.
D) valid.

Question 20

Lindsey argues that she is not responsible for any of her bad behavior as she is driven by biological and environmental factors over which she has no control. This belief best exemplifies the _____ position on development.

A) discontinuity
B) continuity
C) passivity
D) activity

Question 21

Anthony believes that his daughter Cleopatra acts the way she does because of the unconscious workings of her mind. This belief best matches with the _____ theory of development.

A) cognitive-developmental
B) contextual
C) behavioral
D) psychoanalytic

Question 22

According to Freud, the personality component underlying the crying of a hungry newborn is called the

A) ego.
B) formal operation.
C) id.
D) superego.

Question 23

According to Freud, in a mentally healthy individual, the

A) id finds realistic ways to restrain the ego.
B) superego gives into the id.
C) ego is ignored by the superego.
D) ego restrains the id.

Question 24

Lisa and Lyle both want to stay up past their bedtimes to watch a show on TV. When their parents say "No," Lisa throws a fit, while Lyle says, "Please? I'll brush my teeth and get into PJs so that I can just pop into bed the minute the show is over!" From a Freudian perspective, Lisa is responding from her _____, while Lyle is communicating through his _____.

A) id; ego
B) ego; superego
C) id; superego
D) ego; id

Question 25

According to Freud, I am the component of personality that is impulsive, irrational, and driven to satisfy instincts. I am the

A) id.
B) ego.
C) superego.
D) formal operation.

Question 26

Five-year-old Theodore is currently internalizing the moral standards of his father Ward and mother June. According to a psychoanalytic theorist, Theodore appears to be developing his

A) superego.
B) id.
C) libido.
D) ego.

Question 27

Because he holds a psychoanalytic orientation, Dr. Powers would suggest that the true reason for his son's interest in becoming an international spy involves

A) a conscious wish to become famous.
B) a genetic predisposition for behaving in dangerous ways.
C) an unconscious sex drive.
D) the conditioned response of fear.

Question 28

The statement, "change is different from person to person because cultures differ from person to person," best fits with the _____ approach to development.

A) discontinuity
B) passivity
C) context-specific
D) universality

Question 29

I am the "moral" aspect of the personality that helps a person determine the difference between acceptable and unacceptable behavior. Sigmund Freud called me the

A) ego.
B) id.
C) libido .
D) superego.

Question 30

Saturn's daughter is approaching adolescence, and Saturn is convinced that the impending adolescence will be singularly awful and a stage of life like no other time across the lifespan. As she puts it, adolescents are like creatures from another planet. Saturn's perspective on the matter fits best with that of _____ theorists.

A) quantitative
B) discontinuity
C) particularity
D) continuity

Question 31

The universality-context-specificity issue is concerned with whether

A) we all follow the same or different developmental paths.
B) environmental or biological factors are more influential in development.
C) we pass through abrupt developmental stages or develop in small, gradual steps.
D) we all participate in our developmental outcomes or not.

Question 32

Qualitative changes are best thought of as changes in _____, while quantitative changes are best thought of as changes in _____.

A) amount; type
B) size; shape
C) kind; degree
D) continuity; discontinuity

Question 33

Instincts are best described as

A) inborn biological forces that motivate behavior.
B) experiences that motivate behavior.
C) inborn biological forces that inhibit behavior.
D) experiences that inhibit behavior.

Question 34

The belief that the same type of change occurs in all humans best fits with the _____ approach to development.

A) activity
B) universality
C) continuity
D) passivity

Question 35

Freud emphasized the importance of _____ in determining behavior.

A) preoperational thought
B) observational learning
C) negative reinforcement
D) unconscious motivation

Question 36

Freud believed that human infants were born with

A) only an id.
B) an id and an ego.
C) an ego and a superego.
D) an id, ego, and superego.

Question 37

Jerome believes that development proceeds through a series of developmental stages, each of which represents distinct changes. He might best be called a(n) _____ theorist.

A) discontinuity
B) learning
C) activity
D) context-specificity

Question 38

According to Freud, the primary mission of the ego is to

A) help the child learn right from wrong.
B) raise the child's self-esteem.
C) help the child find realistic ways to get needs met.
D) provide for immediate gratification.

Question 39

Dr. Love believes that it is normal for a six-month-old to throw tantrums when she doesn't immediately get what she wants. Dr. Love's views are most in line with those of

A) Piaget.
B) Freud.
C) Skinner.
D) Bandura.

Question 40

After her mother says, "No, you may not eat any cookies" Sandra takes some cookies from the cookie jar and eats them when her mother isn't looking. Later, she feels badly because she knows this was not a good thing to do. Sandra's attitude indicates that her

A) id is in control.
B) ability to delay gratification is strong.
C) superego is reasonably well developed.
D) logic includes the concept of stagnation.

Question 41

When part of the libido remains tied to an earlier stage of development, _____ has occurred.

A) extinction
B) conditioning
C) fixation
D) constructivism

Question 42

Ten-year-old Jordan has few sexual urges and expends most of his energy playing basketball. Jordan appears to be in Freud's _____ stage of development.

A) phallic
B) latency
C) oral
D) genital

Question 43

Brynn is three years old. She has been out of diapers for over a year. When her mother comes home from the hospital with a new baby brother, Brynn begins to suck her thumb and wet the bed at night. According to Freud, Brynn is experiencing

A) reaction formation.
B) regression.
C) repression.
D) sublimation.

Question 44

Salem, a university professor, smokes like a chimney and bites her nails. Freud would most likely say that Salem

A) has become fixated at the oral stage of development.
B) values despair over integrity.
C) is suffering from an unresolved Electra complex.
D) lacks a superego.

Question 45

According to Freud, the _____ stage is the first psychosexual stage of development.

A) anal
B) genital
C) oral
D) phallic

Question 46

Freud suggested that psychological problems arise when the

A) superego develops after the id.
B) supply of psychic energy is unevenly distributed between the id, ego, and superego.
C) ego emerges in infancy.
D) child realistically postpones gratification.

Question 47

Which is the correct order of the psychosexual stages of development?

A) Genital, anal, latency, phallic, oral
B) Oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital
C) Latency, genital, anal, phallic, oral
D) Anal, latency, oral, genital, phallic

Question 48

Libido is best defined as

A) the collective unconscious.
B) your morals.
C) the psychic energy of the sex instinct.
D) a conditioned stimulus.

Question 49

Seven-year-old Jasper devotes his energy to play and schoolwork. According to Freud, Jasper is in which stage?

A) anal
B) oral
C) genital
D) latency

Question 50

When Felix and Oscar go out to dinner with friends, Felix brings a calculator so that he can figure out his exact share of the bill. Oscar thinks Felix is a tightwad and finds his behavior embarrassing. Freud would be most likely to attribute Felix's stingy behavior to

A) an unresolved Electra complex.
B) stressful toilet-training.
C) the collective unconscious.
D) a big ego.

Question 51

Freudians believe that when experiencing an Oedipus complex, a boy will fear that his father will retaliate by _____ him.

A) killing
B) beating
C) castrating
D) abandoning

Question 52

Who is undergoing psychodynamic identification?

A) Randy, who is experiencing a midlife crisis
B) Ellen, who is starting her first job
C) Simon, who is taking on the behaviors of his father
D) Kara, who is attacking her mother (whom she has hated all of her life)

Question 53

Five-year-old Greta envies the fact that her father has something she doesn't, a penis. Freud referred to what Greta is experiencing as a(n) _____ complex.

A) Oedipus
B) senex
C) Electra
D) superiority

Question 54

Paris is a 16-year-old who is having difficulty accepting her newfound sexuality. Given this description, Freud would argue that Paris is in the _____ stage of development.

A) phallic
B) latency
C) oral
D) genital

Question 55

Which of the following best characterizes Freud's position on the nature-nurture issue?

A) He emphasized nurture more than nature.
B) He emphasized nature more than nurture.
C) He emphasized both nature and nurture equally.
D) He did not really take a stand on this issue.

Question 56

Oedipus is to Electra as

A) power is to sex.
B) repression is to regression.
C) boy is to girl.
D) conscious is to unconscious.

Question 57

The Oedipus complex is successfully resolved through the process of

A) regression.
B) identification.
C) reaction formation.
D) projection.

Question 58

Which defense mechanism involves removing unacceptable thoughts from consciousness?

A) Reaction formation
B) Projection
C) Regression
D) Repression

Question 59

To control anxiety, the ego is most likely to

A) fulfill all of the id's desires.
B) turn over control to the superego.
C) progress through different psychosexual stages.
D) adopt defense mechanisms.

Question 60

Four-year-old Ed says, "Mommy, when I grow up I want to marry you and be your husband." Given this statement, Ed appears to be experiencing a(n) _____ complex.

A) Oedipus
B) senex
C) Electra
D) inferiority

Question 61

Which theoretical camp suggests that we should study only what we can directly observe and measure (i.e., overt behaviors)?

A) Behaviorism
B) Psychoanalysis
C) Constructivism
D) Epigenesis

Question 62

Which question provides the best example of the concept of generativity versus stagnation?

A) Will my work benefit the next generation?
B) Do I know who I am?
C) Should I get married?
D) Will my choice of college major lead to a career in which I will make a lot of money?

Question 63

Bob is currently questioning himself. Which question would indicate that Bob is currently in Erikson's integrity versus despair stage of life?

A) Can I raise happy children?
B) Should I marry Hope?
C) Has my life been worthwhile?
D) Will my job as a comedian help the younger generation?

Question 64

Erikson's theory is different from Freud's because it

A) places greater emphasis on biological influences.
B) describes development in terms of stages.
C) focuses on possibilities for growth beyond adolescence.
D) involves the resolution of crises.

Question 65

In comparison to Freud, Erikson placed greater emphasis on

A) infantile sexuality.
B) development after adolescence.
C) operant conditioning principles.
D) biological determinants of behavior.

Question 66

Adler, Jung, Horney, and Erikson are all well-known

A) neo-behaviorists.
B) neo-feminists.
C) neo-Freudians.
D) neo-contextualists.

Question 67

Rachel is 15 years old. She spends countless hours alone and in conversation with her peers trying to figure out what it is she wants to do with her life. Rachel is in which of the following of Erikson's psychosocial stages?

A) Identity versus role confusion
B) Industry versus inferiority
C) Initiative versus guilt
D) Intimacy versus isolation

Question 68

Twenty-eight-year-old Serge is a typical young adult. As such, Erikson would suggest that Sergi is most concerned about

A) dying young.
B) the shame he experienced as a toddler.
C) finding a job.
D) establishing an intimate long-term love relationship.

Question 69

Which of the following is a key criticism of Erikson's theory of personality development?

A) He is pessimistic regarding one's ability to overcome problems that have their roots in early childhood experiences.
B) He portrays adulthood as a period of little growth and change.
C) His theory is rather vague and difficult to test.
D) His theory focuses too strongly on formal operations in thinking.

Question 70

The preschool-aged child is typically in which of Erikson's psychosocial stages?

A) Intimacy versus isolation
B) Identity versus role confusion
C) Initiative versus guilt
D) Integrity versus despair

Question 71

Erikson used the phrase "_____" to characterize the key element of adolescence.

A) sexual exploration
B) identity crisis
C) guilt heaped upon guilt
D) reciprocal determinism

Question 72

Rather than a sense of inferiority, eight-year-old Zeke has developed a sense of mastery in all his academic endeavors. Erikson would say that Zeke has a strong sense of

A) generativity.
B) integrity.
C) autonomy.
D) industry.

Question 73

Watson believed that

A) most children progress through a predictable series of stages that are programmed by biological maturation.
B) children have many inborn tendencies.
C) how a person turns out depends entirely on the environment in which he or she grows up
D) elements of the unconscious mind are responsible for moral thought.

Question 74

Maya has recently given birth to a healthy baby boy, Jason. Whenever Jason cries, Maya goes to him, tries to figure out the reason for his crying, and then promptly does all she can to meet his needs. According to Erikson's theory, Jason is well on his way toward mastering the conflict of

A) autonomy versus shame and doubt.
B) initiative versus guilt.
C) industry versus inferiority.
D) trust versus mistrust.

Question 75

Morgan, who just started kindergarten, is refusing to go to school and clings to his mother every morning. What would Freud suggest?

A) Examine Morgan's relationship with his mother and the resolution of his Oedipus complex.
B) Examine Morgan's relationship with his father and the resolution of his Elektra complex.
C) Punish Morgan harshly for his refusal to attend school.
D) Prescribe medication for Morgan because he is too young for psychoanalysis.

Question 76

A reasonable criticism of Freudian psychoanalytic theory is that it puts too little emphasis on the

A) biological instincts or urges that underlie behavior.
B) collection of hard data to support his findings.
C) emotional side of development.
D) effects of early life experiences on development.

Question 77

Erikson emphasized the importance of a caregiver's _____ in predicting the impact of early life experience on later development.

A) general responsiveness
B) age
C) sex
D) intelligence

Question 78

The type of learning Watson and Pavlov's studied is referred to as _____ conditioning.

A) operant
B) instrumental
C) social
D) classical

Question 79

Ruth is 80 years old and terminally ill with cancer. As she reflects back on her life, she comes to the conclusion that she has lived a full and productive life, and that it could not have been better lived in any other way. Ruth has successfully mastered the developmental task of

A) intimacy versus isolation.
B) generativity versus stagnation.
C) industry versus inferiority.
D) integrity versus despair.

Question 80

One strength of Freud's approach to development is his description of how

A) early experience can influence later development.
B) children learn through observation.
C) reinforcement and punishment determine behavior.
D) conscious motivations underlie most decision-making.