Deck 3: Extension A: Human Development

Question 1

Developmental psychology is the study of

A)the language, personality, and emotions of children and adolescents.
B)the stages of life and the important tasks of each.
C)progressive changes in behavior and abilities from conception to death.
D)the role of maturation in the unfolding of human potential.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Temperament refers to

A)the pattern of physical development from conception to death.
B)the inherited, physical core of one's personality.
C)the years of aging characterized by marked physiological and psychological deterioration.
D)a period of increased sensitivity to environmental influences.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Growing infants influence their parents' behavior at the same time they are changed by it.This illustrates

A)reciprocal interactions.
B)the secular trend in behavior.
C)genetic predispositions.
D)the zone of proximal development.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Until minimum levels of physical structure are mature, no amount of practice will be sufficient to develop certain skills.This statement reflects

A)assimilation.
B)readiness.
C)resiliency.
D)habituation.

Question 5

Dianne is a psychologist who is interested in the progressive changes that people show in their behavior and abilities from conception to death.Dianne is most likely a _____ psychologist.

A)social
B)behavioral
C)comparative
D)development

Question 6

Jana is an easy baby who smiles and vocalizes frequently, which encourages her parents to smile and talk to her more.This, in turn, causes Jana to smile and interact with her parents more.This illustrates

A)reciprocal influences.
B)genetic predispositions.
C)a parental behavior that would occur even if Jana had a difficult temperament.
D)all of these.

Question 7

When a psychologist describes the reciprocal interactions between parent and child, the psychologist is stating that

A)nature plays the most important role in development.
B)nurture plays the most important role in development.
C)there is an interaction between nature and nurture.
D)that the nature-nurture controversy will never be resolved.

Question 8

Regarding the roles that heredity and the environment play in one's development, which of the following statements is/are TRUE?

A)Heredity gives each of us a variety of potentials and limitations.
B)One's potentials are affected by environmental influences, such as learning, nutrition, disease, and culture.
C)One's development is a constant interaction between the forces of nature and nurture.
D)All of these statements are true.

Question 9

Josh is a difficult baby who cries and is hard to console, which makes his parents unhappy and elicits negative parenting.This, in turn, causes Josh to cry more frequently.This illustrates

A)reciprocal influences.
B)genetic predispositions.
C)a parental behavior that would occur even if Josh had an easy temperament.
D)all of these.

Question 10

One psychologist argues that one's development is almost completely under the control of genetics, while another psychologist emphasizes the strong influence of the environment.These psychologists' argument describes the

A)nature-nurture controversy.
B)biologist-psychologist debate.
C)parenting style controversy.
D)continuity-discontinuity debate.

Question 11

Achieving sexual maturity is mostly governed by _____, while learning to swim or to use a computer is primarily a matter of _____.

A)nurture; nature
B)nature; nurture
C)heredity; nature
D)nurture; heredity

Question 12

Toilet training will usually be completed

A)when the parents and child want it to happen.
B)the earlier the parents start the training.
C)earlier with boys and a little later for girls.
D)around the age of three, or when maturation has progressed sufficiently.

Question 13

According to the text, what conclusions can be drawn in the nature-nurture debate?

A)Heredity is the most important because we inherit our potential for development as well as our limitations.
B)Environment is the most important because influences, such as learning, nutrition, disease, and culture affect our ability to develop to our potential.
C)It is the interaction between heredity and environment that is important in determining who we become.
D)Neither heredity nor environment is important; only our own behavior determines who we are.

Question 14

The study of changes in behavior from conception to death encompasses

A)gerontology.
B)thanatology.
C)developmental psychology.
D)social psychology.

Question 15

Psychologists generally resolve the nature-nurture debate by agreeing that

A)heredity and environment are interacting and inseparable factors in development.
B)heredity is more important because it precedes the effects of experience.
C)environment is more important because its effects are less flexible than those of heredity.
D)environment is more important because most behaviors of interest to psychologists are learned.

Question 16

Developmental psychologists are interested in changes in behavior that occur from

A)conception on to death (the womb to the tomb).
B)birth to adolescence (infant to teen).
C)birth to adulthood (child to grown-up).
D)conception to senescence.

Question 17

Sarah is seven months old.Her parents spend three hours a day for five weeks straight holding Sarah up next to furniture in hopes that she will grab onto the furniture and stand by herself.Sarah hates this treatment and screams and cries, but her parents are unyielding.Finally, at the end of the fifth week, Sarah stands up by herself while holding onto the furniture.Her parents smile triumphantly.What have they accomplished here?

A)Sarah's parents have trained Sarah to stand up by herself earlier than the average.
B)Sarah was ready to stand up by herself at about eight months of age; but her parents simply put her through a training ordeal for nothing.
C)If Sarah's parents had not trained her, Sarah could have been developmentally delayed.
D)Sarah's parents have respected her personal rate of growth by encouraging her with psychomotor training.

Question 18

Milestones, such as when children are able to walk alone, feed themselves, or become toilet trained tend to be governed by

A)assimilation.
B)scaffolding.
C)learning.
D)readiness.

Question 19

Jeffery is 18 months old, and his mother has spent almost every waking moment of the last three weeks trying to toilet-train Jeffery.However, Jeffery has shown no improvement.Jeffery's mother should be told that toilet training as well as other milestones in development are governed by the

A)habituation of the child.
B)child's assimilation pattern.
C)child's readiness.
D)quality and quantity of the training.

Question 20

Readiness occurs when

A)parents are ready to teach a child to walk, talk, toilet train, or feed his or herself.
B)maturation has advanced enough to allow the rapid acquisition of a particular skill.
C)a child is two years old.
D)a child is three years old.

Question 21

Studies by Kagan, Thomas, and Chess indicate that newborn infants differ in activity, irritability, and other aspects of

A)intelligence.
B)physical development.
C)temperament.
D)aggressiveness.

Question 22

With regard to temperament, "difficult children"

A)are restrained and unexpressive in their behavior.
B)tend to be excessively shy.
C)are moody, intense, and easily angered.
D)do not fit neatly into any single category.

Question 23

Helen's mother took three-year-old Helen to a birthday party in the neighborhood.Although her mother encouraged her to play with the other children, Helen did not say a word to any child but sat quietly by her mother watching the other children.Thomas and Chess would probably describe Helen as a(n) _____ child.

A)easy
B)slow-to-warm-up
C)difficult
D)immature

Question 24

From an early age, Justin tended to be a very moody child, who reacted intensely, often angrily, to most situations.Thomas and Chess would describe Justin as a(n) _____ child.

A)easy
B)slow-to-warm-up
C)spoiled
D)difficult

Question 25

Simone was a moderately shy infant whose very extroverted parents rarely gave her time to adapt to a new social situation before thrusting her into another one.This style of parenting led Simone to become an extremely shy child as she entered school.This illustrates that

A)nurture is more important than nature.
B)nature is more important than nurture.
C)inherited temperaments can be dynamically modified by learning, even negatively.
D)shyness is a lasting trait that cannot be modified by experience or learning.

Question 26

Regarding children's development, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A)Children can help shape their own development through their actions.
B)It is impossible to overcome early environmental influences.
C)Our inherited traits are what dictate who we become.
D)Our own behavior plays no role in the influences of nature and nurture.

Question 27

The existence of easy, difficult, and slow-to-warm-up children is considered evidence for

A)early critical periods in development.
B)lasting effects of the intra-uterine environment.
C)affective needs in infancy.
D)hereditary differences in temperament.

Question 28

Slow-to-warm-up children

A)are restrained and unexpressive.
B)are relaxed and agreeable.
C)are moody and intense.
D)tend to get over disappointment and anger very slowly.

Question 29

A person's developmental level refers to that person's current state of

A)physical development.
B)emotional development.
C)intellectual development.
D)all of these.

Question 30

Temperament includes

A)one's sensitivity and irritability.
B)one's distractibility.
C)one's typical mood.
D)all of these.

Question 31

At any stage of life, one's developmental level is determined by

A)heredity.
B)environment.
C)a person's own behavior.
D)all of these.

Question 32

According to Thomas and Chess, the largest percentage of children (40 percent) display what type of temperament?

A)easy
B)difficult
C)slow-to-warm-up
D)generic

Question 33

The fact that babies _____ best represents the concept of a dynamic interaction between parents and children.

A)control their own development
B)are active participants in their development
C)are controlled in their development by parents
D)control their physical but not social development

Question 34

One's heredity, environment, and behavior are the three factors that determine one's _____ at any stage of life.

A)accommodation level
B)developmental level
C)scaffolding level
D)temperament

Question 35

Forty percent of all newborns are classified as easy children, ten percent are classified as difficult, and about 15 percent are classified as slow-to-warm-up.How are the remaining 35 percent classified?

A)restrained-unexpressive
B)intensely shy or intensely moody
C)moderately easy
D)as not fitting into a single category

Question 36

A person's developmental level is determined by heredity, environment, and

A)parenting style.
B)activity level.
C)the individual's own behavior.
D)inborn potential.

Question 37

According to Thomas and Chess, the smallest percentage of children (10 percent) display what type of temperament?

A)easy
B)difficult
C)slow-to-warm-up
D)generic

Question 38

Easy children

A)are restrained and unexpressive.
B)are relaxed and agreeable.
C)are moody and intense.
D)tend to overreact to stimulation.

Question 39

Joey's mother was amazed by her two-year-old son.He was a very friendly, agreeable child who always seemed to be relaxed and in a good mood.Thomas and Chess would describe Joey as a(n) _____ child.

A)easy
B)extroverted
C)positive
D)power assertive

Question 40

Jeannette was an extremely shy child when she was two years old.However, by age five she was only moderately shy.This illustrates that

A)inherited temperaments do not last after infancy.
B)inherited temperaments are lasting and cannot be modified by learning.
C)inherited temperament can be dynamically modified by learning.
D)shyness was not really a part of her temperament.

Question 41

_____ is the means by which children receive physical and psychological characteristics of the parents.

A)Dominance
B)Heredity
C)Learning
D)Mimicking

Question 42

In 2003, a major scientific milestone was reached when the _____ completed sequencing all three billion chemical base pairs in human DNA.

A)Manhattan Project
B)Nature-Nurture Project
C)Human Genome Project
D)Hayflick Sequencing Project

Question 43

When a gene is _____, the trait it controls will be present every time the gene is present.

A)recessive
B)dominant
C)polygenic
D)sex-linked

Question 44

The long, ladder-like chains of chemical molecules that act as a code for genetic information are known as

A)DSM.
B)gametes.
C)ribosomes.
D)DNA.

Question 45

Specific areas on a strand of DNA that carry hereditary information are called

A)chromosomes.
B)genes.
C)villa.
D)nuclei.

Question 46

Chromosomes are made up of

A)zygotes.
B)gametes.
C)genes.
D)phenotypes.

Question 47

Each cell possesses 46 _____ that are responsible for all the genetic information passed from parents to children.

A)genes
B)chromosomes
C)zygotes
D)gametes

Question 48

The part of a chromosome that contains instructions that affect a particular process or personal characteristic is called a(n)

A)isotope.
B)gene.
C)soma.
D)autosome.

Question 49

The chemical molecules making up DNA are

A)organic acids.
B)organic bases.
C)ribosomes.
D)molecular ganglia.

Question 50

When psychologists attribute development to nature, they are referring to the effects of

A)mother/infant bonding.
B)heredity and genetics.
C)environmental influences.
D)evolutionary selection.

Question 51

DNA is

A)in the nucleus of every human cell.
B)an acronym for deoxyribonucleic acid.
C)a long ladder-like chain of molecules.
D)characterized by all of these.

Question 52

The code for genetic information consists of

A)the sperm and ovum.
B)the presence of neurotransmitters, especially acetylcholine.
C)the order of the molecules making up DNA.
D)molecular ganglia.

Question 53

Within the nucleus of every human cell are 46 thread-like structures that hold the coded instructions of heredity.These 46 structures are called

A)gametes.
B)DNA molecules.
C)chromosomes.
D)genes.

Question 54

The genetic transmission of physical and psychological characteristics from parents to their children is known as

A)nurture.
B)heredity.
C)conception.
D)development.

Question 55

There are _____ chromosomes in the nucleus of every human cell, except for the sperm and ova.

A)24
B)36
C)46
D)60

Question 56

The importance of heredity stems from the fact that it

A)is not subject to environmental pressures.
B)determines the overall health of an organism.
C)sets the limits of development by providing a framework of potentials and limitations.
D)is more fragile than the environment and consequently can be more changeable in its effects.

Question 57

Within the nucleus of each sperm and each ovum there are _____ chromosomes.

A)23
B)36
C)46
D)60

Question 58

The three factors combining to determine a person's developmental level at any stage of life are

A)heredity, cognitive style, and social grouping.
B)heredity, environment, and cognitive style.
C)environment, cognitive style, and the person's own behavior.
D)heredity, environment, and the person's own behavior.

Question 59

Conception occurs when the

A)egg is released from the ovary.
B)egg and sperm unite.
C)fertilized egg makes its first division.
D)embryo implants into the uterine lining.

Question 60

The uniting of the egg and sperm is referred to as

A)development.
B)transformation.
C)conception.
D)developmental sequencing.

Question 61

Traits that are determined by many genes working in combination are called

A)dominant.
B)recessive.
C)polymorphic.
D)polygenic.

Question 62

Bruce has a dominant gene for brown eyes and a recessive gene for blue eyes.Bruce's eye color would be

A)green
B)brown
C)blue
D)impossible to predict

Question 63

During the first three years of life, which of the following events are occurring within a child's brain?

A)Millions of new connections form in the child's brain every day.
B)Unused connections disappear every day in the child's brain.
C)Early learning environments literally shape the child's developing brain, through "blooming and pruning" of synapses.
D)All of these events are occurring.

Question 64

Morgan has albinism, a recessive condition resulting in a lack of skin pigment.If neither of Morgan's parents have albinism, how did Morgan develop this condition?

A)Morgan received a dominant gene for the condition from each parent.
B)Morgan received a recessive gene for the condition from each parent.
C)Morgan received two dominant genes for the condition from one of her parents.
D)Morgan received two recessive genes for the condition from one of her parents.

Question 65

Both parents carry one recessive gene for sickle cell anemia, but they do not have sickle cell anemia themselves.What is the chance that their child could have sickle cell anemia?

A)one chance in two
B)one chance in three
C)one chance in four
D)no chance (zero out of four)

Question 66

Regarding the mechanisms of heredity, which of the following statements is/are true?

A)Few of our characteristics are controlled by single genes.
B)Through the expression of genes, heredity determines eye color, skin color, and susceptibility to some diseases.
C)Genes can switch on (or off) at certain ages or developmental stages.
D)All of these statements are true.

Question 67

Nurture is to _____ as nature is to _____.

A)heredity; environment
B)environment; heredity
C)maturation; readiness
D)readiness; maturation

Question 68

Compared to the adult brain, the brain of a newborn baby has fewer nerve cell branches called _____ and fewer connections between nerve cells called _____.

A)axons; dendrites
B)dendrites; synapes
C)nodes of Ranvier; neurilemmas
D)neurilemmas; nodes of Ranvier

Question 69

The overall pattern of physical development from conception to death is known as the

A)human growth sequence.
B)senescence pattern.
C)adaptation sequence.
D)zone of proximal development.

Question 70

When a gene is _____, it must be paired with a second gene of the same type before its effect will be expressed.

A)recessive
B)dominant
C)polygenic
D)gender-linked

Question 71

Which combination could produce a blue-eyed child?

A)The father is brown-eyed, and the mother is blue-eyed.
B)The father is blue-eyed, and the mother is brown-eyed.
C)Both father and mother are brown-eyed.
D)Each of these could produce a blue-eyed child.

Question 72

One's skin color is controlled by the expression of many genes working together in combination.Thus, skin color is a

A)dominant trait.
B)recessive trait.
C)polygenic trait.
D)sex-linked trait.

Question 73

When an individual develops from a zygote to an embryo to a fetus to a neonate and so on until one's death, this overall pattern of physical development is known as the

A)human growth sequence.
B)senescence pattern.
C)adaptation sequence.
D)zone of proximal development.

Question 74

The brain of a newborn baby has _____ dendrites and _____ synapses than an adult brain.

A)more; more
B)more; fewer
C)fewer; fewer
D)fewer; more

Question 75

The sum of all external conditions that affect a person is referred to as

A)nurture.
B)senescence.
C)nature.
D)the human growth sequence.

Question 76

When John

A)nature.
B)Watson made the statement that if he had a dozen infants he could take any one of them at random and train him to be a doctor, merchant, thief, etc., he was referring to the powerful effect of
B)temperament.
C)the human growth sequence.
D)the environment.

Question 77

Heredity can have an effect on

A)eye and skin color.
B)susceptibility to some diseases.
C)personality traits.
D)all of these.

Question 78

James has one brown-eye gene and one blue-eye gene.His wife Carolyn also has one brown-eye gene and one blue-eye gene.What is the chance that their child could have blue eyes?

A)one chance in two
B)one chance in three
C)one chance in four
D)no chance (zero out of four)

Question 79

The brain of a newborn baby is highly _____, that is, it is capable of being altered by experience.

A)plastic
B)polygenic
C)anthropomorphic
D)denotative

Question 80

To a degree, genetic instructions affect

A)body size and shape.
B)intelligence.
C)sexual orientation.
D)all of these.