Deck 9: The Social Benefits of Play

Question 1

Parents of insecurely attached children have a number of characteristics. Which is not usually one of these characteristics?

A) irritability
B) depression
C) anxiety
D) lack of self-confidence
E) insensitivity.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Regarding musical experiences for young children, the author of your textbook suggests that

A) the most important musical activity is listening and developing music appreciation.
B) children should never be required to simply listen to music.
C) children prefer to be actively engaged in the experience of music.
D) preschool children are too young to play musical instruments.
E) only professional musical teachers should be allowed to teach young children.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

The most typical form of musical experience for preschool children is

A) listening to music.
B) group singing.
C) rhythms.
D) playing musical instruments.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

One of the essential characteristics of social play is that the players must share their imaginations when developing the themes of a play episode.

Question 5

Which of the following conditions is not a prerequisite of social play?

A) The child must distinguish between reality and make-believe.
B) The child must obey rules for taking turns.
C) All players must share in the development of the fantasy theme.
D) Once the theme of the play has been established, no variations may occur.
E) The child must have a firm grasp on reality.

Question 6

Most of the research on the value of play in promoting role-taking skills indicates that

A) play is of little value in this area.
B) play is valuable but only if adults stay completely out of it.
C) effective role-taking must be taught in the home rather than at school.
D) very few children are good at role-taking.
E) gentle adult supervision of play is necessary for improvements in role-taking.

Question 7

Which is not a predictor of the sophistication of a child's ability to assume the roles and viewpoints of other people?

A) level of development
B) intelligence
C) child-rearing practices
D) parental styles of discipline
E) gender

Question 8

Lev Vygotsky (1896-1934) believed that play was essential in the formation of children's symbolic abilities. Why?

A) Because in play all of a child's actions take on symbolic meaning.
B) Because play encourages children to read and write.
C) Because young children seem to enjoy symbolic play.
D) Because play is found in all cultures of the world.

Question 9

Children are more likely to be sensitive role-takers if their parents emphasize __________ in their disciplinary practices.

A) the importance of following rules
B) the feelings of other people
C) the need to be responsible
D) reward rather than punishment
E) consistency

Question 10

In addition to parental willingness to play, the other predictor of the closeness of attachment is the ________ of social interaction between parent and child.

A) amount
B) pacing
C) frequency
D) intensity
E) duration

Question 11

Eleven-month-old Roger's parents briefly leave him alone in a strange room, and when they return Roger reacts to them with hostility and resistance. According to Mary Ainsworth, Roger is probably

A) insecure-ambivalent.
B) securely attached.
C) insecure-avoidant.
D) advanced in his development.
E) normal and well-adjusted for his age.

Question 12

How do rejected children often behave in a physical play situation?

A) They become over-stimulated and "out of control."
B) Their rough and tumble play often degenerates into aggressive behavior
C) They are unable to sustain a play activity for very long.
D) They fear the intense stimulation of physical play and simply avoid play entirely.
E) all of the above

Question 13

Research on the coaching of children in social skills indicates that

A) the effects of coaching are both positive and lasting.
B) coaching works for neglected children but not for those who are rejected by the peer group.
C) coaching is of little value for most children.
D) the effects of coaching are impressive but short-lived.
E) the best approach is to pressure the peer group into accepting the unpopular child.

Question 14

Which of the following comments by a parent is the most likely to encourage a child to be a sensitive role-taker?

A) "It makes me happy to see you sharing your toys".
B) "Nice children always share their toys with their friends".
C) "When I was little I always shared my toys with my friends."
D) "If you won't share your toys, I won't buy toys for you anymore".
E) "I know you don't understand, but you'll have to share your toys anyway."

Question 15

Parents of securely-attached infants differ from those whose children are less securely-attached in their

A) level of self-esteem.
B) degree of creativity.
C) level of intelligence.
D) satisfaction with marriage.
E) all of the above

Question 16

Six-year-old Sarah rarely interacted with other children while her behavior was being observed by a psychologist one day, she never engaged in games of any sort, and she typically played alone. What can be concluded about Sarah?

A) Her behavior is typical of a six-year-old.
B) She is a normal child who is having a bad day.
C) No conclusions can be drawn from such limited samples of behavior.
D) She is a child with social interaction problems.
E) She was uncomfortable because of the presence of the observer.

Question 17

Jake sees a group of children engaged in a free throw contest on the basketball court. He says, "Hey, guys, I'd like to play too. But I hate basketball. I want to play football instead." This type of approach to social play is characteristic of children who are __________ their peers.

A) ignored by
B) the most popular among
C) neglected by
D) rejected by
E) admired by

Question 18

The most effective social intervention approach with unpopular children is

A) coaching.
B) shaping.
C) modeling.
D) cooperating.
E) conditioning.

Question 19

When asked about specific types of musical experience they prefer, children express the least amount of interest in

A) dancing and moving freely to music.
B) singing songs.
C) playing musical instruments.
D) listening to music.
E) being an active participant in the experience.

Question 20

The least effective social intervention approach with unpopular children is

A) coaching.
B) shaping.
C) modeling.
D) cooperating.
E) conditioning.

Question 21

Although children behave cooperatively when engaged in sociodramatic play, they do not generalize this cooperative attitude to other areas of social interaction.

Question 22

Only about half of all preschool children say they enjoy taking part in musical activities.

Question 23

All of the evidence that experience with creative movement/dance can enhance social competence is in the form of testimonials from instructors.

Question 24

Playing with blocks has actually been found to encourage conversation among preschool children.

Question 25

Parent-child physical play may help the child learn to ________ the emotional states of another person.

Question 26

One of the most relevant parental characteristics in secure attachment is the extent to which parents can reflect on the fact that human behavior is influenced by underlying _______ ________.

Question 27

If children are closely attached to their parents the effects are obvious in early childhood but they disappear by the time the child is in elementary school.

Question 28

In an attempt to identify a range of variation in the quality of parent-infant attachment, psychologist Mary developed a test known as the ________ __________.

Question 29

Creative movement experiences encourage children to improve in their overall social competence.

Question 30

_________ play between parent and child begins during the early months of infancy, peaks between the ages of one and four, and then diminishes gradually.

Question 31

Modeling is the most effective type of intervention program for helping children develop social skills.

Question 32

The Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky believed that play is essential in the formation of a child's symbolic abilities. What did he mean by this?

Question 33

Most of the evidence that experience with creative movement/dance can enhance social competence is in the form of _______ ______ _______.

Question 34

Disliked children often make inappropriate statements in conversation and negative comments about what others are doing, without offering _______________.

Question 35

An instrument known as the ______ __________ _______ is used to study children's behaviors when they are at play and to identify children at risk in terms of their social development.

Question 36

Even by the age of _____, some children are already well liked by their peers, while others are not.

Question 37

In one study it was found that when slow, soothing music was played in the background, children were more likely to engage in ________ play with a peer.

Question 38

Coaching children in a variety of social skills has been found to lead to advances in peer acceptance.

Question 39

Most of the peer interactions of young children occur within the context of ______.

Question 40

Children rated as popular by their teachers are the most likely to have parents who engage in a good deal of physical play with them.

Question 41

Sandra is a third-grader who is not openly rejected by her peers but is generally ignored by them. Assuming that Sandra is a typical neglected child, (a) describe her personality, and (b) indicate what her teacher might do to help her gain a greater degree of peer acceptance.

Question 42

Psychologists have noticed a connection between the popularity of grade school children among their peers and the amount of rough-and-tumble play they experienced in the home. What is the nature of this connection, and how might it be explained?

Question 43

Describe the general characteristics of parents whose children are securely attached to them and the characteristics of parents of children who display attachment difficulties. What is the relationship between parent-infant play and security of attachment?

Question 44

Referring specifically to blocks, clay, or music, explain the role of play in the social integration of young children.

Question 45

Four-year-old Kelly has been at the day care center for three months, and still there is minimal interaction of any sort between her and the other children. Instead, Kelly stays as close to the teacher as possible, and seems anxious when she must be separated from her. Referring to any information discussed in Chapter Nine, describe your plan for using play to help Kelly interact more completely with her peers. Indicate also what you would not do if trying to help the child..

Question 46

What are the factors that are correlated with successful role-taking ability in children? If a child is not a good role-taker, can he or she be taught to become one? Be sure to refer to specific research findings in your answer.

Question 47

When her pupils are at play, what clues might tell a kindergarten teacher that a particular child is having social interaction difficulties? What cautions should she or he observe in interpreting the child's play behavior?