Question 1

In Darwin's "Biographical Sketch of an Infant" he reported on:

Accepted Answer

In "Biographical Sketch of an Infant," Darwin reports on the development of his own child's reflexes, emotions, and earliest moral development. He does not make comparisons between his child's behavior and animal species or discuss any abnormalities.

Question 2

________________________was a younger friend and follower of Darwin's who used Darwin's notes on animal behavior in helping to found the new field of comparative psychology.

Accepted Answer

George Romanes was a younger friend and follower of Darwin's who used Darwin's notes on animal behavior in helping to found the new field of comparative psychology.

Question 3

One of the purposes of Darwin's book,The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals was to show:

Accepted Answer

Darwin's main purpose in the book was to argue that many human and animal expressions of emotion had adaptive value in the evolutionary past, even if they no longer serve an obvious survival purpose in the present. This was in contrast to the prevailing belief at the time that human emotions were entirely cultural and socially constructed.

Question 4

A recently developed subdiscipline which analyzes psychological functions in terms of independently evolved "modules" and their possible adaptive value in the distant evolutionary past is called:

Accepted Answer

The subdiscipline described in the question, which analyzes psychological functions in terms of independently evolved "modules" and their possible adaptive value in the distant evolutionary past, is known as evolutionary psychology. Choice A is therefore the correct answer. Comparative psychology is the study of behavior and mental processes of non-human animals, while sociobiology is the study of the evolution of social behavior in animals, including humans. Archeological psychology is not a recognized subdiscipline.

Question 5

The idea that political systems and societies evolve and "progress" due to unbridled competition and "the survival of the fittest" is often referred to as:

Accepted Answer

The idea that political systems and societies evolve and progress due to unbridled competition and the survival of the fittest is often referred to as social Darwinism. This concept applies Charles Darwin's theory of natural selection to human societies, proposing that individuals, societies, and nations compete with each other for survival and that the strongest and most competitive will prevail and progress.

Question 6

A recently developed approach hypothesizing that the unit of evolution is the individual gene,rather than the individual organism or the group is called:

Accepted Answer

The recently developed approach hypothesizing that the unit of evolution is the individual gene is called sociobiology. Social Darwinism refers to a now-discredited idea that human societies should operate according to principles of natural selection. Evolutionary psychology and behavior genetics are related fields that focus on understanding the genetic and environmental contributions to human behavior and mental processes.

Question 7

Alfred Russel Wallace is known for which of the following?

Accepted Answer

Alfred Russel Wallace independently developed the theory of evolution by natural selection and had a paper on it read jointly with one by Darwin in 1858, which led to the acceptance of the theory. Although Wallace and Darwin had corresponded on their ideas about evolution, Wallace's paper was a separate work, and he is credited as co-discovering the theory of evolution by natural selection with Darwin.

Question 8

Herbert Spencer is known for being:

Accepted Answer

Herbert Spencer is known for promoting the theory of social Darwinism and the phrase "survival of the fittest." Social Darwinism suggested that the human race evolved through natural selection and that only the strongest societies survived. Spencer believed that the economy should be left alone to regulate itself, and this concept applied to society as well, promoting a laissez-faire approach to government.

Question 9

A Victorian-era theory holding that the mainly non?European,"savage" peoples represented a distinctly different species of being was known as:

Accepted Answer

Polygenism was a Victorian-era theory that held that different races of humans were created separately and therefore represented different species. It was often used to justify racial hierarchies and discrimination.

Question 10

Darwin's so-called "variation hypothesis" suggests that:

Accepted Answer

Darwin's "variation hypothesis" posits that males are more subject to selection pressures than females, leading to greater variation among males compared to females across many species. This is based on observations of sexual selection and dimorphism.

Quiz 6: The Evolving Mind: Darwin and His Psychological Legacy