Question 1

Which one of the following findings is the best evidence that environment plays an important role in determining intelligence?

Accepted Answer

Nontwin siblings raised together having more similar IQs than those raised apart suggests that the shared environment influences intelligence.

Question 2

Brianna has an IQ of 129 and Jenna has an IQ of 117.Brianna performs better than Jenna does on a simple reaction time test and a choice reaction time test.It is most likely that Brianna outperforms Jenna by:

Accepted Answer

IQ is positively correlated with reaction time, but the correlation is stronger with choice reaction time than with simple reaction time. Therefore, it is more likely that Brianna outperforms Jenna much more on the test of choice reaction time than on the test of simple reaction time.

Question 3

Which one of the following findings is the best evidence that genetics plays an important role in determining intelligence?

Accepted Answer

Identical twins share 100% of their genes, while fraternal twins share only about 50% of their genes, just like nontwin siblings. Therefore, if identical twins raised in different environments have more similar IQs than fraternal twins, it suggests that genetics plays a significant role in determining intelligence. This finding has been observed repeatedly in twin studies, providing strong evidence for the importance of genetics in intelligence.

Question 4

Sharda and Onyedikachi are participating in a psychology study.Sharda's task is to press a button as rapidly as possible whenever she sees a circle on the computer screen.Onyedikachi's task is to press a red button if he sees a circle and a green button if he sees a square,also as rapidly as possible.Sharda's study is measuring _____ reaction time,and Onyedikachi's study is measuring _____ reaction time.

Accepted Answer

Sharda's task involves responding to a single stimulus with a single response, which is a measure of simple reaction time. Onyedikachi's task involves choosing between two responses based on the stimulus, which measures choice reaction time.

Question 5

Dr.Bui is conducting a series of studies examining the speed at which people can complete different cognitive tasks.She plans to examine the results to determine how information is processed in these tasks.What approach is Dr.Bui using toward the study of intelligence?

Accepted Answer

Dr. Bui is using a cognitive approach to study intelligence as she is examining how information is processed in cognitive tasks.

Question 6

Research on the brain development of mice that are raised in environments offering different degrees of stimulation suggests that the increased intelligence seen in children raised in more stimulating environments is due to:

Accepted Answer

Research suggests that increased intelligence seen in children raised in more stimulating environments is due to the development of more synaptic connections in the brain. This is supported by studies on mice raised in different environments, which have shown that the number of synapses in the brain is directly related to the degree of environmental stimulation. Therefore, option D, more synaptic connections, is the best choice.

Question 7

A scientist interested in studying intelligence shows people a stimulus and then quickly takes it away.The scientist then does this repeatedly,with the stimulus shown for different amounts of time,to find out how much time is needed for the participant to correctly answer a question about the stimulus.People who can perform this task with very short durations are likely to:

Accepted Answer

People who can perform well on tasks that require processing information in a short amount of time, known as "inspection time tests," are likely to have higher intelligence scores. Therefore, those who can correctly answer questions about a stimulus shown for a short duration are likely to score higher on intelligence tests.

Question 8

Kelsey and Andreas are participating in the same two psychology experiments.The first task is to listen to a list of numbers and repeat them back in the same order.The second task is to determine how many prime numbers are on the list.Kelsey has an IQ of 123 and Andreas has an IQ of 111.There ought to be a _____ difference between Kelsey and Andreas's performance on the repetition task and a _____ difference between Kelsey and Andreas's performance on the counting prime numbers task.

Accepted Answer

IQ is positively correlated with working memory capacity, which is important for the first task of repeating a list of numbers in the correct order. Therefore, there should be a small difference between Kelsey and Andreas's performance on the repetition task. However, IQ is not as strongly correlated with the ability to identify prime numbers, so there may be a larger difference in performance between Kelsey and Andreas on this task. Thus, the answer is small for the repetition task (D) and large for the prime number counting task (C).

Question 9

Joe is especially talented at memorizing material that he reads in books.However,he has significant difficulty getting to work in the morning because the bus schedule confuses him.Joe most likely:

Accepted Answer

Joe's exceptional ability to memorize material from books, coupled with his difficulty in understanding the bus schedule, suggests he may have savant syndrome, where individuals have extraordinary abilities in specific areas despite challenges in others.

Question 10

The Flynn effect suggests that what factor has NOT been involved in the increase in IQ scores over the last century?

Accepted Answer

The Flynn effect suggests that IQ scores have been increasing over time, but it is unlikely that genetics play a significant role. The increase in scores is attributed to factors such as improvements in education, technology, and nutrition.

Question 11

John fell off his bike without a helmet and injured his frontal lobes.If he were to take an IQ test,what aspect would be impaired?

Accepted Answer

Fluid intelligence is the ability to solve problems and think critically in novel situations, which requires the frontal lobes to process information efficiently. Therefore, if John's frontal lobes are impaired due to the injury, his fluid intelligence would be affected.

Question 12

A classic children's game involves placing a set of objects on a table under a cloth.The cloth is lifted very briefly.After the cloth is replaced,the child then tries to remember as many of the objects as possible.Eleazar (IQ 132),Sean (110),Suzanne (112),and Diem (125)are playing.In what order (from high to low)should the children score in this game?

Accepted Answer

The order is based on IQ scores, which can correlate with memory performance. Eleazar (132) and Diem (125) have the highest IQs, followed by Suzanne (112) and Sean (110).

Question 13

Breast-feeding a child for more than 6 months leads to _____ intelligence.

Accepted Answer

Multiple studies have shown that breast-feeding a child for more than 6 months leads to a 5 to 7 point increase in intelligence. One possible explanation for this is that breast milk contains nutrients and fatty acids that promote brain development.

Question 14

If you were trying to separate the effects of inheritance from the effects of environment,comparing which groups of subjects would give you the strongest evidence?

Accepted Answer

Comparing monozygotic twins reared together, who share both genetics and environment, with monozygotic twins adopted into separate homes, who only share genetics, would give the strongest evidence for the effects of inheritance versus environment. This allows for the comparison of the effects of genetics on development while controlling for environmental influences.

Question 15

Dr.LeCap is taking brain scans of people while they do simple cognitive tasks.He notices that the event-related potential (ERP)waves of 20 participants occurred significantly faster than the waves of the other 50 participants.Dr.LeCap could conclude from this finding that the 20 people with faster ERP waves were _____ than the 50 people with the slower waves.

Accepted Answer

The faster ERP waves indicate that the 20 participants were processing the cognitive tasks more efficiently, which suggests that they were more intelligent.

Question 16

The finding that IQ scores have increased dramatically over the last century is known as:

Accepted Answer

The finding that IQ scores have increased dramatically over the last century is known as the Flynn effect, named after researcher James Flynn who first documented the trend in the 1980s. The other answer choices are not accurate descriptions of this phenomenon.

Question 17

Jameisia has always loved numbers.When she starts first grade,she grasps basic math immediately.Her teacher is so impressed that she gives Jameisia increasingly complicated work in math.Jameisia goes on to become a superb math student all the way through school.What is the most reasonable conclusion about the source of Jameisia's success in math?

Accepted Answer

The environment acted as a social multiplier for her innate ability, enhancing her natural talent through encouragement and increasingly challenging work.

Question 18

What is the strength and direction of the correlation between years in school and IQ?

Accepted Answer

Research has consistently shown a strong positive correlation between years in school and IQ. As individuals receive more formal education and engage in intellectual stimulation, their IQ scores tend to increase.

Question 19

Intelligence is associated with higher performance on which cognitive task(s)?

Accepted Answer

Intelligence has been found to be positively associated with performance on simple reaction time, inspection time, and choice reaction time tasks. This suggests that individuals with higher cognitive abilities tend to process information faster and make more accurate decisions in a shorter amount of time.

Question 20

Johann has an IQ of 104 and Avi has an IQ of 115.Johann has a much higher level of interpersonal intelligence and kinesthetic intelligence than Avi.They are both trying to listen to their psychology lecture at the same time that someone is sitting outside the room playing an iPod loudly.You might expect that Johann will:

Accepted Answer

IQ is not a strong predictor of how well someone can filter out distractions and pay attention. Johann's higher levels of interpersonal and kinesthetic intelligence are not necessarily relevant to this situation. Therefore, it is not safe to assume that Johann will pay better attention to the lecture than Avi. It is more likely that both individuals will be equally affected by the distracting music, but since Avi has a higher IQ, he might be better able to filter out the music and pay more attention to the lecture.

Quiz 8: Thinking and Intelligence