Question 1

According to Urie Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model of development, the customs and traditions that are common to one's culture would most likely be considered a part of that person's ______.
A) microsystem
B) macrosystem
C) mesosystem
D) exosystem

Accepted Answer

The microsystem refers to the activities, roles, and interactions of an individual in that person's immediate setting. Examples include one's family, school, church, and neighborhood.

Question 2

Because in her family older women always do the cooking and younger women wash the dishes, Lucille comes to understand that this is how housework should be done. In Vygotsky's terms, Lucille has developed a(n):
A) bioecological understanding
B) assimilated understanding
C) shared meaning
D) classically conditioned response

Accepted Answer

Vygotsky argued that what people learn is transmitted to them through the shared meanings of objects and events, which are passed from generation to generation through observation and language. This example emphasizes the cultural transmission of knowledge, based on experience.

Question 3

Which of the following theorists viewed development as proceeding continuously, without dramatic shifts from one stage of development into another dissimilar stage?
A) Jean Piaget
B) Sigmund Freud
C) Erik Erikson
D) Lev Vygotsky

Accepted Answer

Piaget's theory of cognitive development, Freud's psychoanalytic theory, and Erikson's psychosocial theory all emphasize the predictable progression through discrete stages throughout childhood or the entire lifespan. Vygotsky's social-cognitive theory, on the other hand, emphasizes continuous learning through interactions with learners who are more knowledgeable.

Question 4

Which of the following is a correct matching of theorist and theoretical perspective?
A) Vygotsky - Psychodynamic view
B) Erikson - Behavioral view
C) Bronfenbrenner - Psychodynamic view
D) Piaget - Cognitive view

Accepted Answer

Vygotsky is a cognitive (social-cognitive) theorist, Erikson's views are usually considered as being in the psychodynamic tradition, and Bronfenbrenner is associated with the bioecological model, a systems approach. Piaget is correctly associated with the cognitive view.

Question 5

Lev Vygotsky's views on human development can be best categorized as belonging to which of the following theoretical perspectives?
A) biological
B) evolutionary
C) psychodynamic
D) social-cognitive

Accepted Answer

Vygotsky's social-cognitive view emphasizes the significance of learning from others with more advanced knowledge, often through playing and talking with them and learning from these interactions. None of the other theorists emphasized the role of learning from more expert people.

Question 6

Sarah's parents attend parent-teacher meetings, serve as volunteers for class field trips, and are members of the school board. Sarah's progress at school is affected positively by her parents' close involvement with the teachers. According to Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model, these connections exemplify the:
A) microsystem
B) exosystem
C) mesosystem
D) macrosystem

Accepted Answer

The mesosystem refers to the interrelationships among two or more microsystems such as one's school, neighborhood, and family.

Question 7

Matthews believes that children learn by observing and by being guided by older children and adults. Thus, child development is like the apprenticeship that electricians serve as they learn their trade by working with experienced individuals. Dr. Matthews's view of child development is most similar to that advanced by:
A) Jean Piaget
B) Lev Vygotsky
C) Urie Bronfenbrenner
D) Erik Erikson

Accepted Answer

Vygotsky emphasized the social context in which development takes place as playing a significant role. He believed that older children and adults play an especially significant role helping younger children understand complex experiences. Thus, children are like apprentices, who learn by being coached by more experienced people.

Question 8

Two-year-old Katherine sees a goat for the first time, and calls it a cow because it has four legs and horns. According to Piaget, Katherine's response is best considered an example of:
A) fixation
B) re-classification
C) accommodation
D) assimilation

Accepted Answer

Assimilation is the process of incorporating new information into existing schemas. In this example, Katherine incorporates what we know as a goat into her schema "cow." Accommodation, on the other hand, is the process that requires schemas to change when a new object or event does not fit. In the current example, the schema does not change.

Question 9

If you were to explain a particular behavior as being learned according to Vygotsky's social-cognitive learning theory, you would most likely emphasize which of the following in your explanation of that behavior?
A) how children learn from other people
B) how reinforcement shapes behavior
C) how punishment shapes behavior
D) how toilet training affects later personality development

Accepted Answer

Vygotsky's social-cognitive view emphasizes the significance of learning from others with more advanced knowledge, often through playing and talking with them and learning from these interactions.

Question 10

According to Piaget, a mental category or structure is called a(n):
A) scheme
B) model
C) system
D) theory

Accepted Answer

Piaget referred to mental categories or structures as "schemes," which are organized patterns of thought or action used to interpret experiences and solve problems.

Question 11

Which of the following situations best exemplifies Vygotsky's view of development?
A) Tommy learned to excel at mathematics by counting his allowance.
B) Ellen learned a large vocabulary by reading her spy novels.
C) Rudy learned to wash the dishes by helping his father wash them.
D) Tina learned to sing by listening to her music tapes.

Accepted Answer

Vygotsky's social-cognitive view emphasizes the significance of learning from others with more advanced knowledge, often through playing and talking with them and learning from these interactions.

Question 12

According to Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model, your family, friends, and classmates are part of your:
A) exosystem
B) macrosystem
C) mesosystem
D) microsystem

Accepted Answer

Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model identifies the microsystem as the layer closest to the individual, consisting of structures with which the person has direct contact, such as family, friends, and classmates.

Question 13

Piaget's theory of cognitive development suggests that children start out in life relying primarily on their senses and bodily motion. This stage is referred to as which of the following?
A) preoperational
B) formal operational
C) concrete operational
D) sensorimotor

Accepted Answer

The sensorimotor stage is the first stage in Piaget's theory of cognitive development, where infants and young children rely on their senses and bodily motion to explore and understand the world around them. This stage typically lasts from birth to age two.

Question 14

Which model emphasizes that human development is a dynamic, interactive process that begins with an individual's genetic endowment and unfolds over time as a result of interactions with various levels of the environment?
A) natural selection
B) psychosexual model
C) guided participation approach
D) bioecological model

Accepted Answer

The bioecological model emphasizes that human development is a dynamic, interactive process that begins with an individual's genetic endowment and unfolds over time as a result of interactions with various levels of the environment, including the microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, and macrosystem. This model was proposed by Urie Bronfenbrenner and became a widely used framework in developmental psychology.

Question 15

The process by which organisms change to become more successful in their environment is:
A) enculturation
B) adaptation
C) maturation
D) socialization

Accepted Answer

Adaptation is the process by which organisms change to become more successful in their environment. Enculturation is the process by which individuals learn the culture of their society, maturation refers to natural changes in an organism's body or behavior that occur with age, and socialization is the process by which individuals learn the norms and values of their society.

Question 16

Sixteen-year-old Dave was an exchange student in Europe for a year. When he returned, he had altered many of his ways of thinking about people, because his new experiences did not fit his old concepts. What Piagetian process was at work?
A) fixation
B) assimilation
C) accommodation
D) maturation

Accepted Answer

Accommodation is the process that requires schemas to change when a new object or event does not fit. In this example, Dave's old schemas (i.e., concepts) changed because the new European events/experiences did not fit within these schemas. Assimilation, on the other hand, is the process of incorporating new information into existing schemas. In this example, the new information is not merely incorporated into the old (i.e., existing) schemas.

Question 17

Margaret argues that understanding human development is most like understanding botany, since in botany you need to learn about various systems, such as respiration
A) the bioecological model
B) operant conditioning
C) Piaget's theory of cognitive development
D) Vygotsky's view of social-cognitive development

Accepted Answer

This question emphasizes the idea of inter-related systems and therefore it best fits into Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model, which also emphasizes that development is best understood by focusing on all of the inter-related systems that influence how an individual grows and changes.

Question 18

The idea that people learn by observing and being coached by "experts" stems most directly from the work of:
A) Jean Piaget
B) Lev Vygotsky
C) Erik Erikson
D) Sigmund Freud

Accepted Answer

Vygotsky argued that people develop understanding and expertise mainly through apprenticeship with more knowledgeable learners, who serve as "experts" to guide learning. None of the other theorists emphasized the role of learning from more expert people.

Question 19

Which of the following theorists placed the greatest emphasis on unconscious experience as an important influence in development?
A) Sigmund Freud
B) Erik Erikson
C) Jean Piaget
D) Lev Vygotsky

Accepted Answer

Piaget and Vygotsky did not consider the role of unconscious processes as important in human development. Although Erikson believed that unconscious processes played some role in development, it was Freud who emphasized the role of the unconscious mind as a major determinant of development.

Question 20

Human development is studied from a scientific perspective, meaning that its methods of study are:
A) objective
B) important
C) based on cases of individuals
D) based on random samples of individuals

Accepted Answer

Science relies on objective and systematic methods of investigation, which may or may not be important. Sometimes methods involve case studies or random sampling, but not always because other methods of inquiry are also used.

Quiz 1: Understanding Human Development

According to Urie Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model of development, the customs and traditions that are common to one's culture would most likely be considered a part of that person's ______.

Because in her family older women always do the cooking and younger women wash the dishes, Lucille comes to understand that this is how housework should be done. In Vygotsky's terms, Lucille has developed a(n) :

Which of the following theorists viewed development as proceeding continuously, without dramatic shifts from one stage of development into another dissimilar stage?

Which of the following is a correct matching of theorist and theoretical perspective?

Lev Vygotsky's views on human development can be best categorized as belonging to which of the following theoretical perspectives?

Two-year-old Katherine sees a goat for the first time, and calls it a cow because it has four legs and horns. According to Piaget, Katherine's response is best considered an example of:

If you were to explain a particular behavior as being learned according to Vygotsky's social-cognitive learning theory, you would most likely emphasize which of the following in your explanation of that behavior?

According to Piaget, a mental category or structure is called a(n) :

Which of the following situations best exemplifies Vygotsky's view of development?

According to Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model, your family, friends, and classmates are part of your:

Piaget's theory of cognitive development suggests that children start out in life relying primarily on their senses and bodily motion. This stage is referred to as which of the following?

Which model emphasizes that human development is a dynamic, interactive process that begins with an individual's genetic endowment and unfolds over time as a result of interactions with various levels of the environment?

The process by which organisms change to become more successful in their environment is:

Sixteen-year-old Dave was an exchange student in Europe for a year. When he returned, he had altered many of his ways of thinking about people, because his new experiences did not fit his old concepts. What Piagetian process was at work?

Margaret argues that understanding human development is most like understanding botany, since in botany you need to learn about various systems, such as respiration

The idea that people learn by observing and being coached by "experts" stems most directly from the work of:

Which of the following theorists placed the greatest emphasis on unconscious experience as an important influence in development?

Human development is studied from a scientific perspective, meaning that its methods of study are: