Question 1

Fantz believes that we directly perceive information that exists in the world around us and that perception is designed for action. He most likely holds a(n) ________ perspective with regard to sensory and perceptual development.

Accepted Answer

Fantz's belief that perception is designed for action aligns with the ecological perspective, which holds that perception is closely tied to the specific environment in which it occurs and is used to guide behavior.

Question 2

According to theorists Eleanor and James Gibson, who developed the ecological view of perceptual development in infancy, which of the following statements is true?

Accepted Answer

According to the ecological view of perceptual development, people's perceptual system can select from the rich information that the environment itself provides. This means that our perception is not just based on individual sensations but on the overall information available in our environment.

Question 3

Sheena wants to hang a picture above her baby's crib. She wants her baby to show interest in the picture. Which of the following pictures is the baby most likely to be interested in?

Accepted Answer

Babies tend to show a preference for looking at faces over other shapes or objects, finding faces particularly engaging due to their inherent interest in human features.

Question 4

The interpretation of sensory information is called

Accepted Answer

The interpretation of sensory information is called perception. Sensation refers to the process of detecting sensory stimuli, reception refers to the initial process of receiving sensory stimuli, and transition is not a term commonly used in the context of sensory processing.

Question 5

Your professor says that our perception brings us into contact with the environment in order to interact with and adapt to it. This indicates that he holds a(n) ________ view on perceptual development.

Accepted Answer

The professor's view is that perception allows us to interact with and adapt to the environment, which is consistent with an ecological view of perceptual development. Ethological views focus on innate behaviors, evolutionary views focus on the adaptive value of behavior over time, and genetic views emphasize the role of genetics in development.

Question 6

Carson, a 6-month-old infant, grabs a toy by gripping with his whole hand. In the context of fine motor skills, which of the following grasps does Carson exhibit in this scenario?

Accepted Answer

The palmar grasp is the whole-hand grasp reflex seen in infants, where they grip objects using their whole hand rather than their fingers or thumb. Therefore, Carson exhibits the palmar grasp in this scenario.

Question 7

Baby Jane, a three-day-old infant, is shown four drawings: a bright blue square, a white oval, a yellow circle, and a drawing of a face. According to Robert Fantz's visual preference method, which drawing would she probably prefer to look at for a longer time?

Accepted Answer

According to Robert Fantz's visual preference method, infants prefer to look at complex patterns and human faces over simple geometric shapes. Therefore, Baby Jane would probably prefer to look at the drawing of a face for a longer time.

Question 8

In the context of fine motor skills, which of the following is true of reaching by infants?

Accepted Answer

According to research on infant reaching, cues from muscles, tendons, and joints guide reaching by 4-month-old infants. Infant reaching initially starts as an uncoordinated movement, but over time infants learn to use these internal cues to guide their reaching movements. Infants do not initially reach by seeing their own hands or by coordinating their thumb and forefinger.

Question 9

A technique that can be used to determine if an infant can see or hear is the ________ response, which involves turning one's head toward a sight or sound.

Accepted Answer

The orienting response involves turning one's head toward a sight or sound, and is commonly used to determine if an infant can see or hear. Tracking and sensory are not specific to this type of test, and stimulus does not describe the infant's response.

Question 10

Melanie, a 4-year-old child, ties her shoelaces on her own and skillfully uses a fork and a spoon. In the context of motor development, which of the following is most likely involved in this scenario?

Accepted Answer

Fine motor skills involve the development of small muscle movements that enable activities such as tying shoelaces and using utensils like a fork and spoon. Rooting and moro reflexes are primitive reflexes present in infants, and gross motor skills involve the development of larger muscle movements such as crawling, standing, and walking. These are not applicable to a 4-year-old child who can tie their own shoelaces and use utensils skillfully.

Question 11

In the context of studying newborns' perception, which of the following is true of the method of high-amplitude sucking?

Accepted Answer

The method of high-amplitude sucking involves measuring an infant's attention to sound by assessing changes in their sucking behavior in response to sound stimuli. It is not used to determine whether an infant can see, measure brain electrical activity, or learn about brain development.

Question 12

Baby Max watches his mother jingle her keys in front of him. After several minutes, he looks away no longer interested. This would indicate that he is habituated to it and is showing ________ to the stimulus after repeated presentations of the stimulus.

Accepted Answer

Habituation is a form of learning where a decrease in response occurs when a stimulus is repeated. In this case, Baby Max has become habituated to the sound of the jingling keys, shown by his decreased interest in the stimulus. Therefore, the correct answer is decreased responsiveness.

Question 13

Jake, age 11 months, is able to pick up cereal and bits of fruit off the tray of his high chair by grasping them with his thumb and forefinger. Jake has developed the

Accepted Answer

Picking up small objects with the thumb and forefinger is known as the pincer grip. The palmar grasp is a reflexive grasping with the entire hand, the Moro reflex is a startle response, and the fencing reflex is a position of the arms and legs during a primitive defense response.

Question 14

The technique of ________ consists of measuring eye movements that follow a moving object and can be used to evaluate an infant's early visual ability.

Accepted Answer

Eye-tracking measures eye movements that follow a moving object and can be used to evaluate an infant's early visual ability.

Question 15

In the context of grasping, which of the following statements is true of infants?

Accepted Answer

Infants use different perceptual systems (visual and proprioceptive) to coordinate grasping at different stages of development.

Question 16

In the "sticky mittens" research project, it was found that

Accepted Answer

The "sticky mittens" research project found that infants who wore mittens during play activities developed grasping skills earlier than infants who did not wear mittens. Therefore, choice A is correct.

Question 17

In the Gibsons' ecological view on perceptual development in infancy, objects have ________, which are opportunities for interaction offered by objects that fit within our capabilities to perform activities.

Accepted Answer

According to the Gibsons' ecological view on perceptual development in infancy, objects have affordances which refer to opportunities for interaction offered by objects that fit within our capabilities to perform activities. Therefore, option D, affordances, is the correct answer.

Question 18

________ occurs when information interacts with sensory receptors-the eyes, ears, tongue, nostrils, and skin.

Accepted Answer

Sensation refers to the process by which sensory receptors receive and detect stimuli from the environment, such as light waves or sound waves. It is the initial stage of perception, before the brain processes and interprets the sensory information.

Question 19

Fantz's research method to study sensory and perceptual development-studying whether infants can distinguish one stimulus from another by measuring the length of time they attend to different stimuli-is referred to as the

Accepted Answer

Fantz's research method is known as the visual preference method. This method is based on the premise that infants will look longer at stimuli they find interesting or novel, allowing researchers to infer their perceptual abilities and preferences.

Question 20

Nadine is a 1-year-old infant. Her doctor wants to assess the development of her fine motor skills. In this scenario, which of Nadine's abilities is the doctor most likely to focus on?

Accepted Answer

Fine motor skills involve small muscle movements such as those involved in reaching and grasping. As a 1-year-old infant, Nadine's fine motor skills are still developing, so her doctor is likely to focus on assessing her ability to reach and grasp objects.

Quiz 4: Physical Development in Infancy