Midterm Flashcards
In their discussions of the process of development, the advocates of nature in the nature-nurture controversy emphasize which of the following?
maturation
The notion that human behavior is greatly influenced by unconscious thoughts and desires is most consistent with which of the following psychological approaches?
psychodynamic
Of the following, a behavioral psychologist is most likely to study the
effects of token economies on establishing social skills among children with emotional disturbances
cognitive psychologists are most likely to study
the acquisition of knowledge, planning, and problem solving
Gestalt psychology is concerned primarily with understanding which of the following?
perception
Research finds that, in general, the higher an incoming college student scores on a given test, the higher the student’s college grade point average (GPA). Which of the following best describes this relationship?
a positive correlation
The most important reason to use operational definitions in psychological research is it
helps everyone involved with the research understand and collect data in the same manner
In a recent report, a developmental psychologist who studied peer pressure in middle schools obtained data from a large, representative sample of adolescents across the United States. This research most likely involved a
survey
In which of the following types of research are the same children tested periodically at different points in their development?
longitudinal
A psychological researcher designs a study to determine whether positive feedback affects self-esteem. The researcher requires each participant to toss twenty coins into a coffee can that is three feet away. Half of the participants are fold that their performance is superior, and the other half are told that their performance is well below average. Although some of the participants want to quit tossing coins after a few attempts, they are told that once they begin the study they have to complete it. After the coin toss, participants take a test measuring self-esteem. Following the test, all participants are debriefed and told that information about their performance was false. Results of the study indicate that participants who are told their performance is well below average report lower levels of self-esteem than do those who are told their performance is superior.11. Which of the following elements constitutes the independent variable in the study?
the feedback about relative performance in coin tossing
A study can be regarded as scientific only if
its conclusions can be verified or refuted by subsequent studies
A psychologist designed a study to test the effects of cell phone use on driving safety. Participants were randomly assigned either to drive an automobile simulator while talking to a friend on a cell phone or to drive a simulator without talking on a phone.
which is the cell phone
an independent variable
In an experiment designed to determine whether watching violent scenes on television increases the frequency of aggressive behavior in children, one group of subjects saw a nonviolent cartoon and another group saw a violent cartoon In the play period that followed the viewing of the cartoons, researchers observed the two groups of children together an counted instances of aggressive behavior. The control group in the experiment is the group that
watched the nonviolent cartoon
An instructor conducted an experiment to determine the effects of two different methods of study on the amount students learned in introductory physics. The results showed that the average amount learned by the group using one method was greater than the average amount learned by the group using the other. However, the difference was not statistically significant. Which of the following is the most appropriate conclusion to be drawn?
there is a possibility that the difference between the two groups occurred by chance
There is a strong positive correlation between ice cream sales and instances of snakebites. Which of the following is the most likely explanation for this correlation?
hot weather is related to both ice cream sales and snake activity
Professor Ahad has forty-three students in section one of the psychology classes she teaches and fifty-two students in section two. Section one meets at eight a.m. and, section two meets at one p.m. Professor Ahad gives all of her students the same final exam, and those in section two score significantly higher than those in section one. Professor Alad concludes that her section one students are academically inferior to students in section two. the biggest problem With Professor Ahad’s conclusion is that
the time of day is a confounding variable in this scenario
What is the best way to ensure that results of a study are generalizable to a population?
by using a random sample of people in that population
- A psychologist gives the same test to a class of students at the beginning of the day and again at the end of the school day. The extent to which test scores are similar across the two administrations demonstrates which of the following test properties
reliability
Which of the following statements best describes the placebo effect?
it can be brought about by the individual’s expectations
A test with normally distributed results was returned to a class of 100 students. Later, the teacher realized an error was made and added 10 points to each student’s score. Which of the following must have changed as a result of the increase in scores?
the mode
- When is it permissible for a psychologist to share a client’s test scores with another person?
when the client provides written permission to share results
Which of the following studies has had the most profound impact on ethical issues in psychological research?
Stanley Milgram’s study of obedience
All of the following are American Psychological Association ethical guidelines for researchers EXCEPT:
research may not involve deception
According to the ethical guidelines set by the American Psychological Association (APA), which of the following is true of psychological research in which animals are used as subjects?
it should conform to all APA ethical guidelines for animal research
I. A common psychological effect of alcohol intake is
reduced inhibition
- A person with damage to Broca’s area would most likely demonstrate which of the following symptoms?
difficulty with speech production
- Activation of the parasympathetic nervous system results in which of the following?
a decrease in heart rate
- In terms of the effect on the central nervous system, alcohol is most accurately classified as which of the following types of drug?
depressant
During the night, Ave stops breathing repeatedly, frequently gasps for air, and snores loudly at regular intervals.
Ave is most likely suffering from which of the following conditions?
sleep apnea
- Which of the following allows the examination of living brain tissue visually without performing surgery?
computerized axial tomography
- Many common antidepressants ease symptoms of depression by
inhibiting serotonin reuptake, which makes serotonin more available
- The area of the brain stem that is important in controlling breathing is the
medulla
- The autonomic nervous system is most directly involved in
digesting food
Lexi was enjoying a walk in the woods on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. As she went around a curve, she noticed a bear walking toward her. Immediately her pupils dilated, she began to perspire, and her heart accelerated. These changes are most closely related to the function of the
sympathetic nervous system
- Lisa received a hemispherectomy to treat a seizure disorder when she was two years old. However, by the time she was live years old, her give abilities were the same as those of a neurotypical live-year-old. Which of the following best explains her abilities?
neuroplasticity
- The biological clock that operates in human beings to adjust their functioning to night-and-day periodicity is referred to as
a circadian rhythm
- Which of the following biological systems is most likely responsible for an increase in heart rate while experiencing anxiety?
the sympathetic nervous system
- Significant damage to which of the following parts of the brain will most likely cause a person to fall into a deep coma from which the person will be unable to awaken?
reticular formation
Brain lateralization refers to the
Inclination for certain cognitive processes to be specialized to one hemisphere of the brain or the other
- Which of the following provides information regarding brain function by monitoring the brain at work through metabolism of glucose?
positron emission tomography (PET)
- The brain scans of people with amnesia are most likely to show damage to the
hippocampus
- Which of the following brain structures is most closely associated with Chris’ fear response?
amygdala
- Caffeine and nicotine are in the same class as which of the following drugs?
cocaine
- Cocaine blocks the reuptake of which neurotransmitter?
dopamine
- Santi had an argument with his coworker, Emma. That night, Santi had a dream that he was shopping at a mall and Emma was in every store in which he shopped. A psychoanalyst would say that Emma’s being at the mall in Santi’s dream was an example of which of the following?
the manifest content
Curare blocks action at acetylcholine synapses and causes paralysis. This drug is an example of an
antagonist
- An individual who drinks alcohol daily finds it necessary to drink increasing amounts to achieve the state of wellbeing attained in the past. This individual is showing
alcohol tolerance
- Damage to the cerebellum would most likely result in which of the following problems?
a loss of motor coordination
- Damage to a small part of the occipital lobe would most likely result in a
visual deficit
- Dopamine, norepinephrine, and acetylcholine are all
neurotransmitters that excite or inhibit a neural signal across a synapse