PSYC 2225 Child Development: Midterm 1 (Chapters 1–4) Practice Questions

Question 1

When a participant scores the same on a measure after taking it multiple times, we
would say that the measure is ______. When a measure accurately measures what it is
intended to, we would say that the measure is _______.
a. Reliable; valid
b. Valid; reliable
c. Consistent; Systematic
d. Systematic; Consistent

Answer 1

a. Reliable; valid

Question 2

Michael states that he saw a correlation online between windmills and windy days, such
that when windmills are turning quickly, we have more wind, therefore contributing to the
terrible weather they have been having. Ian suggests that this might be the opposite,
where strong winds are causing windmills to turn quickly. This is an example of:
a. A third variable problem
b. A zero-order correlation
c. A direction of causation problem
d. A negative correlation

Answer 2

c. A direction of causation problem

Question 3

A researcher designs a study to examine the extent to which screen time impacts
children’s numeracy abilities. The independent variable (IV) of the study is:
a. Numeracy abilities
b. The device children get their screen time on
c. The control group
d. Screen time

Answer 3

d. Screen time

Question 4

Theresa is examining children’s attention spans using a machine that tracks eye
movements. In the lab, she can control for outside distractions and obtain significant
results. However, outside of the lab, there are too many distractors, and this test cannot
be used. This attention measure has high ______ and low _______.
a. External validity; internal validity
b. Internal validity; External validity
c. Interrater reliability; Test-retest reliability
d. Test-retest reliability; Interrater reliability

Answer 4

b. Internal validity; External validity

Question 5

A researcher is interested in the extent to which chewing gum effects children’s appetite
2 hours later. To do this, half of the participants will chew bubblegum for 30 minutes,
while the other half receives nothing. At the two-hour mark, children will complete a
measure or perceived hunger. The group receiving the chewing gum is the:
a. Control group
b. Experimental group
c. The longitudinal group
d. The dependent group

Answer 5

b. Experimental group

Question 6

The idea that changes with age include occasional large shifts is called _____.
a. continuous development
b. discontinuous development
c. epigenetics
d. qualitative development

Answer 6

b. discontinuous development

Question 7

Which factor is an example of how children shape their own development?
a. Number of siblings
b. Socioeconomic status
c. Weight
d. All of these

Answer 7

d. All of these

Question 8

Which of the following statement is true about human development?
a. Nature affects developmental outcomes more than nurture.
b. Nurture affects developmental outcomes more than nature.
c. Nature and nurture interact to affect developmental outcomes.
d. Nature and nurture do not affect developmental outcomes.

Answer 8

c. Nature and nurture interact to affect developmental outcomes.

Question 9

When the hand forms in the womb, it looks almost flipper-like. To form fingers, cells must
be programmed to die off. This illustrates the process of:
a. Cell migration
b. Conception
c. Meiosis
d. Apoptosis

Answer 9

d. Apoptosis

Question 10

A researcher is interested in fetal learning. The researcher plays a sound the fetus can
hear and waits for a response. After playing the sound a number of times, the fetus
stops responding to it. This is an example of:
a. Habituation
b. Dishabituation
c. Neural tubes
d. Sensitive periods

Answer 10

b. Dishabituation

Question 11

Avery, who is 30 weeks pregnant, struggles with substance use. Because of this, Avery
has a low support system and struggles with accessing prenatal care. Each of these
factors is a risk for pregnancy alone, but together, they increase the risk of negative
outcomes for the child. This example illustrates:
a. Resilience
b. The multiple risk model
c. A sensitive period
d. Behavioral cycles

Answer 11

b. The multiple risk model

Question 12

In the United States, the infant mortality rate:
a. Is lower than other comparable countries
b. Is higher for wealthy white families
c. Is higher than other comparable countries
d. Is not comparable to others and their country of origin

Answer 12

c. Is higher than other comparable countries

Question 13

Identical twins most often originate when
a. an inner cell mass splits in half.
b. an embryo splits in half.
c. an egg splits and is fertilized by two sperms.
d. two eggs are fertilized by two sperms.

Answer 13

a. an inner cell mass splits in half.

Question 14

Which statement is FALSE about infants’ sleep?
a. Infants’ REM sleep may make up for their lack of visual stimulation when
sleeping.
b. Infants sleep twice as much as young adults do.
c. REM sleep constitutes a full 50% of a newborn sleep.
d. Newborns sleep for approximately half of each day

Answer 14

d. Newborns sleep for approximately half of each day

Question 15

Birth usually occurs approximately _____ weeks after conception.
a. 30
b. 45
c. 38
d. 22

Answer 15

c. 38

Question 16

Children who are resilient at a certain age often
a. are less intelligent.
b. are more responsive to others.
c. Have a less responsive caregiver.
d. develop insecure attachments to others.

Answer 16

b. are more responsive to others.

Question 17

An allele that codes for two different traits (e.g., Bb) is:
a. A zygote
b. Heterozygous
c. Homozygous
d. Recessive

Answer 17

b. Heterozygous

Question 18

Which of the following is/are NOT part of the neuron?
a. Cell body
b. Dendrites
c. Axon
d. Glial cells

Answer 18

d. Glial cells

Question 19

Which statement is likely NOT true of Daniel, an overweight 10-year-old in the United
States?
a. He has an increased risk of heart disease.
b. He has an increased risk of diabetes.
c. He may have difficulties in his relationships with his peers.
d. His being overweight is very rare for his age

Answer 19

d. His being overweight is very rare for his age

Question 20

The brain is often vulnerable during early development. For example, if the eye is
deprived of light at birth, synapses in the brain may not form to interpret sight. This
example illustrates:
a. Experience-expectant plasticity
b. Experience-dependent plasticity
c. Secular trends
d. Partial correlations

Answer 20

a. Experience-expectant plasticity

Question 21

As children get older, synapses that are not used are removed, making the brain more
efficient. This is the process of:
a. Synaptogenesis
b. Synaptic pruning
c. Cognitive dissonance
d. Crossing over

Answer 21

b. Synaptic pruning

Question 22

Which statement is NOT an example of a secular trend?
a. Adults are several inches taller than their same-sex great-grandparents were.
b. Girls menstruate earlier than their ancestors did.
c. Puberty begins earlier for boys now than it did in past generations.
d. Children raised in institutions have a higher risk of growth impairment

Answer 22

d. Children raised in institutions have a higher risk of growth impairment

Question 23

Andrew has red hair, green eyes, and lots of freckles. He is very active but is shy. These
things about Andrew make up his:
a. dominant genes.
b. recessive genes.
c. genotype.
d. phenotype.

Answer 23

d. phenotype.

Question 24

In what way can a child’s phenotype affect his or her environment?
a. Children evoke identical reactions from their parents.
b. Children actively seek out environments consistent with their interests and
abilities.
c. Children are less able to work constructively with teachers as they get older.
d. With age, children play less of a role in choosing their own friends.

Answer 24

b. Children actively seek out environments consistent with their interests and
abilities.

Question 25

Jackson is about 8 years old. He can reason abstractly about concrete objects and
events and has gained conservation but cannot yet reason abstractly. According to
Piaget, Jackson would be in the _______ stage.
a. Concrete operational
b. Formal operational
c. Sensorimotor
d. Preoperational

Answer 25

a. Concrete operational

Question 26

In study examining selective attention, younger children and older children are shown
both marine mammals and construction tools and are asked to remember only the
marine mammals. How are these children likely to preform?
a. The younger children will remember more marine mammals than the older
children because they have greater memory storage abilities
b. The younger and older children will perform the same because all children know
how to make use of their attention spans
c. The older children will remember more marine mammals than the younger
children because they know to only focus on the pictures they will be asked
about
d. The younger and older children will both perform poorly because these tasks are
difficult for all children

Answer 26

c. The older children will remember more marine mammals than the younger
children because they know to only focus on the pictures they will be asked
about

Question 27

Robby is a core knowledge theorist. However, he believes that the amount of inborn
knowledge we have is rudimentary, but that infants have specialized learning abilities
that allow them to easily understand domains of importance. Robby falls into the
________ group of core knowledge theorists.
a. Nativist
b. Constructivist
c. Behaviorist
d. Sociocultural

Answer 27

b. Constructivist

Question 28

Which statement BEST characterizes Piaget’s view of children’s learning?
a. Children learn best when they have highly educated parents.
b. Children are intrinsically motivated to learn.
c. Children’s learning is a function of their brain growth.
d. Children learn from the example of older individuals.

Answer 28

b. Children are intrinsically motivated to learn.

Question 29

Robert is reading a book with his son that is slightly above his child’s reading ability.
When his son arrives at words that are too difficult to pronounce, Robert asks him what
strategies they can use to understand the word. Together, they sound out words and
apply other strategies to get through the story. Robert is providing:
a. Social scaffolding
b. Centrality of action
c. Centration tasks
d. Rehearsal and selective attention

Answer 29

a. Social scaffolding

Question 30

Which example illustrates guided participation?
a. a parent encouraging a child to participate in extracurricular activities
b. a teacher assigning group work by having children count off by fives
c. a parent teaching a child to draw by having the child draw each of the individual
lines needed
d. a teacher showing Sesame Street to her class to help them learn their letters

Answer 30

c. a parent teaching a child to draw by having the child draw each of the individual
lines needed

Question 31

Sociocultural theories suggest that in order to help their students learn, teachers
a. provide an environment that can be actively experienced by children.
b. ensure that children’s existing knowledge does not interfere with learning new
concepts.
c. do task analysis to determine children’s specific difficulties.
d. make learning a cooperative activity.

Answer 31

d. make learning a cooperative activity.

Question 32

Information-processing theorists see children’s cognitive growth as
a. progressing through qualitatively different stages.
b. being broadly similar across all domains.
c. having only brief transition periods.
d. occurring in small increments that differ by task

Answer 32

d. occurring in small increments that differ by task