Exam 1: Understanding Life-Span Human Development

Which best exemplifies the concept of neuroplasticity?

A psychologist measures the IQs of 20 students who ingested a "smart pill" and 20 students who ingested a "sugar pill" in order to determine if the pill had an effect on intelligence. To ensure peak performance, she tests all of the students on Wednesdays. In this experiment, the independent variable is the

Based on an observation at a local fast-food restaurant, Dr. Colby predicts that more people will buy a hamburger if it is covered with cheese. This prediction is most accurately thought of as a

Who is using a cross-sectional research design?

In which research design are age differences and cohort differences hopelessly tangled?

The main limitation of the case study method is that

In which type of study are the effects of age and the effects of time of measurement confounded with one another?

Due to the ethical standard concerning _____, a researcher could not tell a parent that the parent's child scored in the "genius" range on an IQ test that the researcher had given.

The fact that many adult males who lived through the Great Depression later had erratic careers and unstable marriages exemplifies

Which statement concerning the pre-seventeenth century conception of childhood is most accurate?

The title of Dr. Doublemint's latest bestseller is Why Identical Twins Differ from Each Other. Given this title, it is safe to assume that Dr. Doublemint's primary interest is in the _____ goal of psychology.

Olga is interested in how people develop strategies for conflict resolution. She selects a group of preschoolers, and uses both interviews and naturalistic observation to explore their approaches to dealing with conflict. Every two years thereafter, Olga again interviews and observes this same group of youngsters, concluding her study when the children reach adolescence. Olga has been using a _____ research design.

An fMRI uses magnetic forces to measure _____ in an active area of the brain.

Manuel hoped to graduate from college by age 22 but finds himself enrolling for the first time at age 52. The anxiety Manuel feels because of this situation may be best explained by the concept of

After observing the interaction between rival street gangs, Jet predicts that fighting between the gangs would decrease significantly if the existing "colors" (clothing) of the two gangs (one black and one red) were changed to pink and yellow. This prediction is most accurately thought of as a

According to the lifespan perspective, development is

Maturation refers to the gains that occur across the lifespan as the result of experiences.

Living near a noisy airport can interfere with a child's learning how to read.This is an example of the effects of

Development of the idea of adolescence occurred as

The status and privileges assigned to individuals of a specific age defines the concept of an age _____.