Deck 1: The Science of Human Development

Question 1

The "difference-equals-deficit" error may lead people to believe that their nation or culture is better than others.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Jenny learned to play the piano as a child and played very well until she stopped practicing in her late teenage years. In her 40s, Jenny decided to start playing the piano again. She quickly realized that she had lost most of her ability to play, so she took lessons to relearn how to play the piano. After several years of lessons, Jenny plays the piano very well. This example illustrates the multidirectional nature of development.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Culture refers to a system of shared beliefs, conventions, norms, behaviors, and expectations.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The influence of nurture begins at conception.

Question 5

Scientists believe that race is a genetic construct.

Question 6

Since starting school, Sam had struggled with math. His teacher offered to help him with math after school. Now Sam does well on his math assignments. This example illustrates how nature can influence development.

Question 7

The term cohort refers to individuals born in the same geographical region and within the same social class.

Question 8

Socioeconomic status is also called "social class."

Question 9

Nature is more important than nurture in how a trait or behavior is expressed.

Question 10

Using careful analysis of evidence gathered in the research, investigators are able to conclude whether the hypothesis is supported.

Question 11

If Dr. Hall conducts a study in the exact same way that Dr. Jeeves did but uses different participants than Dr. Jeeves, Dr. Hall is engaging in replication.

Question 12

Individuals in the same cohort are exposed to the same values, events, technologies, and culture of the era.

Question 13

Within the context of Bronfenbrenner's ecological-systems approach, a person's immediate surroundings, such as family or peer group, are part of the macrosystem.

Question 14

The primary goal of the scientific method is to generate data that support the researcher's hypotheses.

Question 15

According to the dynamic-systems approach, human development is a static process.

Question 16

The science of human development examines how, but not why, people change over time.

Question 17

A research question becomes a hypothesis when it is stated as a prediction that can be examined.

Question 18

Dr. Hide is a nutritionist, Dr. Sparrow is a sociologist, and Dr. Anderson is a psychologist. They meet to discuss the rising rates of obesity among children, adolescents, and adults. Each offers a different perspective for the increasing rates. This example illustrates how development is multidisciplinary.

Question 19

Most of our development occurs during critical periods.

Question 20

Race and ethnicity are different terms for the same thing.

Question 21

The fourth step in the scientific method involves _____.

A) posing a question
B) conducting research
C) developing a hypothesis
D) supporting or refuting a hypothesis

Question 22

The third step in the scientific method involves _____.

A) posing a question
B) conducting research
C) sharing the results
D) developing a hypothesis

Question 23

The cohort-sequential design combines cross-sectional and longitudinal research.

Question 24

The purpose of a survey is to allow a researcher to collect data quickly from a large population.

Question 25

A researcher designed and conducted an experiment to determine whether a particular drug would help patients with bipolar disorder. By designing and conducting this experiment, the researcher was able to _____.

A) establish a positive correlation
B) demonstrate proof
C) test the hypothesis
D) confirm the results

Question 26

The science of human development seeks to understand _____.

A) the meaning of life
B) the accuracy of new theories
C) the works of Freud, Piaget, and Erikson
D) how and why people change over time

Question 27

Dr. Hernandez predicts that a certain drug will reduce hallucinations in patients with schizophrenia. Her prediction is called _____

A) a "conclusion."
B) "empirical evidence."
C) a "hypothesis."
D) an "observation."

Question 28

Dr. Tucker and his research team are interested in how aggression changes as we age. The team will recruit 100 3-year-old children and assess their levels of aggression every three years until the participants turn 21. This is an example of cross-sectional research.

Question 29

In an experiment, the group receiving the special treatment is referred to as the "comparison group."

Question 30

In longitudinal research, the same participants are measured at multiple assessment points over a period of time.

Question 31

Empirical evidence is based on _____.

A) theories and speculation
B) observation, experience, or experiment
C) inferences based on personal biases
D) opinions generated by focus groups

Question 32

The second step in the scientific method involves _____.

A) posing a question
B) conducting research
C) developing a hypothesis
D) sharing the results

Question 33

The main advantage of scientific observation as a research method is that it allows the investigator to determine cause and effect.

Question 34

Dr. Henderson is curious to know more about how children's peer relationships develop over time. To gain an understanding of this subject that is not based on opinion or personal bias, Dr. Henderson should _____.

A) use the scientific method to collect data and establish facts
B) have the children undergo psychoanalysis
C) interview parents and teachers
D) read Dr. Spock's book Baby and Child Care

Question 35

Dr. Furth wonders whether a specific brain chemical can be suppressed if a patient is given a large dose of vitamin E. Dr. Furth has just demonstrated the _____ step in the scientific method.

A) first
B) second
C) third
D) fourth

Question 36

One limitation of using surveys is that participants may not tell the truth.

Question 37

After posing a question, a researcher using the scientific method _____.

A) draws conclusions
B) runs an experiment
C) selects a group of participants
D) develops a hypothesis

Question 38

Friends Jill and Susan both experienced poverty as children. In addition, they were raised by single parents and attended poor-performing schools. By late adolescence, Jill had dropped out of school and had two children. Susan, in contrast, was academically ranked number one in her graduating class and had a full academic scholarship to Harvard. This example illustrates the concept of "differential sensitivity."

Question 39

When two variables are unrelated, the correlation between them is zero.

Question 40

The first step in the scientific method involves _____.

A) posing a question
B) conducting research
C) analyzing evidence
D) developing a hypothesis

Question 41

In the science of human development, nature refers to _____.

A) the influence of the genes that people inherit
B) environmental influences
C) patterns of development
D) developmental differences

Question 42

Dr. Towne believes that heredity is primarily responsible for personality traits. Dr. West believes that environmental influences are primarily responsible for personality traits. They are on different sides of the _____ debate.

A) nature-nurture
B) intelligent design-evolution
C) genes-development
D) traits-conditioning

Question 43

Dr. Feigl is interested in designing a study on children's language acquisition. What is the first step that Dr. Feigl should take, according to the scientific method?

A) Recruit children and their parents as participants in the study.
B) Develop a hypothesis regarding language acquisition.
C) Pose a research question about language acquisition.
D) Draw conclusions on the way children acquire language.

Question 44

Which of the following illustrates the influence of nature in development?

A) having a mother who smoked during pregnancy
B) having the gene for epilepsy
C) eating a healthy diet
D) living in a loud neighborhood

Question 45

Dr. Kong conducts a study in which he finds that smoking is related to an increased risk of high blood pressure. He publishes his results. Then Dr. Meco conducts the same study using different participants in another city. Dr. Meco's work is an example of _____.

A) scientific controversy
B) replication
C) ethics
D) data analyses

Question 46

Parents who spend a great deal of time and money trying to find the best school for their children believe in the importance of _____ as it relates to development.

A) nurture
B) replication
C) nature
D) classical conditioning

Question 47

Due to findings from the Framingham Heart Study, _____.

A) childhood obesity rates have soared since the early 1980s
B) cigarette smoking is down, exercise is up, and doctors routinely monitor blood pressure, weight, and cholesterol
C) cigarette smoking and obesity rates are up, but cancer risk has decreased dramatically
D) more parents are monitoring their children's use of harmful substances, such as alcohol and drugs

Question 48

The life-span perspective takes into account development from _____.

A) birth to death
B) childhood to middle age
C) birth to adolescence
D) conception to death

Question 49

Most developmental psychologists believe that development is the result of _____.

A) nature and nurture acting separately
B) genetic traits
C) nature and nurture acting together
D) environmental influences

Question 50

Late adulthood begins at age _____.

A) 45
B) 55
C) 65
D) 75

Question 51

_____ studies the many ways in which the environment alters gene expression.

A) Differential susceptibility
B) Ethology
C) Epigenetics
D) The nature-nurture debate

Question 52

The final step in the scientific method involves _____.

A) testing a hypothesis
B) posing a question
C) conducting research
D) reporting the results

Question 53

A hypothesis is a(n) _____.

A) experiment
B) prediction that can be tested
C) conclusion drawn from research
D) replication of a scientific study

Question 54

According to the feature in your text titled "Are Children Too Overweight?" researchers predicted that overweight children will have a higher rate of heart attacks, strokes, diabetes, and death in adulthood, even if they slim down before adulthood. The data from this study _____.

A) disproved the hypothesis
B) were inconclusive
C) supported the hypothesis
D) could not be replicated

Question 55

A developmental perspective requires consideration of _____.

A) time
B) one's birthday
C) observer bias
D) scientific conclusions

Question 56

_____ refers to all the environmental influences that affect development after conception.

A) Epigenetics
B) Nurture
C) Nature
D) Differential susceptibility

Question 57

Travis and Marcus, close friends, grew up in the same neighborhood. Both were exposed to chronic poverty, gang violence, and family dysfunction. By the time they were in high school, Travis was flunking most of his classes, had a child, and had been arrested numerous times for drug-related crimes and theft. Marcus, on the other hand, was a good student, played football, and had aspirations to attend college. These different developmental trajectories, despite similar environmental influences, illustrate the concept of _____

A) "epigenetics."
B) a "critical period."
C) a "sensitive period."
D) "differential susceptibility."

Question 58

In one study that looked at the effects of maternal depression during pregnancy and child outcomes, researchers found that children who had a particular type of the serotonin transporter gene were likely to be emotionally immature if their mothers were depressed. However, children with this gene were more mature than average if their mothers were not depressed. These findings illustrate the concept of _____

A) "epigenetics."
B) a "critical period."
C) a "sensitive period."
D) "differential susceptibility."

Question 59

In the science of human development, nurture refers to _____ traits.

A) hereditary
B) genetic
C) environmental
D) unique

Question 60

Replication involves _____.

A) the repetition of a study using different participants
B) the repetition of a study using the same participants
C) designing a new study based on information from a previous study
D) designing a new study using new ideas and information

Question 61

In Bronfenbrenner's ecological-systems model, family and peers are part of one's _____.

A) microsystem
B) exosystem
C) macrosystem
D) social system

Question 62

Which example best illustrates a critical period?

A) a child learning to walk
B) a child learning a second language before age 4
C) a human fetus developing fingers and toes between 28 and 54 days in utero
D) a child learning to ride a bike between 5 and 6 years of age

Question 63

The concept of multidirectional development suggests that when change is gradual, as when a tortoise grows larger over its 150-year lifespan, it is an example of _____.

A) continuity
B) discontinuity
C) genetics
D) nurture

Question 64

In Bronfenbrenner's ecological-systems approach, the _____ refers to the interactions among systems.

A) macrosystem
B) exosystem
C) microsystem
D) mesosystem

Question 65

Dwayne was born to a single mother living in Chicago. According to Bronfenbrenner's theory, Dwayne's experience in this social context is an example of the _____.

A) chronosystem
B) exosystem
C) microsystem
D) macrosystem

Question 66

Between 1957 and 1961, many pregnant women took thalidomide to alleviate morning sickness; this drug disrupted a(n) _____ period of prenatal development.

A) sensitive
B) critical
C) early
D) late

Question 67

A person's macrosystem includes _____.

A) political processes
B) the peer group
C) school and church
D) the historical setting

Question 68

Dorothy was born during the Great Depression. Within the context of the ecological-systems approach, Dorothy's experience of growing up during this time period falls within the _____.

A) chronosystem
B) exosystem
C) microsystem
D) macrosystem

Question 69

High school classmates are part of the same _____.

A) social construction
B) network
C) socioeconomic status
D) cohort

Question 70

Which term did Bronfenbrenner use to describe the impact of the specific time in history on a person's development?

A) macrosystem
B) exosystem
C) microsystem
D) chronosystem

Question 71

Dr. Kolbe is studying the impact of exosystems on human development. Which of the following would Dr. Kolbe be MOST interested in examining?

A) cultural values and economic processes
B) family and peer groups
C) medical centers and religious institutions
D) the development of the skeletal structure in children

Question 72

A woman in Honduras worked in a field treated with pesticides during her pregnancy. Her son was subsequently born with no arms or legs. Her pesticide exposure likely occurred during a(n) _____ period of prenatal development.

A) critical
B) early
C) late
D) sensitive

Question 73

Bobby did not learn to read until he was an adolescent. When he did learn to read, it was much harder for him than it was for his peers. If Bobby had learned to read during the early and middle childhood years, he would have acquired literacy skills much more efficiently. Bobby's difficulty learning to read as an adolescent demonstrates the concept of a(n) "_____ period."

A) critical
B) early
C) late
D) sensitive

Question 74

Bettie grew up in the Great Depression, while her granddaughter is part of the millennial generation. Bettie and her granddaughter belong to different _____.

A) socioeconomic groups
B) microsystems
C) cohorts
D) cultural groups

Question 75

Which example best illustrates a sensitive period?

A) a child who is born blind
B) an egg being fertilized
C) a fetus developing fingers and toes
D) a child learning to speak a second language

Question 76

The effects of climate, noise, population density, family size, and multiethnic communities illustrate that development is _____.

A) linear
B) multidirectional
C) multicontextual
D) multicultural

Question 77

The ecological-systems approach was proposed by _____.

A) Maslow
B) Freud
C) Bronfenbrenner
D) Skinner

Question 78

According to Bronfenbrenner's ecological-systems approach, the historical context that affects other systems is called the "_____."

A) ecosystem
B) chronosystem
C) mesosystem
D) macrosystem

Question 79

In Bronfenbrenner's ecological-systems model, a hospital in the community is an example of the _____.

A) ecosystem
B) microsystem
C) chronosystem
D) exosystem

Question 80

With respect to the concept of multidirectional development, when change is rapid and dramatic, such as when a larva becomes a mosquito, it is an example of _____.

A) continuity
B) discontinuity
C) genetics
D) nurture