CHAPTER 13 HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS WITH
SOLUTIONS 2024
Developmental psychology - ANSWER the scientific study of changes that occur in human beings over
the course of their lives. This field examines change and development across a broad range of topics,
such as motor skills and other psycho-physiological processes; cognitive development involving areas like
problem solving, moral and conceptual understanding; language acquisition; social, personality, and
emotional development; and self- concept and identity formation. Developmental psychology explores
the extent to which development is a result of gradual accumulation of knowledge or stage-like
development, as well as the extent to which children are born with innate mental structures as opposed
to learning through experience.
Nature Versus Nurture - ANSWER A significant issue in developmental psychology is the relationship
between the innateness of an attribute (whether it is part of our nature) and the environmental effects
on that attribute (whether it is influenced by our environment, or nurture).
A nativist ("nature") account of development - ANSWER would argue that the processes in question are
innate and influenced by an organism's genes. Natural human behavior is seen as the result of already-
present biological factors, such as genetic code.
An empiricist ("nurture") perspective - ANSWER would argue that these processes are acquired through
interaction with the environment. Nurtured human behavior is seen as the result of environmental
interaction, which can provoke changes in brain structure and chemistry.
biopsychosocial model - ANSWER this model states that biological, psychological, and social (socio-
economical, socio-environmental, and cultural) factors all play a significant role in human development.
Heritability - ANSWER it is a concept in biology that describes how much of the variation of a trait in a
population is due to genetic differences in that population
gene-environment interaction - ANSWER Environmental inputs can affect the expression of genes, ex
temperature and oxygen levels.
Diathesis-Stress Model - ANSWER serves to explore how biological or genetic traits (diatheses) interact
with environmental influences (stressors) to produce disorders, such as depression, anxiety, or
schizophrenia.
Research Methods: Experimental Research - ANSWER The experimental method involves actual
manipulation of treatments, circumstances, or events to which the participant or subject is exposed. This
design points to cause-and-effect relationships and thus allows for strong inferences to be made about
causal relationships between the manipulation of one or more independent variables and subsequent
subject behavior. A limit to this method is that the artificial environment in which the experiment is
conducted may not be applicable to the general population.
, Research Methods: Correlational Research - ANSWER The correlational method explores the relationship
between two or more events by gathering information about these variables without researcher
intervention. The advantage of using a correlational design is that it estimates the strength of a
relationship among variables in the natural environment. However, the limitation is that it can only
indicate that a relationship exists between the variables; it cannot determine which one caused the
other.
Research Methods: Case Study - ANSWER In a case study, developmental psychologists collect a great
deal of information from one individual in order to better understand physical and psychological changes
over his or her lifespan. Data can be collected through the use of interviews, structured questionnaires,
observation, and test scores. This particular approach is an excellent way to better understand
individuals who are exceptional in some way, but it is especially prone to researcher bias in
interpretation, and it is difficult to generalize conclusions to the larger population.
Research Designs: Longitudinal Design - ANSWER n a longitudinal study, a researcher observes many
individuals born at or around the same time (a cohort ) and carries out new observations as members of
the cohort age. This method can be used to draw conclusions about which types of development are
universal (or normative ) and occur in most members of a cohort. Researchers may also observe ways
that development varies between individuals and hypothesize the causes of such variation. Longitudinal
studies often require large amounts of time and funding, making them unfeasible in some situations.
Also, because members of a cohort all experience historical events unique to their generation,
apparently normative developmental trends may only be universal to the cohort itself.
Research Designs: Cross-Sectional Design - ANSWER In a cross-sectional study, a researcher observes
differences between individuals of different ages at the same time. This generally requires fewer
resources than the longitudinal method, and because the individuals come from different cohorts,
shared historical events are not as unique. However, this method may not be the most effective way to
study differences between participants, as these differences may result not from their different ages but
from their exposure to different historical events.
Research Designs: Cross-Sequential Design - ANSWER Cross-sequential designs combine both
longitudinal and cross-sectional design methodologies. A researcher observes members of different birth
cohorts at the same time, and then tracks all participants over time, charting changes in the groups.
While much more resource-intensive, this method results in a clearer distinction between changes that
can be attributed to individual or historical environment and changes that are truly universal.
Research Designs: Microgenetic Design - ANSWER Microgenetic design studies the same cohort over a
short period of time. In contrast to longitudinal and cross-sectional designs, which provide broad
outlines of the process of change, microgenetic designs provide an in-depth analysis of children's
behavior while it is changing.
cognitive-developmental theory (Jean Piaget): Sensorimotor Stage - ANSWER (0-2) It is characterized by
the idea that infants "think" by manipulating the world around them. This is done by using all five
senses: seeing, hearing, touching, tasting, and smelling. Children figure out ways to elicit responses by
"doing", such as pulling a lever on a music box to hear a sound, placing a block in a bucket and pulling it
back out, or throwing an object to see what happens. Between 5 and 8 months old, the child develops
object permanence, which is the understanding that even if something is out of sight, it still exists
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS WITH
SOLUTIONS 2024
Developmental psychology - ANSWER the scientific study of changes that occur in human beings over
the course of their lives. This field examines change and development across a broad range of topics,
such as motor skills and other psycho-physiological processes; cognitive development involving areas like
problem solving, moral and conceptual understanding; language acquisition; social, personality, and
emotional development; and self- concept and identity formation. Developmental psychology explores
the extent to which development is a result of gradual accumulation of knowledge or stage-like
development, as well as the extent to which children are born with innate mental structures as opposed
to learning through experience.
Nature Versus Nurture - ANSWER A significant issue in developmental psychology is the relationship
between the innateness of an attribute (whether it is part of our nature) and the environmental effects
on that attribute (whether it is influenced by our environment, or nurture).
A nativist ("nature") account of development - ANSWER would argue that the processes in question are
innate and influenced by an organism's genes. Natural human behavior is seen as the result of already-
present biological factors, such as genetic code.
An empiricist ("nurture") perspective - ANSWER would argue that these processes are acquired through
interaction with the environment. Nurtured human behavior is seen as the result of environmental
interaction, which can provoke changes in brain structure and chemistry.
biopsychosocial model - ANSWER this model states that biological, psychological, and social (socio-
economical, socio-environmental, and cultural) factors all play a significant role in human development.
Heritability - ANSWER it is a concept in biology that describes how much of the variation of a trait in a
population is due to genetic differences in that population
gene-environment interaction - ANSWER Environmental inputs can affect the expression of genes, ex
temperature and oxygen levels.
Diathesis-Stress Model - ANSWER serves to explore how biological or genetic traits (diatheses) interact
with environmental influences (stressors) to produce disorders, such as depression, anxiety, or
schizophrenia.
Research Methods: Experimental Research - ANSWER The experimental method involves actual
manipulation of treatments, circumstances, or events to which the participant or subject is exposed. This
design points to cause-and-effect relationships and thus allows for strong inferences to be made about
causal relationships between the manipulation of one or more independent variables and subsequent
subject behavior. A limit to this method is that the artificial environment in which the experiment is
conducted may not be applicable to the general population.
, Research Methods: Correlational Research - ANSWER The correlational method explores the relationship
between two or more events by gathering information about these variables without researcher
intervention. The advantage of using a correlational design is that it estimates the strength of a
relationship among variables in the natural environment. However, the limitation is that it can only
indicate that a relationship exists between the variables; it cannot determine which one caused the
other.
Research Methods: Case Study - ANSWER In a case study, developmental psychologists collect a great
deal of information from one individual in order to better understand physical and psychological changes
over his or her lifespan. Data can be collected through the use of interviews, structured questionnaires,
observation, and test scores. This particular approach is an excellent way to better understand
individuals who are exceptional in some way, but it is especially prone to researcher bias in
interpretation, and it is difficult to generalize conclusions to the larger population.
Research Designs: Longitudinal Design - ANSWER n a longitudinal study, a researcher observes many
individuals born at or around the same time (a cohort ) and carries out new observations as members of
the cohort age. This method can be used to draw conclusions about which types of development are
universal (or normative ) and occur in most members of a cohort. Researchers may also observe ways
that development varies between individuals and hypothesize the causes of such variation. Longitudinal
studies often require large amounts of time and funding, making them unfeasible in some situations.
Also, because members of a cohort all experience historical events unique to their generation,
apparently normative developmental trends may only be universal to the cohort itself.
Research Designs: Cross-Sectional Design - ANSWER In a cross-sectional study, a researcher observes
differences between individuals of different ages at the same time. This generally requires fewer
resources than the longitudinal method, and because the individuals come from different cohorts,
shared historical events are not as unique. However, this method may not be the most effective way to
study differences between participants, as these differences may result not from their different ages but
from their exposure to different historical events.
Research Designs: Cross-Sequential Design - ANSWER Cross-sequential designs combine both
longitudinal and cross-sectional design methodologies. A researcher observes members of different birth
cohorts at the same time, and then tracks all participants over time, charting changes in the groups.
While much more resource-intensive, this method results in a clearer distinction between changes that
can be attributed to individual or historical environment and changes that are truly universal.
Research Designs: Microgenetic Design - ANSWER Microgenetic design studies the same cohort over a
short period of time. In contrast to longitudinal and cross-sectional designs, which provide broad
outlines of the process of change, microgenetic designs provide an in-depth analysis of children's
behavior while it is changing.
cognitive-developmental theory (Jean Piaget): Sensorimotor Stage - ANSWER (0-2) It is characterized by
the idea that infants "think" by manipulating the world around them. This is done by using all five
senses: seeing, hearing, touching, tasting, and smelling. Children figure out ways to elicit responses by
"doing", such as pulling a lever on a music box to hear a sound, placing a block in a bucket and pulling it
back out, or throwing an object to see what happens. Between 5 and 8 months old, the child develops
object permanence, which is the understanding that even if something is out of sight, it still exists
