NRNP 6541 COMPREHENSIVE EXAM PREP
QUESTIONS AND SOLUTIONS VERIFIED
STUDY RESOURCE
●● Developmental milestones
Answer: Observable achievements in skills or behaviors (e.g., walking,
first words) that typically occur in a predictable sequence and support
later, more complex abilities.
●● Biophysical domain of development
Answer: Aspect of development involving organ systems, brain growth,
sensory abilities, and motor skills.
●● Cognitive domain of development
Answer: Aspect of development involving information processing,
language, learning, memory, and problem solving.
●● Psychosocial domain of development
Answer: Aspect of development involving temperament, emotional
regulation, attachment, personality, and relationships.
●● Cephalocaudal development
,Answer: Developmental pattern in which growth and control progress
from head to toe (head control → trunk control → standing/walking).
●● Proximodistal development
Answer: Developmental pattern in which growth and control progress
from the center of the body outward (trunk → arms → hands →
fingers).
●● Systematic and successive development
Answer: The idea that developmental changes occur in an organized,
predictable sequence, with each new skill building on earlier ones.
●● Individual variation in developmental pace
Answer: The concept that children achieve milestones at different rates
within a typical range (e.g., early walking but later talking, or vice
versa).
●● Critical period
Answer: A specific time window when an experience or exposure must
occur for normal development; if missed, the skill may be extremely
difficult or impossible to acquire later.
●● Sensitive period
,Answer: A time frame when development of a skill is easiest and most
efficient, but still possible outside this window (a "window of
opportunity").
●● Nature (in development)
Answer: Biological influences on development, including genetics, brain
structure, and inherited traits.
●● Nurture (in development)
Answer: Environmental influences on development, including family,
culture, school, peers, and broader social context.
●● Nature-nurture interaction
Answer: The understanding that genetics and environment work together
to shape development, rather than acting independently.
●● Epigenetics
Answer: The study of how environmental exposures and experiences can
alter gene expression (turn genes on or off) without changing the DNA
sequence itself.
●● Developmental delay
Answer: A quantitative lag in development in which skills are emerging
but at a slower-than-typical rate.
, ●● Developmental disability
Answer: A persistent developmental delay lasting beyond approximately
6 years of age and likely to have long-term impact on functioning.
●● Developmental asynchrony
Answer: A pattern where different developmental domains progress at
uneven rates (e.g., advanced motor skills but delayed language).
●● Developmental regression
Answer: Loss of previously acquired skills, often a red flag that warrants
further evaluation.
●● Developmental deviation
Answer: A qualitative difference in behavior that is unexpected for the
child's age or typical developmental trajectory.
●● Psychodynamic theories (general focus)
Answer: Theories that emphasize personality, emotions, internal
conflicts, and how resolving age-specific conflicts shapes development.
●● Freud's psychosexual theory focus
QUESTIONS AND SOLUTIONS VERIFIED
STUDY RESOURCE
●● Developmental milestones
Answer: Observable achievements in skills or behaviors (e.g., walking,
first words) that typically occur in a predictable sequence and support
later, more complex abilities.
●● Biophysical domain of development
Answer: Aspect of development involving organ systems, brain growth,
sensory abilities, and motor skills.
●● Cognitive domain of development
Answer: Aspect of development involving information processing,
language, learning, memory, and problem solving.
●● Psychosocial domain of development
Answer: Aspect of development involving temperament, emotional
regulation, attachment, personality, and relationships.
●● Cephalocaudal development
,Answer: Developmental pattern in which growth and control progress
from head to toe (head control → trunk control → standing/walking).
●● Proximodistal development
Answer: Developmental pattern in which growth and control progress
from the center of the body outward (trunk → arms → hands →
fingers).
●● Systematic and successive development
Answer: The idea that developmental changes occur in an organized,
predictable sequence, with each new skill building on earlier ones.
●● Individual variation in developmental pace
Answer: The concept that children achieve milestones at different rates
within a typical range (e.g., early walking but later talking, or vice
versa).
●● Critical period
Answer: A specific time window when an experience or exposure must
occur for normal development; if missed, the skill may be extremely
difficult or impossible to acquire later.
●● Sensitive period
,Answer: A time frame when development of a skill is easiest and most
efficient, but still possible outside this window (a "window of
opportunity").
●● Nature (in development)
Answer: Biological influences on development, including genetics, brain
structure, and inherited traits.
●● Nurture (in development)
Answer: Environmental influences on development, including family,
culture, school, peers, and broader social context.
●● Nature-nurture interaction
Answer: The understanding that genetics and environment work together
to shape development, rather than acting independently.
●● Epigenetics
Answer: The study of how environmental exposures and experiences can
alter gene expression (turn genes on or off) without changing the DNA
sequence itself.
●● Developmental delay
Answer: A quantitative lag in development in which skills are emerging
but at a slower-than-typical rate.
, ●● Developmental disability
Answer: A persistent developmental delay lasting beyond approximately
6 years of age and likely to have long-term impact on functioning.
●● Developmental asynchrony
Answer: A pattern where different developmental domains progress at
uneven rates (e.g., advanced motor skills but delayed language).
●● Developmental regression
Answer: Loss of previously acquired skills, often a red flag that warrants
further evaluation.
●● Developmental deviation
Answer: A qualitative difference in behavior that is unexpected for the
child's age or typical developmental trajectory.
●● Psychodynamic theories (general focus)
Answer: Theories that emphasize personality, emotions, internal
conflicts, and how resolving age-specific conflicts shapes development.
●● Freud's psychosexual theory focus
