PSYC 355 UMD EXAM 1 QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
3 reasons we study Child Development - Answer -- to gain insight into human nature
-to gain insight into the origins of individual differences (i.e. adult behavior, gender roles,
effects of culture)
-insight into development problems (the origins, treatment, and/or prevention)
Early Philosophers of child development - Answer -Plato: emphasized that self-control
and discipline are the most important goals of education; knowledge is innate
Aristotle/Locke: all knowledge comes from experiences, all children are born a blank
slate
Rousseau: parents and society should give children maximum freedom; children learn
primarily from their own spontaneous interactions
Locke: Child can relax once discipline and reason are instilled
Social Reform Movements - Answer -Child labor laws and others established a legacy
of research conducted for the benefit of children. Research established the importance
of the environment on children. (Harsh environments are bad for development)
Darwin's Theory of Evolution - Answer -all species of organisms arise and develop
through the natural selection of small, inherited variations that increase the individual's
ability to compete, survive, and reproduce.
"ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny" - Answer -the development of an organism
(ontogeny) expresses all the intermediate forms of its ancestors throughout evolution
(phylogeny)
individual development reflects development of different species
Early evidence-based theories - Answer -Freud: behaviors arise from sexual thoughts
Watson: caregivers can shape a child's behavior and development simply by taking
control of all stimulus-response associations.
9 themes of developmental psychology - Answer -1. Nature/Nurture
2. Active Child
3. Continuous/Discontinuous - overtime vs sudden change
4. Mechanisms of change - what causes the change in development
5. Sociocultural context
, 6. Child differentiation (what factors?)
7. Promote child well-being (through research)
8. Resilience (environments)
9. Importance of timing (brain/social development)
Scientific Method - Answer -Human intuition is flawed!
1. Choose question to be answered
2. Formulate hypothesis (or hypotheses)
3. Develop method for testing the hypothesis
4. Use data to draw conclusions
5. REPLICATION!!
Correlation vs. Causation - Answer -correlation does not equal causation
pros and cons of correlational research - Answer -Pros: help us predict behavior
Cons: CORRELATION DOES NOT IMPLY CAUSATION; direction of causation problem
and third-variable problem
experimental design - Answer -A design in which researchers manipulate an
independent variable and measure a dependent variable to determine a cause-and-
effect relationship
cross-sectional design - Answer -research design that examines people of different
ages at a single point in time
pro: quicker
con: no change in society over time
longitudinal design - Answer -research design in which one participant or group of
participants is studied over a long period of time
con: takes more time and people have a higher likelihood to drop out
cross-sequential design - Answer -research design in which participants are first
studied by means of a cross-sectional design but also followed and assessed for a
period of no more than six years
different groups followed overtime
microgenetic design - Answer -a method of study in which the same participants are
studied repeatedly over a short period
looks at motor/perception changes
Reliability - Answer -consistency of measurement
3 reasons we study Child Development - Answer -- to gain insight into human nature
-to gain insight into the origins of individual differences (i.e. adult behavior, gender roles,
effects of culture)
-insight into development problems (the origins, treatment, and/or prevention)
Early Philosophers of child development - Answer -Plato: emphasized that self-control
and discipline are the most important goals of education; knowledge is innate
Aristotle/Locke: all knowledge comes from experiences, all children are born a blank
slate
Rousseau: parents and society should give children maximum freedom; children learn
primarily from their own spontaneous interactions
Locke: Child can relax once discipline and reason are instilled
Social Reform Movements - Answer -Child labor laws and others established a legacy
of research conducted for the benefit of children. Research established the importance
of the environment on children. (Harsh environments are bad for development)
Darwin's Theory of Evolution - Answer -all species of organisms arise and develop
through the natural selection of small, inherited variations that increase the individual's
ability to compete, survive, and reproduce.
"ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny" - Answer -the development of an organism
(ontogeny) expresses all the intermediate forms of its ancestors throughout evolution
(phylogeny)
individual development reflects development of different species
Early evidence-based theories - Answer -Freud: behaviors arise from sexual thoughts
Watson: caregivers can shape a child's behavior and development simply by taking
control of all stimulus-response associations.
9 themes of developmental psychology - Answer -1. Nature/Nurture
2. Active Child
3. Continuous/Discontinuous - overtime vs sudden change
4. Mechanisms of change - what causes the change in development
5. Sociocultural context
, 6. Child differentiation (what factors?)
7. Promote child well-being (through research)
8. Resilience (environments)
9. Importance of timing (brain/social development)
Scientific Method - Answer -Human intuition is flawed!
1. Choose question to be answered
2. Formulate hypothesis (or hypotheses)
3. Develop method for testing the hypothesis
4. Use data to draw conclusions
5. REPLICATION!!
Correlation vs. Causation - Answer -correlation does not equal causation
pros and cons of correlational research - Answer -Pros: help us predict behavior
Cons: CORRELATION DOES NOT IMPLY CAUSATION; direction of causation problem
and third-variable problem
experimental design - Answer -A design in which researchers manipulate an
independent variable and measure a dependent variable to determine a cause-and-
effect relationship
cross-sectional design - Answer -research design that examines people of different
ages at a single point in time
pro: quicker
con: no change in society over time
longitudinal design - Answer -research design in which one participant or group of
participants is studied over a long period of time
con: takes more time and people have a higher likelihood to drop out
cross-sequential design - Answer -research design in which participants are first
studied by means of a cross-sectional design but also followed and assessed for a
period of no more than six years
different groups followed overtime
microgenetic design - Answer -a method of study in which the same participants are
studied repeatedly over a short period
looks at motor/perception changes
Reliability - Answer -consistency of measurement
