PSYCH 1XX3 LATEST EXAM ACTUAL 2026/2027 QUESTIONS
AND SOLUTIONS RATED A+
✔✔Monozygotic twins - ✔✔genetically identical
Same sperm/ovum
✔✔Dizygotic twins - ✔✔~50% shared genes
Different sperm/ovum
✔✔Who determines sex of child? - ✔✔Males
✔✔Which chromosome determines gender - ✔✔23rd
✔✔Genotype - ✔✔Individuals inherited genes
✔✔Phenotype - ✔✔Expression of genotype in terms of observable characteristics
✔✔Simple dominant-recessive inheritance - ✔✔Expression of a trait is determines by a
single pair of alleles
One allele is inherited from each parent
Together , the pair of alleles determine phenotypic expression
Dominant allele expressed in phenotype
Recessive allele not expressed, but heritable
Phenotypic traits governed by multiple pairs of genes
✔✔(SDRI) Homozygous - ✔✔Two alleles have the same effect on the phenotype
✔✔(SDRI) Heterozygous - ✔✔Two alleles have a different effect on the phenotype
✔✔Polygenetic Inheritance - ✔✔Expression of trait is determined by the interaction of
multiple genes
No single gene can account for most complex behaviours
✔✔Codominance - ✔✔Expression of trait is determined equally by two dominant alleles
EX. blood type
Offspring expressed both equally
✔✔Sex-linked Inheritance - ✔✔Expression of trait is determined by genes on the X
chromosome
responsible for colour blindness/hemophilia
Phenotype expression of the recessive allele occurs less frequently in females bc only 2
X chromosomes
Rarely express sex-linked recessive genes
,✔✔Extreme Behaviourist POV - ✔✔Nuturists believe external factors alone ultimately
influence development
(Watson)
✔✔The Genetic POV - ✔✔Naturists believe genes predetermine the path of
development
Some developmental processes are buffered against environmental variability ex. all
infants babble the same
✔✔Canalization principle - ✔✔Genotype restricts the phenotype to a small number of
developmental outcomes
✔✔Range of Reaction Principle - ✔✔Genotype establishes a range of possible
responses to different kinds of life experiences
Range of one's potential height is limited by genetic factors
Poor/optimal environment influence expression
✔✔Passive Genotype/Environmental correlations - ✔✔The environment your parents
choose to raise their children in was influenced by the parents own genes
Environment compliments your genes
✔✔Evocative Genotype/Environmental correlations - ✔✔Traits we have inherited affect
how others react to/behave towards us
Natural temperament determines how others behave around you
✔✔Active Genotype/Environmental correlations - ✔✔Our genotype influences the kind
of environment that we seek
Early in life, passive genotype correlations influence you the most
Active genotype correlations influence ou more in childhood/adulthood
Choice of enivronment
✔✔Twin studies - ✔✔Unveil the role of genes in developing traits
Twins raised apart had higher correlation of grades than dizygotic twins raised together
Suggests genetic factors may play larger role in intelligence
✔✔Critical Periods - ✔✔Window of opportunity within an individuals development in
which particular environmental stimulation is necessary in order to see permanent
changes
✔✔Kitten visual study - ✔✔Visually deprives for first 6 weeks of life, kitten 1 s unable to
discriminate visual patterns
Kitten 2 was deprived for 6 weeks after 4 weeks of age, and is able to
More connections in neurons in enriched environment
✔✔Implications of critical periods - ✔✔Affect parental decisions
,Adoption
Public policy on child intervention
Natural environments may be sufficient for proper development
Extreme stimulation doesnt always predict extreme performance
Excess synapses prune away throughout development
✔✔Experience-Expectant Brain Growth - ✔✔Brains expect a certain amount of
environmental input and with this input, our brains develop naturally
✔✔Experience-Dependant Brain Growth - ✔✔Our brains develop according to our own
personal experiences
Flexibility of timing and type of stimulation required for normal development
✔✔Normative Research Q - ✔✔how things normally change age to age
✔✔Analytic Research Q - ✔✔how processes and variables that are responsible for
changes in abilities from age to age
✔✔Cohort Effect - ✔✔Disadvantage of cross sectional design studies
May reflect experiences specific to subjects of a particular cohort (group in same age)
rather than reflecting universal developmental trends
✔✔Neural development begins? - ✔✔3 weeks post conception
✔✔Neural Plate - ✔✔Primitive neural tissue
✔✔Neural Tube - ✔✔Neural plate folds and closes to become this, then leads to
development of brain and spinal cord (CNS) lined w stem cells
✔✔When are the forebrain, midbrain and hindbrain visible - ✔✔28 days, distinctly
human by 100 days, sulci/gyri dont form till 7 months
✔✔Synaptic development - ✔✔rapid increase in number of synpases in first few months
At 1 year, it begins to decrease until 10 years of age
✔✔Synaptic Pruning - ✔✔Prune unnecessary/incorrect neurons
✔✔Role of experience in development - ✔✔If one sense does not receive stimulation,
the extra connections are left open, so that the deprived sense can be supplemented by
connections to other intact senses
✔✔Ocular dominance columns - ✔✔visual cortex, synapse with neurons carrying info
from each eye
, ✔✔Experience-expectatnt - ✔✔area of dominance columns for both eyes is the same
Brain expects same strength input from each eye
✔✔Experience-dependant - ✔✔Only develop typically if one receives the appropriate
input (Kitten Study)
✔✔Amblyopia - ✔✔Lack of processing power in ocular dominance columns receiving
input from that eye due to previous deprivation
"Lazy eye"
✔✔Patching - ✔✔Cover stronger eye, competing for cortical space, allows weaker eye
to strengthen its connections
✔✔Adolescence - ✔✔another wave of synapse production/subsequent pruning
Frontal lobe>responsible for self-control, judgement, emotions, organization
✔✔Neurogenesis - ✔✔new neurons created
Occurs particularly in hippocampus/olfactory bulbs
May play role in learning/memory
Occurs in brain areas that are typically non-neurogenic
Experience-dependant plasticity
"Use it or lose it"
✔✔Fluid intelligence - ✔✔abstract thinking and quick reasoning, tends to decline with
age
✔✔Crystallized intelligence - ✔✔an individual's accumulated knowledge
May increase with age
✔✔Why might cognitive intelligence decline - ✔✔cerebral blood flow
death of neurons
individual difference
genetic + enviro
Longitudinal studies proved cognitive decline isnt bc of age
✔✔Aging + memories - ✔✔Older people better at meaningful info recall
Younger adults better with working/episodic memory
✔✔Adaptions - ✔✔Biological traits that help an individual to survive and reproduce in its
habitat.
Perform a specific function
✔✔Natural Selection - ✔✔Charles Darwin, Russel Wallace
Mutation, genetic drift, migration
AND SOLUTIONS RATED A+
✔✔Monozygotic twins - ✔✔genetically identical
Same sperm/ovum
✔✔Dizygotic twins - ✔✔~50% shared genes
Different sperm/ovum
✔✔Who determines sex of child? - ✔✔Males
✔✔Which chromosome determines gender - ✔✔23rd
✔✔Genotype - ✔✔Individuals inherited genes
✔✔Phenotype - ✔✔Expression of genotype in terms of observable characteristics
✔✔Simple dominant-recessive inheritance - ✔✔Expression of a trait is determines by a
single pair of alleles
One allele is inherited from each parent
Together , the pair of alleles determine phenotypic expression
Dominant allele expressed in phenotype
Recessive allele not expressed, but heritable
Phenotypic traits governed by multiple pairs of genes
✔✔(SDRI) Homozygous - ✔✔Two alleles have the same effect on the phenotype
✔✔(SDRI) Heterozygous - ✔✔Two alleles have a different effect on the phenotype
✔✔Polygenetic Inheritance - ✔✔Expression of trait is determined by the interaction of
multiple genes
No single gene can account for most complex behaviours
✔✔Codominance - ✔✔Expression of trait is determined equally by two dominant alleles
EX. blood type
Offspring expressed both equally
✔✔Sex-linked Inheritance - ✔✔Expression of trait is determined by genes on the X
chromosome
responsible for colour blindness/hemophilia
Phenotype expression of the recessive allele occurs less frequently in females bc only 2
X chromosomes
Rarely express sex-linked recessive genes
,✔✔Extreme Behaviourist POV - ✔✔Nuturists believe external factors alone ultimately
influence development
(Watson)
✔✔The Genetic POV - ✔✔Naturists believe genes predetermine the path of
development
Some developmental processes are buffered against environmental variability ex. all
infants babble the same
✔✔Canalization principle - ✔✔Genotype restricts the phenotype to a small number of
developmental outcomes
✔✔Range of Reaction Principle - ✔✔Genotype establishes a range of possible
responses to different kinds of life experiences
Range of one's potential height is limited by genetic factors
Poor/optimal environment influence expression
✔✔Passive Genotype/Environmental correlations - ✔✔The environment your parents
choose to raise their children in was influenced by the parents own genes
Environment compliments your genes
✔✔Evocative Genotype/Environmental correlations - ✔✔Traits we have inherited affect
how others react to/behave towards us
Natural temperament determines how others behave around you
✔✔Active Genotype/Environmental correlations - ✔✔Our genotype influences the kind
of environment that we seek
Early in life, passive genotype correlations influence you the most
Active genotype correlations influence ou more in childhood/adulthood
Choice of enivronment
✔✔Twin studies - ✔✔Unveil the role of genes in developing traits
Twins raised apart had higher correlation of grades than dizygotic twins raised together
Suggests genetic factors may play larger role in intelligence
✔✔Critical Periods - ✔✔Window of opportunity within an individuals development in
which particular environmental stimulation is necessary in order to see permanent
changes
✔✔Kitten visual study - ✔✔Visually deprives for first 6 weeks of life, kitten 1 s unable to
discriminate visual patterns
Kitten 2 was deprived for 6 weeks after 4 weeks of age, and is able to
More connections in neurons in enriched environment
✔✔Implications of critical periods - ✔✔Affect parental decisions
,Adoption
Public policy on child intervention
Natural environments may be sufficient for proper development
Extreme stimulation doesnt always predict extreme performance
Excess synapses prune away throughout development
✔✔Experience-Expectant Brain Growth - ✔✔Brains expect a certain amount of
environmental input and with this input, our brains develop naturally
✔✔Experience-Dependant Brain Growth - ✔✔Our brains develop according to our own
personal experiences
Flexibility of timing and type of stimulation required for normal development
✔✔Normative Research Q - ✔✔how things normally change age to age
✔✔Analytic Research Q - ✔✔how processes and variables that are responsible for
changes in abilities from age to age
✔✔Cohort Effect - ✔✔Disadvantage of cross sectional design studies
May reflect experiences specific to subjects of a particular cohort (group in same age)
rather than reflecting universal developmental trends
✔✔Neural development begins? - ✔✔3 weeks post conception
✔✔Neural Plate - ✔✔Primitive neural tissue
✔✔Neural Tube - ✔✔Neural plate folds and closes to become this, then leads to
development of brain and spinal cord (CNS) lined w stem cells
✔✔When are the forebrain, midbrain and hindbrain visible - ✔✔28 days, distinctly
human by 100 days, sulci/gyri dont form till 7 months
✔✔Synaptic development - ✔✔rapid increase in number of synpases in first few months
At 1 year, it begins to decrease until 10 years of age
✔✔Synaptic Pruning - ✔✔Prune unnecessary/incorrect neurons
✔✔Role of experience in development - ✔✔If one sense does not receive stimulation,
the extra connections are left open, so that the deprived sense can be supplemented by
connections to other intact senses
✔✔Ocular dominance columns - ✔✔visual cortex, synapse with neurons carrying info
from each eye
, ✔✔Experience-expectatnt - ✔✔area of dominance columns for both eyes is the same
Brain expects same strength input from each eye
✔✔Experience-dependant - ✔✔Only develop typically if one receives the appropriate
input (Kitten Study)
✔✔Amblyopia - ✔✔Lack of processing power in ocular dominance columns receiving
input from that eye due to previous deprivation
"Lazy eye"
✔✔Patching - ✔✔Cover stronger eye, competing for cortical space, allows weaker eye
to strengthen its connections
✔✔Adolescence - ✔✔another wave of synapse production/subsequent pruning
Frontal lobe>responsible for self-control, judgement, emotions, organization
✔✔Neurogenesis - ✔✔new neurons created
Occurs particularly in hippocampus/olfactory bulbs
May play role in learning/memory
Occurs in brain areas that are typically non-neurogenic
Experience-dependant plasticity
"Use it or lose it"
✔✔Fluid intelligence - ✔✔abstract thinking and quick reasoning, tends to decline with
age
✔✔Crystallized intelligence - ✔✔an individual's accumulated knowledge
May increase with age
✔✔Why might cognitive intelligence decline - ✔✔cerebral blood flow
death of neurons
individual difference
genetic + enviro
Longitudinal studies proved cognitive decline isnt bc of age
✔✔Aging + memories - ✔✔Older people better at meaningful info recall
Younger adults better with working/episodic memory
✔✔Adaptions - ✔✔Biological traits that help an individual to survive and reproduce in its
habitat.
Perform a specific function
✔✔Natural Selection - ✔✔Charles Darwin, Russel Wallace
Mutation, genetic drift, migration
