Child Psychology Exam 1 Questions and Answers Already Passed Graded A+
developmental psychology - Answers scientific study of processes of change and stability in children
from conception through adolescence
What do developmental psychologists study? - Answers Physical development
Cognitive development
Emotional development
Social development
How have views of childhood shifted throughout history? What sources of information inform us about
earlier beliefs? - Answers Children used to be seen as miniature adults
Parents used to leave children alone while they worked
Describe the factors that led to an interest in the scientific study of children's development in the 19th
and 20th centuries. How did industrialization change the lives of children? - Answers Most historians
agree that the modern notion of childhood emerged on a large scale in the late eighteenth and early
nineteenth centuries, as a consequence of the Industrial Revolution
By the late nineteenth century, the industrial age was well underway throughout the world, and children
and childhood had begun to receive considerable attention from parents, educators, and scientists.
Describe the central issues in the field of developmental psychology (described in text and lecture), as
well as issues of plasticity and individual differences (described in text). What is the current view within
each issue? Describe evidence that is relevant to the study of each of these issues. - Answers Nature
versus nurture - both play a big role in the way people are
Plasticity - The degree to which, and the conditions under which, development is open to change and
intervention.
Individual differences - enduring psychological characteristics that distinguish one person from another
and thus help to define each person's individuality.
Adoption studies and twin studies - both show the influence of genes and the influences of environment
Why are theories so important, and what are the characteristics of a good theory? - Answers We need
them to guide scientific research, make sense of our data, and organize our knowledge
- Parsimony: concise, simple
- Falsifiable: can be supported or disconfirmed
- Makes predictions: generates testable hypotheses about future events
,Describe the basic features of each of the "grand theories" of development: Freud's and Erikson's
psychodynamic theories, Watson's behaviorism, Piaget's constructivist theory, and Vygostky's
sociocultural theory. - Answers Psychodynamic theories: theories, such as those of Freud and Erikson,
exploring the influence on development and developmental stages of universal biological drives and the
life experiences of individuals
Behaviorism: importance of reinforcement and punishment in shaping behavior
Constructivist theory: children actively construct a system for understanding the world, focus is on how
children adapt to their environment
Sociocultural theory: agreed with piaget that maturation and experiences and important, importance of
sociocultural context, cognitive growth evolves out of social interactions, culture influences cognitive
development
Compare the grand theories to more modern theories, including Bandura's social learning theory,
evolutionary theory, information-processing, and Bronfenbrenner's ecological model. Describe the basic
premise of dynamic systems theory. - Answers Social learning theory: Modeling; observation and
imitation, and Self efficacy; beliefs about own abilities to deal effectively with the environment by
meeting standards & achieving goals.
Evolutionary theory: studies the adaptive value of behaviors
Information-processing: seeks to explain human thought processes by comparing them to workings of a
computer
Ecological model: theory focusing on the organization and interactions of the multiple environmental
contexts with which children develop, the circles
Differentiate between material and symbolic cultural tools, and provide examples of each. Describe
mechanisms by which culture is thought to be inherited - Answers Material: cultural tools including
physical objects and observable patterns of behavior such as family routines and social practices
Symbolic: cultural tools such as abstract knowledge, beliefs, and values
Describe the key criteria that guide scientific research (ie. objectivity, reliability, validity, replicability). -
Answers Objectivity: requirement that scientific knowledge not be distorted by the investigator's
preconceptions
Reliability: the scientific requirement that when same behavior is measured on two or more occasions
by the same or different observers, the measurements be consistent with each other
Validity: the scientific requirement that the data being collected actually reflect the phenomenon being
studied
, Replicability: the scientific requirement that other researchers can use the same procedures as an initial
investigator did and obtain the same results
Differentiate between naturalistic observations and experiments (be sure to discuss the relation
between the experimental condition and the control condition). What are the advantages and
disadvantages of each research method? - Answers Naturalistic observation: observation of the actual
behavior of people in the course of their everyday life
Experiments: research in which a change is introduced in a person's experience and the effect of that
change is measured
What does it mean to say events are correlated? Give an example of a positive correlation, a negative
correlation, and a zero correlation. What does it mean when a researcher says "correlation does not
imply causation." - Answers Because of one event, another event happened
Positive correlation: The example of ice cream and crime rates is a positive correlation because both
variables increase when temperatures are warmer.
Negative correlation: height above sea level and temperature. As you climb the mountain (increase in
height) it gets colder (decrease in temperature).
Zero correlation: there is no relationship between the amount of tea drunk and level of intelligence.
Correlation does not imply causation: refers to the inability to legitimately deduce a cause-and-effect
relationship between two variables solely on the basis of an observed association or correlation
between them.
Explain how longitudinal and cross-sectional designs differ. What are the advantages and disadvantages
of each? - Answers Longitudinal design: collects information about a group of people as they grow older.
For example, in a study of the stability of shyness, Kagen led a research team at Harvard University that
traced the behavior of a group of children from shortly after birth into early adolescence.
Cross sectional design: collects information about people of various ages at one time.
What are some important issues to consider before conceiving a child? How do these issues differ for
men and women? - Answers Women: beware of alcohol and drugs, quit smoking, reduce stress, ensure
good nutrition, etc.
Men: ditto, better health associated with healthier sperm, healthy sperm associated with viability of
pregnancy and cognitive functioning of offspring, second hand smoke also harmful, influence mother-to-
be's stress level, support for healthy living
What are the stages of prenatal development? Describe the changes that occur in the developing
organism during each of the three periods. Note: Don't try to memorize what specifically happens
during the 3rd week, 5th week etc. Just know in general what happens during each stage and what the
embryo or fetus is like at the end of each stage. Describe and give an example of both cephalocaudal
developmental psychology - Answers scientific study of processes of change and stability in children
from conception through adolescence
What do developmental psychologists study? - Answers Physical development
Cognitive development
Emotional development
Social development
How have views of childhood shifted throughout history? What sources of information inform us about
earlier beliefs? - Answers Children used to be seen as miniature adults
Parents used to leave children alone while they worked
Describe the factors that led to an interest in the scientific study of children's development in the 19th
and 20th centuries. How did industrialization change the lives of children? - Answers Most historians
agree that the modern notion of childhood emerged on a large scale in the late eighteenth and early
nineteenth centuries, as a consequence of the Industrial Revolution
By the late nineteenth century, the industrial age was well underway throughout the world, and children
and childhood had begun to receive considerable attention from parents, educators, and scientists.
Describe the central issues in the field of developmental psychology (described in text and lecture), as
well as issues of plasticity and individual differences (described in text). What is the current view within
each issue? Describe evidence that is relevant to the study of each of these issues. - Answers Nature
versus nurture - both play a big role in the way people are
Plasticity - The degree to which, and the conditions under which, development is open to change and
intervention.
Individual differences - enduring psychological characteristics that distinguish one person from another
and thus help to define each person's individuality.
Adoption studies and twin studies - both show the influence of genes and the influences of environment
Why are theories so important, and what are the characteristics of a good theory? - Answers We need
them to guide scientific research, make sense of our data, and organize our knowledge
- Parsimony: concise, simple
- Falsifiable: can be supported or disconfirmed
- Makes predictions: generates testable hypotheses about future events
,Describe the basic features of each of the "grand theories" of development: Freud's and Erikson's
psychodynamic theories, Watson's behaviorism, Piaget's constructivist theory, and Vygostky's
sociocultural theory. - Answers Psychodynamic theories: theories, such as those of Freud and Erikson,
exploring the influence on development and developmental stages of universal biological drives and the
life experiences of individuals
Behaviorism: importance of reinforcement and punishment in shaping behavior
Constructivist theory: children actively construct a system for understanding the world, focus is on how
children adapt to their environment
Sociocultural theory: agreed with piaget that maturation and experiences and important, importance of
sociocultural context, cognitive growth evolves out of social interactions, culture influences cognitive
development
Compare the grand theories to more modern theories, including Bandura's social learning theory,
evolutionary theory, information-processing, and Bronfenbrenner's ecological model. Describe the basic
premise of dynamic systems theory. - Answers Social learning theory: Modeling; observation and
imitation, and Self efficacy; beliefs about own abilities to deal effectively with the environment by
meeting standards & achieving goals.
Evolutionary theory: studies the adaptive value of behaviors
Information-processing: seeks to explain human thought processes by comparing them to workings of a
computer
Ecological model: theory focusing on the organization and interactions of the multiple environmental
contexts with which children develop, the circles
Differentiate between material and symbolic cultural tools, and provide examples of each. Describe
mechanisms by which culture is thought to be inherited - Answers Material: cultural tools including
physical objects and observable patterns of behavior such as family routines and social practices
Symbolic: cultural tools such as abstract knowledge, beliefs, and values
Describe the key criteria that guide scientific research (ie. objectivity, reliability, validity, replicability). -
Answers Objectivity: requirement that scientific knowledge not be distorted by the investigator's
preconceptions
Reliability: the scientific requirement that when same behavior is measured on two or more occasions
by the same or different observers, the measurements be consistent with each other
Validity: the scientific requirement that the data being collected actually reflect the phenomenon being
studied
, Replicability: the scientific requirement that other researchers can use the same procedures as an initial
investigator did and obtain the same results
Differentiate between naturalistic observations and experiments (be sure to discuss the relation
between the experimental condition and the control condition). What are the advantages and
disadvantages of each research method? - Answers Naturalistic observation: observation of the actual
behavior of people in the course of their everyday life
Experiments: research in which a change is introduced in a person's experience and the effect of that
change is measured
What does it mean to say events are correlated? Give an example of a positive correlation, a negative
correlation, and a zero correlation. What does it mean when a researcher says "correlation does not
imply causation." - Answers Because of one event, another event happened
Positive correlation: The example of ice cream and crime rates is a positive correlation because both
variables increase when temperatures are warmer.
Negative correlation: height above sea level and temperature. As you climb the mountain (increase in
height) it gets colder (decrease in temperature).
Zero correlation: there is no relationship between the amount of tea drunk and level of intelligence.
Correlation does not imply causation: refers to the inability to legitimately deduce a cause-and-effect
relationship between two variables solely on the basis of an observed association or correlation
between them.
Explain how longitudinal and cross-sectional designs differ. What are the advantages and disadvantages
of each? - Answers Longitudinal design: collects information about a group of people as they grow older.
For example, in a study of the stability of shyness, Kagen led a research team at Harvard University that
traced the behavior of a group of children from shortly after birth into early adolescence.
Cross sectional design: collects information about people of various ages at one time.
What are some important issues to consider before conceiving a child? How do these issues differ for
men and women? - Answers Women: beware of alcohol and drugs, quit smoking, reduce stress, ensure
good nutrition, etc.
Men: ditto, better health associated with healthier sperm, healthy sperm associated with viability of
pregnancy and cognitive functioning of offspring, second hand smoke also harmful, influence mother-to-
be's stress level, support for healthy living
What are the stages of prenatal development? Describe the changes that occur in the developing
organism during each of the three periods. Note: Don't try to memorize what specifically happens
during the 3rd week, 5th week etc. Just know in general what happens during each stage and what the
embryo or fetus is like at the end of each stage. Describe and give an example of both cephalocaudal
