4PAHPDEV
PSYCHOLOGY AND DEVELOPMENT – SPECIMEN EXAM PAPER
Q1
Developmental psychologists are described as doing all of the following EXCEPT:
A) Trying to determine how children acquire particular skills and knowledge
B) Looking at how children master motor skills, cognitive skills, and social skills
C) Examining universal commonalities that affect child growth and change
D) Attempting to correct developmental problems through genetic alteration
Q2
You design a cross-sectional, observational study to determine if children’s tantrums at
different ages are maintained by negative reinforcement (in this case, parents giving in to
the tantrum behaviour). The perspective you are taking in your research is:
A) Comparative
B) Longitudinal
C) Behaviourist
D) Experimental
Q3
In development, discontinuous change occurs when a(n):
A) New change or ability emerges that was not present before
B) Existing structures or abilities grow in magnitude
C) Existing development changes along a continuum
D) Child continues along a steady developmental trajectory
Q4
Empiricism is the idea that development occurs:
A) From increasingly interwoven systems of knowledge and experience
B) From inborn biases present at birth that guide growth and change
C) Because of the interaction of nature and nurture
D) Because of biological modules that predispose infants to change
Q5
Nativists believe that development:
A) Occurs after a child is born because they start with a blank slate
B) Is based on a general, overall learning system
C) Is present at birth as systems for easily acquiring certain types of information
D) Occurs by forming detailed links or mental associations based on experience
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Q6
A researcher studying the resemblance in twins for a particular trait reported the following
twin correlations: rMZ = .32; rDZ = .34.
Based on this pattern of correlations, select the most appropriate statement from the list
below:
A) The similar MZ and DZ twin correlations suggest genetic factors do not play a role
B) The higher DZ twin correlation than MZ twin correlation suggests genetic factors play
a role
C) The less-than-perfect correlation in DZ twins suggests environmental factors play a
role
D) The less-than-perfect correlation in MZ twins suggests genetic factors play a role
Q7
All of the following act as teratogens EXCEPT:
A) Environmental toxins
B) Maternal exercise
C) Infectious diseases
D) Prescription drugs
Q8
All of the following are true of genes EXCEPT:
A) Genes are the inherited instructions for producing the proteins that make up cells
B) Genes are the inherited instructions for regulating whether other genes will be
turned on or off
C) The genetic material of animals may differ in fundamental structure
D) A gene is made up of a section of DNA
Q9
Human skin colour is influences by a combination of several genes. This is an example of:
A) Heterozygous inheritance
B) Pleiotropic inheritance
C) Homeobox inheritance
D) Polygenic inheritance
Q10
Which is the most plausible explanation for the increase in risk taking during adolescence?
A) There is a lack of successful campaigns about drug abuse and sexual risk taking
B) There is a 40 per cent drop in the total number of synapses in the frontal lobes from
late childhood to adulthood
C) Grey matter volume decreases in areas associated with sensory and motor functions
D) There is increased sensitivity to reward cues from the striatum, which overrides
control circuits from the not-yet-mature prefrontal cortex
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Q11
Which of the following statements is NOT true:
A) Morality refers to principles that distinguish good and bad behaviour
B) Morality comprises cognitive, behavioural, and emotional components
C) Morality has been shown by ethological studies to be more evident in baby monkeys
than baby humans
D) Morality involves the extent to which an action is right or wrong
Q12
Which of the following statements about the DSM diagnostic framework is true?
A) It is an example of the empirical approach to classifying psychopathology
B) It includes specifiers to further clarify the nature of certain mental health disorders
C) It provides information on the aetiology of mental health disorders
D) Its diagnoses vary according to cultural expectations of atypical behaviour
Q13
Which of the following descriptions of Piaget’s autonomous stage of morality is NOT true:
A) It is thought to emerge around 10 or 11 years of age
B) Moral judgements during this stage consider intentions as well as consequences
C) Moral rules are viewed as being determined by external forces only
D) Punishment following moral transgressions should take their severity into account
Q14
What is the most prevalent type of mental health problem in children?
A) Anxiety disorders
B) Conduct disorders
C) Autism spectrum disorder
D) Depressive disorders
Q15
Marcia is 40 years old and Linda is 8 years old. Both visit the same psychiatrist, who
considers a diagnosis of obsessive-compulsive disorder for each of them. In so doing, she:
A) uses identical criteria for both Marcia and Linda
B) looks for physical signs in Linda but not Marcia
C) considers for Marcia (but not Linda) whether engaging in the compulsive behavior
seems to reduce anxiety, even though it is not enjoyable
D) considers whether Marcia (but not Linda) recognises that their obsessions and
compulsions are unreasonable
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Q16
Sajil is completing a series of measures for a research study. These include tasks related to
his ability to inhibit responses, retain information, and pay attention. These would be
described as measures of:
a. Self-regulation
b. Executive function
c. Theory-of-Mind
d. Social Understanding
Q17
Chris is 2 years old, his neighbour Eddy is 5. Both boys complete a delay-of-gratification task.
What is the most likely outcome?
a. Chris and Eddy will not differ in the test performance.
b. Chris is more likely to pass the delay-of-gratification test than Eddy.
c. Chris is more likely to fail the delay-of-gratification test than Eddy.
d. Eddy will show higher levels of self-regulation than Chris but this difference will
not be evident until later in childhood.
Q18
Which of the following describes understanding a second-order false belief?
a. Knowing that another person’s beliefs are false.
b. Knowing that another person’s beliefs about what another person believes are
false.
c. Knowing that another person knows something about what another person
knows.
d. None of these.
Q19
Which of the following is true of the Autism Quotient (AQ)?
a. It can be used with the general population.
b. It can give a diagnosis of Autism.
c. It is administered by a clinician.
d. All of there
Q20
Which factor is unlikely to have contributed to the observed increase in the incidence of
autism?
a. Diagnostic substitution
b. Increased autism awareness
c. More extensive developmental screenings
d. More extensive vaccinations within the first three years of life
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Q21
Which of the following best describes the concept of the ‘private self’
a. A girl tells her uncle: ‘I played football last week, and I’m going to again next week.’
b. A boy avoids another child who has stepped in front of him in the playground.
c. A child tells their teacher that they didn’t look at answers to a test when the teacher
was out of the room, even though they did.
d. A child dodges a pillow that their sibling throws at them in their bedroom.
Q22
Match the description with the most appropriate term:
1 = A perception of how one should behave as a girl or boy
2 = The perception of the self as a girl or boy
a. 1 = Gender custom; 2 = Gender stereotype
b. 1 = Gender identity; 2 = Gender role
c. 1 = Gender custom; 2 = Gender role
d. 1 = Gender role; 2 = Gender identity
Q23
Which of the following is NOT correct as a definition of gender?
a. A person’s deeply-felt, inherent sense of being a boy, a man, or a male; a girl, a woman,
or a female, A person’s deeply-felt, inherent sense of being an alternative gender (e.g.,
genderqueer, gender nonconforming, gender neutral).
b. This deeply inherent sense of being may not correspond to a person’s sex assigned at
birth or to a person’s primary or secondary sex characteristics
c. This deeply inherent sense directly corresponds to a person’s sex assigned at birth
d. All of these are correct
Q24
Which of the following examples includes a measure of subjective sexual orientation?
a. A research study in which an experimenter gives participants a questionnaire and
asks them to select whether they identify as heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual,
asexual, or ‘other’.
b. A research study in which an experimenter gives participants a questionnaire and
asks them to indicate to which gender identities they are attracted to.
c. A research study in which an experimenter interviews participants and asks them to
indicate how they identify their sexual orientation.
d. All of these.
Q25
Which of the following is the most accurate summary of the conclusions regarding
ingroup/outgroup bias from Monteiro and colleagues (2009)?
a. 9–10-year-old children show favouritism to an ingroup regardless of whether an
experimenter is present or not
b. 9–10-year-old children show favouritism to an ingroup, but only when an
experimenter was present.
c. 6–7-year-old children show favouritism to an ingroup, but only when an
experimenter was present.
d. 6–7-year-old children show favouritism to an ingroup regardless of whether an
experimenter is present or not
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Q26
Researchers typically distinguish four common components of language. These include all of
the following EXCEPT:
a. Prelinguistics
b. Semantics
c. Pragmatics
d. Syntax
Q27
‘Mat’ and ‘Cat’ are words that differ in their initial sounds. The ‘M’ and ‘C’ represent
different:
A. Holophrases
B. Phonemes
C. Lexicons
D. Universal constraints
Q28
Which of the following statements is not true?
A. If a child is deprived of language in their early years he or she may never fully
develop mastery of complex syntax.
B. The earlier a deaf child is exposed to a sign language the better they tend to be
able to master its complexities.
C. Bilingual children take considerably longer to acquire language.
D. If a child learns a language before the age of 8, he or she is likely to speak it at
native-like levels.
Q29
A theory of language that describes language as developing because of language systems in
the brain that we are born with would be considered to be:
A. Domain specific and innate.
B. Domain specific and acquired.
C. Domain general and innate.
D. Domain general and acquired.
Q30
Baby Sasha says ‘Gagagagagaga.’ This illustrates:
A. Babbling.
B. Lip Smacking.
C. Cooing.
D. Squealing.
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Q31
A scheme is a child’s:
A. Failure to master the A-not-B error.
B. Interpretation of the new and unfamiliar in terms of what is already known.
C. Alteration of what is known based on a new experience.
D. Information/knowledge a child uses for interacting with the environment.
Q32
The mutual understanding people share during communication is referred to by Vygotsky
as:
A. Intersubjectivity.
B. Zone of proximal development.
C. Social scaffolding.
D. Cultural tools.
Q33
Baillargeon's research modified our “Piagetian” understanding of an infant's acquisition of
object permanence. Baillargeon found that infants who demonstrated object permanence
A. Stared longer at a possible event than an impossible event
B. Stared longer at an impossible event than a possible event
C. Recognized that an object would roll further if it was hit by a large cylinder
D. Recognized that an object would roll farther if it was hit by a small cylinder
Q34
Choose the statement below which is not true of Vygotsky’s theory:
A. Cognitive development is a product of social interactions and experiences.
B. Mediators are critical tools of development.
C. There is a transition from elementary to higher mental functions
D. Moderators are critical tools of development
Q35
The A-not-B error involves children:
A. Randomly scanning A and B locations for where an object might be hidden.
B. First looking for a hidden object in a place where it was previously hidden.
C. First looking for a hidden object in a place where they saw it moved.
D. Not looking for a hidden object initially due to competing schemes.
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Q36
At what age do infants first show specific bonds?
A) At birth
B) 3–4 months
C) 1–2 months
D) 6–7 months
Q37
Which of the following statements is FALSE?
A) Clinging behaviors help keep infants near the mother
B) Clinging behaviors are more important to infant humans than infant monkeys
C) Human infants born with tiny or non-existent limbs can still form attachments to
their parents
D) Touching between the human infant and caregiver is important in the development
of attachment
Q38
All the following statements are true EXCEPT:
A) Most early attachment relationships involve the infant’s high level of dependency on
the parents
B) Dependency is not necessary for a strong attachment
C) All dependencies lead to attachment
D) Dependency implies passivity on the part of the infant
Q39
All of the following statements are true EXCEPT:
A) Facial expressions cannot yet be used to infer emotional states in infants
B) Facial expressions can be used to infer emotional states in older individuals
C) Some expressions are difficult to interpret
D) Some people can mask their emotions more effectively than others
Q40
All of the following are considered self-conscious emotions, EXCEPT for:
A) Anger
B) Empathy
C) Envy
D) Pride
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Q41
Each of the following is one of the seven components of parenting outlined by Brooks-Gunn
and Markman EXCEPT:
A) evaluating
B) monitoring
C) discipline
D) nurturance
Q42
Which one of the following is not one of the determinants of parenting according to Belsky?
A. Parental mental health
B. Child temperament
C. Environmental support
D. Household income
Q43
Sylvie cares a lot about her children and is very warm. She has few rules and her children
decide what to eat and when to go to bed. What type of parent is Sylvie?
A) accommodating
B) lenient
C) authoritative
D) permissive
Q44
Which approach emphasizes that contextual factors, including culture and social class, are
crucial to understanding the child’s development within a family?
A) community and cultural resources approach
B) confluence parenting approach
C) ecological systems approach
D) parenting contexts approach
Q45
Which of the following is not four horseman of apocalypse of relationships by Gotmann?
A) Contempt
B) Jealousy
C) Criticism
D) Stonewalling
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Q46
Which of the following are used to assess peer status by asking children to compare peers as
to likeability or identify those whom they like best?
A. Ethnographies.
B. Sociometric techniques.
C. Structured interviews.
D. Factor-analytic techniques.
Q47
During middle childhood, friendship processes begin to emphasize
A. Exploring the self and disclosure.
B. Fitting in with the norms of the group.
C. Learning to resolve conflict.
D. Maximizing entertainment.
Q48
When a researcher asked a class to nominate who they liked the most and who they disliked
the most, Salim received a high number of dislikes and very few likes. He would be
described as:
A. Average.
B. Rejected.
C. Neglected.
D. Controversial.
Q49
Writing a shopping list to avoid forgetting to buy the right things is an example of:
A. Optimisation.
B. Compensation.
C. A brain reserve strategy.
D. Fluid intelligence.
Q50
Which of the following is true in regard to Theory of Mind and ageing?
A. Theory of mind is not impaired in elderly individuals.
B. Theory of mind is impaired in elderly individuals across methods of assessing it.
C. Theory of mind impairments in elderly individuals may be related to the cognitive
abilities that methods of assessing it rely on.
D. None of these.
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