Free Response Question
1)
Time is an important variable in many psychological concepts. Describe a specific example that clearly
demonstrates an understanding of each of the following concepts and how it relates to or is affected by time.
Use a different example for each concept.
 Critical period
 Fluid Intelligence
 James-Lange theory of emotion
 Presentation of the conditioned stimulus (CS) and unconditioned stimulus (UCS) in classical conditioning
2) For each of the pairs below, use an example to show how the first term in each pair affects or is related to the
second. Definitions alone without examples will not score.
 Functional fixedness…….problem solving
 Arousal Theory (Yerkes-Dodson Law)…….performance
 Avoidant Attachment…….separation anxiety
 Serial Position Effect…….recall
Point 1: Critical Period
The student must both:
1.
establish the vital nature of critical periods in the developmental process by a description or example of how:
a. The selected critical period is necessary for healthy development, or
b. A disruption of the normal developmental process during the critical period leads to abnormal
development, or
c. Greater sensitivity to outside influences (such as drugs) during the critical period can negatively impact
development.
2. Identify an appropriate developmental time period to establish the critical period. For example, the time period
may be identified as “childhood.”
Typical examples:
1. “Baby ducks must imprint and begin to follow their mothers during a critical period shortly after their birth.”
2. “Children are predisposed to learn language easily during childhood.”
3. “Exposure to teratogens like drugs can interfere with normal prenatal development.”
Traps:
1.
Do not score the point if the student describes a time period but is missing the critical nature of the development
which is to occur during that window (“Children learn language during childhood” does not score).
2. Do not score the point if a concept or theory (e.g. “imprinting,” “language acquisition theory” is merely
mentioned by name without a description or illustrating example.
Point 2: Fluid Intelligence
The student must both:
1. Include a dynamic cognitive component (e.g., reasoning ability, problem solving, flexibility, speedy information
processing, etc.) in the example or description of fluid intelligence.
2. Establish a time relationship appropriate to fluid intelligence by describing:
a. The decline of fluid intelligence over time, or
b. How people with greater fluid intelligence require less time to complete cognitive tasks such as problem
solving.
Typical Examples:
1. “Fluid intelligence, the ability to think as solve problems, decreases as one ages.”
2. “People with less fluid intelligence take more time to solve puzzles than people with more fluid intelligence.”
Trap: Do not score the point if the student confuses fluid intelligence with crystallized intelligence or general knowledge.
Point 3: James-Lange Theory of Emotion
The student must demonstrate, through description or example, that emotional experience is a two-step process whereby a
physiological or behavioral response precedes the emotion. The student does not need to specify the original stimulus
event.
Typical examples:
a. “I’m running from the mean dog, therefore I’m scared.”
b. “I’m screaming, so I’m afraid.”
c. “I’m crying, I must be sad.”
Trap: Do not score the point if the student’s answer implies that the physiological and emotional responses are happening
simultaneously (I’m crying and I am sad”).
Point 4: CS-UCS
The student must use classical conditioning terms or an example to establish any one of the following:
1. The CS should come before the UCS, or
2. Conditioning is stronger with a short separation between the CS and the UCS, or
3. Stronger conditioning occurs with repeated pairings of the CS and the UCS or if the CS and UCS are paired over
time.
Typical examples:
1. “In Pavlov’s experiment, the bell comes before the meat.”
2. “Classical conditioning works best when the CS occurs shortly before the UCS.”
Traps:
1. Do not score the point if a student uses the terms incorrectly in his or her example (e.g., do not score “In
Pavlov’s experiment, the UCs, a bell, is presented before the CS, food.”)
2. Saying that the CS and the UCS are “associated,” “paired,” or “correlated” does not establish that the CS comes
before the UCs.
Point 5: Functional fixedness . . problem solving
Students must include an example of how failing to find a novel, unintended use for a specified object prevents finding a
solution to a problem OR of how overcoming the fixation on the original use of a specified object facilitates solving a
particular problem. The feasibility of the example is not important.
Note: A specific object and a specific problem (or action linked to achieving a goal) must be included in the answer.
Score
 “Because Moe had no hammer and didn’t realize he could use his baseball bat, he could not figure out how to
drive a nail.”
 “Instead of thinking of his baseball bat as something that could only hit baseballs, Moe overcame this limitation
and used the bat to drive the nail.”
Do not score
 “Moe used a baseball bat to drive a nail” (because this is not an example of functional fixedness).
 “Moe did not have a clothesline and could not think of any other way to hang his clothes” (because no object is
specified that Moe can think about in novel ways to overcome his problem, nor is any object specified that Moe is
unable to think differently about so that he thus fails to solve his problem).
Point 6: Arousal Theory (Yerkes-Dodson Law).......Performance
The student’s example must demonstrate one of the following:
a. That performance decreases with too much physiological arousal, or
b. That performance decreases with too little physiological arousal, or
c. That a moderate (or “optimal level”) of arousal increases performance.
Note: References such as anxiety, excitement, or being “pumped up” are adequate references to physiological arousal.
Examples do not need to connect physiological arousal to specific bodily functions to score the point.
Typical Examples:
1. “If a Student is overly anxious when the take a test, they will not do as well on an exam.”
2. “Having some anxiety before a basketball game is likely to help you perform better as long as it is not too much.”
Point 7: Avoidant Attachment…….Separation Anxiety
The student’s example must indicate both:
a. A child’s indifference towards their parents, and
b. A lack of stress/anxiety upon parents leaving a child’s immediate surroundings.
Note: Students cannot use the word anxiety alone to describe Separation Anxiety (as that is reusing language from the
question itself). Descriptors such as stress or crying are acceptable to define separation anxiety.
Typical Examples:
1. “When 5-year-old Timmy is playing in a room, he does not care if his parents are in the room and does not cry
when they leave.”
2. “Securely attached children throw distressed tantrums when their parents leave their presence. Children with
avoidant attachment do not care if their parents are near and thus don’t exhibit this separation anxiety.”
Point 8: Serial-position effect . . recall
The example must include the ability to remember the first or last items in a sequence more easily (for example,
describing primacy and/or recency effects) OR more difficulty remembering items in the middle of a sequence.
Note: Mention of “a list” is the minimum context for an correct example.
Score
• “It is easier to remember the first items on a list.”
Do not score
• “Remembering where in the house a friend’s phone number is in order to be able to call them” (because this is referring
to method of loci).