One way older adults compensate for neuron loss is
A) with an increase in glial cells, which myelinate neural fibers.
B) to call on additional brain regions to support cognitive processing.
C) with increased efficiency of the central nervous system.
D) with increased efficiency of the autonomic nervous system.
In Erikson’s theory, the conflict of toddlerhood, __________, is resolved favorably
when parents provide suitable guidance and reasonable choices.
A) basic trust versus mistrust
B) industry versus inferiority
C) initiative versus guilt
D) autonomy versus shame and doubt
Which of the following mothers is most likely to have had inadequate prenatal care?
A) Harriet, who is single and 25
B) Marissa, who is married and 32
C) Rachel, who is single and 16
D) Janette, who is married and 40
Highly aggressive children tend to
A) be only children.
B) seek out deviant peer groups.
C) do as well in school as their nonaggressive peers.
D) be accepted by peers, but rejected by adults.
Female puberty usually begins with
A) the budding of the breasts and the growth spurt.
B) menarche.
C) the completion of pubic hair growth.
D) extreme and unpredictable moodiness.
Which of the following statements about friendships during midlife is true?
A) The number of friendships increases with age.
B) Middle-aged adults attach less value to friendship than younger adults.
C) Older adults work harder to initiate new friendships than younger adults.
D) Friendships become more selective in midlife.
Which of the following statements about “launching children and moving on” is true?
A) Many contemporary parents launch children a decade or more before retirement,
then seek other rewarding activities.
B) For most parents, the period of launching children and moving on is filled with
feelings of emptiness and regret.
C) Many contemporary parents regard launching children as their last major goal in life,
as well as their most important one.
D) The period of launching children and moving on is marked by the smallest number
of exits and entries of family members.
The information-processing perspective
A) examines separate aspects of thinking.
B) fails to consider biological influences on cognitive development.
C) applies only to children in cultures having formal schooling.
D) focuses on overall cognitive change.
Which of the following statements is supported by research on childhood injuries?
A) U.S. children from advantaged families are at considerably greater risk for injury
than children in Western Europe.
B) Childhood injury deaths in developing nations are 1.5 times as high as those in
developed countries.
C) Safety devices, such as car seats and bicycle helmets, are readily available in
developing nations, but they are rarely used by parents.
D) Contrary to popular belief, girls are more likely to be injured than boys during play.
Swaddling newborns
A) increases crying.
B) hinders early motor development.
C) promotes an insecure attachment relationship.
D) reduces crying.
Expansions
A) are used in all cultures.
B) elaborate on children’s speech, increasing its complexity.
C) foster vocabulary development and pragmatic skills.
D) restructure inaccurate speech into correct form.
In Piaget’s theory, 8- to 12-month-olds can use __________ to solve simple problems.
A) goal-directed behavior
B) reflexive schemes
C) make-believe
D) primary circular reactions
Vygotsky believed that complex mental activities have their origin in
A) sensorimotor behavior.
B) perception, attention, and memory.
C) social interaction.
D) developmental quotients.
Figures underestimate the actual incidence of elder abuse because
A) most acts take place in public settings like nursing homes, so they are not reported.
B) many social workers do not believe older adults’ claims of abuse or neglect.
C) normal accidents and injuries that result from physical aging are mistaken for signs
of abuse.
D) most abusive acts take place in private, and victims are often unable or unwilling to
complain.
Improved family communication, improved parent”child interaction, and social support
are all benefits of
A) being a stay-at-home mother.
B) traditional child-rearing roles.
C) having children early in a marriage.
D) parent education courses.
In contrast to Sigmund Freud, Erik Erikson
A) viewed children as taking a more active role in their own development.
B) pointed out that normal development must be understood in relation to each culture’s
life situation.
C) minimized the role of culture in individual development.
D) primarily focused on the importance of early life experiences.
As in early adulthood, __________ tend to be emotionally closest during middle
adulthood.
A) sister”sister bonds
B) sister”brother bonds
C) brother”brother bonds
D) siblings who did not get along as teens
Which of the following statements about enhancing children’s understanding of the
death concept is true?
A) Discussing death candidly with children reduces their anxiety about it.
B) Discussing death candidly with children fuels their fears.
C) The concepts of human biology are too advanced for young children’s
understanding.
D) Presenting biological evidence about death to young children negates their religious
beliefs.
With the transition to toddlerhood, attraction to __________ declines and __________
improves.
A) intentional behavior; gazing
B) stimuli; reflexive action
C) novelty; sustained attention
D) goal-directed behavior; memory
Twenty-two-year-old Daniel is overly dependent on his girlfriend, Missy. Daniel
continually doubts his ability to meet new challenges. Daniel may not have fully
mastered the tasks of __________ and __________during infancy and childhood.
A) mistrust; shame
B) trust; doubt
C) trust; autonomy
D) autonomy; mistrust
Most Americans eat
A) to maintain the body’s functions.
B) the recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables.
C) a well-balanced diet.
D) because they feel like it or it is time to do so.
Lesbian mothers, Michelle and Diana, and gay fathers, Cameron and Neil, are
concerned that their children will be stigmatized by their parents’ sexual orientation.
Most studies indicate that
A) children of gay fathers are teased or bullied more than children of lesbian mothers.
B) incidents of teasing or bullying are rare because parents and children carefully
manage the information they reveal to others.
C) children of lesbian mothers are teased or bullied more than children of gay fathers.
D) incidents of teasing or bullying are common because the larger society does not
support gay parenthood.
Divorce rates in the United States have __________ since the mid-1980s.
A) stabilized
B) risen slightly
C) dropped slightly
D) risen dramatically
Arthur Jensen’s 1969 monograph, “How Much Can We Boost IQ and Scholastic
Achievement?” was controversial because he argued that
A) test bias largely accounts for ethnic variations in intelligence.
B) heredity is largely responsible for individual, ethnic, and SES variations in
intelligence.
C) the environment is largely responsible for individual, ethnic, and SES variations in
intelligence.
D) there are no significant individual, ethnic, or SES variations in intelligence.
One reason social withdrawal is so common in nursing home settings is that
A) residents do not have control over their social experiences.
B) attendants do not provide enough assistance.
C) there are few available social partners.
D) older adults prefer to be alone over being in the company of residents.
The __________, located at the base of the brain, plays a critical role by releasing two
hormones that induce growth.
A) hippocampus
B) cerebellum
C) reticular formation
D) pituitary gland
Individuals who are repeatedly enraged are more likely to be
A) overweight.
B) smokers.
C) depressed.
D) highly educated.
Jay wants to protect the health of his endocrine system. The safest approach for Jay is
A) a healthy diet and physical activity.
B) hormone therapy.
C) genetic reconstruction.
D) cellular therapy.
To help herself remember that she needed cat food and gloves at the store, Cheryl
imagined a cat wearing gloves. Which memory strategy did Cheryl use?
A) elaboration
B) organization
C) rehearsal
D) long-term retrieval
Jim is a musician, Joy is an artist, and Danielle is a scientist. Which of the following
statements is probably true?
A) Danielle’s creativity will peak later than that of the other two.
B) Joy’s creativity will be the last to peak.
C) Jim will be the last to show a rise in creativity.
D) Creativity will diminish equally among all three of them.
Research on temperament shows that
A) parents of difficult children often undermine the development of effortful control by
ignoring maladaptive behavior.
B) cultural context makes little difference in whether shy children adjust well or poorly.
C) cultural values affect the fit between parenting and child temperament.
D) Russian infants are less emotionally negative and fearful than U.S. infants.
Children with persistent learning difficulties in reading and math are often deficient in
A) long-term memory capacity.
B) gross-motor development.
C) emotional self-regulation.
D) working-memory capacity.