87. Dr. Leung is trying to help his students understand the core principle underlying Vygotsky’s zone of proximal
development and Fischer’s developmental range. What word should the professor use to reflect both concepts?
a.
skill
b.
context
c.
language
d.
support
88. You are the lead in the school play. You’ve studied your lines and rehearsed many times, but are a bundle of nerves on
opening night. Your knees are shaking, but once the curtain goes up you feel energized and confident and give a bravura
performance. Fischer would say that your behavior on stage was________.
a.
learned
b.
inherent
c.
transformative
d.
responsive
89. According to Piaget’s model, Latifa has entered the preoperational stage. Which tier would Fischer use to describe
Latifa’s development?
a.
abstractions
b.
reflexive
c.
sensorimotor action
d.
representations
90. When trying to solve conservation tasks, you could say that young children have a one-track mind. The scientific way
to describe this would be that the children demonstrate ________.
a.
equilibration
b.
assimilation
c.
centration
d.
seriation
91. Jason was trying to build a large media center unit from a kit, but it looks nothing like the picture on the box. So he
retraces his actions to figure out where he went wrong so he can fix his mistake and get the unit ready to watch the big
basketball game tonight. This is an example of an adult demonstrating the concept of ________.
a.
abstract thinking
b.
decentration
c.
accommodation
d.
reversibility
92. Which of the following best reflects the nature of cognition in adults?
a.
more complex than adolescents in some areas
b.
similar to the last cognitive stage of adolescence
c.
universal across various cultures and domains
d.
highly sophisticated relative to younger people
93. The type of thinking that most adults use to solve complex problems best reflects the perspective of which theorist?
a.
Vygotsky
b.
Mareschal
c.
Piaget
d.
Fischer
94. Tamara often suffers from “analysis paralysis,” in which she becomes overwhelmed by numerous options in a
situation and can’t arrive at a decision. This is likely a consequence of Tamara’s ________.
a.
perceptual salience
b.
static thinking
c.
relativistic thinking
d.
A-not-B error
95. The fact that some adults demonstrate limited thinking processes relative to other adults speaks to the important role
of ________ in cognitive development.
a.
language
b.
education
c.
health
d.
skill
96. Based on their overall performance, which of the following terms best describes adults in the area of cognition?
a.
generalists
b.
students
c.
specialists
d.
facilitators
97. Thanh has firmly established her capacity for postformal thought. When faced with a difficult problem, what will she
rely on to make a decision?
a.
judgment
b.
experimentation
c.
intuition
d.
precedent
98. Unlike his teenage son, as he gets older Luis has come to realize that life ________.
a.
is a study in black and white
b.
is marked by contradictions
c.
is full of unsolvable dilemmas
d.
is governed by cold logic
99. Based on an analysis of recent cohort effects, in 20 years older adults should perform better at formal and concrete-
operational tasks than today’s older adults due to ________.
a.
better nutrition
b.
genetic treatments
c.
increased education
d.
longer life spans
100. Applying Fischer’s perspective to cognitive performance in older adults, what would be considered the primary
context impacting this situation?
a.
domain
b.
logic
c.
memory
d.
motivation
101. When a child modifies her existing schema about all animals in water being fish to understand that seals are not fish,
she is engaging in assimilation.
a.
True
b.
False
102. A tertiary circular reaction involves repetition of interesting acts on objects in an infant’s external environment.
a.
True
b.
False
103. Megan has an imaginary friend that she chatters to all the time while in her playroom or outside in the yard, but her
father isn’t concerned because it means she is socially advanced.
a.
True
b.
False
104. An individual engaging in static thought is focused on the end state of the problem.
a.
True
b.
False
105. When using hypothetical-deductive reasoning, you begin by generating all possible hypotheses.
a.
True
b.
False
106. Vygotsky saw private speech in toddlers as a sign of cognitive maturity.
a.
True
b.
False
107. According to Piaget, cognitive structures develop, whereas Fischer proposes that skill levels change and develop.
a.
True
b.
False
108. One contemporary criticism of Piaget’s theory is that he believed children rely too much on adults to develop their
cognitive stages.
a.
True
b.
False
109. According to Vygotsky, a child that grows up in a rural village will develop a different thinking style than a child
who grows up in a crowded urban area.
a.
True
b.
False
110. The recognition that not every question in life has a clear answer is considered a hallmark of mature thinking in
adults.
a.
True
b.
False
111. Define cognitive conflict and the methods children use to resolve it. Give examples to explain your thinking.
112. Use Piaget’s terminology and concepts to describe cognitive development from birth to age two years.
113. Describe how egocentrism, irreversible thinking, and static thought impact a child’s ability to solve conservation
problems.
114. Provide examples of egocentrism, the imaginary audience, and the personal fable that would occur during a day in
the life of a typical teenager.
115. In light of current research, what are some of the main concerns about Piaget’s theory?
116. What are the main cognitive advances made during the concrete operational stage of development?
Answer not provided
117. Give examples of the zone of proximal development, guided participation, and scaffolding, and describe how they
impact cognitive development.
118. Which would be more beneficial to a jury deliberating a verdict for a criminal trial: formal-operational thinking or
postformal thinking? Explain your reasoning, noting aspects of both types of thought.
119. Some college students are requesting that administrators provide “safe spaces” for students who might be bothered
by opinions of campus speakers, or demanding that invitations to controversial speakers be rescinded. How might these
practices affect development of postformal thinking in students?
120. Provide an example from your own experience that demonstrates how Fischer’s perspective on context influenced
your performance.