85-221A: Principles of Child Development Exam #1

TOTAL: 100 points

TIME: 1.30-2.45

Section I: Multiple Choice

Write the letter of the best answer on the blank provided on the left. (3 points each)

D 1.

Stage theories regard development as:

A)

active.

B)

passive.

C)

continuous.

D)

discontinuous.

A 2.

Which of the following qualifies as a hypothesis?

A)

Children whose parents argue in their presence are more likely than other
children to try illegal drugs.

B)

What parental behaviors are associated with an increased likelihood of

teenage illegal drug use?

C)

What are the differences between children whose parents argue in their
presence and those whose parents do not argue in their presence?

D)

There are many differences between children whose parents argue in their
presence and those whose parents do not argue in their presence.

A 3.

Cephalocaudal development refers to the tendency for development to

take place in which of the following ways?

A)

from head to body

B)

from body to head

C)

from inside to outside

D)

from outside to inside

E 4.

Which of the following is not thought to be a contributor to Sudden Infant

Death Syndrome (SIDS)?

A)

smoking near infant

B)

baby sleeping on its tummy

C)

putting baby to sleep on soft mattress or pillow

D)

dressing baby too warmly during sleep

E)

All of the above are contributors too SIDS.

C 5.

Which of the following is true of sensitive periods in prenatal development?

A)

All major organ systems share the exact same sensitive period.

B)

Teratogens have the most serious effect on prenatal development

immediately before a system's sensitive period.

C)

A sensitive period is the time when a system's basic structures are being
formed.

D)

The sensitive period of limb development occurs several weeks before the
limbs begin to form.

C 6.

Which of the following is a true statement?

A)

A measure can be valid without being reliable and can be reliable without
being valid.

B)

A measure can be valid without being reliable, but it cannot be reliable

without being valid.

C)

A measure cannot be valid without being reliable, but it can be reliable

without being valid.

D)

A measure cannot be valid without being reliable and cannot be reliable

without being valid.

D 7.

Which of the following is a direct contributor to a child's phenotype?

A)

child's genotype

B)

child's environment

C)

parents' genotype

D)

A and B

E)

all of the above

B 8.

The finding that identical twins reared together are more similar in
intelligence than identical twins reared apart is evidence for the:

A)

importance of genetic factors.

B)

importance of environmental factors.

C)

interplay between genes and environment.

D)

all of the above

A 9.

According to Piaget's theory, individuals in what stage are able to conduct

a systematic scientific experiment?

A)

formal operations

B)

sensorimotor

C)

postoperational

D)

preoperational

E)

concrete operations

B 10. Amy and her mother are playing with an interesting squeaky toy. Amy's
mother is squeezing the toy in front of Amy. Amy is very excited and
reaches for the toy. Amy's mother, however, quickly hides the toy behind
her back. At this point, Amy turns away from her mother and begins to
look at the ladybug design on her dress. Amy is probably approximately
what age?
A)

1 month old

B)

6 months old

C)

10 months old

D)

15 months old

Section II: Short-answer questions

11.

Describe one advantage and one disadvantage of each of the following

designs: (a) cross-sectional and (b) longitudinal. (4 pts.)

Cross-Sectional:

+
1

advantage

can reveal broad similarities and differences between age

groups; easy to implement

+
1

disadvantage

no information about whether and how a particular child may

change over longer time

Longitudinal:

+
1

advantage

can measure stability of individual differences over time; can

examine individual patterns of change

+
1

disadvantage

time-consuming and difficult to track children over long time;

differential attrition

12.

Steven is the proud new uncle of newborn baby Rachel. His first gift for her
is a colorful rattle. Describe how baby Rachel is likely to respond to or
interact with the rattle at each of the following ages: two weeks, three
months, six months, 10 months, 15 months, and 21 months. For each age,
give an example of Rachel's likely behavior with the rattle as well as a brief
description of how Piagetian theory would explain this behavior. (12 pts.)

2 Weeks:
+
1

period

substage 1 (reflexive schemes): neonate mostly uses reflexes

(will begin to modify reflexes); baby totally egocentric; will
suck anything

+
1

behavior

Rachels behavior would be to suck and grasp on the rattle,

turn her head to the rattle when it is shaken by someone else

(very simple reflexes)

3 Months:
+
1

period

substage 2 (primary circular reactions): infants gain control

over actions, chance behaviors repeated, integration the
reflexes used in substage 1

+
1

behavior

Rachels behavior would be to grasp the rattle with her hands

and then bring the rattle to her mouth and suck on it

6 Months:
+
1

period

substage 3 (secondary circular reactions): attention turned

outward (sits up, reach, grasp, and manipulate objects), try to
repeat interesting sights/sounds caused by actions; lack of
object permanence

+
1

behavior

Rachels behavior would be to grasp the rattle and bang the

rattle; however if the rattle is covered or hidden, interest in the
rattle is gone

10 Months:
+
1

period

substage 4 (coordination of secondary circular reactions):

schemes become organized (intentional and goal-directed),
schemes used voluntarily; beginning of object permanence,
but make A-not-B error; fragile mental representation

+
1

behavior

Rachels behavior would be to search for the rattle if it was

hidden by combining pushing and grasping, however she will
most likely make the A-not-B error

15 Months:
+
1

period

substage 5 (tertiary circular reactions): circular reactions are

experimental and creative, dont make A-not-B error

+
1

behavior

Rachels behavior would be to actively and avidly explore the

potential uses of the rattle

21 Months:
+
1

period

substage 6 (mental representations): enduring mental

representations, use representations to solve problems, use
deferred imitation, also make-believe play

+
1

behavior

Rachels behavior would be to imitate the actions of her

parents and how they use the rattle

13. Identify the location of each of the brain lobes using the letters below.
(1 pt. each)

__Y___ Location ofParietal Lobe

__W___ Location of Frontal Lobe

__Z___ Location ofOccipital Lobe

__X___ Location of Temporal Lobe

Match the following functions with the appropriate lobe (1 pt. each).

a. Processesvisual information.
b. Organizesbehavior and allows for
planning.
c. Processesauditory information,
important foremotion and the
encoding ofmemories.
d. Spatialprocessing and integration of
sensory input.

__D___ Function of Parietal Lobe

__B___ Function of Frontal Lobe

__A__

Function of Occipital Lobe

__C___ Function of Temporal Lobe

15.

Imagine you are trying to teach a young child how to ride a bicycle. Describe
how you might best scaffold the task so that the child can learn optimally.
Describe what you know about the zone of proximal development, and
explain how you would use your knowledge of this construct to direct your
instructional efforts to the appropriate level for the child. (4 pts.)

+
1

zone of
proximal
development

range of performance between what a child can do unassisted

and what the child can do with assistance

+
1

scaffolding

more-experienced individual provides framework to help lessexperienced child to structure the activity or set subgoals

+
2

teach child
to ride
bicycle

one possibility:
1.
ride bicycle with child in safety seat to get
accustomed to feel of bike-riding
2.
have child become practice motions on a
stationary bicycle
3.
put child on tricycle, or bicycle with training
wheels, and ride around while you help steer
4.

let child ride and steer

5.
have child practice short distances on level
surfaces w/o turns
6.

have child practice on more realistic terrain

actual instruction depends on childs balance, comfort with

moving fast, ability to judge terrain and navigate in
environment; help child to go just beyond what s/he can
normally do

15.

Define assimilation and accommodation as used by Piaget. Give an

example of each. (4 pts)

Assimilation
+
1

definition

integrating external world in current schema

+
1

example

the one given in class: child encounters a new rattle and

attempts to use existing grasping schema. (they should not
use the word assimilate; any example is ok as long as it is
right.)

Accomodation
+
1

definition

adjusting old schemas, creating new ones

example

the one given in class: childs attempt at grasping new rattle

using existing schema fails, so child modifies grasp. (they

should not use the word accommodate; any example is ok as
long as it is right.)

16.

Choose one teratogen and answer the following questions about the
impact of each on the fetus: (1) What are the effects of exposure to the
teratogen? (2) How does the amount and length of exposure impact the
teratogenic effect? (3) How does the timing of exposure impact the
teratogenic effect? (4 pts.)

+1

teratogen

+1

effect of exposure

+1

impact of amount and length of exposure

+1

impact of timing on exposure

Need only one of the possible teratogens below (and others are possible)
cigarette
s

low birth weight, premature, miscarriage, increased risk of SIDS, lower

IQ, hearing deficits, risk of cancer
dose-response relation: greater exposure means greater risk of greater
defects
hurts fetus at all points of development; stopping smoking at any time
helps

alcohol

fetal alcohol syndrome: facial deformities, mental retardation, attention

problems, hyperactivity
even 2oz / day is harmful; drinking quickly is more harmful than
drinking same amount slowly
especially risky during last trimester

thalidomi
de

major limb deformities

dose-response relation: greater exposure means greater risk of greater
defects
only if drug was taken between 4th and 6th week after conception

aspirin

low birth weight, infant death, poor motor development, cognitive

delay, emotional problems

dose-response relation: greater exposure means greater risk of greater
defects
probably more problematic later in pregnancy
caffeine

low birth weight, miscarriage, irritable and vomiting newborns

mostly problematic for heavy use only
(not known)

heroin,
methado
ne

low birth weight, physical defects, breathing problems, drug-addicted,

less attentive, slowed motor development
dose-response relation: greater exposure means greater risk of greater
defects
problematic at any time?

cocaine

eye, bone, genital, kidney, heart deformities

dose-response relation: greater exposure means greater risk of greater
defects
problematic at any time?

17.

The fetus is believed to be an active contributor to its own development.

For instance, many fetal behaviors are thought to be necessary for the
normal formation of muscles and organs. Describe three ways in which the
fetus is an active participant in its own physical and behavioral
development. (6 pts.)

+2

Swallowing: the fetus drinks amniotic fluid, which passes through

its gastrointestinal system and then is excreted back out into the
amniotic sac. One benefits of this is that the tongue movements
associated with drinking and swallowing promote the normal
development of the palate.

+2

Fetal Breathing: as early as 10 weeks, the fetus begins moving its

chest wall in and out in order to prepare its muscles and diaphragm
to start breathing immediately after the fetus is born.

+2

Moving: fetal movements include moving arms and legs, wiggling

fingers, grasping the umbilical cord, moving head and eyes,
yawing, sucking, and others. By 12 weeks fetuses have begun

practicing most of the movements that will be present at birth

18.

Your friend reads an article about a twin study conducted to examine the
heritability of creativity. The article reports a heritability estimate of 60%.
Your friend says, see, this is why I am not creative. My parents aren't
creative, so there isn't anything I can do about it. Is your friend's
conclusion correct? Discuss why or why not. (5 pts.)

+1

answer: no

+4

response: because ones parents arent creative does not mean

that a child of theirs will not be creative. certain aspects of
creativity are inherited but creativity is also formed by the type of
environment the individual is brought up in. psychologists don't
know if creativity runs in families because it's genetically
determined or because it's simply inspired by the home
environment. even though the heritability estimate is 60%, this
does not mean the children will be creative. environment plays a
significant role in whether and how the trait is expressed. in
addition, even if an individual did not inherit the creativity trait,
they can become a creative individual due to environmental factors
in the home and school. (this is more of an open-ended response,
as long as they explain that creativity is not completely inherited or
completely learned and that it is an interaction, they should receive
credit).

19.

+4

What are the effects of poverty on prenatal development, birth outcomes,

and long-term developmental outcomes? If you could give four suggestions
to a pregnant woman living in poverty about what she can do to help
ensure a healthy pregnancy and a healthy delivery, what would you tell
her? (4 pts.)

Factors known to be dangerous to fetal development: inadequate

prenatal care, poor nutrition, illness, emotional stress, cigarette
smoking, drug abuse, and exposure to environmental and
occupational hazards. All these factors are more likely to be
experienced by a woman living below the poverty line than by a
middle-class woman. (students need to give four suggestions to
help a women in poverty not expose the fetus to several of the

factors listed above. make sure the responses seem plausible.)

20.

Imagine you are a researcher interested in differences between boys' and

girls' television viewing habits. State the hypothesis that you would like to
test and describe the methodology you would use. Then, answer the
following two questions: (1) Why do you think your methodology is suited
to your hypothesis? (2) What issues will you need to consider in terms of
reliability and validity? (8 pts.)

Below is an example of an answer.

+2

hypothesis: test whether boys and girls differ in the amount of

cartoon watching. specifically, boys will watch more fight-oriented
cartoons than girls.

+2

method: short longitudinal design assess boys and girls on how

much and type of cartoons they watch over a week period.

+2

question 1: longitudinal design is best because we can get a stable

measure of individual differences over time. this way we can get a
big sample of viewing time for boys and girls and see how much
and what type of cartoons they watch.

+2

question 2: one issue is the time at which the study is conducted. it

could be that there is overall watching (as well as variability) during
the summer versus school time. another issue is the age of the
child and that it may affect the types of cartoons that are
interesting to them.

21.

Each of the four theories discussed in chapter four (Piagetian, informationprocessing, core-knowledge, and sociocultural) has implications for
teaching methods. Describe how a teacher might approach the task of
teaching a child the concept of conservation from each of the four
perspectives. (8 pts.)

Piagetian:
+
2

Under Piagetian theory, a child needs to be at a certain stage of

cognitive development in order to understand the conservation task.
Piaget believed that the conservation task could not be understood
by children until they reach the concrete operations stage (ages 7 to
12). Prior to that time, a teacher would have a difficult time teaching

the child the conservation task. Once the child reaches the concrete
operations stage can they begin to understand the task and the
teacher can help them.

Information-Processing:
+
2

Under information-processing theory, there are three sources of

development of memory and learning: basic processes, acquisition
and growth of strategies, and improved knowledge. It is through the
interaction of these cognitive processes that produce cognitive
growth. Thus, one tool that is used is task analysis seeing how the
child is understanding/approaching/solving the conservation
problem. Thus teachers can use this analyses to assess the source of
the childs learning problem and target their instruction to the childs
specific difficulty on the conservation task.

Core-Knowledge:
+
2

Under Core-Knowledge theory, using childrens informal theories will

help them on this task. Children have nave theories about physics,
psychology, biology, and language. Using these nave theories such
as physics will help children understand the concept of conservation.
For example, it has been found that infants begin life with primitive
theory of physics. Thus a teacher can explain the conservation task
in terms of the basic physic principles that the child has developed at
that time.

Sociocultural:
+
2

Under sociocultural theory, the teacher would use social scaffolding

where more competent people provide a temporary framework that
supports the childs thinking at a higher level than the child can
manage on their own. This can be down by explaining the goal of the
task, demonstrating how the task should be done, and helping the
child execute the most difficult parts. (Other ways are through
guided participation process in which more knowledgeable
individuals organize situations in ways that allow less knowledgeable
people to learn.)

Extra credit: (+2 pts.)

What is Roxies favorite color? (circle one): B

a)

Blue

b)

Red

c)

Purple

d)

Green