Question 1

A 3-year-old and a 5-year-old watch Megan and Danika hide a cookie in a yellow box. They then watch Megan leave and Danika move the cookie to a blue box. When asked where Megan will look for the cookie, __________.

Accepted Answer

This question relates to the concept of theory of mind, which is the ability to understand that others have beliefs, desires, and intentions that are different from one's own. By the age of 5, most children have developed a more mature theory of mind and can understand that Megan would still believe the cookie is in the yellow box because she did not see it being moved. A 3-year-old, however, might not yet fully grasp this concept and might assume that everyone knows the cookie is now in the blue box, reflecting their own knowledge rather than understanding Megan's perspective.

Question 2

Recent research using the habituation technique with infants suggests that __________.

Accepted Answer

Recent research using the habituation technique with infants has provided evidence that supports the idea that infants have some concept of objects as independent, unitary entities. This contradicts some of the inferences drawn by Piaget from his observations of infant behavior. However, it does not necessarily mean that Piaget's observations were entirely incorrect, nor does it provide evidence for or against the timing of the development of object permanence as Piaget described it.

Question 3

Which of the following statements BEST characterizes Jean Piaget's legacy in psychology?

Accepted Answer

While Piaget's work was groundbreaking and influential, some of his claims, particularly about the specific ages at which children reach certain cognitive milestones, have been disputed by later psychologists. However, many of his underlying theories and concepts continue to be widely accepted and influential in developmental psychology.

Question 4

In a recent habituation study, infants less than 6 months of age were shown a series of slides, each showing three objects. After habituation had taken place, the infants were shown additional slides, some containing three objects, others containing only two objects. The results indicated that __________.

Accepted Answer

The infants looked longer at the slides of two objects because they recognized the change in number from the habituated pattern of three objects, indicating they perceived the slides with two objects as novel. This demonstrates an early numerical perception ability.

Question 5

A 4-year-old looks at a picture of a dragon while on the telephone with her grandfather. If Piaget's claims of egocentrism are correct, the child is likely to __________.

Accepted Answer

Piaget's concept of egocentrism refers to the stage where children believe that others see the world exactly as they do. Therefore, the child might tell her grandfather to look at the dragon, not understanding that he cannot see the picture through the phone.

Question 6

After habituating infants to a series of slides showing three objects-such as a comb, a hat, and a toy drum-researchers presented a series of new slides, some of which showed two items, others three (as before). How did the infants respond?

Accepted Answer

Infants tend to prefer novelty, so after habituating to slides with three objects, they showed a preference for slides with a different number of items, in this case, two.

Question 7

Developmental researchers often make use of an experimental procedure relying on habituation. How does one know that an infant has habituated to, say, a red rod moving back and forth?

Accepted Answer

The best way to know whether an infant has habituated is to observe their looking time. If the infant has habituated to the stimulus, they will stop looking at it. Therefore, option C is the correct choice. Options A and B are incorrect because they do not relate specifically to habituation, while option D is incorrect because repeatedly reaching out for the object would indicate interest and not habituation.

Question 8

Six-month-old infants are habituated to repeated showings of an experimenter reaching for a ripe banana, which is to the right of a yellow block. After the habituation, the positions of the block and the banana are switched. Most likely, the infants will now expect the experimenter to __________.

Accepted Answer

The infants had become habituated to the experimenter reaching for the banana, indicating a preference or desire for it. Even though the position of the objects was switched, the infants are likely to expect that the experimenter will still pursue the banana over the block because of her previous behavior and their understanding of her goal.

Question 9

Recent studies on children's understanding of number indicate that __________.

Accepted Answer

Recent research has shown that infants can demonstrate some understanding of numbers and numerical differences at a much younger age than Piaget suggested, with studies indicating numerical comprehension in infants as young as 6 or 7 months.

Question 10

There is a parallel between the development of theory of mind and language learning in that __________.

Accepted Answer

Both the development of theory of mind and language learning have been proposed to be driven by innate learning mechanisms. For example, the theory of mind module proposed by some researchers suggests that humans have an innate capacity to understand the mental states of others. Similarly, the language acquisition device proposed by Chomsky suggests that humans are born with an innate ability to acquire language.

Question 11

Piaget's interpretation of the A-not-B effect is questionable because __________.

Accepted Answer

Piaget's interpretation of the A-not-B effect is questioned because infants often demonstrate an understanding of the object's correct location by looking at it, even as they mistakenly reach for the wrong location. This suggests a disconnect between their motor actions and cognitive understanding, challenging Piaget's view on the development of object permanence.

Question 12

The phrase best capturing the idea of "object permanence" is this one:

Accepted Answer

Object permanence is the understanding that objects continue to exist even when they cannot be seen, touched or heard. Option C, "out of sight, out of existence" best captures this concept as it shows that objects that are not visible are thought to not exist. Option A, "out of sight, out of mind" is related to memory and not the existence of objects. Option B, "familiarity breeds contempt" is about the loss of respect and admiration when someone or something becomes too familiar. Option D, "still waters run deep" is unrelated and refers to how calm people may have strong emotions or opinions.

Question 13

Why do preschool children fail to conserve, according to Piaget?

Accepted Answer

According to Piaget, preschool children fail to conserve because they can't interrelate different dimensions of an experience. For example, if you show a preschooler two glasses with the same amount of liquid and then pour one glass into a taller, thinner glass, the child will likely say the second glass has more liquid because they cannot understand that the amount of liquid remains the same despite the change in shape. This is because they struggle to mentally manipulate multiple dimensions of an experience at once.

Question 14

In one trick, a magician shows the audience a single apple on a table. She then puts a screen in front of the apple, picks up another apple, and apparently places it next to the first one, pulling her now-empty hand from behind the screen. She then removes the screen to reveal only a single apple. Research suggests that __________.

Accepted Answer

Research suggests that infants as young as 5 months old have a basic understanding of object permanence, meaning they expect objects to continue to exist even when out of sight. Therefore, when the screen is removed and only one apple is revealed instead of the expected two, they may look longer at the scene in surprise. Choice A (conservation of number tasks) and choice C (A-not-B tasks) are unrelated to this phenomenon. Choice D suggests that infants lack object permanence entirely, which is not supported by current research.

Question 15

Six-month-old Jeri Kaye sees her mother reach into the kitchen cabinet. Research indicates that Jeri Kaye sees this behavior as __________.

Accepted Answer

According to research on infant development, six-month-old infants have a level of comprehension about others' intentions and goals, and can recognize that an action is goal-driven rather than just a physical movement without any intention behind it. Therefore, Jeri Kaye is most likely seeing her mother's behavior as goal-driven and showing sensitivity to her mother's intentions.

Question 16

Which of the following beliefs would Piaget NOT endorse?

Accepted Answer

Piaget believed that developmental stages were distinct and not blurry. He believed that children's thinking fundamentally changes as they enter each new stage.

Question 17

Imagine an infant surrounded by objects. Which of the following statements is TRUE?

Accepted Answer

The infant's attempt to grasp each object is an example of assimilation, as she is using her existing schema (grasping) to interact with the objects. However, as the objects are different shapes and sizes, she will need to modify her grasp, which is an example of accommodation. Therefore, the changes she makes in the shape of her grasp for each different object are examples of accommodation.

Question 18

Recent research on conservation of number indicates that __________.

Accepted Answer

Recent research suggests that preschoolers can pass conservation tasks if the number of items is small enough, indicating that their numerical understanding may be more advanced than Piaget originally proposed.

Question 19

A 3-year-old is told two stories. In both, she is told that Bart wants a pretzel and that Bart believes pretzels are in the cabinet. In the first story she is told that pretzels are actually in the cabinet, but in the second, she is told that Bart's mother moved the pretzels to a drawer without Bart's knowledge. When asked to predict Bart's behavior in both stories, the child will most likely __________.

Accepted Answer

The child is likely to predict that Bart will go to the cabinet in the first story because that is where he believes the pretzels to be. However, in the second story, the child may predict that Bart will go to the drawer because he is not aware that the pretzels have been moved. Therefore, the child is likely to predict Bart's behavior differently in the two stories, choosing option C.

Question 20

Which of the following statements is FALSE?

Accepted Answer

The statement that "If there is a social cognition module, it must contain specific beliefs" is false. A social cognition module would be an innate structure oriented toward predicting the actions of others, but it does not necessarily have to contain specific beliefs.

Quiz 14: Development