Download Answer Key - Psychological Associates of South Florida

EXAM 1B
1. Contemporary psychology is best defined as the scientific study of:
A) observable responses to the environment.
B) maladaptive and adaptive behaviors.
C) conscious and unconscious mental activity.
D) behavior and mental processes.
2. Efforts to discover whether the intelligence of children is more heavily influenced by
their genes or by their home environments are most directly relevant to the debate
regarding:
A) nature versus nurture.
B) naturalistic observation versus introspection.
C) behavior versus mental processes.
D) evolution versus natural selection.
3. The neuroscience perspective in psychology would be most likely to emphasize that
behavior is influenced by:
A) subjective interpretations.
B) unconscious conflicts.
C) environmental circumstances.
D) blood chemistry.
4. The distinctive feature of the psychodynamic perspective is its emphasis on:
A) learned behaviors.
B) unconscious conflicts.
C) natural selection.
D) brain chemistry.
5. Which perspective would focus on the extent to which different styles of parenting are
encouraged among various ethnic communities?
A) psychodynamic
B) neuroscience
C) evolutionary
D) socialcultural
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6. Dr. Santaniello conducts basic research on how children's moral thinking changes as
they grow older. It is most likely that Dr. Santaniello is a(n) ________ psychologist.
A) industrial/organizational
B) social
C) clinical
D) developmental
7. The specialist most likely to have a medical degree is a(n):
A) developmental psychologist.
B) psychiatrist.
C) personality psychologist.
D) clinical psychologist.
8. The hindsight bias refers to people's tendency to:
A) overestimate the extent to which others share their opinions.
B) exaggerate their ability to have foreseen the outcome of past events.
C) dismiss the value of replication.
D) reject any ideas that can't be scientifically tested.
9. Political officials who have no doubt that their own economic and military predictions
will come true most clearly demonstrate:
A) overconfidence.
B) illusory correlation.
C) the placebo effect.
D) random sampling.
10. The scientific attitude requires an open-minded humility because it involves a
willingness to:
A) respect political beliefs that contradict our own.
B) perceive order in random events.
C) reject any ideas that can't be scientifically tested.
D) recognize the errors in our own ideas.
11. A questioning attitude regarding psychologists' assumptions and hidden values best
illustrates:
A) overconfidence.
B) the hindsight bias.
C) replication.
D) critical thinking.
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12. A hypothesis is a(n):
A) testable prediction that gives direction to research.
B) set of principles that organizes observations and explains newly discovered facts.
C) unprovable assumption about the unobservable processes that underlie
psychological functioning.
D) observable relationship between specific independent and dependent variables.
13. The case study is a research method in which:
A) an investigator manipulates one or more variables that might affect behavior.
B) a single individual is studied in great depth.
C) a representative sample of people are questioned regarding their opinions or
behaviors.
D) organisms are carefully observed in a laboratory environment.
14. Surveys indicate that people are much less likely to support “welfare” than “aid to the
needy.” These somewhat paradoxical survey results best illustrate the importance of:
A) the placebo effect.
B) random sampling.
C) naturalistic observation.
D) wording effects.
15. Psychologists who carefully watch the behavior of chimpanzee societies in the jungle
are using a research method known as:
A) naturalistic observation.
B) the survey.
C) the case study.
D) experimentation.
16. Which of the following methods is most helpful for revealing cause-effect relationships?
A) correlational research
B) the survey
C) naturalistic observation
D) the experiment
17. Participants in an experiment are said to be blind if they are uninformed about:
A) whether the experimental findings will be statistically significant.
B) how the dependent variable is measured.
C) which experimental treatment, if any, they are receiving.
D) what experimental hypothesis is being tested.
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18. An inert substance that may be administered instead of a drug to see if it produces any
of the same effects as the drug is called a:
A) replication.
B) case study.
C) placebo.
D) random sample.
19. Both the researchers and the participants in a memory study are ignorant about which
participants have actually received a potentially memory-enhancing drug and which
have received a placebo. This investigation involves the use of:
A) replication.
B) the double-blind procedure.
C) naturalistic observation.
D) random sampling.
20. In a psychological experiment, the factor that may be influenced by the manipulated
experimental treatment is called the ________ variable.
A) control
B) dependent
C) independent
D) experimental
21. Phrenology highlighted the presumed functions of:
A) the myelin sheath.
B) specific brain regions.
C) synaptic gaps.
D) endorphins.
22. Dr. Wolski does research on the potential relationship between neurotransmitter
deficiencies and mood states. Which psychological specialty does Dr. Wolski's research
best represent?
A) biological psychology
B) social psychology
C) phrenology
D) psychoanalysis
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23. An axon is:
A) an antagonist molecule that blocks neurotransmitter receptor sites.
B) the extension of a neuron that carries messages away from the cell body.
C) a layer of fatty tissue that encases the fibers of many neurons.
D) a cell that serves as the basic building block of the nervous system.
24. The longest part of a motor neuron is likely to be the:
A) cell body.
B) synapse.
C) axon.
D) dendrite.
25. A brief electrical charge that travels down the axon of a neuron is called the:
A) action potential.
B) refractory period.
C) agonist.
D) synapse.
26. The speed at which a neural impulse travels is increased when the axon is encased by
a(n):
A) stem cell.
B) association area.
C) synaptic vesicle.
D) myelin sheath.
27. The minimum level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse is called the:
A) synapse.
B) action potential.
C) threshold.
D) reflex.
28. A synapse is a(n):
A) neural cable containing many axons.
B) chemical messenger that triggers muscle contractions.
C) automatic response to sensory input.
D) junction between a sending neuron and a receiving neuron.
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29. The chemical messengers released into the spatial junctions between neurons are called:
A) genes.
B) synapses.
C) hormones.
D) neurotransmitters.
30. The two major divisions of the nervous system are the central and the ________ nervous
systems.
A) somatic
B) peripheral
C) sympathetic
D) autonomic
31. The central nervous system consists of:
A) somatic and autonomic subsystems.
B) sympathetic and parasympathetic branches.
C) sensory and motor neurons.
D) the brain and the spinal cord.
32. In order for you to experience the pain of a sprained ankle, ________ must first relay
messages from your ankle to your central nervous system.
A) interneurons
B) sensory neurons
C) the limbic system
D) motor neurons
33. Hormones are the chemical messengers of the:
A) endocrine system.
B) limbic system.
C) reticular formation.
D) autonomic nervous system.
34. The master gland of the endocrine system is the:
A) pancreas.
B) thyroid gland.
C) adrenal gland.
D) pituitary gland.
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35. Which brain structure receives information from all the senses except smell?
A) amygdala
B) thalamus
C) hippocampus
D) angular gyrus
36. The reticular formation is located in the:
A) sensory cortex.
B) brainstem.
C) cerebellum.
D) limbic system.
37. The “little brain” attached to the rear of the brainstem is called the:
A) reticular formation.
B) cerebellum.
C) limbic system.
D) corpus callosum.
38. A doughnut-shaped cluster of neural structures at the border of the brainstem and the
cerebral hemispheres is known as the:
A) limbic system.
B) reticular formation.
C) peripheral nervous system.
D) angular gyrus.
39. The association areas are located in the:
A) limbic system.
B) cerebral cortex.
C) thalamus.
D) brainstem.
40. An impaired use of language is known as:
A) aphasia.
B) lateralization.
C) tomography.
D) plasticity.
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41. The capacity of one brain area to take over the functions of another damaged brain area
is known as brain:
A) plasticity.
B) aphasia.
C) tomography.
D) phrenology.
42. At about eight months of age, people across the world start to ________ strangers; as
adults they prefer the company of those whose attributes are ________ to their own.
A) enjoy; different
B) enjoy; similar
C) fear; similar
D) fear; different
43. The impact of our cultural backgrounds on the development of our personal values best
illustrates the influence of:
A) the environment.
B) temperament.
C) individualism.
D) personal space.
44. A human sperm cell contains:
A) 23 genes.
B) 46 genes.
C) 23 chromosomes.
D) 46 chromosomes.
45. Identical twins originate from the fertilization of:
A) two egg cells by two sperm cells.
B) a single egg cell by a single sperm cell.
C) two egg cells by a single sperm cell.
D) a single egg cell by two sperm cells.
46. The personalities of adopted children:
A) are very similar to the personalities of their biologically related siblings.
B) are not very similar to the personalities of their adoptive parents.
C) are more similar to the personalities of their caregiving adoptive parents than to the
personalities of their biological parents.
D) are very similar to the personalities of the other children in their adoptive families.
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47. The home environment most clearly has a greater influence on children's ________ than
on their ________.
A) gender identity; gender schemas
B) religious beliefs; personality traits
C) temperament; political attitudes
D) extraversion; table manners
48. Who are likely to show the greatest similarity in temperament?
A) Vincent Sr. and Vincent Jr., father and son
B) Larry and Laura, brother and sister
C) Ruth and Ramona, identical twins
D) Philip and Paul, fraternal twins
49. Dmitry Belyaev and Lyudmila Trut successfully domesticated wild foxes by means of:
A) hormone injections.
B) cloning.
C) selective mating.
D) gene splicing.
50. The reproductive advantage enjoyed by organisms best suited to a particular
environment is known as:
A) natural selection.
B) collectivism.
C) behavior genetics.
D) self-regulation.
51. An evolutionary psychologist would suggest that people are genetically predisposed to:
A) love their own children.
B) seek healthy-looking mates.
C) fear dangerous animals.
D) do all of the above.
52. Compared with women, men are more likely to:
A) think about sex.
B) make sacrifices to gain sex.
C) initiate sexual activity.
D) do all of the above.
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53. Compared to women, men are ________ likely to feel comfortable about having casual
sex with different partners and ________ likely to cite affection as a reason for their
first sexual intercourse.
A) more; more
B) less; more
C) more; less
D) less; less
54. Men judge women as especially attractive if:
A) they appear mature, and women judge men as especially attractive if they appear
youthful.
B) they appear youthful, and women judge men as especially attractive if they appear
mature.
C) they appear youthful, and women judge men as especially attractive if they appear
youthful.
D) they appear mature, and women judge men as especially attractive if they appear
mature.
55. Evolutionary psychologists would be least likely to predict that:
A) a woman would engage in casual sex with many male partners.
B) a woman would prefer to marry a man who is wealthier than herself.
C) a man would prefer to marry a woman who is younger looking than himself.
D) a man would be distressed by the death of his child.
56. Personal space refers to:
A) the priority we give to our own personal needs over group needs.
B) areas of a home, such as a bedroom, where privacy is important.
C) the distance we like to maintain between ourselves and other people.
D) our inner private thoughts and personally subjective feelings about ourselves.
57. Studies indicate that:
A) Arabs prefer more personal space than do Scandinavians.
B) women prefer more personal space than do men.
C) the French prefer more personal space than do the British.
D) North Americans prefer more personal space than do Latin Americans.
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58. Gender role refers to:
A) a sense of being homosexual or heterosexual.
B) a set of expected behaviors for males and females.
C) one's biological sex.
D) a sense of being male or female.
59. Gender identity refers to:
A) the set of expected behaviors for males and for females.
B) one's biological sex.
C) how masculine a boy is or how feminine a girl is.
D) the sense of being male or female.
60. Professor Smith emphasizes that gender similarities and differences are products of a
continuous interplay among genetically predisposed traits, culturally shaped roles, and
personally constructed expectations and assumptions. The professor's emphasis best
illustrates:
A) natural selection.
B) collectivism.
C) a biopsychosocial approach.
D) individualism.
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