Q&A Hero

Q: Which of the following would not be considered an initiation ceremony? A. graduating from high school B. a quinceaera C. a Bas Mitzvah D. obtaining a driver's license

Q: Compared to a child, an older adolescent is likely to: A. experience more stress and less happiness. B. face a range decisions that may have serious long-term consequences. C. have fewer long-term possibilities. D. have an identity crisis.

Q: Changes in social definition also bring changes in: A. adolescents' identities. B. responsibilities. C. changes in relationships with others. D. All of the above.

Q: Fifteen-year-old Randall was a participant in a research study on risk taking. According to his answers on the survey, Randall understands the dangers of drinking and driving, having unprotected sex, and using marijuana. However, at a party last week, Randall was seen smoking marijuana and getting into a car with an intoxicated driver. How would you explain this inconsistency in Randall's behavior in terms of the four main aspects of brain development? Obviously, he knows the right answers, yet he engages in risky behavior.

Q: Nicole is an adolescent and has experienced changes in cognition and theory of mind capacities. Her mom and dad believe that these changes have both positively and negatively influenced their relationship with their daughter. How would an adolescent development psychologist explain the effects of these normative developmental changes in cognition?

Q: Anita cannot understand why adolescents are more likely than any other age group to engage in risky behaviors. She has learned in class that individuals undergo significant cognitive advancements during adolescence, and in fact, many adolescents aged 15 and older use the same basic processes that adults use to make decisions. Your instructor has asked you to explain to Anita why risk taking may peak during adolescence. What do you tell her?

Q: Recent research on psychological well-being in emerging adulthood suggests: A. it is a time of positive and improving mental health for most people. B. it is a time of increasing stress caused by financial instability. C. it is a time of decreasing mental health for most people. D. no research has yet examined this question with emerging adults.

Q: Jennifer, who is 16, ran away with her friend Tonya, who is 18. The police, however, only arrested Jennifer for running away because for a minor, running away is considered: A. the age of majority. B. extrusion. C. a status offense. D. juvenile truancy.

Q: According to the textbook, a good deal of adolescents' risk taking takes place in contexts in which: A. they are unsupervised by adults and exposed to peers who encourage risky behaviors. B. older, opposite sex peers are present. C. they are in a new, exciting environment. D. there are at least three peers present.

Q: One explanation for the risk-taking peak that is observed in adolescence is that: A. adolescents are not aware of the risks associated with certain behaviors. B. the prefrontal cortex is fully developed years before the limbic system is active. C. adolescents are relatively higher in sensation seeking and impulsivity than children and adults. D. None of the above statements are true. Risk taking does not peak in adolescence.

Q: According to the textbook, the main contributor to the increased rate of automobile accidents among teenagers is: A. driving under the influence. B. driving with other teenagers in the car. C. texting while driving. D. talking on the phone, especially having an emotional conversation.

Q: According to the textbook, all of the following are potentially successful ways to reduce adolescent risk taking except: A. classroom-based education programs designed to teach adolescents about the dangers of various activities, make better decisions, and resist peer pressure to engage in risky activity. B. limiting adolescents' opportunities to put themselves in risky situations and making risky substances harder for adolescents to obtain. C. making the penalties for engaging in certain risky behaviors more severe and increasing the salience of the potential costs of engaging in the risky behavior. D. finding ways to permit adolescents to take risks without putting themselves in situations in which they can hurt themselves.

Q: Compared to children and adults, adolescents: A. engage in a greater amount of risky behaviors in the real world. B. perceive fewer risks on laboratory questionnaires. C. make more deliberate decisions in the real world. D. None of the above is true.

Q: All of the following are themes that have emerged from research studies that investigate different aspects of social cognition during adolescence except: A. as individuals move into and through adolescence they become better able to step outside themselves and see things from other vantage points. B. adolescents are better able to see that the social rules we follow are not absolute and are therefore subject to debate and questioning. C. with age, adolescents develop a more differentiated, more nuanced understanding of social norms. D. with age, all adolescents increasingly reject the authority of adults by challenging and dismissing the morals established by their parents.

Q: Which of the following is one of the results of improvements in social cognition? A. adolescents become better at lying B. adolescents become less able to recognize that others may view situations differently C. adolescents are less capable of formulating arguments D. adolescents are less likely to challenge their parents' authority

Q: Who of the following individuals is likely to believe that it is always wrong to exclude others? A. Gwendolyn, who is trying to decide who to invite to her 9th birthday party B. Amy, who is a member of a high-status peer group at her high school C. Tina, an adolescent who has a sophisticated understanding of peer group dynamics D. Carl, a senior on the high school football team.

Q: Early in adolescence, moral guidelines are: A. seen as absolutes. B. seen as subjective. C. based on principles such as equality, justice, or fairness. D. based on abstract guidelines.

Q: When the teacher asks a question in class, students raise their hands to answer. This example illustrates: A. social conventional behavior. B. a specialized structural system. C. metacognitive behavior. D. dominance theory.

Q: Which theory helps researchers understand adolescent risk taking? A. behavioral decision theory B. alternative choices theory C. desirability theory D. cognitive development theory

Q: According to research on behavioral decision theory, adolescents often decide to engage in behavior that seems risky to adults because adolescents: A. cannot consider as many consequences for their actions as do adults. B. have thinking processes that are still predominantly preoperational. C. have different values and priorities than adults. D. wish to assert their independence from adults in every possible way.

Q: Are adults, or adolescents, more likely to think of themselves as invulnerable? A. adults B. adolescents C. both are likely D. Neither group thinks of themselves as invulnerable.

Q: What emotional characteristic makes an individual more likely to engage in risky behaviors? A. depression B. moodiness C. sensation seeking D. anxiety

Q: Behavioral decision theory draws heavily on _____, and is a rational process in which individuals _____. A. psychoanalytic theory; are forced to think about the root of their behaviors B. information-processing theory; naturally advance in cognitive skills C. economics; calculate the costs and benefits D. behaviorism; make choices based on rewards and punishments.

Q: Compared to childhood, reward seeking and sensation seeking during adolescence: A. are equally as high during childhood and adolescence. B. are lower during adolescence than childhood. C. are caused by biological forces during adolescence while it is typically caused by environmental forces in childhood. D. are higher during adolescence than childhood.

Q: With age, adolescents develop a more sophisticated theory of mind, which is the ability to: A. understand that others have beliefs, intentions, and knowledge that may be different from one's own. B. understand their own thought processes. C. separate what they know from what they think. D. separate what is real from what is possible.

Q: Chris and his parents had an argument because they did not want him to go to a New Year's Eve party across town. A few days after the argument, Chris's anger subsided because he realized his parents were worried about his safety. Which cognitive process did Chris most likely use to reach this conclusion? A. implicit personality theory B. deductive reasoning C. response inhibition D. theory of mind

Q: Which of the following statements about social cognition is false? A. Adolescents have a more differentiated and more nuanced understanding of social norms. B. Adolescents are more able than children to step outside themselves and see things from other vantage points. C. Adolescents are less likely to see that social rules are subjective. D. Adolescents are more likely to believe that there are some situations under which it may be appropriate to limit the rights of certain people.

Q: Which of the following individuals is most likely to be a child (and not an adolescent)? A. Kristine, who thinks about what other people are thinking B. Jesse, who finds it hard to believe that other people may have beliefs, intentions, and knowledge that may be different from his own C. Jo, who can easily interpret the feelings of others D. All of these individuals are likely to be children.

Q: Most research on adolescents' beliefs about rights and civil liberties comes from: A. studies of ethnic minority samples. B. studies of Western, middle-class youth. C. diverse SES samples. D. adolescent girls.

Q: Adolescents who score higher than their peers on an IQ test will probably: A. score lower than their peers on their next IQ test. B. continue to score higher than their peers on future IQ tests. C. score the same as their peers on their next IQ test. D. cannot make a prediction based on the instability of intelligence.

Q: Mary is having trouble understanding how to do a math problem. Her teacher asks her just the right question and Mary understands the problem. Vygotsky would refer to the structuring process used by the teacher to guide Mary's thinking as: A. laddering. B. enabling. C. pillaring. D. scaffolding.

Q: According to Vygotsky, adolescents learn best when: A. their lessons are within their zone of proximal development. B. a more experienced instructor is present. C. the instructor engages in scaffolding. D. All of the above.

Q: The growth of _____ during adolescence is directly related to an improved ability to think abstractly. A. long-term memory B. social cognition C. automatization D. short-term memory

Q: What was one of the results of the Guyer and colleagues' (2009) study, where teenagers were imaged with fMRI equipment while they thought they were participating in a networking task with other teenagers (in reality, the study was rigged such that they were automatically provided with positive or negative feedback)? A. When the adolescents were told that other teenagers were interested in them, areas of their brains known to be sensitive to rewards were activated. B. When the adolescents were told that other teenagers were interested in them, no areas of their brains were activated. C. When the adolescents were told that other teenagers were interested in them, areas of the brain that are activated during highly stressful events were activated. D. When the adolescents were told that other teenagers were interested in them, the prefrontal cortex was fully activated.

Q: Changes in the limbic system during adolescence may cause all of the following, except: A. increased emotionality. B. increased responsiveness to stress. C. decreased risk-taking. D. decreased responsiveness to rewards.

Q: Jane, an adolescent, can attribute her improved planning skills to developments in her ______ and she can attribute her gut-level, intuitive decision making to her ______. A. dorsolateral prefrontal cortex; orbitofrontal cortex B. dorsolateral prefrontal cortex; ventromedial prefrontal cortex C. ventromedial prefrontal cortex; dorsolateral prefrontal cortex D. orbitofrontal cortex; ventromedial prefrontal cortex

Q: In addition to an increase in responsiveness to stress, changes in the _____ may also help explain why adolescents' concerns about what their peers think increase during this time. A. prefrontal cortex B. dorsolateral prefrontal cortex C. limbic system D. levels of grey matter

Q: Which of the following brain systems is responsible for processing emotions, social information, and rewards? A. functional connectivity system B. response inhibition system C. limbic system D. prefrontal cortex system

Q: When calculating individual performance on an IQ test, a child who was of average intelligence would have an IQ score of: A. 100. B. 200. C. 150. D. There is no "average" IQ.

Q: Sternberg's "triarchic theory of intelligence" proposes that to assess an individual's intellectual capabilities it is necessary to look at three distinct, but interrelated, types of "intelligence": A. verbal, mathematical, and spatial. B. componential, experiential, and contextual. C. componential, kinesthetic, and experiential. D. verbal, mathematical, and interpersonal.

Q: Steve gets all As in his course work but has a hard time relating to the real world. According to Sternberg, Steve is above average in _____ intelligence but below average in _____ intelligence. A. componential; experiential B. componential; contextual C. experiential; componential D. contextual; experiential

Q: When evaluating the three different forms of intelligence described in his triarchic theory of intelligence, Sternberg would disagree with which statement? A. Individuals with high componential intelligence are more intelligent than individuals with either experiential or contextual intelligence. B. An individual who scores high on experiential or contextual intelligence may be equally as intelligent as someone who scores high in componential intelligence. C. Society needs individuals with all three forms of intelligence. D. It is time we should be assessing experiential and contextual intelligence as much as we test componential intelligence.

Q: According to Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, sports figures Babe Ruth, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and Michael Phelps are all considered above average in: A. spatial intelligence. B. componential intelligence. C. kinesthetic intelligence. D. experiential intelligence.

Q: Sam took an IQ test in fourth grade and scored below average. Sam's middle school is administering the test again. This time, Sam's score is likely to be: A. below average. B. average. C. above average. D. there's no way to predict

Q: During adolescence, individuals' IQ scores _____, whereas their mental abilities _____. A. remain stable; increase B. remain stable; decrease C. increase; remain stable D. decrease; remain stable

Q: Charlie is able to tune out the television so that he can focus on his art project, which is due in class tomorrow. This is an example of: A. selective attention. B. divided attention. C. short-term memory. D. long-term memory.

Q: While studying for her biology exam, Jennifer watches her favorite show on TV. This is an example of: A. selective attention. B. divided attention. C. short-term memory. D. long-term memory.

Q: Which of the following statements about the changes in information-processing abilities during adolescence is false? A. There are advances in short-term but not long-term memory. B. The speed of processing information increases. C. Adolescents are more "planful" than children. D. There are advances in selective and divided attention.

Q: All of the following are ways that scientists study brain maturation except: A. using DTI technology to see the ways in which various regions of the brain are connected. B. using fMRI equipment to examine patterns of activity in various regions of the brain while individuals are performing a variety of tasks. C. electroencephalography technology to measure event-related potentials in response to different stimuli or events. D. using fMRI technology to measure event-related potential in response to different stimuli or events.

Q: Neurons are cells that carry information by transmitting electrical charges across the body. When the electrical charge travels through a neuron, it stimulates _____. A. the release of neurotransmitters B. synaptic pruning C. myelination D. the brain to process some piece of information

Q: The formation of synapses is: A. almost entirely genetically programmed. B. almost entirely formed through experience. C. both genetically programmed and formed through experience. D. random.

Q: One type of structural change in the brain has to do with changes in the levels of grey and white matter in the brain. Which of the following statements is true? A. grey matter decreases while white matter increases B. grey matter increases while white matter decreases C. both grey matter and white matter decrease D. both grey matter and white matter increase

Q: All of the following statements about structural and functional change involving the prefrontal cortex during adolescence are true except: A. patterns of activation within the prefrontal cortex generally become more focused B. individuals are more likely to use multiple parts of the brain simultaneously and coordinate activity between prefrontal regions and other areas of the brain C. the full structural maturation of the prefrontal cortex is not complete until the mid-20s D. All of the above are true

Q: One aspect of brain maturation that is associated with increases in the speed of neural impulses and improvements in information transmission is: A. formal operational thought. B. myelination. C. metacognition. D. information-processing gains.

Q: Which statement regarding increases in cognitive abilities is false? A. Increases in cognitive abilities are due to growth in the size of the brain. B. Pruning of the synapses leads to increases in cognitive abilities. C. Changes in levels of neurotransmitters reduce sensitivity to reward, leading to an increase in sensation seeking. D. Maturation of the prefrontal cortex allows for complex activities such as planning, decision making, goal setting, and metacognition.

Q: Which of the following changes explains why adolescents, compared to children, may be better able to concentrate and stay focused on reading tasks? A. increasing use of mnemonic devices B. becoming more flexible with strategy use C. increasing speed of information processing D. improvements in attention

Q: Dr. Brown argues that adolescents can solve problems better than younger children because they can store more information in memory and because they have more effective strategies. Dr. Brown's view is most consistent with which of the following perspectives? A. triarchic theory of intelligence B. information-processing perspective C. psychometric theory D. Piagetian perspective

Q: Which of the following is not relatively stable during adolescence? A. class ranking B. intelligence C. height D. mental abilities

Q: Jesse is in the seventh grade at a school that has open classrooms with multiple teachers instructing their classes in one large area. Which of the following cognitive processes will help Jesse focus on his teacher? A. working memory B. selective attention C. long-term memory D. divided attention

Q: Which of the following statements about intelligence in adolescence is true? A. There is very little debate regarding what exactly intelligence is. B. The higher an individual's IQ, the smaller the number of same-aged peers who perform equally or better. C. Scientists have not reported any significant correlations between aspects of IQ performance and synaptic pruning in the brain. D. An IQ test is the only way to assess intelligence in adolescence.

Q: Joyce believes that scores on intelligence tests are relatively stable in adolescence, and as a result of this stability, believes that scores are fixed. Do you agree with Joyce's logic? A. Yes, intelligence scores are inherited. B. No, intelligence scores are not at all stable. C. Yes, intelligence scores are indeed stable and not susceptible to change. D. No, intelligence scores are stable; however, they are not fixed.

Q: Much research on adults as well as adolescents indicates that the gaps between _____ and _____ in everyday situations are very large, with everyday decision making laden with logical errors that cannot be explained by cognitive incompetence. A. what individuals want to do; what they actually do B. what individuals want to do; what they have time for C. logical reasoning abilities; personal experience D. logical reasoning abilities; their actual use of logical reasoning

Q: Which of the following statements is consistent with Piaget's cognitive development theory? A. Individuals progress through stages based on biological readiness and maturation. B. Individuals progress through stages based on the presence of environmental demands. C. Individuals progress through stages based on biological readiness in addition to increasing environmental demands. D. Hypothetical thought is the foundation of adolescent thought.

Q: Scientists now believe that the transition from concrete operational thought to formal operational thought occurs: A. very suddenly and evenly across all domains of functioning. B. at the same age, regardless of the environment. C. very gradually and unevenly across domains of functioning. D. the change is barely noticeable.

Q: The improvements in organizational strategies seen in adolescence include all but: A. increasing use of mnemonic devices. B. becoming more flexible with strategy use. C. increasing speed of information processing. D. becoming more efficient with strategy use.

Q: The extreme skepticism observed in many adolescents is most likely a result of: A. seeing knowledge as relative rather than as absolute. B. thinking in terms of what's possible rather than what's real. C. thinking about the process of thinking. D. viewing reality in terms of multiple dimensions.

Q: ___________ theorists believe that changes in cognitive abilities appearing during adolescence are qualitative, whereas __________ theorists believe they are quantitative. A. Cognitive-developmental; information-processing B. Cognitive-developmental; behavioral decision C. Information-processing; cognitive-developmental D. Information-processing; behavioral decision

Q: Dr. Martino argues that development proceeds in stages and that each stage is marked by fairly consistent behavior. Then, as the child's biological development progresses and new experiences are acquired, a shift occurs and development breaks through to the next level. Dr. Martino's view is most consistent with that expressed by the: A. triarchic theory of intelligence. B. information-processing perspective. C. psychometric theory. D. Piagetian perspective.

Q: What is it about adolescent thinking that makes them better problem solvers than children? A. improvements in memory B. improvements in attention C. improvements in processing speed D. All of the above

Q: Why are adolescents better than children at abstract, multidimensional, and hypothetical thinking? A. improvements in memory B. improvements in attention C. improvements in processing speed D. All of the above

Q: Juan is 4.5 years old. His language skills are excellent, but his thinking skills demonstrate limitations such as egocentrism. What Piagetian stage of thought would you suspect he is in? A. formal operational B. sensorimotor C. concrete operational D. preoperational

Q: According to Piaget, the period of cognitive development that is based on theoretical, abstract principles of logic is called: A. sensorimotor. B. preoperational. C. concrete operations. D. formal operations.

Q: Rose solves a chemistry problem by systematically testing several hypotheses. According to Piaget, which stage is Rose functioning at? A. preoperational B. concrete operations C. formal operations D. sensorimotor

Q: Piaget theorists believe that the use of _____ is the chief feature of adolescent thinking that differentiates it from the type of thinking employed by children. A. egocentric reasoning B. abstract logical reasoning C. multidimensional reasoning D. systematic reasoning

Q: Adolescent thinking can be distinguished from the thinking of children in several respects. All of these differences stem from improvement(s) in _____ during adolescence. A. abstract logical reasoning B. personal life experiences C. synaptic pruning D. autonomy and personal responsibility

Q: Multidimensional thinking helps adolescents understand: A. sarcasm. B. imaginary audiences. C. formal operations. D. concrete examples.

Q: What thought process helps adolescents appreciate the sarcasm and satire of Family Guy and The Simpsons? A. selective attention B. sensation seeking C. mutual role taking D. multidimensional thinking

Q: All of the following are indicators of metacognition, except: A. introspection. B. self-consciousness. C. using mental strategies to remember something. D. deductive reasoning.

Q: Teenagers may become self-conscious because they believe that people are talking about them. Which characteristic are they exhibiting? A. an imaginary audience B. a personal fable C. propositional logic D. metacognition

Q: The erroneous belief that one's thoughts, feelings, and experiences are unique is called: A. an imaginary audience. B. a personal fable. C. propositional logic. D. metacognition.