Q&A Hero

Q: The main reason that reactive aggression is associated with unpopularity and greater problems with peers is that reactive aggression is characterized by: A. a combination of aggression and poor emotion regulation or lack of social skills. B. a combination of bad karma and well-developed social skills. C. a combination of delinquent behaviors and extreme shyness in social situations. D. a combination of being female and plotting an aggressive response in advance.

Q: Sarah is a popular teenage girl who has just been made captain of the cheerleading squad. She is very socially adept, and notices that Britney, her social rival, is starting to enjoy more attention from their peers than Sarah receives. Jealous, she decides to start a rumor about Britney that she knows will cause many people to stop liking Britney. Sarah's behavior is best described as an example of what? A. reactive aggression B. friendly fire aggression C. relative aggression D. relational aggression

Q: Interventions designed to help unpopular adolescents improve their social skills have employed which of the following techniques? A. explaining to adolescents that they need to develop a thicker psychological skin in order to make friends B. having adolescents wait patiently until another person engages them in conversation C. teaching social skills like self-expression and leadership techniques D. teaching joke-telling skills to improve their likeability among other adolescents

Q: One study of more than 160,000 adolescent from 35 countries found that: A. The prevalence of bullying is higher in schools characterized by greater income inequality. B. Adolescents who come from less affluent families are less likely to be bullied. C. The prevalence of bullying is higher in countries characterized by less income equality. D. Adolescents who come from more affluent families are more likely to be bullied.

Q: In contrast to the role of the peer group in adolescent development, the family is best suited for helping the adolescent with regard to: A. intimacy. B. responsibility. C. social interactions. D. leisure.

Q: According to research from Due and colleagues, which country is likely to have a relatively low prevalence of bullying? A. Sweden B. Russia C. United States D. Germany

Q: Karen, a ninth-grader, was mad at Cheryl for spilling juice on Karen's shirt. Karen spread a rumor that Cheryl had gossiped about her friends. Karen is using _____ to express her aggression toward Cheryl. A. relational aggression B. hostile attributional bias C. aggressive-withdrawal D. bullying

Q: Esther has been rejected by her peers because she is withdrawn and rejected. Esther is most likely to be at risk for: A. conduct problems. B. diminished social competence. C. aggressive behavior in adulthood. D. drug and alcohol abuse.

Q: Who is at the greatest risk of developing psychological problems as a result of peer rejection? A. an aggressive child B. a withdrawn child C. an aggressive-withdrawn child D. a reclusive child

Q: Hostile attributional bias: A. plays a central role in the aggressive behavior of rejected adolescents. B. plays a small role in the aggressive behavior of rejected adolescents. C. helps rejected adolescents gain acceptance. D. is the only factor in determining the behavior of rejected adolescents.

Q: Dan planned a party and invited his whole English class by passing out personal invitations. Dan accidentally forgot to make an invitation for Sam. Sam assumed he intentionally wasn't invited and became irate at Dan for excluding him. This is an example of: A. relational aggression. B. hostile attributional bias. C. aggressive-withdrawal. D. bullying.

Q: Which of the following is a common finding of recent cyberbullying studies? A. Adolescents who engage in traditional bullying often also engage in cyberbullying. B. Victims of physical or verbal harassment are usually very different than victims of cyberbullying. C. As internet use has increased, cyberbullying has become statistically more common than physical and verbal harassment among the adolescent population. D. More than 80 percent of adolescents have engaged in some form of cyberbullying.

Q: According to the textbook, victims of cyberbullying often report all of the following adjustment problems, except: A. low self-esteem. B. academic difficulties. C. parent-child conflict. D. depression.

Q: Which of the following statements regarding internet harassment is false? A. perpetrators of Internet harassment are likely to show problems in social skills. B. perpetrators of Internet harassment also engage in typical bullying. C. many of the same adolescents who report having been victimized also report bullying others and these adolescents have the greatest adjustment problems. D. most cyberbullying is conducted anonymously.

Q: Pepler, Jiang, Craig, and Connolly (2008) studied a sample of 10- to 17-year-old Toronto youths and found that: A. about 40 percent of adolescents have never bullied anyone. B. nearly all adolescents surveyed had engaged in bullying of some form. C. a correlation exists between bully victimization and drug abuse. D. victims of harassment are less likely to engage in bullying of others.

Q: The following is often a trademark of persistent bullies: A. more troubled family relationships. B. more troubled peer relationships. C. greater difficulty controlling aggression. D. all of the above.

Q: All of the following are classifications for unpopular or disliked adolescents, except: A. aggressive. B. withdrawn. C. aggressive-withdrawn. D. offensive-reclusive.

Q: Which adolescent is most likely to be rejected as a result of aggressive behavior? A. Darlene, a male who is highly relationally aggressive B. Robert, a male who is highly relationally aggressive C. Donald, a male who is highly physically aggressive D. Ronald, a male who is moderately physically aggressive

Q: Adam and his family have been living in chronic poverty for the last few years. His mother has asked you (an expert!) whether their family's financial strain will place Adam at risk for psychological difficulties and problem behavior. She also asks you whether there is anything she can do alleviate the effects of poverty. What would you tell her?

Q: Imagine you are a school psychologist at a public high school. Your school has just accepted three new transfer students: Vincent, who has been reared by his adoptive parents; James, who lives with foster parents; and Peter, who has been reared by lesbian parents. The principal has asked you whether any of these adolescents are at risk for behavioral problems or maladjustment. What would you tell him? Who is most at risk? Who is least at risk? Why might this be?

Q: Why is it so hard to teach adolescents to "just say no" to things adults disapprove, such as drinking, smoking, and having risky sex? A. Unfortunately, these behaviors are typically associated with being popular. B. Unfortunately, adolescents are unwilling (or unable) to resist peer influence. C. Neither A nor B is true. D. Both A and B are true.

Q: Even though it was clear that another student, Raul, accidentally pushed Noah, he insisted that the Raul did it on purpose. What phenomenon is this? A. hostile attributional bias B. status bias C. in-group vs. out-group D. iatrogenic effect

Q: Which of the following statements about cliques is false? A. Cliques are typically more emotionally salient for adolescents involved in antisocial behavior. B. Cliques are typically composed of adolescents from the same socioeconomic background. C. Cliques are typically composed of friends with similar interests and attitudes. D. Cliques rarely have members who differ in age.

Q: The chief determinant of popularity in high school is: A. physical attractiveness. B. academic achievement. C. being good at sports. D. social competence.

Q: According to many well-designed studies that have looked at the psychological consequences of growing up with lesbian or gay parents: A. the quality of the parent-child relationships at home is more contentious than in straight families. B. children and adolescents with lesbian or gay parents are not psychologically different from those with straight parents. C. children and adolescents with lesbian or gay parents differ substantially from those with straight parents in the domains of gender identity and sexual orientation. D. children and adolescents with lesbian or gay parents suffer from more emotional turmoil than children and adolescents with straight parents.

Q: Why are children who have spent time in the foster care system more at risk for emotional and behavioral problems? A. The greater risk for emotional and behavioral problems among foster care children could be the product of the abuse or neglect that necessitated their removal from their biological parents' home. B. The greater risk for emotional and behavioral problems among foster care children could be because of the foster care placement itself. C. The greater risk for emotional and behavioral problems among foster care children could be because of the instability in living arrangements. D. All of the above are reasons that foster care children and adolescents may have more problems than other children and adolescents.

Q: Which of the following statements about adolescents who have been adopted or spent time in foster care is true? A. It is hard to generalize about the impact of adoption on adolescent development; however, research with youth in the foster care system consistently indicates that these individuals have more problems than other youth. B. Children and adolescents with foster or adoptive parents have more problems than other individuals. C. Foster care children are more detached and resilient, and consequently, have fewer problems than youth who have been adopted. D. There are no differences between youth who have been adopted or placed in foster care and youth who are reared by biological parents.

Q: New technologies and social innovations have: A. transformed family life, and as a result, parents don't really make a difference. B. not transformed family life; however, these technologies have caused parental influence to be overshadowed by the peer group. C. not changed the fact that adolescents continue to need the love, support and guidance of adults who care about them. D. given teens a new way to rebel against their parents' moral preferences.

Q: The belief that being on welfare has a negative impact on adolescents: A. has been substantiated by the research. B. is incorrect because there are few differences in the behavior, values, and family relationships between adolescents whose families are or are not on welfare. C. is incorrect because the most current research finds that adolescents whose families receive welfare do better in school and later in their professional lives. D. has been neither supported nor rejected.

Q: Luis's family has lived below the poverty level his entire life. Research suggests that Luis is likely to experience all of the following, except: A. greater exposure than other adolescents to violence. B. greater family cohesiveness than other adolescents his age. C. greater alienation from school than other adolescents his age. D. higher levels of stress than other adolescents his age.

Q: Kim lives in a poor neighborhood. As a result, Kim's mother drives her to school each morning and refuses to let her go out after dark. According to the textbook, Kim's mother is: A. suffering from the empty nest syndrome. B. using the promotive strategy. C. using the prohibitive strategy. D. using the restrictive strategy.

Q: The textbook states that _________ is the most critical influence on adolescents' adjustment. A. the quality of the parent-child relationships at home B. attending a good school C. financial security D. living in a safe neighborhood

Q: According to the textbook, approximately _____ of American children will experience their parents' divorce. A. 10% B. 50% C. 40% D. 60%

Q: Current research on the effects of remarriage indicates that: A. younger children have more problems than older children. B. boys and girls show equal distress. C. boys have more problems than girls. D. girls have more problems than boys.

Q: Which of the following statements about stepfamilies is false? A. Adolescents have an easier time adjusting to a stepfather if they have a good relationship with their biological father. B. Younger children have a harder time adjusting to stepfamilies than older adolescents. C. Adolescents growing up in stepfamilies have more problems than adolescents growing up in single-parent families. D. Girls show more difficulty in stepfamilies than boys.

Q: Research assessing the effects of stepfamilies on children's adjustment suggests that over time: A. if the remarriage lasts, gender differences in adjustment disappear. B. boys continue to adjust better than girls to the remarriage. C. girls adjust better than boys to the remarriage. D. girls and boys both experience serious adjustment problems even if the remarriage lasts.

Q: Jesse has just married a woman who has two adolescent daughters. These children will adjust best if Jesse establishes all of the following types of discipline, except: A. consistent. B. supportive. C. controlling. D. authoritative.

Q: When siblings are treated differently by parents, research shows that they are likely to: A. get along worse because they feel competition. B. perceive the discrepancy as being unfair. C. get along better because they feel unique. D. try to be more like one another.

Q: The term given in the textbook that describes siblings who are deliberately trying to be different from each other is: A. differential treatment. B. sibling deidentification. C. sibling rivalry. D. sibling discrepancy.

Q: One potential reason that Mallory and Mikey, a brother and sister growing up in the same family, have completely different personalities may be that: A. they have very different family experiences, both through differential treatment by parents and their own perceptions of similar experiences. B. gender differences in perception show that males are less likely than females to notice differential treatment by parents. C. they are not identical twins and so share only half of their genetic material. D. Mallory's athletic abilities lead Mikey to engage in sibling rivalry with her.

Q: Sarah is an excellent writer, but her younger sister Jane has always hated writing classes and instead has focused on developing gymnastic abilities. Sarah readily expresses disdain for gymnastics, so the girls feel that they are different enough to avoid direct competition. One explanation for this type of sibling behavior is called: A. family decision making. B. family contextual transformations. C. sibling rivalry. D. sibling deidentification.

Q: According to Family Systems Model, financial strain increases mothers' and fathers'______, which, in turn, make parents more irritable, which adversely affects the quality of their parenting. A. feelings of depression B. dissatisfaction with their marriages. C. conflicts over money D. All of the above are true.

Q: Denise's parents have both been laid off from work and are unable to pay the bills. Denise's parents are likely to do all of the following, except: A. become less nurturing toward Denise. B. begin using harsher and more inconsistent discipline than they had in the past. C. engage in drug and alcohol abuse. D. feel more depressed.

Q: The factor that seems most important in influencing how well children adjust to divorce over time is: A. the educational level of the parent. B. the degree of conflict between parents. C. the age of the parents. D. the sex of the custodial parent.

Q: Close to ____ of children in the United States grow up either in abject poverty or in low-income families. A. 15% B. 20% C. 30% D. 40%

Q: Which of the following is not a finding of social scientists regarding the effects of divorce on adolescents? A. The quality of an adolescent's relationship with important adults in the adolescent's life is more important than the number of parents in the home. B. It is the process of going through a divorce, not the change in family structure, that most affects the adolescent's mental health. C. The adverse consequences of divorce for adolescents are directly linked to living in a single-parent household. D. Some of the differences in the effects of divorce on adolescents are a result of genetic differences among individual adolescents.

Q: Why is parental divorce during early adolescence particularly stressful for the adolescent? A. Early adolescence is a time during which individuals are particularly sensitive to stress. B. Research has indicated that early adolescents have a strong need for male and female role models. C. Younger adolescents are likely to intentionally rebel against their parents. D. Younger adolescents have expensive "needs" and "wants."

Q: The _____ may act as a buffer for children growing up in single-parent households and plays an important role in the socialization of Black youth. A. extended family B. school guidance counselor C. involvement in religious activities D. peer group

Q: Matthew and Ryan both live in single-parent households. Matthew interacts with his grandparents every day, whereas Ryan has no contact with his extended family members. Who will be more likely to engage in adolescent misbehavior? A. Matthew B. Ryan C. Both will be equally delinquent. D. It depends on whether Matthew has brothers and sisters.

Q: Which of the following statements regarding divorce in America is true? A. The divorce rate has been steadily rising since 1980. B. Black youth are more likely to experience their parents' remarriage than other adolescents. C. The rate of divorce is lower for second marriages than for first marriages. D. Social support from relatives has been found to buffer the effects of living in a single-parent household.

Q: Adolescents from divorced families frequently display all of the following negative effects, except: A. social rejection as a result of stigma. B. lower academic achievement. C. behavior problems. D. poorer psychosocial adjustment.

Q: Amalia is most likely to be adversely affected by her parents' divorce if: A. the conflict between her parents is covert. B. she blames herself for her parents' problems. C. her parents attempt to keep their relationship with her positive. D. her parents keep her out of their arguments.

Q: Although young children may seem unaffected by a divorce at the time, problems may emerge when they are adolescents. This delayed effect is called: A. a sleeper effect. B. a deferred effect. C. sluggish adjustment. D. a generational tendency.

Q: Although Sarah's parents divorced seven years ago, the counselor at school attributes Sarah's poor school performance and delinquent behavior to the divorce. This counselor is probably referring to the: A. deferred effect of divorce. B. sleeper effect of divorce. C. generation gap between adolescents and parents. D. sluggish adjustment of adolescence.

Q: According to the textbook, during adolescence, which are more influential, nonshared or shared environmental influences? A. shared B. nonshared C. shared and nonshared environmental factors are equally influential D. the most important issue is the interaction between the shared and nonshared factors

Q: Which of the following is least likely to be affected by genetic factors? A. self-perception of scholastic competence B. aggression and antisocial behavior C. risk for suicide and depression D. intelligence

Q: All of the following research examples support the notion that the environment often determines whether certain genetic tendencies are actualized, except: A. genetic influences on sexual activity are stronger when adolescents attend schools in which a higher proportion of students are having sex at an early age. B. genetic influences on antisocial behavior are stronger among adolescents who have delinquent peers. C. genetic influences on depression are stronger among adolescents exposed to family conflict. D. All of the above support this notion.

Q: With regard to single-parent families in the United States: A. more of these families are the result of divorce than of the mother never having been married. B. only 5% of children in single-parent homes live with their fathers. C. the classification of "single-parent household" often includes other adults, such as the unmarried partner of a child's parent. D. of young people living in two-adult households, almost one-third of them live with only one of their biological parents.

Q: Which of the following adolescents is most likely to experience their parents' divorce? A. Janet, a White adolescent B. John, a White adolescent C. Jeff, a Black adolescent D. Bruce, a Hispanic adolescent

Q: Black adolescents are _____ likely to experience their parents' divorce and _____ likely to experience their remarriage. A. more; less B. more; more C. less; more D. less; less

Q: The field of behavior genetics examines all of the following, except: A. whether and how much given traits are genetically versus environmentally determined. B. whether the same environment affects people with different genetic makeups in different ways. C. whether people with different genetic makeups evoke different reactions from their environment. D. Behavioral genetics examines all of these issues.

Q: According to behavioral geneticists, siblings are actually quite different from each other. Which of the following has not been used to explain this difference? A. Siblings only share a portion of their genes. B. Siblings may experience their family environment very differently. C. Siblings go through the pubertal transition at different times. D. Siblings may have very different experiences outside the family.

Q: What factors would explain the fact that Dorothy and Rose, sisters who are only 1 year apart in age, have different memories of their family life as they were growing up? A. shared environment B. nonshared environment C. genetic factors D. differentiated environment

Q: Which of the following is considered a shared environmental influence for siblings? A. family socioeconomic status B. differential treatment by parents C. peer relations D. school experiences

Q: Michelle is in late adolescence. She excels in school, holds an after-school job, and participates in community service projects on the weekends. Michelle also has lots of friends at school. Her parents most likely use which parenting style? A. indulgent B. authoritative C. indifferent D. authoritarian

Q: Through which of the following behaviors does an adolescent help shape authoritative parenting? A. by acting up to make their parents feel short-tempered, impatient, or distant B. by being aggressive, dependent, or psychosocially immature to elicit better parenting C. by providing parents with very little knowledge about their behavior or whereabouts, to encourage parental monitoring D. by displaying psychosocial maturity, leading parents to encourage further development of maturity

Q: Which of the following parenting styles is most closely associated with overall psychological competence? A. authoritative B. authoritarian C. indulgent D. indifferent

Q: Ethnic differences in parenting practices suggest that: A. authoritative parenting is most likely to be used by White and Asian families. B. ethnic minority families are less likely than White families to use an authoritative parenting style because they are less educated than White parents. C. even though authoritative parenting is less commonly used by ethnic minority families, its effects on adolescent development are beneficial in all ethnic groups. D. authoritarian parenting has equally negative effects on adolescent development across all ethnic groups.

Q: Which parenting characteristic is more prevalent among ethnic minorities? A. supportiveness B. demandingness C. warmness D. fairness

Q: Which of the following statements is most true of minority families and parenting styles? A. Because ethnic minorities are more likely to live in dangerous areas, parental control may actually be beneficial for these adolescents. B. The distinction between authoritative parenting's positive outcomes for adolescents and authoritarian parenting's negative outcomes holds true across all cultures and ethnic groups. C. Authoritarian parenting is most prevalent among White middle-class families. D. Authoritarian parenting styles are associated with an even greater number of adverse effects for ethnic minority adolescents, relative to their White adolescent counterparts.

Q: Based on developmental research, which adolescent is most likely to experience healthy development? A. Kenji, whose parents encourage dependence and connection B. Benji, whose parents engage with him in verbal give-and-take C. Sanjay, whose parents encourage dependence and personal distance D. Bernie, whose parents encourage autonomy and personal distance

Q: According to research, _________ can be an effective way for enhancing the development of adolescents' reasoning abilities, moral judgment and empathy: A. family discussions in which decisions, rules, and expectations are explained. B. giving adolescents free rein. C. helping adolescents better enforce rules for their younger siblings. D. restricting their activities so they avoid any mistakes.

Q: Which of the following is not one of the 10 Basic Principles of Good Parenting? A. being too loving is too indulgent B. be involved in your child's life C. avoid harsh discipline D. adapt your parenting to fit your child

Q: Over the course of adolescence, relationships among siblings become more egalitarian but _______ distant and _______ emotionally intense. A. more; less B. less; more C. more; more D. less; less

Q: All of the following statements accurately reflect research on adolescent-sibling relationships, except: A. companionship, nurturance, and support are regular features of adolescent-sibling relationships. B. adolescent-sibling relationships involve more conflict than adolescent-friend relationships. C. adolescent-sibling relationships are characterized by a large increase in sibling rivalry. D. the quality of adolescent sibling relationships is affected by the quality of the parent-child relationship.

Q: Which of the following statements concerning sibling relationships is false? A. The quality of sibling relationships affects adolescents' peer relationships. B. The quality of sibling relationships affects the adolescents' general adjustment. C. Positive sibling relationships contribute to an adolescent's school competence and sociability. D. Siblings are likely to be closer in families under economic stress than in affluent families.

Q: Marcus feels like his parents don't care about him because they allow him to set his own rules and they seldom provide much support. He even wishes they would punish him because that would at least indicate they are paying attention to him. Marcus's parents would be described best as fitting into which of Baumrind's parenting styles? A. authoritative B. authoritarian C. indulgent D. indifferent

Q: Optimal development during adolescence appears to be facilitated by the ________ style of parenting. A. authoritative B. authoritarian C. indulgent D. neglectful

Q: Authoritative parenting promotes intellectual development and psychosocial maturity through all of the following, except: A. encouraging discussions about decisions and rules that help children understand social relationships. B. asserting parental authority by turning adolescents' personal decisions into moral issues. C. engaging children and adolescents in verbal give-and-take. D. encouraging understanding of social systems, which helps in the development of reasoning, judgment, and empathy.

Q: According to Baumrind, children of indulgent parents tend to be: A. more involved in delinquent behavior. B. less mature and more conforming to their peers. C. more impulsive. D. less socially adept.