Hartmann Psychology 326: Social & Personality Spring '98 Development Study Questions and Sample Test Items The midterm (and final) will consist of two types of items: brief discussion items and multiple choice items. The multiple choice portion of the midterm exam will consist of 3-5 questions from each chapter, 1-2 questions from each lecture, and additional questions from the panel presentations. Multiple choice questions are illustrated by the material under II (also see old exams on reserve at Marriott). Essay questions will be taken (based upon) the following longer discussion questions given under I. I. Longer discussion questions: 1. Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of cross-sectional and longitudinal comparisons as methods of assessing developmental change. 2. Freud believed that males develop stronger superegos than do females. Why did he make this claim? 3. What are the primary contributions of the ethological and behavioral genetics positions to the understanding of social and personality development? 4. How does B. F. Skinner distinguish punishment from negative reinforcement? Why did he believe that punishment was less effective than reinforcement as a socialization technique? 5. Describe the evidence to suggest that a child’s proficiency as a roletaker both influences and is influenced by his/her interactions with peers. 6. Evaluate a child's problem behavior (e.g., selfishness) in terms of Bandura's social cognitive theory. What questions would Bandura ask to understand the problem behavior? What suggestions might he make for changing the behavior? 7. How might one improve the attachment relationship of hard-to-like babies? How might one improve the attachment relationships of "difficult" parents? 8. Describe the evidence suggesting that fathers play an important role in the social and emotional development of infants and toddlers. 9. What does the study of infrahuman species suggest to us about the importance of maternal deprivation and attachment relationships? 10. What are the primary indicators of changes in children's development of a sense of self? 11. What causal schemas (principles) do children use in explaining social behavior? How do these schemas change with increasing age? 12. In terms of Scarr and McCartney's (1983) theory of genotype-environment interactions, why should all siblings other than identical twins become increasingly dissimilar to one another over time? Or should they? 13. How might strangers establish positive relations with a wary infant? Describe two strategies that parents might use to make separations more tolerable for their young children. 14. Discuss at least two reasons why minority youth may have a more difficult time than White adolescents do at forging a personal identity. 15. As a new parent, you decide that you want your child to become a high achiever. What particular childrearing strategies might you use in accomplishing this objective? II. Multiple choice questions, setup, etc. Directions (1) Be sure to print your name and social security number in the indicated squares on the back of the IBM answer sheet provided you. (2) Also blacken the numbers or letters of the alphabet that correspond to this information. (3) Indicate your test form (A or B) on the top right-hand corner of the front page of the answer sheet. (4) Then blacken (with a pencil) the most correct alternative for each question on this same answer sheet. Do not leave any questions unanswered -- there is no penalty for guessing. (5) You should also circle the correct answer on your test form which you should keep. The correct answers will be made available to you as you leave the classroom. [Note on my exams: You may appear any question by providing a written rationale for your answer within 2 week days of the exam. Give your name, test form (A or B), item number, and, for example, text page and paragraph in support of your argument. You must include this information in order for your appeal to be considered.] 1. Which of the following is perhaps the most controversial aspect of Freud's theory? a. that early childhood experiences are crucial to later performance b. that mechanisms of defense are employed in anxiety-arousing situations c. that different conflicts typify different stages of development d. that part of our experiences are unconscious e. that two basic instincts, Eros and Thanatos, are the motive forces in life 2. According to the class syllabus, the instructor a. suffers from rampant methodological criticalness. b. is a warm softy who is incapable of giving a grade lower than C. c. can usually be found at the Union pool tables. d. is a distant relation of Ana Freud. e. prefers each student to approach learning about social development in a personalized manner. 3. The criterion that theories should be economical is sometimes referred to as a. Occam's razor. b. Morgan's cannonade. c. the falsifiability criterion. d. the irreversibility criterion. e. supply-side modeling. 4. The major shortcoming of Piaget's theory is that it a. fails to explain how children progress from one stage of cognitive development to the next. b. ignores the child's role in intellectual development. c. inappropriately likens the child's thinking to that of a computer. d. does not accurately predict the age at which a child enters a particular stage of cognitive development. e. failed to control his heavy pipe smoking. 5. The use of unusual settings or subjects in a developmental study may represent a threat to ________ validity. a. internal b. statistical conclusion c. construct d. external e. face Answers: 1. e; 2. a; 3. a; 4. a (d is a distant second); 5. d Psychology 326 (Hartmann, Sp'98), Study questions and sample test items, p. 3