Chapter Test

Test yourself repeatedly throughout your studies. This will not only help you figure out what you know and don’t know; the testing itself will help you learn and remember the information more effectively thanks to the testing effect.

Question 8.40

A mental grouping of similar things is called a _________.

concept

Question 8.41

The most systematic procedure for solving a problem is a(n)___________.

algorithm

Question 8.42

Oscar describes his political beliefs as “strongly liberal,” but he has decided to explore opposing viewpoints. How might he be affected by confirmation bias and belief perseverance in this effort?

Oscar will need to carefully guard against confirmation bias (searching for support for his own views and ignoring contradictory evidence) as he seeks out opposing viewpoints. Even if Oscar encounters new information that disproves his beliefs, belief perseverance may lead him to cling to these views anyway. It will take more compelling evidence to change his beliefs than it took to create them.

Question 8.43

A major obstacle to problem solving is fixation, which is a(n)

  • a. tendency to base our judgments on vivid memories.
  • b. tendency to wait for insight to occur.
  • c. inability to view a problem from a new perspective.
  • d. rule of thumb for judging the likelihood of an event in terms of our mental image of it.

c

Question 8.44

After the 9/11 attacks by foreign-born terrorists, some observers initially assumed that the 2003 U. S. East Coast blackout was probably also the work of foreign-born terrorists. This assumption illustrates the_________heuristic.

availability

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Question 8.45

When consumers respond more positively to ground beef described as “75 percent lean” than to the same product labeled “25 percent fat,” they have been influenced by ___________.

framing

Question 8.46

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of a creative person?

  • a. Expertise
  • b. Extrinsic motivation
  • c. A venturesome personality
  • d. Imaginative thinking skills

b

Question 8.47

Children reach the one-word stage of speech development at about

  • a. 4 months.
  • b. 6 months.
  • c. 1 year.
  • d. 2 years.

c

Question 8.48

When young children speak in short phrases using mostly verbs and nouns, this is referred to as_________ ____________.

telegraphic speech

Question 8.49

According to Chomsky, all languages share a(n)____________ _________.

universal grammar

Question 8.50

Most researchers agree that apes can

  • a. communicate through symbols.
  • b. reproduce most human speech sounds.
  • c. master language in adulthood.
  • d. surpass a human 3-year-old in language skills.

a

Question 8.51

Charles Spearman suggested we have one _____________ _____________underlying success across a variety of intellectual abilities.

general intelligence (g)

Question 8.52

The existence of savant syndrome seems to support

  • a. Sternberg’s distinction among three types of intelligence.
  • b. criticism of multiple intelligence theories.
  • c. Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences.
  • d. Thorndike’s view of social intelligence.

c

Question 8.53

Sternberg’s three types of intelligence are __________, ___________, and _____________.

academic; practical; creative

Question 8.54

Emotionally intelligent people tend to

  • a. seek immediate gratification.
  • b. understand their own emotions but not those of others.
  • c. understand others’ emotions but not their own.
  • d. succeed in their careers.

d

Question 8.55

The IQ of a 6-year-old with a measured mental age of 9 would be

  • a. 67.
  • b. 133.
  • c. 86.
  • d. 150.

d

Question 8.56

The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) is best able to tell us

  • a. what part of an individual’s intelligence is determined by genetic inheritance.
  • b. whether the test-taker will succeed in a job.
  • c. how the test-taker compares with other adults in vocabulary and arithmetic reasoning.
  • d. whether the test-taker has specific skills for music and the performing arts.

c

Question 8.57

The Stanford-Binet, the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children yield consistent results, for example on retesting. In other words, these tests have high ________.

reliability

Question 8.58

The strongest support for heredity’s influence on intelligence is the finding that

  • a. identical twins, but not other siblings, have nearly identical intelligence test scores.
  • b. the correlation between intelligence test scores of fraternal twins is higher than that for other siblings.
  • c. mental similarities between adopted siblings increase with age.
  • d. children in impoverished families have similar intelligence scores.

a

Question 8.59

To say that the heritability of intelligence is about 50 percent means that 50 percent of

  • a. an individual’s intelligence is due to genetic factors.
  • b. the similarities between two groups of people are attributable to genes.
  • c. the variation in intelligence within a group of people is attributable to genetic factors.
  • d. intelligence is due to the mother’s genes and the rest is due to the father’s genes.

c

Question 8.60

The environmental influence that has the clearest, most profound effect on intellectual development is

  • a. exposing normal infants to educational DVDs before age 1.
  • b. growing up in an economically disadvantaged home or neighborhood.
  • c. being raised in conditions of extreme deprivation.
  • d. being an identical twin.

c

Question 8.61

In prosperous country X everyone eats all they want. In country Y the rich are well fed, but the semistarved poor are often thin. In which country will the heritability of body weight be greater?

The heritability (difference due to genes) of body weight will be greater in country X, where environmental differences in available nutrition are minimal.

Question 8.62

___________ ___________can lead to poor performance on tests by undermining test-takers’ belief that they can do well on the test.

Stereotype threat

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Answering these questions will help you make these concepts more personally meaningful, and therefore more memorable.

Question 8.63

What are the things you fear? Are some of those fears out of proportion to statistical risk? Are there other areas of your life where you need to take more precautions?

Question 8.64

Can you recall a time when contradictory information challenged one of your views? Was it hard for you to consider the opposite view? Did you change your mind?

Question 8.65

Do you think that young children should be required to learn a second language? Why or why not?

Question 8.66

How could you use mental practice to improve your performance in some area of your life?

Question 8.67

Can you think of a time when you felt an animal was communicating with you? How might you put that to a test?

Question 8.68

The concept of multiple intelligences suggests that different people have different gifts. What are yours?

Question 8.69

How have environmental influences shaped your ability to reach your academic potential?

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