OpenStax Psychology 2e Test Bank – Chapter 9: Lifespan Development

Multiple Choice

1. ________ development involves growth and changes in the body and brain, the senses, motor
skills, and health and wellness.

A. Cognitive
B. Learning
*C. Physical
D. Psychosocial

Text Section: 9.1 What is Lifespan Development?

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Easy

2. ________ development involves learning, attention, memory, language, thinking, reasoning,

and creativity.

A. Artistic
*B. Cognitive
C. Emotional
D. Psychosocial

Text Section: 9.1 What is Lifespan Development?

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Easy

3. Emily is a doctoral student in psychology. She plans to use ________ to complete her doctoral
paper, asking individuals to self-report important information about how their thoughts,
experiences, and beliefs differ over a 10-year period.

A. experiments
B. case studies
C. naturalistic observations
*D. surveys

Text Section: 9.1 What is Lifespan Development?

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Moderate

4. What does nature refer to in the nature vs. nurture debate?

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A. cognitive capacity
B. environment and culture
*C. genes and biology
D. language acquisition

Text Section: 9.1 What is Lifespan Development?

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Moderate

5. What does nurture refer to in the nature vs. nurture debate?

A. biology
*B. environment and culture
C. genetics
D. sexual preference

Text Section: 9.1 What is Lifespan Development?

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Moderate

6. Age-specific approximations of when a certain skill or ability should first occur in normal
development are called developmental ________.

*A. milestones
B. norms
C. markers
D. boundaries

Text Section: 9.1 What is Lifespan Development?

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Easy

7. When development proceeds in a stepwise fashion with periods of growth interrupted by

periods where growth is not occurring, we’d say that development is taking a(n) ________
trajectory.

A. continuous
B. unidirectional
*C. discontinuous
D. bidirectional

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Text Section: 9.1 What is Lifespan Development?
Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Moderate

8. Which theorist is credited with proposing the psychosexual stages of development?

A. Erik Erikson
B. Jean Piaget
C. Lawrence Kohlberg
*D. Sigmund Freud

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Moderate

9. According to ________, lifespan development encompasses eight stages and at each stage we
encounter a psychosocial crisis that must be resolved.

A. Abraham Maslow
*B. Erik Erikson
C. Jean Piaget
D. Lawrence Kohlberg

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Moderate

10. ________ are concepts (mental models) that are used to help us categorize and interpret
information.

A. Categories
B. Cognitions
C. Prototypes
*D. Schemata

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Difficult

11. Between birth and one year, infants are dependent on their caregivers; therefore, caregivers
who are responsive and sensitive to their infant’s needs help their baby to develop a sense of the

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world as a safe, predictable place. In Erikson’s developmental theory, what is the primary
developmental task of this stage?

A. autonomy vs. shame/doubt

B. identity vs. confusion
C. industry vs. inferiority
*D. trust vs. mistrust

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Moderate

12. One-year-old Ainsley learned the schema for trucks because his family has a truck. When
Ainsley sees cars driving on television, she says, “Look mommy, truck!” This exemplifies
________.

A. accommodation
B. egocentrism
*C. assimilation
D. centration

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Difficult

13. After age 65, most people are attempting to assess their lives and make sense of life and the
meaning of their contributions. Within the psychosocial model of development, what is the
primary developmental task of this stage?

A. generativity vs. stagnation

B. identity vs. guilt
C. initiative vs. guilt
*D. integrity vs. despair

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Difficult

14. 18-month-old Gordon learned the schema for apples. When Gordon sees tomatoes at the
grocery store, he says, “Look mommy, apples!” His mother tells him that the food he sees at the
store is a tomato, not an apple. He now has separate schemata for tomatoes and apples. This
exemplifies ________.

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*A. accommodation
B. assimilation
C. seriation
D. reversibility

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Difficult

15. During Jean Piaget’s ________ stage, the world is experienced through what we can take in
through our perceptual systems and how we can move our bodies.

A. concrete operational
B. formal operational
C. preoperational
*D. sensorimotor

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Easy

16. During Piaget’s proposed ________ stage of development, children understand events and
analogies logically, and they can perform simple mathematical operations. At the same time they
lack the ability to think abstractly.

*A. concrete operational

B. formal operational
C. preoperational
D. sensorimotor

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Difficult

17. Adolescents (ages 12–18) experiment with and develop a sense of who they are and what
roles they want to play. Erik Erikson would argue that during this period adolescents face
the________ task of development.

A. generativity vs. stagnation

*B. identity vs. confusion
C. isolation vs. intimacy
D. trust vs. mistrust

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Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories
Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Easy

18. Madeline is seven months old. Her mother is eating a cookie and Madeline wants some. Her
mother hides the cookie under a napkin, but Madeline is not fooled. She knows the cookie is still
there. What does this exemplify?

A. egocentrism
*B. object permanence
C. reversibility
D. stranger anxiety

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Moderate

19. Which of the following illustrates conservation?

A. Deirdre believes that five pennies have more value than two nickels but he doesn’t know the
value of either coin by itself.
B. Joseph saves his energy by brushing his teeth in the shower but doesn’t realize that he is
wasting water that way.
C. Rebekah recycles her glass bottles but not her cell phone batteries because she doesn’t think
they can be recycled.
*D. Scott knows that one piece of pizza cut into two slices is the same amount as cutting the
same piece of pizza into three slices.

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Difficult

20. Jory, a six year old, is picking out a card for his mother’s birthday. He picks the card with a
picture of Lightning McQueen, reasoning that since he loves Cars his mother does to. What does
this exemplify?

A. conservation
*B. egocentrism
C. abstract thought
D. reversibility

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Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories
Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Easy

21. Elroy decided not to cheat on the exam because he would fail the class if he was caught and
he’d get punished by his parents. What stage of moral development does this exemplify?

A. conventional
B. formal operational
C. post-conventional
*D. pre-conventional

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Moderate

22. Which of the following is not a developmental issue children face during the preoperational
stage?

A. egocentrism
B. language development
*C. object permanence
D. pretend play

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Difficult

23. According to Jean Piaget, in what stage do children begin to use abstract thinking processes?

A. concrete operational
*B. formal operational
C. preoperational
D. sensorimotor

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Easy

24. Which theorist promoted the idea that development is fundamentally affected by one’s
culture as well as their interactions with their own environment?

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A. Piaget
B. Kohlberg
*C. Vygotsky
D. Ainsworth

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Easy

25. Britta knows that it is wrong to break into a store that is closed, but there is a medical
emergency and she has no cell phone with her. Her date has collapsed on the street and is having
a seizure. Britta breaks the window of a local store, unlocks the door, and lets herself in to call
the police. She stays behind to explain her behavior to the store owner, who shows up shortly
after he is called. Britta is operating at the ________ level of Kohlberg’s theory of morality.

*A. post-conventional
B. pre-conventional
C. conventional
D. concrete operational

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Moderate

26. The notion that the manner in which one’s brain develops can have a significant impact on a
person’s cognitive functioning is central to the ________ perspective in developmental
psychology.

*A. neuroconstructivist
B. biopsychosocial
C. epigenetic
D. naturist

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Easy

27. A(an) ________ begins as a one-cell structure that is created when a sperm and egg merge.

A. embryo
B. placenta
C. fetus
*D. zygote

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Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development
Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Difficult

28. Grasping a toy, writing with a pencil, and using a spoon are all examples of ________ motor
skills.

*A. fine
B. gross
C. native
D. manipulative

Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Difficult

29. Balancing, running, and jumping are all examples of ________ motor skills.

A. fine
*B. gross
C. reflexive
D. native

Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Difficult

30. Umberto is a one year old, and his mother is sensitive and responsive to his needs. He is
distressed when his mother leaves him, and he is happy to see her when she returns. What kind
of attachment is this?

A. avoidant
B. disorganized
C. resistant
*D. secure

Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Easy

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31. Jules is participating in the Strange Situation experiment. When his mother returns, he
freezes, and then behaves erratically. In fact, he runs away from his mother. What kind of
attachment is this?

A. avoidant
*B. disorganized
C. resistant
D. secure

Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Difficult

32. Carissa’s parents let her stay up as late as she wants. She is allowed to pick out her own
clothes and decide when and what she wants to eat. Her parents act more like her friends than
authority figures. What kind of parenting style is this?

A. authoritarian
B. authoritative
C. Freudian
*D. permissive

Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Easy

33. Which parenting style is most encouraged in modern America?

A. authoritarian
*B. authoritative
C. disorganized
D. permissive

Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Moderate

34. Early maturing girls are ________.

*A. at a higher risk of depression, substance abuse, and eating disorders

B. less likely to drop out of high school
C. more confident
D. more likely to go to college

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Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development
Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Moderate

35. Which of the following is not one of the reasons for the new lifespan development category
called emerging adulthood?

A. changes in the workforce

B. changing cultural expectations
C. taking longer to complete a college degree
*D. younger average age for marriage

Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Difficult

36. During adolescence there is a tendency to see people engage in higher levels of risk-taking
behavior. Emotional outbursts are also quite common. This is explained by the relative
underdevelopment of the ________ lobe of the cerebral cortex.

A. occipital
B. temporal
*C. frontal
D. parietal

Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Moderate

37. The goal of hospice care is to provide

A. medical options for the treatment of terminal illnesses so that death can be avoided.
*B. death with dignity and pain management in a humane and comfortable setting.
C. liaisons to experimental treatments that might not be readily available for some patients.
D. legal options for family members making medical decisions on the part of another.

Text Section: 9.4 Death and Dying

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Moderate

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38. Victoria has learned that she has metastatic breast cancer and has only a few months to live.
She immediately goes to church and prays that she will “change her ways” and will become a
model Christian if God will just heal her illness. Victoria is at the _______ stage of grieving.

*A. bargaining
B. denial
C. anger
D. depression

Text Section: 9.4 Death and Dying

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Easy

39. What is an advanced directive?

A. A legal document that bars anyone from providing resuscitative care if one’s heart should stop
or they stop breathing.
B. A statement of what a person wants done with their estate, including who their possessions
should go to.
*C. A legal document that provides specific interventions that a person wants.
D. An indication of what a person wants for their own funeral ceremonies (including requesting
that no funeral be held).

Text Section: 9.4 Death and Dying

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Moderate

40. Ross has learned that he has Parkinson’s disease, and that in time he will lose some of his
cognitive faculties. He and his wife have a lawyer draw up a document that names her a health
care ________ who will be able to make medical decisions for Ross when he is unable to do so
for himself.

A. beneficiary
B. designee
*C. proxy
D. executor

Text Section: 9.4 Death and Dying

Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Moderate

Short Answer

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41. Identify any four stages from Erikson’s psychosocial theory along with their approximate
ages and the psychosocial crisis associated with each one.

Answers will vary.

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Moderate

42. Explain the Three-Mountain Task used by Jean Piaget.

Sample Answer: Jean Piaget developed the Three-Mountain Task to determine the level of
egocentrism displayed by children. Children view a 3-dimensional mountain scene from one
viewpoint. The children are asked what another person at a different viewpoint would see in the
same scene.

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Difficult

43. Why did Jean Piaget call his second stage of cognitive development the preoperational stage?

Sample Answer: The term operational refers to logical manipulation of information. Children
between the ages of 2 and 7 are considered to be preoperational because they cannot logically
manipulate information.

Text Section: 9.2 Lifespan Theories

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Difficult

44. List, in order, the three stages of prenatal development.

Sample Answer: The three stages of prenatal development are the germinal, embryonic, and fetal
stages.

Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Easy

45. How are primary sexual characteristics different from secondary sexual characteristics?

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Sample Answer: Primary sexual characteristics are organs specifically needed for reproduction,
like the uterus and ovaries in females and testes in males. Secondary sexual characteristics are
physical signs of sexual maturation that do not directly involve sex organs, such as breasts and
hips in girls and facial hair and a deepened voice in boys.

Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Easy

46. What were the five stages of grief proposed by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross?

Answer: Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance.

Text Section: 9.4 Death and Dying

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Easy

47. What is the name of a document that mandates that a person NOT receive steps to revive a
person if their heart stops beating or if they stop breathing?

Answer: A DNR, or Do Not Resuscitate, order.

Text Section: 9.4 Death and Dying

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Moderate

Essay

48. List and discuss the three different debates among those who study human growth and
development. Which side of each issue do you endorse, and why?

Answers will vary.

Text Section: 9.1 What is Lifespan Development?

Bloom’s Level: Understand
Difficulty: Difficult

49. Explain what kind of parenting style you will use, or you are using, to raise your own
children, and what later outcomes you’d expect as a result.

Answers will vary.

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Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development
Bloom’s Level: Apply
Difficulty: Difficult

50. Describe the Strange Situation experiment.

Sample Answer: Mary Ainsworth wanted to know if children differ in the ways they bond, and if
so, why. To find the answers, she used the Strange Situation procedure to study attachment
between mothers and their infants. In the Strange Situation, the mother (or primary caregiver)
and the infant (age 12–18 months) are placed in a room together. There are toys in the room, and
the caregiver and child spend some time alone in the room. After the child has had time to
explore her surroundings, a stranger enters the room. The mother then leaves her baby with the
stranger. After a few minutes, she returns to comfort her child. Based on how the infants/toddlers
responded to the separation and reunion, Ainsworth identified three types of parent-child
attachments: secure, avoidant, and resistant.

Text Section: 9.3 Stages of Development

Bloom’s Level: Remember
Difficulty: Moderate

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