W03 Cognitive Development Here are 30 multiple-choice questions based on Lecture 03: Cognitive Development. The questions cover Object Knowledge, Physical Knowledge, Social Knowledge, Conceptual Knowledge, and Numbers. The three example questions provided in the lecture notes are included (Questions 16, 18, and 25). 1. According to Piaget's classic theory, at what age does the understanding of object permanence typically develop? At birth Around 3 to 4 months Around 8 months Around 12 months 2. In the classic A-not-B task, what specific error defines the "A-not-B error"? The infant fails to find the object in location A after watching it being hidden there. The infant searches in location A for the object, even after watching it being hidden in location B. The infant searches in location B immediately, ignoring location A entirely. The infant loses interest and does not search for the object at all. 3. Which of the following is a factor that makes the A-not-B error less likely to occur? A longer delay between hiding and searching. A younger age of the child. A higher number of times the object was hidden in location A previously. Distinctive visual differences between the hiding locations. 4. In Bower et al.'s (1971) "Anticipatory Looking" study, what behavior suggested 5-month-olds understood the object continued to exist behind the screen? They reached for the screen to pull it away. They looked back at the starting point of the object's trajectory. Their eyes tracked the movement towards the screen and continued along the trajectory to the other side. They cried when the object disappeared. 5. What was the significance of the "Reaching in the Dark" study by Clifton et al. (1991)? It proved that infants are afraid of the dark. It showed that 6.5-month-olds could use mental representations to guide reaching for objects they could hear but not see. It demonstrated that infants only reach for objects that are glowing or illuminated. It showed that infants fail to reach for objects if they cannot see their own hands. 6. The "Violation of Expectancy" (VoE) procedure relies on which logical assumption about infant behavior? Infants will smile more at events they find probable. Infants will look longer at an event that violates their expectations (is "impossible") compared to a possible event. Infants will look away quickly from events that are confusing or impossible. Infants will reach for objects that violate the laws of physics. 7. In Baillargeon's "Rabbit/Carrot" study, what result suggested that 5-month-old infants possessed object permanence? They looked longer when the short rabbit disappeared behind the short screen. They looked equally long at all events. They looked longer when the tall rabbit failed to appear in the window of the short screen. They looked longer when the tall rabbit appeared on the other side of the screen. 8. Why might infants succeed in Violation of Expectancy tasks but fail the A-not-B task regarding object permanence? VoE tasks are simply more entertaining than A-not-B tasks. A-not-B tasks require better visual acuity than VoE tasks. A-not-B tasks require inhibitory control and action planning, which depend on the immature prefrontal cortex. Infants do not actually have object permanence during VoE tasks; it is a statistical anomaly. 9. Regarding physical knowledge of gravity, Kim & Spelke (1992) found that 7-month-olds look longer at which event? A ball rolling down a slope. A ball rolling up a slope unaided. A ball stopping at the bottom of a slope. A ball dropping straight down. 10. How does the understanding of "support relations" develop between 3 and 12.5 months of age? It is innate and fully formed at birth. It develops suddenly around 12 months when the child begins to walk. It is a gradually refined understanding where infants make progressively more complex judgments about what support is sufficient (e.g., contact vs. amount of contact). Infants lose the ability to understand support relations as they age. 11. In Woodward's (1998) study on social knowledge, 6-month-olds looked longer when a human arm reached for: The same object in a new location. A new object in the old location. The same object in the same location. A hidden object. 12. In the study by Johnson (2003) regarding a "blob" object, under what condition did infants follow the blob's gaze? When the blob was completely silent and motionless. When the blob had a human face painted on it. When the blob "vocalized" and moved contingently in response to the infant. When the blob moved randomly around the room. 13. Kuhlmeier et al. (2003) demonstrated that 12-month-olds attribute dispositional states by showing them a film of a ball, a triangle, and a square. What did the infants expect? The ball to approach the square that blocked it. The ball to avoid both shapes equally. The ball to approach the triangle that "helped" it. The ball to stay at the bottom of the hill. 14. Which level of category hierarchy is usually learned first by children? Superordinate level (e.g., Living things) Subordinate level (e.g., Parrots) Basic level (e.g., Birds) Abstract level (e.g., Concepts) 15. What are "child-basic categories"? Categories that are exactly the same as adult basic categories. Categories formed only by infants under 6 months. Categories whose generality is between basic and subordinate, such as "things that roll" instead of "balls". Categories that include only imaginary objects. 16. Which of these represents the most typical organization of superordinate, subordinate, and basic category levels that young children tend to form? animals/beagles/dogs parents/teachers/grandparents objects/plants/beagles animals/beagles/pets 17. What is "perceptual categorization" in the context of infant development? Grouping objects based on their genetic history. The grouping together of objects that have similar appearances (color, size, movement). Grouping objects based on their function (e.g., tools). The ability to count objects in a set. 18. Which statement BEST demonstrates that infants form perceptual categories? Infants habituate to photos of very different-looking mammals and stay habituated (bored) when shown a picture of a fish or bird. Infants habituate to photos of very different-looking cats and stay habituated (bored) when shown a picture of a dog. Three- and 4-year-olds recognize that some biological processes are independent of one's desires. Infants habituate to photos of very different-looking cats but dishabituate (look longer) when shown a picture of a dog. 19. In the study by Mandler & McDonough (1993), how did 9-11 month olds treat toy birds and airplanes? As members of the same category because they both have wings. As members of conceptually different categories, despite looking alike. They were afraid of the airplanes but not the birds. They could not distinguish them from cars. 20. By the age of 14 months, how do children demonstrate categorization based on function? They sort objects by color perfectly. They mime feeding a bottle to a toy rabbit but not to a toy motorcycle. They call all four-legged animals "dogs". They can explain the difference between a car and a bus. 21. How does understanding causal relations help children learn categories (e.g., the "Wugs" and "Gillies" study)? It makes no difference; children learn by rote memorization. Children remember categories better if they are told why objects have certain features (e.g., claws to fight). Causal explanations confuse children and lower their performance. Children only understand causal relations after age 10. 22. What is "Psychological Essentialism" in the context of children's biological knowledge? The belief that psychology is the most essential science. The view that living things have an essence inside them that makes them what they are. The understanding that all living things must eat and breathe. The belief that non-living objects have feelings. 23. Poulin-Dubois (1999) found that infants are surprised when inanimate objects (like a robot) move on their own. What does this suggest? Infants are afraid of robots. Infants think everything is alive. Infants understand that self-produced motion is a distinctive characteristic of people and animals (living things). Infants prefer robots over humans. 24. Regarding the knowledge of heredity, what do preschoolers generally believe (e.g., the Mr. and Mrs. Bull study)? Offspring will look exactly like their environment, regardless of parents. Physical characteristics (like heart color) are passed from parent to offspring. Adopted children will look like their adoptive parents. Heredity only applies to humans, not animals. 25. Which statement is TRUE regarding preschoolers' understanding of healing? Preschoolers think that inanimate objects have internal processes that help them heal if they are injured. Four-year-olds realize that a tomato plant that is scratched can heal itself but that a scratched table cannot heal itself. Preschoolers think living things can live forever. Five-year-olds realize that a human that is scratched can heal itself but think that a scratched tomato plant cannot heal itself. 26. Which view argues that children are born with a "core concept" of number and a special mechanism for learning it? Empiricists Nativists Constructivists Behaviorists 27. What did Izard et al. (2009) find regarding newborns and "number equality"? Newborns can count to 10 verbally. Newborns prefer looking at faces over numbers. Newborns exhibit a nonlinguistic sense of numerical equality, matching auditory tones to visual arrays of the same number. Newborns cannot distinguish between a set of 4 objects and a set of 12 objects. 28. In Wynn's "Infant Arithmetic" study (1+1), infants looked longer at which outcome? When the screen dropped to reveal 2 objects (the possible outcome). When the screen dropped to reveal 1 object (the impossible outcome). When the hand removed the object. When the screen stayed up. 29. What is a key argument of Empiricists regarding the development of number concepts? The Intraparietal sulcus is solely responsible for number processing from birth. Children learn about number through experiences, noting large cultural differences in understanding. Children cannot learn math until age 7. Numerical equality is a useless concept. 30. Regarding the development of Conceptual Knowledge, what role do "hierarchies" play? They allow infants to physically stack objects. They are only used by adults, not children. They help people make sense of the world by dividing objects into categories related by set-subset relations. They prevent children from learning basic level categories. Submit Quiz