For one student, a robin is the image that comes to mind first when thinking of a bird, while a penguin seems like a poor example. In this student's mind, the robin is the concept's
Prototype
✓
Schema
Morpheme
Heuristic
Correct Answer
Prototype
A prototype is the best or most typical example of a concept, the one that best represents the category for a given person. Schema is wrong because a schema is a cluster of related concepts, not a single best example. Morpheme is wrong because a morpheme is a unit of language. Heuristic is wrong because a heuristic is a problem-solving shortcut.
Category: Concepts and Schemata
Question 2
Which concept is best described as an artificial concept?
A comfortable chair
An even number
✓
A good friend
A tasty meal
Correct Answer
An even number
An artificial concept is defined by a fixed set of characteristics that always apply, and an even number is any integer divisible by 2 with no exceptions. A comfortable chair is a natural concept with fuzzy boundaries learned through experience. A good friend is judged from experience rather than a strict rule. A tasty meal also has no fixed defining features.
Category: Concepts and Schemata
Question 3
Every time Maria rides an elevator, she steps in, turns to face the door, presses her floor's button and avoids eye contact, all without thinking about it. This automatic routine is an example of
A role schema
A prototype
An event schema
✓
Functional fixedness
Correct Answer
An event schema
An event schema, also called a cognitive script, is a set of behaviors that unfolds as a routine in a particular setting, such as riding an elevator. A role schema is wrong because it concerns expectations about how people in a role behave. A prototype is wrong because it is the best example of a concept. Functional fixedness is wrong because it is difficulty seeing new uses for an object.
Category: Concepts and Schemata
Question 4
In the word "unhappy," the prefix "un-" changes the meaning of the word. The prefix is an example of which unit of language?
Phoneme
Lexicon
Syntax
Morpheme
✓
Correct Answer
Morpheme
A morpheme is the smallest unit of language that carries meaning, and "un-" carries the meaning "not." Phoneme is wrong because a phoneme is a basic unit of sound with no meaning of its own. Lexicon is wrong because the lexicon is a language's entire vocabulary. Syntax is wrong because syntax is the set of rules for ordering words in sentences.
Category: Language
Question 5
A three-year-old says, "I saw three mouses and they runned away." The child is showing
Overgeneralization
✓
Babbling
Linguistic determinism
Mental set
Correct Answer
Overgeneralization
Overgeneralization happens when a child applies a grammar rule, such as adding -s for plurals or -ed for the past tense, to words that are exceptions. Babbling is wrong because it is the repeated syllable sounds of infancy, not speech with grammar. Linguistic determinism is wrong because it is a claim that language determines thought. Mental set is wrong because it is a problem-solving tendency.
Category: Language
Question 6
Which view of language acquisition is associated with Noam Chomsky?
Children learn language through reinforcement of speech
Humans are biologically predisposed to acquire language
✓
The language people speak determines how they think
Language is learned only by copying parents' sentences
Correct Answer
Humans are biologically predisposed to acquire language
Chomsky rejected the behaviorist account and argued that language acquisition is biologically determined, so humans are born ready to learn language. Learning through reinforcement of speech is the view of B. F. Skinner. The claim that language determines thought is linguistic determinism, linked to Sapir and Whorf. Copying parents' sentences cannot explain the new sentences and grammar errors children produce.
Category: Language
Question 7
Genie was discovered in 1970 at age 13 after years of severe isolation with almost no exposure to language. What happened to her language after her rescue?
She mastered grammar fully within two years
She never learned to say any words at all
She learned many words but never mastered grammar
✓
She became fluent after a few months of therapy
Correct Answer
She learned many words but never mastered grammar
Genie built a large vocabulary but never mastered grammar, a pattern often taken as evidence for a critical period for language. Mastering grammar fully within two years is wrong because grammar was exactly what she never acquired. Never learning any words is wrong because her vocabulary grew substantially. Becoming fluent after a few months is wrong because she never reached normal fluency.
Category: Language
Question 8
The Dani people have only two basic color terms, light and dark, yet they distinguish colors about as well as English speakers. This finding challenges which idea?
Functional fixedness
Range of reaction
Overgeneralization
Linguistic determinism
✓
Correct Answer
Linguistic determinism
Linguistic determinism is the strong claim that language determines thought, so people should struggle to perceive distinctions their language lacks words for. Functional fixedness is wrong because it concerns seeing new uses for objects. Range of reaction is wrong because it concerns genes and environment in intelligence. Overgeneralization is wrong because it is a grammar error in child speech.
Category: Language
Question 9
A step-by-step procedure that produces the same result every time it is followed correctly is a(n)
Algorithm
✓
Heuristic
Trial and error
Mental set
Correct Answer
Algorithm
An algorithm is a problem-solving formula with set steps that gives the same result each time, such as a recipe for long division. Heuristic is wrong because a heuristic is a mental shortcut that is faster but does not guarantee a solution. Trial and error is wrong because it means trying different solutions until one works. Mental set is wrong because it is a tendency to repeat an old approach.
Category: Problem Solving
Question 10
Jordan must arrive at a 4:00 p.m. ceremony by 3:30 p.m. The drive takes 2 hours, so Jordan decides to leave at 1:30 p.m. Which problem-solving heuristic did Jordan use?
Trial and error
Working backwards
✓
Functional fixedness
Confirmation bias
Correct Answer
Working backwards
Working backwards is a heuristic that starts from the desired end state and plans the steps in reverse, here from the arrival time to the departure time. Trial and error is wrong because Jordan did not try several options to see which worked. Functional fixedness is wrong because it is a barrier to solving problems with objects. Confirmation bias is wrong because it concerns favoring evidence that supports a belief.
Category: Problem Solving
Question 11
In Duncker's classic candle problem, people struggle to see that the box holding the thumbtacks can itself be tacked to the wall as a shelf. This difficulty illustrates
Mental set
Hindsight bias
Functional fixedness
✓
Anchoring bias
Correct Answer
Functional fixedness
Functional fixedness is the inability to see an object as useful for anything other than its usual purpose, so the box is seen only as a container. Mental set is wrong because it is persisting with a strategy that worked before. Hindsight bias is wrong because it is believing an outcome was predictable after it happens. Anchoring bias is wrong because it is relying too heavily on one piece of information.
Category: Problem Solving
Question 12
Sam believes a classmate is lazy. Sam notices every time the classmate arrives late but overlooks the many days the classmate is early and prepared. Sam is showing
Availability heuristic
Hindsight bias
Anchoring bias
Confirmation bias
✓
Correct Answer
Confirmation bias
Confirmation bias is the tendency to seek and notice information that supports an existing belief while ignoring evidence against it. Availability heuristic is wrong because it is judging likelihood by how easily examples come to mind. Hindsight bias is wrong because it concerns believing an event was predictable after the fact. Anchoring bias is wrong because it is fixating on one initial piece of information.
Category: Problem Solving
Question 13
After seeing extensive news coverage of a plane crash, Priya decides flying is more dangerous than driving, even though statistics show otherwise. Priya is relying on the
Availability heuristic
✓
Representative bias
Confirmation bias
Working backwards
Correct Answer
Availability heuristic
The availability heuristic is judging how likely something is by how easily an example comes to mind, and a vivid, recent crash is very easy to recall. Representative bias is wrong because it is judging by similarity to a stereotype. Confirmation bias is wrong because Priya is not filtering evidence to fit a prior belief. Working backwards is wrong because it is a planning strategy that starts from a goal.
Category: Problem Solving
Question 14
In Robert Sternberg's triarchic theory, the ability to handle everyday situations and read what people expect, often called street smarts, is
Analytical intelligence
Practical intelligence
✓
Creative intelligence
Crystallized intelligence
Correct Answer
Practical intelligence
Practical intelligence is Sternberg's term for street smarts, the ability to apply knowledge and adapt to everyday demands. Analytical intelligence is wrong because it is academic problem solving of the kind measured on standard tests. Creative intelligence is wrong because it is imaginative, innovative problem solving in new situations. Crystallized intelligence is wrong because it belongs to Cattell's theory, not Sternberg's.
Category: Intelligence and Creativity
Question 15
Recalling the definition of a vocabulary word learned years ago draws mainly on which type of intelligence?
Fluid intelligence
Emotional intelligence
Crystallized intelligence
✓
Practical intelligence
Correct Answer
Crystallized intelligence
Crystallized intelligence is acquired knowledge and the ability to retrieve it, such as facts and word meanings learned over time. Fluid intelligence is wrong because it is the ability to see complex relationships and solve new problems. Emotional intelligence is wrong because it concerns understanding and managing emotions. Practical intelligence is wrong because it is Sternberg's street smarts, not stored knowledge.
Category: Intelligence and Creativity
Question 16
In Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, a person with deep insight into their own feelings, motives and goals is high in which intelligence?
Interpersonal intelligence
Naturalistic intelligence
Linguistic intelligence
Intrapersonal intelligence
✓
Correct Answer
Intrapersonal intelligence
Intrapersonal intelligence is the ability to understand oneself, including one's own emotions and motives. Interpersonal intelligence is wrong because it is the ability to understand other people. Naturalistic intelligence is wrong because it involves recognizing and classifying things in nature. Linguistic intelligence is wrong because it is skill with words and language.
Category: Intelligence and Creativity
Question 17
A student asked to list as many uses for a brick as possible comes up with a doorstop, a paperweight, a garden border and a bookend. This task measures
Divergent thinking
✓
Convergent thinking
Functional fixedness
Mental set
Correct Answer
Divergent thinking
Divergent thinking produces many different, original solutions to an open-ended problem and is closely tied to creativity. Convergent thinking is wrong because it narrows toward one correct answer. Functional fixedness is wrong because the student is overcoming, not showing, a fixed view of the brick's use. Mental set is wrong because the student is not repeating one old strategy.
Category: Intelligence and Creativity
Question 18
On a modern IQ test with a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 15, about what percentage of people score between 85 and 115?
95%
68%
✓
50%
34%
Correct Answer
68%
Scores from 85 to 115 fall within one standard deviation of the mean, and in a normal distribution about 68% of people fall in that range. The figure 95% is wrong because it describes the range within two standard deviations, about 70 to 130. The figure 50% is wrong because it is the share above or below the mean. The figure 34% is wrong because it is only the share between the mean and one standard deviation on one side.
Category: Intelligence Testing
Question 19
Which psychologist was asked by the French government to develop a test identifying children likely to need help in school?
Lewis Terman
David Wechsler
Alfred Binet
✓
Charles Spearman
Correct Answer
Alfred Binet
Alfred Binet, working with Theodore Simon, created a test in the early 1900s to identify French schoolchildren who needed extra help. Lewis Terman is wrong because he later revised Binet's test at Stanford. David Wechsler is wrong because he developed his own scales decades later. Charles Spearman is wrong because he proposed the general intelligence factor g rather than a school placement test.
Category: Intelligence Testing
Question 20
The idea that genes set a person's possible range of intelligence, while environment determines where within that range the person ends up, is called
The Flynn effect
Norming
Linguistic relativity
Range of reaction
✓
Correct Answer
Range of reaction
Range of reaction holds that genetics set limits on potential and environmental stimulation, especially in childhood, determines how much of that potential is reached. The Flynn effect is wrong because it is the rise in IQ scores across generations. Norming is wrong because it is the process of building comparison scores for a test. Linguistic relativity is wrong because it concerns language and thought.
Category: Sources of Intelligence