Psych

Which scenario best exemplifies the theory of natural selection?

A mutation in a species of lizards that allows them to better blend into their surroundings leads to greater survival and more offspring possessing this mutation in a later generation.

Which of the following is classified as an antagonist?

An antidepressant, because they block serotonin and norepinephrine receptors.

Bobby is seventeen and has been engaging in risky behaviors, such as reckless driving, skipping class, and breaking curfew. Which of the following is an explanation for Bobby's actions that most psychologists support?

Bobby is still developing new neural connections in his brain.

At six months of age, Byrne underwent the surgical removal of the entire left hemisphere of her brain. Which of the following concepts explains the recovery of her primary functions following such surgery?

Brain plasticity

Cesar is participating in a memory competition. He must memorize a long, novel string of numbers in 60 seconds, then try to recall them immediately without missing or misplacing any numbers. Which strategy should Cesar use?

Chunking

Richard is in a substance abuse treatment center because of his addiction to stimulants. He is experiencing withdrawal symptoms, so he drinks several large caffeinated sodas throughout the day to curb his symptoms. Caffeine is in the same class as which of the following drugs?

Cocaine

Which of the follow scenarios is the best example of natural selection?

During a drought, the foliage in a region turns brown. More brownish moths than whitish moths from a particular breed survive predation and produce more offspring. Subsequent generations of moths have a higher percentage of brownish moths than the generation before.

Which of the following demonstrates semantic memory?

Elizabeth knows the formula to calculate the area of a square.

The claim that a whole is different from the sum of its parts is central to which of the following schools of thought?

Gestalt psychology

Bailey and Marcus packed everything they thought they would need for a weekend camping trip. When it rained and they realized they had not brought rain gear, Bailey said, "I knew we should have packed raincoats!" Bailey's thinking illustrates which of the following concepts?

Hindsight bias

Significant damage to which of the following parts of the brain will most likely cause a person to fall into a deep coma from which the person will be unable to awaken?

Reticular formation

After visiting her professor's office, Rachel writes down everything she remembers seeing there. She correctly remembers many details, but she falsely remembers seeing books even though there were no books in the office. Additionally, she did not remember seeing a skull that was in the office. Which memory concept best explains why Rachel falsely encoded the books and failed to encode the skull?

Schemas

To help himself remember the name of his new colleague, Hope, Jose thinks about the meaning of her name—the feeling of hopefulness. Which of the following concepts best corresponds to Jose's strategy?

Semantic encoding

A survey shows that children who have encyclopedias in their home environment earn better grades in school than children whose homes lack encyclopedias. The researcher concludes that having encyclopedias in the home environment improves grades. Which of the following explains why the researcher has reached an erroneous conclusion?

She inferred causation from correlation.

The data in the graph display the ages at which top artists, including painters, writers, and composers, produce what is generally agreed upon to be their most well-known work. Based on the data in the graph, which of the following statements is true?

The number of top artists producing their most well-known work peaks at an age in the late thirties and then gradually declines.

Cassidy can only remember the titles of the first few books her teacher told her to get from the library. Which of the following concepts would best explain Cassidy's experience?

The primacy effect

The graph depicts which of the following?

The process of neural transmission

Which psychological principle is represented in the area highlighted in the graph?

The refractory period of the neural transmission process.

Robyn finds a computer repair service online. She silently repeats the phone number in her mind until she locates her phone to call the repair service. Which memory system is most useful for Robyn in this scenario?

Working memory

Jerry is not able to tie his shoes on his own, but he is able to tie his shoes with the help of his father. Which of the following concepts best explains the interaction between Jerry and his father?

Zone of proximal development

Based on its effects on the central nervous system, alcohol can be classified as which of the following concepts?

a depressant

When trying to solve a problem, Bret uses a logical, step-by-step formula called

an algorithm

One-year-old Marcus turns away in disgust if a bitter substance is placed on his tongue. The reason for such a reaction is most likely Responses

an inborn distaste for bitter that protects us from potential poisons in the environment

Activation of the sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system results in

an increase in respiratory rate

A psychologist designed a study to test the effects of cell phone use on driving safety. Participants were randomly assigned either to drive an automobile simulator while talking to a friend on a cell phone or to drive a simulator without talking on a phone. In the study, cell phone use can be described as

an independent variable

A team of investigators discovered that taxi drivers who had memorized all the streets in their city had a larger hippocampus than bus drivers who did not have the streets memorized. This type of difference between these two groups most likely reflects

brain plasticity

Ruth and Debbie are identical twins who were raised by the same family. Vince and Frankie are identical twins who were separated at birth and raised by different families. According to research on the heritability of personality traits, Ruth's and Debbie's personalities are statistically

likely to be as similar and dissimilar to one another as are Vince's and Frankie's personalities

In visual perception, size constancy occurs as an object comes closer to the viewer because the

perceived distance of the object becomes smaller

The parietal lobe is most involved in which of the following processes?

processing sensory information

A common psychological effect of alcohol intake is

reduced inhibition

An individual's ability to focus on a particular conversation in a noisy and crowded room is called

selective attention

The division of the nervous system that most directly allows voluntary muscle movement is the

somatic

Cognitive psychologists are most likely to study which of the following?

the acquisition of knowledge, planning, and problem solving

A prototype is best defined as

the hypothetical "most typical" instance of a category

Uma is able to remember a list of items she must buy by creating visual images of the items in various spots in her dorm room. The technique Uma is using is called

the method of loci

A neuron receives an excitatory neurotransmitter and fires an action potential. Which of the following is the correct term for the time shortly after a neuron fires and before it fires again?

the refractory period

Pierce had surgery and was prescribed a painkiller that mimicked endorphins in his body. He experienced some intense, uncomfortable pain for a day or two after he was finished taking his medicine as prescribed. Pierce's painful experience associated with termination of the use of an addictive substance is known as which of the following?

withdrawal

Dimitri and Dominic are identical twins who were separated at birth and raised by different families. When they found each other through DNA tracking, they were surprised to see how different they were. Which research method would a psychologist most likely use to document their behavioral differences?

Correlation

Creativity is most closely associated with which of the following?

Divergent thinking

The argument over the relative contributions of heredity and environment in the development of various behaviors and personality traits is known as which of the following controversies?

Nature versus nurture

Ana injured her eye in an accident and has to wear a patch over the eye while it heals. Which of the following cues would she best be able to use to make judgments about the distance objects are from her?

Linear perspective

In their discussions of the process of development, the advocates of nature in the nature-nurture controversy emphasize which of the following?

Maturation

Amirah attended a concert for her favorite band. As the band played her favorite song, Amirah sang along and repeated one of the lyrics incorrectly. Another person nearby heard the mistake and told her she had made a mistake, Amirah was confident she heard and sang the lyric correctly. What term best describes Amirah's belief?

Overconfidence

Which branch of the autonomic nervous system is described by the functions listed in Part B of the table?

Parasympathetic nervous system

In the morning, Jorge watched a cartoon about a sarcastic rabbit. Later, in his psychology class, he viewed the image above and readily identified it as a rabbit instead of a duck. Which of the following best explains this phenomenon?

Priming

A man sustains a head injury. After the injury, he is able to tie his shoes, but he does not recall where he lives. Which aspect of the man's memory is intact and which aspect is dysfunctional, respectively?

Procedural and semantic

While he is at soccer practice, Erwin reminds himself that he has to stop at the grocery store on the way home to pick up milk and cereal for tomorrow's breakfast. What sort of memory is Erwin using?

Prospective

Kara thinks she sees a spider on the floor of her bathroom. She is extremely afraid of spiders. Which of the following nervous systems would be responsible for her fearful reaction to the spider?

Sympathetic nervous system

Which of the following is true of a neuron in the resting state?

The inside of the cell membrane is negative compared to the outside.

Based on the bar graph above, which of the following conclusions is most accurate?

The more genetically related people are, the more similar their intelligence scores.