Chapter Questions
A concept isa. a mental grouping of similar things.b. an example of insight.c. a fixation on certain characteristics.d. a representativeness heuristic.
The most systematic procedure for solving a problem is a(n)a. heuristic.b. algorithm.c. insight.d. intuition.
A major obstacle to problem solving is fixation, which is a(n)a. tendency to base our judgments on vivid memories.b. art of framing the same question in two different ways.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.
You notice that your new next-door neighbor is very neatly dressed, wears glasses, and is reading a Greek play. Given a choice between her being a librarian and a store clerk, you incorrectly guess that she is a librarian. You were probably led astray bya. the availability heuristic.b. confirmation bias.c. overconfidence.d. the representativeness heuristic.
After the $9 / 11$ attacks by foreign-born terrorists, some observers initially assumed that the 2003 East Coast blackout was probably also the work of foreign-born terrorists. This assumption illustratesa. belief perseverance.b. the availability heuristic.c. fixation.d. confirmation bias.
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 bya. belief perseverance.b. fixation.c. confirmation bias.d. framing.
Children reach the one-word stage of speech development at abouta. 4 months.b. 6 months.c. 1 year.d. 2 years.
Skinner's view that we learn language the same way we learn other behaviors $-$ through association, imitation, and reinforcement- is most helpful in explaininga. the onset of babbling.b. the speech behavior of deaf infants.c. the seemingly effortless mastery of grammatical rules by very young children.d. why children learn their household's language.
According to Chomsky, children are born with a readiness to learn the grammatical rules of language, and all they need to acquire language isa. instruction in grammar.b. exposure to some language in early childhood.c. reinforcement for babbling and other early verbal behaviors.d. imitation and drill.
Our language influences the way we perceive and think about the world. This idea, adapted from Whorf's hypothesis, helps explain whya. a person who learns a second language thinks differently in that language.b. children have a built-in readiness to learn grammatical rules.c. children's babbling contains sounds not found in the languages spoken in their homes.d. artists, athletes, and others are able to think in visual images.
Of the examples discussed in this section, the problem-solving behavior that most closely resembled insight wasa. Loulis the chimpanzee's ability to learn signs by observing Washoe.b. Sultan the chimpanzee's use of a short stick to pull in a long stick.c. Kanzi the pygmy chimpanzee's ability to understand grammatical differences in English sentences.d. Washoe the chimpanzee's use of sign language to request her baby.
Most researchers agree that apes cana. communicate through symbols.b. reproduce most human speech sounds.c. master language in adulthood.d. surpass a human 3-year-old in language skills.
The existence of savant syndrome $-$ limited mental ability combined with an exceptional specific skill-seems to supporta. Sternberg's distinction among three aspects of intelligence.b. Spearman's notion of general intelligence, or $g$ factor.c. Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences.d. Thorndike's view of social intelligence.
Sternberg's three aspects of intelligence area. spatial, academic, and artistic.b. musical, athletic, and academic.c. academic, practical, and creative.d. emotional, practical, and spatiaL
Emotionally intelligent people tend toa. 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.
Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of a creative person?a. Expertiseb. Extrinsic motivationc. A venturesome personalityd. Imaginative thinking skills
Intelligence quotient, or $10,$ was originally defined as mental age divided by chronological age and multiplied by 100. By this definition, the 10 of a 6-year-old with a measured mental age of 9 would be a. 67b. 133c. 86d. 150
The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) yields an overall intelligence score as well as separate verbal and performance (nonverbal) scores. The WAIS is best able to tell usa. 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.
The Stanford-Binet, the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children are known to have very high reliability (about $+.9)$ This means thata. a pretest has been given to a representative sample.b. the test yields consistent results, for example on retesting.c. the test measures what it is supposed to measure.d. the results of the test will predict future behavior, such as college grades or success in business.
The strongest support for heredity's influence on intelligence is the finding thata. 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.
To say that the heritability of intelligence is about 50 percent means that 50 percent ofa. an individual's intelligence is due to genetic factors.b. the similarities between men and women 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.
The environmental influence that has the clearest, most profound effect on intellectual development isa. being enrolled in a Head Start program.b. growing up in an economically disadvantaged home or neighborhood.c. being raised in conditions of extreme deprivation.d. being an identical twin.