Parctice Test #8  - Early Childhood: Biosocial Development 

Note: These questions are part of a larger data base of questions on Chapter 8 & are selected 
to represent the type of question you should expect on unit exam three. You can, in fact, expect 
to see many of these very same questions on that exam. Exam questions, however, may deal 
with topics not covered in the self tests or in lectures but are discussed in your textbook. You are 
responsible for the content of your text book plus the content of lectures, interactive activities, 
& material on the web site.

Use these sample questions to test yourself & to practice for the test. 

1.  In general, the factors that affect growth are 

 • appetite & family income. 
  • genetic background, nutrition, & health care. 
   • genetic disorders, social deprivation, & illness. 
    • gender, hormone levels, & nutrition. 

2. Which of the following preschoolers is most likely to be taller than average? 

 • Kim, who is Asian 
  • Kyle, who lives high above sea level 
   • Kevin, who is the oldest child in the family 
    • Kurt, who lives in a rural area 

3. Normal age dependent obsessive compulsive behaviors

•  peak at about age three. 
 •  are usually gone by middle childhood. 
  •  is a rigidity about daily routines a.k.a. "just right" or "just so" phenomenon. 
   •  all of the above.

4. Myelination 

• speeds up the transmission of neural impulses. 
 • connects the two halves of the brain. 
  • compensates for loss of brain function due to injury. 
   • promotes regular childhood sleep patterns. 

5. The corpus callosum 

• is a way to measure body fat. 
 • grows in response to injury. 
  • digests food. 
   • connect the two halves of the brain. 

6. The leading cause of death from age 1 to 10 is 

• cancer. 
 • infectious diseases. 
  • accidents. 
   • child abuse. 

7. The strongest risk factor for death before age 10 in developed nations is 

 health care. 
 socioeconomic status. 
 nutrition. 
 immunization. 

8. Foster care generally means 

 neighborhood support for the family. 
 that the children are preparing for adoption. 
 placement in an institution. 
 removal from the original parents. 

9. Because of differential response 

 child maltreatment cases are not all treated the same. 
 parents abuse their children only under certain circumstances. 
 children are able to leave abusive environments. 
 intergenerational transmission does not occur. 

10. Secondary prevention always involves 

 responding to the first symptoms of a problem. 
 stopping the problem before it begins. 
 getting children out of abusive situations. 
 removing the second child if the first has been abused. 

11. Two three-year-olds are playing a game of catch. Since neither one 
has had  much experience at playing catch, it can be expected 
that their throws will use ________ motions & their 
catches will be ________. 

 flexible; flexible 
 twisted; skillful 
 stereotyped; passive 
 variable; compensatory 

12. Physical growth during the preschool years is characterized by 

 spurts. 
 discrete stages of growth. 
 plateaus. 
 rather smooth & predictable growth. 

13. Three-year-old Rick refuses to eat anything other than peanut butter 
& jelly sandwiches. What should his mother do to get him to vary his diet? 

 - Let him have the peanut butter and jelly sandwich but at the 
    same time offer other foods. 
 - Offer a monetary or other non-food award if he agrees to taste 
    other foods. 
 - Offer him only whatever the family is eating. When he gets 
    hungry enough, he'll eat. 
 - Tell him that he can have the peanut butter and jelly sandwich 
    only after trying whatever the rest of the family is having. 

14. Children who look young for their age are usually seen as more 

 intelligent. 
 attractive. 
 self-confident. 
 well behaved. 

15. At age 5 a child is better able to link spoken & written language due to: 
 
 other qualitative changes in the brain 
 expansion of the corpus callosum 
 development of the frontal lobe 
 a combination of the above 

16. Children are least likely to learn gross motor skills by: 

 adult instruction 
 earning from other children 
 opportunity to play 
 teaching themselves 

17. _______ is twice as common and at least as damaging as _______. 

 Emotional abuse; neglect 
 Physical abuse; neglect 
 Sexual abuse; neglect 
 Neglect; abuse 

18. A fine motor skill linked to later school success would be: 

 muscular control 
 pouring juice from a pitcher 
 cutting food with a knife and fork 
 making meaningful marks on paper 

19. Which of the following concerning foster care is not true? 

 Foster children often do well as parents. 
 The average stay in a foster home is 3 to 4 years. 
 25% of foster children are involved in kinship care. 
 the number of children needing care has risen by 200,000 per year. 

20. Measures of secondary prevention of child abuse include: 

 removing the child from the home 
 jailing the perpetrator 
 home visiting 
 all of the above 

21. Term used to describe a situation in which an infant or young child gains little or no weight, despite apparently 
normal health & is a specific sign of neglect. 

• "post-traumatic stress disorder" 
 • "failure to thrive" 
  • "shaken baby syndrome" 
   • "badness of fit" 
 
22.  A child’s fixation on routine (the “just so” or “just right” phenomenon) usually peaks at around age

•  one. 
 •  three. 
  •  six. 
   •  eight.
   
23.  What is the most effective level of prevention for either injury or maltreatment?

•  unitary 
 •  primary 
  •  tertiary 
   •  secondary
   
24.  What do pierced ears & spanking have in common?

•  Both are illegal in most Asian cultures. 
 •  Both are considered child abuse in some countries but not in others. 
  •  Neither is considered appropriate before age 6. 
   •  “Acceptable” for a child depends on the sex of the child.
   
25.  An undeveloped prefrontal cortex results in a lack of

•  intelligence. 
 •  self-control. 
  •  athletic ability. 
   •  emotional outbursts. 

Key Questions

1. How are growth rates, body proportions, and motor skills related during early childhood?
2. Does low family income tend to make young children eat more or less? Explain your answer.
3. What are the crucial aspects of brain growth that occur after age 2?
4. How do emotions, and their expression, originate in the brain?
5. Why do public health workers prefer to speak of “injury control” instead of accidents?
6. What conditions are best for children to develop their motor skills?
7. What are the differences among the three kinds of prevention?
8. What are the arguments for and against laws to protect children from injury?
9. Why might neglect be worse than abuse?
10. What are the advantages and disadvantages of foster care?
11. What are the advantages and disadvantages of kinship care?  

                         --------------------------------------
                            Topics in Psychology
                               Robert C. Gates