AP Psychology Practice Test: Developmental Psychology

The correct answer is (D). A child who is mildly distressed in response to the absence of a caregiver, but is still able to function without issue exhibits what is called secure attachment. Children with secure attachment feel protected by their caregivers, and they know that caregivers will always return after leaving them.

The correct answer is (A). Authoritarian parenting is characterized by strict rules, harsh punishments, and little warmth. An authoritative parenting style, on the other hand, is marked by a democratic, open, collaborative effort between parent and child.

The correct answer is (B). During adolescence (age 12 to 18 years), the transition from childhood to adulthood is most important. Erikson describes the major conflict here as Identity vs. Role Confusion. Children become more independent and begin to look at the future in terms of career, relationships, families, and housing. The individual wants to belong to and fit in with society.

The correct answer is (B). The final result of a human fertilized egg is a newborn baby, or neonate. The 2nd to 4th weeks after fertilization mark the germinal stage. Weeks 4 to 8 are described as the embryonic stage. The last stage of fertilization is called the fetal stage and lasts until the birth of the baby.

The correct answer is (A). Piaget’s stages of cognitive development are, in order: the sensory-motor stage, the pre-operational, the concrete operational stage, and lastly the formal operational; the post operational stage is not one of Piaget’s stages of cognitive development.

The correct answer is (C). Kohlberg’s model of morality begins with pre-conventional morality, which is marked by egocentrism and a focus on the direct consequence of actions. Conventional morality primarily entails a comparison with what society deems morally acceptable. Postconventional morality consists of the individual’s understanding that rules are not absolute and that an individual’s principles may supercede what society deems acceptable. In the postconventional stage, individuals may find themselves in conflict with societal values.

The correct answer is (E). Fixation refers to an individual who is stuck in a particular stage of psychosexual development. It emerges in response to a lack of proper gratification during an earlier stage of development.

The correct answer is (D). Research has shown a correlation between certain hormones taken during pregnancy and the sexual orientation of the person that develops.

The correct answer is (B). Through the aging process, a natural reduction in the sensitivity of senses can be expected.

The correct answer is (D). A social clock is a culturally specific timetable for particular events to occur. In this case, the only non-biological event listed is choosing to have a child. The time at which a couple decides to have a child is most likely to be influenced by the surrounding culture.

The correct answer is (D). Motor development refers to changes in a child’s ability to control his or her body’s movements. In comparison with the other answer choices, motor development is least affected by early life experiences because it occurs primarily independently from external events.

The correct answer is (E). A schema is used to organize categories of information and the relationships among them in order to develop a working model of the surroundings. These schemata can be used to draw conclusions.

The correct answer is (A). Rapid development occurs during the embryonic stage. Anything that interferes with this development will have a major impact on the developing embryo.

The correct answer is (E). Newborns show a distinct preference for the human face over all other stimuli.

The correct answer is (D). Beginning after a child’s first birthday, children typically engage in parallel play, that is, playing independently but alongside others.

The correct answer is (B). Developmental stage theorists have been criticized for putting age-links in the stages that may not take into account other developmental differences.

The correct answer is (A). A child with an insecure attachment will avoid or ignore the caregiver, showing little emotion when the mother departs or returns. The child will not explore very much regardless of who is there. One manifestation of this kind of attachment style is instability in future romantic relationships.

The correct answer is (D). These two theorists both dealt with the resolution of conflicts at each developmental stage in their theories, but they focused on different concepts—Freud focused on the psychosexual and Erikson focused on the psychosocial.

The correct answer is (B). As people age, they do not become more susceptible to common cold viruses.

The correct answer is (A). Hearing is the most developed sense at birth; this is because the other senses are less capable compared to their full later capabilities.

The correct answer is (C). Jacqueline is grappling with identity versus role confusion, which is the stage of adolescence in Erikson’s theory most prominent from the ages of 12 to 18.

The correct answer is (A). At each of Erikson’s stages, an individual grapples with the resolution of a conflict. From birth to 12–18 months, the infant deals with trust vs. mistrust. The child from 18 months to 3 years deals with autonomy vs. shame; the child from 3 to 6 years old deals with initiative vs. guilt; then from 6 to 12 years old with industry vs. inferiority. The adolescent from 12 to 18 struggles with identity vs. role confusion; the young adult from 19 to 40 faces intimacy vs. isolation, and the adult faces generativity vs. stagnation from 40 to 65. The eighth conflict is ego integrity vs. despair from 65 until death.

The correct answer is (C). By calling the man in the grocery store “Daddy” because he has similar characteristics to his own father, Cody is demonstrating the concept of assimilation. This is common in the early stages of a child’s concept formation.

The correct answer is (E). The newborn’s toes stretch outward and upward when the sole of the foot is touched.