Developmental psychology worksheet with answers

Free printable Developmental psychology worksheet: 8 problems from easy to exam level, with an answer key. Print it or save it as a PDF.

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Name: ____________________   Date: ____________

1.Easy

Noam Chomsky proposed that children have an innate "language acquisition device". This view emphasises:

  1. ALanguage as a product of formal schooling
  2. BLearning language only through reinforcement
  3. CImitation as the only source of grammar
  4. DBiological readiness to learn language
2.Easy

A child says "I goed to the park" and "two mouses". This error is called:

  1. ATelegraphic speech
  2. BOverregularisation
  3. CBabbling
  4. DUnderextension
3.Easy

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder is caused by:

  1. AA single inherited gene
  2. BAlcohol exposure before birth
  3. CToo little sleep during infancy
  4. DDrinking alcohol in early childhood
4.Medium

A 3-year-old hears a new word once, "This is the chromium tray", and later picks out the correct tray. This is called:

  1. ABabbling
  2. BFast mapping
  3. COverextension
  4. DTelegraphic speech
5.Medium

Children get better at ignoring distractions and switching between tasks through childhood and adolescence. This improvement in executive function is linked mainly to maturation of the:

  1. ABrainstem
  2. BPrefrontal cortex
  3. COccipital lobe
  4. DCerebellum
6.Medium

Which feature is typical of infant-directed speech ("parentese")?

  1. ALong sentences with complex grammar
  2. BFast speech with very few pauses
  3. CHigher pitch and exaggerated intonation
  4. DA flat, quiet and monotonous tone
7.Hard

Which finding challenges the idea that attachment forms only with the mother?

  1. AHarlow's monkeys preferred wire mothers
  2. BInfants only attach to the person who feeds them
  3. CSchaffer and Emerson found many infants form multiple attachments, including to fathers
  4. DBowlby found no effect of separation
8.Hard

In Hughes' "policeman doll" study, most children aged 3½–5 could hide a boy doll where two policemen could not see him. How does this relate to Piaget's three mountains task?

  1. AIt shows that conservation develops before age 3
  2. BIt confirms that young children are fully egocentric
  3. CIt suggests young children are less egocentric when the task makes sense to them
  4. DIt shows that children cannot take any other person's viewpoint before about age 7

Answer key

  1. 1. D · Biological readiness to learn language
  2. 2. B · Overregularisation
  3. 3. B · Alcohol exposure before birth
  4. 4. B · Fast mapping
  5. 5. B · Prefrontal cortex
  6. 6. C · Higher pitch and exaggerated intonation
  7. 7. C · Schaffer and Emerson found many infants form multiple attachments, including to fathers
  8. 8. C · It suggests young children are less egocentric when the task makes sense to them

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