early childhood The first phase of childhood, lasting from age 3 through kindergarten, or about age 5.

middle childhood The second phase of childhood, covering the elementary school years, from about age
6 to 11.

frontal lobes The area at the uppermost front of the brain, responsible for reasoning and planning our
actions.

gross motor skills Physical abilities that involve large muscle movements, such as running and jumping.
fine motor skills Physical abilities that involve small, coordinated movements, such as drawing and
writing one’s name.

body mass index (BMI) The ratio of weight to height; the main indicator of overweight or underweight.
childhood obesity A body mass index at or above the 95th percentile compared to the U.S. norms
established for children in the 1970s.

Principles of physical growth

–Cephalocaudal sequence: Bodies elongate and lengthen
–Mass-to-specific sequence: Physical abilities become more coordinated and precise
preoperational thinking In Piaget’s theory, the type of cognition characteristic of children aged
2 to 7, marked by an inability to step back from one’s immediate perceptions and think
conceptually.
concrete operational thinking In Piaget’s framework, the type of cognition characteristic of
children aged 8 to 11, marked by the ability to reason about the world in a more logical, adult
way.

Age Name of Stage Description 0–2 Sensorimotor The baby manipulates objects to pin down the
basics of physical reality. This stage ends with the development of language.
2–7 Preoperations Children’s perceptions are captured by their immediate appearances. “What
they see is what is real.” They believe, among other things, that inanimate objects are really alive
and that if the appearance of a quantity of liquid changes (for example, if it is poured from a
short, wide glass into a tall, thin one), the amount becomes different.
8–12 Concrete operations Children have a realistic understanding of the world. Their thinking is
really on the same wavelength as adults’. While they can reason conceptually about concrete
objects, however, they cannot think abstractly in a scientific way. 12+ Formal operations
Reasoning is at its pinnacle: hypothetical, scientific, flexible, fully adult. Our full cognitive
human potential has been reached.
conservation tasks Piagetian tasks that involve changing the shape of a substance to see whether
children can go beyond the way that substance visually appears to understand that the amount is
still the same.
reversibility In Piaget’s conservation tasks, the concrete operational child’s knowledge that a
specific change in the way a given substance looks can be reversed.
centering In Piaget’s conservation tasks, the preoperational child’s tendency to fix on the most
visually striking feature of a substance and not take other dimensions into account.
decentering In Piaget’s conservation tasks, the concrete operational child’s ability to look at
several dimensions of an object or substance. class inclusion The understanding that a general
category can encompass several subordinate elements.
The idea that an operation or procedure can be repeated in the opposite direction
(reversibility)
Interpreting things based on what is seen first, rather than taking in the entire visual
array(centering)
The knowledge that a general category can encompass subordinate elements (class
inclusion)
Looking at several dimensions of an object or substance (decentering)
The ability to put objects in order according to some principle, such as size (seriation)

Animism–The belief that inanimate objects are alive

•
Artificialism–The belief that humans make everything in nature
•
Egocentrism–An inability to understand another’s perspective

seriation The ability to put objects in order according to some principle, such as size.
identity constancy In Piaget’s theory, the preoperational child’s inability to grasp that a person’s
core “self” stays the same despite changes in external appearance.
animism In Piaget’s theory, the preoperational child’s belief that inanimate objects are alive.
artificialism In Piaget’s theory, the preoperational child’s belief that human beings make
everything in nature.
egocentrism In Piaget’s theory, the preoperational child’s inability to understand that other
people have different points of view from their own.
zone of proximal development In Vygotsky’s theory, the gap between a child’s ability to solve a
problem totally on his own and his potential knowledge if taught by a more accomplished
person.
scaffolding The process of teaching new skills by entering a child’s zone of proximal
development and tailoring one’s efforts to that person’s competence level.
information-processing theory A perspective on cognition in which the process of thinking is
divided into steps, components, or stages much like those a computer operates.
working memory In information-processing theory, the limited-capacity gateway system,
containing all the material that we can keep in awareness at a single time. The material in this
system is either processed for more permanent storage or lost.
executive functions Any frontal-lobe ability that allows us to inhibit our responses and to plan
and direct our thinking.
Does a girl this age have the memory capacity and selfregulation skills necessary to take proper
care of a dog? This is the kind of question that an information-processing perspective on
cognition can answer.
rehearsal A learning strategy in which people repeat information to embed it in memory.

selective attention A learning strategy in which people manage their awareness so as to attend only to
what is relevant and to filter out unneeded information.

attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) The most common childhood learning disorder in the
United States, disproportionately affecting boys, characterized by excessive restlessness and
distractibility at home and at school.

inner speech In Vygotsky’s theory, the way by which human beings learn to regulate their
behavior and master cognitive challenges, through silently repeating information or talking to
themselves.
According to Vygotsky, by talking to her image in the mirror “out loud,” this girl is learning to
monitor her behavior. Have you ever done the same thing when no one was watching?
David Young-Wolff/Photo Edit
morpheme The smallest unit of meaning in a particular language—for example, boys contains
two morphemes: boy and the plural suffix s. mean length of utterance (MLU) The average
number of morphemes per sentence.
phoneme The sound units that convey meaning in a given language—for example, in English,
the c sound of cat and the b sound of bat.
mean length of utterance (MLU) The average number of morphemes per sentence.
semantics The meaning system of a language—that is, what the words stand for.
syntax The system of grammatical rules in a particular language. semantics The meaning system
of a language—that is, what the words stand for.
overregularization An error in early language development, in which young children apply the
rules for plurals and past tenses even to exceptions, so irregular forms sound like regular forms.
overextension An error in early language development in which young children apply verbal
labels too broadly.
underextension An error in early language development in which young children apply verbal
labels too narrowly.
autobiographical memories Recollections of events and experiences that make up one’s life
history.
theory of mind Children’s first cognitive understanding, which appears at about age 4, that other
people have different beliefs and perspectives from their own.
emotion regulation The capacity to manage one’s emotional state. externalizing tendencies A
personality style that involves acting on one’s immediate impulses and behaving disruptively and
aggressively.
internalizing tendencies A personality style that involves intense fear, social inhibition, and
often depression. self-awareness The ability to observe our abilities and actions from an outside
frame of reference and to reflect on our inner state. self-esteem Evaluating oneself as either
“good” or “bad” as a result of comparing the self to other people.
industry versus inferiority Erik Erikson’s term for the psychosocial task of middle childhood, involving
the capacity to work for one’s goals.

learned helplessness A state that develops when a person feels incapable of affecting the outcome of
events, and so gives up without trying.

prosocial behavior Sharing, helping, and caring actions. altruism Prosocial behaviors that we carry out
for selfless, non-egocentric reasons. empathy Feeling the exact emotion that another person is
experiencing. sympathy A state necessary for acting prosocially, involving feeling upset for a person who
needs help.

induction The ideal discipline style for socializing prosocial behavior, involving getting a child who has
behaved hurtfully to empathize with the pain he has caused the other person. shame A feeling of being
personally humiliated. guilt Feeling upset about having caused harm to a person or about having
violated one’s internal standard of behavior.

aggression Any hostile or destructive act.

instrumental aggression A hostile or destructive act initiated to achieve a goal. reactive aggression A
hostile or destructive act carried out in response to being frustrated or hurt. relational aggression A
hostile or destructive act designed to cause harm to a person’s relationships Proactive aggression:
Acts that are actively instigated to achieve a goal–Emotionally cool and more carefully
planned hostile attributional bias the tendency of highly aggressive children to see
motives and actions as threatening when they are actually benign

rough-and-tumble play Play that involves shoving, wrestling, and hitting, but in which no actual harm is
intended; especially characteristic of boys.

fantasy play Play that involves making up and acting out a scenario; also called pretend play.
collaborative pretend play Fantasy play in which children work together to develop and act out the
scenes.
collaborative pretend play Fantasy play in which children work together to develop and act out the
scenes.

gender-segregated play Play in which boys and girls associate only with members of their own sex—
typical of childhood.

gender schema theory An explanation for genderstereotyped behavior that emphasizes the role of
cognitions; specifically, the idea that once children know their own gender label (girl or boy), they
selectively watch and model their own sex.

bullying A situation in which one or more children (or adults) harass or target a specific child for
systematic abuse.

Bully-victim: Exceptionally aggressive children

(with externalizing disorders) who repeatedly bully and get victimized

cyberbullying Victimizing or targeting a specific child (or adult) for systematic abuse either on-line or via
e-mail messages.

Chapter 7

parenting style In Diana Baumrind’s framework, how parents align on two dimensions of childrearing:
nurturance (or child-centeredness) and discipline (or structure and rules).

authoritative parents In the parenting-styles framework, the best possible child-rearing style, in which
parents rank high on both nurturance and discipline, providing both love and clear family rules.
authoritarian parents In the parenting-styles framework, a type of childrearing in which parents provide
plenty of rules but rank low on child-centeredness, stressing unquestioning obedience.

permissive parents In the parenting-styles framework, a type of childrearing in which parents provide
few rules but rank high on child-centeredness, being extremely loving but providing little discipline.

rejecting-neglecting parents In the parenting-styles framework, the worst child-rearing approach, in

which parents provide little discipline and little nurturing or love.

resilient children Children who rebound from serious early life traumas to construct successful adult
lives.

Acculturation Among immigrants, the tendency to become more similar in terms of attitudes and
practices to the mainstream culture after time spent living in a new society.

corporal punishment The use of physical force to discipline a child.

child maltreatment Any act that seriously endangers a child’s physical or emotional well-being.

Parental alienation involves the “programming” of a child by one parent to denigrate the other,
“targeted” parent, in an effort to undermine and interfere with the child's relationship with that
parent, and is often a sign of a parent’s inability to separate from the couple conflict and focus
on the needs of the child.

Achievement test measures that evaluate a child’s knowledge in specific schoolrelated areas.
WISC (Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children) The standard intelligence test used in childhood,
consisting of a Verbal Scale (questions for the child to answer), a Performance Scale (materials for the
child to manipulate), and a variety of subtests.

mentally retarded The label for significantly impaired intellectual functioning, defined as when a child
(or adult) has an IQ of 70 or below accompanied by evidence of deficits in learning abilities.

specific learning disability The label for any impairment in language or any deficit related to listening,
thinking, speaking, reading, writing, spelling, or understanding mathematics; diagnosed when a score on
an intelligence test is much higher than a child’s performance on achievement tests.

dyslexia A learning disability that is characterized by reading difficulties, lack of fluency, and poor word
recognition that is often genetic in origin. gifted The label for superior intellectual functioning
characterized by an IQ score of 130 or above, showing that a child ranks in the top 2 percent of his age
group

reliability In measurement terminology, a basic criterion of a test’s accuracy that scores must be fairly
similar when a person takes the test more than once.

validity In measurement terminology, a basic criterion for a test’s accuracy involving whether that
measure reflects the real-world quality it is supposed to measure.

“g” Charles Spearman’s term for a general intelligence factor that he claimed underlies all cognitive
activities.

Physical abuse Overzealous spanking to battering that leads to death

Neglect Not providing enough food, child abandonment, not enrolling a child in school

Emotional abuse Continual shaming or serious acts such as terrorizing or exploiting a

child
Sexual abuse Rape, incest, fondling
child maltreatment Any act that seriously endangers a child’s physical or emotional
well-being.
Acculturation
•Immigrants assimilate to new culture.

analytic intelligence In Robert Sternberg’s framework on successful intelligence, the facet of intelligence
involving performing well on academic-type problems.

creative intelligence In Robert Sternberg‘s framework on successful intelligence, the facet of

intelligence involved in producing novel ideas or innovative work.

practical intelligence In Robert Sternberg’s framework on successful intelligence, the facet of

intelligence involved in knowing how to act competently in real-world situations.

successful intelligence In Robert Sternberg’s framework, the optimal form of cognition, involving having
a good balance of analytic, creative, and practical intelligence. multiple intelligences theory In Howard
Gardner’s perspective on intelligence, the principle that there are eight separate kinds of intelligence—
intrinsic motivation The drive to act based on the pleasure of taking that action in itself, not for an
external reinforcer or reward.

extrinsic motivation The drive to take an action because that activity offers external reinforcers such as
praise, money, or a good grade.

The Common Core State Standards

•
Standards
–
Contain transformative U.S. public school changes
–
Spell out universal learning benchmarks
–
Emphasize teaching through scaffolding, problem
solving, and communication skills
–
Embody equity and inclusiveness
–
Adopted by 45 states and the District of Columbia

verbal, mathematical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, spatial, musical, kinesthetic, naturalist—plus a

possible ninth form, called spiritual intelligence.

A child’s physical abilities that involve large movements such as running, climbing, and jumping are
called:

a. fine motor skills. b. abstract motor skills. c. gross motor skills. d. unconscious skills.

2. ______ remains the top ranking 21st century global public health threat to physical development
in both developed and developing nations.

b. a. Obesity b. Malnutrition c. Body mass indexes d. Loss of motor skill

Reasons for children being overweight can include all of the following EXCEPT:

c. a. parental stress. b. larger portion sizes in restaurants. c. more access to low-cost calorie-dense
foods. d. lack of government support.

. Belsky recommends all of the following interventions for dealing with issues of obesity EXCEPT: a.
recommending a diet for a pregnant women and educating her about the impact of excessive
weight gain. b. limiting excessive feeding during the first year of life but avoiding diets for babies. c.
recommending that parents hire a nutritionist to help educate the child about appropriate food
intake. d. recognizing that limiting food intake for an overweight child is difficult and weight control
programs can be rejected if parents are insulted or affect the child’s selfesteem.
5. Susan believes that she must be a very important person because the moon follows her when she
rides with her parents in the car. This kind of thinking is typical for children in Piaget's ______ stage
of cognitive development.

a. preoperational b. concrete operational c. formal operational d. zone of proximal development

6. When he saw that his mother was upset, 4-year-old Sam offered her his favorite teddy bear for
comfort. According to Piaget, this act indicates ______, because Sam believed that something that
would comfort him would automatically comfort anyone else.

a. conservation b. animism c. selflessness d. egocentrism

7. Yvonne is putting a puzzle together with her father. At first, he points to specific pieces and says
“This piece might fit here” or “Can you try to put this piece here?” As Yvonne improves in finding
where the puzzle pieces belong, her father offers less advice and instruction, allowing his young
child to take more responsibility for completing the puzzle. This is an example of:

a. concrete operational instruction. b. preoperational thinking. c. scaffolding. d. a bidirectional

experience.

8. The hypothetical memory stage or structure in which we keep information in awareness and act
on it (so that it enters “permanent memory”) or discard it is:

a. cognitive compartment. b. working memory. c. internal functions. d. long term memory.

9. When we focus only on the relevant information we need to learn or remember and filter out
what we do not need, we are using:

a. memory storage. b. selective attention. c. outside processing. d. rehearsal.

10.The most commonly diagnosed learning disorder among U.S. children is:

a. dyslexia. b. asthma. c. Down syndrome. d. ADHD.

11. Basic meaning units of language are called:

a. phonemes. b. morphemes. c. syntax. d. utterances.

12.Two-year-old Alex asks his mother for milk by saying “me milk.” How many MLUs (mean length of
utterance) does this sentence have?

a. two b. one c. three d. none

13.Jill tells her mother “I runned to the swing.” This is an example of:

a. overextension. b. conversational skills. c. semantics. d. overregularization.

14. Past-talk conversations help young children:

a. screen out trivial or unimportant details. b. learn basic conversational skills. c. consolidate
neurons. d. establish autobiographical memories, or develop a sense of a stable, ongoing self
 15.When researchers use the standard false belief task, theory of mind, children’s ability to
understand that other people have different beliefs and perspectives from their own appears at
around age:

a. 7. b. 4. c. 2. d. 1.

1. William, an eight-year-old, is incredibly anxious, has terrible self-esteem, and has difficulties in
social situations. His temperamental tendencies would be classified as:

a. projection tendencies. b. displacement tendencies. c. internalizing tendencies. d. externalizing

tendencies.

2. The term used to describe how children manage their feelings so they can eventually live
productive lives is:

a. emotional regulation. b. displacement tendencies. c. self-esteem. d. externalizing tendencies.

3. Now that Shawn is getting older, he is better able to reflect on his inner state and observe his
behaviors. Shawn is showing increased:

a. self-awareness. b. egotism. c. egocentrism. d. self-esteem.

4. _______ refers to a child’s ability to evaluate his or herself as good or bad compared to others.

a. Self-esteem b. Actualization c. Self comparison d. Inferiority

5. Jamal tells his mother that he doesn’t have any friends and no one likes him. His teacher reports that
he is consistently getting into trouble. According to Harter, Jamal is having difficulties in which two self-
esteem domains? a. physical appearance and behavioral conduct b. behavioral conduct and likeability c.
likeability and scholastic competence d. scholastic competence and physical appearance

6. According to Erikson’s psychosocial stages, the challenge in middle childhood is industry, which refers
to:

a. the ability to get reinforced. b. the ability to work towards a goal. c. focusing on school performance.
d. focusing on sports ability.

Chapter 6

7. Hernando has very low self-esteem and he gives up without trying, saying “I’ll never be able to do
that.” Hernando is showing signs of:

a. learned helplessness. b. externalizing tendencies. c. lack of self-awareness. d. learned hopelessness.

Amanda’s preschool teacher says she loves to share her toys with the other kids and is often concerned
about others. Amanda is demonstrating:

a. good self-esteem. b. prosocial behaviors. c. industry. d. emotional regulation.

9. Joe gets incredibly anxious when he sees his friend being bullied. This feeling, referring to directly
experiencing another person’s emotion, is called:

a. altruism. b. empathy. c. sympathy. d. non-prosocial feelings.

10. A term used to describe a discipline style adults can use to help children develop prosocial behaviors
is:

a. induction. b. empathy. c. sympathy. d. non-prosocial feelings.

Chapter 6

11. Victor fails his science test, making him feel enraged. As he leaves class, he tears a poster off the
wall. Victor is showing:

a. relational aggression. b. reactive aggression. c. instrumental aggression. d. hostile aggression.

12. Jessi invites everyone in her Girl Scout troop to her sleepover birthday party except Machiah. Jessi is
showing:

a. relational aggression. b. reactive aggression. c. instrumental aggression. d. hostile aggression.

13. Which type of free play are boys more likely to engage in than girls?

a. fantasy b. rough and tumble c. pretending d. collaborative

14. Amy and Mary love to wear their mother’s clothes and make up different scenes when they get
together. What type of play are they engaged in?

a. collaborative pretend play b. rough-and-tumble pretend play c. rough-and-tumble play d.

collaborative fantasy play

15. Play has all of the following functions EXCEPT:

a. teaching children to get along with one another and to follow to social norms. b. allowing children to
practice adult roles. c. providing children with a sense of being in control when they feel inadequate and
scared. d. making children live in a fantasy world if it goes on too long.

15. Play has all of the following functions EXCEPT:

a. teaching children to get along with each other, and to follow to social norms. b. allowing children to
practice adult roles. c. providing children with a sense of being in control when they feel inadequate and
scared. d. making children live in a fantasy world if it goes on too long.

Chapter 6

16. Friendships help children in the following ways EXCEPT:

a. developing prosocial behaviors and attitudes. b. developing self, managing emotions, and handling
conflicts. c. dealing with externalizing or internalizing emotion regulations. d. understanding free play.

1. This ideal parenting style is characterized by clear expectations and consistent rules, as well as
sensitivity to a child’s needs.

a. authoritarian b. controlling c. authoritative d. permissive

2. For people living in a dangerous environment, the best parenting response might be:
a. to act more authoritarian. b. to act more rejecting. c. to act more permissive. d. to act a bit more
inconsistent.

3. All of the following foster resilience in“at risk” children EXCEPT when: a. the child has at least one
caring, loving relationship. b. the child has a special talent. c. the child is optimistic and has superior
emotion regulation skills. d. the child’s parent(s) has an authoritative style.

4. What are the risk factors for child abuse?

a. parent instability and mental health concerns b. parent’s stressors and social isolation c. vulnerable
children d. all of the answers

Chapter 7 5. Which of the following statements best summarizes the impact of divorce on children? a.
Divorce and parental alienation causes serious, long-lasting trauma. b. The quality of the parental
relationship determines how children adjust. c. Divorce has few negative effects and is based on the
resiliency of the children. d. Staying together for the sake of the children is always better.

6. A child scoring in the 50th percentile for his/her age group on an IQ test would have an IQ defined as:

a. 100. b. 50. c. 90. d. 110.

7. Juanita's class has just taken a test to measure students' reading ability. This test is a(n):

a. intelligence test. b. achievement test. c. aptitude test. d. WISC subtest.

8. The appropriate term to describe children with impaired cognitive functioning, deficits in behavior,
and an IQ of 70 or below is:

a. mentally disabled. b. mental disability. c. intellectual disability. d. mental retardation.

Chapter 7 (Answer)

Chapter 7

9. Karen has had her drawings published in national magazines and has been invited to prepare her
artwork for a local gallery, however, she always had academic problems and just barely managed to
graduate from high school. Sternberg would say that Karen is relatively high in ______ intelligence and
relatively low in _______ intelligence.

a. practical; analytic b. creative; analytic c. analytic; creative d. kinesthetic; practical

9. Karen has had her drawings published in national magazines and has been invited to prepare her
artwork for a local gallery, however, she always had academic problems and just barely managed to
graduate from high school. Sternberg would say that Karen is relatively high in ______ intelligence and
relatively low in ______ intelligence.

a. practical; analytic b. creative; analytic c. analytic; creative d. kinesthetic; practical

Chapter 7 (Answer)

Chapter 7

10. Mark loves to practice the guitar for his own enjoyment. Mark’s guitar playing is:
a. intrinsically motivating. b. extrinsically motivating. c. narcissistic. d. selfless.

11. Researchers find that providing challenging, creative work is best for:

a. distressed children only. b. children with average IQ’s only. c. highly motivated children only. d. all
children.

Chapter 7

12. Outstanding teachers do all of the following EXCEPT:

a. believe every child can succeed. b. encourage competition by reporting class grade averages. c. give
high-level creative work. d. develop a loving, secure attachment with every child.

13. The Common Core State Standards are based on all of the following:

a. scaffolding, problem solving, and communication skills. b. IQ, scaffolding, and problem solving. c.
communication, problem solving, and multiple intelligences. d. scaffolding, IQ, and interpersonal
intelligence.