PSYCH 253 FINAL EXAM QUESTIONS ANSWERED CORRECTLY LATEST UPDATE 2026
Put the following components of reaction time in order of the part of reaction time they account for,
from the moment a deer jumps in front of a moving car to the elderly driver swerving to avoid it.
a. sensory transmission time -> central processing time -> motor execution time
b. central processing time -> motor execution time -> sensory transmission time
c. sensory transmission time -> motor execution time -> central processing time
d. central processing time -> sensory transmission time -> motor execution time - Answers A
What is aerobic capacity?
a.
Ability to cope with physical exertion.
b.
The amount of air your lungs can hold.
c.
How long you can do moderately challenging aerobics without doubling over, sucking in air. - Answers
A
True or False?: Arthritis is a cause of hearing loss in later life? - Answers True
True or False?: If we spent a little over a minute talking about cardiovascular disease in class,
depending on how you look at it, two or three people in the US alone would have died from the
condition while we were discussing it. - Answers True
True or False?: For women, the voice become slightly higher in pitch, weaker, and potentially softer.
For men, the voice becomes slightly deeper in pitch, weaker, and potentially softer. - Answers False.
Elders retain the tastes of _______ and _______ longer than the tastes of ________ and _______. The
reason is likely that, in nature, foods that are unsafe to eat generally have these tastes.
a.
salty; bitter; sweet; sour
b.
sweet; sour; bitter; salty
c.
salty; sweet; bitter; sour
d.
bitter; sour; salty; sweet - Answers D
Often, older adults are economical with words - giving you the gist instead of all the gory details, etc.
Which of the following explanations account for that phenomenon? You may choose more than one
answer.
a.
They may have trouble pulling specific details from long-term memory.
b.
None of these are correct.
c.
The tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon
d.
The fact that elders often have shorter working memories than younger folks. - Answers A, C, D
True or False?: One home "remedy" (or at least something to make it better) for hearing loss is to
have conversations in rooms with furnishings/decor with lots of rough, nubbly surfaces, as those
surfaces catch "stray" noise and make it easier to hear what another person is saying to the elder. -
Answers True.
True or False?: When performing cataract surgery, doctors can insert a plastic lens into the eye to
improve visual acuity? - Answers True
Which of the following is not a reason that older individuals move more slowly and with less agility?
a. Tendons shorten.
b. None of these - these are all reasons that older adults move more slowly and with less agility.
c. Arthritis.
d. Muscles atrophy. - Answers B
Which of the following is your grandfather likely to remember most easily (without the use of a
memory aid)?
a. That you'll be over for Sunday dinner, because you always have Sunday dinner with him.
,b. An appointment with his new doctor on Wednesday at 10 a.m., because he's been looking forward
to switching doctors. - Answers A
True or False? Decisions that you make when you are younger can have a dramatic impact on whether
or not you develop respiratory conditions like emphysema and chronic bronchitis? - Answers True
Your and your grandmother are attending an indoor wedding in August in Central Illinois. You are in
short sleeves and perfectly comfortable, but she is chilly as asks you to get her sweater from the car.
What is the underlying reason that she is likely chillier than you in an air conditioned room, even
though the temperature is moderate?
a.
The difference between skin temperature and core body temperature declines with age.
b.
Older people are always chilly -- sitting outside on a 120 degree day would be a way they could finally
feel warm enough.
c.
Grandma's age doesn't impact this scenario - we are just talking about individual preference. -
Answers A
Why is the current cohort of middle-aged folks often referred to as the "Sandwich Generation"? -
Answers They are kindof squeezed between two generations needing their care: their elderly parents
and the children they are raising.
Do social relationships have an unambiguously positive impact on development? - Answers No.
You're 38 and just received a call from your doctor's office. The results of the blood test you had
earlier this week are in, and your blood sugar is in the pre-Diabetes range. This isn't awesome news -
your blood pressure was also in the pre-Hypertension (high blood pressure range). What should you
make of this? Feel free to choose more than one.
a. Exercise more (like, 30 minutes 5 days/week) and change your diet (lots of fresh produce, more
whole grain); there is a good chance that you can slow, and in some cases, reverse, the damage to
your body.
b. Nothing - you haven't been diagnosed with either Diabetes or Hypertension, so you can continue
on as normal.
c. Take this as a warning: you could develop Diabetes and Hypertension if you don't change your
behavior.
d. Fall into despair - you're going to be dealing with Diabetes and Hypertension before you know it. -
Answers A, C
True or False?: There is more variability in development (e.g., abilities, etc.) among children than
among adults. - Answers False.
June's husband of 63 passed away last March. He used to take care of all the major home tasks
needed to get ready for winter: checking the generator to make sure it would start; disconnecting the
garden hose so that it didn't freeze and break the hose bib; checking the furnace; giving the grass one
final trim before the snow fell (he loved the look of a manicured lawn); and putting up solar lights to
line the walkway at night.
June looked at the list of tasks and found them daunting. She decided that giving the grass one last
trim didn't matter, since the grass would soon be covered in snow. Likewise, she knew that she wasn't
planning to go out in the evening without her husband, and decided not to install the solar lights. She
focused her efforts instead on checking the generator, disconnecting the hose, and checking the
furnace.
She disconnected the hose no problem (although she did ask her granddaughter to coil up - Answers
Compensation
Which of the following is an example of secondary control?
a. Finding the Broadway musical you've been looking forward to seeing live on Netflix and renting it.
b. Deciding that seeing big, Broadway musicals in person is over-rated after the one you've been
looking forward to is canceled, and deciding that simply seeing it (whether live or recorded) is more
important than seeing it live. - Answers B
If I asked you to describe the typical course of aging for a 50 year old, could you? - Answers Not really
- rates of aging vary between people.
Are social skills and flexibility in encountering new situations considered personal protective factors or
community/social support factors? - Answers Personal protective factors
, Is menopause the same type of experience for men and women? - Answers No - menopause is a
profound biological event, complicated by the enormous developmental pressures of midlife, for
women; for men, it is more about the latter - the psychological distress that accompanies those
developmental pressures at midlife.
You are taking a really, really hard science class, and are torn between buckling down and studying for
your upcoming exam, or saying, "forget it; I don't really care about that class, anyway" to escape the
stress of feeling unprepared. If you choose the studying route, you are utilizing _____. - Answers
Primary control.
According to which theory of development do "older adults pare down their social interactions,
increasing the number of exchanges with others with whom they have close, affectional ties and
limiting less meaningful contact"? - Answers Socioemotional Selectivity Theory.
Care and concern for the next generation figures prominently into one of Erikson's latter stages of
psychosocial development. Which term below best describes that concern? - Answers Generativity.
Social support is a fairly complex variable, and it has been categorized/chunked up in many different
ways. We identified in class three types of support people exchange with one another. Which of the
following is a good example of instrumental support?
a. Listening with rapt attention as your grandmother tells you the story of each holiday decoration in
her collection.
b. Helping your grandmother bring holiday decorations down from the attic?
c. Buying your grandmother a new holiday decoration. - Answers B
True or False?: By some definitions, 70 is considered part of midlife? - Answers True
True or false?: Socioeconomic factors (like income, education, job prestige) can be protective factors
in development? - Answers True
June's husband of 63 passed away last March. He used to take care of all the major home tasks
needed to get ready for winter: checking the generator to make sure it would start; disconnecting the
garden hose so that it didn't freeze and break the hose bib; checking the furnace; giving the grass one
final trim before the snow fell (he loved the look of a manicured lawn); and putting up solar lights to
line the walkway at night.
June looked at the list of tasks and found them daunting. She decided that giving the grass one last
trim didn't matter, since the grass would soon be covered in snow. Likewise, she knew that she wasn't
planning to go out in the evening without her husband, and decided not to install the solar lights. She
focused her efforts instead on checking the generator, disconnecting the hose, and checking the
furnace.
She disconnected the hose no problem (although she did ask her granddaughter to coil up - Answers
A, B
Which of the following principles of Lifespan Development, by definition, means that functioning is
not predetermined (entirely) by genetic factors and is open to change (within certain limits)? -
Answers Plasticity
Do contextual factors (like those related to how one's racial or ethnic group is viewed and treated
within society, access to resources and healthcare, and culture) matter within the Lifespan
Developmental perspective?
a. Yes - the lifespan developmental perspective comprises all of these variables.
b. No - the lifespan developmental perspective is more focused on the how the individual develops,
and focuses primarily on genes and internal factors like self-esteem, optimism, coping skills, etc. -
Answers A
Maizi and Mitzi are identical twins and shared an upstairs bedroom at home until they were 8... one
day, Mitzi took a horrific tumble out of their bedroom window when they were using it as a stage for
a puppet show. Even though she was not physically injured, Mitzi has been petrified of stairs, heights,
and any situation above ground-level ever since. Eventually, Maizi and Mitzi go to college when they
are 18. Both want to major in Accounting, but the Accounting Department is located on the second
floor of the Business School at their university; Mitzi decides to major in Art, which is housed in a one-
story building, instead. Both graduate from college on time, and get jobs doing the things they
majored in. Maizi gets hired on with a local accounting firm and enjoys her quiet, 9-5 job and the
steady companionship of her husband, Mark. Mitzi's art happens to get noticed by a fine art dealer
from New York, and that wom - Answers B
Put the following components of reaction time in order of the part of reaction time they account for,
from the moment a deer jumps in front of a moving car to the elderly driver swerving to avoid it.
a. sensory transmission time -> central processing time -> motor execution time
b. central processing time -> motor execution time -> sensory transmission time
c. sensory transmission time -> motor execution time -> central processing time
d. central processing time -> sensory transmission time -> motor execution time - Answers A
What is aerobic capacity?
a.
Ability to cope with physical exertion.
b.
The amount of air your lungs can hold.
c.
How long you can do moderately challenging aerobics without doubling over, sucking in air. - Answers
A
True or False?: Arthritis is a cause of hearing loss in later life? - Answers True
True or False?: If we spent a little over a minute talking about cardiovascular disease in class,
depending on how you look at it, two or three people in the US alone would have died from the
condition while we were discussing it. - Answers True
True or False?: For women, the voice become slightly higher in pitch, weaker, and potentially softer.
For men, the voice becomes slightly deeper in pitch, weaker, and potentially softer. - Answers False.
Elders retain the tastes of _______ and _______ longer than the tastes of ________ and _______. The
reason is likely that, in nature, foods that are unsafe to eat generally have these tastes.
a.
salty; bitter; sweet; sour
b.
sweet; sour; bitter; salty
c.
salty; sweet; bitter; sour
d.
bitter; sour; salty; sweet - Answers D
Often, older adults are economical with words - giving you the gist instead of all the gory details, etc.
Which of the following explanations account for that phenomenon? You may choose more than one
answer.
a.
They may have trouble pulling specific details from long-term memory.
b.
None of these are correct.
c.
The tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon
d.
The fact that elders often have shorter working memories than younger folks. - Answers A, C, D
True or False?: One home "remedy" (or at least something to make it better) for hearing loss is to
have conversations in rooms with furnishings/decor with lots of rough, nubbly surfaces, as those
surfaces catch "stray" noise and make it easier to hear what another person is saying to the elder. -
Answers True.
True or False?: When performing cataract surgery, doctors can insert a plastic lens into the eye to
improve visual acuity? - Answers True
Which of the following is not a reason that older individuals move more slowly and with less agility?
a. Tendons shorten.
b. None of these - these are all reasons that older adults move more slowly and with less agility.
c. Arthritis.
d. Muscles atrophy. - Answers B
Which of the following is your grandfather likely to remember most easily (without the use of a
memory aid)?
a. That you'll be over for Sunday dinner, because you always have Sunday dinner with him.
,b. An appointment with his new doctor on Wednesday at 10 a.m., because he's been looking forward
to switching doctors. - Answers A
True or False? Decisions that you make when you are younger can have a dramatic impact on whether
or not you develop respiratory conditions like emphysema and chronic bronchitis? - Answers True
Your and your grandmother are attending an indoor wedding in August in Central Illinois. You are in
short sleeves and perfectly comfortable, but she is chilly as asks you to get her sweater from the car.
What is the underlying reason that she is likely chillier than you in an air conditioned room, even
though the temperature is moderate?
a.
The difference between skin temperature and core body temperature declines with age.
b.
Older people are always chilly -- sitting outside on a 120 degree day would be a way they could finally
feel warm enough.
c.
Grandma's age doesn't impact this scenario - we are just talking about individual preference. -
Answers A
Why is the current cohort of middle-aged folks often referred to as the "Sandwich Generation"? -
Answers They are kindof squeezed between two generations needing their care: their elderly parents
and the children they are raising.
Do social relationships have an unambiguously positive impact on development? - Answers No.
You're 38 and just received a call from your doctor's office. The results of the blood test you had
earlier this week are in, and your blood sugar is in the pre-Diabetes range. This isn't awesome news -
your blood pressure was also in the pre-Hypertension (high blood pressure range). What should you
make of this? Feel free to choose more than one.
a. Exercise more (like, 30 minutes 5 days/week) and change your diet (lots of fresh produce, more
whole grain); there is a good chance that you can slow, and in some cases, reverse, the damage to
your body.
b. Nothing - you haven't been diagnosed with either Diabetes or Hypertension, so you can continue
on as normal.
c. Take this as a warning: you could develop Diabetes and Hypertension if you don't change your
behavior.
d. Fall into despair - you're going to be dealing with Diabetes and Hypertension before you know it. -
Answers A, C
True or False?: There is more variability in development (e.g., abilities, etc.) among children than
among adults. - Answers False.
June's husband of 63 passed away last March. He used to take care of all the major home tasks
needed to get ready for winter: checking the generator to make sure it would start; disconnecting the
garden hose so that it didn't freeze and break the hose bib; checking the furnace; giving the grass one
final trim before the snow fell (he loved the look of a manicured lawn); and putting up solar lights to
line the walkway at night.
June looked at the list of tasks and found them daunting. She decided that giving the grass one last
trim didn't matter, since the grass would soon be covered in snow. Likewise, she knew that she wasn't
planning to go out in the evening without her husband, and decided not to install the solar lights. She
focused her efforts instead on checking the generator, disconnecting the hose, and checking the
furnace.
She disconnected the hose no problem (although she did ask her granddaughter to coil up - Answers
Compensation
Which of the following is an example of secondary control?
a. Finding the Broadway musical you've been looking forward to seeing live on Netflix and renting it.
b. Deciding that seeing big, Broadway musicals in person is over-rated after the one you've been
looking forward to is canceled, and deciding that simply seeing it (whether live or recorded) is more
important than seeing it live. - Answers B
If I asked you to describe the typical course of aging for a 50 year old, could you? - Answers Not really
- rates of aging vary between people.
Are social skills and flexibility in encountering new situations considered personal protective factors or
community/social support factors? - Answers Personal protective factors
, Is menopause the same type of experience for men and women? - Answers No - menopause is a
profound biological event, complicated by the enormous developmental pressures of midlife, for
women; for men, it is more about the latter - the psychological distress that accompanies those
developmental pressures at midlife.
You are taking a really, really hard science class, and are torn between buckling down and studying for
your upcoming exam, or saying, "forget it; I don't really care about that class, anyway" to escape the
stress of feeling unprepared. If you choose the studying route, you are utilizing _____. - Answers
Primary control.
According to which theory of development do "older adults pare down their social interactions,
increasing the number of exchanges with others with whom they have close, affectional ties and
limiting less meaningful contact"? - Answers Socioemotional Selectivity Theory.
Care and concern for the next generation figures prominently into one of Erikson's latter stages of
psychosocial development. Which term below best describes that concern? - Answers Generativity.
Social support is a fairly complex variable, and it has been categorized/chunked up in many different
ways. We identified in class three types of support people exchange with one another. Which of the
following is a good example of instrumental support?
a. Listening with rapt attention as your grandmother tells you the story of each holiday decoration in
her collection.
b. Helping your grandmother bring holiday decorations down from the attic?
c. Buying your grandmother a new holiday decoration. - Answers B
True or False?: By some definitions, 70 is considered part of midlife? - Answers True
True or false?: Socioeconomic factors (like income, education, job prestige) can be protective factors
in development? - Answers True
June's husband of 63 passed away last March. He used to take care of all the major home tasks
needed to get ready for winter: checking the generator to make sure it would start; disconnecting the
garden hose so that it didn't freeze and break the hose bib; checking the furnace; giving the grass one
final trim before the snow fell (he loved the look of a manicured lawn); and putting up solar lights to
line the walkway at night.
June looked at the list of tasks and found them daunting. She decided that giving the grass one last
trim didn't matter, since the grass would soon be covered in snow. Likewise, she knew that she wasn't
planning to go out in the evening without her husband, and decided not to install the solar lights. She
focused her efforts instead on checking the generator, disconnecting the hose, and checking the
furnace.
She disconnected the hose no problem (although she did ask her granddaughter to coil up - Answers
A, B
Which of the following principles of Lifespan Development, by definition, means that functioning is
not predetermined (entirely) by genetic factors and is open to change (within certain limits)? -
Answers Plasticity
Do contextual factors (like those related to how one's racial or ethnic group is viewed and treated
within society, access to resources and healthcare, and culture) matter within the Lifespan
Developmental perspective?
a. Yes - the lifespan developmental perspective comprises all of these variables.
b. No - the lifespan developmental perspective is more focused on the how the individual develops,
and focuses primarily on genes and internal factors like self-esteem, optimism, coping skills, etc. -
Answers A
Maizi and Mitzi are identical twins and shared an upstairs bedroom at home until they were 8... one
day, Mitzi took a horrific tumble out of their bedroom window when they were using it as a stage for
a puppet show. Even though she was not physically injured, Mitzi has been petrified of stairs, heights,
and any situation above ground-level ever since. Eventually, Maizi and Mitzi go to college when they
are 18. Both want to major in Accounting, but the Accounting Department is located on the second
floor of the Business School at their university; Mitzi decides to major in Art, which is housed in a one-
story building, instead. Both graduate from college on time, and get jobs doing the things they
majored in. Maizi gets hired on with a local accounting firm and enjoys her quiet, 9-5 job and the
steady companionship of her husband, Mark. Mitzi's art happens to get noticed by a fine art dealer
from New York, and that wom - Answers B
