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PSYC 140 DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY FINAL
EXAM Actual Exam 2026/2027 Complete Questions and
Verified Answers with Detailed Rationales Portage Learning
Pass Guaranteed - A+ Graded
Section 1: PSYC 140 Final Exam
Q1: According to Piaget's theory of cognitive development, a child who believes that a tall, thin
glass contains more liquid than a short, wide glass with the same amount is demonstrating:
A. Centration and lack of conservation [CORRECT]
B. Abstract reasoning
C. Hypothetical-deductive thinking
D. Object permanence
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: This demonstrates centration (focusing on one dimension—height—while ignoring
width) and lack of conservation (inability to recognize that quantity remains constant despite
changes in appearance), characteristic of the preoperational stage (ages 2-7).
Q2: Erikson's psychosocial crisis for adolescence (ages 12-18) is:
A. Trust versus mistrust
B. Autonomy versus shame and doubt
C. Identity versus role confusion [CORRECT]
D. Intimacy versus isolation
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Erikson's fifth stage focuses on identity formation; adolescents explore different roles,
values, and beliefs to establish a coherent sense of self, with successful resolution leading to
fidelity and role confusion resulting from failure to integrate identity components.
Q3: A 4-month-old infant smiles at their reflection in a mirror. According to developmental
research, this indicates:
A. Self-recognition and self-awareness
B. Social smiling and lack of self-differentiation [CORRECT]
C. Egocentrism in the preoperational stage
,2
D. Secure attachment formation
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Infants aged 2-6 months show social smiling at mirrors but lack true self-recognition;
they respond to the mirror image as a social partner rather than recognizing themselves, with
explicit self-recognition (touching own face/nose) not emerging until 18-24 months.
Q4: Vygotsky's concept of the "zone of proximal development" refers to:
A. The range of tasks a child can complete independently
B. The range between what a child can do alone and what they can do with assistance
[CORRECT]
C. The physical growth spurt during puberty
D. The period of maximum brain plasticity in infancy
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: The ZPD describes tasks too difficult for independent completion but achievable with
guidance from a more knowledgeable person; scaffolding within this zone promotes cognitive
development through socially mediated learning.
Q5: During the germinal stage of prenatal development (weeks 1-2), the major developmental
task is:
A. Organogenesis and formation of major organs
B. Implantation in the uterine wall and beginning of placenta formation [CORRECT]
C. Rapid brain development and neural tube formation
D. Fetal movement and reflex development
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: The germinal stage involves cell division (cleavage), blastocyst formation, and
implantation in the endometrium; the embryonic disk forms and begins differentiating into
embryonic and extraembryonic tissues, with the placenta beginning development.
Q6: A child who understands that people can have false beliefs (e.g., believing cookies are in the
blue jar when they were moved to the green jar) has developed:
A. Egocentrism
B. Theory of mind [CORRECT]
C. Object permanence
,3
D. Conservation
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Theory of mind, typically emerging around age 4, is the understanding that others
have mental states (beliefs, desires, intentions) that may differ from one's own; the false-belief
task is the classic assessment of this milestone.
Q7: According to Kohlberg's theory of moral development, a child who obeys rules to avoid
punishment is operating at which level?
A. Conventional morality
B. Postconventional morality
C. Preconventional morality (Stage 1: Obedience and punishment orientation) [CORRECT]
D. Principled morality
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Preconventional morality (ages 4-10) focuses on external consequences; Stage 1
moral reasoning centers on avoiding punishment and obeying authority, with rightness
determined by physical consequences rather than internalized values.
Q8: The "strange situation" procedure developed by Mary Ainsworth is used to assess:
A. Cognitive development in toddlers
B. Attachment security between infant and caregiver [CORRECT]
C. Temperament differences in newborns
D. Language acquisition patterns
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: The strange situation evaluates attachment through structured separations and
reunions, classifying infants as secure (distressed when caregiver leaves, comforted upon return),
avoidant, resistant/ambivalent, or disorganized/disoriented based on reunion behaviors.
Q9: A 2-year-old child uses two-word utterances such as "more milk" and "daddy go." This is
characteristic of which stage of language development?
A. Babbling stage
B. Holophrastic stage
C. Telegraphic speech stage [CORRECT]
D. Overregularization stage
, 4
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Telegraphic speech (18-30 months) consists of short, simple sentences following
grammatical rules but omitting function words and grammatical morphemes; children convey
meaning efficiently using content words in subject-verb or verb-object sequences.
Q10: According to Erikson, the psychosocial crisis of early adulthood (ages 20-40) is:
A. Generativity versus stagnation
B. Intimacy versus isolation [CORRECT]
C. Ego integrity versus despair
D. Industry versus inferiority
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Early adulthood centers on forming intimate, committed relationships; successful
resolution yields the capacity for love and connection, while failure results in isolation and
loneliness from fear of rejection or inability to establish closeness.
Q11: Research on the visual cliff demonstrates that infants who can crawl:
A. Have no depth perception until age 2
B. Can perceive depth and typically avoid the "deep" side [CORRECT]
C. Are not afraid of heights until socialized
D. Rely entirely on binocular cues for depth
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Gibson and Walk's visual cliff apparatus showed that crawling infants (7+ months)
avoid the apparent drop-off, demonstrating innate depth perception using kinetic and binocular
cues; heart rate deceleration in pre-crawling infants also indicates depth discrimination.
Q12: During the embryonic period of prenatal development (weeks 3-8), the developing
organism is most vulnerable to:
A. Genetic abnormalities only
B. Minor environmental influences
C. Teratogens that can cause major structural malformations [CORRECT]
D. Maternal stress but not physical agents
Correct Answer: C
PSYC 140 DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY FINAL
EXAM Actual Exam 2026/2027 Complete Questions and
Verified Answers with Detailed Rationales Portage Learning
Pass Guaranteed - A+ Graded
Section 1: PSYC 140 Final Exam
Q1: According to Piaget's theory of cognitive development, a child who believes that a tall, thin
glass contains more liquid than a short, wide glass with the same amount is demonstrating:
A. Centration and lack of conservation [CORRECT]
B. Abstract reasoning
C. Hypothetical-deductive thinking
D. Object permanence
Correct Answer: A
Rationale: This demonstrates centration (focusing on one dimension—height—while ignoring
width) and lack of conservation (inability to recognize that quantity remains constant despite
changes in appearance), characteristic of the preoperational stage (ages 2-7).
Q2: Erikson's psychosocial crisis for adolescence (ages 12-18) is:
A. Trust versus mistrust
B. Autonomy versus shame and doubt
C. Identity versus role confusion [CORRECT]
D. Intimacy versus isolation
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Erikson's fifth stage focuses on identity formation; adolescents explore different roles,
values, and beliefs to establish a coherent sense of self, with successful resolution leading to
fidelity and role confusion resulting from failure to integrate identity components.
Q3: A 4-month-old infant smiles at their reflection in a mirror. According to developmental
research, this indicates:
A. Self-recognition and self-awareness
B. Social smiling and lack of self-differentiation [CORRECT]
C. Egocentrism in the preoperational stage
,2
D. Secure attachment formation
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Infants aged 2-6 months show social smiling at mirrors but lack true self-recognition;
they respond to the mirror image as a social partner rather than recognizing themselves, with
explicit self-recognition (touching own face/nose) not emerging until 18-24 months.
Q4: Vygotsky's concept of the "zone of proximal development" refers to:
A. The range of tasks a child can complete independently
B. The range between what a child can do alone and what they can do with assistance
[CORRECT]
C. The physical growth spurt during puberty
D. The period of maximum brain plasticity in infancy
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: The ZPD describes tasks too difficult for independent completion but achievable with
guidance from a more knowledgeable person; scaffolding within this zone promotes cognitive
development through socially mediated learning.
Q5: During the germinal stage of prenatal development (weeks 1-2), the major developmental
task is:
A. Organogenesis and formation of major organs
B. Implantation in the uterine wall and beginning of placenta formation [CORRECT]
C. Rapid brain development and neural tube formation
D. Fetal movement and reflex development
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: The germinal stage involves cell division (cleavage), blastocyst formation, and
implantation in the endometrium; the embryonic disk forms and begins differentiating into
embryonic and extraembryonic tissues, with the placenta beginning development.
Q6: A child who understands that people can have false beliefs (e.g., believing cookies are in the
blue jar when they were moved to the green jar) has developed:
A. Egocentrism
B. Theory of mind [CORRECT]
C. Object permanence
,3
D. Conservation
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Theory of mind, typically emerging around age 4, is the understanding that others
have mental states (beliefs, desires, intentions) that may differ from one's own; the false-belief
task is the classic assessment of this milestone.
Q7: According to Kohlberg's theory of moral development, a child who obeys rules to avoid
punishment is operating at which level?
A. Conventional morality
B. Postconventional morality
C. Preconventional morality (Stage 1: Obedience and punishment orientation) [CORRECT]
D. Principled morality
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Preconventional morality (ages 4-10) focuses on external consequences; Stage 1
moral reasoning centers on avoiding punishment and obeying authority, with rightness
determined by physical consequences rather than internalized values.
Q8: The "strange situation" procedure developed by Mary Ainsworth is used to assess:
A. Cognitive development in toddlers
B. Attachment security between infant and caregiver [CORRECT]
C. Temperament differences in newborns
D. Language acquisition patterns
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: The strange situation evaluates attachment through structured separations and
reunions, classifying infants as secure (distressed when caregiver leaves, comforted upon return),
avoidant, resistant/ambivalent, or disorganized/disoriented based on reunion behaviors.
Q9: A 2-year-old child uses two-word utterances such as "more milk" and "daddy go." This is
characteristic of which stage of language development?
A. Babbling stage
B. Holophrastic stage
C. Telegraphic speech stage [CORRECT]
D. Overregularization stage
, 4
Correct Answer: C
Rationale: Telegraphic speech (18-30 months) consists of short, simple sentences following
grammatical rules but omitting function words and grammatical morphemes; children convey
meaning efficiently using content words in subject-verb or verb-object sequences.
Q10: According to Erikson, the psychosocial crisis of early adulthood (ages 20-40) is:
A. Generativity versus stagnation
B. Intimacy versus isolation [CORRECT]
C. Ego integrity versus despair
D. Industry versus inferiority
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Early adulthood centers on forming intimate, committed relationships; successful
resolution yields the capacity for love and connection, while failure results in isolation and
loneliness from fear of rejection or inability to establish closeness.
Q11: Research on the visual cliff demonstrates that infants who can crawl:
A. Have no depth perception until age 2
B. Can perceive depth and typically avoid the "deep" side [CORRECT]
C. Are not afraid of heights until socialized
D. Rely entirely on binocular cues for depth
Correct Answer: B
Rationale: Gibson and Walk's visual cliff apparatus showed that crawling infants (7+ months)
avoid the apparent drop-off, demonstrating innate depth perception using kinetic and binocular
cues; heart rate deceleration in pre-crawling infants also indicates depth discrimination.
Q12: During the embryonic period of prenatal development (weeks 3-8), the developing
organism is most vulnerable to:
A. Genetic abnormalities only
B. Minor environmental influences
C. Teratogens that can cause major structural malformations [CORRECT]
D. Maternal stress but not physical agents
Correct Answer: C
