PSYC355- FINAL EXAM
PSYC355- FINAL EXAM QUESTIONS
AND VERIFIED ANSWERS TOP GRADED
2024
Main psychoanalytic psychologists/main themes - -Freud and Erikson
-continuity and discontinuity
-individual differences
-nature and nurture
Psychoanalytic Theories - child goes through stages, driven by biological maturation
Freud - -behavior is driven by the need to satisfy basic drives
-emphasis on the unconscious
-emphasis on importance of early experience for later development
Psychosexual theory - -at each stage, children encounter conflicts related to different
erogenous zones
-how these conflicts are resolved impacts later development
Personality structure (Freud) - -Id (instincts)- innate biological drives; earliest/most
primative; unconscious; goal of seeking pleasure
-Ego (reality)- emerges in the first year; the rational/logical/problem-solving component
-Superego (morality)- develops during ages 3-6
Internalization - adoption of the parents' attributes, beliefs and standards as his/her own
Strengths of Freud - -strengths: emphasis on the importance of early social experience,
particularly with parents; emphasis on subjective experience and unconscious mental
activity
Weaknesses of Freud - -some claims difficult or impossible to empirically test (un-
falsifiable)
-some elements are highly questionable
-retrospective (he didn't actually work with children)
Erikson's Psychosocial Theory - trust vs. mistrust, autonomy vs. shame and doubt,
initiative vs. guilt, industry vs. inferiority, identity vs. role confusion
Trust vs. Mistrust - FIRST YEAR
-developing trust in other people is the crucial issue
Autonomy vs. Shame and doubt - 1-3.5 YEARS
,PSYC355- FINAL EXAM
-the challenge is to achieve a strong sense of autonomy while adjusting to increased
social demands
Initiative vs. Guilt - 4-6 YEARS
-resolved when the child develops high standards and the initiative to meet them without
being crushed by worry about not being able to measure up
Industry vs. Inferiority - 6-PUBERTY
-the child must master cognitive and social skills, learn to work industriously, and play
well with others
Identity vs. Role confusion - ADOLESCENCE-EARLY ADULTHOOD
-adolescents must resolve the question of who they really are or live in confusion about
what roles they should play as adults
Strengths of Erikson - -focus on adolescent identity development and sense of self has
been very influential
-emphasis on the importance of early social experience
-lifespan perspective
Weaknesses of Erikson - some claims difficult or impossible to empirically test (un-
falsifiable)
Watson Behaviorism - -Little albert: developed fear of white rat through classical
conditioning
-therapy based on systematic desensitization
Systematic desensitization - -therapy approach to treating phobias based on learning
principles
-exposure to the feared object in the context of positive reinforcement
Watson example - "treat them as though they were young adults. dress them, bathe
them with care and circumspection. let your behavior always be object and kindly firm.
never hug and kiss them, never let them sit on your lap. if you must, kiss them once on
the forehead when they say good night. shake hands with them in the morning."
Skinner's Operant (Instrumental) Conditioning - -behavior (development) is determined
by outcomes of previous behavior: reinforcement vs. punishment
-power of attention as reinforcer
-intermittent reinforcement hardest to extinguish
-therapy based on operant conditioning: behavior modification
Bandura's Social Learning Theory - -development is driven by social learning:
observation and imitation are learning mechanisms
, PSYC355- FINAL EXAM
Vicarious reinforcement - observing someone else receive a reward or punishment for
the behavior affects one's future behavior (learning aggression)
Reciprocal determinism - -emphasized role of child in shaping their environment
-relationship between child's behavior and social environment
Perceived self-efficacy - a person's beliefs about how effectively she can control her
behavior, thoughts and emotions to achieve a desired goal: often related across
different domains
Strengths of Learning Theories - -based on empirical data and main principles are
easily testable
-clear practical applications: behavior therapies
-highlight mechanisms of development
Weaknesses of Learning Theories - -ignore internal biological processes
-underestimate active role of child (except Bandura)
-underestimate role of cognition (except Bandura)
Social Cognition Theories - -focus on children's ability to think and reason about their
own and other people's thoughts, feelings, motives and behaviors: information
processing about social information
-core themes: active child & individual differences
Self-socialization - children play a very active role in their own socialization through their
activity preferences, friendship choices and so on
Dodge's Information-Processing Theory - 6 steps:
1- encode problematic event
2- interpret social cues
3- formulate a goal
4- generate strategies or responses
5- evaluate and pick a strategy or response
6- enact behavior
Step 2: social information processing and aggression - -interpreting social cues: give
kids ambiguous story and have them generate a response
-aggressive kids tend to exhibit a hostile attribution bias
Dodge Information Processing - Hostile attribution bias: interpret social cues as hostile
intentions
Dweck's theory of achievement motivation - beliefs about intelligence influence
academic performance
Entity theory of intelligence - FIXED MINDSET
PSYC355- FINAL EXAM QUESTIONS
AND VERIFIED ANSWERS TOP GRADED
2024
Main psychoanalytic psychologists/main themes - -Freud and Erikson
-continuity and discontinuity
-individual differences
-nature and nurture
Psychoanalytic Theories - child goes through stages, driven by biological maturation
Freud - -behavior is driven by the need to satisfy basic drives
-emphasis on the unconscious
-emphasis on importance of early experience for later development
Psychosexual theory - -at each stage, children encounter conflicts related to different
erogenous zones
-how these conflicts are resolved impacts later development
Personality structure (Freud) - -Id (instincts)- innate biological drives; earliest/most
primative; unconscious; goal of seeking pleasure
-Ego (reality)- emerges in the first year; the rational/logical/problem-solving component
-Superego (morality)- develops during ages 3-6
Internalization - adoption of the parents' attributes, beliefs and standards as his/her own
Strengths of Freud - -strengths: emphasis on the importance of early social experience,
particularly with parents; emphasis on subjective experience and unconscious mental
activity
Weaknesses of Freud - -some claims difficult or impossible to empirically test (un-
falsifiable)
-some elements are highly questionable
-retrospective (he didn't actually work with children)
Erikson's Psychosocial Theory - trust vs. mistrust, autonomy vs. shame and doubt,
initiative vs. guilt, industry vs. inferiority, identity vs. role confusion
Trust vs. Mistrust - FIRST YEAR
-developing trust in other people is the crucial issue
Autonomy vs. Shame and doubt - 1-3.5 YEARS
,PSYC355- FINAL EXAM
-the challenge is to achieve a strong sense of autonomy while adjusting to increased
social demands
Initiative vs. Guilt - 4-6 YEARS
-resolved when the child develops high standards and the initiative to meet them without
being crushed by worry about not being able to measure up
Industry vs. Inferiority - 6-PUBERTY
-the child must master cognitive and social skills, learn to work industriously, and play
well with others
Identity vs. Role confusion - ADOLESCENCE-EARLY ADULTHOOD
-adolescents must resolve the question of who they really are or live in confusion about
what roles they should play as adults
Strengths of Erikson - -focus on adolescent identity development and sense of self has
been very influential
-emphasis on the importance of early social experience
-lifespan perspective
Weaknesses of Erikson - some claims difficult or impossible to empirically test (un-
falsifiable)
Watson Behaviorism - -Little albert: developed fear of white rat through classical
conditioning
-therapy based on systematic desensitization
Systematic desensitization - -therapy approach to treating phobias based on learning
principles
-exposure to the feared object in the context of positive reinforcement
Watson example - "treat them as though they were young adults. dress them, bathe
them with care and circumspection. let your behavior always be object and kindly firm.
never hug and kiss them, never let them sit on your lap. if you must, kiss them once on
the forehead when they say good night. shake hands with them in the morning."
Skinner's Operant (Instrumental) Conditioning - -behavior (development) is determined
by outcomes of previous behavior: reinforcement vs. punishment
-power of attention as reinforcer
-intermittent reinforcement hardest to extinguish
-therapy based on operant conditioning: behavior modification
Bandura's Social Learning Theory - -development is driven by social learning:
observation and imitation are learning mechanisms
, PSYC355- FINAL EXAM
Vicarious reinforcement - observing someone else receive a reward or punishment for
the behavior affects one's future behavior (learning aggression)
Reciprocal determinism - -emphasized role of child in shaping their environment
-relationship between child's behavior and social environment
Perceived self-efficacy - a person's beliefs about how effectively she can control her
behavior, thoughts and emotions to achieve a desired goal: often related across
different domains
Strengths of Learning Theories - -based on empirical data and main principles are
easily testable
-clear practical applications: behavior therapies
-highlight mechanisms of development
Weaknesses of Learning Theories - -ignore internal biological processes
-underestimate active role of child (except Bandura)
-underestimate role of cognition (except Bandura)
Social Cognition Theories - -focus on children's ability to think and reason about their
own and other people's thoughts, feelings, motives and behaviors: information
processing about social information
-core themes: active child & individual differences
Self-socialization - children play a very active role in their own socialization through their
activity preferences, friendship choices and so on
Dodge's Information-Processing Theory - 6 steps:
1- encode problematic event
2- interpret social cues
3- formulate a goal
4- generate strategies or responses
5- evaluate and pick a strategy or response
6- enact behavior
Step 2: social information processing and aggression - -interpreting social cues: give
kids ambiguous story and have them generate a response
-aggressive kids tend to exhibit a hostile attribution bias
Dodge Information Processing - Hostile attribution bias: interpret social cues as hostile
intentions
Dweck's theory of achievement motivation - beliefs about intelligence influence
academic performance
Entity theory of intelligence - FIXED MINDSET
