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Test Bank for Children and Their Development 6th
Edition by Kail
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Chapter 1
Quick Quiz

1. These systematic, detailed observations of individual children done by scientists, including Darwin, in the
nineteenth century paved the way for today’s objective, analytic research.
a. child logs c. field notes
b. baby biographies d. infant observations

2. In child development, an organized set of ideas that is designed to explain and make predictions about
development is known as a(n)
a. hypothesis. c. systematic observation.
b. scientific observation. d. theory.

3. According to this theory, development reflects a specific and prearranged scheme or plan within the body.
a. maturational theory c. psychodynamic theory
b. ethological theory d. psychosocial theory

4. When 4-year-old Caryn realizes that taking another child’s toy is wrong, she is demonstrating which component
of personality according to Freud?
a. id c. superego
b. ego d. self-concept

5. Rashid is 7 years old and is working hard to learn basic skills and how to work well with others. According to
Erikson’s theory, Rashid is in what stage of psychosocial development?
a. autonomy versus shame and doubt c. industry versus inferiority
b. initiative versus guilt d. identity versus identity confusion

6. Telling a child that she doesn’t have to fold the laundry because she cleaned up her room is an example of
a. positive reinforcement. c. positive punishment.
b. negative reinforcement. d. negative punishment.

7. The four stages of Piaget’s cognitive development theory are, in chronological order:
a. sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational.
b. preoperational, sensorimotor, formal operational, and concrete operational.
c. formal operational, concrete operational, preoperational, and sensorimotor.
d. concrete operational, formal operational, sensorimotor, and preoperational.

8. Locke’s view that children are a blank slate on which experience writes, is an illustration of which theme in
child development?
a. continuity-discontinuity c. active-passive child
b. nature-nurture d. connections between developmental domains

9. Children who are attractive tend to have more friends than children who are not as attractive. That is,
attractiveness is associated with having more friends. This is an example of a
a. positive correlation. c. cause-and-effect relationship.

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 b. negative correlation. d. manipulated independent variable.

10. Weaknesses of longitudinal studies include all of the following EXCEPT:

a. cohort effects. c. practice effects.
b. selective attrition. d. inability to examine individual development over time.

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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter 1
Quick Quiz Answers
1. Chapter Module: Setting the Stage
Answer: b Page(s): 5 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Baby biographies are detailed, systematic observations of individual children.

2. Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 7 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: A theory is an organized set of ideas that is designed to explain and make predictions about
development.

3. Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 8 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Maturational theory states that child development reflects a specific and prearranged scheme or
plan within the body.

4. Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 9 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: The superego emerges during the preschool years and is an internalization of adult standards of
right and wrong.

5. Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 10 Type: Applied Diff: Hard
Rationale: This is the challenge and age group represented by the industry vs. inferiority stage — learning
basic skills and working with others.

6. Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: b Page(s): 11 Type: Applied Diff: Hard
Rationale: This is negative reinforcement because you are taking away something undesirable (folding
clothes) to increase (reinforcement) the chance of the behavior (cleaning the room) occurring again.

7. Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 13 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Order given by text from first to last stage.

8. Chapter Module: Themes in Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 17 Type: Conceptual Diff: Hard
Rationale: Locke’s view illustrates the passive side of the active-passive child issue.

9. Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 24-25 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: As one variable goes up (attractiveness) the other variable (number of friends) also increases, so
this is a positive correlation.

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10. Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research
Answer: d Page(s): 30 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Longitudinal designs give you the ability to examine individual development over time, which is
a strength of this method, not a weakness.

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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter 1
The Science of Child Development
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS

1.1 Viewing infants as tabula rasas suggests that

a. infants will develop naturally unless the environment interferes.
b. experience will mold infants into unique individuals.
c. nature is more important than nurture.
d. infants are born with a sense of morality.

Chapter Module: Setting the Stage

Answer: b Page(s): 4 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Locke’s tabula rasa is the idea that infants are blank slates on which experience writes.

1.2 The idea that the mind of the human infant is a tabula rasa at birth reflects the belief that
a. experience molds each person into a unique individual.
b. children should be left alone so that their good natures can unfold.
c. heredity plays a major role in an individual’s development.
d. infants cannot think because their minds are blank.

Chapter Module: Setting the Stage

Answer: a Page(s): 4 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Locke’s tabula rasa is the idea that infants are blank slates on which experience writes.

1.3 If parents believe that children are tabula rasas at birth, they are likely to
a. leave their children alone so their virtuous natures can unfold.
b. be very permissive with their children.
c. assume that nothing they do will have any influence on their children’s development.
d. plan their children’s experiences from the moment of their birth.

Chapter Module: Setting the Stage

Answer: d Page(s): 4 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Locke believed that experience was important to development; therefore parents play an
important role in planning their children’s experiences.

1.4 The French philosopher, Jean Jacques Rousseau, believed that

a. the human infant is born a tabula rasa.
b. infants were born with an innate sense of justice and morality.
c. experience molds each human into a unique individual.
d. parents should teach their children rationality and self-control.

Chapter Module: Setting the Stage

Answer: b Page(s): 4 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Rousseau believed that infants are born with an innate sense of justice and morality.

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1.5 Heather believes her 12-month-old daughter will develop optimally if Heather gives her freedom to grow
naturally and does not try to shape her development. Heather’s beliefs about child rearing are most similar to
those of
a. Sigmund Freud. c. John Locke.
b. Erik Erikson. d. Jean Jacques Rousseau.

Chapter Module: Setting the Stage

Answer: d Page(s): 4 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Rousseau believed in a natural unfolding of a child’s innate sense of justice and morality, a
philosophy that formed the basis of the maturational theory.

1.6 Detailed, systematic observations of individual children are referred to as

a. blank slates. c. mental tests.
b. baby biographies. d. critical periods.

Chapter Module: Setting the Stage

Answer: b Page(s): 5 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Baby biographies are detailed, systematic observations of individual children. The
observations in the biographies were often subjective and the conclusions were sometimes reached on
the basis of minimal evidence.

1.7 __________________ based his ideas about child development on evolutionary theory and was interested in
age-trends in children’s beliefs and feelings.
a. John Locke c. G. Stanley Hall
b. Jean Jacques Rousseau d. Alfred Binet

Chapter Module: Setting the Stage

Answer: c Page(s): 5 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Hall generated theories based on evolutionary theory and conducted studies to determine age
trends in children’s beliefs and feelings about a range of topics.

1.8 __________________ uses developmental research to promote healthy development, particularly for
vulnerable children and families.
a. Family policy
b. Applied developmental science
c. A quasi-experimental design
d. The Index of Social Health for Children and Youth (ISHCY)

Chapter Module: Setting the Stage

Answer: b Page(s): 6 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: A new branch of child-development research has emerged that is known as applied
developmental science, which uses developmental research to promote healthy development.

1.9 An organized set of ideas that is designed to explain development is referred to as a

a. theory. c. tabula rasa.
b. critical period. d. case history.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 7 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Theories are organized sets of ideas that are designed to explain and make predictions about
development.

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1.10 The view that development is a result of the unfolding of a specific and prearranged scheme or plan within
the body is characteristic of
a. Konrad Lorenz’s ethological theory.
b. Sigmund Freud’s psychodynamic theory.
c. Erik Erikson’s psychosocial theory.
d. Arnold Gesell’s maturational theory.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 8 Type: Factual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: This describes maturational theory, which was put forth by Gesell.

1.11 ___________ theory states that child development occurs according to a prearranged scheme or plan within
the body.
a. Psychodynamic c. Maturational
b. Ecological d. Cognitive developmental

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 8 Type: Conceptual Diff: Easy
Rationale: According to Gesell, maturational theory reflects a specific and prearranged scheme or plan
within the body.

1.12 Gesell’s maturational theory most closely fits with the ideas of
a. Jean Jacques Rousseau. c. John Locke.
b. Erik Erikson. d. John Watson.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 8 Type: Conceptual Diff: Hard
Rationale: Rousseau believed in a natural unfolding of a child’s innate sense of justice and morality, a
perspective very much in keeping with maturational theory.

1.13 Which of the following theories has a biological perspective?

a. Freud’s psychosexual theory c. Gesell’s maturational theory
b. Bandura’s social cognitive theory d. Erikson’s psychosocial theory

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 8 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Maturational theory and ethological theory are the two theories with a biological perspective.

1.14 An evolutionary perspective is most closely associated with which of the following theories?
a. psychosocial c. maturational
b. psychodynamic d. ethological

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 8 Type: Conceptual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Ethological theory is based on Darwin’s theory of evolution.

1.15 When a particular type of learning can take place only during a specific time period, not before or after that
period, there is a(n) ___________ for learning that behavior.
a. instinct c. blank slate
b. critical period d. emotional bond

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: b Page(s): 8 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Ethologists believe that all animals are biologically programmed so that some kinds of
learning occur only at certain ages.

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1.16 According to ethologists, some behaviors can only be learned
a. when the behavior is reinforced and opposing behaviors are punished.
b. through observational learning.
c. during a critical period when the organism is biologically programmed to learn that behavior.
d. when the conflict between biological drives and society’s standards is resolved.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 8 Type: Factual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: One tenet of ethological theory is the idea of the critical period.

1.17 Raeann believes that babies are born with tendencies to form emotional bonds with their caregivers because it
makes them more likely to survive. Raeann’s beliefs fit most closely with __________ theory.
a. maturational c. learning
b. psychodynamic d. ethological

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 8 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: This describes an evolutionary perspective (survival behaviors) that is the foundation of the
ethological theory.

1.18 Creating an emotional bond with the mother is sometimes called

a. self-efficacy. c. imprinting.
b. adapting. d. maturation.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 8 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Lorenz theorized that imprinting is the creation of an emotional bond with the mother.

1.19 Jill was the first moving object a newly hatched chick saw. The chick later followed her around, just as if Jill
were the chick’s mother. The chick’s behavior is a result of
a. maturation. c. self-efficacy.
b. tabula rasa. d. imprinting.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 8 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Chicks are biologically programmed to follow the first moving object they see, a behavior
called imprinting.

1.20 Sigmund Freud’s psychodynamic theory

a. emphasizes the influence of early experiences on later development.
b. suggests that learning is the key to understanding development.
c. suggests that behavior should be considered in context.
d. emphasizes the importance of maturation.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 9 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Freud believed that early experiences establish patterns that endure throughput a person’s life.

1.21 Freud based his psychodynamic theory on

a. his patients’ case histories. c. correlational research studies.
b. observations of his children. d. experimental research studies.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 9 Type: Factual Diff: Easy

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 Rationale: Freud was a physician who specialized in nervous system diseases and he kept detailed patient
histories on which he based his theory.

1.22 The id
a. wants immediate gratification of bodily desires.
b. provides a sense of morality.
c. works to resolve conflicts.
d. presses for socially acceptable actions.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 9 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: According to Freud, the id is the reservoir of primitive instincts and drives, focused on
immediate gratification of bodily desires.

1.23 Hedy lives according to the philosophy “If it feels good, do it.” Hedy’s personality appears to be dominated
by her
a. ego. c. superego.
b. imprinting. d. id.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 9 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: According to Freud, the id is the reservoir of primitive instincts and drives, focused on
immediate gratification of bodily desires.

1.24 If an ego could talk, it might say

a. “I want to eat NOW!”
b. “Do you think that is the right and honorable way to act?”
c. “Let’s see if we can discuss this issue calmly and rationally.”
d. “Is that what your mother would do?”

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 9 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: The ego mediates between the superego and the id; it is the rational part of the mind.

1.25 The moral agent in a child’s personality is the

a. ego. c. primitive instincts.
b. superego. d. id.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 9 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: The superego is the “moral agent” in the child’s personality, which emerges during preschool
as children begin to internalize adult standards of right and wrong.

1.26 During recess Melissa noticed that another girl dropped the doll she was playing with. According to Freud’s
theory, Melissa’s ___________ would tell her to grab the doll and keep it as her own whereas her
___________ would tell her that taking another girl’s doll would be wrong.
a. id; ego c. superego; id
b. superego; ego d. id; superego

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 9 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: According to Freud, the id wants immediate gratification of needs and wants, whereas the
superego reflects the internalized standards of right and wrong.

1.27 Psychosocial theory is associated with

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 a. Arnold Gesell. c. Erik Erikson.
b. Sigmund Freud. d. Albert Bandura.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 10 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Erikson was the founder of psychosocial theory.

1.28 Erikson emphasized

a. psychological and social aspects of development.
b. biological and physical aspects of development.
c. environmental influences on development.
d. cognitive development.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 10 Type: Conceptual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Erikson’s theory deals with eight stages of psychosocial development.

1.29 Erikson proposed a _________ theory in which development consists of a sequence of stages, each defined
by a unique crisis or challenge.
a. biological c. psychosocial
b. learning d. cognitive-developmental

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 10 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Erikson’s theory focuses on psychosocial development.

1.30 The first of Erikson’s stages focuses on the issue of

a. industry vs. inferiority. c. trust vs. mistrust.
b. autonomy vs. shame and doubt. d. identity vs. identity confusion.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 10 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Erikson’s first stage, from birth to 1 year, is basic trust versus mistrust.

1.31 Erikson’s theory suggests that 16-year-old Glenn is likely to be facing the challenge of
a. realizing that he is an independent person.
b. establishing an intimate relationship with another person.
c. developing a sense of trust in the world.
d. developing a sense of his own identity.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 10 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: An adolescent would be in the stage of identity versus identity confusion, where the challenge
is to develop an identity.

1.32 In Erikson’s psychosocial theory,

a. outcomes of earlier stages influence how well children deal with the challenges of later stages.
b. each stage is self-contained and has no influence on other stages.
c. physical aspects of development are more important than social aspects of development.
d. the same challenges are faced over and over again in each stage.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 10 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Erikson believed that how one resolves conflicts in earlier stages influences later stages.

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1.33 Jaraan was never really able to answer the question “Who am I?” as a teenager. Erikson would predict that
during young adulthood, Jaraan will
a. be likely to view his life as satisfactory and worth living.
b. establish a loving relationship with another person.
c. develop the ability to try new things and handle failure.
d. have difficulty forming intimate relationships.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 10 Type: Applied Diff: Hard
Rationale: An unsuccessful resolution to an earlier stage will cause problems in the next stage.

1.34 According to Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development, development is

a. the result of a natural unfolding of biological plans.
b. determined by the resolution of conflicts between one’s biological drives and society’s standards of right
and wrong.
c. the result of children’s attempts to understand their worlds.
d. determined by children’s resolution of psychological and social crises.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 10 Type: Conceptual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Erikson believed that development involved the resolution of psychosocial crises.

1.35 Experience plays the most important role in which of the following theories?
a. maturational c. ethological
b. cognitive-developmental d. learning

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 10 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Experience plays the biggest role in behaviorist theories like learning theories.

1.36 Who was the first theorist to use learning theory to explain child development?
a. Sigmund Freud c. Jean Piaget
b. John Watson d. Konrad Lorenz

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: b Page(s): 10 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: John Watson was the first to apply learning theories to child development.

1.37 Nehama believes that we could totally understand why children behave as they do if we would just look at the
rewards and punishments they’ve received for their behaviors in the past. Nehama looks at child development
as a(n) __________ theorist does.
a. ecological c. psychodynamic
b. cognitive-developmental d. learning

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 10 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Reinforcement and punishment is a key tenet of learning theories.

1.38 B. F. Skinner is most closely associated with which of the following concepts?
a. imprinting c. operant conditioning
b. self-efficacy d. observational learning

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 10 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: B. F. Skinner was a leading researcher in the field of operant conditioning.

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1.39 Carol begged her father for some candy when they were in the grocery store. Eventually, Carol’s father gave
in and bought Carol some candy. According to theories of operant conditioning, what is likely to happen the
next time Carol and her father go to the grocery store?
a. Carol will not beg for candy because her father punished her begging the last time that they were in
the store.
b. Carol will not beg for candy because her father reinforced her begging the last time that they were in
the store.
c. Carol will beg for candy because her father reinforced her begging the last time they were in the store.
d. Carol will beg for candy because her father punished her begging the last time they were in the store.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 11 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Because Carol’s behavior was positively reinforced (with candy) she will be likely to repeat
that behavior in the future.

1.40 When 8-year-old Chris brought home a report card with all A’s, his parents gave him one dollar for each “A.”
Chris’s parents were attempting to use __________ to shape Chris’s future behavior.
a. negative reinforcement c. punishment
b. positive reinforcement d. self-efficacy

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: b Page(s): 11 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: It is reinforcement because the parents want Chris to repeat the behavior (all A’s) in the
future. It is positive reinforcement because something desirable was added (money).

1.41 Whenever Krysia hung up her coat and put away her backpack after school, she was excused from setting the
table, a chore she detests. Krysia’s parents were using __________ to modify her behavior.
a. self-efficacy c. negative reinforcement
b. punishment d. positive reinforcement

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 11 Type: Applied Diff: Hard
Rationale: It is reinforcement because her parents want Krysia to repeat the behavior (put away coat and
backpack) in the future. It is negative reinforcement because something undesirable was taken away
(setting the table).

1.42 A reward that consists of taking away something unpleasant is called

a. positive reinforcement. c. extinction.
b. negative reinforcement. d. punishment.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: b Page(s): 11 Type: Factual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Negative reinforcement consists of rewarding people by taking away unpleasant things.

1.43 Seth failed to put away his bicycle at night as he was supposed to. His father told him that he would not be
allowed to ride his bicycle for one week. Seth’s father tried to change Seth’s behavior by using
a. punishment. c. positive reinforcement.
b. extinction. d. negative reinforcement.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 11 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Punishment is used when you want to prevent a behavior from occurring in the future.

1.44 A consequence that decreases the future likelihood of the behavior that it follows is called
a. positive reinforcement. c. self-efficacy.

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 b. negative reinforcement. d. punishment.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 11 Type: Factual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Punishment suppresses a behavior by either adding something aversive or withholding a
pleasant event.

1.45 Frank was watching a Saturday morning cartoon in which the main character kicked someone and took away
a toy. Frank then walked across the room and kicked his brother Joe and took away Joe’s toy just as the
cartoon character had done on the TV show. According to social cognitive theory, Frank has just
demonstrated
a. observational learning or imitation. c. reinforcement for sharing toys.
b. punishment for aggressive behavior. d. imprinting.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 11 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Imitating an action that you have seen modeled is an example of observational learning.

1.46 Amanda noticed that whenever other children asked a question in class, their teacher seemed to get mad at
them. Amanda decided not to ask her teacher for help, even though she needed it and her teacher had never
seemed to be angry with her. Amanda’s behavior was shaped by
a. positive reinforcement. c. observational learning.
b. negative reinforcement. d. self-efficacy.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 11 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Watching and learning from the consequences of another’s behavior is an example of
observational learning.

1.47 Nate watched another boy pull a girl’s hair. Nate is most likely to imitate the boy’s behavior if
a. the boy is not very popular.
b. a teacher sends Nate to time-out.
c. the girl smiled at the boy after he pulled her hair.
d. the boy is not very smart.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 11 Type: Applied Diff: Hard
Rationale: Learning from watching the consequences of another’s behavior is an example of
observational learning. Therefore, Nate is most likely to imitate the behavior if the consequences are
positive (e.g., the girl smiles).

1.48 Six-year-old Sarah had been watching her older brother and sister in swim meets for several years. Sarah
believed she was a good swimmer, too, and eagerly entered her first swim meet shortly after she turned 6.
Bandura would say that __________ played a role in Sarah’s desire to imitate her siblings.
a. genetic factors c. punishment
b. self-efficacy d. negative reinforcement

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: b Page(s): 11 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Sarah’s belief that she is a good swimmer is an example of self-efficacy.

1.49 One difference between Skinner’s operant conditioning and Bandura’s social cognitive theory is that
a. Bandura believes children play an active role in their own development, while Skinner sees them as
being passively shaped by the environment.
b. Skinner views reinforcement and punishment as being important while Bandura does not.

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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 c. Skinner believes that self-efficacy influences behavior while Bandura does not.
d. Bandura emphasizes rewards and punishment while Skinner does not.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 12 Type: Conceptual Diff: Hard
Rationale: For Skinner, children were the passive recipients of the environment’s rewards and
punishments, whereas Bandura believes that children play a more active (cognitive) role in their
development through observational learning.

1.50 The cognitive-developmental perspective is mainly concerned with

a. experience. c. thinking.
b. personality. d. context.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 12 Type: Conceptual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Cognitive means thinking.

1.51 Jean Piaget is associated with ___________ theory.

a. ecological c. learning
b. psychodynamic d. cognitive-developmental

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 12 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Piaget was the creator of the best known of the cognitive-developmental theories.

1.52 Piaget believed that children

a. are passively shaped by their experiences.
b. actively try to make sense of their world.
c. learn through a series of reinforcements and punishments.
d. face a series of conflicts or challenges as they develop.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: b Page(s): 12-13 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Piaget believed that children were like scientists, actively experimenting and testing their
beliefs of the world around them.

1.53 Jean Piaget’s theory of cognitive development focused on

a. the resolution of psychological crises.
b. improvements in mental hardware and software.
c. children’s creation of “theories” that help them understand their worlds.
d. adaptive behaviors that are learned during critical periods.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 12-13 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Piaget believed that children were like scientists, actively experimenting and testing their
beliefs and theories of the world around them.

1.54 Your neighbor tells you about his little boy who is always manipulating objects “just like a scientist trying to
test his theory about the world.” Having just read the first chapter of your child development textbook, you
reply, “You sound just like
a. B.F. Skinner!” c. Urie Bronfenbrenner!”
b. Sigmund Freud!” d. Jean Piaget!”

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 12-13 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate

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 Rationale: Piaget believed that children were like scientists, actively experimenting and testing their
beliefs of the world around them.

1.55 Piaget stated that children’s theories about the world

a. remain the same until adulthood.
b. undergo three major changes during development.
c. are never tested by the children.
d. are based on what adults tell them.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: b Page(s): 12-13 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Piaget’s theory is a stage theory with four stages; therefore children undergo three major
qualitative changes during development.

1.56 Which shows the correct sequence of Piaget’s stages of cognitive development?
a. preoperational, concrete operational, formal operational, and sensorimotor
b. sensorimotor, concrete operational, preoperational, and formal operational
c. sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational
d. concrete operational, formal operational, sensorimotor, and preoperational

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: c Page(s): 13 Type: Factual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Sensorimotor (birth – 2), preoperational (2 – 7), concrete operational (7 – 11), and formal
operational (adolescence and beyond) is the correct order.

1.57 __________ was a theorist who was primarily interested in ways that adults convey cultural beliefs to
children.
a. Piaget c. Freud
b. Skinner d. Vygotsky

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 13 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Vygotsky’s theory is a contextual theory that emphasizes the importance of culture.

1.58 According to __________ children develop when they work with skilled adults, including parents and
teachers.
a. Piaget c. Freud
b. Skinner d. Vygotsky

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 14 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Vygotsky’s theory is a contextual theory that emphasizes the importance of culture.

1.59 According to __________ theory, development is a result of how conflicts are resolved.
a. biological c. cognitive-developmental
b. learning d. psychodynamic

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: d Page(s): 14 Type: Factual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Freud’s psychodynamic theory involves the resolution of conflicts at each stage.

1.60 Biology is to environment as __________ theory is to __________ theory.

a. maturational; Skinner’s operant conditioning
b. psychosocial; ethological
c. Piaget’s; Freud’s

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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 d. psychodynamic, Erikson’s psychosocial

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: a Page(s): 14 Type: Conceptual Diff: Hard
Rationale: Biology is connected to the maturational theory while environment is connected to Skinner’s
operant conditioning theory.

1.61 One example of a theory with a learning perspective is

a. Erikson’s theory. c. Piaget’s theory.
b. Bandura’s social cognitive theory. d. Freud’s theory.

Chapter Module: Foundational Theories of Child Development

Answer: b Page(s): 14 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Bandura’s theory is based on the learning perspective of Skinner.

1.62 The idea of continuity in development

a. is consistent with the view that behavior during the preschool years is not related to behavior during later
childhood.
b. means that development in one domain is related to development in other domains.
c. is consistent with the view that early development is related to later development.
d. means that development is jointly influenced by heredity and environment.

Chapter Module: Themes in Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 16 Type: Conceptual Diff: Hard
Rationale: Continuity means that earlier aspects relate to later aspects of development.

1.63 Yvonne was a busy, energetic child who grew up to be a busy, energetic adult. Yvonne provides an example
of
a. the influence of nurture on development.
b. continuity in development.
c. the connectedness of different domains of development.
d. the active role of the child in development.

Chapter Module: Themes in Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 16 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Continuity means that earlier aspects relate to later aspects of development.

1.64 The continuity-discontinuity issue addresses the question of whether

a. genes or environment are most important.
b. development in different domains is related.
c. children actively influence their own development.
d. early development is related to later development.

Chapter Module: Themes in Child-Development Research

Answer: d Page(s): 16 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Continuity means that earlier aspects relate to later aspects of development.

1.65 The nature-nurture issue is concerned with

a. the connection of development in one domain to development in other domains.
b. the role that children play in influencing their own development.
c. the roles that biology and environment play in development.
d. how early development is related to later development.

Chapter Module: Themes in Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 17 Type: Conceptual Diff: Easy

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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Rationale: Nature = genetics and biology, and nurture = environment.

1.66 Jackie feels that superior genes are the primary reason her daughter Jacqueline is intellectually gifted. Jackie
believes in the importance of
a. the active child. c. nature.
b. continuity. d. the connection of domains.

Chapter Module: Themes in Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 17 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: The nature part of the nature-nurture issue deals with genes and biology.

1.67 Ximena and Chris believe that they don’t need to worry about parenting their new son, Brant, because he was
born with a good nature and his good nature will determine his outcomes in life. Chris and Ximena’s views of
parenting are consistent with the __________ of the __________ issue.
a. nature; nature-nurture c. connection; connection of domains
b. passive; active-passive child d. continuity; continuity-discontinuity

Chapter Module: Themes in Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 17 Type: Applied Diff: Hard
Rationale: This is a nature-nurture issue, with Ximena and Chris falling on the nature (genetics) side.

1.68 Travis insists that people are the masters of their own destinies. Travis believes in
a. the active child. c. continuity.
b. the passive child. d. discontinuity.

Chapter Module: Themes in Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 17 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: The active child side of the active-passive child issue holds that children influence their own
development through their own individual characteristics.

1.69 Michael and Lisa are new parents and they believe that their actions will influence their new son. They don’t
think that their son’s behavior will influence their parenting. Michael and Lisa’s views of parenting are
consistent with the ________ position of the ________ issue.
a. nature; nature-nurture c. connection; connection of domains
b. passive; active-passive child d. continuity; continuity-discontinuity

Chapter Module: Themes in Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 17 Type: Conceptual Diff: Hard
Rationale: This is an active-passive child issue, with Michael and Lisa falling on the passive child (at
the mercy of the environment) side.

1.70 John Locke’s views are consistent with

a. the idea that development in different domains is connected.
b. a passive view of the child.
c. an emphasis on nature.
d. a view of development as discontinuous.

Chapter Module: Themes in Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 17 Type: Factual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Locke believed that children were a blank slate on which experience wrote, which is a classic
example of the passive child (at the mercy of the environment).

1.71 Based on her experience in rearing five children, Elaine believes that personality influences the rate of
physical-motor development. Elaine appears to take the view that
a. development is always jointly influenced by heredity and environment.

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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 b. early development is related to later development.
c. development in different domains is connected.
d. children are at the mercy of the environment.

Chapter Module: Themes in Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 18 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Elaine appears to believe that development in one domain (social-personality) is influenced
by development in another domain (physical-motor).

1.72 Which of the following statements best represents the prevailing view among developmentalists?
a. Social development is not related to cognitive development.
b. Physical development is not related to cognitive development.
c. Social development is not related to physical development.
d. Physical, social, and cognitive development are interrelated.

Chapter Module: Themes in Child-Development Research

Answer: d Page(s): 18 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Most developmentalists believe that development across domains is interrelated.

1.73 Irina wants to study infant language development. She decides to watch 10 babies once a month from
birth to 2 years of age and write down the sounds they make and the words they use. Irina
is using
a. self-report. c. sampling behavior with tasks.
b. systematic observation. d. interviews.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 20 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Systematic observation means watching and carefully recording what children do and say.

1.74 Research measures that involve watching children’s unprompted behavior in real-life settings are
referred to as
a. structured observations. c. self-report measures.
b. tasks that sample behavior. d. naturalistic observations.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: d Page(s): 20 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: In naturalistic observations, children are observed as they behave spontaneously in some
real-life situation.

1.75 Which of the following is true of naturalistic observations?

a. Researchers usually record all of a child’s behaviors.
b. Because children are being observed in their natural settings, the behavior of interest is less likely to be
disturbed.
c. This method is useful for studying phenomena that occur rarely.
d. This method is useful for studying behaviors that occur in private settings.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 20 Type: Factual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: The advantage of naturalistic observation is that the behavior of interest is less likely to be
disturbed by the researcher.

1.76 Mary chose to assess the quality of infants’ relationships with their caregivers by observing infants in a
laboratory situation wherein the infants experienced a series of separations from and reunions with their
caregivers. What kind of measure did Mary use?
a. self-report c. structured observation
b. naturalistic observation d. questionnaire
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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research
Answer: c Page(s): 20 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: It is an observation, and the fact that it occurs in a laboratory setting makes it structured.

1.77 One drawback of structured observations is that

a. the artificial nature of the setting may distort the behavior of interest.
b. they cannot be used to study behaviors that occur naturally only rarely.
c. they can only be used to study behaviors that occur in public settings.
d. they cannot be performed in a laboratory.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 21 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: The artificial nature of the laboratory setting is a weakness of structured observations.

1.78 Which of the following measures involves sampling behavior with a task?
a. putting a number of objects in front of a child and having the child count them
b. listening to children’s everyday conversations and recording the complexity of their sentence structures
c. asking children how much television they watch in one week
d. having children fill out a questionnaire about their study habits

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 21 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: The others are examples of self-reports and observations.

1.79 Which of the following is a strength associated with measures that sample behavior with tasks?
a. Children’s behavior is seen as it occurs naturally.
b. They almost always validly represent real-life behaviors.
c. They are convenient to use.
d. They assure representative sampling.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 21 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: The principal strength is convenience; the others are not truthful representations of sampling
behaviors with tasks.

1.80 Which of the following is true of sampling behavior with tasks?

a. Sampling behavior with tasks may not really sample the behavior of interest.
b. Sampling behavior with tasks can be used to observe behavior directly.
c. Sampling behavior with tasks isn’t a popular method because it isn’t convenient to use.
d. Sampling behavior with tasks might lead some children to provide socially acceptable answers.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 21 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: The task may not sample the behavior of interest because it is only as good as the task
developed. The others are not truthful representations of sampling behaviors with tasks.

1.81 A researcher is interested in how toddlers perceive emotions. The researcher brings toddlers into a room and
presents them with different photographs of faces, each representing a different emotion. The toddlers are
asked to point to different emotions as the researcher reads them aloud. This is an example of what type of
research design?
a. correlational c. self-report
b. sampling behavior with tasks d. naturalistic observation

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 21 Type: Applied Diff: Hard

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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Rationale: Toddlers’ understanding of emotions cannot be observed directly. The research created a
task that sampled the behavior of interest (identifying emotions).

1.82 __________ measures ask children questions about the topic of interest.
a. Naturalistic observation c. Sampling behavior with tasks
b. Structured observation d. Self-report

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: d Page(s): 21 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: This definition is in the text.

1.83 Which of the following is a problem with the use of self-report?

a. Answers do not lead directly to information on the topic of interest.
b. Children may provide answers that are socially acceptable.
c. The collection of information is not convenient.
d. Children have very accurate memories, so their answers regarding past events can be trusted.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 22 Type: Factual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Response bias (including socially acceptable answers) is a major problem of self-reports.

1.84 Alvaro is interested in finding out how children’s conceptions of death change with age. He decides to
interview children and ask them questions such as “What happens when people die?” and “Do people eat
when they die?” Alvaro is using a form of _________ to measure children’s conceptions of death.
a. naturalistic observation c. sampling behavior with tasks
b. self-report d. structured observation

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 22 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Alvaro is asking children directly for their answers, therefore it is self-report.

1.85 The tendency to select socially acceptable answers is called

a. response bias. c. validity.
b. self-report. d. sampling behavior.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 22 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Children tend to answer questions incorrectly because they are more likely to select socially
acceptable, rather than socially unacceptable, answers.

1.86 Abe is investigating moral reasoning by asking children what they would do in different situations, such as if
one of their friends would shoplift when they were together. He is concerned that children may be giving him
the answers they think he wants to hear, rather than their genuine feelings about what they would really do.
Abe is worried about
a. cohort effects. c. response bias.
b. representative sampling. d. confidentiality.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 22 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Response bias (including socially acceptable answers) is a major problem of self-reports.

1.87 Which of the following is a weakness of self-report measures?

a. They are difficult to use with behaviors that are rare or that typically occur in private settings.
b. They may be invalid because they cannot sample behavior as it occurs naturally.
c. They may be invalid because structured settings distort the behavior.

20
Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 d. They may be invalid because children answer incorrectly due to forgetting or response bias.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: d Page(s): 22 Type: Factual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Response bias (including socially acceptable answers) is a major problem of self-reports.

1.88 A measure is __________ if the results are consistent over time.

a. representative c. valid
b. reliable d. a sample

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 23 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Reliable = consistency over time.

1.89 If Mohammed took the same achievement test at three different times and received scores of 100, 55, and 75,
the test would have low levels of
a. validity. c. sampling behavior.
b. representativeness. d. reliability.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: d Page(s): 23 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Because the test scores are not consistent over time, the test has low reliability.

1.90 __________ refers to whether a measure really measures what it is intended to measure.
a. Validity c. Sampling
b. Reliability d. Stability

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 23 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Validity = measuring what it was designed to measure.

1.91 To measure children’s social skills, you decide to use the number of interactions children have with other
children as your measure of social skills. As you collect data, you notice that some children who have many
interactions do not seem to be very socially skilled because many of their interactions are negative. This
makes you question the __________ of your measure.
a. sampling c. validity
b. stability d. reliability

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 23 Type: Applied Diff: Hard
Rationale: A measure lacks validity if it doesn’t seem to measure what it purports to measure.

1.92 Ludmilla is interested in finding out how children typically learn math concepts. She found a class of gifted
math students willing to be her subjects. What might be an issue with using that particular group of students
as subjects?
a. response bias c. structured setting
b. representative sampling d. cohort effects

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 23-24 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: In this case, the sample is not representative of typical math students because they are taken
from a gifted class, thus impacting the generalizability of the research.

1.93 Correlations can range from

a. 0 to 100. c. –1.0 to +1.0.

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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 b. 1 to 10. d. –.10 to .10.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 24 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: Correlations range from –1.0 (strong negative) to +1.0 (strong positive).

1.94 A correlation coefficient of 0 indicates what about the relation between two variables?
a. The two variables are directly related.
b. The two variables are inversely related.
c. The two variables are completely unrelated.
d. This coefficient indicates which variable was the “cause” and which the “effect.”

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 24 Type: Conceptual Diff: Easy
Rationale: A correlation coefficient of 0 indicates no relationship between variables, as it is in the
midpoint of the correlation continuum.

1.95 In a correlational study

a. factors are manipulated to determine whether they are related.
b. it is possible to determine whether there is a causal relationship between two variables.
c. it is possible to determine whether two variables are related, but not whether there is a causal relationship
between the variables.
d. there is an independent variable and a dependent variable.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 25 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Correlation does not indicate cause and effect, which can only be determined with a true
experiment.

1.96 A correlation of .82 was found between the number of hours studied and final exam scores. This means that
a. students who studied less received higher exam scores.
b. students who studied less received lower exam scores.
c. studying caused students to receive higher exam scores.
d. the amount of studying was unrelated to exam scores.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 24-25 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: This is a strong positive correlation such that as one variable increases (amount of studying)
the other variable increases (exam scores).

1.97 Researchers studied the relationship between intelligence and friendship in children. Which of the following
illustrates a negative correlation between the two variables?
a. Children who are smart tend to have fewer friends than children who are not smart.
b. Children who are smart tend to have more friends than children who are not smart.
c. Children who are smart tend to have the same number of friends as children who are not smart.
d. Children’s intelligence is unrelated to the friendship patterns between children.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 24-25 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: A negative correlation means that larger values on one variable (intelligence) are associated
with smaller values on a second variable (number of friends).

1.98 A high correlation between a child’s behavior (e.g., being aggressive) and that of her parents (e.g., spanking)
indicates that
a. the child’s aggression caused the spanking.
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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 b. the spanking caused the aggression.
c. shared aggressive genes, a third factor, caused the child’s aggression and the parents’ spanking.
d. aggression and spanking are related, but correlations do not indicate causality.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: d Page(s): 25 Type: Conceptual Diff: Hard
Rationale: Correlation does not indicate cause and effect, which can only be determined with a true
experiment.

1.99 Imagine the following correlation: The more overweight the child, the slower his or her running speed.
Given only this information, which of the following could be true?
a. Being overweight causes children to run slower.
b. Children who are slow runners are at a higher risk of being overweight.
c. Having respiratory problems (such as asthma) as a child can cause children to run slower and to become
overweight.
d. Both A and B are possible.
e. All of the above could explain the correlation — the researcher would need to do more to find out if any
are actually true.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: e Page(s): 25 Type: Conceptual Diff: Hard
Rationale: Correlation does not indicate cause and effect, which can only be determined with a true
experiment.

1.100 In an experimental study, the ________ is manipulated to observe its effects on another variable.
a. dependent variable c. correlation coefficient
b. independent variable d. random assignment

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 27 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: The factor that is varied in an experiment is called the independent variable.

1.101 A researcher is interested in how the scores that children receive on a spelling test are affected by the amount
of food that they eat for lunch. The independent variable is
a. the age of the children. c. the words on the spelling test.
b. the scores on the spelling test. d. the amount of food eaten for lunch.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: d Page(s): 26 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: The independent variable that is manipulated is the amount of food eaten for lunch.

1.102 Sonja conducts an experiment to determine whether listening to music affects emotional state. She has
children wait alone in a room that either did or did not have music playing and then has them complete a
questionnaire asking about their current level of happiness. The independent variable in this study is
a. how happy they were before the study began.
b. being alone in the room while waiting.
c. whether or not music was playing in the room.
d. their level of happiness as rated on the questionnaire.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 26 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: The independent variable that is manipulated is whether or not music was playing in the
room.

1.103 The variable in an experiment that is observed to see if it changes when another variable is manipulated is
called the
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Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 a. correlation coefficient. c. cohort.
b. independent variable. d. dependent variable.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: d Page(s): 26 Type: Factual Diff: Easy
Rationale: The factor that is measured in an experiment is called the dependent variable.

1.104 Yuri is interested in finding out whether exercise affects boys’ and girls’ performance on a memory task. The
dependent variable in this situation is
a. memory performance. c. the age of the children.
b. the amount of exercise. d. gender.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 26 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: The dependent variable that is measured is memory performance.

1.105 A strength of experimental studies is that

a. they measure behavior in a natural setting.
b. no manipulation of variables is done.
c. they allow conclusions about cause and effect.
d. only a single study is needed to definitely settle a question.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 27 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: The primary strength of experimental studies is the inference of causality.

1.106 A weakness of experimental studies is that

a. they cannot be used to determine cause and effect.
b. results may not be representative of real-life behavior.
c. they cannot be used in a laboratory setting.
d. they are usually expensive.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: b Page(s): 27 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Because they are manipulated and are often in a laboratory setting, they may not be
representative of real-life behavior. The results may be too artificial.

1.107 Dr. Land conducted a study in a preschool to test his hypothesis that the amount of unstructured time (free
play) in a day affects the amount of unruliness that children display. Teachers systematically varied the
amount of free play each day for a month, and Dr. Land’s research assistants recorded the amount of
unruliness children displayed each day. This study would best be described as a(n)
a. correlational study. c. field experiment.
b. laboratory experiment. d. quasi-experiment.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: c Page(s): 27 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: A manipulated independent variable makes this an experiment and the naturalistic setting
makes it a field experiment.

1.108 Professor Jameson is interested in studying the effects of prenatal cocaine exposure on early infant
development. Professor Jameson’s study would best be described as a(n)
a. correlational study. c. field experiment.
b. laboratory experiment. d. quasi-experiment.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

24
Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Answer: d Page(s): 28 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Quasi-experiments typically involve examining the impact of an independent variable (here
cocaine) by using groups that were not created with random assignment.

1.109 Marcio studies developmental changes in intelligence by testing one group of subjects when they are 4, 8, 12,
and 16 years of age. What kind of design is Marcio using?
a. self-report c. cross-sectional
b. observational d. longitudinal

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: d Page(s): 29 Type: Applied Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Marcio is studying development of the same children over time (12 years).

1.110 A microgenetic study would best be described as

a. a very short longitudinal study. c. a very short cross-sectional study.
b. a very long longitudinal study. d. a very long cross-sectional study.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 30 Type: Conceptual Diff: Easy
Rationale: A microgenetic study is a special type of longitudinal study that is abbreviated in nature.

1.111 Which of the following is a disadvantage of longitudinal studies?

a. the development of “test-wise” subjects
b. the complication of interpretation of differences between groups
c. the sample of subjects over the course of the research stays the same
d. the cost of conducting a longitudinal study is relatively low

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 30 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Answer b is a disadvantage of cross-sectional studies, c is a strength, and d is false.

1.112 Which of the following is NOT a disadvantage of a longitudinal approach?

a. They cannot answer questions about the continuity or discontinuity of behavior.
b. Subject dropout may alter results.
c. Results may be specific to a particular cohort.
d. Repeated testing may distort results.

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: a Page(s): 30 Type: Conceptual Diff: Moderate
Rationale: Answer a is the only false statement; the others are true disadvantages.

1.113 Cohort effects are most likely to be a problem in __________ studies.

a. experimental c. longitudinal
b. correlational d. cross-sectional

Chapter Module: Doing Child-Development Research

Answer: d Page(s): 30 Type: Conceptual Diff: Hard
Rationale: Cohort effects present the biggest problem for cross-sectional studies, although they can be
a problem in the other three types of studies as well. When children in a longitudinal study are observed
over a period of several years, the developmental change may be specific to a specific generation of
people.

1.114 Differences between age groups resulting from environmental events, rather than developmental processes,
are referred to as
a. response biases. c. representative samplings.

25
Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content
THE SINCLAIR EXPERIMENTS FOR TELEPATHY

A bout eighteen months ago I first opened a new book by the

novelist Upton Sinclair, entitled Mental Radio, then newly issued.
In 239 pages it outlined the story of the discovery and development
of what purported to be a supernormal faculty possessed by his
wife, and rehearsed a large number of experiments in which she
seemed to have achieved a large and convincing percentage of
successes as a telepathic “percipient,” the “agent” generally being
Mr. Sinclair, but sometimes her brother-in-law or another person. I
confess to misgivings as I began to read, first for the very reason
that the writer is a novelist (unmindful of Wells and certain other
writers of fiction who, nevertheless, have shown themselves capable
of serious and even scientific thinking),[1] and secondly because I
had suspected, rightly or wrongly, that once or twice in the past he
had failed to discover the devices of certain clever professionals. To
be sure, his wife was not a professional, and all the conditions could
be under his own hand, but sometimes through sheer confidence
people are deceived by their own relatives.
This, to be frank, was my initial attitude—one of cautious
interrogation and alertness to find signs of credulity, failure to
appreciate the possibilities of chance, or lack of data by which the
calculus of chance coincidence could be determined. But as I read
on and studied the reproductions of drawings it became more and
more evident that something besides chance had operated, that the
conditions of many of the experiments had been excellently devised,
and that where the conditions were relaxed Mr. Sinclair had been
quite aware of the fact and was candid enough to admit it. He stated
that such relaxation did not increase the percentage of success, and
it certainly so appeared from the examples given. He reported the
total number of experiments, and estimated the percentages of
successes, partial successes, and failures. In 290 experiments, he
made these percentages: successes, approximately 23 per cent;
partial successes, 53 per cent; failures, 24 per cent. He admitted
that judges probably would not agree upon exactly the same ratios.
In fact I personally think that certain examples which he did not
publish are better than a few which he did, but have not yet found
reason to quarrel with his general estimates.
After considerable study of the book, becoming interested
beyond any expectation, I wrote to Mr. Sinclair, stating that I had
become favorably impressed, and making the somewhat audacious
proposal that he should send me all the original materials for a fresh
study by the individual standards and through the particular
methods of a professional investigator. One can think of several
reasons which might make the most honest and confident man
hesitant to assent to such a proposal, coming from one whom he
had never seen, and who might for all he knew have a set of
prejudices which after all would cause him to make a lawyer’s
argument against the case. I was really surprised that the bundle of
materials was sent as quickly as it could be gotten together.[2]
Among the objects in mind were: (1) To study the materials in
their strict chronological order, day by day. The mode of presentation
in Mental Radio was to give some of the most striking results first,
then many more that were more or less classified according to
subjects and aspects. This is effective for popular reading but not
satisfactory to the serious student. (2) To see if there were signs, in
any part of the results, of profiting from normal knowledge, whether
consciously or subconsciously acquired, of what the “agent” had
drawn. Mr. Sinclair took this theory into account and quite decidedly
killed it, but it was my duty to try it out anew by my own processes,
with the same rigor shown in relation to my own wife and my
daughter in The Psychic in the House. Later, in summary fashion,
these tests will be set forth. (3) To try out other theories to account
for the ratios and degrees of correspondence between “original
drawings” and “reproductions” in the Sinclair experiments, such as
involuntary whispering and chance coincidence. (4) To make a large
number of guessing tests on the basis of the Sinclair originals, both
as a means of deciding whether the “mere coincidence” theory is
tenable (as aforesaid) and, if it should prove otherwise, in order to
make a rough measurement of the disparity between telepathic
results and those of guessing. (5) In the event that there appeared
to be no reasonable escape from conclusion that telepathy is
displayed by the material, to ascertain (a) whether the telepathic
faculty with Mrs. Sinclair was constant, vacillating, progressively
constant, or what; (b) whether the telepathic impressions came to
her in the form of ideas, images, names or in more than one
fashion; (c) whether any further hints as to the mental processes
involved could be discerned or any particular pieces of information
isolated which might be helpful in this field of study. (6) Finally, to
urge readers to institute experiments of their own, and to give
amateurs some directions as to procedure. If many could be
persuaded to start “games” of this character with their friends,
doubtless favorable subjects could be discovered or developed.
Attention being called to these persons, series of tests could be
made with them under conditions against which none of the old
objections could be offered.[3]
The Sinclair experiments are treated first in this Bulletin, since
they are its chief subject. The drier Historical Notes, presenting a
sketch of the first steps in methodical research relating to alleged
Thought-Transference, with summaries of some of the classic series
of tests, particularly such as are based upon drawings, are relegated
to Part Two. The more earnest and methodical students of such
matters will prefer to read that first.
Mr. Upton Sinclair, about fifty-two years old when his book
Mental Radio was issued, is, as everyone is supposed to know, one
of the leading novelists of the United States. His stories are all, or
nearly all, characterized by an intense purpose. To those who claim
that art should be exercised only for art’s sake this may be
obnoxious. But from the point of view of this examination of his
book purporting to prove telepathy, the fact that his novels also
attempt to prove something, on the basis of studies made by him, is
quite in his favor.[4] Whether he has in fact proved the thesis of his
respective tales is not within our province to determine; we do
propose rigidly to analyze and review his claims to have proved
telepathy.
Mr. Sinclair is a Socialist, and a very active and prominent one;
he has been Socialist candidate for Congress in New Jersey and later
in California, besides having been Socialist candidate for the United
States Senate and for Governor in the latter-named State. Political
prejudices or predilections should be strictly excluded from the
minds of readers of the book or this review of it.[5] It is another
gratifying indication that Mr. Sinclair was not deterred from
publishing Mental Radio by the solicitations or irony of influential
friends in his political group, for the scientific spirit is in part
compounded of courage, honesty and candor.
Mrs. Sinclair, née Mary Craig Kimbrough, somewhere about
forty-five years old when the experiments afterwards published took
place, is the daughter of a retired judge, bank president, and planter
of Mississippi.
The reader may judge of the quality of her mentality by reading
Appendix 1. That is, in part, the reason that it is printed. It is a piece
of writing by Mrs. Sinclair shortened according to permission given.
Almost immediately after my suggestion that the experimental
materials should be sent for examination, they were bundled up and
sent, together with some stray scraps, among which was this
unfinished piece of manuscript which, as it proved, the Sinclairs did
not know had been included. In spots the composition may be a bit
diffuse and repetitious, but the woman really thinks and reasons,
which is more than many do.
There is in it a sincerity, earnestness and intensity of desire to
know, which can hardly be counterfeited. Its writer fairly rivals
Descartes in her determination to find some salient and secure spot
from which to start in her quest. But in a manner she goes back
farther than Descartes, at least she splits his ultimate in two. She is
satisfied with “I am,” not because “I think,” but because “I am
conscious of thinking”; but she does not so readily grant the “I
think.” She wants to know, “Am I doing all the thinking I am
conscious of?”
In fact, the document is so intense in its eagerness to penetrate
the secret of personality in relation to its cosmic environment that it
is almost febrile. At least in its first pages there is something
pathological. To paint life with such dark colors and to dwell so upon
its “discouragements” is not an indication of perfect health.
And yet it is certain that the writer is not self-absorbed. The
painful reactions of the kind which she has experienced, the torture
produced in her by the existence of so much in life that seems
unmeaning and disappointing, she supposes to be quite general with
her fellow-men and so feels a great pity for them. Whereas, in my
belief, while more are complaining than are happy or contented, it is
common to fret because of income taxes, and inability to wear such
fine clothes as those of Mrs. Jones, and cold weather and squalling
cats, and such sordid matters, but uncommon to be agonized by the
desire to fathom the mysteries of the human spirit.
The main points of what Mr. Sinclair tells us of the
characteristics of his wife are to be discerned in this revealing
manuscript. He says “She has nothing of the qualities of naïveté and
credulity. She was raised in a family of lawyers and was given the
training and sceptical point of view of a woman of the world. ‘Trust
people, but watch them,’ was old Judge Kimbrough’s maxim, and
following it too closely has almost made a pessimist of his daughter.
In the course of the last five or six years Craig has acquired a fair-
sized library of books on the mind, both orthodox, scientific, and
‘crank.’ She has sat up half the night studying, marking passages
and making notes, seeking to reconcile various doctrines, to know
what the mind is, and how it works, and what can be done with it.”
This began with a breakdown of health when she was about forty
years old. “A story of suffering needless to go into; suffice it that she
had many ills to experiment upon, and mental control became
suddenly a matter of life and death.” This breakdown, it is said,
resulted directly from “her custom of carrying the troubles of all who
were near her.” She is intensely sympathetic, we are told. “The griefs
of other people overwhelm Craig like a suffocation.”[6]
The book relates several spontaneous experiences of Mrs.
Sinclair when she was young and which, taken together, strongly
indicate telepathy. Her husband rightly remarks that it is the number
of such incidents which is impressive; one or two might well be
coincidence. Still the coincidence of being suddenly impressed that
Mr. B, whose home was three hundred miles away, was at her home
where he had never been, and turning back from a drive and finding
him there, even taken by itself, is a very striking one. Mr. Sinclair
himself is witness to the fact that she suddenly, for no known reason
became very much worried about Jack London, insisting that he was
in mental distress, whereas it proved that London committed suicide
at about that time.
Such incidents indicate that her experimental successes were
not solely the result of the method which she explains at length, but
that she had an inborn gift from early childhood. Her interest in that
gift seems to have been much stimulated by her acquaintance with
“Jan,” the “young hypnotist” of Appendix I, whose advent is probably
not in that narrative placed in chronological order. She became
convinced that he showed evidence of telepathy, and tried in turn to
ascertain what he was thinking or what he was doing when absent,
and became convinced that many times she had been successful.
Also, “Craig has been able to establish exactly the same rapport with
her husband,” who relates instances. These were “written down at
the time.” So few even intelligent people do make immediate record
of such things that we would have suspected, even if he had not
informed us on another page, that he has made a considerable
study of the literature of psychic research.
One of these incidents we shall particularly notice here, and that
because Mr. Sinclair himself has either not noticed all of its evidential
value, or has not fully called attention to it. * * * [Refer to Figs. 14a
and 14b and experiment.]
 Probably Mr. Sinclair thought it would be sufficiently obvious to
the reader that the first drawing is as similar in shape to a clover
blossom as a person having no gift for drawing would be likely to
make it, in addition to the correspondence of color. But it should also
be remarked that the second drawing is like the flower-head of the
American aloe, as one may see by comparing it with the cut shown
in the article entitled “Agave,” in the Encyclopedia Britannica. The
article provokingly fails to tell us what are the colors of the flower,
but the cut shows that it is at least much lighter above than below.
Another incident is remarkable for its apparent revelation of
subconscious mechanisms. Seemingly here Mrs. Sinclair not only got
an impression of what her husband had drawn, but it was modified
by something he was then reading, and that by the aid of memories
from childhood. His drawing represented a football, “neatly laced up”
(Fig. 15). Hers (Fig. 15a) shows a band of exactly the same shape
on a figure not so very far from that of a football, but with an
extension suggesting the head of an animal, and a line suggesting a
leg. And she wrote “Belly-band on calf.” * * *!
“Wishing to solve the mystery!” But why should the lady have
felt that there was any mystery in her drawing and script, any more
than in the generality of her results? But she evidently did, or she
would not have asked the question. It is one of the most interesting
features of this experiment that she seemed to feel that something
else than the original drawing or her husband’s thoughts about it
was influencing her impression, and suspected that this something
was his contemporaneous reading.
Sometimes the apparent telepathy was exercised in a dream,
especially during its latter stage, while the lady was gradually
emerging into full consciousness.[7]
 The Sinclair-Irwin Long-distance Group of
Experiments
On July 8, 1928, the first formal set of experiments with
drawings began, by arrangement between Mrs. Sinclair and the
husband of her younger sister; Robert L. Irwin, “a young American
business man, priding himself on having no ‘crank’ ideas.” The
arrangement was that at a stated hour Mr. Irwin should seat himself
in his home in Pasadena, make a drawing, and then fix his mind
upon the drawing from fifteen to twenty minutes. At the same hour
in her home at Long Beach, twenty-five or thirty miles distant as the
crow flies, Mrs. Sinclair proposed to lie on a couch, in semi-darkness
and with closed eyes, compose her mind according to the rules she
had by this time evolved, and after coming to a decision, make a
drawing corresponding with her mental impression. It appears that
there was one such experiment on July 8, two on the 9th, two on
the 10th and one each on the 11th and 13th.
We have here, then, a set of seven experiments under ideal
conditions. Since something like thirty miles separated the parties,
there could be no contact, no “involuntary whispering” that would
carry that far and no conceivable other source of information or
material for surmise.
1. On July 8, Irwin drew a chair with horizontal bars at the back
(Fig. 16). Mrs. Sinclair drew first a chair with horizontal bars (Fig.
16a), then a chair with vertical ones. And she distinctly set down on
the same paper her sense of greater satisfaction with her first
drawing, her feeling that the second was not as “Bob” had drawn it,
and her feeling that the second may really express the foot of his
bed. She also set down that his drawing was on “green paper.” Here
is a remarkable combination of impressions: (a) his drawing on
green paper, (b) seen as a chair “on his paper,” (c) his chair with
horizontal bars, (d) her chair with vertical bars perhaps derived from
“his bed-foot.” Even had there been, as there was not, a pre-
understanding that some object familiar in daily life was to be
drawn, to hit exactly the same one would be very unlikely. To do this
and also to get the unusual color of the paper he drew on is
remarkable. To get all the enumerated particulars exactly correct is
incalculably beyond chance expectation. For he drew a chair, on
green paper, with horizontal bars, then gazed at the chair through
the vertical bars of his bed! * * * [Refer to Figs. 16 and 16a and
experiment.]
She added that she sees a star and straight lines, and draws the
star and the lines, horizontal like those of the chair.
There are several partial correspondences besides those we
have enumerated. Bob did sit at the northeast corner of the dining-
room table. He faced a sideboard (but apparently did not take
anything out of it) where were silver (not glass) candlesticks; there
is a star on the back of the chair; whether any white object was in
front of him as he sat at the table, before lying down on the bed, is
not reported. But it is to be presumed that Mrs. Sinclair was familiar
with his room and furniture, and these particulars add comparatively
little. Once she got the chair, subconscious memory might supply the
star; but it would not give any clue to the green paper or to his
looking through vertical bars.
2. On July 9, at the stated hour, Bob drew a watch (Fig. 17).[8]
First Mrs. Sinclair drew a chair, but cancelled it with the words then
written down, “but do not feel it is correct.” Then she drew Figure
17a. * * *
This is not a success, but the flower which is not a flower, the
petals, which are not petals and should be more uniform, the
“metal,” the “wire” (adumbration of the hands?), the “glass circle,”
the bridging across the extremities of the “petals” as if from an urge
toward making a circle, the black center corresponding with the
center post of a watch, taken together are very suggestive. Other
impressions resulted in the addition of an ellipse, a drinking-glass
and a glass pitcher, and Bob did have in front of him a glass bowl of
goldfish, which may have furnished a telepathic hint, but this is
doubtfully evidential.
 3. Another experiment was scheduled for the same day. Bob
made an elaborate drawing of a telephone receiver, transmitter, dial,
cord and all. The top part, the transmitter, as drawn, is strikingly like
a round, black, glass ink-bottle, seen with mouth facing the
spectator. Mrs. Sinclair made four drawings. The first looks like such
an ink-bottle seen from the side, and she writes, “Ink bottle?” The
second drawing shows a twisted line attached to a triangle,
reminding one of the twisted telephone cord attached to a sharp
angle of the base, and the third repeats the twisting line. The fourth
inverted is considerably like the base of the telephone. The
correspondences are very suggestive.
4. On the 10th, Bob drew, on the back of the paper having the
telephone drawing (he should not have done this), which he of
course saw anew, what is probably intended to represent a square
frame containing a picture, both very black. The percipient first drew
two lines forming an angle and placed in relation to it about as the
dial of the telephone is placed in relation to the angle of the
telephone base, a black disc. Her next and last drawing was a circle
containing about a dozen round spots, as the circular dial of the
telephone contains eight spots.
5. On the 10th, also, Bob drew a pair of scissors (Fig. 18), and
the percipient made two attempts which, taken together, certainly do
sense its parts (Figs. 18a and 18b).
6. On the 11th, Bob, whose health had been in bad shape for
several years, made a circle with a compass, of course producing a
hole in the center of it. And this is what Mrs. Sinclair got (Fig. 19a).
There is a circle—in fact, a number of them concentrically arranged
—and there is a central dot corresponding to the mark made by the
compass leg. But other impressions came to Mrs. Sinclair,
accompanied by poignant emotions, and she seemed to see and
tried to draw a spreading stain of blood. She wrote her feeling and
her conviction: “All this dark like a stain,—feel it is blood; that Bob is
ill, more than usual.” She did not draw, but directly told her husband,
“I wanted to draw a little hill.” And why all this? It transpired that
while Bob was making the circle he was in a state of distress, for, he
afterwards testified, “I discovered that I had a hemorrhoid, and
couldn’t put my mind on anything but the thought, ‘My God, my
lungs—my kidneys—and now this!’” It is hardly necessary, perhaps,
to point out that a hemorrhoid is like a little hill and that one is very
likely to bring on hemorrhage,[9] so that this possibility was probably
in Bob’s mind.
Had Mrs. Sinclair been in a laboratory with one professor of
psychology or of physics, and her brother-in-law in another
laboratory with another, not all the apparatus of both laboratories
nor all the ingenuity of both professors could have made the
conditions more rigid, or tested the essence of the matter farther.
There would simply have been the testimony of four persons, two at
each end, and that is exactly what there is. Bob’s affliction was of
sudden occurrence, and the particular terms of Mrs. Sinclair’s
impressions could not have been produced by any hint of
knowledge. His willingness in the interest of psychic research, in
order that this remarkable demonstration of telepathy should not be
lost, to put aside squeamishness, is a rebuke to the human violets
who shrink, for no intelligible reason from allowing evidence to be
used which relates to them.
7. On the 13th, Bob drew a table fork (Fig. 1), and Mrs. Sinclair,
at the same hour, many miles away, drew nothing but wrote, “See a
table fork. Nothing else.” (Fig. 1a.)
These seven experiments[10] are all that were undertaken
between Mrs. Sinclair and her brother-in-law. This is unfortunate, for
it certainly appears from this short but remarkable series as though
they were remarkably suited to each other, for reasons we cannot
yet fathom, for long-distance experiments. But “he found them a
strain,” and since his health was so poor and strains were most
undesirable, we cannot blame him for discontinuing them.
One pauses to consider the words “he found them a strain.” May
it be that when experiments reveal thought-transference the agent
generally does feel a strain beyond that involved in merely gazing at
an object and wishing (or willing, or what you please) that the
percipient may get the idea of it. If so, it would seem to imply, not
necessarily some energy proceeding outwardly, but at any rate some
process going on within which causes the special exhaustion. But no
statistics bearing on this question have been gathered from
successful agents. It is one of the many sorts of data which must be
accumulated in the future.
Mr. Irwin and his wife made corroborating affidavits, as follows:
To whom it may concern:

Robert L. Irwin, having been duly sworn, declares that he has read the
portion of manuscript by Upton Sinclair dealing with his experiments in telepathy
with Mary Craig Sinclair, and that the statements made therein having to do with
himself are true according to his clear recollection. The drawings attributed to him
were produced by him in the manner described, and are recognized by him in their
photographic reproductions. The experiments were conducted in good faith, and
the results may be accepted as valid.
[Signed] Robert L. Irwin.

To whom it may concern:

Dollie Kimbrough Irwin, having been duly sworn, declares that she has read
the portion of manuscript by Upton Sinclair dealing with experiments in telepathy
by her sister, Mary Craig Sinclair, and having to do with her husband, Robert L.
Irwin; that she was present when the drawings were made and the tests
conducted, and also when the completed drawings were produced and compared.
The statements made in the manuscript are true according to her clear
recollection, and the experiments were made in good faith and with manifest
seriousness.
[Signed] Dollie Kimbrough Irwin.

These statements were severally.

“Subscribed and sworn to before me this 26th day of July, 1929, [Signed]
Laura Unangst, Notary Public in and for the County of Denver, Colorado.”
The Sinclair-Sinclair Group of July 14–29, 1928
We are in two passages told precisely the conditions of this
group of experiments. Since her brother-in-law felt obliged to
withdraw from participation, Mrs. Sinclair asked her husband to
make some drawings. * * *
1. July 14. Mr. Sinclair made the above drawing (Fig. 2), a very
imperfectly constructed six-pointed star. Mrs. Sinclair, reclining 30
feet away, with a closed door between, produced five drawings (Fig.
2a).[11] Immediately after the agent’s and percipient’s drawings had
been compared, the lady stated that just before starting to
concentrate she had been looking at her drawing of many concentric
circles made on the previous day in the concluding test of the
Sinclair-Irwin group. This was bad method, but we can hardly regret
it, as the sequel is illuminating. At first she got a tangle of circles:
“This turned sideways [thus assuming the shape of one of the star-
points], then took the shape of an arrowhead [confused notion of
the stair-point, one would conjecture], and then of a letter A
[another attempt to interpret the dawning impression], and finally
evolved into a complete star.” The star so nearly reproduces the
oddities of the original star, its peculiar shape and the direction
which its greatest length takes, that had it been produced in one of
the unguarded series, one would have been tempted to think that
the percipient “peeked.” But the original was actually made, as well
as gazed at, behind a closed door, so that there is no possible basis
for imagining any such accident or any inadvertence on the part of
either experimenter.
2. July 14. In his room Mr. Sinclair drew the grinning face of
Figure 21, and then Mrs. Sinclair drew in hers Figure 21a. Two eyes
in his, one “eye” in hers. Look at the agent’s drawing upside down
(how can we or he be sure that he did not momentarily chance to
look at it reversed and retain the impression?), and note the
parallels. At the top of his two eyes—at the top of hers one “eye”;
midway in his two small angles indicating the nose—somewhat
above midway in hers, three similarly small angles unclosed at the
apexes; at the bottom of his a crescent-shaped figure to indicate a
mouth, with lines to denote teeth—at the bottom of hers a like
crescent, minus any interior lines. Had the percipient drawn what
would be instantly recognizable as a face, though a face of very
different lines, it would be pronounced a success. But such a fact
would be very much more likely as a guess than a misinterpreted,
almost identical crescent (she thought it probably a “moon”), so
similar little marks, angularly related (she “supposed it must be a
star”), and an “eye,” all placed as in the original.
3. July 17. Mr. Sinclair, lying on a couch in one room, drew and
then gazed at a drawing which can easily be described; it is a broad
ellipse with its major axis horizontal, like an egg lying on its side,
and a smaller and similar one in contact over it. Mrs. Sinclair, lying
on a couch in another room, first drew a broad ellipse (not quite
closed at one end), with major axis horizontal, and beside it and not
quite touching, a somewhat smaller circle not quite closed at one
end. Then she got an impression represented in a second drawing,
four ellipses of equal size, two of them in contact with each other.
4. July 20. Under the same conditions Mr. Sinclair drew two
heavy lines like a capital T. Mrs. Sinclair drew what is like an
interrogation point with misplaced dot, then a reversed S with two
dots enclosed, then an upright cross composed of lines of equal
length, and finally such a cross circumscribed by a tangential square.
Though, as Mr. Sinclair remarks, the cross is the T of the original
with its vertical line prolonged, I should call this experiment barely
suggestive.
5. July 20. Under the same conditions Mr. Sinclair drew a long-
handled fork with three short tines. Mrs. Sinclair, to use the language
of her own record, “kept seeing horns,” and she attempted to draw
them. She also “thought once it was an animal’s head with horns,
and the head was on a long stick—a trophy mounted like this....” But
her drawing was like a long-handled fork with two short tines
combining to make a curve very close to that of the two outer tines
of the original.
6. July 20. Under the same conditions Mr. Sinclair drew a cup
with a handle. Mrs. Sinclair twice drew a figure resembling the
handle of the original, then the same with an enclosed dot, then
lines parallel and at an angle. She felt confused and dissatisfied. It is
possible that her first impression was derived from the cup, but we
can hardly urge this evidentially.
7. July 21. Under the same conditions Mr. Sinclair drew a man’s
face in profile (Fig. 20). Mrs. Sinclair wrote: “Saw Upton’s face—saw
two half-circles. Then they came together, making full circle. But I
felt uncertain as to whether they belonged together or not. Then
suddenly saw Upton’s profile float across vision.” Well, Mr. Sinclair is
a man, hence his face is a man’s face, and it was seen in profile like
the original drawing.
Thus far there is no gap in the record of this group. There were
experiments on July 27 and 29, but apparently two or more papers
are missing. It is certain that on the 29th, under the same
conditions, Mr. Sinclair drew a smoking cigarette and wrote beneath
it, “My thought, ‘cigarette with curls for smoke,’” and that Mrs.
Sinclair drew a variety of curving lines and wrote, “I can’t draw it,
but curls of some sort.” So it appears that on this date there was a
suggestive result, but as there is doubt whether one or two other
experiments may not have been tried, the papers of which were not
all preserved, we had better regard the group as closed with No. 7.
So far as concerns the question solely whether Mrs. Sinclair has
shown telepathic powers, I would be willing to rest the case right
here, after but fourteen experiments under the conditions which
have been stated.[12] Every intelligent reader who really applies his
mind to them must see the extreme unlikelihood that the results of
those fourteen experiments, taking them as they stand, successes,
partial successes, suggestive and failures, are the products of
chance. And any one who has had hundreds of experiments in
guessing, as I have done, will know that there is no likelihood of
getting out of many thousands of guesses anything like the number
and grades of excellence in correspondence found in these fourteen
consecutive tests for telepathy.
We cannot take space to comment on all the tests made, the
papers of which were sent us, and we here pass over three on as
many dates, one a success though not a perfect one, two failures.
The Series of January 28, 1929
Mr. Sinclair asked his secretary “to make simple geometrical
designs, letters and figures, thinking that these would be easier to
recognize and reproduce.” It seems a little strange that when things
were going on so well, he should have wanted a change, though any
experiment is interesting. It is by no means certain, and I very much
doubt from these and earlier printed experiments, that the
assumption is a correct one. It may well be that geometrical
diagrams, letters of the alphabet and such like fail to interest the
agent and afford him a lively mental representation, as do pictures
of miscellaneous objects. And if I understand rightly, another change
of method was also initiated, and that was for Mrs. Sinclair to try to
get the drawings not while the maker of them was gazing intently at
them, but after they had left his hands. This certainly was often the
case later on.
I wrote and asked Mr. Sinclair if Mrs. Sinclair was told the fact
that this and several other series of original drawings consisted of
geometrical drawings, letters and figures, and he said that she was
not so told, that he would have regarded this as a vitiation of the
experiments. It would certainly increase the chance of getting
drawings right by guess, but it would hardly have ruined the
experiments. In fact, some people think that the most scientific
experiments are those in which the range of chance guess is limited
to an extent known to the percipient, as when the problem is to
determine which of the 52 cards of a pack is being looked at, or
which of only ten known diagrams. This opinion is probably based on
the fact that then the ratio of success to chance expectation can be
exactly calculated, though why it should be more satisfactory to
know that the chance of a correct guess is exactly 1 in 10 than it is
not to be able to tell exactly what the chance is but to be sure at
least that it cannot be 1 in 100, I do not know.
 Unless I had carefully recorded at the time that there was no
chance of the percipient having a hint that the drawings were now
for a time to consist of geometrical designs, letters and figures, I
would not dare to be certain of it after several years have passed. If
Mrs. Sinclair had no inkling, the change in the general character of
her drawings is a fact of great interest. But we will take cognizance
only of whatever resemblance may or may not be found between
the several reproductions and their originals.
The first series of drawings by the secretary were seven in
number, and, says Mr. Sinclair, “They brought only partial successes;
Craig would get elements of the drawing, but would not know how
to put them together.... There is some element right in every one.”
Let us see.
1. Agent’s drawing, a script B; Percipient’s drawing, a figure very
like a script 3, practically the B without its vertical line.
2. Agt., a script S; Per., a script J. As made, each has two
balloon-like parts joined at the small ends, certain details of course
different.
3. Agt., a hexagon; Per., two lines forming an acute angle, like
two sides of the hexagon, also a capital E with a line drawn down at
an acute angle to the left from the upper extremity of the vertical
line.
4. Agt., script M made with a peculiar twist in its first line; Per.,
almost precisely that first line with its twist.
5. Agt., a thin, long, quadrilateral, like a shingle; Per., (1st
drawing) what would be almost exactly the same quadrilateral,
narrow and long, but its shorter sides are wanting, and (2nd
drawing) a closely similar quadrilateral, with another and longer one
attached to its side at a sharp angle.
6. Agt., an interrogation point; Per., a figure hard to describe, a
round dot with curves springing from it like concentric 3’s, and two
parallel lines shooting to the left. The points which attract notice are
the dot, like that of the original, and the curves similar to that of the
interrogation point.
 7. Agt., script E; Per., same minus the “curls.”
Several of the above are not impressive taken alone; taken
together, the greater or less approaches to the several originals
defeat chance, though how much no man can measure. Counter-
tests by guessing will come the nearest to measuring.
The Series of January 28–29, 1929
This series also has to do with drawings made by Mr. Sinclair’s
secretary.
1. Agent’s drawing, a diamond or rhombus (Fig. 32); Percipient’s
drawing, the two halves of a rhombus, “wandering about,” as Mr.
Sinclair says (Fig. 32a); if connected they would make a rhombus
closely similar to the original.
2. Agt., a script capital Y; Per., a print capital Y. (Figs. 33 and
33a.)
3. The Agent’s drawing, a bottle of milk with “certified” written
on it, was suggested by his knowledge that Mrs. Sinclair to a
considerable extent lives on milk and is particular about its quality;
Per., an ellipse much like the top of the bottle, a straight line
depending therefrom, and the script “Round white foamy stuff on
top like soapsuds or froth.” And foam is characteristic of her milk, as
she drinks it sour and whipped (Figs. 34 and 34a). Here the
percipient failed to get much as to shape, but got considerable in the
way of associated ideas.
4. Agt., an oil derrick (Fig. 35); Per., got what will be seen in
Figure 35a. There are long lines diverging like the long lines of the
oil derrick, but at a slant, and with a 5 or perhaps a 9 at the top
which has no counterpart in the original. This is not a very
satisfactory reproduction, but the general shape and long downward
lines are suggestive.
5. Agt., something like a poplar leaf; Per., three scrawls like
letters or parts of letters. A failure.
6. Agt., three small ellipses attached to a stem; Per., script “See
what looks like spider’s web,” but drawing shows a bunch of elliptic
figures.
7. Agt., apparently an apple with stem; Per., (1) what looks like
a tall script V, (2) the same less tall, (3) one so low and broad that it
is nearly equivalent to the top of the apple minus the stem.
8. Agt., a house from whose chimney proceeds smoke
represented by a spiral line (Fig. 36). Per., (1) a double spiral cut by
a straight line, same slant as in the original, (2) single spiral of
nearly the same slant, (3) what looks like a battlement, the crenels
or openings of which are like the windows of the house minus the
upper sides (Fig. 36a). The rectangular openings are three in
number, the rectangular openings in the house (two windows and a
door) are also there.
9. Agt., an open fan (Fig. 102); Per., a drawing represented by
Figure 102a, accompanied by the script, “Inside seems irregular, as if
cloth draped or crumpled.” Two words, “cloth,” and “draped,”
suggest what takes place as one begins to shut a fan, though the
drawing is an incorrect representation.
10. Agt., the figures 13 (Fig. 103); Per., (1) what would be a 3
but for a supernumerary curve, (2) a 3 (Fig. 103a).
11. Agt., a conventional heart (Fig. 105); Per., practically the
upper part of such a heart, with three spots which may or may not
represent blood-drops, according to Mr. Sinclair’s conjecture (Fig.
105a). We can hardly contend, as an evidential point, that this is the
meaning of the round spots. Some obscure subconscious recollection
of expressions like “My heart bleeds,” expressing suffering, may have
come out in the drawing, though in that case one wonders why the
whole heart was not drawn. But it may be that the three marks
proceeding in the direction of the right side of the original came
from a feeling that something should line in that direction.
12. Agt., a broom (Fig. 104); Per., several attempts all more or
less resembling the original (Figs. 104a, 104b), and a valuable script:
“All I’m sure of is a straight line with something curved at the end of
it [and this description, all that she was sure of, is so far correct];
once it came [here see the drawing at the left]—then it doubled, or
reappeared, I don’t know which [referring to the upper right
drawing] (am not sure of the curly edges) [and she was justified in
her doubt. Probably the curly edges resulted from the intermingling