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Chapter 1

Ask Yourself

Ask Yourself

This activity contains 15 questions.

	REVIEW: Distinguish among age-graded, history-graded, and nonnormative influences on lifespan development. Cite an example of each in Sofie’s story at the beginning of this chapter. (pp. 3–4, 8–10)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	APPLY: Anna, a high school counselor, has devised a program that integrates classroom learning with vocational training to help adolescents at risk for school dropout stay in school and transition smoothly to work life. What is Anna’s position on stability versus plasticity in development? Explain. (p. 6)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	REFLECT: Describe an aspect of your development that differs from a parent’s or a grandparent’s when he or she was your age. Using influences highlighted by the lifespan perspective, explain this diversity in development. (pp. 8, 10)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	REVIEW: What aspect of behaviorism made it attractive to critics of psychoanalytic theory? How did Piaget’s theory respond to a major limitation of behaviorism? (pp. 14–16)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	APPLY: A 4-year-old becomes frightened of the dark and refuses to go to sleep at night. How would a psychoanalyst and a behaviorist differ in their views of how this problem developed? (pp. 12–15)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	REFLECT: Find out whether your parents read child-rearing advice books when you were growing up. What questions most concerned them? Do you think the concerns of today’s parents differ from those of your parents? Explain. (p. 11)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	REVIEW: Explain how each recent theoretical perspective regards children and adults as active contributors to their own development. (pp. 16–21)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	APPLY: Mario wants to find out precisely how children of different ages recall stories. Anna is interested in how adult–child communication in different cultures influences children’s storytelling. Which theoretical perspective has Mario probably chosen? How about Anna? Explain. (pp. 16–21)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	REFLECT: To illustrate the chronosystem in ecological systems theory, select an important event from your childhood, such as the birth of a sibling or a class with an inspiring teacher. How did the event affect you? How might its impact have differed had you been five years younger? How about five years older? (p. 21)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	REVIEW: Why might a researcher choose structured observation over naturalistic observation? How about the reverse? What might lead the researcher to opt for clinical interviewing over systematic observation? (pp. 21–24)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	APPLY: A researcher is interested in how elders experience daily life in different cultures. Which method should she use? Explain. (p. 25)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	REFLECT: Reread the description of nonnormative influences on page 10 and cite an example from your own life. Which method would be best suited to studying the impact of such a nonnormative event on development? (p. 24)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	REVIEW: Explain how cohort effects can affect the findings of both longitudinal and cross-sectional studies. How do sequential designs reveal cohort effects? (pp. 29–31)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	APPLY: A researcher compares older adults with chronic heart disease to those with no major health problems and finds that the first group scores lower on mental tests. Can the researcher conclude that heart disease causes a decline in intellectual functioning in late adulthood? Explain. (pp. 25, 27)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

	REFLECT: Suppose a researcher asks you to enroll your baby in a 10-year longitudinal study. What factors would lead you to agree and stay involved? Do your answers shed light on why longitudinal studies often have biased samples? (p. 29)   To create paragraphs in your essay response, type <p> at the beginning of the paragraph, and </p> at the end.

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