executive function

Question 1

Which of the following is false about synaptic development?

Answer 1

Right statement:
-By 3 years of age, a child’s brain has twice as many synapses as an adult’s.
-By 2 years of age, the number of synapses reach adult levels
-The number of synapses holds steady throughout the first decade
Wrong statement:
There are fewer changes in the less ‘hard-wired’ areas of the brain( instead, it should be more ‘hard wire’)

Question 2

What is an example best describes ‘perceptual narrowing’?

Answer 2

After 6 months, baby sounds taken on a different form depending on what language the infant is learning.

Question 3

Project HeadStart(1965) provided lower SES children aged 3-5 years with comprehensive social, educational, nutritional, and health care. Which of the following are true of its outcomes?

Answer 3

-Children were less likely to repeat a year
-Adolescents had higher aspirations and a better sense of achievement
-In adulthood, individuals were less likely to have a child

Question 4

What process/ess underline/s the brain in weight during early childhood

Answer 4

Synaptogenesis

Question 5

Which dimension on temperament and personality differences best describes an infant who is fearful in the presence of a stranger?

Answer 5

Approach-withdrawal (other dimensions:intensity of reaction is about intensity or energy level of one’s response more generally, rather than being specific to novel stimuli so it is not the best option here, responsiveness threshold is about the threshold or sensitivity to stimuli, adaptability is about being able to adapt to changes in one’s environment)

Question 6

responsive parenting is key to the process of what, contributing to the development of brain architecture?

Answer 6

pruning

Question 7

Which is the following is false regarding the frontal lobe and prefrontal cortex development?

Answer 7

Prefrontal and frontal cortex are first to mature( should be prefrontal cortex and frontal lobe are last area to mature but first to deteriorate)

Question 8

What percentage does the frontal lobes occupy of the adult human brain?

Answer 8

40

Question 9

Fluency disorder affect the what part of the speech

Answer 9

rate

Question 10

There are three deficiencies in children’s use of memory strategies, which deficiency occurs when a child uses the correct strategy but it fails to aid their performance?

Answer 10

utilisation deficiency

Question 11

Oliner& Oliner(1988) found that people who became rescuers during WW2 were more likely to be those whose parents prioritised…?

Answer 11

Caring and caring applied universally

Question 12

Changes in what have been described as the key to changes in memory?

Answer 12

Attention

Question 13

Which of the following did Sieglar attribute to the facilitation of cognitive development?

Answer 13

Increasingly sophisticated problem solving strategies

Question 14

According to Case’s theory of cognitive development, working memory includes operating space and what space

Answer 14

storage

Question 15

When do children behave most stereotypically gender conforming?

Answer 15

When they have a sibling/s of the same gender

Question 16

“Practice is important for processing speed.” Who is most likely to have said this?

Answer 16

Robbie Case( mental operation)

Question 17

When do newborn infants change their pattern of sucking?

Answer 17

Listening to their mother’s voice.

Question 18

Which of following can facilitate processing speed in the human brain?

Answer 18

Having strong neural connections, rate of synaptic pruning, myelination

Question 19

Kail& Park’s finding that practice eliminates difference between 11 years old and adults response time on mental rotation task is consistent with which of the following processing theories?

Answer 19

Practice makes process automatic and more effective

Question 20

Kail& Park’s study on a mental rotation task showed that initial performance was determined by which mechanisms, while later performance was related to which mechanisms?

Answer 20

Domain general; domain specific

Question 21

Iconic, echoic, and haptic memory are part of which of the following types of memory?

Answer 21

Sensory memory

Question 22

Which of the following explain why vision is one of the most poorly developed sense at birth?

Answer 22

The womb is dark and void of visual stimulation

Question 23

True or false, there is an inverse U shaped trend regarding the relationship between synaptic density and age

Answer 23

True

Question 24

For the three general types of temperaments, ____of children are easy,____are difficult, ______are slow to warm up

Answer 24

40% are easy, 10% are difficult, 15% are slow to warm up.

Question 25

A slow to warm up child has a ____activity level, adjusts___to a new situations, and is often___in mood

Answer 25

Low, slowly, negative

Question 26

which of the following functions do glial cells perform in the brain?

Answer 26

-Supply nutrients and oxygen to neurons -help form myelin -Remove dead neurons

Question 27

Why might children's use of instrumental aggression decline with development?

Answer 27

They increasingly learn to control their behaviour

Question 28

Which of the following types of aggression best fits this definition: Aggression as a way to directly remove obstacle and reach a goal

Answer 28

Instrumental

Question 29

At 6 years of age, a child's brain is ____% of adult weight

Answer 29

90

Question 30

Which of the following senses are well developed at birth

Answer 30

smell

Question 31

We use different cues to perceive depth, at 6-7 months an infant is using___cues

Answer 31

Most

Question 32

Which of the following describes an infant's ability to perceive colour at 4 months?

Answer 32

The infant can categorically discriminate between colours( 1months is red and green cones are in place, 2 months is colour discrimination(e.g blue vs green)

Question 33

Newborns are best at focusing___cm away

Answer 33

30

Question 34

What is used to measure vision in infants?

Answer 34

Preferential looking techniques

Question 35

Teachers place the child into a passive role, children must be given opportunities to discover concepts on their own", Which theorist is most likely to have said this?

Answer 35

Piaget( whereas Vygotsky saw that children needed instruction more more learned individuals)

Question 36

Why do the Wisconsin Card Sorting task, the Stroop task and the Marshmallow task tap executive functions(EFs), and which EFs do they tap?

Answer 36

Measure the ability to shift thinking in response to a changing environment(WIsconsin); Discordance between two cues: must suppress the automatic tendency to read the word; Marshmallow task, Activity flexibility and inhibition

Question 37

discuss why EFs relatively slow developing.

Answer 37

Because EFs mediated by frontal lobes, and frontal lobes slow to mature, the time course of frontal lobe development allows for the study of the relation between physiological change and behavioural change

Question 38

Describe the signs of frontal lobe damage

Answer 38

1.Cognitive inflexibility: Includes impairments in reactive flexibility( can't change 'cognitive set' i.e WCST) and spontaneous flexibility(i.e number of responses that can be produced to a single question (e.g how many animals beginning with D can you name) 2.Self regulation: Poor monitoring of self and incoming info, little use of meta-memory strategies, goal setting, planning, self-initiating, self-correcting, inhibition of behaviour 3.Full impact may take years to reveal little info on how age of onset, locus of damage affect outcome 4. Social inappropriateness:  Often most noticeable deficits  People with extensive damage to the frontal lobes develop a characteristic syndrome  Disinhibition of behaviour: impulsive and lack of inhibition  Will say and do the first things that come into their heads without considering the social correctness or the future consequences of what they say/do  While much of their behaviour becomes antisocial, they are unlikely to engage in serious crime because they are impaired in making and carrying out any long-term plans

Question 39

What is the executive function(EF)account of cognitive development?

Answer 39

it relates changes in children's thinking and logic to brain development, particularly in the prefrontal cortex/frontal lobes.

Question 40

What do executive function refer to?

Answer 40

General abilities underlying performance on all cognitive tasks, including those that develops with age.

Question 41

What are key abilities included in executive function(EFs)?

Answer 41

Planning, monitoring progress, working memory, speed f processing, inhibition, initiating behavior, activity flexibility

Question 42

What role do EFs play in behaviour and thought?

Answer 42

EFs provide organisation and order to actions, behaviour, and thought.

Question 43

How are EF assessed?

Answer 43

Through neuropsychological assessments, typically focusing on higher-order cognitive processes like planning and response inhibition.

Question 44

What is significant about the maturation of the frontal lobes?

Answer 44

They are the last part of the brain to mature, typically 14-25 years.

Question 45

What are the frontal lobes responsible for?

Answer 45

Executive functions and personality(social characteristics)

Question 46

What is the anterior portion of the frontal lobes called and what is its function

Answer 46

The prefrontal cortex; responsible for higher cognitive functions and personality

Question 47

What is located in the posterior portion of the frontal lobes

Answer 47

Premotor and motor areas, where nerve cells produce and modify movement

Question 48

How do the frontal lobes operate as a system?

Answer 48

They integrate information and act as a limited capacity system(bottleneck effect)

Question 49

What is the timeline for frontal lobe development?

Answer 49

Spurts at birth 2 years and 4-7 years -Slow growth until full maturity at 14-25 years -First to deteriorate with aging

Question 50

What areas of development are related to EF?

Answer 50

Theory of mind, ADHD, school behaviour, antisocial behaviour, math ability, academic achievement, lack of coordination, autism communication deficits, language ability, obesity

Question 51

Who was Phineas Gage and why is he important?

Answer 51

A man who survived a severe frontal lobe injury but suffered drastic personality changes, demonstrating the frontal lobe's role in personality

Question 52

What aspects of Phineas Gage's abilties were unaffected?

Answer 52

Language, memory, and physical abilities

Question 53

What changes occurred in Phineas Gage after his injury?

Answer 53

He became unreliable, disrespectful, rude, foul, lacked social skills, and was described as 'no longer Gage".

Question 54

Who was JP and what was notable about his development?

Answer 54

A child who developed normally at first but later exhibited severe behavioural problems due to a right prefrontal cyst.

Question 55

What were JP's symptoms by age 6-8?

Answer 55

Public masturbation, flashing, defecating in a classmate's glove

Question 56

What was discovered about JP's brain in adulthood?

Answer 56

A cyst had completely atrophied the right prefrontal region, sparing Broca's area and motor cortex