AP PSYCHOLOGY Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
1.
Response to Car Accident Story
In an experiment, participants were randomly assigned to play either a violent or nonviolent video game for 20
minutes. Afterward, they read a story about a car accident. The children were observed and reactions to the story
were documented. The graph shows how many aggressive responses were made by each group. Which of the
following theories is demonstrated by the results as depicted in the graph?
(A) Social learning theory
(B) Reinforcement theory
(C) Piaget’s theory of cognitive development
(D) Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development
Answer A
Correct. The chart shows how participants who played violent video games exhibited more aggressive
responses, indicating that they may modeled aggressive behaviors observed from characters in the
games.
AP Psychology Page 1 of 18
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
Number Mr. Theodore, a high school math teacher, believes that the use of cell phones in class causes
of distractions while learning. He conducted a study on his students. Over the course of eight
students weeks, he noted how many students put their devices in a locked bin each class period. At the
end of each week, he gave the students a quiz on the class content to see if removal of the
who put Mean device increased focused learning. The results are presented in the table.
their quiz
phone score on
in a 10-point
locked quiz
bin
during
class
Week
8 4
1
Week
12 5
2
Week
10 5
3
Week
20 6
4
Week
25 7
5
Week
27 7
6
Week
30 7
7
Week
30 8
8
2. Which of the following describes the method of research conducted by Mr. Theodore?
(A) Meta analysis
(B) Naturalistic observation
(C) Experiment
(D) Correlational
Page 2 of 18 AP Psychology
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
Answer D
Correct. Theodore measured the relationship between the number of students who put their phones in a
locked bin and class quiz scores.
3. How did Mr. Theodore operationally define focused learning for his study?
(A) Minutes spent without phones
(B) The number of weeks spent learning in class
(C) Mean quiz scores
(D) Student willingness to lock phones in the bin
Answer C
Correct. He measured learning by a mean of the class quiz scores each week.
4. What is the range for the mean quiz scores?
(A) 4
(B) 7
(C) 50
(D) 22.5
Answer A
Correct. The range is 8-4, which is 4.
5. In studies of stages of development, why is it important to include participants that represent a diverse range of
cultural backgrounds?
(A) This will make it more likely that the results will be statistically significant.
(B) Culture can influence when and how individuals experience developmental changes in their lives.
(C) Including more diverse participants will make it easier to randomly assign subjects to groups.
(D) Including more diverse participants makes it possible to use double-blind procedures.
AP Psychology Page 3 of 18
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
Answer B
Correct. Cultural background can impact results of studies that examine when and how individuals
experience developmental stages.
6. In an experiment, a researcher showed children a video of a person interacting with a doll. Half of the children
watched a video of a person behaving violently toward a doll, and the other half saw a video of a person playing
nicely with a doll. The researcher also looked at whether the gender and age of the child made a difference in how
they interacted with the doll. In this study, the dependent variable was
(A) the age at which children begin engaging in parallel play
(B) the gender of the children
(C) the way children interact with a doll
(D) watching a video in which a person exhibits violent behavior toward a doll or plays nicely with a doll
Answer C
Correct. The dependent variable of Albert Bandura’s famous study was whether children mimicked the
violent behavior they witnessed in the video toward the doll.
7. To determine if different parenting styles influence social development from childhood to adulthood, a
developmental researcher would likely want to use which type of study?
(A) A cross sectional study
(B) An experiment
(C) A longitudinal study
(D) A case study
Answer C
Correct. A longitudinal study would allow researchers to see the participants’ experiences from
childhood to adulthood.
8. When a person behaves in ways that conform to commonly accepted social roles for males or females, which of the
following is the person displaying?
Page 4 of 18 AP Psychology
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
(A) Gender identity
(B) Social development
(C) Social reciprocity
(D) Sex
Answer A
Correct. Gender identity is typically reflected in the ways one behaves according to social expectations
for being male or female.
Counterconditioning and Anxiety
Dr. Abrams treats patients with anxiety by using a form of counterconditioning called exposure therapy. To test the
effectiveness of this technique, Dr. Abrams had each patient report their level of anxiety while repeatedly exposing each
person to an anxiety-inducing situation for one hour using a virtual reality headset. Patients rated their anxiety from 0-8,
with 0 being no anxiety to 8 being extreme anxiety. The results are presented in the graph.
9. Which of the following concepts describes the learning process experienced by Dr. Abram’s patients?
(A) Stimulus generalization
(B) Biological preparedness
(C) Primary reinforcement
(D) Habituation
AP Psychology Page 5 of 18
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
Answer D
Correct. The patients have a diminished response of anxiety due to repeated exposure.
10. Which of the following is a conclusion that Dr. Abrams can make about exposure therapy and anxiety based on the
data?
(A) Counterconditioning causes anxiety to increase
(B) Repeated exposure to anxiety-inducing stimuli reduces anxiety
(C) Exposure therapy leads to spontaneous recovery of previously extinct relaxation responses
(D) Exposure therapy causes anxiety to decrease by presenting the patients with negative reinforcement.
Answer B
Correct. With each exposure, anxiety level decreased faster over time.
11. Which of the following describes the measurement instrument that Dr. Abrams’ patients used to report their
anxiety?
(A) Standard Deviation
(B) Correlation Coefficient
(C) Likert Scale
(D) Effect size
Answer C
Correct. Dr. Abrams’ patients measured their anxiety on a scale of 0-8 as presented in the graph.
12. Which of the following best explains why most research about the effects of teratogens during pregnancy is
correlational rather than experimental?
Page 6 of 18 AP Psychology
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
It would be unethical to manipulate the exposure to teratogens during a pregnancy due to the potential
(A)
harm to individuals.
(B) Only correlational research can prove cause and effect relationships in research on teratogens.
Because teratogens are related to a critical period for learning language, it would be unethical to deprive
(C)
babies of learning to speak a language.
Correlational research can demonstrate statistical significance while experiments do not involve the use
(D)
of statistical significance measures, making correlational research more accurate.
Answer A
Correct. Due to potential harm of an experiment, correlational research can survey mothers that exposed
the fetus to teratogens and look for relationships with other variables.
13.
Response to Car Accident Story
In an experiment, participants were randomly assigned to play either a violent or nonviolent video game for 20
minutes. Afterward, they read a story about a car accident. The children were observed and their reactions to the
story were documented. The researchers categorized the aggressive responses as verbal, cognitive, or emotional.
According to the graphed results, which type of response was most frequently demonstrated by participants who
played violent video games?
AP Psychology Page 7 of 18
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
(A) Emotional responses
(B) Cognitive responses
(C) Verbal responses
(D) Response types show similar trends
Answer A
Correct. The graph indicates that participants who played violent video games exhibited the highest
number of aggressive responses in terms of feeling (emotion).
14.
The information presented in the graph best represents which of the following aspects of developmental psychology
research?
(A) The amount of time it takes for a child to learn the visual cliff
(B) The progression of cognitive and physical abilities throughout the lifespan
(C) An infant’s interest in gazing at human faces
(D) The number of friends people accumulate throughout the lifespan
Answer B
Correct. There is typically rapid development followed by slow and steady decline after the peak
abilities.
Page 8 of 18 AP Psychology
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
15.
Effect Size of Performance on Social Development Test
A research study compares the performance of typically developing children and children with autism spectrum
disorder (ASD) on a test of social development. All children are 4 years old, and researchers want to determine if
they have a theory of mind. The effect size for the difference in performance between the two groups is presented in
the graph.
What does this effect size indicate about the difference in performance?
The performance of the typically developing children was more distributed across the graph than the
(A)
performance of the children with ASD.
There is no significant difference in performance between typically developing children and children
(B)
with ASD.
There is a large difference in performance between typically developing children and children with
(C)
ASD.
The performance of the children with ASD was more distributed across the graph than the performance
(D)
of the typically developing children.
Answer C
Correct. The effect size indicates a large difference between the two groups.
AP Psychology Page 9 of 18
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
16. Age at which a Child Begins to Walk
Child Age in Months
#1 10
#2 10
#3 9
#4 12
#5 14
#6 22
Which of the following is the mean age at which children in this sample began to walk?
(A) 10
(B) 5
(C) 11
(D) 10.5
Answer C
Correct. To arrive at this mean (average) add all data points presented (66) and divide by the total
number of data points (6).
17. A team of sports psychologists is investigating the effects of different reinforcement schedules on athletes'
performance and motivation. They plan to recruit high school athletes from various teams to participate in the study.
Which ethical consideration should researchers prioritize when recruiting high school athletes for their research?
(A) Deceive participants about the study's true purpose in order to reduce response bias
(B) Obtain informed assent from the athletes and informed consent from their parents
(C) Offer financial incentives to encourage participation among high-school athletes
(D) Restrict the study to only athletes already familiar with reinforcement schedules
Answer B
Correct. Informed assent is required because legal consent usually requires being 18 years old. Since
high school students may be under 18, researchers need their assent and consent from a parent or
Page 10 of 18 AP Psychology
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
guardian.
18. Researchers are interested in studying gender development across the lifespan. Researchers recruited 500 children to
participate in a study. All of the children were seven years old when the study began, and researchers plan on
studying these 500 children for a period of 20 years. This study would be an example of what type of research
design?
(A) Experimental
(B) Cross-sectional
(C) Longitudinal
(D) Naturalistic observation
Answer C
Correct. Researchers are conducting the study over a long period of time (20 years).
19. Shamir wants to be a doctor like both of his parents when he gets older. He never thought of doing anything else.
Which of the following best explains Shamir’s decision?
(A) He has not fully developed his identity.
(B) His parents have a permissive parenting style, which has left him with an underdeveloped identity.
(C) He is in a moratorium state of identity.
(D) He is identity foreclosed.
Answer D
Correct. When a person commits to a profession without even exploring other options the person is
considered identity foreclosed.
AP Psychology Page 11 of 18
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
20. Dr. Picard performs a study of children’s perceptions of gender roles. Children are randomly assigned to one of two
groups. Children in Group A are shown simplified drawings of people (stick figures) wearing different types of
clothing and are asked to sort these based on gender. Children in Group B are shown stick figure drawings of people
performing various household tasks such as washing dishes, cooking, mowing a lawn, or fixing a leaky faucet. They
are then asked to sort these drawings based on gender.
Which of the following is the independent variable in this study?
(A) The random assignment of children to the two different groups
(B) The sorting procedure performed by the children
The type of drawing the children saw – either people wearing different clothing or people doing
(C)
different tasks
(D) There is no independent variable since people cannot be randomly assigned to be either male or female.
Answer C
Correct. This variable was manipulated by the researcher.
21. Rik, who is an adolescent, was always studious and quiet throughout childhood. His parents are concerned because
he suddenly dyed his hair, pierced his tongue, and started hanging out with a different crowd. A few months later,
he tried out for the football team and became so active in sports that he neglected his schoolwork. According to
psychologists, which of the following would best explain Rik’s changes in behavior?
(A) His parents had an authoritarian parenting style as he was growing up, so he is confused.
(B) He is having a difficult time getting along with peers.
(C) He is going through the process of exploring his identity that many adolescents experience.
(D) The neural pathways in his cerebellum are not fully developed.
Page 12 of 18 AP Psychology
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
Answer C
Correct. According to Erik Erikson and other psychologists, it is normal to explore various identities
during adolescence.
22. Michael has recently begun to demonstrate egocentrism. Although egocentrism exists at all ages, Jean Piaget found
that children are most egocentric during which stage of cognitive development?
(A) Sensorimotor stage
(B) Preoperational stage
(C) Concrete operational stage
(D) Formal operational stage
Answer B
Correct. Children exhibit the highest levels of egocentrism during the preoperational stage, where it is
difficult for them to perform the mental operations necessary to understand another’s perspective.
AP Psychology Page 13 of 18
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
23.
Name of Child Number of Words in Vocabulary
Allison 6
Perrin 10
Daria 24
Elliott 1
Gabriel 13
Shemar 19
Jason 12
Dagmar 10
Kristin 8
Maria 17
Researchers are interested in how language develops at different rates when children are learning to speak.
Researchers interviewed parents about their 15-month-old child’s vocabulary ability. Researchers then proceeded to
interact with each child to see how many words they could encourage the child to say in a 30-minute period. The
results of the study are presented in the table.
Using the data in the table above, what is the median number of words in a 15-month-old’s vocabulary?
(A) 11
(B) 9
(C) 10
(D) 12
Answer A
Correct. When the numbers are placed in numerical order, the number in the middle of the data set would
be 11, which is determined by taking the average of the middle two numbers in an even distribution
(10+12)/2.
Page 14 of 18 AP Psychology
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
Health Condition 0 ACES 1-2 ACES 3-4 ACES 5+ ACES
Arthritis 100% 130% 145% 168%
Asthma 100% 117% 160% 175%
Cancer 100% 108% 111% 167%
Diabetes 100% 120% 132% 198%
Heart Disease 100% 123% 205% 285%
Kidney Disease 100% 101% 179% 263%
Stroke 100% 121% 180% 291%
Dr. Lloyd wanted to demonstrate the effects of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on later health outcomes for
residents of a local retirement community. He surveyed each of the 205 residents about their childhood experiences. Later,
he obtained permission from the residents to look at their health records from the physicians at the community medical
center. He then calculated the odds (by percentage) of having certain health conditions. The results are presented in the
table.
24. Which of the following best describes the type of research conducted by Dr. Lloyd?
(A) Naturalistic Observation
(B) Experiment
(C) Correlational
(D) Meta-analysis
Answer C
Correct. Dr. Lloyd determined the strength of the relationship between the number of ACES and health
conditions of the residents.
25. Which of the following explains why Dr. Lloyd might be unable to generalize his findings to all elderly people?
The sample of subjects is from only one retirement community and may not be representative of all
(A)
elderly people.
The surveys taken by the residents might be worded in such a way as to elicit incorrect information
(B)
about ACES.
(C) Dr. Lloyd did not use a double-blind procedure, which may have influenced the results of the survey.
(D) Dr. Lloyd did not operationally define each of the health conditions reported by the physicians.
AP Psychology Page 15 of 18
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
Answer A
Correct. For Dr. Lloyd to generalize his findings to all elderly people, he must use random selection and
obtain a representative sample.
26. Why would Dr. Lloyd be interested in studying the social and cultural backgrounds of the residents with kidney
disease, heart disease, and stroke?
(A) Because these health conditions are not experienced as often by those with ACEs.
(B) Because sociocultural background can influence individuals’ perceptions of ACEs.
(C) Because these individuals were less likely to have received medical attention for their health conditions.
(D) Because Dr. Lloyd would like to prevent hindsight bias in his research.
Answer B
Correct. The effects of childhood experiences can differ depending on one’s culture or social context.
27.
What cognitive development concept is presented in the image?
(A) Zone of proximal development
(B) Multiple intelligences
(C) Piaget’s accommodation
(D) General intelligence (g)
Page 16 of 18 AP Psychology
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
Answer A
Correct. The principle expresses moving from what one already knows to what is just beyond their
knowledge base (ZPD), to what students won’t be able to grasp even with the help of others.
28. Researchers are interested in the relationship between the classical conditioning of an eyeblink response and aging.
While taking an intelligence test, elderly subjects wore special goggles that administered a puff of air into their eyes
after a tone sounded. Although participants were told the purpose of the experiment was to see if intelligence
declined as people aged, the real purpose of the study was to measure the length of time it took for elderly
participants to learn the association between the sound of the tone and the puff of air.
Which of the following ethical procedures must be used to account for the deception used in this study?
(A) Informed consent
(B) Debriefing
(C) Confidentiality
(D) Double-blind procedure
Answer B
Correct. Subjects need to be told the true purpose of the research before the study ends.
29. Researchers analyzed all-day recordings of caregiver-infant interactions at home in a random and representative
sample of 100 families. Babies whose caregivers spent the most time speaking directly to them had a larger
vocabulary at age two. However, the amount of speech that the babies indirectly heard, for example, by others in the
home talking to one another was not related to increased vocabulary. Researchers concluded that the use of more
speech directed at babies by caregivers created a larger vocabulary.
Which of the following is an accurate statement about this study?
(A) The researchers cannot generalize the results from the study to a larger population.
(B) The researchers cannot make a cause-and-effect conclusion using this research method.
(C) The researchers would be unable to define the variables operationally.
(D) The researchers found a negative correlation.
Answer B
Correct. Researchers need an experiment with random assignment and manipulated variables to make a
cause-and-effect conclusion.
AP Psychology Page 17 of 18
Scoring Guide
Unit 3 Progress Check: MCQ
30. Four-year-old Caleb declares, “For breakfast, I eated pancakes and eggs.” Which of the following best accounts for
this language error?
(A) Modeling
(B) Operant conditioning
(C) Linguistic relativity
(D) Overgeneralization
Answer D
Correct. This child has learned the rule for past tense, but he overgeneralized that rule in this sentence.
31. Mr. Gregg wants to help his second-grade students improve their reading skills. He tests the students with
20 reading comprehension questions at the beginning of the year. Every week throughout the year he gives the
students 30 minutes of reading comprehension tips. He tests the students at the end of the year with 20 reading
comprehension questions that are similar in difficulty to those on the original test. He finds that the students’
reading comprehension has increased and concludes that his tips worked. Which of the following describes the most
significant problem with Mr. Gregg’s study?
(A) Mr. Gregg should have had someone else test the children in case he was showing experimenter bias.
(B) Mr. Gregg should have tested his students every month so he could more accurately track their progress.
(C) Mr. Gregg should have used the same test to ensure reliability.
(D) Mr. Gregg failed to account for changes in the students’ maturity.
Answer D
Correct. Students at this age will mature a great deal cognitively, and their reading skills in turn will
typically grow even without extra skill training.
Page 18 of 18 AP Psychology