Essential Psychology
Student Resources
Multiple Choice Questions
1. What term describes the idea that humans consider themselves to have a superior and fundamental place in the universe?
- anthropocentrism
- egocentrism
- ethnocentrism
- narcissism
Answer: A
2. What sort of data describes meaning and experience?
- idiographic
- quantitative
- nomothetic
- qualitative
Answer: D
3. What sort of data describes numerical data?
- idiographic
- quantitative
- nomothetic
- qualitative
Answer: B
4. The concept of survival of the fittest refers to
- the individuals who have characteristics that fit in best to the environment
- the individuals who are the strongest and most likely to survive
- the individuals who have characteristics that make them more attractive and hence more likely to get a mate
- the individuals who work out the most
Answer: A
5. Male gorillas have relatively small testicles compared to those of a chimpanzee because
- they have a different diet
- they have a lower level of sexual activity
- the females exclusively mate with one gorilla
- they live in large communities
Answer: C
6. The evolution of hominids is generally believed to have begun around how many years ago?
- 50,000
- 250,000
- 2.5 million
- 50 million
Answer: C
7. What are proximate explanations?
- explanations of why a particular behaviour or trait can improve inclusive fitness and why a particular behaviour can be favoured in evolutionary terms
- explanations that describe the mechanisms involved in terms of how they contribute towards a specific behaviour that may benefit an individual and aid survival
- explanations of social reasoning as an aid towards cooperation and deception in order to maximize inclusive fitness
- explanations that show how closely different human functions are related
Answer: B
8. Altruism can be defined as
- an act that benefits the recipient at a cost to the donor
- working together for a common goal
- buying patronizing Band Aid records at Christmas
- ensuring that all individuals have equal access to resources
Answer: A
9. How many of your first cousins (your uncle and auntie’s children) would need to survive to maintain the genetic presence in the world as you?
- 64
- 32
- 16
- 8
Answer: D
10. Many primates engage in social grooming, which is a very time-consuming activity. The main function of this is
- to reinforce social bonds
- to ensure the good health of all members of the group
- to stimulate sexual activity
- to remove parasites from other individuals
Answer: A
11. In order for natural selection to occur, what must there be amongst individuals of each generation?
- variation
- homogeneity
- harmony
- unlimited access to resources
Answer: A
12. Being able to adapt to changes in the environment is referred to as what?
- natural selection
- evolution
- versatility
- survival of the fittest
Answer: D
13. Mendel’s work on the transmission of the physical characteristics of his pea plants across generations led him to formulate which law?
- The Law of Genetic Transmission
- The Law of Inheritance
- The Law of Genetic Recombination
- The Law of Polygenetics
Answer: B
14. Mendel’s work demonstrated the transfer of what molecule across generations?
- genes
- mitochondria
- blood type
- ribonucleic acid
Answer: A
15. What is the term for the expressed characteristic of a gene?
- phenotype
- phenomenon
- phoneme
- photon
Answer: A
16. What is the term for a person’s genetic profile?
- genus
- genitive
- genotype
- genesis
Answer: C
17. Anthropomorphism is
- the observation of human-like characteristics in animals
- the observation of animal-like characteristics in humans
- the attribution of human characteristics to inanimate objects, animals, forces of nature and others
- the belief in some people that they can communicate with animals
Answer: C
18. A class of species that share certain attributes is known as a
- genus
- phylogenetic
- breed
- category
Answer: A
19. A group that exists within a genus is referred to as what?
- breed
- species
- class
- subgroup
Answer: B
20. The growth of which particular brain region has been found to be associated with the evolution of humans from their primitive ancestors?
- brain stem
- hypothalamus
- pituitary gland
- neocortex
Answer: D
21. Which of these is NOT an early hominid species?
- Homo neanderthalensis
- Homo erectus
- Homo habilis
- Homo cro magnus
Answer: D
22. In psychology, consciousness may be defined as
- the awareness of self and others
- being awake and alert
- being meticulous
- the capacity for mental ability
Answer: A
23. The term meme refers to
- sounds that have meanings
- the smallest unit of sound that can be understood to be part of a language
- an idea than can be described and transmitted to another individual
- units of thought or culture that are then replicated in the brain
Answer: D
24. What does Dunbar’s number refer to?
- the ratio between brain size and intelligence
- the average group size in a species as predicted by the size of the neocortex
- the number of friends that the average human being has
- the number of hours spent grooming by a species
Answer: B
25. In evolutionary terms, what do we mean by ‘culture’?
- information that is acquired from other individuals via social transmission mechanisms such as imitation, teaching or language
- the development of community practices around agriculture
- the development of social mating patterns that lead to larger groups of individuals
- the development of non-survival-based artefacts, such as paintings, songs and burial grounds
Answer: A
26. When calculated for human beings, Dunbar’s number is estimated to be
- 150
- 250
- 1,000
- 5,000
Answer: A
27. The use of websites such as Facebook and Twitter constitutes examples of what form of social bonding?
- social networking
- social grooming
- social relations
- social communication
Answer: B
28. What did Mendel use to demonstrate genetic transmission?
- daisies
- carrots
- peas
- geranium
Answer: C
29. How many genes is a Homo sapiens thought to inherit?
- 5,000 to 10,000
- 10,000 to 15,000
- 15,000 to 20,000
- 20,000 to 25,000
Answer: D
30. What does the term epigenetics refer to?
- the study of how our phenotype is likely to develop in the future
- the study of how our genotype is likely to develop in the future
- the study of heritable changes in the genotype that occur without changes to the phenotype
- the study of heritable changes in the phenotype that occur without changes to the genotype
Answer: D