Question 1
Question
What do we call the interdisciplinary field that studies the influence of inherited traits on complex behaviour?
Question 2
Question
Which of the following is true of genes but not chromosomes?
Answer
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They contain gonadotropins.
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They contain DNA.
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They are found in zygotes.
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There are thousands of them in each sperm or egg.
Question 3
Question
What is the genetic complement of all cells in the human body, except sex cells?
Question 4
Question
How many chromosomes does a zygote contain?
Answer
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1 pair
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2 pairs
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23 pairs
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46 pairs
Question 5
Question
How many possible combinations of chromosomes are possible when you combine one person’s sperm with
another person’s egg?
Answer
-
529, or 23 squared
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2,116, or 46 squared
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8 million, or 2 to the 23
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70 trillion, or 2 to the 46
ANSWER: b
Question 6
Question
What do we call a pairing of genes with one dominant and one recessive gene?
Answer
-
homozygous
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phenotypic
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heterozygous
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polygenic
Question 7
Question
What do we call the member of a gene pair that is more influential in terms of expressing a trait?
Answer
-
phenotypic
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expressive
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recessive
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dominant
Question 8
Question
Assume that developing a sixth toe is a recessive trait that is controlled by a single pair of genes. If a child has six
toes, but both the child’s parents have normal feet, what can you conclude?
Answer
-
The child is heterozygous for the trait in question.
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Both parents are heterozygous for the trait in question.
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Both parents are homozygous for the trait in question.
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The child is adopted.
Question 9
Question
What is the term for the specific pattern of genes that an individual inherits at conception?
Answer
-
phenotype
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zygote
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polygenic inheritance
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genotype
Question 10
Question
What is a person’s genotype?
Answer
-
their biological or chromosomal sex
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the maternal contribution to their genetic makeup
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their genetic makeup
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their observable characteristics and traits
Question 11
Question
Which of the following is determined at conception and is essentially fixed forever?
Answer
-
phenotype
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somatotype
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genotype
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zygote
Question 12
Question
Shane and Blane are monozygotic twins. However, people seldom get the two brothers mixed up because Blane
is almost two inches shorter than Shane. What can you conclude based on this evidence?
Answer
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Because the brothers display different phenotypes, they must also have different underlying genotypes.
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Even though both brothers share the same genotype, they display different phenotypes.
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Even though both brothers display the same phenotype, they have different genotypes.
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Blane is heterozygous for the “tallness” trait, and Shane is homozygous for the “tallness” trait.
Question 13
Question
If a trait is described as polygenic, what does that mean?
Answer
-
It is controlled by a single gene.
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It is controlled by a single chromosome.
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It is controlled by more than one pair of genes.
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It is controlled by genes on all 46 chromosomes.
Question 14
Question
Skin colour is determined by three to five gene pairs. Based on this information, what type of trait is skin colour?
Answer
-
a monogenic trait
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a polygenic trait
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a homozygous trait
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a heterozygous trait
Question 15
Question
Why are all human studies about the interaction of genes and environment correlational?
Answer
-
to assess the effects of modern child-rearing methods
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to demonstrate the empirical nature of psychological research
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to meet ethical standards in research
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to disentangle the effects of genetics and experience on behavioural traits
Question 16
Question
Which two individuals would we expect to have the GREATEST degree of phenotypic similarity?
Answer
-
mother and daughter
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monozygotic twins
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dizygotic twins
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father and son
Question 17
Question
Four sisters were all raised in the same household by parents who are very creative and artistic. Anna and Betty
are the biological children of their parents, while Cassie and Deanna were adopted as infants into the family. Like
their parents, Anna and Betty are artistically inclined and enjoy working on creative projects. Cassie and Deanna
are not particularly interested in artistic endeavours even though they’ve received a lot of exposure to art and a
lot of encouragement for creative work. Which of the following conclusions would be reasonable if this pattern
occurred in a variety of similar families?
Answer
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Environmental factors have more influence than genetic factors in artistic interest.
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Both genetic and environmental factors contribute equally to artistic interest.
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Genetic factors have more influence than environmental factors in artistic interest.
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Neither genetic nor environmental factors contribute to artistic interest.
Question 18
Question
Which of the following supports the hypothesis that intelligence is influenced by environmental factors?
Answer
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Twins reared apart have similar intelligence scores.
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Monozygotic twins are more similar than dizygotic twins on intelligence measures.
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Identical twins do not have identical intelligence scores.
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The correlations between dizygotic twins’ intelligence scores are around 0.60.
Question 19
Question
Londra and Sondra are identical twins who have been raised together in the same home. Londra has developed
a psychological disorder, but Sondra does not appear to have the same disorder. What does this suggest about
the disorder if this pattern holds for other identical twins?
Answer
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Genetic factors have more influence than environmental factors in this disorder.
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Both genetic and environmental factors contribute equally to this disorder.
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Neither genetic nor environmental factors contribute to this disorder.
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Environmental factors have more influence than genetic factors in this disorder.
Question 20
Question
Phong and Phan are identical twins who have been raised apart in separate adoptive homes. However, both
brothers have developed the same psychological disorder. What does this evidence suggest?
Answer
-
Genetic factors have more influence than environmental factors in this disorder.
-
Environmental factors have more influence than genetic factors in this disorder.
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Neither genetic nor environmental factors contribute to this disorder.
-
Both genetic and environmental factors contribute equally to this disorder.
Question 21
Question
Mary and Celine are identical twins who have been raised apart in separate adoptive homes. Mary has
developed a psychological disorder, but Celine does not appear to have the same disorder. What does this
evidence suggest?
Answer
-
Environmental factors have more influence than genetic factors in this disorder.
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Both genetic and environmental factors contribute equally to this disorder.
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Genetic factors do not influence this disorder.
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Genetic factors have more influence than environmental factors in this disorder.
Question 22
Question
What can we conclude about the heritability of intelligence, based on adoption studies?
Answer
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Genotype determines intelligence.
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Adoption studies do not provide enough evidence to assess the relative contributions of genes and
experience on intelligence.
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Family environment is the strongest influence on intelligence.
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Both genes and environment contribute to intelligence.
Question 23
Question
Which of the following comparison groups has a significant similarity with adopted children, based on research
on adopted children and intelligence?
Answer
-
their biological parents
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both sets of parents
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their adoptive parents
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neither set of parents
Question 24
Question
Donavon was adopted at birth by Mr. and Mrs. Erndt. Although neither of his biological parents had much
musical ability, Donavon has become an excellent pianist, just like Mr. Erndt. What would this evidence suggest
if this pattern held up across multiple adoption studies?
Answer
-
Genetic factors have more influence than environmental factors in musical talent.
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Environmental factors have more influence than genetic factors in musical talent.
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Neither genetic nor environmental factors contribute to musical talent.
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Both genetic and environmental factors contribute equally to musical talent.
Question 25
Question
If you are working on the Human Genome Project, which of the following types of traits are you most likely to
be able to map?
Answer
-
behavioural traits, like aggression
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physical traits that are highly polygenic
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dichotomous traits that are either present or absent
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polygenic traits with high worldwide variance
Question 26
Question
What do we know about the heritability of schizophrenia?
Answer
-
Schizophrenia is primarily social in origin, rather than biological.
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Schizophrenia is inherited through the male line, which is why we don’t see heritability from mothers to
children.
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Schizophrenia is essentially a personality variant, which is highly heritable.
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Schizophrenia likely results from an inherited vulnerability that interacts with experience.
Question 27
Question
Dean is conducting a study in which he exposes rats to different amounts of noise to cause different amounts of
stress. He then evaluates whether the offspring of those rats have different reactions to stress. What sort of study
is Dean conducting?
Answer
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epigenetic study
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behaviour genetic study
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genetic mapping study
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polygenic study