BAS Human Development and Behavior 3 â Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which attachment pattern is characterized by a child showing distress when separated from the caregiver and difficulty being comforted upon reunion?
- Secure attachment
- Avoidant attachment
- Anxious-ambivalent attachment (Correct answer)
- Disorganized attachment
Correct answer: Anxious-ambivalent attachment
Anxious-ambivalent (resistant) attachment involves heightened distress at separation and inconsistent comfort-seeking upon reunion.
Question 2: A behavior analyst is assessing a 4-year-old who insists that a taller, thinner glass holds more water than a shorter, wider glass containing the same amount. This error reflects:
- Lack of object permanence
- Failure of conservation (Correct answer)
- Concrete operational logic
- Hypothetical-deductive reasoning
Correct answer: Failure of conservation
Conservationâunderstanding that quantity remains constant despite perceptual changesâis not yet mastered in the preoperational stage.
Question 3: In behavior analysis, the concept of 'behavioral cusps' refers to:
- Behaviors that only occur during sensitive developmental periods
- Behaviors whose acquisition opens access to new reinforcers and learning opportunities (Correct answer)
- Reflexive behaviors present at birth
- Behaviors that extinguish without maintenance
Correct answer: Behaviors whose acquisition opens access to new reinforcers and learning opportunities
Behavioral cusps are pivotal skills (e.g., reading, imitation) that, once acquired, dramatically expand a learner's access to reinforcement and further learning.
Question 4: During which developmental phase does pruning of synaptic connections occur most dramatically, refining neural efficiency?
- Prenatal period
- Early adulthood
- Adolescence (Correct answer)
- Late childhood only
Correct answer: Adolescence
Synaptic pruningâelimination of unused neural connectionsâpeaks during adolescence, strengthening frequently used pathways.
Question 5: Vygotsky's zone of proximal development (ZPD) is best applied in ABA by:
- Teaching only skills the learner can perform independently
- Targeting skills just beyond independent mastery with appropriate support (Correct answer)
- Avoiding prompting to preserve natural learning
- Focusing exclusively on errorless teaching for all skills
Correct answer: Targeting skills just beyond independent mastery with appropriate support
The ZPD describes the range between current independent ability and potential ability with guidance, making it the ideal instructional target in ABA.
Question 6: Which parenting style, characterized by high warmth and high structure, is most consistently associated with positive developmental outcomes in the research literature?
- Permissive
- Authoritarian
- Authoritative (Correct answer)
- Uninvolved
Correct answer: Authoritative
Authoritative parenting combines responsiveness with clear expectations and has the strongest evidence linking it to positive social and academic outcomes.
Question 7: A child with autism spectrum disorder fails to follow a point gesture to look at a distant object. This deficit is best described as impaired:
- Joint attention (Correct answer)
- Object permanence
- Conservation
- Deferred imitation
Correct answer: Joint attention
Joint attentionâcoordinating attention with another person toward a shared objectâis frequently impaired in ASD and is a key early social-communicative skill.
BAS Human Development and Behavior 3
Which attachment pattern is characterized by a child showing distress when separated from the caregiver and difficulty being comforted upon reunion?