ERICKSON
The first stage involving trust vs. mistrust occurs during this period.
Infancy
Name the 4 cognitive development stages. Hint: SPCF Some People Can Fly!
Sensorimotor Stage (0–2 years)
Preoperational Stage (2–7 years)
Concrete Operational Stage (7–11 years)
Formal Operational Stage (12+ years)
0–2 → Sensorimotor (senses, object permanence)
2–7 → Preoperational (egocentric, no conservation)
7–11 → Concrete (logic with real things)
12+ → Formal (abstract thinking)
A child talks themselves through a difficult task: “First I do this, then I do that.”
What concept does this illustrate?
Private Speech
A 3-year-old uses a stick as a sword during play and pretends it is a knight’s sword. According to Piaget, this is an example of:
A. Concrete operational thinking
B. Symbolic play in the preoperational stage
C. Sensorimotor exploration
D. Formal operational reasoning
B. Symbolic play in the preoperational stage
A psychologist receives a subpoena requesting therapy notes. The psychologist should:
A. Provide all notes without consulting the client
B. Refuse the subpoena on principle
C. Comply while protecting confidential information to the extent allowed by law
D. Destroy the records to protect confidentiality
Answer: C. Comply while protecting confidential information to the extent allowed by law
Explanation: APA Ethics 6.01 and 4.05 require protecting confidentiality while complying with legal mandates.
What is identity confusion?
Failure to resolve identity vs. role confusion leads to this outcome.
What is a failure of conservation?
A child believes that a taller glass has more juice than a shorter, wider one, even though the amount is the same.
A teacher initially guides a student step-by-step on a math problem, then gradually lets the student solve it independently. What is this teaching technique?
Scaffolding
A parent shows a 5-year-old how to solve a puzzle step by step. The child completes the puzzle successfully with guidance but cannot do it alone. According to Vygotsky, this is an example of:
A. Assimilation
B. Scaffolding within the Zone of Proximal Development
C. Egocentric speech
D. Concrete operational reasoning
Answer: B. Scaffolding within the Zone of Proximal Development
Boundaries & Self-Disclosure
A psychologist self-discloses personal information about their struggles with anxiety during a session. Which ethical consideration is MOST relevant?
A. Beneficence
B. Avoiding harm / maintaining professional boundaries
C. Confidentiality
D. Record keeping
Answer: B. Avoiding harm / maintaining professional boundaries
Explanation: APA 3.05 encourages self-disclosure only if it benefits the client and does not blur professional boundaries.
This theorist proposed psychosocial crises across the lifespan. True or False?
True
A young child believes the sun is following them. What stage is this?
Preoperational
What is the difference between private speech and egocentrism? Hint- Piaget is egocentrism
Vygotsky sees it as self-guidance, Piaget as egocentric speech
A 10-year-old is frustrated after failing to build a block tower like their peers. According to Erikson, the child is likely struggling with:
A. Industry vs. Inferiority
B. Identity vs. Role Confusion
C. Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt
D. Intimacy vs. Isolation
A. Industry vs. Inferiority
A 35-year-old male with generalized anxiety disorder is started on sertraline 25 mg/day, titrated to 50 mg/day after one week. Two weeks later, he reports increased anxiety, restlessness, and trouble sleeping, but no other concerning symptoms.
Which of the following is the MOST appropriate course of action?
A. Discontinue sertraline immediately due to worsening anxiety
B. Reassure the patient that these side effects are common and transient, and continue the current dose
C. Switch to a benzodiazepine immediately
D. Increase the dose to 100 mg/day to accelerate therapeutic effect
B. Reassure the patient that these side effects are common and transient, and continue the current dose
Name all the 8 stages
Trust vs. Mistrust (0–1 year)
Autonomy vs. Shame & Doubt (1–3 years)
Initiative vs. Guilt (3–6 years)
Industry vs. Inferiority (6–12 years)
Identity vs. Role Confusion (Adolescence)
Intimacy vs. Isolation (Young adulthood)
Generativity vs. Stagnation (Middle adulthood)
Integrity vs. Despair (Late adulthood)
A child believes that a taller glass has more juice than a shorter, wider one, even though the amount is the same. What stage is it?
Concrete Operational Stage
A 7-year-old struggles to solve a puzzle alone but completes it successfully when a parent gives hints.
Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)
when the quantity is unchanged. This demonstrates which Piagetian concept?
A. Conservation
B. Egocentrism
C. Reversibility
D. Accommodation
Answer: B. Egocentrism
A 22-year-old male reports hearing voices telling him to “clean the house” and believes his neighbor is sending him secret messages. He has had these experiences for 7 months and reports significant impairment in work and social relationships.
Question: Which diagnosis is MOST consistent with these symptoms?
A. Schizophreniform disorder
B. Schizophrenia
C. Brief psychotic disorder
D. Schizoaffective disorder
Answer: A. Schizophreniform disorder
Explanation: Duration of 1–6 months = schizophreniform; >6 months = schizophrenia. Functional impairment may be less pronounced early on.
A)A 2-year-old insists on feeding themselves and becomes upset when a parent intervenes too quickly.
This behavior reflects which developmental stage?
B)A 75-year-old reflects on their life with regret and believes they have made poor choices overall.
This reflects unsuccessful resolution of which stage?
A) Trust vs. Mistrust
B) Integrity vs. Despair
Based on Jean Piaget
A psychologist presents two children with identical rows of coins. After confirming both children agree the rows are equal, the psychologist spreads out one row.
Child A states the spread-out row has more coins.
Child B states both rows still have the same number and explains that “you didn’t add or take any away.”
Which of the following best explains the difference between the two children?
A. Child A lacks object permanence, while Child B demonstrates symbolic reasoning
B. Child A is in the preoperational stage, while Child B is in the concrete operational stage
C. Child A is demonstrating assimilation, while Child B is demonstrating accommodation
D. Child A is in the sensorimotor stage, while Child B is in the formal operational stage
B. Child A is in the preoperational stage, while Child B is in the concrete operational stage
Why this is EPPP-level:
You must recognize failure vs. mastery of conservation
Then correctly map each child to the appropriate developmental stage
Distractors test common traps (e.g., object permanence, assimilation)
A child is learning to tie their shoes. At first, the parent demonstrates each step while the child watches and guides their hands. Over time, the child is able to tie the shoes independently but occasionally mutters instructions aloud to themselves, saying, “Loop here…pull tight.”
Which of the following BEST describes what the child is demonstrating according to Vygotsky?
A. Egocentric speech as a sign of immaturity
B. Private speech guiding problem-solving, following scaffolding within the ZPD
C. Assimilation of new skills into existing schemas
D. Mastery of abstract reasoning in the formal operational stage
B. Private speech guiding problem-solving, following scaffolding within the ZPD
Tests integration of two Vygotsky concepts:
ZPD/scaffolding → parent demonstrates and guides first
Private speech → child talks themselves through task, showing self-regulation
Distractors are designed to trap you:
A → Piaget misinterpretation (egocentric speech = immaturity)
C → Piagetian assimilation, not socially guided learning
D → formal operational stage is irrelevant for a 4–6-year-old motor task
A parent guides their 8-year-old to learn a new strategy for solving math problems, gradually reducing help until the child is independent. The child talks themselves through the steps aloud. According to Vygotsky, this illustrates:
A. Egocentric speech
B. Scaffolding and private speech
C. Assimilation
D. Concrete operational thinking
Answer: B. Scaffolding and private speech
A child observes an older sibling being praised for sharing toys. Later, the child offers to share their own toys with a friend.
Question: This behavior BEST illustrates:
A. Classical conditioning
B. Operant conditioning
C. Observational learning (vicarious reinforcement)
D. Habituation
C. Observational learning (vicarious reinforcement)