Lesson 3.1.3.1.2

3.1.3.1.2 Roles of nature and nurture in development Quiz: AQA Psychology, Unit 3

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson 3.1.3.1.2, Roles of nature and nurture in development: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA GCSE Psychology (8182), Unit 3: Development, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. Which brain structure is most closely linked to automatic functions such as breathing and heart rate?

    • The cerebral cortex
    • The cerebellum
    • The thalamus
    • The brain stem

  2. Which structure is the main centre for higher thinking, language and conscious reasoning?

    • The thalamus, which mainly relays sensory signals to other areas
    • The cerebellum, which mainly coordinates movement and balance
    • The cerebral cortex
    • The brain stem, which mainly controls breathing and heart rate

  3. Which structure is mainly responsible for coordinating smooth movement and balance?

    • The brain stem
    • The cerebral cortex
    • The cerebellum
    • The thalamus

  4. Which structure relays sensory signals on towards the regions of the cerebral cortex that process them?

    • The brain stem
    • The cerebellum
    • The cerebral cortex
    • The thalamus

  5. Which example best illustrates nature influencing development?

    • Teaching received at school that builds reading and maths skills
    • Friendships formed with classmates during the teenage years
    • Genes inherited from parents that guide early brain formation
    • Feeding and sleep routines set by parents during infancy

  6. Which example best illustrates nurture influencing brain development?

    • Inherited genes that set the basic layout of the cortex in the womb
    • A pattern of growth fixed in the womb before birth by the genes
    • Language and stimulation received from caregivers after birth
    • Blood type passed on from both biological parents at conception

  7. Identical twins raised apart still share many traits. Which view does this best support?

    • Parenting has no influence on any trait a child shows
    • Genetic inheritance has a strong influence on development
    • Development is random and unaffected by either genes or experience
    • Environment alone explains all differences between people

  8. Which statement best describes how nature and nurture work together in brain development?

    • Brain structure is set entirely by the environment with no genetic input
    • Genes matter only before birth, after which the environment takes over fully
    • Genes set the basic structure and experience shapes how connections are wired
    • Experience has no effect once genes have been inherited

  9. A newborn responds to touch and sound from the first day. Which development does this most directly reflect?

    • Fully formed long-term memory of past events
    • Adult-level language comprehension across all contexts
    • Early development of sensory processing pathways
    • Late maturing of the frontal lobe for complex reasoning

  10. Which statement about neural connections in childhood is most accurate?

    • Connections form only in adults and are absent in young children and babies
    • Connections are fixed by genes before birth and remain unchanged in adulthood
    • Connections are shaped by experience and environment as well as by genes
    • Connections stop forming after infancy and cannot be altered by any experience

  11. A scan shows damage to the thalamus. Which function is most likely to be disrupted?

    • Planning long-term goals and making decisions
    • Regulating the heartbeat and breathing rhythm
    • Coordinating fine finger movements for writing
    • Passing sensory information on to the cortex

  12. Which statement about the development of the cortex is most accurate?

    • It does not connect to any other brain structure in the first years
    • It keeps developing through childhood and into adolescence
    • It develops only after the age of twenty-five, once adulthood starts
    • It is fully mature at birth and does not change in later childhood

  13. Which view of nature and nurture is most consistent with current research?

    • Only nature matters, since genes alone determine how a person develops
    • Both contribute, and their effects interact throughout development
    • Each trait is fixed at birth and is not changed by the environment later
    • Only nurture matters, since the environment alone determines development

  14. Two children differ in vocabulary because one grew up in a language-rich home. Which factor is mainly shown?

    • Nature, because vocabulary is entirely inherited
    • Nurture, because the environment shaped language development
    • Neither factor, because language is fixed by the brain stem
    • Chance, because vocabulary cannot be influenced by anything

  15. Why might early sensory development matter for later learning?

    • Sensory input has no link to later learning in children
    • Sensory input helps build the connections used in later learning
    • Learning begins only after the senses have finished developing
    • Sensory development matters only for adult reflexes

  16. A child with a genetic condition affecting brain development receives early intervention. What does this best show?

    • Genes have no influence once a child receives intervention
    • Nature and nurture can both affect outcomes in the same child
    • Intervention can change outcomes only when no genetic factor exists
    • Early experience is irrelevant when genes are involved

  17. Which is an example of a nature-based factor rather than an environmental one?

    • Attending a stimulating nursery with rich play and social contact
    • Learning to ride a bike with a parent's help over several weeks
    • Being read to every night as a young child, which builds early vocabulary
    • The genetic code that sets up the basic layout of the brain

  18. Which phrase best defines the nurture side of development?

    • The biological processes that occur only in the womb before a child is born
    • The environmental influences a person experiences, such as upbringing and learning
    • The fixed set of skills and abilities a person is born with and cannot change
    • The inherited genes a person receives from their biological parents at conception

  19. Which result would best suggest that experience shapes brain development?

    • Children with more varied sensory experience show different neural connection patterns
    • Children with identical environments always show identical brain development in every area
    • Children never show any change in brain connections after birth, whatever they experience
    • Children's brains develop the same way whatever sensory experience they are given

  20. Which pairing correctly matches a brain structure with its main role?

    • Cerebellum with coordinated movement and balance
    • Thalamus with control of heartbeat and breathing
    • Cerebellum with language and long-term memory storage
    • Cerebral cortex with reflex sucking in newborns

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