3.2.2.2.1 Variation in recall of events and recognition of colours across cultures Quiz: AQA Psychology, Unit 6

The 20 questions

1. Which two areas of cognition does the specification say may vary across cultures?

   • Hearing of tones and perception of distance in an open field
   • Speech of infants and reading of written text in school
   • Recall of events and recognition of colours
   • Recall of numbers and recognition of familiar faces in a group

2. The specification gives Native American cultures as an example in this topic. Why is this relevant?

   • It illustrates a culture where children reach the formal operational stage early
   • It illustrates a culture that cannot learn any language other than its own
   • It illustrates how recall and colour recognition may vary between cultures
   • It illustrates a culture where every adult speaks exactly the same language

3. What does it mean for colour recognition to vary across cultures?

   • People from different cultures may group, name or identify colours in different ways
   • People from different cultures never agree on which object is red, so colour words are random
   • People from different cultures have different numbers of cone cells in the retina
   • People from different cultures cannot see certain colours at all because of their diet

4. A study finds speakers of language X recognise a shade more quickly when it has a dedicated name. Which conclusion is most appropriate?

   • A name may help speakers recognise a shade faster, so language can influence colour recognition
   • Naming has no effect on speed, so the difference must be the lighting in the testing room
   • Speakers of language X have better colour vision and can always see more shades
   • Speakers of language X recognise every shade from birth, and names are added afterwards

5. Why would a researcher use the same colour chips across participants from different cultures?

   • So any difference in responses comes from culture or language rather than different stimuli
   • So that participants from all cultures find the colours equally pleasant to look at in daily life
   • So no instructions are needed, and participants do not have to read them in their language
   • So the researcher can count how many colours each culture has invented in the study

6. A participant recalls a past event in more detail than others from the same culture. Which factor could account for cultural variation in recall?

   • Differences in the distance between the participant and the researcher in the room
   • Differences in the number of colour names each culture uses in everyday language
   • Differences in the length of cone cells in the retina between individuals of different ages
   • Differences in how stories about past events are told and shared within a culture

7. Which is the best description of a cross-cultural study?

   • A study that measures the height of people who speak the same language in several countries
   • A study that tests only people living in a single city, so cultural differences cannot be found
   • A study that follows one person over many years to observe how their culture changes
   • A study comparing behaviour or thinking between people from two or more different cultures

8. A researcher reports recall of a list of events was similar across two cultures. Which conclusion is most cautious and accurate?

   • Recall was similar only because the researcher used the same colour chips as an earlier study
   • Recall must be caused by genes alone, since both groups recalled the events in the same way
   • Recall was similar in this sample, so culture did not always cause differences in this task
   • Recall is identical in every culture, so no further cross-cultural research is needed

9. Why is it difficult to show that differences in colour recognition are caused by language rather than other cultural factors?

   • Participants never speak their own language during colour tests, so language is absent from the test
   • Language usually changes together with many other cultural factors, so its effect is hard to isolate
   • Colour recognition is controlled only by genes, so language cannot affect it at any point
   • Colour names are identical across all languages, so there is no variation to explain

10. Which is a sensible control in a study of cultural differences in colour recognition?

    • Testing participants' basic vision, so differences in eyesight are not mistaken for naming differences
    • Giving participants a list of colour names in English only, so the test is the same for all
    • Using only male participants, so that gender cannot affect how colours are recognised
    • Asking participants to name their favourite colour, so each group has a favourite to compare

11. A researcher says recall of events is 'culturally variable'. Which statement best matches this claim?

    • Recall of events depends only on the participant's age, not on the culture they grew up in in daily life
    • Recall of events is the same for everyone, and any difference is due to random participant error
    • Recall of events is controlled by how much sleep a person had the night before, not by culture
    • Recall of events differs in systematic ways between cultures rather than being the same for everyone

12. Which of these is an example of a colour recognition task?

    • Drawing a map of a town from memory, with streets and buildings in their correct positions
    • Sorting coloured chips into groups based on whether each looks the same as a sample chip
    • Reading aloud a list of black words on a white page, with no colour involved in the task
    • Repeating a sequence of numbers read out loud in a quiet room with no other sounds

13. Which finding would best support the idea that culture affects colour recognition?

    • Speakers of languages with different numbers of colour words sort the same chips into different numbers of groups
    • Speakers of all languages fail to sort any chips because they cannot see the colours clearly
    • Speakers of all languages spend exactly the same time looking at each chip before deciding
    • Speakers of all languages sort the same chips into exactly the same groups, with no differences

14. What is a 'colour term' in this context?

    • A word a language uses to name a colour, such as red or blue, and the number differs across languages
    • A technical measurement of the wavelength of light reflected by a painted surface
    • A physical part of the eye that detects light at different wavelengths and sends signals to the brain
    • A grammar rule that determines the position of colour adjectives in a sentence

15. A study finds members of one culture recall the sequence of events in a story in a different order from another culture. Which conclusion is most appropriate?

    • The sequence differences were caused by participants reading the story in a different direction
    • The way a culture narrates events may influence recall of sequence, though this needs further testing
    • The sequence differences show all cultures recall events in the same order, with small random errors
    • The culture's members have poorer memory overall, so their recall of the sequence is always weaker in daily life

16. Which factor is most often discussed as a source of cultural variation in colour recognition?

    • The climate of each region, which changes the chemical structure of the eye's colour receptors
    • The average height of people in each culture, which affects how far away they can see colour
    • The vocabulary of colour words in each culture's language, which divides the spectrum differently
    • The number of years of formal schooling in each culture, which determines the strength of colour vision

17. A psychologist finds an unexpected result in a cross-cultural colour study. What is the best next step?

    • Assume the group has better eyesight and stop testing other groups because the cause is known
    • Discard the data, because a surprising result must be a recording error by the researcher
    • Publish at once, because a single unexpected result is proof of a new law of psychology
    • Replicate the study with more participants and check for confounding variables first

18. Which is a limitation of studying cultural variation in recall using only one group of participants?

    • It is impossible to report a result, because the group must always be compared with the researcher
    • It is impossible to record any data, because one group cannot produce numbers for analysis in daily life
    • It is impossible to tell whether any difference is due to culture, since there is no comparison group
    • It is impossible to use any colour chips, because the group would not know which colours to name

19. Why might a researcher translate instructions carefully before testing participants from another culture?

    • So differences in performance are not caused by participants misunderstanding the task
    • So the researcher can avoid writing a consent form, saving time at the start of each session
    • So the researcher can speak more quickly, shortening the length of each testing session
    • So participants can name each colour in their native language, removing any need for comparison

20. Which statement best summarises the evidence on cultural variation in colour recognition?

    • Language and culture may shape how colours are named and grouped, while basic colour vision is shared
    • Colour recognition is not measurable, so no conclusion about cultural differences can be drawn
    • Colour recognition is entirely determined by culture, so people from different cultures see different colours
    • Colour recognition is entirely determined by genes, so names and groupings have no effect on sorting

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