Writers Den

sociology

QUESTION 1

1. Bob and Sue paint their baby’s room pink as soon as they find out they are having a girl. They are beginning to provide the baby with what?
   

   a.	self-awareness
   b.	her race
   c.	her gendered identity
   d.	a playroom

2 points

QUESTION 2

1. Ultimately we hold people responsible for their behavior precisely because they can exercise choice over what they do. This speaks to the limits of socialization that sociologists refer to as:
   

   a.	agency.
   b.	dysfunctional socialization.
   c.	deviance.
   d.	cognitive development.

2 points

QUESTION 3

1. Which of the following scenarios involves the use of peer pressure?
   

   a.	A young lady is whistled at by a group of boys as she passes them in the hall.
   b.	Two boys steal another boy’s ball because he won’t share.
   c.	Two friends decide to go hiking because they both enjoy it.
   d.	A student decides to go out for drinks after her friends make her feel guilty for studying too much.

2 points

QUESTION 4

1. A potential shortcoming of survey research is that surveys:
   

   a.	cannot be used on large populations.
   b.	cannot reflect the total population.
   c.	tend to focus more on what people do than what they say.
   d.	rely on people’s honesty and willingness to cooperate.

2 points

QUESTION 5

1. Today’s assumption that childhood represents a distinct phase in the life course stands in sharp contrast to the notion of children as little adults that was popular in preindustrial times. This example highlights how:
   

   a.	children’s views of the world remain the same.
   b.	children today are increasingly put to work.
   c.	our notions of childhood are socially constructed.
   d.	children have redefined their status over the years.

2 points

QUESTION 6

1. Distinguish between monogamy, polygamy, polyandry, and polygyny as covered in Chapter 12. Which do we have as a U.S. cultural norm?
   

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4 points

QUESTION 7

1. Sarah Fenstermaker Berk has characterized the American family by examining how women and men learn to take on distinct roles paralleling the divide between public and private spheres. She calls the family a:
   

   a.	“pecking order.”
   b.	“gender factory.”
   c.	“biological destiny.”
   d.	“cult of domesticity.”

2 points

QUESTION 8

1. A female manager is attempting to climb her way to the top of the corporate ladder. She works ashard, if not harder, than her male colleagues, but nothing she does seems to help her advance. Shebegins to notice a pattern: men are often promoted, but women are often overlooked foradvancement. The realization that many women in her circumstance are experiencing the samediscrimination is an example of:

   a.	sociological imagination.
   b.	anomie.
   c.	Verstehen.
   d.	social cohesion.

2 points

QUESTION 9

1. If we apply our sociological imaginations to sex, gender, and sexuality, we might argue that:
   

   a.	men and women are at opposite ends of the psychological continuum, which leads them to have distinct styles of communicating, feeling, and acting.
   b.	men and women are different biological organisms, and these differences manifest themselves in the ways men and women behave.
   c.	although biological differences exist between men and women, what we make of those differences is socially constructed and has changed through time and place.
   d.	the social patterns we see highlight natural differences between men and women, differences that set men and women on different pathways from birth.

2 points

QUESTION 10

1. When your friend returns from a study abroad, he reports back to you on the very different foods that people in his host country ate. He explains that to them it’s normal, that people in different cultures do things differently, and that he learned not to make value judgments. This is known as:
   

   a.	cultural con games.
   b.	high culture.
   c.	counterculture.
   d.	cultural relativism.

2 points

QUESTION 11

1. Karl Marx would argue that the types of social institutions in a society were the result of the economic makeup of that society. Max Weber, however, argued that:
   

   a.	there are no social institutions in a society.
   b.	the epistemological stage of that society influenced the social institutions.
   c.	social institutions are not influenced by the economy but by the individuals in them.
   d.	there are multiple influences (e.g., religion) on how social institutions are created.

2 points

QUESTION 12

1. If Sandra wants to generalize the findings of her study to another (possibly larger) population, it is important that the people in her study be:
   

   a.	representative of the group(s) she wants to generalize to.
   b.	aware of her intentions, so the study will be valid and reliable.
   c.	randomly selected from the population she wants to generalize to.
   d.	varied in their characteristics so that there will be no problems.

2 points

QUESTION 13

1. Which of the following is true regarding the value of high versus low culture?
   

   a.	It is difficult to debate the worth of high and low culture.
   b.	High culture is much more valuable than low culture.
   c.	Low culture is much more valuable than high culture.
   d.	Popular culture is preferred over both high and low culture.

2 points

QUESTION 14

1. The ____________ theory of the family argues that nuclear families are necessary for child rearing and fulfilling society’s need for productive workers.
   

   a.	necessity
   b.	functionalist
   c.	requisite
   d.	traditional

2 points

QUESTION 15

1. Paula begins to notice that there are patterns to where people sit on the bus, and these patterns differ depending on whether the rider is male or female. Based on these observations, she generates larger ideas (theories) about the behaviors of men and women. This is an example of which kind of research approach?
   

   a.	inductive
   b.	deductive
   c.	quantitative
   d.	a case study

2 points

QUESTION 16

1. Although a binary sex system imposes order in the world and helps us make sense of a complicated mass of populations, it also:
   

   a.	explains social implications.
   b.	helps us understand reproduction.
   c.	helps us understand hormonal birth defects.
   d.	limits our ability to accept difference.

2 points

QUESTION 17

1. Take one of sociology’s cousins (i.e., history, anthropology, psychology, economics, and political science) and discuss some of the overlaps (similarities) and differences between the two.
   

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4 points

QUESTION 18

1. Perhaps the most difficult method(s) to apply to the social sciences, as compared with laboratory-based natural sciences, is/are:
   

   a.	experimental methods.
   b.	historical methods.
   c.	content analysis.
   d.	surveys.

2 points

QUESTION 19

1. In establishing causation, it helps to know which variable precedes the other in time. If not, it is easy to make a mistake involving:
   

   a.	temporal dislocation.
   b.	reverse causality.
   c.	alternative explanations.
   d.	time order.

2 points

QUESTION 20

1. Inappropriate jokes on the job and sexual bartering are both examples of:
   

   a.	sexual harassment.
   b.	sexual advancement.
   c.	gender harassment.
   d.	gender discrimination.

2 points

QUESTION 21

1. According to Bourdieu, the three types of cultural capital are:
   

   a.	race, class, and gender.
   b.	innate, learned, and social.
   c.	embodied, objectified, and institutional.
   d.	social, human, and cultural.

2 points

QUESTION 22

1. Involuntary statuses that we are born into are called:
   

   a.	status sets.
   b.	achieved statuses.
   c.	master status.
   d.	ascribed statuses.

2 points

QUESTION 23

1. What term best describes a behavior or attitude where a person’s sex is the basis for prejudicial discrimination and where sex may matter more than a person’s performance or merit?
   

   a.	homophobia
   b.	sexism
   c.	genderism
   d.	heterosexism

2 points

QUESTION 24

1. Compare and contrast the definitions of high culture and low culture. Give two examples of each to make your point.
   

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4 points

QUESTION 25

1. You see an advertisement on television for a new burger at McDonald’s. The next day, you are riding by McDonald’s and decide to drive in and give it a try. This would be called a:
   

   a.	short-term deliberate media effect.
   b.	long-term unintended media effect.
   c.	short-term unintended media effect.
   d.	long-term deliberate media effect.

2 points

QUESTION 26

1. Judith Lorber believes that gender is a social institution because it is:
   

   a.	a social construction instead of a biological construction.
   b.	the same as other major institutions in our society.
   c.	within an institution (hospital) that our gender first emerges.
   d.	a major structure organizing our day-to-day experiences.

2 points

QUESTION 27

1. In families where both spouses work for wages, the second shift can best be described as:
   

   a.	the time one or both parents spend on child-rearing duties after getting home from work.
   b.	the domestic tasks that fall disproportionately on women in addition to their paid work.
   c.	the domestic tasks that couples share in order to keep their households running smoothly.
   d.	a second job that either spouse may take in order to help make ends meet.

2 points

QUESTION 28

1. People and groups who influence our orientation to life and our self-concept, emotions, attitudes, and behaviors are:
   

   a.	always in secondary groups.
   b.	generalized others.
   c.	agents of socialization.
   d.	total institutions.

2 points

QUESTION 29

1. Which of the following is NOT an element of socioeconomic status?
   

   a.	racial background
   b.	occupational prestige
   c.	educational attainment
   d.	income

2 points

QUESTION 30

1. In part because of their educational success, which group has been called the “model minority” in America?
   

   a.	Hispanics of Cuban descent
   b.	African Americans
   c.	Asian Americans
   d.	Hispanics of Puerto Rican descent

2 points

QUESTION 31

1. What might be a reason that upper-status students score higher on SATs?
   

   a.	They are less likely to actually take the test multiple times.
   b.	Their IQs are higher.
   c.	Their parents are better able to obtain help for them, as in SAT prep courses and extra tutoring if they are doing poorly in school.
   d.	They are all white.

2 points

QUESTION 32

1. When examining the woman question, why is it important to include the intersection of sexual orientation, race, class, nationality, ability, and other factors? Use examples in your answer.
   

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4 points

QUESTION 33

1. You take a trip to Alaska and find that Inuit families sleep together naked to stay warm. You find this practice disgusting and can’t understand why they don’t consider this incestuous. You are being:
   

   a.	magnanimous.
   b.	accepting.
   c.	culturally relativistic.
   d.	ethnocentric.

2 points

QUESTION 34

1. Media centralization refers to:
   

   a.	the fact that fewer and fewer groups own more and more of the media.
   b.	the movement of the media production industry to California in the mid-twentieth century.
   c.	the fact that, as digital devices become more common, fewer and fewer people who can afford all of them are granted access to the media.
   d.	the role of the computing cloud in making data and information increasingly accessible from remote locations.

2 points

QUESTION 35

1. Jackson’s parents pay for him to take private violin lessons and send him to language lessons after school. In the summer, he attends science camp. His parents try to take him on one vacation to a foreign country every year. Jackson’s parents hope that these activities will build his skills and better position him to get into a competitive university. Jackson’s parents are investing in his:
   

   a.	economic capital.
   b.	institutionalized capital.
   c.	community capital.
   d.	human capital.

2 points

QUESTION 36

1. Stereotype threat is a:
   

   a.	social process whereby the behaviors of members of a negatively stereotyped group are controlled by the fear that they will be exposed as belonging to the stereotyped group.
   b.	psychological process whereby members of a negatively stereotyped group become determined to challenge the accuracy of the stereotype.
   c.	psychological process of fear that develops when members of a negatively stereotyped group are placed in a situation in which they may confirm the stereotype.
   d.	social process whereby members of a positively advantaged group actively challenge negative stereotypes of other groups.

2 points

QUESTION 37

1. Sociology is the study of:
   

   a.	humans as rational utility maximizers.
   b.	how urges, drives, and the mind can account for human behavior.
   c.	the underlying variation or causal mechanisms within the biological nature of individuals.
   d.	group-level dynamics and social structures.

2 points

QUESTION 38

1. List and give an example of each of the four main agents of socialization.
   

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4 points

QUESTION 39

1. Which of the following would NOT be considered a positive trait or characteristic for a man within today’s hegemonic masculinity?
   

   a.	a love of sports
   b.	emotional sensitivity
   c.	heterosexuality
   d.	strong jawline and muscular body

2 points

QUESTION 40

1. Which of the following is an example of a quantitative research method?
   

   a.	conducting a survey about how often people attend church
   b.	interviewing people about the role of religion in their lives
   c.	observing how people behave and interact with each other in a church setting
   d.	participating in a weekly Bible study meeting for 12 months to understand its importance in people’s lives

2 points

QUESTION 41

1. Culture tends to be:
   

   a.	concrete.
   b.	natural.
   c.	relative.
   d.	stable.

2 points

QUESTION 42

1. The belief that happiness and fulfillment can be achieved through the acquisition of material possessions is known as:
   

   a.	buyerism.
   b.	consumerism.
   c.	being a shopaholic.
   d.	asceticism.

2 points

QUESTION 43

1. Social capital is:
   

   a.	the knowledge and skills individuals can build to make themselves competitive.
   b.	the collection of relationships that can facilitate the actions and behaviors of others.
   c.	the center of socialization resources that a group of people has at its disposal.
   d.	social class and cultural differences in types of knowledge that people can use to their advantage.

2 points

QUESTION 44

1. Which theorist argued that other people essentially provide us with a social mirror and that our interpretations of this mirror affect how we see ourselves?
   

   a.	Charles Horton Cooley
   b.	Émile Durkheim
   c.	Erving Goffman
   d.	George Herbert Mead

2 points

QUESTION 45

1. Which of the following is true regarding value judgments made by sociologists
   conducting research?
   

   a.	Value judgments and subjectivity lead to better research.
   b.	Every sociologist makes some value judgments, even about the problems and topics he or she chooses to study.
   c.	It is possible for a sociologist to remain value free.
   d.	It is not important for a sociologist to remain value free.

2 points

QUESTION 46

1. Which of the following is a functionalist explanation for the increased number of Americans with college degrees throughout the course of the twentieth century?
   

   a.	Competition for scarce jobs requires that Americans become overqualified for the jobs they want.
   b.	Jobs have become more skilled and technologically advanced, and a more educated workforce is necessary to fill these jobs.
   c.	More education increases the amount of trust individuals have in others and how much they will participate in their communities.
   d.	Americans need to become more educated to remain competitive with workers from other countries where students outperform Americans in math and science.

2 points

QUESTION 47

1. Norms are to ____________ as values are to ____________.
   

   a.	attitudes; behavior
   b.	behavior; attitudes
   c.	change; consistency
   d.	consistency; change

2 points

QUESTION 48

1. Which of the following is true regarding single-parent families in the United States and worldwide?
   

   a.	They are on the decline in the United States only.
   b.	They are on the decline in the United States and worldwide.
   c.	They are on the rise in the United States only.
   d.	They are on the rise in the United States and worldwide.

2 points

QUESTION 49

1. When a society has rules that limit marital choices to people within their own social group, such as within their social class or religion, this is known as:
   

   a.	monogamy.
   b.	endogamy.
   c.	polygamy.
   d.	exogamy.

2 points

QUESTION 50

1. While they are difficult to define, ____________ are smaller subgroups within a larger dominant society united by sets of concepts, values, symbols, and shared meanings specific to the members of that group.
   

   a.	subcultures
   b.	minicultures
   c.	high cultures
   d.	low cultures

2 points

QUESTION 51

1. The sociological significance of roles is that they:
   

   a.	lay out what is expected of people.
   b.	come with clearly defined expectations.
   c.	dictate the reality of a situation.
   d.	are identical from one setting to the next.

2 points

QUESTION 52

1. Discuss at least three criticisms of the SAT as a criterion for college admission.
   

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4 points

QUESTION 53

1. It is it difficult to make generalizations about Latino families in the United States because:
   

   a.	Latinos are reluctant to share family information with sociologists.
   b.	families are unimportant to Latinos.
   c.	of their diverse origins and geography.
   d.	there are fewer Latinos than other minority groups.

2 points

QUESTION 54

1. According to George Herbert Mead’s stages of development, children learn to recognize an other through:
   

   a.	playing formal games (like baseball).
   b.	trial and error.
   c.	imitation.
   d.	playing informally with other people.

2 points

QUESTION 55

1. In contrast to functionalism, which modern sociological theory borrows from Marx’s belief that competition, not consensus, is the essential cause of social change?
   

   a.	postmodernism
   b.	conflict theory
   c.	feminism
   d.	midrange theory

2 points

QUESTION 56

1. Positivism is best defined as the:
   

   a.	study of the symbolic interactions between social institutions and the individuals within them.
   b.	idea that