Deck 7: Deviance, Conformity, and Social Control: With Emphasis on Mass Surveillance

Question 1

The only characteristic common to all forms of deviance is the fact that

A)they invoke formal sanctions.
B)everyone in the society is offended by the behavior.
C)the behaviors are considered deviant across time and place.
D)some social audience regards an act or appearance as deviant.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Adolescents at a middle school tease a girl because she has yet to shave her legs. The teasing represents an example of a ______ sanction.

A)positive formal
B)negative formal
C)negative informal
D)positive informal

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which one of the following countries has the highest incarceration rate in the world?

A)the United States
B)Nigeria
C)Rwanda
D)India

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Telephone tapping, interception of letters and electronic monitoring are examples of

A)censorship.
B)surveillance.
C)conformity.
D)deviance.

Question 5

People who violate ______ are usually punished severely; they are ostracized, institutionalized, and sometimes even executed.

A)folkways
B)mores
C)rituals
D)mechanisms of social control

Question 6

__________________ is any behavior or appearance that follows and maintains the standards of a group.

A)Deviance
B)Conformity
C)Social control
D)Power

Question 7

People that violate _________ experience reactions that include of frowns or remarks of disapproval.

A)folkways
B)mores
C)sanctions
D)norms

Question 8

Jeremy wore barrettes to nursery school. One day, a boy repeatedly told Jeremy that "only girls wear barrettes." The incident shows how __________ work as mechanisms of social control.

A)formal positive sanctions
B)informal positive sanctions
C)formal negative sanctions
D)informal negative sanctions

Question 9

The U.S. Department of Justice asked meter readers, cable installers, and telephone repair people to report suspicious activities they might notice while serving customers. This qualifies as a form of

A)censorship.
B)surveillance.
C)conformity.
D)deviance.

Question 10

___________________ is a method employed to prevent information from reaching some audience.

A)Censorship
B)Surveillance
C)A negative sanction
D)A positive sanction

Question 11

_________________ includes the methods used to teach, persuade, or force people to comply with norms and expectations.

A)Social control
B)Deviance
C)Conformity
D)Context

Question 12

Ridicule, imprisonment, and withdrawal of affection are examples of _______ sanctions.

A)informal
B)positive
C)negative
D)formal

Question 13

A Chinese man recalls "As a boy, I did not know what a god looked like, but I knew that Mao was the god of our lives. When I was six, I accidentally broke a large porcelain Mao badge. Fear gripped me. In my life until that moment, the breaking of the badge seemed the worst thing I had ever done. Desperate to hide my crime, I took the pieces and threw them down a public toilet. For months I felt guilty." This guilt is a sign that this boy had

A)no rights.
B)successfully hidden his crime.
C)broken no rules.
D)internalized the expectations of the larger society.

Question 14

Ideally, conformity should be

A)imposed.
B)enforced through negative sanctions.
C)voluntary.
D)enforced through positive sanctions.

Question 15

A social arrangement in which surveillance is used to control people's activities and thoughts is known as a

A)culture of spectacle.
B)carceral culture.
C)prison industrial complex.
D)Orwellian culture.

Question 16

A ______________________ is a social arrangement by which punishment for crimes-torture, disfigurement, dismemberment, and execution-is delivered in public settings for all to see.

A)culture of spectacle
B)carceral culture
C)barbaric culture
D)disciplinary society

Question 17

Informal sanctions are

A)backed by the force of law.
B)spontaneous and unofficial expressions of approval or disapproval.
C)not considered mechanisms of social control.
D)official expressions of disappointment.

Question 18

_____ are essential to the well-being of a group.

A)Folkways
B)Norms
C)Mores
D)Censorship

Question 19

_______ is any behavior or appearance that is socially challenged because it departs from the norms and expectations of the group.

A)Deviance
B)Conformity
C)Social control
D)Corporate power

Question 20

____________________ is a reaction or response of approval or disapproval to another's behavior or appearance.

A)Deviance
B)Conformity
C)Retreatism
D)A sanction

Question 21

__________________ are people who have broken the rules but whose violation goes unnoticed.

A)Pure deviants
B)The falsely accused
C)Secret deviants
D)Conformists

Question 22

__________ are people that have broken the rules and are caught, punished, and labeled as outsiders.

A)Conformists
B)Secret deviants
C)The falsely accused
D)Pure deviants

Question 23

__________ are people that have not violated rules of a group and are treated accordingly.

A)Conformists
B)Secret deviants
C)The falsely accused
D)Pure deviants

Question 24

A U.S. Bureau of Justice survey of crime victims documented that almost 58 percent of crime victims do not report the crime to police. This suggests that there are large numbers of __________ in U.S. society.

A)conformists
B)pure deviants
C)secret deviants
D)falsely accused

Question 25

Kai Erikson wrote, "The critical variable in the study of deviance, then, is the social audience rather than the individual actor since the social audience decides whether or not a behavior is deviant." This statement best corresponds with which theory of deviance?

A)labeling theory
B)differential association
C)structural strain theory
D)constructionist

Question 26

A social arrangement that normalizes surveillance, making it expected and routine is known as a

A)culture of spectacle.
B)constructionist society.
C)prison industrial complex.
D)disciplinary society.

Question 27

People whose rule breaking is treated as something so significant that it cannot be overlooked or explained away are known as

A)pure deviants.
B)primary deviants.
C)the falsely accused.
D)secondary deviants.

Question 28

A campaign to identify, investigate, and correct behavior that is believed to undermine a group or a country is known as

A)a moral event.
B)ethnic cleansing.
C)a witch hunt.
D)target practice.

Question 29

__________ are likely to be accused of a crime when the well-being of a country or group is threatened.

A)Pure deviants
B)The falsely accused
C)Secret deviants
D)Conformists

Question 30

The Panopticon is a metaphor for what Foucault calls

A)a culture of spectacle.
B)a carceral culture.
C)a prison industrial complex.
D)the disciplinary society.

Question 31

After September 11, 2001, Muslims and Arab Americans have been caught up in a criminal investigation of historical proportions. From a sociological point of view, this criminal investigation qualifies as

A)a moral event.
B)ethnic cleansing.
C)a witch hunt.
D)target practice.

Question 32

Which one of the following is an assumption underlying labeling theory?

A)Definitions of deviance are consistent across cultural settings.
B)Rules are enforced uniformly and consistently.
C)Deviants are those whose behavior someone has noticed, labeled as such, and to which sanctions have been applied.
D)Deviant behavior is learned in the same way conforming behavior is learned.

Question 33

_______ are people who have not broken the rules but are treated as if they have.

A)The falsely accused
B)Innovators
C)Secret deviants
D)Conformists

Question 34

Durkheim's theory of deviance (crime)corresponds to a __________ perspective.

A)functionalist
B)conflict
C)symbolic interactionist
D)social action

Question 35

A student writes, "I used to sell drugs. I was very careful. I watched who I sold to and didn't take any new customers. I was never caught." This student can be classified as

A)a conformist.
B)a secret deviant.
C)falsely accused.
D)a pure deviant.

Question 36

A person takes on a(n)_______________ when his or her deviant status becomes more important than any other status he or she occupies.

A)label of secret deviant
B)master status of deviant
C)informal status
D)label of confederate

Question 37

Reseachers Michael L. Radelet and Adam Bedau reviewed more than 800 cases of innocent people being convicted of capital crimes, and they found that 56 had

A)made false confessions.
B)had received early parole.
C)admitted guilt.
D)no jury trial.

Question 38

People whose rule breaking is viewed as understandable, incidental, or insignificant are known as

A)pure deviants.
B)primary deviants.
C)the falsely accused.
D)conformists.

Question 39

Prison populations include pure deviants and

A)ritualists.
B)the falsely accused.
C)conformists.
D)secret deviants.

Question 40

Which one of the following statements best corresponds with Durkheim's perspective on deviance?

A)It is impossible for any society to be entirely free of deviance.
B)Behavior that is unthinkable when an individual is acting on his or her own may be executed without hesitation when carried out under orders.
C)When people become criminals, they do so because of contacts with criminal patterns and because of isolation from non-criminal patterns.
D)Deviance is a consequence not of a particular behavior but of the application of rules and sanctions.

Question 41

The theory of differential association focuses on

A)how a person comes to learn the norms of a deviant subculture.
B)how an act comes to be labeled as deviant.
C)the function of deviance.
D)obedience to authority.

Question 42

When constructionists study the process by which a group or behavior is defined as a problem to society, they focus on

A)the valued goals and the means to achieve those goals.
B)the rule breaker, rule maker, and rule enforcers.
C)responses to structural strain.
D)who makes the claims, whose claims are heard, and how audiences respond.

Question 43

During the Cultural Revolution the dominant mores

A)rejected special status.
B)supported personal consumption.
C)praised special status.
D)encouraged accumulation of wordly possessions.

Question 44

In Stanley Milgram's classic experiment, Obedience to Authority , he discovered that obedience was founded on

A)the firm command of a person with a status that gave minimal authority over a subject recruited to participate in the study.
B)the subject's fear of being punished physically if he or she disobeyed.
C)the subject's dislike of the learner's physical characteristics.
D)the subject's firm belief that learning is enhanced when failure is punished.

Question 45

"Criminal behavior is learned." This statement is most closely associated with which theory of deviance?

A)Functionalist perspective (as represented by Emile Durkheim)
B)Labeling theory
C)Differential association
D)Structural strain

Question 46

Socialization is a process by which people come to learn and accept the ways of their culture as natural. In this sense socialization is

A)a type of surveillance.
B)like a witch hunt.
C)a mechanism of social control.
D)an informal sanction.

Question 47

Which of the following phrases best summarizes "innovation"?

A)Win by the rules of the game.
B)I don't like the game or the rules.
C)Change the rules to win the game.
D)Follow the rules even if you don't win.

Question 48

According to Robert K. Merton, structural strain exists in the United States because

A)opportunities are open to all.
B)people must go to college in order to become successful.
C)American culture places a high value on social advancement for all its members, regardless of the circumstances into which they are born.
D)the legitimate means to achieve the culturally-valued goals are clearly defined.

Question 49

"Claims makers play important roles in defining deviance and responses to it." This statement is most closely associated with which theory of deviance?

A)Functionalist perspective (as represented by Emile Durkheim)
B)Labeling theory
C)Constructionist approach
D)Structural strain

Question 50

The U.S. Department of State publishes the Human Rights Report on the People's Republic of China. The report accuses the Chinese government of human rights violations. Constructionist theorists would call this report

A)a product of rule-makers.
B)a structural strain.
C)unfounded.
D)a claims-making activity.

Question 51

"When persons become criminals, they do so because of contacts with criminal patterns and also because of isolation from anticriminal influences." This statement represents an essential assumption that underlies ______________ theories.

A)structural strain
B)differential association
C)labeling
D)constructionist

Question 52

Sociologist Terry Williams finds that to become a successful drug dealer, youth must learn a number of skills: pleasing the boss, meeting goals, and getting along with associates. These specific findings support

A)labeling theory.
B)differential association.
C)structural strain.
D)the constructionist approach.

Question 53

Criminal behavior is not simply the result of association with criminal ways-other factors such as social settings that offer people the opportunity to commit particular types of crime also play a role. These factors are known as

A)differential associations.
B)juvenile delinquency.
C)illegitimate opportunity structures.
D)corporate crimes.

Question 54

Deviance and conformity are complex topics because

A)the list of deviant behaviors far outweighs conforming behaviors.
B)the list of conforming behaviors far outweighs deviant behaviors.
C)almost every behavior has qualified as deviant or conforming at one time.
D)conformity is the norm.

Question 55

Staff Sergeant Ivan Frederick testified that when at the Abu Ghraib Prison "I questioned some of the things that I saw….such as leaving inmates in their cells with no clothes or in female underpants-and the answer I got was 'This is how military intelligence wants it done.'" The dynamics Frederick described best correspond with

A)Stanley Milgram's Obedience to Authority.
B)Howard Becker's master status of deviant.
C)Robert K. Merton's theory of structural strain.
D)Edward Sutherland's theory of differential association.

Question 56

"Crimes committed by persons of respectability and high social status in the course of their occupations" are called

A)corporate crime.
B)white-collar crime.
C)deviance.
D)the falsely accused.

Question 57

"Deviance depends on whether people notice it." This statement is most closely associated with which theory of deviance?

A)Functionalist perspective (as represented by Emile Durkheim)
B)Labeling theory
C)Constructionist approach
D)Structural strain

Question 58

"Deviance is likely to be high when the legitimate opportunities for meeting the culturally-valued goals are closed to a significant portion of people." This statement is most closely associated with which theory of deviance?

A)Labeling theory
B)Differential association
C)Constructionist approach
D)Structural strain

Question 59

Stanley Milgram wrote, "The person who, with inner conviction, loathes stealing, killing, and assault may find himself committing these acts with relative ease." Under what conditions does Milgram believe this happens?

A)when no one is watching
B)when under the influence of alcohol
C)when the person's life is threatened
D)when commanded by an authority

Question 60

Which one of the following statements is most closely associated with differential association theory?

A)It is impossible for any society to be entirely free of deviance.
B)Behavior that is unthinkable in an individual who is acting on his or her own may be executed without hesitation when carried out under orders.
C)When people become criminals, they do so because of contacts with criminal patterns and because of isolation from anticriminal influences.
D)Deviance is a consequence not of a particular behavior but of the application of rules and sanctions.

Question 61

The ACLU wrote that, "our every move, our every transaction, our every communication is recorded, compiled and stored away, ready to be used against us." The ACLU was referring to

A)witch hunts.
B)the prison industrial complex.
C)surveillance.
D)censorship.

Question 62

Summarize the responses to surveillance as presented by structural strain theory. Do any of the responses apply to your life?

Question 63

When there are not enough legitimate opportunities open to satisfy all who seek to achieve valued goals, ___________ exists.

A)a disciplinary society
B)conformity
C)structural strain
D)differential association

Question 64

Surveillance is a mechanism of social control with a goal of

A)maintaining status quo.
B)increasing deviance.
C)increasing conformity.
D)decreasing conformity.

Question 65

Think about a typical day. List what parts of your day-today life (activities)are monitored. Is there anything you do that may raise questions about your activities or motivations if revealed?

Question 66

Explain the meaning of illegitimate opportunity structures. Describe at least two situations in your life in which you have opportunities to commit crimes.

Question 67

Elaborate on the meaning of the following statement: "Almost any behavior or appearance can qualify as deviant under the right circumstances." Give examples to support your writing.

Question 68

What does it mean to live in a society where people are told that they can be anything they want if they work hard enough? The questions relates to the concept of

A)labeling theory.
B)social construction of reality.
C)structural strain.
D)obedience to authority.

Question 69

The question "What does it mean to live in a society organized around surveillance but where personal privacy is protected by the constitution?" captures the dynamics of

A)conformity
B)obedience to authority
C)structural strain
D)rebellion

Question 70

What sociological concept addresses the question, "what does it mean to know someone is or could be watching you at any time?"

A)labeling theory.
B)structural strain.
C)disciplinary society.
D)obedience to authority.

Question 71

When people believe someone is watching, they may censor or police themselves or find ways to avoid the "gaze". Their dynamic applies to

A)labeling theory.
B)structural strain.
C)disciplinary society.
D)obedience to authority.

Question 72

In China, posts to website's that ___________ are subject to censorship.

A)criticize the government leadership
B)suggest people are organizing
C)are personal in nature
D)make fun of others

Question 73

Margie comes to the conclusion that individual privacy is unachievable, but grudgingly gives consent to being "watched" in return for services. From a structural strain point of view Margie is engaged in

A)innovation.
B)ritualism.
C)retreatism.
D)rebellion.

Question 74

During the Cultural Revolution the Communist Party held sessions where neighbors were mandated to report on and criticize each other. These sessions were a form of

A)secondary deviance.
B)the prison-industrial complex.
C)surveillance.
D)censorship.

Question 75

For labeling theorists, the critical focus in the study of deviance is the

A)police.
B)"deviant".
C)social audience.
D)military.

Question 76

Identify a deviant behavior profiled in the news. Which sociological theories help to explain that behavior?

Question 77

The human gaze is a form of

A)secondary deviance.
B)the prison-industrial complex.
C)surveillance.
D)censorship.

Question 78

Joe values privacy and is not willing to consent to surveillance. To access advantages that come with surveillance such as reward points, Joe gives a nonworking phone number. From a structural strain perspective Joe is engaged in

A)rebellion.
B)conformity.
C)innovation.
D)ritualism.