Deck 6: Socialization

Question 1

Sociologists refer to the process by which people acquire cultural competency as

A) enculturation.
B) socialization.
C) adaptation.
D) social replenishment
E) status and role learning.

Answer 1

socialization.

Question 2

The basics of what we consider "human" are developed through

A) the social self.
B) socialization.
C) instinct.
D) accommodation to society.
E) none of these

Answer 2

socialization.

Question 3

Which of the following statements about socialization is NOT true?

A) It is complete when the individual reaches adulthood.
B) It is a process by which people acquire cultural competency.
C) It helps perpetuate existing social structures.
D) It involves education.
E) It generally begins in the family.

Answer 3

It is complete when the individual reaches adulthood.

Question 4

Anna and Isabelle were each raised in isolation, but Anna subsequently was more successfully socialized. The difference in outcome can be explained by the fact that

A) Anna was much younger than Isabelle when she was rescued.
B) Anna had been fed more nutritious foods.
C) Anna had been allowed brief visits with outsiders.
D) Anna's mother was present during her early years.
E) all of these

Question 5

René Spitz's comparison of infants raised in orphanages and infants raised in a prison nursery, suggested that

A) with respect to the child's development, having a mother in prison is worse than having no mother at all.
B) it does not matter what type of setting infants are raised in, most will grow up normally.
C) social isolation need not be extreme to have an impact on children's development.
D) Freud was correct in stressing the importance of the id.
E) infants raised in institutions controlled by the government will not thrive.

Question 6

Which of the following statements about socialization is correct?

A) Some children are so independent minded that they are hardly affected at all by the usual socialization processes.
B) All societies mark rites of passage as part of the socialization process.
C) If a child has been socialized properly at home, his or her interaction with peers will have a relatively small influence.
D) Girls tend to be more influenced by their peer groups than boys are by theirs.
E) all of these

Question 7

It's your daughter's sixteenth birthday and you are catering a "sweet sixteen party" for her. Which of the following statements is most likely to be made by the sociologist who just happens to witness this event?

A) "This party is an abnormal example of the socialization process."
B) "This party is a good place to test my cultural competency."
C) "This party is a good example of a rite of passage."
D) "These hotdogs taste awful-are you sure they are fresh?"
E) None of the above.

Question 8

The concept of the "looking glass self" was created by

A) Emile Durkheim.
B) George H. Mead.
C) Charles H. Cooley.
D) Charles Darwin.
E) Lisa J. McIntyre.

Question 9

According to Cooley's conception of socialization, we use others as __________ to help determine who we are.

A) magnifying glasses
B) binoculars
C) microscopes
D) mirrors
E) none of these

Question 10

Which of the following is NOT a stage in Cooley's looking glass self?

A) I imagine that others see me.
B) I imagine what others think of me.
C) I experience some sort of self-feeling.
D) I judge others on the basis of what they think of me.
E) I experience some sort of self-feeling AND I judge others on the basis of what they think of me.

Question 11

Billy Joel has noticed that people seem to like his singing. He thinks: "People smile when I sing, I must be a good singer. I feel good about that." His thinking reflects the dynamics of what Cooley called the

A) looking glass self.
B) transparent self.
C) reflective self.
D) id and the super ego.
E) Gemeinschaften self.

Question 12

Your 6-year-old son, Petey, has started playing kiddie-league baseball. In addition to learning how to throw, catch and hit the ball, according to Mead, playing games is important because

A) baseball is an American game and an important part of culture.
B) children need to socialize with others in their peer groups.
C) it helps the child grow out of the "id" stage.
D) it will help a child learn the discipline necessary to acquire and use a Me.
E) All of the above

Question 13

George Herbert Mead demonstrated that socialization is

A) a passive process in which the individual does not really participate.
B) a dynamic process.
C) an entirely predictable process.
D) a short-term process.
E) all of these, depending on where the individual is in his or her life cycle

Question 14

According to George H. Mead, the ability to ____________ develops as children learn to play and to take part in games.

A) role make
B) role take
C) role over
D) role reverse
E) role model

Question 15

Which of the following are the most potent agents of socialization?

A) primary groups
B) secondary groups
C) formal educational organizations (of a variety of kinds)
D) the media
E) workplaces

Question 16

According to George H. Mead, the __________________ begins to develop as children learn to fulfill the different roles involved in games.

A) master status
B) spurious other
C) intimate other
D) significant other
E) generalized other

Question 17

According to George H. Mead, the spontaneous and unique part of the self is the

A) thee.
B) ego.
C) I.
D) me.
E) thou.

Question 18

Sociologists refer to a group of people of approximately the same age and interests as a

A) counter culture.
B) culture.
C) peer group.
D) social aggregate.
E) subculture.

Question 19

Which of the following is central to Mead's conception of the self?

A) the I, which is the part of the self that is spontaneous
B) the Thee, which is the part of the self that reflects the infant in us all
C) the You, which is the part of the self that reflects the significant other
D) the Thou, which is the part of the self that reflects what one has learned through games
E) all of these

Question 20

Which of the following concepts is central to Mead's theory of socialization?

A) the I, which is the part of the self that is unpredictable and spontaneous
B) the Me, which is the part of the self that reflects other people's expectations
C) play-in which children practice simple imitative behaviors
D) games-in which children learn role taking
E) all of these

Question 21

With which of the following statements would most sociologists disagree?

A) Socialization is fairly complete once the individual reaches puberty.
B) Socialization ends at the death of the individual.
C) Socialization is a process in which people learn cultural competency.
D) Socialization is interactive-between the individual and his or her social environment.
E) Some socialization occurs in the workplace.

Question 22

According to sociologists, rites of passage

A) exist only in pre-literate societies.
B) exist only in post-literate societies.
C) mark the transition from one status to another.
D) have been outlawed in most countries.
E) typically involve invasive surgical procedures.

Question 23

The agent of socialization that is formally charged by society with socializing groups of children is

A) the media.
B) the comic book industry.
C) the school.
D) peer groups.
E) all of these

Question 24

Since most adults tend to become heavily invested in their work, it is not uncommon for one's occupation to become one's

A) I and Me.
B) primary group.
C) master status.
D) secondary group.
E) counterculture.

Question 25

John wants to be a rock star when he grows up. So, he pierces his face in four places, spikes his hair, learns to play the guitar, and changes his name to ^&*@. Sociologically speaking, John is engaging in

A) foolish and unsanitary behavior.
B) anti-social behavior.
C) a counterculture.
D) anticipatory socialization.
E) resocialization.

Question 26

Alex is planning on making her first million dollars before she reaches 25 years of age. Though still in high school, she subscribes to the Wall Street Journal, carries a brief case, and invests her allowance with a stockbroker. Moreover, she insists on wearing business suits-even to track practice. She is thoroughly engaged in

A) status nonconformity.
B) anticipatory socialization.
C) role conflict.
D) youthful games.
E) play, or simple imitative behaviors.

Question 27

Elizabeth lived at home with her parents until she graduated from high school. Then she joined the Marines. As she looks back on it, Elizabeth reflects that "during basic training I became a whole new person. I was no longer Elizabeth Jones but Private Jones. I learned to dress, talk, eat, sleep and march like a Marine." What Elizabeth is describing is the process that sociologists refer to as

A) secondary socialization.
B) anticipatory socialization.
C) peer group reorganization.
D) resocialization.
E) militarization.

Question 28

Your 12-year-old son is thinking about going to camp this summer and he brings home some information about Camp Kil-A-Kid. According to the brochure he gives you, campers will rise every morning at 6:00 am, dress in the camp uniform and run 2 miles. After breakfast, everyone has camp duties until lunch.After lunch, there is an enforced "rest hour."After that, the campers get to pick an activity for 20 minutes. This is followed by a twenty minute dip in the camp's unheated pool. Dinner is at 6:00 and unlessKids "clean their plates,"They don't get dessert. The brochure warns that kids are not allowed to call home and that parents cannot visit while camp is in session. You can't figure out why your son is so excited-to you, given your sociological training, this place sounds like

A) a large primary group.
B) a total institution.
C) a factory.
D) a tough school.
E) a place for kids to build muscles.

Question 29

One of the first phases of life in a total institution involves ________________ this helps to __________Clients or inmates.

A) a degradation ceremony; strip away the existing selves of
B) delousing; add new selves to
C) IQ testing; stratify
D) eating a big meal; strengthen
E) branding; identify

Question 30

Which of the following is a good example of a total institution?

A) boot camp
B) mental hospital
C) prison
D) monastery
E) all of these

Question 31

Which of the following statements about socialization is false?

A) Individuals are not passively socialized; they help to create their selves during the socialization process.
B) The primary difference between play and games (according to Mead) is that games have rules that require children to carry out their roles in particular and defined ways.
C) The manifest function of the peer group is to socialize children.
D) Socialization is a life-long process.
E) Socialization begins at birth.

Question 32

Studies of children raised in isolation have demonstrated that our "social selves"arise primarily through instinctual processes.

Question 33

Sociologists have found that as long as a child's physical needs are attended to, the child will grow up normally.

Question 34

Charles H. Cooley argued that society is "an interweaving and interworking of mental selves"-and thus emphasized that what people think (and what people think others think) is important.

Question 35

According to George H. Mead, people's behavior is a result of a kind of internal dialog between their I and Me.

Question 36

According to Mead, the generalized other represents the attitudes of those in the individual's social environment.

Question 37

Research in schools has demonstrated that peer group interaction frequently helps to break down traditional gender stereotypes.

Question 38

An important step in the resocialization process involves unlearning some old attitudes and behavior.

Question 39

Most total institutions finish up the resocialization process by putting the individual through a degradation ceremony.

Question 40

A key to the success of the total institution is the fact that it allows individuals to have on-going contact with their families and friends.

Question 41

The socialization process is life-long; it begins at birth and does not end until death.

Question 42

List the three elements of socialization associated with Cooley's looking glass self. To illustrate your answer, conclude with a description of a scene in which each element is played out.

Question 43

Discuss how play and games help in the development of the Me (according to Mead).

Question 44

All you know about a new religious cult (Children of the Goddess) is that its new members have to spend 10 weeks in the "initiate center"-which is clearly a total institution. Based on what you know about the characteristics of total institutions, describe what must be happening to new cult members during their stay at the center.

Question 45

What effect does the parents' social class have on the way they socialize their children?

Question 46

Pick XXX pairs of words from the following list. Define the terms in each pair. Provide an example with each definition. (In your answer, make sure to indicate which terms you are defining!)
Definitions

Question 47

Each of the following statements is false. Pick XX of these statements and refute them. (You need to do more than simply say the statement is false. Explain why it is false. Provide examples if these will clarify your answer.)
a. Melvin Kohn found that the primary concern of middle-class parents is that their children learn to conform.
b. People are born with social selves.
c. For most normal individuals, socialization is primarily concluded by the age of 18 or 21.
e. The term "agents of socialization"refers to men and women specially appointed by the government to oversee the socialization of children.