Deck 59: Social Change

Question 1

The practice of colleges admitting more ethnic minorities and women,under Talcott Parsons's model,is called

A)differentiation.
B)adaptation.
C)inclusion.
D)generalization.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which term does Talcott Parsons use to characterize the feature of social change that involves social institutions becoming more specialized in their purposes?

A)differentiation
B)adaptive upgrading
C)inclusion
D)value generalization

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Auguste Comte saw societies as moving forward in their thinking from

A)mythology to scientific method.
B)scientific method to mythology.
C)mythology to religion.
D)monarchy to democracy.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

In Talcott Parsons's equilibrium model,the incorporation of groups that were previously excluded because of their race,ethnicity,and social class is known as

A)differentiation.
B)adaptation.
C)inclusion.
D)generalization.

Question 5

The expectation that African and Latin countries will change by moving in the same direction as Western societies is consistent with

A)disengagement theory.
B)evolutionary theory.
C)world systems theory.
D)resource mobilization theory.

Question 6

Which sociological perspective criticizes the functionalist approach to social change for disregarding the crucial significance of change that is needed to correct social injustices and inequalities?

A)functionalist perspective
B)conflict perspective
C)interactionist perspective
D)dialectical perspective

Question 7

Social change has been defined as

A)a theory that holds that society is moving in a specific direction.
B)a view of society as tending toward instability.
C)significant alteration over time in behavior patterns and culture.
D)a view that society is moving in several different directions at the same time.

Question 8

The role of women in the family has changed dramatically within the United States during the last 50 years.Women have furthered their education and developed careers.This change in the family has necessitated adaptive changes in school systems,corporations,churches,and other facets of society to provide childcare services.This situation reflects which view of social change?

A)the emergent-norm perspective
B)the equilibrium model
C)stagnancy theory
D)resource mobilization theory

Question 9

Which concept does Talcott Parsons use to indicate the increasing complexity of social organization?

A)differentiation
B)adaptive upgrading
C)inclusion
D)value generalization

Question 10

A person needing to have his or her car repaired can go to a muffler store,a transmission shop,a tire retailer,or a gas station for a tune-up.Talcott Parsons refers to this type of specialization as

A)inclusion.
B)exclusion.
C)differentiation.
D)adaptive upgrading.

Question 11

Which two theorists have taken an evolutionary position on social change,suggesting that all societies move in a definite direction toward a higher state of being?

A)Karl Marx and Ralf Dahrendorf
B)Talcott Parsons and Gerhard Lenski Jr.
C)Auguste Comte and Émile Durkheim
D)Richard Berk and Howard Aldrich

Question 12

The Marxist view of social change is appealing to some because it

A)permits people to take a passive role in responding to inevitable cycles or changes in material culture.
B)permits people to seize control of the historical process and gain their freedom from injustice.
C)always leads to a reduction in social inequality.
D)both permits people to seize control of the historical process and gain their freedom from injustice and always leads to a reduction in social inequality.

Question 13

Which sociological perspective argues that when changes occur in one part of a society,there must be adjustments in other parts,and if these adjustments do not occur,the society's equilibrium may be threatened?

A)functionalist perspective
B)conflict perspective
C)interactionist perspective
D)feminist perspective

Question 14

Talcott Parsons's functionalist view of society as tending toward a state of stability or balance is known as

A)the emergent-norm perspective.
B)resource mobilization theory.
C)stagnancy theory.
D)the equilibrium model.

Question 15

Talcott Parsons contends that societies experience value ________,the development of new values that tolerate and legitimate a greater range of activities.

A)differentiation
B)adaptation
C)inclusion
D)generalization

Question 16

Émile Durkheim contended that societies progressed from

A)simple to sophisticated.
B)non-cultured to cultured.
C)simple to complex.
D)nonliterate to literate.

Question 17

Karl Marx suggested that humanity will move toward its final stage of development through

A)unilinear change.
B)evolutionary change.
C)socialist revolution.
D)apartheid.

Question 18

Which theory of social change holds that society is moving in a definite direction?

A)multilinear evolutionary theory
B)evolutionary theory
C)bisocial change theory
D)dichotomous change theory

Question 19

Talcott Parsons viewed society as naturally being in a state of

A)anarchy.
B)goal displacement.
C)equilibrium.
D)relative deprivation.

Question 20

The writings of Auguste Comte and Émile Durkheim are illustrative of

A)world systems theory.
B)evolutionary theory.
C)conflict theory.
D)interactionist theory.

Question 21

Which statement about the Industrial Revolution is true?

A)Some people were resistant to the technological and social changes associated with the Industrial Revolution.
B)The Luddites were very successful in their efforts to sabotage the Industrial Revolution.
C)There is no contemporary equivalent to the Luddites.
D)Wages rose uniformly during the Industrial Revolution.

Question 22

Various religious groups and their followers are very upset about scientific advances in reproductive technology,such as birth control pills,abortion pills,in-vitro fertilization,and genetic engineering.This conflict between religious values and new scientific concepts illustrates

A)material culture.
B)nonmaterial culture.
C)culture lag.
D)cultural adaptation.

Question 23

Rebellious craft workers in nineteenth-century England who destroyed new factory machinery as part of their resistance to the new Industrial Revolution were known as

A)Shakers.
B)Luddites.
C)Amish.
D)Rappites.

Question 24

Which of these historical events led to the emergence of the Luddites?

A)the Industrial Revolution
B)the computer revolution
C)socialism
D)the civil rights movement

Question 25

Which slang term is used to identify those who resist technological devices that have become part of our daily life?

A)Luddite
B)neo-Luddite
C)urban amish
D)neo-Amish

Question 26

Which of the following is an example of material culture?

A)technology
B)ideas
C)norms
D)communications

Question 27

Large families are no longer economically necessary,nor are they commonly endorsed by social norms,but certain religious faiths continue to extol large families and disapprove of using contraception to limit family size.This illustrates

A)material culture.
B)nonmaterial culture.
C)cultural relativity.
D)culture lag.

Question 28

Those people or groups who will suffer in the event of social change and who have a stake in maintaining the status quo are called

A)vested interests.
B)apartheids.
C)luddites.
D)technocrats.

Question 29

Which sociologist has noted that the functionalist perspective's emphasis on stability and the conflict perspective's focus on change reflect the contradictory nature of society?

A)Émile Durkheim
B)Ferdinand Tönnies
C)Ralf Dahrendorf
D)Talcott Parsons

Question 30

Which of these statements about social change is true?

A)Social change is always good.
B)People who resist social change are doing so for the good of society as whole.
C)Some people have a vested interest in resisting social change.
D)Social change is not often frightening.

Question 31

Which sociologist pointed out that one cannot devise methods for controlling and utilizing new technology before the introduction of a technique,and that nonmaterial culture typically must respond to changes in material culture?

A)William Ogburn
B)Talcott Parsons
C)Sherry Turkle
D)Thorstein Veblen

Question 32

Which term refers to the period of maladjustment when the nonmaterial culture is still adapting to new material conditions?

A)cultural relativism
B)culture lag
C)culture shock
D)cultural integration

Question 33

Which of the following is an example of nonmaterial culture?

A)inventions
B)artifacts
C)ideas
D)technology

Question 34

If the U.S.Congress passed strict anticigarette laws that banned their sale anywhere in the country,it would create serious problems for cigarette manufacturers,retailers,tobacco growers,tobacco farm workers,truckers,and many other employees in the cigarette industry.Each of these groups would probably oppose this legislation because they are examples of

A)culture lag.
B)nonmaterial culture.
C)luddite.
D)vested interests.

Question 35

Neo-Luddites

A)destroyed some of the machinery used in the early Industrial Revolution,when they raided factories at night.
B)have questioned the incessant expansion of industrialization.
C)were early supporters of Marxism.
D)both destroyed some of the machinery used in the early Industrial Revolution and were supporters of Marxism.

Question 36

NIMBY,often used when people protest landfills,prisons,and nuclear power facilities,stands for

A)"never intervening maliciously before yesterday."
B)"nuclear interests may bury you."
C)"not in my backyard."
D)None of these answers is correct.

Question 37

Neo-Luddites are opposed to the technological changes that occurred

A)during the Industrial Revolution.
B)in postindustrial society.
C)during the postmodern revolution.
D)All of these answers are correct.

Question 38

Thorstein Veblen is responsible for coining the term

A)false consciousness.
B)fads.
C)vested interests.
D)nonmaterial culture.

Question 39

A group of senators from states that are large suppliers to the space program protest the decision by the federal government to end manned space flights.This group would be an illustration of

A)Gemeinschaft.
B)technocrats.
C)vested interests.
D)bear liberals.

Question 40

Which term refers to "cultural information about how to use the material resources of the environment to satisfy human needs and desires"?

A)invention
B)society
C)technology
D)government

Question 41

Karl Marx suggested human society will move toward the final stage of a classless society through a socialist revolution.

Question 42

Talcott Parsons used the term differentiation to refer to social institutions that become more specialized in their purposes.

Question 43

The term vested interests refers to those people or groups who will profit in the event of social change.

Question 44

Apply the term vested interests to contemporary society.

Question 45

Social theorists seeking an analogy to Darwin's biological model originated evolutionary theory,which views society as moving in a definite direction.

Question 46

The Luddites were factory owners that made huge profits in England during the Industrial Revolution.

Question 47

Discuss the various factors that influence resistance to social change and give examples to support your answer.

Question 48

Talcott Parsons was an evolutionary theorist.

Question 49

Discuss the various theoretical concepts associated with the functionalist view of social change.

Question 50

Discuss the complex issue of "NIMBY." How do we balance the desires of individuals with the needs of our larger society?

Question 51

Describe the influence technology has had on social change.