Deck 17: Understanding Sociology: Concepts, Theories, and Perspectives

Question 1

Students of parents who are well educated and economically prosperous have a position in the class structure that is ______ while students from poor families with no college background experience a class structure that is ______.

A)enabling;constraining
B)constraining;enabling
C)high;low
D)advantaged;disadvantaged

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Which of the following would NOT be considered part of the sociological imagination?

A)recognizing the larger social forces that shape individual lives
B)seeing the connections between biography and history
C)emphasizing explanations that focus on the individual
D)making connections between personal troubles and public issues

Answer 2

C

Question 3

College students who graduated during the height of the recession and were not able to find a job but recognized that it was not due to any fault of their own but to larger structural forces were employing ______.

A)sociology
B)social embeddedness
C)the sociological imagination
D)agency

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Which of the following would be the best example of structure,according to the text?

A)President Barack Obama publicly announcing his support for gay marriage
B)a women's rights activist marching in a protest
C)a bisexual teenager coming out to his or her friends and family
D)laws against women's entry into higher education and the paid labor force in the early 1900s

Question 5

Which of the following is NOT one of the stages that Comte argued that all societies would go through?

A)theological
B)industrial
C)metaphysical
D)scientific reasoning

Question 6

The ability to evaluate claims about truth by using reason and evidence is referred to as ______.

A)critical thinking
B)the sociological imagination
C)scientific reasoning
D)logical thought

Question 7

Which of the following would NOT be considered a social science?

A)sociology
B)economics
C)psychology
D)biology

Question 8

Social patterns that impose obstacles on us or afford us opportunities are referred to as ______.

A)structure
B)institutions
C)free will
D)socialization

Question 9

The relationship between agency and structure is ______,as ______.

A)one-sided;agency influences structure
B)one-sided;structure enables or constrains agency
C)reciprocal;they both have an effect on one another
D)nonexistent;there is no relationship between the two

Question 10

The idea that economic,political,and other forms of human behavior are fundamentally shaped by social relationships is referred to as ______.

A)sociology
B)social embeddedness
C)relational theory
D)social reciprocity

Question 11

Which of the following is NOT one of the social forces that is ignored in blaming the poor for their poverty and suggesting that they work harder and "pull themselves up by their bootstraps"?

A)racial and ethnic discrimination
B)the outsourcing of manufacturing jobs
C)the dire state of public education in distressed rural and urban areas
D)the feminization of poverty

Question 12

Which of the following is NOT considered a characteristic of sociology?

A)strict,highly specific rules and guidelines about how to theorize about any particular topic
B)usage of research methods such as interviews,observations,surveys,and archival data
C)adherence to the principle of social embeddedness
D)an aim to understand and generate new knowledge about human behavior and social relations

Question 13

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of critical thinking?

A)recognizing poor arguments
B)using anecdotal evidence
C)rejecting statements not supported by evidence
D)questioning one's own assumptions

Question 14

Which of the following is NOT characteristic of anomie?

A)It can be defined as a social condition of normlessness.
B)Individuals feel confused and anxious because they do not know how to interact with others.
C)It is more common in demographically homogenous areas than in demographically heterogeneous areas.
D)It can arise as a society transitions from a traditional,agricultural state to a modern,industrial state.

Question 15

The sociological imagination helps us to see that divorce,a private trouble,is influenced by all of the following public issues EXCEPT this one:

A)women's growing economic independence
B)dynamism of cultural norms related to marriage and divorce
C)the adoption of no-fault divorce laws throughout the U.S.
D)financial stresses experienced by less-educated and lower-income couples

Question 16

According to Karl Marx,class conflict leads to what?

A)evolution
B)formal rationality
C)anomie
D)revolution

Question 17

Which of the following best describes sociology?

A)the scientific study of mental functions and behaviors
B)the study of the past,specifically how it relates to humans
C)the scientific study of human social relationships,groups,and societies
D)the study of the state,nation,politics,and policies of government

Question 18

Accepted social behaviors and beliefs are referred to as ______.

A)norms
B)culture
C)social status
D)values

Question 19

Which of the following is most closely associated with the concept of free will?

A)structure
B)agency
C)critical thinking
D)sociological imagination

Question 20

When small-scale production was replaced by more efficient,profit-driven manufacturing based in factories,this was known as what?

A)urbanization
B)the scientific revolution
C)the industrial revolution
D)the Enlightenment

Question 21

Which of the following is NOT true of W.E.B.Du Bois?

A)He was a civil rights leader who condemned segregation and the racism of America.
B)He wrote about double consciousness,an inescapable awareness of being both Black and American that African Americans experience.
C)His ideas were often considered too radical for sociologists at the time of his writing.
D)His ideas are considered outdated and have been debunked by modern Black sociologists.

Question 22

Which of the following is NOT characteristic of symbolic interactionism?

A)It is a microlevel paradigm.
B)Many of the ideas originated with George Hebert Mead.
C)Structural context is considered more important than microlevel processes.
D)People understand themselves through their interaction with others.

Question 23

The choices we make as individuals have no effect on larger economic,political,and cultural structures.

Question 24

Karl Marx believed capitalism would disappear and be replaced by a utopian society of equality.

Question 25

The ability to mobilize resources and achieve goals despite the resistance of others is referred to as ______.

A)authority
B)wealth
C)power
D)inequality

Question 26

Which of the following is NOT characteristic of structural functionalism?

A)emphasizes conflict and competition
B)seeks to explain the functions of various social structures
C)recognizes manifest,or obvious,functions,as well as latent,or hidden,functions
D)upholds the status quo

Question 27

Which of the following is NOT one of the arguments of early feminist and sociologist Charlotte Perkins Gilman?

A)Women just need to be given opportunities equal to men in order to advance.
B)The labor of women in the house enables men to produce more wealth than they otherwise could.
C)Women are economic factors in society but are not economically independent.
D)Sex roles in the family are not natural and inevitable but are social constructs that have the potential to change.

Question 28

Which of the following did Marx NOT predict?

A)Technological change would happen slowly.
B)More people would become proletarian.
C)Monopolies would form.
D)Ownership of the means of production would become concentrated in fewer and fewer hands.

Question 29

The practical application of knowledge to transform natural resources for human use is referred to as ______.

A)the information revolution
B)technology
C)innovation
D)industrialization

Question 30

Which of the following is NOT true of the early 20th-century brand of sociological thought known as the Chicago School?

A)It largely focused on social ills,such as crime,homelessness,and poverty.
B)Its founding members pioneered the field of urban sociology,as well as advanced the study of race relations.
C)Female sociologists in the field were highly respected and recognized.
D)The city or urban neighborhood was a common unit of study.

Question 31

According to Weber,what type of system produced bureaucracies?

A)traditional
B)informal
C)formally rational
D)interpretive understanding

Question 32

Which of the following is NOT considered a major theme of sociology,as outlined in the text?

A)globalization
B)power and inequality
C)technological innovation
D)the rise of communism

Question 33

Talcott Parsons argued that men were socialized into instrumental roles to be rational workers,whereas women were socialized into expressive roles to be emotional and sensitive caretakers.Which perspective does this statement reflect?

A)symbolic interactionism
B)conflict theory
C)functionalism
D)feminism

Question 34

According to Émile Durkheim,social facts are external to the individual yet have a significant influence on our day-to-day behavior.

Question 35

Which perspective focuses on the labels and meanings we place on things such as the wink of an eye?

A)feminism
B)conflict theory
C)structural functionalism
D)symbolic interactionism

Question 36

Elementary schools serve as childcare institutions,allowing more parents to participate in the workforce.Which perspective does this statement reflect?

A)functionalism
B)educational sociology
C)symbolic interactionism
D)conflict theory

Question 37

Collective conscience-common beliefs and values that bind a society together-is a hallmark of organic solidarity.

Question 38

Conservative politicians oppose gun control reform because they receive contributions from wealthy pro-gun lobbyists.Which perspective does this statement reflect?

A)symbolic interactionism
B)conflict theory
C)functionalism
D)feminism

Question 39

Which of the following is NOT characteristic of conflict theory?

A)explains social organization in terms of conflict and competition
B)can be used to understand class,gender,and racial inequality
C)addresses the question of who benefits and who loses in a given situation
D)focuses solely on microlevel interactions

Question 40

In 1950,about 95% of clothing purchased in the U.S.was made domestically,but today,only about ______ is manufactured in the U.S.

A)2%
B)10%
C)15%
D)23%

Question 41

Many nations today,including the United States,are characterized by a high degree of social diversity.

Question 42

Sociologist Talcott Parsons believed that although traditional gender roles were biologically predetermined,they were the root cause of gender inequality and conflict.

Question 43

Émile Durkheim established the first rules for conducting sociological research and examined the impact of modern society on social ______.

Question 44

Languages,words,gestures,images,tattoos,hairstyles,and clothing are all considered symbols.

Question 45

Weber used the method of ______ to understand the meaning of what people say and do.

Question 46

Macrolevel paradigms are concerned with large-scale patterns and institutions,whereas ______ paradigms are concerned with social relations and interactions in specific,individual situations.

Question 47

According to Karl Marx,in a capitalist society the bourgeoisie acquires wealth by exploiting the labor of the ______.

Question 48

Explain the difference between a macrolevel paradigm and a microlevel paradigm,and provide an example of each.

Question 49

Max Weber believed modern society was increasingly characterized by rationality,as rules,regulations,and larger social structures played a greater role in people's decisions.

Question 50

Karl Marx believed that nearly all known societies are characterized by some system of division by economic ______,which results in conflict,as classes compete for wealth,power,and resources.

Question 51

Organic solidarity refers to bonds based on specialization and interdependence,whereas ______ solidarity refers to bonds based on shared customs,language,and beliefs.

Question 52

Symbolic interactionists would argue that special handshakes,team bonding during road trips,and group chants are largely unimportant when researching the dynamics of a sports team.

Question 53

Sociological theories are logical,rigorous frameworks for the interpretation of social life that make particular assumptions and ask particular questions about the social world.

Question 54

Social statics refer to the way society is held together while ______ are the laws that govern change.

Question 55

With regard to social solidarity,Durkheim's primary concern was how modern society would be held together without ______ solidarity

Question 56

Identify and define Comte's three stages of society.

Question 57

Advances in technology have had little or no effect on the spread of globalization.

Question 58

Harriet Martineau argued that injustices such as slavery and women's inequality stunted a society's ______ development.

Question 59

Describe the relationship between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie under capitalism,as outlined by Karl Marx.

Question 60

Auguste Comte founded and named sociology as a ______ discipline,pushing for a society in which knowledge would be based on scientific reasoning and facts.

Question 61

Explain W.E.B.Du Bois's idea of double consciousness.

Question 62

Discuss the views of Harriet Martineau on women's experience in marriage and enslaved Black people in the United States.

Question 63

Identify a social problem or issue.Explain this phenomenon using a structural functionalist approach or lens.Include specific functionalist theories and concepts to explain why the issue "exists and persists."

Question 64

Discuss the marginalization of women sociologists and theorists and sociologists of color-in particular,African Americans-from the field of sociology.Discuss how a conflict theorist might explain this marginalization.

Question 65

Define power and inequality.Explain the relationship between the two.

Question 66

One of the rules of critical thinking is to think about the assumptions and biases that may underlie a study.Imagine you are conducting a study that examines the relationship between race and income.Identify how your own assumptions and biases might come into play.

Question 67

Explain the relationship between urbanization and capitalism.Include a brief discussion of Marx's ideas about capitalism.

Question 68

Explain the concept of the sociological imagination.Choose a particular phenomenon that could be understood as a private trouble,and explain it in terms of public issues.

Question 69

Define the term symbol,and provide three specific examples of symbols in the United States.

Question 70

Explain what it means for a society to have a collective conscience,and provide an example.

Question 71

Define the term bureaucracy,and illustrate it with an example.

Question 72

Define the terms anomie and norms,and explain the relationship between the two concepts.Identify one social problem or issue that could arise because of anomie.

Question 73

Define globalization.Identify three effects of globalization and how these effects can either be positive or negative for local or national communities.

Question 74

Explain what it means to be ethnocentric,and illustrate it with two examples of an individual practicing ethnocentrism.

Question 75

Identify a social problem or issue.Explain this phenomenon using a symbolic interactionist approach or lens.Include specific theories and concepts.

Question 76

Identify a social problem or issue.Explain this phenomenon using a conflict theory approach or lens.Include specific conflict theories and concepts to explain why the issue "exists and persists."

Question 77

The text outlines six simple rules for critical thinking (as outlined by Wade & Tavris,1997).Choose at least three of these rules,and discuss why they are important when conducting a sociological study.

Question 78

Compare and contrast the theories of Karl Marx and Max Weber.

Question 79

Define agency and structure as sociological concepts,and explain the differences between them.Using an example,illustrate and describe the relationship between agency and structure.

Question 80

Discuss how the scientific revolution,the Enlightenment,the industrial revolution,and urbanization each played a role in the development of sociological thinking.