Chapter 5: Social Interaction, Groups, and Social Structure

Which of the following are true about achieved status?

An individual has some control over it. It can be affected by an individual's ascribed status.

Which of the following are examples of how an ascribed status can influence an achieved status?

An older job applicant is rejected because he is perceived as being "out of touch." A female student is discouraged from pursuing a career as an engineer.

What is the process by which a group, organization, or social movement develops or intensifies its rules and hierarchical ranking?

Bureaucratization

U.S. public schools are funded primarily through property taxes. This means children living in affluent communities go to schools that have better equipment and higher-paid teachers than children living in less wealthy communities. As a result, children in wealthier communities often receive a better education than children in impoverished communities. Which sociological theory best explains this problem?

Conflict

True or false: Ascribed status and achieved status function independently of one another.

False

True or false: Interactionists believe that our perception of reality is defined by objective aspects of social life.

False

If a specific group has the ability to deliberately affect the way we define and conceptualize our social reality, what do we know about that group?

It has power.

Which of the following statements are true about industrial society?

It relies on new sources of energy. It depends on mechanization to produce its goods and services.

Sandy had worked for the same company for 15 years. Over the years the company began to modernize, and some workers were replaced by technology. Emphasis was placed on efficiency and predictability. Sandy's company was undergoing

McDonaldization.

The process by which the principles of bureaucratization, namely predictability, efficiency, and dependence on non-human technology, are coming to dominate more sectors of U.S. and global society is called

McDonaldization.

Which of the following best describes the interactionist perspective?

Our behavior is conditioned by our roles, statuses, groups, and institutions.

According to the interactionist perspective, what shapes the meanings we attach to people's behaviors?

Our interactions with them and with the larger society

If a woman keeps getting into trouble at work for taking time off to handle family emergencies, what is she experiencing?

Role conflict

You left your community to attend college and obtain a law degree. After working many years with various law firms, you return home to work as a prosecutor. However, you find yourself facing social pressure when you must prosecute members of your community for crimes. What is this an example of?

Role conflict

According to interactionists, which factors define our understanding of reality?

Social interaction Various groups' power within society The standards and values of dominant groups

______ refers to socially defined positions within a group or society.

Status

What is bureaucratization?

The process by which an organization becomes increasingly structured

Which of the following are characteristics of preindustrial societies?

They create artifacts and pass them on from one generation to the next. They plant crops but have limited technologies. They subsist on existing foods.

What is the primary purpose of a coalition?

To bring people together to work toward a common goal

Which of the following are downsides of division of labor?

Workers can experience alienation. Workers have weakened job security.

A type of formal organization that uses rules and hierarchical ranking to achieve efficiency is known as

a bureaucracy.

What do sociologists call a group that individuals use as a standard for evaluating themselves and their own behavior?

a reference group

An industrial society is defined as

a society that depends on mechanization to produce goods and services and relies on new inventions to facilitate production.

Which of the following is an example of the ideal purpose of a coalition?

affluent and working-class residents working together to improve sidewalks and streets

Feeling estranged or dissociated from the surrounding society is called

alienation.

Agrarian societies feature

an increase in agricultural technology and more specialized roles within society.

in-group out-group reference group coalition social network

any group to which people feel they belong any group to which people feel they do not belong any group that individuals use as a standard for evaluating themselves an alliance that is geared toward a common goal social relationships that link a person directly and indirectly to others

What type of status is assigned at birth and includes a person's ethnicity, sex, and age?

ascribed

A(n) ______ is a component of formal organization that uses rules and hierarchical ranking to achieve efficiency.

bureaucracy

The term ______ refers to the unofficial activities and interactions that are a basic part of daily operations within formal organizations.

bureaucracy's other face

The sociologist Ferdinand Tönnies used the term Gemeinschaft to refer to a(n) ______ society and the term Gesellschaft to refer to a(n) ______ society.

close-knit; impersonal

Which of the following are characteristics of a formal organization?

designed for a special purpose structured for maximum efficiency

Robert Merton referred to the overzealous conformity to official rules and regulations as goal

displacement

Which of the following are characteristics of a typical bureaucracy?

division of labor employment based on technical qualifications written rules and regulations

Rank the four stages of role exit in the order they occur, with the first stage at the top.

doubt search for alternatives action or departure creation of a new identity

The classical theory of formal organizations states that workers are motivated almost entirely by

economic rewards.

According to the scientific management approach, workers are assumed to be

efficient because of scientific planning and careful supervision. motivated almost entirely by economic rewards. a resource just like a machine.

According to Max Weber, there are five basic characteristics that make up an ideal bureaucratic structure. What are those basic characteristics?

employment based on technical qualifications written rules and regulations impersonality hierarchy of authority division of labor

The large secondary groups that increasingly dominate contemporary society are known as ______ organizations.

formal

A(n) ______ is a group that is designed for a special purpose and structured for maximum efficiency.

formal organization

Your boss is a staunch follower of the rules, which were written decades ago and no longer apply in an era of modern technology. Your boss suffers from

goal displacement.

A number of people with similar norms, values, and expectations who interact with each other on a regular basis is known as a(n)

group.

When people with similar norms, values, and expectations interact with each other, they form a

group.

Which of the following are elements of social structure?

groups statuses roles

Which of the following are advantages for people who develop social networks?

helping people find employment empowering people by making several types of resources available making connections to people in other groups

In a ______ society, people plant seeds and crops but still use minimal agricultural technology.

horticultural

What is the modern, alternative way of considering bureaucratic dynamics that emphasizes the role of people, communication, and participation in a bureaucracy?

human relations approach

Which type of society is based on kinship ties, little division of labor, and scarce resources?

hunting-and-gathering

Which group gives its members a collective sense of "us"?

in-group

Integrated and persistent social networks focused on making sure society's core needs are met are called social

institutions.

Sociologists use the term social ______ to describe the ways in which people respond to one another.

interaction

The process of disengaging from a role that is central to one's self-identity to establish a new role and identity is called

role exit.

A status that dominates all the other statuses is called a(n) ______ status.

master

A status that dominates and determines a person's general position in society is called a(n) ______ status.

master

According to the sociologist Herbert Blumer, our response to other people's behavior is based on the ______ we attach to their actions.

meaning

Emile Durkheim used the term ______ to label a society in which all individuals perform the same tasks and everyone knows everyone else.

mechanical solidarity

According to Durkheim, people in a society with few social roles and little division of labor experience

mechanical solidarity.

In societies with minimal division of labor, a collective consciousness develops that emphasizes group solidarity. This collective frame of mind is called

mechanical solidarity.

A series of social relationships that link a person directly to others and indirectly to still more people is known as a social

network.

Sarah is looking for a job. Her friend Abdul tells his uncle, who then tells his friend. This process is called

networking.

The connections that individuals make with people in different social circles are known as social

networks.

The idea that even a democratic organization will eventually develop into a bureaucracy ruled by a few is called the iron law of

oligarchy.

In a(n) ______ society, statuses and social roles are in a constant state of flux. All members are dependent on each other for survival because the division of labor has become so complex.

organic

Which of the following describes a group that individuals regard as others or "those people" or "them"?

out-group

Which type of society is economically engaged primarily in the processing and control of information and has a main output of services instead of manufactured goods?

postindustrial

In a(n) ______, occupations devoted to the teaching, generation, or dissemination of ideas are common, and jobs in such fields as advertising, human resources, and computer information systems are typical.

postindustrial society

Which type of society is technologically sophisticated and preoccupied with consumer goods and media images?

postmodern

According to the functionalist view, which of the following are the major tasks of a social institution if it is to survive?

preserving order teaching new recruits producing and distributing goods and services replacing personnel providing and maintaining a sense of purpose

What is a small group that is characterized by intimate, face-to-face association and cooperation called?

primary group

A group that individuals use as a standard for evaluating themselves and their own behavior is called a(n)

reference group.

Your best friend decides that she likes the goth subculture. She begins to dress in black, hang out with new people, listen to new music, and act unlike her previous self. Sue has adopted the goths as a(n)

reference group.

Match the societal type to its characteristics: hunting-and-gathering horticultural agrarian industrial postindustrial postmodern

relies on whatever foods and fibers are readily available; technology is minimal plants crops and places more emphasis on the production of tools and household objects engages primarily in the production of food, but new technological innovations such as the plow allow an increase in crop yields depends on mechanization to produce goods and services; relies on new inventions and new sources of energy relies primarily on the processing and control of information depends on consumer goods and media images

The term social interaction refers to the ways in which people

respond to one another.

A set of expectations for people who occupy a given position or status is called a social

role.

Match the social structure with the proper definition. Gemeinschaft Gesellschaft

rural life in which people have similar backgrounds; limited social change urban life in which people do not have similar backgrounds; social change is evident

Which type of group is formal, impersonal, and has little social intimacy or mutual understanding?

secondary group

A group with very little social intimacy, such as a large college class, is called a(n)

secondary group.

Students who expect their professor to be knowledgeable about her subject and show up to class are holding the professor to a(n) ______ role.

social

The health care system, the mass media, and the government are all examples of

social institutions.

Which of the following are elements of social structure?

social roles statuses social networks social institutions groups

All social interaction takes place within a(n) ______, including those interactions that redefine social reality.

social structure

Which of the following refers to the long-term social trends in societies that result from the interplay of continuity, innovation, and selection?

sociocultural evolution

"President of the United States," "mother," and "wife" are all examples of ______ positions.

status

Role ______ is the difficulty that arises when a single social position imposes conflicting demands and expectations.

strain

Statuses, social roles, groups, social networks, and social institutions are the five elements of social

structure

There are a number of functions that a social institution must fulfill to survive. What are some of those functions?

teaching new recruits providing a sense of purpose preserving order

Cultural information about how to use the material resources of the environment to satisfy human needs and desires is called

technology.

Effie had a solid education, a great attitude, and an eagerness to learn. As a result, she was steadily promoted to more responsible positions. After two years, Effie was promoted to a director position, but she discovered she did not have the qualifications or skills the position required. Effie was a victim of

the Peter principle.

The hypothesis that states that every employee within a hierarchy tends to rise to his or her level of incompetence is known as

the Peter principle.

The meanings we attach to someone's behavior tend to reflect the norms and values of

the dominant culture.

The sociologist Robert Michels argued that the rank and file of a movement or organization look to leaders for direction. As such, they reinforce the process of rule by a few. He referred to this idea as

the iron law of oligarchy.

An ideal bureaucracy includes division of labor, hierarchy of authority, impersonality, employment based on technical qualifications, and

written rules and regulations.