Sociology Exam Review: Questions
the sociologist who developed the concept of the power elite was
C. Wright Mills
which of the following groups would not be an example of a counterculture? a. A gang operating in the San Quentin prison b. members of an organization advocating the legalization of prostitution c. members of an outlaw motorcycle club d. Chicago cub fans
Chicago Cub Fans
(T or F) families today provide a greater number of functions for its members than ever before, which has caused a strain in family relationships and a weakening of family bonds.
False
Over twenty years prior to the birth of Durkheim and Weber, Society in America, an analysis of American customs, was published by sociologist ______
Harriet Martineau
the research in the early 1960s using rhesus monkeys to demonstrate the importance of intimate physical contact in the rearing of animals was conducted by _______.
Harry and Margaret Harlow
of the following social science theorists, which one least embraced the concepts associated with symbolic interactionism?
Karl Marx
the Wall street journal has declared the "three greatest modern thinkers" as being__________, ____________ and __________.
Karl Marx; Sigmund Freud; Albert Einstein
sociologist Douglas Massey had declared ________ as being the first truly bilingual city
Miami, Florida
od the four interrelated core values emerging in American society, the one that is reflected in the "human potential " movement that focuses on "self help, relating, and personal development" is ________.
Self- fulfillment
the American sociologist who focused on social theory in the late 1940s, developing detailed models of how society harmoniously works together was__________.
Talcott Parsons
the book published by W.E.B DuBois in 1899 that analyzed how African Americans in a major U.S. city coped with racism was ____________.
The Philadelphia Negro
If people define situations as real, they are real in their consequences. This classic statement is known as the ________.
Thomas Theorem
(T or F) The term society traditionally refers to a group of people who share a culture and a territory.
True
the first African American to earn a doctorate from Harvard university, spent his lifetime studying race relations in America, and was one of the founders of the NAACP was _________.
W.E.B DuBois
the contemporary conflict sociologist who pointed out that conflict is most likely to develop among people in close relationships was __________.
William Domhoff
which of the following is an example of social interaction?
a driver signaling a right to turn with his directional signal
which of the following would be the best example of a total institution
a military boot camp
which of the following topics would most likely be approached from a macrosocioloigical analysis?
a study of the impact of terrorism on the travel of plans of business people
According to symbolic interactionists, the deciding factor that determines if change in society is good or bad requires ________.
a value framework from which to view the change
most Americans high schools routinely schedule ceremonies to recognize the most talented student athletes and scholars. Such activities illustrate the importance that Americans place on the value of _________.
achievement
a type of "written gesture" that helps convey the feelings that go with words is referred to as ________.
an emotion
the sign vehicle addressing how we look when we play our role is _________.
appearances
in ethnomethodology the ideas we take for granted the underlie our behavior and which we violate at our risk are called ___________.
background assumptions
investing to make profits within a rational system is called_______.
capitalism
Pigs, spiders, elephants, and other animals that rely solely on instinct act as they do because they lack a ________.
cerebral cortex
Karl Marx believed the key element in understanding human history is to understand __________.
class conflict
in the case study of Isabelle,supports the position that the key to human development is___________.
cognitive ability
Theorists who would argue that the mass media represents the interests of society's political and economic elites would be most aligned with the ________ perspective.
conflict
in recent years, cultures have become more similar to each other as a result of travel and communication. Sociologists use the term, ________, to describe this process.
cultural leveling
to fully understand the Islamic practice of polygyny (men having multiple wives), it is necessary to use the perspective of _________.
cultural relativism
the intense controversy between pro-choice and pro-life advocates that has resulted in violence can best be described as a(n)
culture war
in his book, Sick Societies, anthropologist Robert Edgerton proposed that __________.
cultures should be evaluated on their "quality of life"
sociologists have concluded that although certain behaviors qualify as cultural universals, the forms these behaviors take are :
different from group to group
the social institution primarily responsible for the production and distribution of goods and services is the _________.
economic system
which of the following is not one of the three values Henslin added to the original list of 12 core values ?
equality
the first goal of each scientific discipline is to
explain why something happens
(T or F) tradition and the scientific method share many similarities, including systematic observation and common sense
false
the primary source of gender socialization is ________.
family
The notion that the mass media represents the varied interests of many groups would reflect a position consistent with ________ theory.
functionalist
communities in which people perform similar tasks and develop a shared consciousness, such as the Amish, would best be described as a _________ society
gemeinschaft
People and groups that influence our orientation to life - our self-concept, emotions, attitudes, and behaviors - are called ________.
generalized others
the fact that parents let their preschool boys roam further from home than their preschool girls illustrates the idea that_________.
girls are socialized to be more dependent
the breaking down of national boundaries because of advances in communication, trade, and travel is referred to as___________.
globalization
people who regularly interact with one another and, usually, share similar values, norms, and expectations are referred to as a(n)
group
Mead describes the active, creative, and spontaneous part of the self as the ________.
id
Americans glorify academic progress and material success. However, most students do not graduate with honors and most citizens are not wealthy. This condition characterizes the difference between ________ and ________.
ideal culture and real culture
Sociologists emphasize the notion that our thinking and motivation are largely determined by_________.
influences drawn from our life experiences
lingering eye contact with another individual is most aligned with which ditsance zone of personal space
intimate distance
symbols that can be strung together in an infinite number of ways for the purpose of communicating abstract thought is known as___________.
language
which statement is least accurate regarding language
language is universal in terms of the meaning of particular sounds
College provides a haven for several million potential workers who are classified as "students" rather than "unemployed," which helps stabilize the job market. This situation represents what Merton would describe as a ________.
latent function
the sociological significance of roles is that they___________.
lay out what is expected of people
Sociologists have identified an emerging set of four interrelated values in American society. These four emerging values are:
leisure, self-fulfillment, physical fitness, and youthfulness
the differences in behaviors and attitudes experienced by different categories of people are primarily due to
location in the social structure
the belief that our sense of self develops from interaction with others and interpreting how others think about us is the concept of ________.
looking glass self
functionalist and conflict theorists tend to focus on the _________, or large scale patterns of society, in conducting their analyses
macro level
which of the following is not one of the five functional requisites that every society must fulfill to survive?
maintaining traditional gender relations
According to Robert Merton, ________ are the intended beneficial consequences of people's actions.
manifest functions
the tendency for Americans to emphasize good nutrition, medical care, housing, late model cars, and recreational play things fall under the value Robin Williams referred to as ___________.
material comfort
a practice in some cultures where people break norms during specified periods to relieve the pressure and tension of life is referred to as a________.
moral holiday
the photograph on page 48 of the nude fan at the rugby tournament illustrates the fan's violation of a __________.
more
As we proceed on our life course, the events we experience are largely influenced by
our social location and time period we were born in
sociologists believe that the key to explaining our behavior is __________.
our socially constructed self
individuals who are approximately the same age, linked by common interests, and include classmate and the kids in the neighborhood are mostly appropriately referred to as
peers
Tory is five years of age. He loves to dress up like Batman and pretend to save Gotham City from the Penguin. According to Mead's theory, he is in the ________ stage.
play
a society which is made up of many different religious, racial, and ethnic groups would be best described as _________.
pluralistic
the social institution that is most recognized for allocating power, determining authority, and preventing chaos is
politics
Callie is asked to identify the common personality characteristics among a list of 15 serial killers. She would most likely contact a(n) _______ to assist her in her efforts.
psychologist
Dr. Zahn spends virtually all his academic interest in analyzing various aspects of society and publishing his findings in sociological journals. In view of this, Dr. Zahn is considered to be a(n) __________ sociologist.
pure
Research on sexual behavior among married couples shows that even though most couples vocally endorse fidelity, a high percentage of both spouses have a tendency to violate their vows at some time during their marriage. This behavior is an example of _________.
real culture
the process of learning new norms, values, attitudes, and behaviors is called______.
resocialization
Those expectations that define appropriate or inappropriate behavior for the occupant of a status are:
roles
When social values contradict one another, such contradictions can serve as a source of __________.
social change
The notion that only the fittest members of society deserve to survive and that social programs to help the poor will ultimately weaken the social order is a doctrine known as ________.
social darwinism
Durkheim stressed the need for sociologists to focus on ______________, while Weber stressed that __________ should also be studied by sociologists
social facts; subjective meanings
Durkheim introduced the concept ____________ to express the degree to which people feel apart of a social group
social intergration
When sociologists' group people into categories based on their age, gender, educational level, job, and income, they are trying to determine their ________.
social location
which statement is least accurate in describing gestures
social scientists have identified and agree that a number of gestures are universal
based on dramaturgy, the sign vehicle were action unfolds is called the__________.
social setting
the typical patterns of a group, such as its usual relationships between men and women or students and teachers, is referred to as ________.
social structure
Max Weber termed the readiness to invest capital in order to make more money the ___________.
spirit of capitalism
the series of photographs of people from around the world found on page 40 demonstrates _______.
standards of what constitutes beauty vary greatly from one culture to another
a position that someone occupies such as a judge, astronaut, student, or professor is called a ________.
status
signs that identify a position in society someone occupies are referred to as__________.
status symbols
when a group has a distinctive way of looking at life, but at the same time their values and norms reflect the dominant culture of their society, the group would be considered a(n)
subculture
nonmaterial culture is also referred to as_________.
symbolic culture
in studying problems or the homeless, _________ would focus on the face-to-face micro level interactions among the homeless
symbolic interactionists
the automobile, and skills needed to drive it, would be an example of
technology
the two events that contributed the greatest incentive to the development of sociology because they destroyed tradition and encouraged people to rethink social life were _________ and __________.
the American Revolution; the French Revolution
from the sociological perspective, which statement best classifies the 19th century Mormons and the 21st century physicians?
the Mormons would be classified a counterculture and the physicians a subculture
the gender message in the mass media as described in the textbook, is that gender serves as a primary basis for__________.
the division of labor in society
Sociologists use the concept of "norms" to describe ________.
the expectations, or rules of behavior that develop out of values
of the following groups, which one would require the member to relinquish the greatest degree of personal decision making
the family
in the nature v. nurture argument, the nature component refer to _______.
the social environment
the central component of non-material culture is:
the symbols that people use
the university that dominated sociology as an academic discipline where Albion Smalls headed the department was _________.
the university of chicago
Sociology first took root as an academic discipline at _______ in 1890.
the university of kansas
a person who was preoccupied with understanding gestures would concentrate on
the way individuals use their bodies
if sociobiologists are correct in their claim that humans are prisoners of their genes and that one's gene complement dictates behavior, it would mean that_________.
there would be a monoculture of some sort throughout the world
the period following high school where young adults have not yet taken on the responsibility ordinary associated with adulthood is called ________.
transitional adulthood
(T or F) Emile Durkheim showed, through rigorous scientific researched, that social factors and not spontaneous events, underlie the rates of suicide among different groups
true
(T or F) Merton defines a latent dysfunction as an unintended negative outcome of an action which was originally designed to benefit the social system
true
(T or F) sociologist Lewis Coser notes that conflict is especially likely to occur among individuals who are in close relationships
true
(T or F) theorists using the symbolic interactionist perspective usually focus on social interaction based on a micro- level of analysis
true
the coexistence of such values of democracy and equality alongside of sexism and group superiority illustrates the condition of ________.
value contradiction
sociologists use the term ________ to indicate the standards by which people define their ideas about what is desirable in life.
values
according to Weber, ________ means " to grasp by insight" and to have an understanding of the felling and motivations of people being studied.
verstehen
the difference between status and role is that:
we occupy a status that is a social position, but we play a role that is a social expectation
