Sociology Test 2: Culture

What is a subculture?

A group within society that is differentiated by its distinctive values, norms, and lifestyle.

What is a counterculture?

A group within society whose values and norms are incompatible or in conflict with dominant values and norms.

What is a "folkway"?

A loosely enforced norm that involves common customs, practices, or procedures that ensure smooth social interaction and acceptance.

What is a "taboo"?

A norm engrained so deeply that even thinking about violating it evokes strong feelings of disgust, horror, or revulsion for most people.

What is hegemony?

A term developed by Antonio Gramsci to describe the cultural aspects of social control, whereby the ideas of the dominant group are accepted by all.

Cultural wars are frequently played out: A. In the media. B. On our roadways. C. Between neighbors. D. In prison systems.

A. In the media

When Marshall McLuhan asserted that "the medium is the message," he was arguing that: A. The changing forms of media dispersion (e.g., TV, radio, the internet) are as important or more important for cultural change than the content of the media. B. Technology is not important for cultural change. C. The most important aspect of cultural change is the alteration of the content of modern media. D. Technology is only useful for spreading factual information.

A. The changing forms of media dispersion (e.g., TV, radio, the internet) are as important or more important for cultural change than the content of the media. McLuhan's claim can be seen in the context of technological determinism. He believed that the media through which content is delivered have significant effects on who we are and how we relate to the world

A person wearing sandals while dressed in a suit is likely violating a: A. Folkway. B. More. C. Value. D. Taboo.

A. folkway

Which of the following is NOT a component of culture? a. material culture b. signs c. language d. symbolic culture e. All of the above are components of culture.

All of the above

The value placed on individualism, sexual freedom, and material satisfaction in American life can antagonize cultures that place a higher value on familial involvement and moral and social restrain, and may result in what?

Anti-American sentiment.

Which of the following is NOT true of technological change? A. Some theorists have argued that technological change fundamentally alters how we relate to each other and how we perceive the world. B. When sociologists discuss technology and technological change, they are referring to electronic technology alone and not to other tools to reshape our material and cultural environments. C. Technology can induce rapid change in the organization of work in a society. D. Technological change can shape the spread of symbolic culture.

B

The spread of McDonald's restaurants throughout Asia is best described as an example of:

Cultural diffusion

What is "the lens" in which one views the world and is passed from one generation to the next?

Culture

The ____ culture in the US is referred to as WASP (for white Anglo-Saxon Protestant), typically includes males rather than females; usually varies from society to society.

Dominant

When Emily goes on vacation to Ethiopia she sees people eating with their hands instead of with utensils. When Emily calls her parents later that day she describes this was of eating as "abnormal" and "gross". This is an example of...

Ethnocentrism

True or false: Culture is more innate than learned.

False

What are the three types of norms?

Folkway, mores, taboos

What is ideal and real culture?

Ideal culture is norms and values that are more aspired to and real culture is norms and values that are actually practiced.

What are the different functions of symbolic culture?

It allows us to communicate through signs, gestures, and language.

What is one of the main points of Horace Miner's article "Body Ritual among the Nacirema?

It is easy to take one's own culture for granted.

Which of the following is a characteristic of otaku culture?

Otaku culture is an example of the East influencing the West.

What are technological determinists?

People who believe technology is the most important influence on cultural change.

What is mainstream culture characterized by?

Points of dissension and division AKA culture wars.

What are sanctions?

Positive or negative reactions to the ways that people follow or disobey norms.

What helps to establish "social control"?

Sanctions

What are values?

Shared beliefs about what a group considers worthwhile or desirable.

How do cultures usually change?

Slowly and incrementally.

What is considered "formal"?

Something official, like a law.

What is considered "informal"?

Something that isn't official and are often, even, unspoken.

What is cultural leveling?

Something that occurs when cultures that were once distinct become increasingly similar to one another.

Which perspective explores the ways in which components of culture such as norms and values contribute to the organization and stability of society? a. structural functionalism b. conflict theory c. symbolic interactionism d. post modernism

Structural functionalism

In a Pennsylvania town, there is a large neighborhood primarily consisting of Amish people. They live harmoniously with their non-Amish neighbors. They are distinctive because of the clothes they wear and the horses and buggies they drive in the neighborhood. The Amish people in this town are an example of:

Subculture

What is "culture"?

The entire way of life for a group of people.

What is social control?

The formal and informal mechanisms used to increase conformity to values and norms and thus increase social cohesion.

What is a norm?

The formal and informal rules regarding what kinds of behavior are acceptable and appropriate within a culture.

What is Sapir-Worf Hypothesis?

The idea that language structures thought and that ways of looking at the world are embedded in language.

What is cultural imperialism?

The imposition of one culture's beliefs, practices, and artifacts on another culture through mass media and consumer products.

What is cultural relativism?

The principle of understanding other cultures on their own terms, rather than judging them according to one's own culture.

What is dominant culture?

The values, norms, and practices of the group within society that is most powerful in terms of wealth, prestige, status, and influence.

What is one of the key ways material culture can change?

Through technology.

T/F: At times, a subculture can influence the mainstream and become part of dominant culture, or something that is dominant can change to a counterculture

True

What guides the creation of "norms"?

Values

What is cultural diffusion?

When different groups share their material and nonmaterial culture with each other.

Norms can be categorized from least serious to most serious. Rank the following types of norms accordingly: a. more b. taboo c. folkway

folkway, more, taboo

What is a "more"?

A norm that carries greater moral significance and is closely related to the core values of a group.

A third-grade teacher distributes stickers to student who complete their homework on time. What is this practice an example of?

A positive sanction.

What is a moral holiday?

A specified time period during which some norm violations are allowed.

Which of the following is true concerning ideal culture and real culture? A. The norms, values, and patterns of behavior that actually exist within a society are called ideal culture. B. Real culture and ideal culture do clash with each other at times. C. The norms, values, and patterns of behavior that members of a society believe should be observed are called real culture. D. Real culture always corresponds to ideal culture.

B

Which of the following would be considered a counterculture? A.Irish-Americans B.The Black Panthers C.Police officers D.Fans of the Cleveland Browns

B

Which of the following are examples of material culture? a. the "play" icon on a DVD player b. a spatula c. a Little Mermaid DVD d. a hammer

B, C, D

Marijuana laws over the course of U.S. history illustrate: A. That the United States has always adopted a punitive approach toward this substance. B. That norms change over time and across contexts and that changes in such norms are not always predictable. C. That American society has consistently moved toward embracing greater amounts of personal freedom. D. That elites (such as politicians and wealthy business owners) apply different standards to others' personal behaviors than they do to their own.

B.

According to the text, why is the spread of shows like Grey's Anatomy or Friends to other countries potentially problematic? A. Other countries will not think Americans are funny. B. These shows will increase immigration to the United States. C. The value placed on sexual freedom in U.S. culture that is portrayed in these shows can antagonize cultures that place a higher value on moral restraint, which may result in anti-American sentiment. D. These shows could lower other countries' perceptions of the intelligence of Americans.

C

What is multiculturalism?

It values diverse racial, ethnic, national, and linguistic backgrounds and so encourages the retention of cultural differences within society.

Which is the most significant component of culture and why?

Language; it allows us to communicate.

What two things does culture include?

Material and non-material (symbolic) elements.

What are the two different categories of culture?

Material culture (anything physical we give meaning to) and symbolic culture (the ideas associated w a cultural group).

What is ethnocentrism?

The principle of using one's own culture as a standard by which to evaluate another group or individual leading to the view that cultures other than their own is abnormal.

Founded in 1949, Servas International was the precursor to what cultural phenomenon?

The sharing economy