Sociology Test Review Chapter 1

verstehen

a German word that means to understand in a deep way

theory

a proposed explanation about social interactions or society

dynamic equilibrium

a stable state in which all parts of a healthy society are working together properly

dramaturgical analysis

a technique sociologists use in which they view society through the metaphor of theatrical performance

functionalism

a theoretical approach that sees society as a structure with interrelated parts designed to meet the biological and social needs of individuals that make up that society

symbolic interactionism

a theoretical perspective through which scholars examine the relationship of individuals within their society by studying their communication

conflict theory

a theory that looks at society as a competition for limited resources

macro-level

a wide-scale view of the role of social structures within a society

8. Which would a quantitative sociologists use to gather data? a. A large survey b. A literature search c. An in-depth interview d. A review of television programs

a. A large survey

12. Who coined the phrase symbolic interactionism? a. Herbert Blumer b. Max Weber c. Lester F. Ward d. W.I. Thomas

a. Herbert Blumer

3. A sociologist defines society as a group of people who reside in a defined area, share a culture, and who: a. interact b. work in the same industry c. speak different languages d. practice a recognized religion

a. interact

grand theories

attempts to explain large-scale relationships and answer fundamental questions such as why societies form and why they chang

5. Which of the following was a topic of study in early sociology? a. Astrology b. Economics c. Physics d. History

b. Economics

6. Which founder of sociology believed societies changed due to class struggle? a. Emile Comte b. Karl Marx c. Plato d. Herbert Spencer

b. Karl Marx

14. Which research technique would most likely be used by a symbolic interactionist? a. Surveys b. Participant observation c. Quantitative data analysis d. None of the abov

b. Participant observation

15. Kenneth and Mamie Clark used sociological research to show that segregation was: a. beneficial b. harmful c. illegal d. of no importance

b. harmful

2. C. Wright Mills once said that sociologists need to develop a sociological __________ to study how society affects individuals. a. culture b. imagination c. method d. too

b. imagination

9. Weber believed humans could not be studied purely objectively because they were influenced by: a. drugs b. their culture c. their genetic makeup d. the researcher

b. their culture

11. Who believed that the history of society was one of class struggle? a. Emile Durkheim b. Karl Marx c. Erving Goffmann d. George Herbert Mead

b.Karl Marx

1. Which of the following best describes sociology as a subject? a. The study of individual behavior b. The study of cultures c. The study of society and social interaction d. The study of economics

c. The study of society and social interaction

17. Berger describes sociologists as concerned with: a. monumental moments in people's lives b. common everyday life events c. both a and b d. none of the above

c. both a and b

4. Seeing patterns means that a sociologist needs to be able to: a. compare the behavior of individuals from different societies b. compare one society to another c. identify similarities in how social groups respond to social pressure d. compare individuals to groups

c. identify similarities in how social groups respond to social pressure

7. The difference between positivism and antipositivism relates to: a. whether individuals like or dislike their society b. whether research methods use statistical data or person-to-person research c. whether sociological studies can predict or improve society d. all of the above

c. whether sociological studies can predict or improve society

10. Which of these theories is most likely to look at the social world on a micro level? a. Structural functionalism b. Conflict theory c. Positivism d. Symbolic interactionism

d. Symbolic interactionism

16. Studying Sociology helps people analyze data because they learn: a. interview techniques b. to apply statistics c. to generate theories d. all of the above

d. all of the above

13. A symbolic interactionist may compare social interactions to: a. behaviors b. conflicts c. human organs d. theatrical roles

d. theatrical roles

qualitative sociology

in-depth interviews, focus groups, and/or analysis of content sources as the source of its data

sociology

is the systematic study of society and social interaction

paradigms

philosophical and theoretical frameworks used within a discipline to formulate theories, generalizations, and the experiments performed in support of them

dysfunctions

social patterns that have undesirable consequences for the operation of society

manifest functions

sought consequences of a social process

quantitative sociology

statistical methods such as s urveys with large numbers of participants

sociological imagination

the ability to understand how your own past relates to that of other people, as well as to history in general and societal structures in particular

social facts

the laws, morals, values, religious beliefs, customs, fashions, rituals, and all of the cultural rules that govern social life

function

the part a recurrent activity plays in the social life as a whole and the contribution it makes to structural continuity

figuration

the process of simultaneously analyzing the behavior of an individual and the society that shapes that behavior

positivism

the scientific study of social patterns

social solidarity

the social ties that bind a group of people together such as kinship, shared location, and religion

micro-level theories

the study of specific relationships between individuals or small groups

latent function

the unrecognized or unintended consequences of a social process

antipositivism

the view that social researchers should strive for subjectivity as they worked to represent social processes, cultural norms, and societal values