SOCY 101 Chapter 1 reading quiz questions

What historical events convinced Auguste Comte that society needed to be guided by thinkers who understood social laws?

the French Revolution and the instability that followed it

What is the sociological imagination?

the ability to see the relationship between individual experiences and the larger society

Researcher Christine Williams looked at patterns of occupational sex segregation by examining the ways large-scale social structures create the constraints within which individuals live their lives. Her work would be characterized as what kind of sociology?

macrosociology

What is one of the weaknesses of being an everyday actor when it comes to understanding everyday life?

making assumptions ad failing to investigate or validate those assumptions

Symbolic interactionism argues that people act toward things on the basis of their meaning. According to this perspective, how does meaning arise?

meaning is negotiated through interaction with others

Sarah believes the ability of science and technology to create progress will solve problems and improve everyone's life. Sarah would best be described as a

modernist

Durkheim theorized that the rapidly changing conditions of modern life lead to anomie. What is anomie?

normlessness or a loss of connection with the world

What is a sociologist's theoretical perspective if they argue that we have seen the "dissolution of master narratives or metanarratives"?

postmodernism

If someone makes money exclusively by selling their own labor, then they must be a member of what social group?

prolitariat

C. Wright Mills was critical of social science and worked to connect the academic side of sociology to more tangible social debates of the time. Mills was convinced that sociology had something to offer everyone, not just academics. For these reasons, which term best describes C. Wright Mills?

public intellectual

The divorce rate has steadily increased over time, and now more than a quarter of all marriages end within the first four years. What sort of factors would C. Wright Mills suggest investigating to explain this increase?

structural

After studying the indigenous peoples of Australia, ________ concluded that any form of religion is united in its definition of what is considered to be ________ and ________.

Émile Durkheim; sacred; profane

According to Émile Durkheim, what is the basis for the bonds created through organic solidarity in industrialized societies?

difference interdependence and individual rights

According to Marx, the primary tool for the oppression of the lower social classes in modern society is

industrial capitalism

Macrosociology is an approach that

investigate large scale structures to see how they effect individual lives.

There is a close relationship between sociology and the other social sciences. Why does sociology still exist as a separate discipline given how much overlap there is between these fields?

All the other social sciences are more specialized, but sociology is a field that considers a huge intellectual territory.

How was Harriet Martineau similar to W.E.B. DuBois?

Both were intrigued by America's democratic promise, but disappointed in its hypocritical injustices.

Why is the term "queer" used to describe queer theory?

It emphasizes the importance of difference and rejects a single gay or lesbian identity.

Identify what is not an example of postmodernism in popular culture.

Liberty University

Why did Durkheim, in The Elementary Forms of Religious Life, argue that religion was a powerful source of social solidarity?

Religion reinforced collective bonds and cultivated shared moral values.

What is the relationship between the self and society according to symbolic interactionism?

The self is shaped by society, but society is also shaped by the self

Structural functionalist theory is concerned with the ways in which structures contribute to the stability of society. What is a structure?

a social institution that is stable over time and helps meet the needs of society

Although she made contributions to sociology, Jane Addams is perhaps best remembered for her embrace of praxis, which means that she

acted on her intellectual convictions in practical ways

Jane Addams was an early advocate of applied sociology. This means that she did not just do research but that she also

addressed social problems through activity in the communities she researched.

Émile Durkheim's study on suicide found that not only did suicide rates increase when the economy slumped; they also increased when the economy boomed. Which of Durkheim's concepts explains why both positive and negative economic conditions could increase suicide rates?

anomie

Is the microsociological or macrosociological perspective more useful in analyzing social phenomena?

both are useful in different ways

Max Weber believed that modern industrialized societies were characterized by which of the following institutions?

bureacracies

________ is the economic system that emerged during the Industrial Revolution.

capitalism

According to the theoretical position developed by Karl Marx, what is the catalyst for social change?

conflict between social groups

Critical race theory is associated with which of the major theoretical perspectives or schools of thought in sociology?

conflict theory

Postmodernists are interested in ________, or taking apart and examining stories and theories.

deconstruction

A dishonest judge must pretend to be an honest judge, but even an honest judge must play the role of "honest judge" for an audience in order to interact and work with others effectively. This performance is an example of what theoretical perspective?

dramaturgy

Regardless of their various approaches to social phenomena, what are all sociologist looking to accomplish with their work?

illuminating the connection between individual and society

In 2007, the richest 1% of the American population owned 35% of the country's wealth, and the bottom 80% of the population owned 14%. Karl Marx would call this

social inequality

Which social theory focuses on micro-level interactions?

social interactionism

According to C. Wright Mills, what is one quality of mind that all great sociologists possess?

sociological imagination

Who must the social analyst take the perspective of in order to verify that which the everyday actor might just accept or assume to be true?

stranger

Which of the following theories focuses on how our behaviors are dependent on the ways we interpret, make sense of, and define ourselves, others, and social situations?

symbolic interactionism

You have just begun studying unemployment rates in a city with fifty million people, of which fifteen million are unemployed. If you are using your sociological imagination, what is your first consideration?

the economic and political structures of society

According to Karl Marx, class consciousness is developed

the lower class regognizing how things work and challenging those in charge

What was Marx criticizing when he said that religion is "the opiate of the masses"?

the use of religion by the ruling class to surpress the working class

Symbolic interactionism argues that people act toward things on the basis of their meaning. According to this perspective, how does meaning arise?

through interaction with others

The theory of positivism contrasted earlier religious traditions that attempted to determine the ultimate cause or source of reality. Why did Auguste Comte develop it?

to identify laws, such as those in mathematics and physics, that describe the behavior of a particular reality