Sociology Chapter 1 Questions

Who coined the term "sociology"?

Auguste Comte

Which of the following best describes how people commonly develop stereotypes?

A person perceives that a group is distinct because of a certain characteristic, then assumes that an individual from that group must have that characteristic.

Sociologist C. Wright Mills suggested that the sociological imagination is a concept that lets us think systematically about the relationship between the personal and the social. Using your sociological imagination, how might the personal problem of unemployment be tied to greater social issues?

A person will face unemployment due to a recession that resulted in fewer available job openings for job seekers.

Which of the following best describes what it means to connect individual biographies to history?

Connecting biography to history means understanding how an individual's problem is really a social problem affecting many individuals.

What do synagogues, political organizations, and schools have in common?

They are all contexts where people might gain special opportunities.

In the late 1800s, the United States went through a period of __________, which refers to a pronounced growth in factories and cities.

industrialization

Relative to other disciplines, such as economics and political science, sociology __________ engage(s) in interdisciplinary research.

is the most likely discipline to

A student notices that very few women in his university are studying to become engineers. What sort of sociological question could be based on this observation?

Despite the fact that many people say women can succeed in any field they choose, are there invisible barriers in higher education that prevent women from studying engineering?

Edward is introduced to Jessah and intends to kiss her cheek in greeting. Inadvertently, he ends up kissing her on the lips. Both Edward and Jessah laugh and feel embarrassed by this mistake. Which of the following conclusions can be drawn based on this scenario?

Edward's mistake was a violation of social norms.

Which of the following statements best reflects the relationship between norms and whether an individual "fits in" to society?

Norms are the rules about what is and isn't acceptable by our community and must be followed to "fit in."

Which of the following statements best describes why a sociological imagination is important for understanding society?

Only when we develop this ability can we start to see how larger issues in society relate to personal problems.

Which of the following statements best reflects the relationship between sociology and different units of analysis?

Sociological explanations of how the world shapes people's behavior often take into account different units of analysis.

Sociologists can ask a broad array of questions. Which of the following best identifies what these sociological questions all have in common?

Sociological questions consider how social contexts matter.

The field of sociology has spawned other areas of study. Which of the following is an area of study spawned by sociology?

gender studies

Race, gender, and religion are all examples of __________.

identities