Sociology: Week Three
________ are more concerned with how technology reinforces inequalities among communities, both within and among countries. They also look at how media typically give voice to the most powerful, and how new media might offer tools to help those who are disenfranchised.
Conflict theorists
________ see the contribution that technology and media provide to the stability of society, from facilitating leisure time to increasing productivity.
Functional theorists
Which of the following would NOT be considered a counter-culture?
Mothers Against Drunk Driving
________ are considered primary vehicles in media globalization. They are on the rise, which is resulting in more uniformity mass-media content and distribution.
Multinational corporations
The American flag is a material object that denotes the United States of America; however, there are certain connotations that many associate with the flag, like bravery and freedom. In this example, what are bravery and freedom?
Nonmaterial culture
The concept that the language we speak affects the way we think is supported by the ________.
Sapir-Whorf hypothesis
Which of these drives the development of "generation gaps" in society?
Technological advancements
A stick figure on a public bathroom door conveys a certain meaning to people in a society, therefore it is considered to be
a symbol
A nation's flag, which can express a range of meanings associated with a given culture, is:
a symbol
What is ethnocentrism?
believing that another culture does not measure up to one's own cultural norms
A sociologist conducts research into the ways that Hispanic American students are historically underprivileged in the U.S. education system. What theoretical approach is the sociologist using?
conflict theory
Communicating using languages, personal names, and jokes, are all considered examples of
cultural universalism
The fact that all societies practice some type of ceremonial rites of passage would be considered a ________
cultural universalism
When culture changes, cultural effects can take time to "catch up" to new technologies and use of resources. This is referred to as
culture lag
Rodney and Elise are U.S. students studying abroad in Italy. When they are introduced to their host families, the family members kiss them on both cheeks. When Rodney's host brother introduces himself and kisses Rodney on both cheeks, Rodney pulls back in surprise. Where he is from, unless they are romantically involved, men do not kiss one another. This is an example of ________.
culture shock
Francesca lives in an affluent neighborhood with access to the latest technology. Her cousin, Amelia, lives out in a rural area with limited cell service and without a home computer. The distinctions between Francesca and her cousin can be considered part of the
digital divide
Ancient and medieval physicians had long believed in some version of the germ theory of disease, and of course germs had in fact always existed. However, the existence of these microorganisms could not be proven until the invention of the microscope. In this scenario the suddenly verifiable awareness of germs would be considered a(n) ________.
discovery
While people had long been using a compass (since 200 B.C.E.), scientists were unsure as to how and why it worked. It wasn't until William Gilbert experimented with models of the earth in the year 1600 that he realized the earth's iron core made it have magnetic properties that enabled the compass to work. In this scenario the suddenly verifiable awareness of magnetism would be considered a(n) ________
discovery
The major difference between invention and discovery is:
discovery involves finding something that already exist, but invention involves the creation of something new.
Making an evaluation of another culture and judging it as less than one's own is called
ethnocentrism.
The belief that someone's culture is inferior to one's own culture is called
ethnocentrism.
________ would suggest that gender stereotyping is one reason for science and technology gender gap or the shortage of women in STEM careers
feminist theorists
Media consolidation results in fewer owners of media outlets, which results in global access to information, but also
fewer dissenting opinions or diverse viewpoints.
Informal cultural expectations that have no moral underpinnings, but help make our shared lives run smoothly, like waiting in line, are considered ________.
folkways
________ would be interested in examining the commercial, entertainment, and other life-impacting functions of media and technology
functional theorists
What theoretical perspective views society as having a system of interdependent inherently connected parts?
functionalism
When all media sources report a simplified version of the environmental impact of hydraulic fracturing, with no effort to convey the hard science and complicated statistical data behind the story, ________ is probably occurring.
gatekeeping
Some jobs today advertise in multinational markets and permit telecommuting in lieu of working from a primary location. This broadening of the job market and the way that jobs are performed can be attributed to:
globalization
Attending the opera or a ballet might be considered to be
high culture
Social groupings are often considered in terms of their membership in a generational cohort, as we've seen with identifiable subcultures like "hipsters" and more explicitly with countercultures like the "Beat Generation." To more closely examine how ideas and practices are historically transmitted between generations, Sociologist William F. Ogburn has coined the term "Culture lag" to describe
how older generations might take a long time to accept the ways that a new material technology has affected culture.
While technological globalization increases, some students are left behind, with little access to technology or the information that comes with it. This is called the ________.
knowledge gap
Yesenia, who was born and raised in the United States, loves to visit her great-grandparents in Honduras and especially enjoys eating lots of baleada and admiring the traditional dress and jewelry of her older relatives. These things are examples of
material culture
A police officer's uniform is an example of ________, which is meant to symbolize the rule of law, which can be described as an example of ________.
material culture; nonmaterial culture
Catholic rosary beads are an example of ________, which believers utilize to recite prayers, which in turn invite divine assistance for the faithful. The Catholic faith is an example of ________.
material culture; nonmaterial culture
The biggest difference between two types of norms, mores and folkways, is that
mores are primary linked to mortality, whereas folkways are primarily linked to commonplace practices within a culture.
Lyons (2005) suggests that ________ are the primary vehicle of media globalization, as they control global mass-media content and distribution.
multinationals corporations
The American flag is an object that denotes the United States of America; however, there are certain connotations that many associate with the flag, like bravery and freedom. In this example, what are bravery and freedom?
nonmaterial culture
The attitudes, ideas, and beliefs of a society are considered its ________, while the objects and belongings of a particular group are considered ________.
nonmaterial culture; material culture
Saying "please" when we ask for something would be considered one of the ________ that guide our social behavior.
norms
A parent secretly monitoring the babysitter through the use of GPS, site blocker, and nanny cam is a good example of:
panoptic surveillance
A cultural universal is (are)
patterns or traits that are globally common to all societies.
The patterns of cultural experiences and attitudes that exist in mainstream society are called ________
pop culture
A process of imposing positive and negative sanctions, or rewards and punishments, on an individual to enforce conformity to a community's rules is/are
social control
The existence of social norms, both formal and informal, is one of the main things that inform ________, otherwise known as a way to encourage and perpetuate conformity.
social control
________ is the process of imposing positive and negative sanctions, or rewards and punishments, on an individual to enforce conformity to a community's rules.
social control
The use of Facebook to create an online persona by only posting images that match your ideal self exemplifies the ________ that can occur in forms of new media.
soil construction of reality
Modern-day hipsters are an example of ________.
subculture
The Occupy Wall Street protests of 2011 grew to be an international movement. Supporters believe that the economic disparity between the highest economic class and the mid-to-lower economic classes is growing at an exponentially alarming rate. A sociologist who studies that movement by examining the interpersonal relationships between members at Occupy camps would most likely use what theoretical approach?
symbolic interactionism
Miriam, a sociologist, sees culture as something dynamic and fluid. She understands that how people interpret meaning from the spaces around them, and spends her time devoted to studying how architecture influences culture. She would be considered a ________
symbolic interactionist
________ would be concerned that media create and spread symbols that become the basis for our shared understanding of society
symbolic interactionist theorists
Gestures, signs, signals, and even words that help people understand the world around them by expressing understandable meanings within the society are called
symbols
Technological globalization is speeded in large part by ________, the spread of technology across borders.
technological diffusion
When Japanese scientists develop a new vaccine for swine flu and offer that technology to U.S. pharmaceutical companies, ________ has taken place.
technological diffusion
________ tend to be more pro-technology, while ________ view technology as a symbol of the coldness of modern life.
technophiles; Luddites
What is symbolic interactionism?
the view that is most concerned with the face-to-face interactions between members of society
In many languages, Spanish and German for example, nouns have genders. The idea that a gendered noun might cause a native Spanish or German speaker to understand and describe that noun differently is explained by
the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis
In some languages, people do not use terms like "left" or "right" or to talk about orientation, but instead use directions like north, south, east, and west. Those who speak languages use the compass points to describe location are better equipped to always know where they are relative to the cardinal directions. This supports the concept of ________
the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis
If a group's language did not have a word for the feeling of remorse, then its members would not be able to grasp or express the idea that one might regret having behaved in an immoral or harmful way, and might wish to make amends for this behavior. This lack of comprehension is explained by:
the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis.
The notion that people cannot feel or experience something that they do not have a word for can be explained by ________.
the Sapir-Whorf theory
Which of the following is not a risk of media globalization?
the creation of local monopolies
Children in developing nations have little to no daily access to computers and the Internet, while children in most developed nations are constantly exposed to this technology. This is an example of:
the digital divide
When it comes to media and technology, a functionalist would focus on:
the way that various forms of media socialize users
Sociologists classify some voluntary groupings as subcultures or countercultures. While both exist within the larger society, we can say that countercultures are identifiable because
they understand their group identity as resting on a conscious opposition to mainstream society's rules.
Most cultures have been found to identify jokes as a sign of understanding and deploying humor. Likewise, most cultures recognize music in some form. Music and humor are examples of cultural ________ .
universalism
Culturally-defined standards that serve as broad guidelines for what is good and just in society are called
values.
Functionalists
view society as a system in which all parts work—or function—together to create society as a whole.
The belief that one's culture is inferior to another culture is called ________.
xenocentrism
