SOC352 Quiz 2

Earl goes to an international home design chain store in his area to find creative ideas for his own living spaces. Although Earl visits the store today because he wants to buy a new couch, he enjoys walking around the showroom to see what home design ideas may be sparked in addition to shopping the couch section. He follows the arrows on the floor that direct customers through the full shopping experience. The fact that the store dictates the directions for customers to follow by setting a clear path that is hard to deviate from fits with which McDonaldization component?

Control

In the early 2010s, a major technology company invented and brought to market smart eyeglasses, where some early adopters bought and wore the glasses. However, the mass appeal of the product did not surface at that time, as the public was not ready to wear the technology on their faces. Others were uncomfortable with the idea of someone recording them through their eyewear. Which of the following best represents this example of the technology not being widely spread through society?

Cultural inertia

One drawback that concerns people when deciding on whether to use an AI personal assistant or a smart TV is that the technology is "always on" and listening to conversations within the intimate setting of a home. The uncomfortable feeling that some people may get is because of ___, where the technological advances have moved quicker than the norms and beliefs surrounding them.

Cultural lag

Is the following example a discovery or an invention? Helium, such as that used to inflate balloons

Discovery

Cameron has created a career for himself by blogging about new technology gadgets shortly after they successfully arrive to the market. Cameron prides himself on learning about new technologies and reviewing them before the majority of people try them out. He has a large following on social media who respect his product reviews so much that they read what he has to share before they purchase any new gadgets. According to Rogers, which type of adopter best fits for Cameron?

Early adopter

True or False. Weber saw society moving toward a more traditional way of living rather than one focused on efficiencies.

False

irrationality of rationality

For instance, when we automate customer service phone lines and the user has to listen to a menu of options, press numbers through several steps to get to a live person, and can end up having to start over, this is an irrationality of rationality. It ends up taking more work and more time from the customer.

Which of Lenski's societies is the most equitable?

Hunting and gathering

Which society type is characterized by large numbers of people moving to the cities and working in factories?

Industrial

Is the following example a discovery or an invention? The jet engine used for flying aircraft

Invention

Trevor has had his smart phone for a few years, which has been working fine for him. He doesn't have any economic or philosophical concerns with updating to a new phone, yet he is usually more skeptical than his friends of new technologies. Unfortunately, Trevor's phone has decreased in performance, so much so that he can no longer access data without waiting for several minutes at a time. Trevor has now decided that it is time to buy a new phone that most of his friends who typically buy new products sooner than him have used for a few months now. He has done his research and is willing to jump in knowing that the phone's reviews are overwhelmingly positive now that all the bugs have been fixed and quite a bit of the majority of people are happily using the technology at this point. According to Rogers, Trevor would best fit as which type of adopter?

Late majority

Ride-sharing companies disrupted the taxi industry by creating a new approach to ride hailing. Home-sharing companies have disrupted the hotel industry by offering tools for everyday people to rent out their homes or portions of them on a short-term basis. These innovations based on a sharing economy operate outside of regulations historically in effect for the hotel and taxi services. One consequence of the sharing economy, especially as it relates to short-term house rentals is the buying up of housing by investors to use as short-term rentals that price out families in the neighborhood. While the innovation allows individuals to capitalize on new business ventures, a lack of community can be created if several houses in a neighborhood have no permanent residents. Which of the following explanations best fits with a sociological understanding of the social impact of disruptive innovations?

New disruptive technologies such as ride-sharing or short-term housing rentals alter social institutions.

Recently, a technology company demonstrated their computerized personal assistant's ability to call to make an appointment, yet people unassumingly talked to the assistant thinking it was human. There was some backlash because people felt moral concerns about the technology becoming too human-like. Which of the following explanations best fits with a sociological understanding of the social impact of disruptive innovations?

New technologies can create moral dilemmas as people and institutions adapt and adjust to them.

Pamela is on a road trip and stops in a large town to refill the gas tank and grab a quick bite to eat. She sees a sign for a well known fast-food chain restaurant and another one for a small, local hamburger stand that she does not recognize. Pamela ultimately decides to drive through fast-food chain restaurant because she is certain she will know what her order will taste like, and she does not feel confident about the food from the local restaurant that is not a chain. Pamela's choice to go to the place that will provide a comfortable familiarity fits best with which of the McDonaldization components?

Predictability

True or False. Modernization occurs by the creation of new, efficient ways of living.

True

True or False. Weber theorized that every aspect of life would become so rigid that people would be stuck moving from one formalized structure to another.

True

True or False. While social change can happen in any direction, modernization refers to progress in society.

True

Sustaining technologies

are new improvements of established products

disruptive technologies

completely new innovations that hold a different value than existing products

hunting and gathering societies

groups of nomadic people who had limited technologies for food and material production

horticultural societies

groups of people learned how to cultivate the land

rationalization

he process where we move away from traditional ways of being and choose the most efficient path

material culture

in that it is a tangible item for people to use

discovery

is a new finding of something that has always been here, such as Galileo's discoveries about the moon and planets or Fleming's discovery of penicillin

Design thinking

is defined as both a mindset and a process for creating new solutions

postindustrial society

is one where manufacturing moves to other areas in the world who are not yet at the same stage or is automated, and workers in postindustrial society are valued for knowledge creation and service

technology

is simply new knowledge, skills, and tools that are used by people, which means that technology is part of culture. Technology does not only refer to gadgets such as iPhones or FitBits, but instead, it encompasses new scientific discoveries and inventions

modernization

is specifically the advancement or progress of society

automation

is that technology operates on its own and replaces human labor.

invention

is the creation of something new

McDonaldization

is the process that uses a fast-food model in increasing segments of society Efficiency. This is simply the optimal way to get from one point to another. Going from point A to point B in the quickest way is the most efficient. Calculability. Quantity is the measure that is emphasized rather than quality. Calculations such as profit and time are indicators of how good an item or service is. Predictability. Products and services are predictable from one experience to another. People can rest assured knowing what to expect when they use a good or service. Control. Humans must navigate through the system in a specific way that is chosen for them.

social stratification

ranking based on a person's status in society

technology

refers to new knowledge or ways of doing something

nonmaterial culture

refers to nonmaterial components such as cultural values, beliefs, and behaviors

cultural lag

the maladjustment period of time that the nonmaterial culture lags behind the new material culture

industrial society

was created through technological inventions, such as machines to make textiles that replaced humans and innovations in ways to power the machines through steam engines, water, oil, and the like

Agrarian societies

welcomed large social change with innovations such as animal plows

innovation

which is the action of creating the new knowledge or tool. For instance, one major innovation for Apple was the invention of the technological tool, the iPhone