Sociology 101 Quiz Study

With the recent Occupy Wall Street Movement, the people of the United States keep hearing about the top 1%. How much of the United State's wealth rests in the hands of the wealthiest top 1% of people?

a. 1 / 3

When Jeanette's parents find out her twin brother, Rex, has been sexually active, they tell him to use protection. When they found out Jeanette has been sexually active, they ground her for a month. This is an example of:

a. A double standard → the concept that prohibits premarital sexual intercourse for women but allows it for men

When thinking about gender, Jeff sees men as the dominant social group and women the subordinate group. Exploitation of the subordinate group has created social problems, such as high rates of poverty among single mothers. Which sociological perspective best fit Jeff's views?

a. Conflict Theory → a theory that looks at society as a competition for limited resources

Hope is desperate for the new designer purse that she saw while window shopping at her local mall. She knew every girl in school would covet her bag and wish to be like her. When she walked in, she whipped out her credit card, and purchased the $5,000 bag. This kind of purchasing is called:

a. Conspicuous consumption → the act of buying and using products to make a statement about one's social standing

According to Erik Erikson's theory on aging, what is the final hurdle that most people who reach old age must overcome?

a. Despair

How do elderly widows and widowers react to death of their significant other?

a. Differently: elderly widows often do not remarry while elderly widowers do.

Cate is the daughter of a Senator and the former CEO of a Fortune 500 company. Harry grew up on a farm, tilling the land for a living. They are planning a June wedding. They will have a(n)___________ marriage.

a. Exogamous → unions of spouses from different social categories

Cedric's uncle believes that racism and discrimination have made a positive impact on society - but only in the lives of those who are members of the dominant group. Which sociological perspective is Cedric's uncle coming from?

a. Functionalism

What is the significance of the Kinsey scale?

a. It is a definitive method for determining someone's sexual orientation.

What is a dependency ratio?

a. It is the comparison of working people to non-working people.

Some conflict theorists ascribe to the idea that as time and technology move forward, elderly people are left behind and they lose social standing and power. Which specific theory does this describe?

a. Modernization theory → a theory which suggests that the primary cause of the elderly losing power and influence in society are the parallel forces of industrialization and modernization.

Which of the following is an example of racial steering?

a. Real estate agents directing white clients to look for housing in certain neighorbhoods, and non-white clients to others.

A symbolic interactionist may choose to study senior centers, and other groups of elderly people. Which theory might they find most useful for their study?

a. Subculture of aging theory → a theory that focuses on the shared community created by the elderly when they are excluded (due to age), voluntarily or involuntarily, from participating in other groups

Elizabeth Kübler-Ross's book On Death and Dying added much content knowledge to which field?

a. Thanatology → the systematic study of death and dying

Which group within the United States has been stereotyped as the model minority?

a. The Asian American community

What is the most significant threat to the relatively high standard of living people are accustomed to in the United States?

a. The decline of the middle class

Adolf Hitler blaming Germany's pre-war problems on the Jewish population is an example of

a. The scapegoat theory → a theory that suggests that the dominant group will displace its unfocused aggression onto a subordinate group

What is the purpose of queer theory?

a. To question the ways society perceives and experiences sex, gender, and sexuality.

Chase grew up wanting to wear his sister's dresses instead of his brother's pants and button up shirts. When Chase turns 18, he decides to begin living as woman, though he's still only sexually attracted to women. He decides he doesn't want to undergo surgery. Chase is:

a. Transgender

The majority of American citizens are descendants of immigrants?

a. True

True or false: A person's sex, as determined by their biology, does not always correspond with their gender.

a. True

Since the social classes in the United States do not have any clear boundaries, how is a sociologist supposed to determine whether their subjects are in the upper class or the upper-middle class?

a. Upper class is often defined as having control over one's life and the lives of people around you, while the upper-middle class is often defined as having control only over one's own life.

A person's position in a country's social stratification is determined by:

a. Wealth, power, income, race, education

When your mother-in-law fell and broke her hip at age 72, you were concerned because she is still ________________

a. Young-old

Accusing people of DWE (driving while elderly) is considered a type of:

b. Ageism → discrimination based on age

Angela believes that race relations in her country are poor because the ruling class has enacted various laws and regulations to keep other groups from achieving equality. With which sociological perspective does Angela's view best align?

b. Conflict theory

What causes some caretakers to abuse their elderly charges?

b. Depression

In 2010, what did controversial Senate Bill 1070 propose, causing a series of protests and legal battles?

b. During a lawful stop, detention, or arrest, Arizona police officers may establish the immigration statutes of anyone they suspect may be here illegally.

Which of the following is NOT true about old age?

b. Elderly people lose all appetite and drive for sex.

It was time for Oli to marry. He had finished school and was starting a job. His parents chose a bride for him whose parents had the same amount of wealth and belonged to the same class as they did. Oli and his bride will have a(n) _________ marriage.

b. Endogamous → unions of people within the same social category

True or False: Only the dominant racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups have privilege.

b. False

What is the first agent of socialization?

b. Family

What seems to be the key (although not the rule) to upward social mobility?

b. How much education you have.

No one in the United States can watch the news without hearing about the struggle over Social Security. Which approach has been used in the past to avoid the program's collapse?

b. Increase the age at which someone can start collecting Social Security.

What is meant by the "motherhood penalty"?

b. It is a belief that women's qualities as mothers conflict with competent professional qualities.

What is particularly unique about the United States middle class?

b. It is broken into two subcategories: upper and lower middle class

Asad's first grade class is diverse: there are two students from Korea, five students from South America, two students from the United States, three students from Kuwait, a student from Mexico, two students from England, and five students from western Europe. Asad's class is:

b. Pluralistic

While visiting your dad at his nursing home, you see an elderly lady sitting at the table with a full tray of food in front of her. She is in a wheel chair and seems depressed. You conclude that she is experiencing:

b. Secondary aging → aging that occurs due to controllable factors like exercise and diet

Peggy accepts a job offer as an advertising copywriter. Her boss immediately assigns her campaigns for products such as makeup and cleaning products. Peggy asks for different clients, but her boss tells her she should stick to what she knows best. Peggy is experiencing:

b. Sexism

One main issue in studying global social inequality is:

b. Social inequality is relative and therefore, difficult to compare across cultures

Tasha believes that gender is about the division of labor in the family. In the pre-industrial era, men were the hunter-gatherers and bread-winners, and women were keepers of the home. After World War II, changes in the family structure allowed women to become breadwinners also, altering the roles of the family. From what sociological perspective do Tasha's thoughts come?

b. Structural Functionalism → The way each part of society functions together to contribute to the functioning of the whole.

In which country is sex education required in public schools?

b. Sweden

The term doing gender can be defined as:

b. When people perform tasks based upon the gender assigned to them by society and, in turn, themselves.

In the United States, which race would be considered the dominant group?

b. White

Mohit spent his days combing through garbage in Mumbai, India with his brothers and sisters. Sometimes he would find food, or something to sell for money. He never tried to overcome his lower-class status because he had seen his friends try and fail. So, he accepted his fate, and tried to live life as best he could in a closed society. Mohit is an example of someone living under

c. A case system → a system in which people are born into a social standing that they will retain their entire lives

The term sexual orientation can be defined as:

c. A person's emotional and sexual attraction to a particular sex.

1967's Supreme Court case Loving v. Virginia, a case which legally allowed interracial marriage, is an example of

c. Amalgamation → the process by which a minority group and a majority group combine to form a new group

What is the basic idea behind disengagement theory?

c. As people age, they generally withdraw from all forms of society.

When Wendy's sorority sisters discover that Wendy is a lesbian, they hold a secret meeting to decide if Wendy should still be allowed to pledge. A handful of the sisters vote "no." This is an example of:

c. Homophobia

For the first time in U.S. history, people over 50 years old make up the majority of the incarcerated population. Which of the following is not a reason for this development?

c. Increasing incidences and prosecutions of insurance and similar crimes by older people.

Charlotte was born to a lower class family in rural Pennsylvania. After taking a job in the mailroom of a large corporate office, Charlotte is slowly promoted through the ranks and becomes CEO of the company by the age of 50. Compared to her parents, Charlotte's story demonstrates what type of social stratification?

c. Intragenerational mobility → changes in a person's social mobility over the course of their lifetime.

Which of the following is NOT an example of a stereotype?

c. Isaiah cooking his girlfriend a meat-free dinner because she is a vegetarian.

Jenny is given a doll for 2nd birthday, while her brother, Tyrone, is given a fire truck. This is an example of gender:

c. Socialization → he process wherein people come to understand societal norms and expectations, to accept society's beliefs, and to be aware of societal values

The Davis-Moore Thesis states:

c. That the more society values a particular profession, the more the people in that profession will make.

The world population is growing and aging. In an effort to collectively deal with some of the challenges facing the elderly, several countries gathered at a summit. Which plan was the result of this summit?

c. The Madrid Plan → an internationally coordinated effort to create comprehensive social policies to address the needs of the worldwide aging population.

Speedy Gonzalez was a popular cartoon character, but is widely considered an inappropriate stereotype. Many children were raised watching Speedy Gonzalez cartoons, unaware that such stereotypes are negative. This is a product of:

c. The culture of prejudice → the theory that prejudice is embedded in our culture

Sociologists have adopted the phrase, "the graying of the United States." What does this phrase mean?

c. The greatest part of the population is reaching the age of 65 and entering old age

The term assimilation is defined by the text as

c. The process by which a minority individual or group takes on the characteristics of the dominant culture.

Which three states allow some form of physician-assisted suicide?

c. Washington State, Oregon, and Montana

Elisa graduated from college with a double major and was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa society. She was then offered a job in New York where she worked 12 hours a day and produced excellent results. Within two years she had over 100 employees working under her. Elisa's hard work was rewarded with a raise and a bonus. This form of promotion is based on the principles of:

c.) A meritocracy → an ideal system in which personal effort—or merit—determines social standing

Which of the following is NOT a product of gender stereotyping?

d. A father is buying a basketball hoop for his daughter's eighth birthday.

The term sexuality is defined by the text as:

d. A person's capacity for sexual feelings.

Which factor is considered when evaluating someone's standard of living?

d. All of the above -Income -Employment -Class

Gender Dysphoria is:

d. Distress felt by some people whose gender identity doesn't align with their sex assigned a birth.

In 2008 the United States, as well as the rest of the world, felt the effects of the recession. After the collapse of the housing market, people lost their jobs and they quit spending money. Many people could not afford their mortgages anymore and their homes went into foreclosure. For many people, it was a time of ________

d. Downward mobility → A lowering of one's social class.

When elderly people are considered elders and leaders of a group of people, they are functioning under a(n):

d. Gerontocracy → a type of social structure wherein the power is held by a society's oldest members

Which is a social issue that many elderly females discover they are victims of?

d. Having their medical ailments trivialized by doctors.

GNI PPP, or gross national income divided by purchasing power parity, helps measure

d. Karl Marx

Whose work do conflict theorists rely on to help form their arguments surrounding social stratification?

d. Karl Marx

Arizona Senate Bill 1070, often referred to colloquially as the "papers, please" law, was aimed widely at those of

d. Mexican descent

Symbolic interactionists have come to the conclusion that

d. Most people only socialize with people in their same social class.

According to the social construction of race school of thought, race is:

d. Not biologically identifiable

The term discrimination is defined in the text as:

d. Prejudiced action against a group of people.

What is the difference between sex and gender?

d. Sex refers to physical or physiological differences between males and females, while gender is the extent to which one identifies as being either masculine or feminine.

Max believes that most people's racial beliefs are based on images conveyed in popular media since many people never meet members of certain races for themselves. Max's perspective is:

d. Symbolic interactionist

Which historical event was greatly responsible for global stratification as we see it today?

d. The Industrial Revolution

Biological determinism is

d. The belief that men and women behave differently due to differences in their biology

The term segregation is defined in the text as:

d. The physical separation of two groups, particularly in residence, but also in workspace and social functions.

Your grandmother is still very active and loves to get her friends together for bridge on Friday. They always talk about all those old-old people down at the senior center who like to play bingo. About how old are the old-old senior citizens to whom they are referring?

h. 85