Sociology Chapter 6

Primary Group

1. high level of intimacy 2. strong sense of unity and commitment

In the United States today, about --- of the population is obese, and this number is ----. A 2007 study titled "The Spread of Obesity in a Large Social Network Over 32 Years" showed that obesity was ----.

1. one-third 2. rising 2. contagious

Secondary Group

1. role-play by members 2. impersonal relationships 3. instrumental in purpose

calculability

A medical office keeps track of the number of patients each doctor sees per day.

Which statement represents Max Weber's prediction about power and bureaucracies?

Bureaucracies tend to become hierarchical, with power concentrated at the top.

What are the defining characteristics of an organization?

1. Its members have come together for a common purpose. 2. There is a clear distinction between those who belong and those who do not.

According to Simmel, which of the following statements are true about dyads?

1. The relationship in a dyad tends to be intense. 2. Dyads tend to be unstable.

Which sociological theorist first placed great emphasis on the innate differences between dyads and triads?

George Simmel

in-group

Ku Klux Klan

What makes a formal organization different from an informal one?

A formal organization is designed to achieve its objectives.

According to Charles Horton Cooley's theory, identify each of the following as either a primary or secondary group.

1. a close-knit group of adult friends who have been together since middle school 2. a married couple

Characteristic of Triads

1. involves the role of mediator 2. can sustain the withdrawal of one person for a longer time without dissolving

Which statement best describes the Internet in its earliest years?

Only an elite few individuals with special skills and resources had access.

Which statement describes how Christakis and Fowler, the researchers who published "The Spread of Obesity in a Large Social Network over 32 Years," answered their key question: How do one's friends affect one's weight?

People develop their ideas about acceptable body weight by looking at the people around them (the power of social norms).

What overall conclusion can be drawn from experiments like the one Salganik, Dodds, and Watts conducted using a Web-based artificial music market?

People's behavior is heavily influenced by random factors at work in their social groups.

In the United States, across income level, education, and race, the digital divide is narrowing.

True

uniformity

Two hotel chains in a corporate partnership advertise "Different names, same great service."

social category

all unemployed males in North Carolina

out-group

non-whites

social group

the members of a Masonic Lodge in Los Angeles

According to Simmel, which of the following statements are true about triads?

1. Triads tend to be more stable than dyads. 2. In a triad, alliances are possible. 3. The relationships in triads tend to be less intense.

Social Group

1. students at your university 2. employees of the Target corporation

Why do sociologists think it is important to understand why people tend to conform to group pressure?

Conformity can lead to destructive behavior.

John Meyer and Brian Rowan argue that in organizations officially governed by formal rules, much of the work is usually done with minimal regard for the rules. What, then is the role of the rules?

The rules serve to legitimize the work being done.

Identify the activities Michel Foucault would consider to be a form of surveillance.

1. Prison guards use cameras to watch over the inmate dining area. 2. After two bus drivers engage in an altercation, an entry is made in each driver's record.

Identify each statement about networks as either correct or incorrect.

Every social group represents a network.

social aggregate

everyone at Chicago O'Hare Airport at noon on a given day

reference group

WASPs

A corporation that is both profitable and ethical meets Max Weber's definition of an "ideal type."

False

Bureaucracy is firmly established as the final stage in the development of modern formal organizations.

False

What does Manuel Castells mean by a "network enterprise"?

a corporation enmeshed in a network of close working relationships with other companies

Identify the following predictions as either consistent with George Ritzer's "McDonaldization" theory or not.

1. People will rely on robots because robots are consistent and can be controlled. 2. Society will move toward more standardization and regulation.

Quinn is on a high school volleyball team. If he wanted to assess his performance as a player, which of the following could serve as a reference group?

1. Another school's volleyball team 2. Quinn's volleyball team

Sociologists Salganik, Dodds, and Watts conducted an experiment using a Web-based artificial music market. Place the stages of the experiment in order from first to last.

1. More than 14,000 participants were recruited and divided into groups. 2. Participants of the experimental group were able to see what other site users were listening to. 3. Ratings for the same songs were found to differ significantly between the control group and the experimental group. 4. It was concluded that people's tastes are influenced by the tastes they see others display.

In which ways are late-modern organizations using information and communication technology to change their members' working conditions?

1. The workplace is becoming less centralized. 2. Workers are able to make more efficient use of their time. 3. Hierarchies are becoming flatter and more flexible.

Identify the characteristics of an ideal (i.e., pure) bureaucracy, according to Max Weber.

1. There is a strict hierarchy of authority. 2. For officials, their work is their career.

Stanley Milgram's experiment about people's obedience to authority involved a carefully orchestrated sequence of events. Place the events in order from first to last.

1. When a "learner" failed at a memorization task, a "teacher" was told to administer a mild (15 V) electric shock. 2. Successive failures by the "learner" caused the announced shock voltage to be increased. 3. When the "teacher" tried to quit, he would be told that "the experiment requires that you continue." 4. The "learner" fell silent, giving the impression he had suffered a heart attack. 5. The "teacher" was allowed to see that the "learner" was unhurt.

Identify the benefits of workplace computerization for less-skilled workers.

1. easier casual interaction with co-workers and friends 2. partial relief from burdens of mundane, repetitive tasks

Identify the benefits of workplace computerization for less-skilled workers?

1. easier casual interaction with co-workers and friends 2. partial relief from burdens of mundane, repetitive tasks

Identify the factors that have been shown to contribute to obesity.

1. having overweight friends 2. biological factors 3. lack of healthy food options in one's community

In the context of Charles Horton Cooley's theory of groups, classify each attribute as belonging to either primary or secondary groups.

1. high level of intimacy 2. strong sense of unity and commitment

Identify each personal characteristic as either more or less likely to be a factor in online social interactions, compared to face-to-face interactions.

1. hobbies 2. political views 3. personal history

Identify the disadvantages of telecommuting for the average worker.

1. lack of face-to-face contact with co-workers 2. increased distractions due to home responsibilities 3. increased stress for female workers

Compared to bureaucratic organizations, ---- organizations have two advantages. First, they foster the flow of ---- by facilitating direct communication that does not have to go through channels. And second, they promote ---- by permitting innovation and spontaneity.

1. networked 2. information 3. creativity

The word bureaucracy, from words meaning "---" and "----," refers to the governing of organizations and societies by a cadre of ---. According to ---, although bureaucracy often stifles creativity, it is necessary for the administration of ----.

1. office 2. rule 3. full-time professionals 4. Max Weber 5. large-scale social systems

Characteristic of Dyads

1. the highest degree of intimacy, and highest degree of conflict 2. where we are mostly likely to share our deepest secrets

Classify each relation as either formal or informal.

1. the relation between a clerk and the clerk's supervisor 2. the relation between a company president and the chair of the board of directors

Social Aggregate

1. the residents of Miami, Florida 2. everyone at Grand Central Station on a Tuesday

Why, according to Max Weber, is the use of written language important for the function of a modern organization?

A modern organization needs written rules that govern its operation. A modern organization needs to maintain written records.

efficiency

A restaurant keeps the dining area heavily air conditioned so patrons do not feel cozy and inclined to linger.

control

An auto maintenance shop has a website where car owners make appointments without speaking to a human scheduler.

What is the principle that Robert Michels calls "the iron law of oligarchy" for bureaucratic organizations?

Any large organization inevitably becomes an oligarchy.

In Christakis and Fowler's 32-year study of the correlation of obesity in pairs of people who were part of the same social networks, which of the following conclusions is correct?

Based off their friends weight

Solomon Asch studied people's tendency to conform to group norms by staging gatherings where members of a group were asked to compare a line to three reference lines, as shown here. What did Asch find?

Correct choiceMany people are reluctant to be the sole dissenting voice in a group.

What is the main way in which the system of discipline and indoctrination at West Point relates to the later battlefield performance of West Point graduates?

The graduates are driven by a desire not to let down their fellow soldiers.

For which reasons do groups larger than triads tend to be more stable than dyads or triads?

The larger a group is, the less it is affected by the loss of a few members. Large groups can more easily be socially self-sufficient.

There are good reasons to think that the iron law of oligarchy is less iron than Robert Michels believes.

True

using large, open spaces with many work stations for low-level workers

facilitates supervision and surveillance by management

In Stanley Milgram's classic experiment about people's obedience to authority, what fraction of subjects were obedient to the point of administering shocks they had been told were lethal?

over half

locating related work stations in close physical proximity with one another

promotes informal relationships for improved morale and communication

locating the offices of senior management on the upper floors of a multistory building

reminds everyone of the seniority relationships in the organization