Intro to Sociology - Quiz 1

The concept "sociology" was coined in 1838 by

Auguste Comte

A theory states that increasing a person's formal higher education leads to increased earnings over the individual's lifetime. In this theory, "higher education" is the

a. independent variable.

Which discipline defines itself as "the systematic study of human society"?

a. sociology

An apparent, although false, association between two variables that is caused by a third variable is called a(n) _________ correlation.

a. spurious

The theoretical approach in sociology that assumes society is a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability is the

a. structural-functional approach.

We would expect the sociological perspective to be MOST likely to develop in a place that was

b. experiencing major social changes.

Which of the following historical changes is among the factors that stimulated the development of sociology as a discipline?

b. the rise of the industrial economy and growth of cities

Which of the following statements BEST illustrates the career advantage a person gains by studying sociology?

c. A police officer understands which categories of people are at high risk of becoming crime victims.

The pioneering sociologist who studied patterns of suicide in Europe was

c. Emile Durkheim.

Which of the following is true about cause-and-effect relationships in the social world?

c. Most patterns of behavior are caused by many factors.

Read the following four statements about social patterns we find in the world as a whole. Which statement is FALSE?

c. People in the United States make up one-third of the global population.

According to Emile Durkheim, people with a higher suicide rate typically have

c. a lower level of social integration.

9. Examples of people applying their knowledge of sociology at work include people in

d. All of the these responses are correct.

Following the thinking of C. Wright Mills, we would expect the sociological imagination to be more widespread in a population

d. during times of social crisis.

Peter Berger describes using the sociological perspective as seeing the ______ in the _______.

d. general; particular

Sociology differs from the older discipline of philosophy by focusing on

d. how society actually operates.

Learning more sociology can help you to do all of the following EXCEPT

d. see how individuals guide their own lives through "free will"

Looking at the operation of U.S. schools, the social-conflict approach might lead a sociologist to conclude that

d. the policy of tracking provides some students with far better schooling than others.

A statement that explains how and why specific facts are related is called a(n)

d. theory.

Karl Marx, speaking for the social-conflict approach, argued that the point of studying society should be

d. to bring about greater social justice.