Soc quiz 3

Because laws represent the interests of those in power, crimes committed by the upper classes are typically treated more leniently than crimes committed by the lower classes. This argument is consistent with:

Conflict Theory

If a college student plans to go to graduate school because she thinks of herself as having excellent critical thinking skills and a brilliant mind, where would Charles Cooley's theory of the looking-glass self suggest that she got these ideas?

Cooley would argue that these ideas came from fellow students and teachers expressing admiration.

The parents of a deviant child often want to find some way to excuse their offspring's behavior, and it's common to hear them say, "He just fell in with a bad crowd." Which theory of deviance does this explanation most closely resemble?

Differential Association

According to sociologists, an individual's genetic makeup will determine what kind of personality and character traits he develops in life.

False

Deviance is always defined in the same way, regardless of the historical, cultural, or situational context in which it occurs

False

Socialization generally ends by the beginning of adulthood.

False

Sociology has developed a single comprehensive theory about how the self develops.

False

Throughout history, prison has been the most common means of punishment for criminals and deviants.

False

Which of the following agents of socialization has the most enduring, life-long impact on the individual?

Family

According to labeling theory, why were none of the pseudopatients in David Rosenhan's "On Being Sane in Insane Places" discovered?

Once a person has been labeled "mentally ill," it is very hard for anyone to see past the label.

Robert Merton developed structural strain theory to explain why deviance happens. What sort of strain does the theory's name refer to?

Strain between socially approved goals and the means an individual has for realizing them

According to the structural strain theory of deviance as articulated by Robert Merton, what is one of the principal reasons people turn to deviant behavior in the United States?

The goal of success is shared by a majority of people, but not everyone has equal means for achieving that goal.

Why are adults not considered to be completely socialized?

There will always be new situations and new roles to learn

What happens to individuals (like Genie Wiley who was locked in a room until she was 13) who are not socialized?

They are devoid of many of the qualities we associate with being human.

According to structural functionalist theory, some functions of deviance help clarify moral boundaries and affirm social norms.

True

According to the symbolic interactionist George Herbert Mead, a distinct sense of self is developed in play through a process of "role-taking," where young children learn the guidelines and expectations associated with a variety of roles.

True

Stealing avocados, or almost any other agricultural product, is a felony in California if the product is worth more than $100. Supporters of the law believe it is the only way to protect farmers from vagrants and transients who can ruin the viability of small farms. However, if you believe that such laws also target homeless people who are simply trying to eat and that they are punished because they have almost no power within society, then you are probably:

a conflict theorist

Research on teen smoking and other deviant behaviors has found that the most important factor in statistically predicting if a teen will take up a particular deviant behavior is the presence or absence of peers who also engage in that behavior. This is probably because the other teens are acting:

as agents of socialization.

The Solomon Asch experiment, in which a group of subjects were asked to compare the lengths of lines, demonstrated that:

groups have great power to induce conformity through peer pressure.

Erving Goffman theorized social life as a kind of con game in which each individual works to control the impressions others have of her. What did Goffman call this process?

impression management

Many people are afraid of hitchhikers, but less afraid of helping a motorist who has run out of gas. Imagine that, to get a ride, a hitchhiker makes a suitcase out of a gasoline can, so it looks like he's a stranded motorist rather than a hitchhiker. A sociologist would say that he was working on:

impression management.

Socialization refers to the:

lifelong process by which people learn the norms, values, and beliefs of their culture.

The Milgram Experiment demonstrated that

people will obey commands to harm another person when they believe they are in a legitimate setting.

Which of the following would sociologists consider the best definition of deviance?

violations of social norms

Although branding is no longer used as a form of punishment in the United States, some subcultures have adopted it as a form of body art. This demonstrates that:

what is considered deviant changes over time