Deck 1: The Sociological Perspective and Research Process

Question 1

All forms of unemployment tend to be only temporary.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Representative democracies have governments that are all organized in the same way.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

All rulers need the support of the military and the backing of business elites to maintain their position.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Lawful jobs are often part of the underground or shadow economy.

Question 5

In contemporary societies, the government is the primary political system.

Question 6

An ideal capitalist economy requires government regulation in order to work properly.

Question 7

Party loyalties are becoming increasingly strong among American voters.

Question 8

The United States was the first nation to formally address the issue of equality in employment for persons with a disability.

Question 9

Research indicates that social media has a significant influence on voters decisions about candidates and political issues.

Question 10

China is the only country in the world today with a purely socialist economic system.

Question 11

A majority of U.S. jobs are in tertiary sector employment.

Question 12

Contingent work is found only at the lower end of occupations in the United States.

Question 13

The United States is the only nation that has a purely capitalist economic system.

Question 14

All true nation-states have the same type of government.

Question 15

is the social institution through which power is acquired and exercised by various groups and individuals.

A) Government
B) Economics
C) Politics
D) Religion

Question 16

The U.S. Constitution grants authority to the person who occupies the office of the presidency; any particular president who fails to uphold the public trust may be removed from office.

Question 17

Most citizens of the United States are not actual capitalists.

Question 18

The U.S. federal bureaucracy is part of the iron triangle of power.

Question 19

The U.S. political system is made up of both formal and informal elements.

Question 20

Charismatic authority is more stable than traditional or rational-legal authority.

Question 21

In contemporary societies the government is called the and is the political entity that possesses a legitimate monopoly over the use of force within its territory.

A) autocracy
B) state
C) bureaucracy
D) executive branch

Question 22

The subfield within sociology that focuses on the social circumstances of politics and explores how the political arena and its actors are intertwined with social institutions is called .

A) governmental sociology
B) institutional sociology
C) political sociology
D) cultural sociology

Question 23

In Weber's work on authority, the term authority refers to power legitimized by law or written rules and regulations.

A) charismatic
B) traditional
C) coercive
D) rational-legal

Question 24

The ideal types of authority identified by Max Weber include .

A) charismatic authority
B) familial authority
C) coercive authority
D) relational authority

Question 25

Although the most basic form of power is physical violence or force, most political leaders prefer to legitimize their power and then have what sociologists call .

A) control
B) leverage
C) authority
D) political influence

Question 26

is the ability of persons or groups to achieve their goals despite opposition from others. Through the use of persuasion, authority, or force, some people are able to get others to submit to their demands.

A) Authority
B) Power
C) Control
D) Leverage

Question 27

Gender, race, and class are closely intertwined with traditional authority. Political scientist Zillah Eisenstein applied the term to the interplay of race and gender that reinforces traditional structures of power in contemporary societies.

A) racialized patriarchy
B) patriarchal colonization
C) ethnic genderization
D) gendered ethnicity

Question 28

Weber applied the term to power legitimized on the basis of a leader's exceptional personal qualities or the demonstration of extraordinary insight and accomplishment that inspire loyalty and obedience from followers.

A) charismatic authority
B) traditional authority
C) coercive authority
D) rational-legal authority

Question 29

is the formal organization that has the legal and political authority to regulate the relationships among members of a society and between that society and those outside its borders.

A) Government
B) Economics
C) Politics
D) The military

Question 30

People are not likely to accept authority as legitimate when .

A) they are economically dependent on those in power
B) they are politically dependent on those who hold power
C) it reflects their own beliefs and values
D) they are threatened with physical force

Question 31

Weber used the term authority for power that is legitimized on the basis of long-standing custom.

A) charismatic
B) traditional
C) coercive
D) rational-legal

Question 32

authority is held by elected or appointed government officials, but authority is invested in the office, not in the person who holds the office.

A) Charismatic
B) Traditional
C) Rational-legal
D) Coercive

Question 33

Weber believed that authority was the only means to attain efficient, flexible, and competent regulation under a rule of law.

A) traditional
B) rational-legal
C) charismatic
D) coercive

Question 34

In a system of rational-legal authority, the authority is invested in the .

A) person holding the office
B) office
C) political party the person in office belongs to
D) administrative personnel working for the officeholder

Question 35

British kings and queens historically traced their authority from God. Weber called this .

A) coercive authority
B) rational-legal authority
C) charismatic authority
D) traditional authority

Question 36

Individuals such as Adolf Hitler and Martin Luther King, Jr. are examples of leaders.

A) traditional
B) charismatic
C) rational-legal
D) coercive

Question 37

The of charisma occurs when charismatic authority is succeeded by a bureaucracy controlled by a rationally established authority or by a combination of traditional and bureaucratic authority.

A) traditionalization
B) bureaucratization
C) routinization
D) modernization

Question 38

Rational-legal authority is also known as authority, which is based on an organizational structure that includes a clearly defined division of labor, hierarchy of authority, formal rules, and impersonality.

A) bureaucratic
B) routinized
C) democratic
D) capitalistic

Question 39

Although the U.S. Constitution grants authority to the office of the presidency, a president who fails to uphold the public trust may be removed from office.

A) traditional
B) rational-legal
C) charismatic
D) coercive

Question 40

According to William Domhoff, what is the role of the media in politics?

A) The media are neutral in news coverage of events and candidates.
B) Media tend to reflect the biases of those with the greatest ability to access the media.
C) The media are more powerful than government officials.
D) Journalists are more powerful than corporate leaders.

Question 41

In monarchies, the royalty serve as symbolic rulers or heads of state, whereas actual authority is held by elected officials in the national parliaments.

A) constitutional
B) limited
C) absolute
D) total

Question 42

The royal families in the United Kingdom, Sweden, Spain, and the Netherlands are present-day examples of __________.

A) absolute monarchies
B) limited monarchies
C) constitutional monarchies
D) total monarchies

Question 43

is a political system controlled by rulers who deny popular participation in government.

A) Authoritarianism
B) Totalitarianism
C) Monarchy
D) Democracy

Question 44

One example of a regime was the National Socialist (Nazi) party in Germany during World War II; military leaders there sought to control all aspects of national life, not just government operations.

A) totalitarian
B) democratic
C) monarchical
D) coalition

Question 45

In monarchies, a powerful figure claims a hereditary right to rule based on membership in a noble family or a divine right to rule considered God-given and therefore legitimate.

A) constitutional
B) limited
C) absolute
D) total

Question 46

How does a city-state differ from a nation-state?

A) A city-state is made up of a central city exercising control over the surrounding area.
B) Nation-states are older, having been around hundreds of years before city-states.
C) A city-state has geographical borders; a nation-state does not.
D) There is no difference between a city-state and a nation-state.

Question 47

A is a unit of political organization that has recognizable national boundaries and whose citizens possess specific legal rights and obligations.

A) city-state
B) metropolis
C) commonwealth
D) nation-state

Question 48

A has specific geographic territories and borders within which a citizenry shares language and culture, as well as rights and obligations.

A) nation-state
B) commonwealth
C) metropolis
D) city-state

Question 49

Political institutions first emerged in societies as they acquired surpluses and developed greater social inequality. Elites took control of politics and used custom or traditional authority to justify their position.

A) hunting and gathering
B) horticultural and pastoral
C) agrarian
D) industrialized

Question 50

Today, the U.S. State Department recognizes nearly independent nation-states throughout the world.

A) 150
B) 200
C) 250
D) 300

Question 51

In a(n) system, governments enforce conformity, deny citizens the right to assemble for political purposes, restrict access to information, and employ secret police to create an environment of fear and suspicion.

A) authoritarian
B) monarchical
C) totalitarian
D) democratic

Question 52

Monarchies are most commonly associated with societies and with authority.

A) agrarian; rational-legal
B) industrial; charismatic
C) agrarian; traditional
D) postindustrial; rational-legal

Question 53

In a(n) political system, the state seeks to regulate all aspects of people's public and private lives.

A) democratic
B) totalitarian
C) monarchical
D) authoritarian

Question 54

is a political system in which the people hold the ruling power either directly or through elected representatives.

A) Totalitarianism
B) Democracy
C) Monarchy
D) Authoritarianism

Question 55

In monarchies, rulers depend on powerful members of the nobility to help them retain their thrones and are not considered to be above the law.

A) constitutional
B) limited
C) absolute
D) total

Question 56

requires that citizens be able to meet together regularly to debate and decide the issues of the day.

A) Representative democracy
B) Symbolic democracy
C) Direct participatory democracy
D) Independent involvement democracy

Question 57

result when military officers seize power from the government, as has happened in recent decades in Argentina, Chile, and Haiti.

A) Absolute monarchies
B) Military juntas
C) Dictatorships
D) Direct participatory democracies

Question 58

Authoritarian governments .

A) are never monarchies
B) are usually pure dictatorships
C) can occur when military officers seize power from the government
D) can embrace the power of free media

Question 59

relies on modern technology to monitor and control people; mass propaganda and electronic surveillance are widely used to influence people's thinking and control their actions.

A) Monarchy
B) Authoritarianism
C) Totalitarianism
D) Democracy

Question 60

is a political system in which power resides in one person or family and is passed from generation to generation through lines of inheritance.

A) Monarchy
B) Totalitarianism
C) Communism
D) Democracy

Question 61

Which of these is not one of the four main functions of government?

A) maintaining law and order
B) planning and directing society
C) handling international relations, including warfare
D) ensuring positive family relationships

Question 62

A is an organization whose purpose is to gain and hold legitimate control of government; it is usually composed of people with similar attitudes, interests, and socioeconomic status.

A) ruling class
B) political action committee
C) political party
D) special interest group

Question 63

Sociologist applied the term power elite to the most powerful in society, who are those at the top of business, the executive branch of the federal government, and the military.

A) Karl Marx
B) Robert Merton
C) Emile Durkheim
D) C. Wright Mills

Question 64

The pluralist model is rooted in a perspective, which assumes that people in a nation share a consensus on central concerns and that the government provides services that no other institution can fulfill.

A) conflict
B) symbolic interactionist
C) functionalist
D) postmodernist

Question 65

The make(s) up the middle level of C. Wright Mill's pyramidal model of the power elite.

A) legislative branch, special interest groups, and local opinion leaders
B) corporate rich
C) unorganized masses of the citizenry
D) executive branch of government

Question 66

are political coalitions made up of individuals or groups that share a specific interest they wish to protect or advance within the political system.

A) Political action committees
B) Power elites
C) Special interest groups
D) Classes

Question 67

What percentage of the U.S. voting-age population is involved in the political process beyond simply voting?

A) 2 percent
B) 10 percent
C) 25 percent
D) 50 percent

Question 68

According to sociologist , the purpose of government is to socialize people to be good citizens, to regulate the economy so that it operates effectively, and to provide necessary services for citizens.

A) Karl Marx
B) Emile Durkheim
C) Robert Merton
D) Herbert Spencer

Question 69

William Domhoff used the term to refer to a small, fixed, privileged group of people with the power to constrain the political system and serve the interests of capitalism.

A) power elite
B) ruling class
C) special interest group
D) political action committee

Question 70

Although theorists acknowledge that there are many purposes of government, they also believe that government primarily works in the interests of the wealthy or politically powerful elites in society.

A) postmodern
B) symbolic interactionist
C) conflict
D) functionalist

Question 71

In the United States, the political system is a(n) in which people have a voice in the government elected representatives who serve as bridges between themselves and the government.

A) direct participatory democracy
B) representative democracy
C) symbolic democracy
D) independent involvement democracy

Question 72

The corporate rich influence the political system by .

A) dominating the federal government
B) working with grassroots community groups to end voter apathy
C) widening participation on special commissions and advisory committees
D) employing people to reduce social unrest

Question 73

Within the conflict perspective, the model highlights how power in political systems is concentrated in the hands of a small group and the masses are relatively powerless.

A) pluralist
B) ruling class
C) elite
D) dominant group

Question 74

Citizen groups such as the American Conservative Union and the Population Connection are examples of __________.

A) special interest groups
B) power elites
C) the ruling class
D) political action committees

Question 75

Political parties create a , which is a formal statement of the party's political positions on various social and economic issues.

A) policy
B) regulation
C) platform
D) principle

Question 76

The U.S. Constitution requires that each state have senators and a minimum of member(s) in the House of Representatives. The current size of the House of Representatives has not changed since the apportionment following the 1910 census.

A) four; one
B) one; three
C) three; two
D) two; one

Question 77

Political is the process by which people learn political attitudes, values, and behavior.

A) socialization
B) participation
C) conformity
D) persuasion

Question 78

In a(n) model, the needs and interests of widely divergent groups are met by the government through a process of accommodation and negotiation. Power in political systems is widely dispersed and shared among many competing interest groups.

A) pluralist
B) elite
C) distributive
D) ruling class

Question 79

are organizations of special interest groups that solicit contributions from donors and fund campaigns to help elect (or defeat) candidates who share (or oppose) their stances on specific issues.

A) Political action committees
B) Pressure groups
C) Lobby groups
D) Power elites

Question 80

The make(s) up the top level of C. Wright Mill's pyramidal model of the power elite.

A) legislative branch, special interest groups, and local opinion leaders
B) corporate rich
C) unorganized masses of the citizenry
D) executive branch of government