Deck 1: Sociology: a Unique Way to View the World

Question 1

Jennifer and Tyrone have been dating for two years. They have decided to attend the same college together, so both move into the same dorm. In this example, "Jennifer and Tyrone" are a ______, and "moving in to the same dorm" is a ______.

A) social unit; social institution
B) social structure; social process
C) social process; social structure
D) social unit; social process

Answer 1

D

Question 2

A ______ refers to one of the largest social units and includes a population of people, usually living within a specified geographic area, connected by common ideas and subject to a particular political authority.

A) national society
B) dyad
C) social group
D) social institution

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Which of the following sociologists is most closely associated with the sociological imagination?

A) Peter Berger
B) Karl Marx
C) C. Wright Mills
D) Émile Durkheim

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The discipline a social scientist is trained in plays a role in the questions the social scientist asks. "How do educational opportunities for women impact national infant mortality rates in Eastern European countries?" would most likely be asked by a(n) ______.

A) sociologist
B) psychologist
C) political scientist
D) economist

Question 5

Which of the following is an advantage of using micro-level analysis?

A) It is important for understanding the basis for all social groups and organizations.
B) It is important for the study of processes and institutions in a society.
C) It helps explain how larger social forces shape everyday aspects of social life.
D) It helps explain the moral implications of social organizations.

Question 6

A sociological perspective on race suggests that:

A) racial categories are biologically determined.
B) racial categories are the same across societies.
C) racial categories are socially constructed.
D) racial categories do not change over time.

Question 7

Kevin is a member of his college hockey team. The team is supported by the university, fans, and corporate sponsors; and is connected to other teams, their sports conference governing board, and all of the individual team members' families and friends. In this example, Kevin's team is ______, and the team's supporters and connections are ______.

A) an institution; the environment
B) a social unit; the environment
C) an institution; a social unit
D) the environment; a social structure

Question 8

According to the text, the smallest unit sociologists study is a(n) ______.

A) triad
B) dyad
C) individual
D) community

Question 9

In comparison, sociology focuses on ______, whereas psychology focuses on ______.

A) humans; rats
B) group patterns; the behavior of individuals
C) the behavior of individuals; group patterns
D) society; members of society

Question 10

The discipline a social scientist is trained in plays a role in the questions the social scientist asks. "What are individuals' physiological reactions to a violent movie like Saw?" would most likely be asked by a(n) ______.

A) anthropologist
B) economist
C) psychologist
D) political scientist

Question 11

The aspects of society that provide the rules, roles, and relationships needed to shape human behavior are ______.

A) social units
B) social structures
C) social institutions
D) national societies

Question 12

A study that examines how elementary school children form cliques on the playground would constitute ______.

A) micro-level research
B) meso-level research
C) macro-level research
D) mega-level research

Question 13

While walking down the street, Alana notices a homeless man. She thinks to herself, "That man must be homeless because he became unemployed. I'm sure that's because our local economy is so bad, and companies seem to be moving to other countries. He probably lost his family, too." Sociologists would say that Alana is using her ______.

A) sociological imagination
B) psychological training
C) economic perspective
D) investigative abilities

Question 14

The discipline a social scientist is trained in plays a role in the questions the social scientist asks. "How will high gas prices impact automobile sales in the near future?" would most likely be asked by a(n) ______.

A) anthropologist
B) economist
C) psychologist
D) sociologist

Question 15

When her 4-year-old son wanted to wear a dress to kindergarten, Lisette told him that he could not because "boys don't wear dresses." In doing so, Lisette engaged in the process of ______.

A) socialization
B) change
C) stratification
D) institutionalism

Question 16

Interconnected parts of the social world ranging from small groups to entire societies are ______.

A) social units
B) social structures
C) social institutions
D) national societies

Question 17

The discipline a social scientist is trained in plays a role in the questions the social scientist asks. "How do couples negotiate roles in a marriage?" would most likely be asked by a(n) ______.

A) sociologist
B) economist
C) political scientist
D) psychologist

Question 18

The authors of the text would argue that a change in the economy would eventually result in a change in the family. This is because:

A) people panic when the economy changes, and they frequently take their stresses out on their families.
B) the economy and the family remain separated unless something bad occurs in one institution or the other.
C) all social institutions are interrelated.
D) the authors of the text would not use any of these arguments.

Question 19

Byron is a sociologist who studies social change. In his study of the election of a new congressional representative for his district, Byron concluded that "Representative Phillips will inevitably be harmful for the working-class people of our district." What error did Byron make in his study?

A) He failed to interview the representative.
B) Rather than just explaining the change, he made a judgment about it.
C) He failed to inform Representative Phillips of his conclusion before releasing it to the public.
D) He should have used both qualitative and quantitative data in his study.

Question 20

A social scientist is trained to study the contents of garbage heaps. "What can we learn from studying garbage?" would most likely be asked by a(n) ______.

A) anthropologist
B) economist
C) political scientist
D) psychologist

Question 21

All of the following represent the meso-level of analysis EXCEPT:

A) state board of education.
B) National Education Association.
C) world literacy programs.
D) Catholic school systems.

Question 22

Lauren is a sociology student who wants to examine the effects that a new restaurant, the Tasty Tidbit, has on the wait staff at competing restaurants in her town. She decides that she needs to learn more about the restaurant industry, her town's economy, the national economy, and food service workers in general to better understand the impact of the Tasty Tidbit. Lauren is using the ______.

A) cultural anthropological model
B) environmental model
C) social world model
D) commonsense model

Question 23

Tyler read the news story about a 12-year-old boy who was caught selling crack cocaine. "My hypothesis is that the boy must be living in true poverty in a neighborhood full of crime." In this case, Tyler was using his sociological imagination.

Question 24

Sociologists study how personality traits affect an individual's behavior.

Question 25

Your sociology class is an example of a large group, according to the sociological definition of large groups.

Question 26

Ethnology is the subfield of anthropology most closely related to sociology.

Question 27

Sociology, political science, and psychology are separate disciplines and do not overlap.

Question 28

Sociology is based on a few assumptions about the social world. Which of the following is not one of these assumptions?

A) People are social by nature.
B) People live much of their lives in social groups.
C) Human behavior is determined by the supply of goods and services.
D) Conflict and change are inevitable features of groups.

Question 29

Because sociology is based on common sense, it is an excellent discipline for students who approach the world in a rational, matter-of-fact way.

Question 30

A study that examines how the No Child Left Behind Act has changed education in Iowa best reflects the ______-level of analysis.

A) micro
B) meso
C) macro
D) none of these

Question 31

How are the three levels of analysis related to one another?

A) The three are not related to one another.
B) The distinctions among the three are very clear.
C) The three levels can overlap on a continuum.
D) The three levels are not at all clearly delineated.

Question 32

Which of the following is not a social unit?

A) a group of sociology students studying for a test
B) two warring tribes fighting over land rights
C) a boss teaching a new employee
D) a college professor preparing a sociology lecture in her office

Question 33

All of the following represent micro-level analysis EXCEPT:

A) sociology class.
B) study group cramming for an exam.
C) sociology department.
D) professional sociological association.

Question 34

According to the text, a more complete and accurate perspective on the social world can be gained by using:

A) commonsense beliefs obtained through logic and past experiences.
B) socialization through parents, schools, and religious figures.
C) multiple perspectives gained through a nationally representative survey.
D) the concepts, theories, methods, and levels of analysis used by sociologists.

Question 35

According to sociologists, human beings are naturally social creatures.

Question 36

Which of the following is an advantage of using meso-level analysis?

A) It is important for understanding the basis for all social organizations.
B) It is important for the study of processes and institutions in a society.
C) It helps explain how larger social forces shape everyday aspects of social life.
D) It helps explain the moral implications of social organizations.

Question 37

Tyler heard a story from a friend about a woman who was being beaten by her husband. He decided that the only reason the woman stayed with her husband was because she was too weak to leave him. In this case, Tyler was using his sociological imagination.

Question 38

A married couple is a social unit.

Question 39

While psychologists would explain behavior by examining the personality traits of individuals, sociologists would examine ______.

A) what motivates individual behavior
B) physiological reactions to violent media
C) human interaction and social structure
D) people's thought processes in decision-making situations

Question 40

Psychologists are most likely to study ______.

A) human interaction
B) individual behavior and mental processes
C) the distribution of power
D) the way of life of a particular society

Question 41

Our social positions in society are the result of social structures.

Question 42

Sociologists generally judge social processes as "good" or "bad."

Question 43

According to the text, rates of violence against women are relatively uniform across countries.

Question 44

The social world engulfs each of us from the moment of our birth until we die.

Question 45

Social institutions are found in every society.

Question 46

An environment includes everything that influences a social unit.

Question 47

The social world is organized into two parts: structures and processes.

Question 48

August Comte coined the term sociological imagination.

Question 49

The examination of changes in women's status can only take place at the macro-level of analysis.

Question 50

The social sciences share some concepts but do not share theories or methods of inquiry.

Question 51

The types of jobs that sociologists do depend on their level of education.

Question 52

A focus on individual or small-group interaction entails micro-level analysis.

Question 53

Psychologists tend to focus on groups while sociologists tend to focus on individuals.

Question 54

Analysis of intermediate-sized social units is called meso-level analysis.

Question 55

Understanding individual human behavior often requires investigation of larger societal beliefs supporting that behavior.

Question 56

Sociologists argue that conflict is a natural part of social life.

Question 57

Complete harmony between social units is unusual.

Question 58

C. Wright Mills developed the concept of sociological imagination.

Question 59

According to the text, the changes in the institution of the family will not likely have an impact on religion.

Question 60

According to the text, religion and family are examples of social processes.

Question 61

Sociology provides a method to assess the accuracy of our commonsense assumptions about the social world.

Question 62

What do the authors of the text mean when they state that "the social world is a human creation"?

Question 63

Imagine you wanted to study child poverty from a micro-, meso-, and macro-level. For each of the three levels of analysis, describe what question or questions you might ask to learn more about child poverty and why that level of analysis is appropriate for your question.

Question 64

No social unit of our social world can stand alone.

Question 65

Imagine you are a sociologist asked to study the issues pertaining to the high school dropout rate. What factors would you focus on in your study? Why?

Question 66

Briefly describe how sociology and common sense differ from one another.

Question 67

What are some commonsense beliefs you hold about the social world? What factors led you to hold those beliefs? What evidence would be necessary for you to change those beliefs?

Question 68

Most sociologists with a bachelor's degree work in colleges or universities.

Question 69

Consider the social problem of homelessness in the United States. What questions might someone from anthropology ask about homelessness? What about someone from economics? Political science? Psychology? Sociology? Which of these disciplines do you think could best help find a solution for homelessness, and why?

Question 70

Briefly discuss what sociologists mean by the sociological imagination. Provide an example of its application.

Question 71

What are social processes? Provide at least two examples.

Question 72

List and briefly explain the three levels of analysis discussed in the text.

Question 73

Compare and contrast sociology and at least two of the other social sciences discussed in the text.

Question 74

Drilling for oil affects all levels of the sociological world. Using your knowledge of sociology, explain how this behavior (drilling for oil) affects human relationships on the micro-, meso-, and macro-levels.

Question 75

Compare and contrast social units and social institutions. Provide at least two examples of each.

Question 76

Explain how social units, social structures, and social institutions are related. Using examples from your own life, illustrate the interconnectedness of these concepts.

Question 77

Sociologists consider a street gang and work-group examples of small groups.

Question 78

According to the text, what two parts are essential to the study of our social world?

Question 79

Briefly discuss the difference between sociology and psychology.