Deck 8: Gender

Question 1

In the opening narrative to Chapter 8,the statistical technique called individual fixed effects is discussed.All of the following key sociological variables resist fixed effects EXCEPT:

A) age.
B) race.
C) political attitudes.
D) birth order.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

All of the following examples call into question the two firm categories of sex and gender that dominate our thinking EXCEPT the:

A) surprisingly frequent occurrence of intersex infants.
B) existence of transgender issues.
C) existence of male/female teams in sports.
D) existence of more than two gender groups in other cultures.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which of the following is NOT a reason why sociologists view gender as a social construction rather than a biological given?

A) Our understandings of, categorizations of, and behaviors toward what it means to be a man or woman have changed throughout history.
B) Cross-cultural studies show us that there is enormous variation in how people
"do gender."
C) Societies in various historical periods have made sense of the "plumbing" in very different ways.
D) Contemporary studies show us that men and women have different personality structures, the innate by-product of existing social structural relations.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

According to Judith Lorber,differences between the sexes are not easy to explain because gender isn't natural but rather is:

A) psychological.
B) emotional.
C) a social institution.
D) biological.

Question 5

In our society,we take for granted that sex has only two categories and tend to ignore facts that suggest sex itself is socially constructed.All of the following are outcomes of this sexual dichotomization EXCEPT:

A) the exclusion of those who don't fit neatly into one category or the other.
B) viewing sexual variation as a part of our diversity as a species.
C) the surgical alteration of the genitalia of babies so that they fit into one of these categories.
D) the assumption that sex categories create bodies with male or female characteristics.

Question 6

Judith Lorber believes that gender is a social institution because it is:

A) within an institution (hospital) that our gender first emerges.
B) a social construction instead of a biological construction.
C) a major structure organizing our day-to-day experiences.
D) the same as other major institutions in our society.

Question 7

Surgeons today recommend prompt surgery to make intersex children conform to an ideal of normal genitalia.About 90 percent of these surgeries:

A) reassign an ambiguous male anatomy into a female one.
B) are successful.
C) are done according to what the parents want.
D) are not done until the child is older.

Question 8

While the notion of sex refers to biological characteristics,the concept of gender refers to ____________ characteristics.

A) psychological
B) physical
C) philosophical
D) social

Question 9

John Gray,author of Men Are from Mars,Women Are from Venus (1992),takes the position that the different temperaments,emotions,and languages of males and females are rooted in:

A) environmental circumstances.
B) inborn differences.
C) socialization.
D) power differences.

Question 10

Why do parents and surgeons push to assign a sex to a genitally ambiguous child?

A) the desire to know what color to paint the baby's room
B) psychological studies show that mothers require children with definite sexes
C) the need to assign a gender-appropriate name
D) social discomfort and fear of difference

Question 11

A statistical technique called individual fixed effects is sometimes used in the social sciences.This technique involves:

A) comparing a particular outcome across time as some factor changes.
B) comparing two groups of subjects who are similar in all respects except that only one of the groups has experienced the independent variable.
C) determining which factor accounts for a particular effect.
D) comparing key variables that resist fixed effects across populations.

Question 12

Harvard-trained and world-renowned economist Deirdre McCloskey,who used to be named Donald,describes her journey across the invisible yet potent boundary of sex/gender in her memoir,Crossing.Which of the following is NOT one of the 20 differences she noted in the textbook?

A) Deirdre is less impatient than Donald.
B) Donald had fewer friends than Deirdre.
C) Donald was more alert to relationship details in stories than Deirdre.
D) Deirdre thinks less about sex than Donald.

Question 13

Dr.John Money claimed that a genetic male could be raised successfully as a girl.The David Reimer story showed that Money's claims were:

A) wrong.
B) accurate if hormonal treatment was used.
C) biologically impossible.
D) helpful to David and his family.

Question 14

Many people believe sex to be an either-or situation (either male or female),but sociologists believe natural sex is:

A) distinctly different.
B) strictly biological.
C) an absolute.
D) more of an ideal than an absolute.

Question 15

John Gray's book Men Are from Mars,Women Are from Venus was a number-one best seller for more than a decade.Which of the following is NOT one of the reasons his book has been so popular?

A) It offers the appeal of easy-to-grasp, commonsense generalizations.
B) People prefer quick and easy answers to why men and women act differently.
C) People can easily relate to the ideas set forth in this book.
D) The book is based on the sociological imagination, which is easy to grasp.

Question 16

A statistical technique called individual fixed effects compares an outcome across time as some factor changes.All of the following are examples of this technique EXCEPT analyzing:

A) whether having children makes people happier by asking couples before they have their first child and then again afterward.
B) whether people who exercise three times a week have more energy by asking individuals before they start their exercise regimes and then again after they've been exercising for a set period of time.
C) the effects of gender by comparing people's experiences before undergoing sex changes and then again after their sex changes (e.g., like the Donald to Deirdre case mentioned in your text).
D) whether vegetarians are less depressed than nonvegetarians by comparing the depression levels of vegetarians and nonvegetarians.

Question 17

Race,birth order,generational cohort,sex,and parental wealth are key sociological variables that are said to resist fixed effects because they:

A) can't be changed.
B) are relatively stable characteristics of an individual.
C) are constantly changing.
D) are impervious to inspection.

Question 18

Although a binary sex system imposes order in the world and helps us make sense of a complicated mass of populations,it also:

A) helps us understand reproduction.
B) limits our ability to accept difference.
C) helps us understand hormonal birth defects.
D) explains social implications.

Question 19

Gender structures social relationships between people unequally.This is a statement that would be supported by which group?

A) feminists
B) capitalists
C) teachers
D) the general population

Question 20

The study of gender is basically the study of how two spheres shape each other.What are the two spheres?

A) biology and sex
B) sex and birth order
C) nature and nurture
D) emotion and biology

Question 21

Michael Kimmel found that in the eighteenth century,the ideal man was very different than the modern-day ideal man.The ideal man in the 1700s was:

A) a heavy drinker who had a reputation for wooing the ladies.
B) strong, boorish, and muscled.
C) physically fit, interested in sports, and focused on his business ventures.
D) a quiet and nerdy intellectual who enjoyed writing poetry.

Question 22

Sociologist Cynthia Fuchs Epstein coined the term deceptive distinctions to refer to the behavioral differences between men and women that arise because of the:

A) matriarchal society we live in.
B) different roles they come to occupy.
C) biological differences between them.
D) myths surrounding maleness and femaleness.

Question 23

Similar to hegemonic masculinity,social problems that exist within a dominant group in a society tend to be:

A) highly visible and therefore cause for concern.
B) invisible because they are regarded as the norm.
C) not cause for questioning for sociologists, as they undermine the social order.
D) highly funded and therefore easier to solve.

Question 24

Feminist philosopher Elizabeth Grosz proposed that we view the relationship between sex (the natural)and gender (the social)as existing on a Möbius strip because:

A) sex comes before gender and dictates behavior.
B) you can separate sex and gender into two distinct entities.
C) sex and gender are two sides of the same coin and are thus inseparable.
D) it is easier to siphon out the effects of each in this way.

Question 25

According to your text,a hijra in India is a group of men who opt to have their penises surgically removed and renounce sexual desire and practice.Which of the following statements is NOT true according to your text?

A) The hijra identity is secret, and no one can tell who is or isn't a hijra.
B) Much of what it means to be a hijra has nothing to do with gender.
C) The hijra's life is marked by self-sacrifice, poverty, and a highly stigmatized identity.
D) If a man becomes a hijra, his identity becomes his master status.

Question 26

Hegemonic masculinity can best be described as the:

A) dominant definition of the ideal man in contemporary society.
B) ways in which the dominant culture treats and reacts to men regardless of
Their characteristics.
C) dominant, privileged, and often invisible category of men at any point in history.
D) image of man that is fixed and resistant to change.

Question 27

In Navajo tribes,there are three genders.Which of the following is NOT one of their gender categories?

A) feminine
B) hijra
C) nadle
D) masculine

Question 28

In the seventeenth century,Rubenesque women were considered beauties because when food was scarce,a plump woman was a sign of good health,wealth,and attractiveness.What was the catalyst that made food plentiful and changed the standard of beauty for women?

A) industrialization
B) the Great Depression
C) the Roaring Twenties
D) World War II

Question 29

Which of the following would NOT be considered a positive trait or characteristic for a man within today's hegemonic masculinity?

A) heterosexuality
B) strong jawline and muscular body
C) emotional sensitivity
D) a love of sports

Question 30

The idea that there is only one sex and that the female body is an inversion of the male body was promoted by which culture?

A) Greek
B) Roman
C) Mongol
D) Sambian

Question 31

Bob and Sue paint their baby's room pink as soon as they find out they are having a girl.They are beginning to provide the baby with what?

A) self-awareness
B) a playroom
C) her race
D) her gendered identity

Question 32

All of the following terms characterize essentialist thinking EXCEPT:

A) biologically determined.
B) natural or innate.
C) fixed and absolute.
D) fluid and ambiguous.

Question 33

By looking at anthropological findings in tribal societies,sociologists can see fluidity in gender,which helps us see that the boundaries within our own system of gender:

A) are biologically fixed.
B) may not be stable.
C) are emotionally guided.
D) are psychologically established.

Question 34

Sociologist Cynthia Fuchs Epstein argues that deceptive distinctions are those sex differences that arise out of the roles individuals occupy,rather than from some innate force.Which of the following is NOT an example of deceptive distinctions?

A) a woman who is a nurse and behaves in nurturing and emotive ways
B) a man who is a Supreme Court judge and behaves in rational and restrained ways
C) a girl who is a cheerleader and acts unanimated and unenthusiastic
D) a boy who is a football player and acts fearless and bold

Question 35

An essentialist would argue all of the following for why women outnumber men in occupations that involve caring EXCEPT:

A) women are naturally better caregivers than men.
B) women instinctively know how to care for others better than men do.
C) gender establishes different cultures and expectations for men and women.
D) women find occupations that involve caring more suitable to their nature.

Question 36

Anthropologist Michelle Rosaldo believed women were usually lower in the stratification system because of their identification with:

A) children.
B) cooking.
C) lower-paying jobs.
D) domestic life.

Question 37

Which of the following situations provides an example of how the social categories of gender influence the biology of sex?

A) parents who refuse to let their three-year-old son paint his fingernails
B) how people react differently to two women who hold hands in public versus two men who hold hands in public
C) the decision to raise a male infant born with a small penis (e.g., a phallus measuring less than 2 centimeters in length) as a female
D) how a one-sex model of human bodies dominated thinking among ancient Greeks, but a two-sex model dominates current Western biological thought

Question 38

If we apply our sociological imaginations to sex,gender,and sexuality,we might argue that:

A) men and women are different biological organisms, and these differences manifest themselves in the ways men and women behave.
B) the social patterns we see highlight natural differences between men and women, differences that set men and women on different pathways from birth.
C) men and women are at opposite ends of the psychological continuum, which leads them to have distinct styles of communicating, feeling, and acting.
D) although biological differences exist between men and women, what we make of those differences is socially constructed and has changed through time and place.

Question 39

In the one-sex model,it was believed that both a man's and a woman's orgasm were required for conception.When the two-sex model gained momentum,women and men were viewed as radically different creatures,and the female orgasm became viewed as:

A) crucial for conception.
B) unnecessary.
C) harmful.
D) a myth.

Question 40

What you do in the social world should be a direct result of who you are in the natural world.This statement refers to:

A) dimorphism.
B) the binary system.
C) biological determinism.
D) essentialism.

Question 41

Until 1973,the American Psychiatric Association and the American Psychological Association listed homosexuality as:

A) a biological abnormality.
B) physically natural.
C) a natural biological state.
D) a mental disorder.

Question 42

Black feminists essentially argue all of the following EXCEPT that:

A) the experiences of women are too diverse to lump them all into one category.
B) all women are in a similar boat and faced with the same hegemonic masculinity.
C) black women face unique oppressions that white women, and even black men, do not.
D) dominant (white) notions of the world are sometimes irrelevant to the daily lives of black women.

Question 43

What is the term that refers to desire,sexual preference,sexual identity,and behavior?

A) sexual orientation
B) sexuality
C) sex
D) gender

Question 44

Which theoretical perspective argues that gender is a product of social interactions and that by "doing gender," men and women create and contribute to the gendered patterns we see?

A) psychoanalytic theory
B) structural functionalism
C) social conflict
D) symbolic interaction

Question 45

According to the textbook,prison rape is usually about power,and a man who commits a homosexual act within prison:

A) generally takes on a homosexual identity to match his homosexual behaviors.
B) does not necessarily view himself as a homosexual.
C) is viewed by all the other prisoners as having a homosexual identity.
D) sees himself as powerless.

Question 46

Carol Gilligan found that boys and girls played differently on the playground.In comparison to boys,girls tended to:

A) play games with more complex rules and were less likely to bend the rules.
B) play more competitive, rule-intensive games.
C) play more cooperative and people-based games.
D) have more rules governing notions of fairness.

Question 47

Which theory might argue that "it is beneficial for society as a whole when men and women stick to their 'normal' roles"?

A) Parsons's sex role theory
B) Rubin's sex/gender system
C) microinteractionist theory
D) conflict theory

Question 48

Freud describes a boy's experiences starting with heterosexual love for his mother,but soon realizing that he will be castrated by his father if he continues to have romantic feelings toward her.To resolve this,the boy rejects his mother and emulates his father.Freud referred to this as:

A) the phallic stage.
B) the Oedipus complex.
C) patriarchal emulation.
D) ego boundaries.

Question 49

Patricia Hill Collins claims that gender intersects with race,class,nationality,and religion.Which group has made the case that early liberal feminism was largely by,about,and for white middle-class women?

A) social feminists
B) radical feminists
C) black feminists
D) Freudian feminists

Question 50

Which theoretical perspective assumed that every society had certain structures that existed to fulfill some set of necessary functions?

A) structural functionalism
B) social conflict
C) symbolic interaction
D) functional hierarchy

Question 51

According to Talcott Parsons,the nuclear family is the ideal arrangement in modern society because it fulfills the function of reproducing workers and the division of labor ensures a stable society.What did Parsons call this theory?

A) sex role theory
B) gender role theory
C) patriarchal theory
D) structural functional theory

Question 52

In his book The History of Sexuality (1978),Michel Foucault contends that the change in the view of homosexuality to one of deviance was a result of all of the following EXCEPT:

A) the rise of scientific ways of thinking and classifying, which included classifying humans.
B) people actually started talking about sex, which previously had been considered impolite.
C) government bureaucrats were attempting to assert their power over people.
D) the rise in gay pride and the institution of gay marriage legislation.

Question 53

In the 1980s,what group believed that unequal gender relationships were at the root of all social relationships?

A) psychoanalysts
B) radical feminists
C) structural functionalists
D) symbolic interactionists

Question 54

Which group argues that sexuality in America is an expression of the unequal power balance between men and women?

A) Marxist feminists
B) symbolic interactionists
C) psychoanalysts
D) postmodernists

Question 55

Opponents of gay and lesbian couplings claim that homosexuality is unnatural because they believe sex should only be about:

A) reproduction.
B) marriage.
C) gender.
D) biology.

Question 56

For the Sambia,taking in semen of older men by performing fellatio is the only way to:

A) become great warriors.
B) become successful hunters.
C) become real men.
D) be accepted into the tribe.

Question 57

Feminist psychoanalyst Nancy Chodorow believes that if men share mothering with women,then:

A) sexual relationships will be possible.
B) parental identification will be confusing.
C) egalitarian relationships will be possible.
D) there will be a huge argument.

Question 58

Under the sex/gender system,men universally perform the kinds of tasks that:

A) require more strength.
B) are accorded higher value than those done by women.
C) require more intelligence.
D) require more education.

Question 59

Anthropologist Don Kulick (1998)conducted an ethnography of the transgender prostitutes in Brazil,known as travesti.Which of the following did he find to be true?

A) The travesti display stereotypically feminine traits and identify themselves as women.
B) The travesti think of themselves as men who emulate women, but are not women.
C) The travesti think of themselves as male, even if they allow themselves to be penetrated by other men.
D) The travesti identify themselves simply as men and are identified by other Brazilians as "normal men."

Question 60

Alfred Kinsey's 1948 study,Sexual Behavior in the Human Male,is important because:

A) it viewed sexuality as falling on a continuum, thus challenging the psychiatric claim of homosexuality as abnormal.
B) it viewed the sexual behavior of men as more deviant than what was initially thought, lending support to the psychiatric diagnosis of homosexuality as perverse.
C) sexual topics became taboo for the first time in history.
D) it increased funding to researchers interested in studying the sexual practices of other deviant subcultures.

Question 61

In Brazil,gender is determined by:

A) sexual practice.
B) anatomy.
C) femininity and masculinity.
D) biology.

Question 62

What is the woman question? Explain the woman question from a functional perspective and a feminist perspective.What are some problems with each of these perspectives?

Question 63

What argument do Reskin and Roos (1990)use to support the reason women end up in lower-paid jobs?

A) Most women are mothers.
B) Women are not motivated to compete with men.
C) These jobs are not attractive to men.
D) Women don't have access to higher education.

Question 64

In the classroom,compared to girls,boys are:

A) more likely to interrupt (and to get away with it).
B) more frequently put down by their other-sex classmates.
C) called on by the teacher less during class discussion.
D) more frequently bullied out of class discussion.

Question 65

When token men enter feminized jobs,they enjoy a quicker rise to leadership positions.This is referred to as the:

A) glass ceiling.
B) glass escalator.
C) glass wall.
D) glass elevator.

Question 66

In the classroom,compared to boys,girls:

A) are expected to be better at reading.
B) interrupt the other sex more often.
C) are expected to be better at math.
D) are called on more in class.

Question 67

What term best describes a behavior or attitude where a person's sex is the basis for prejudicial discrimination and where sex may matter more than a person's performance or merit?

A) heterosexism
B) sexism
C) genderism
D) homophobia

Question 68

What term refers to the invisible barriers women face when they enter more prestigious corporate worlds?

A) glass ceiling
B) invisible wall
C) glass elevator
D) glass escalator

Question 69

Inappropriate jokes on the job and sexual bartering are both examples of:

A) sexual advancement.
B) gender discrimination.
C) sexual harassment.
D) gender harassment.

Question 70

Explain why John Gray's book Men Are from Mars,Women Are from Venus can be considered essentialist.How might a sociologist view the same phenomenon?

Question 71

Jobs that have been feminized,such as teaching or secretarial work,are also referred to as:

A) powder-puff jobs.
B) pink-collar jobs.
C) girls' clubs.
D) white-collar jobs.

Question 72

In comparison to boys,girls are more likely to:

A) be victimized by violent crime.
B) smoke cigarettes.
C) be suspended and/or drop out of school.
D) succeed in killing themselves.

Question 73

Harvard president Larry Summers stated that at the highest levels of performance,men might have an innate advantage over women in scientific aptitude and that genetic differences could explain the scarcity of female "hard" scientists at elite universities.Journalists termed this:

A) Gendergate.
B) genderism.
C) sexism.
D) gender lockout.

Question 74

Explain essentialism and biological determinism and the binary model in relation to sex and gender.

Question 75

Which statement is NOT true about girls as compared to boys?

A) Girls report a higher number of suicide attempts.
B) Girls frequently report low self-esteem.
C) Girls report experiencing more sexual harassment.
D) Infant females are at greater risk of death.

Question 76

Although women now outnumber men in terms of college enrollment,men still dominate which fields?

A) sociology and math
B) math and physics
C) physics and economics
D) sociology and economics

Question 77

Your text mentions several reasons why American teenagers are rapidly spreading STDs.Which of the following is NOT one of the reasons?

A) Most don't know they are infected.
B) Teens believe if they don't climax they will not get STDs.
C) Romantic interludes tend to be short.
D) Many teens have had genital contact with a partner without intercourse.

Question 78

What percentage of teenagers over the age of 14 admit they have had sexual intercourse?

A) just under 10 percent
B) just under 25 percent
C) just under 50 percent
D) just under 75 percent

Question 79

It is argued in your text that gender structures social relationships by giving men the advantage in society.As a result,which of the following is LEAST likely to happen?

A) When women enter male-dominated occupations, they may hit a glass ceiling.
B) When men enter female-dominated occupations, they are encouraged to advance on the glass escalator.
C) When men enter female-dominated occupations, they often become victims of sexual harassment.
D) When women enter male-dominated occupations, they often become victims of sexual harassment.

Question 80

What did the Bush administration and the group True Love Waits advocate for in teens regarding their sexuality?

A) virginity pledge
B) marriage matters
C) godly teens' promise
D) pure body pledge