Deck 7: Social Exchange Theory

Question 1

One of the advantages of conflict is that, in the contexts of discussions, arguments, negotiations and management, people come to new understandings of one another.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Jetse Sprey suggested that our goal should be helping families manage conflict rather than eliminating it.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Conflict is more indirect and less personal than competition.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Conflict might actually be at the root of progress and change.

Question 5

Conflict theorists believe that humans have an unlimited potential for hope.

Question 6

Conflict resolution occurs when conflict is maintained but negotiated into a stable state.

Question 7

Similar to structure functionalism, conflict theory suggests that society tends to seek equilibrium.

Question 8

One cannot deal with internal conflict while also using energy to fight external conflict.

Question 9

Assertion is acting in a way that affirms one's rights and positions but does so at the expense of others.

Question 10

Conflict can end only when both parties reach a mutually recognized agreement.

Question 11

Groups that exist over time, such as families, struggle the most to function within a system of competitiveness.

Question 12

Conflict can have positive outcomes.

Question 13

According to conflict theory, the nature of humans is that they are self-oriented.

Question 14

According to conflict theory, families typically do not have power differentials.

Question 15

Aggression is a behavioral use of power to get others to behave to one's own advantage, often at the other's expense.

Question 16

Conflict is never healthy or helpful to families.

Question 17

Using a microsocial perspective, conflict theorists would be very interested in looking inside the family to see what things - like age and gender-might bring about conflict.

Question 18

The "Marxian dialect" asserts that an accepted idea (thesis) will be challenged by its opposite (antithesis) until stability can be negotiated in the form of synthesis.

Question 19

Which of the following is NOT a major assumption of conflict theory?

A) Absence of conflict enables one to predict the stability of a relationship.
B) Hierarchy exists within social institutions due to unequal distribution of resources over which conflict will arise.
C) Families can become stronger through successfully completing constructive conflict.
D) Human societies operate under conditions of perpetual scarcity for most resources needed for the lives of its members.

Question 20

According to ______, whatever truth or thesis is accepted will eventually be challenged by an opposing view, or antithesis.

A) Friedrich Hegel
B) Karl Marx
C) Lewis Coser
D) Ralf Dahrendorf

Question 21

With which of the following statements would conflict theorists agree?

A) In all social systems there are scarce resources which lead to conflict.
B) All social systems demonstrate social stratifications, where some people are more powerful and have more status than others.
C) Economic status influences the way in which people interpret and analyze life; this is unavoidable in a capitalistic society.
D) Conflict theorists would agree with all of the above.

Question 22

According to _____, the social philosopher who is sometimes referred to as the father of conflict theory, conflict over resources is inevitable between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat.

A) Karl Marx
B) David Olson
C) Lewis Coser
D) Friedrich Hegel

Question 23

From conflict theory, which of the following are scarce resources in families?

A) time
B) money
C) affection
D) territory or space
E) all of the above

Question 24

Which of the following structural distinctions are present in families that make them susceptible to conflict?

A) gender
B) age
C) life cycle stages
D) all of these affect family conflict

Question 25

Which theorist recognized the fact that we need to be concerned about conflict within families?

A) Jetse Sprey
B) Georg Hegel
C) Robert Hegel
D) Karl Marx

Question 26

Why are group dynamics different in families than in other groups?

A) Group membership is not voluntary
B) Dissolving a group is more difficult than dissolving a family
C) The demand for resources varies between groups and families
D) Group power changes over the lifecycle of the group

Question 27

What makes marital conflict the most dramatic form of conflict in families?

A) Marital relationships are typically for life
B) Each partner has people he/she can pull onto his/her side
C) Whereas it takes two to make a relationship, it only takes one to end it
D) It is dynamic

Question 28

Mark and Elias are fighting over who can use the remote control that evening as they each want to watch a different program. Frustrated, Mark says "I allowed you to have the TV the last three nights even though there were shows I wanted to watch. If I can have the TV for the next two hours you can have it for the rest of the night. Which word best describes Mark's behavior?

A) Power
B) Assertion
C) Aggression
D) Consensus

Question 29

Alberto and Maria decide to see who can lose more weight over the next two months. What word best describes this process?

A) Competition
B) Conflict
C) Power
D) Bargaining

Question 30

Which of the following is FALSE according to conflict theorists?

A) Societies represent organized systems for species survival.
B) Societies operate under a perpetual scarcity of resources, and this leads to perpetual confrontations.
C) Conflict theorists recognize that inequality is an inevitable aspect of most relationships.
D) Social conflict is unhealthy for societies.

Question 31

Which of the following things did Karl Marx believe to be TRUE?

A) People will never have equal access to resources
B) The laborers will eventually organize and overthrow the capitalist landowners
C) Class conflict will not last long before an egalitarian society will be reached
D) Interpersonal relationships are an important component of social change

Question 32

Who is sometimes referred to as the father of conflict theory?

A) Karl Marx
B) Richard Hegel
C) Sigmund Freud
D) George Hegel

Question 33

Conflict management requires recognizing:

A) There are at least two competing perspectives
B) There are many resources that could be accessed if you work together to find them
C) Every person will not have an opportunity to access resources
D) All of the above are true

Question 34

Which of the following statements is TRUE according to conflict theory?

A) Conflict is inevitable
B) Conflict can be internal
C) Conflict is never positive
D) All of the above
E) Only a and b

Question 35

Conflict management is needed because relationships will always have conflict. Which of the following is a reason why relationships will always have conflict according to conflict theory?

A) People have different ideas about how things should be done.
B) There are scarce resources.
C) Each person feels like s/he should have access to resources
D) All of the above
E) Only a and b

Question 36

Which of the following best describes a microsocial perspective of conflict theory?

A) Analyzing the role of age in family conflict.
B) Looking at who has access to health care and who doesn't
C) Looking at why some people are employed and others are not.
D) Studying how adoption placements are made.

Question 37

Which of the following is based on behavior?

A) Threats
B) Promises
C) Assertion
D) Aggression

Question 38

Which of the following is most likely to empower one person over another?

A) Assertion
B) Negotiation
C) Aggression
D) Bargaining

Question 39

According to Machiavelli and Hobbes, which is TRUE?

A) Humans will be in a perpetual state of conflict as they compete for material goods, power and esteem.
B) Human conflict must be controlled by the state.
C) Social contracts, in the forms of things like laws and rules, are necessary to allocate scarce resources and secure social stability.
D) All of the above are true.

Question 40

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Conflict

A) both the end state of conflict and the process of a given conflict's ending
B) the ability to control the direction or course of action of others
C) acting in a way that affirms one's rights and positions but does not necessarily do so at the expense of others
D) direct confrontation between individuals or groups over scarce resources
E) all parties agree to a given course of action or perception of a situation

Question 41

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Power

A) both the end state of conflict and the process of a given conflict's ending
B) the ability to control the direction or course of action of others
C) acting in a way that affirms one's rights and positions but does not necessarily do so at the expense of others
D) direct confrontation between individuals or groups over scarce resources
E) all parties agree to a given course of action or perception of a situation

Question 42

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Consensus

A) both the end state of conflict and the process of a given conflict's ending
B) the ability to control the direction or course of action of others
C) acting in a way that affirms one's rights and positions but does not necessarily do so at the expense of others
D) direct confrontation between individuals or groups over scarce resources
E) all parties agree to a given course of action or perception of a situation

Question 43

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Assertion

A) both the end state of conflict and the process of a given conflict's ending
B) the ability to control the direction or course of action of others
C) acting in a way that affirms one's rights and positions but does not necessarily do so at the expense of others
D) direct confrontation between individuals or groups over scarce resources
E) all parties agree to a given course of action or perception of a situation

Question 44

Match the term or concept with its appropriate definition.
-Conflict resolution

A) both the end state of conflict and the process of a given conflict's ending
B) the ability to control the direction or course of action of others
C) acting in a way that affirms one's rights and positions but does not necessarily do so at the expense of others
D) direct confrontation between individuals or groups over scarce resources
E) all parties agree to a given course of action or perception of a situation

Question 45

What are resources in your culture that are scarce and over which people engage in conflict?

Question 46

Think about a conflict situation with which you have previously dealt. Were there any positive outcomes to the conflict? Was it a microsocial or macrosocial issue? How did the fact that "the nature of humans is that they are self-oriented" play into your conflict situation?

Question 47

Think about the exercise that was done for human ecological theory. How can you relate conflict theory to the development of the family budget that was done in that exercise? What are examples of conflict over scarce resources when planning a family budget? How do family dynamics differ than group dynamics in that process? What conflict management skills can you use to resolve disagreement over family budget amounts?