Deck 5: Socialization

Question 1

Which theory developed by the psychologist John B. Watson claims human behavior is not instinctive but learned within a social environment?

A) behaviorism
B) biological psychology
C) evolutionary psychology
D) naturalism

Answer 1

A

Question 2

According to Piaget, in what stage of human development do individuals experience the world only through sensory contact?

A) sensorimotor stage
B) preoperational stage
C) concrete operational stage
D) formal operational stage

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Carol Gilligan extended Kohlberg's research, showing that:

A) girls and boys typically assess situations as right and wrong using different standards.
B) girls are more interested in right and wrong than boys are.
C) boys are more interested in right and wrong than girls are.
D) the ability to assess situations as right and wrong typically develops only as young people enter the teenage years.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Jean Piaget's focus was on:

A) how children develop their motor skills.
B) how children are stimulated by their environment.
C) the role of heredity in shaping human behavior.
D) cognition, or how people think and understand.

Question 5

The Harlow experiments to discover the effects of social isolation on rhesus monkeys showed that:

A) monkeys isolated for six months were highly fearful when returned to others of their kind.
B) isolated monkeys able to cuddle artificial mothers developed normally.
C) even several days of social isolation permanently damaged infant monkeys.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 6

In Freud's model of personality, which element of the personality represents a person's efforts to balance the demands of society and innate pleasure-seeking drives?

A) id
B) ego
C) superego
D) generalized other

Question 7

The social sciences, including sociology, make the claim that:

A) humans have instincts that guide our lives.
B) biological forces underlie human culture.
C) as humans, to nurture is our nature.
D) Darwin's model of biological evolution explains patterns of human culture.

Question 8

For Jean Piaget, at which stage of development do individuals first use language and other cultural symbols?

A) sensorimotor stage
B) preoperational stage
C) concrete operational stage
D) formal operational stage

Question 9

Based on both the Harlows' research with rhesus monkeys and the case of Anna, the isolated child, one might reasonably conclude that:

A) the two species react differently to social isolation.
B) both monkeys and humans "bounce back" from long-term isolation.
C) even a few days of social isolation permanently damages both monkeys and humans.
D) long-term social isolation leads to permanent developmental damage in both monkeys and humans.

Question 10

The focus of Lawrence Kohlberg's research was:

A) cognition.
B) the importance of gender in socialization.
C) moral reasoning.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 11

In the nature versus nurture debate, sociologists claim that:

A) nature is far more important than nurture.
B) nurture is far more important than nature.
C) nature and nurture have equal importance.
D) neither nature nor nurture creates the essence of our humanity.

Question 12

Carol Gilligan's work on the issue of self-esteem in girls showed that:

A) girls begin with low self-esteem, but it gradually increases as they progress through adolescence.
B) at all ages, girls have higher self-esteem than boys.
C) at all ages, boys have higher self-esteem than girls.
D) girls begin with high levels of self-esteem, which gradually decrease as they go through adolescence.

Question 13

What concept refers to the lifelong social experience by which human beings develop their potential and learn culture?

A) socialization
B) personality
C) human nature
D) behaviorism

Question 14

In Freud's model of personality, what represents the presence of culture within the individual?

A) id
B) ego
C) superego
D) thanatos

Question 15

The tragic case of Anna, the isolated girl studied by Kingsley Davis, shows that:

A) humans have most of the same instincts found in other animal species.
B) without social experience, a child is incapable of thought or meaningful action.
C) personality is present in humans at birth.
D) many human instincts disappear after the first few years of life.

Question 16

Applying Freud's thinking to a sociological analysis of personality development, you would conclude that:

A) human behavior is basically random.
B) humans have basic, self-centered drives that must be controlled by learning the ways of society.
C) societies encourage people to become self-centered.
D) humans can never become cultural creatures.

Question 17

If you were to put together the lesson learned from the cases of Anna, Isabelle, and Genie, you would correctly conclude that:

A) social experience plays a crucial part in forming human personality.
B) both social experience and the presence of the birth mother are crucial to early development.
C) the effect of long-term social isolation can be overcome in a relatively short time.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 18

What concept refers to a person's fairly consistent pattern of acting, thinking, and feeling?

A) socialization
B) behavior
C) human nature
D) personality

Question 19

Our basic drives or needs as humans are reflected in Freud's concept of:

A) superego.
B) ego.
C) id.
D) generalized other.

Question 20

George Herbert Mead considered the self to be:

A) that part of an individual's personality composed of self-awareness and self-image.
B) the presence of culture within the individual.
C) basic drives that are self-centered.
D) present in infants at the time of their birth.

Question 21

By "taking the role of the other," Mead had in mind:

A) imagining a situation in terms of past experience.
B) recognizing that people have different views of most situations.
C) imagining a situation from another person's point of view.
D) trading self-centeredness for a focus on helping other people.

Question 22

Critics of Erikson's theory of personality development point out that:

A) not everyone confronts the stages in the exact order given by Erikson.
B) failing to meet the challenge of one stage of development may not mean failing at later challenges.
C) this process may unfold differently in other times and places.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 23

On the basis of Melvin Kohn's study of what parents expect of their children, high-income parents are likely to be most concerned when their child:

A) is given a "tardy slip" for being late to school.
B) needs to be told what he should draw during free art time.
C) is labeled a "nonconformist."
D) is said to have an "active imagination."

Question 24

When Cooley used the concept "looking-glass self," he meant to say that:

A) people are self-centered.
B) people see themselves as they think others see them.
C) people see things only from their own point of view.
D) our actions are a reflection of our values.

Question 25

Mead would agree with only one of the following statements. Which one is it?

A) Socialization ends with the development of self.
B) If you win $100 million in a lottery, your self might change.
C) People are puppets with little control over their lives.
D) Human behavior reflects both nature and nurture.

Question 26

Mead placed the origin of the self in:

A) biological drives.
B) genetics.
C) social experience.
D) the functioning of the brain.

Question 27

Today, the factor people most commonly use in deciding if a person has reached adulthood is noting if the young woman or young man:

A) has completed all schooling.
B) has a full-time job, with the ability to support a family.
C) is married and has a child.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 28

On average, a U.S. household has at least one television turned on for how many hours a day?

A) two
B) five
C) seven
D) fifteen

Question 29

In Mead's model, which sequence correctly orders stages of the developing self?

A) imitation, play, game, generalized other
B) imitation, generalized other, play, game
C) imitation, game, play, generalized other
D) imitation, generalized other, game, play

Question 30

According to Mead, social experience involves:

A) understanding the world in terms of our senses.
B) the exchange of symbols.
C) a mix of biological instinct and learning.
D) acting but not thinking.

Question 31

Thinking about how patterns of child-rearing vary by class, lower-class parents generally stress _____, while well-to-do parents typically stress _____.

A) independence protecting children
B) independence dependence
C) obedience creativity
D) creativity obedience

Question 32

Which of the following statements comes closest to describing Erik H. Erikson's view of socialization?

A) Personality develops over the entire life course in patterned stages.
B) Personality involves tensions between the forces of biology and forces of culture.
C) We come to see ourselves as we think others see us.
D) Most of our personality development takes place in childhood.

Question 33

According to Mead, children learn to take the role of the other as they model themselves on important people in their lives, such as parents. Mead referred to these people as:

A) role models.
B) looking-glass models.
C) significant others.
D) the generalized other.

Question 34

Family is important to the socialization process because:

A) family members are often what Mead called "significant others."
B) families pass along to children social identity in terms of class, ethnicity, and religion.
C) parents greatly affect a child's sense of self.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 35

In historical perspective, the importance of the mass media to the socialization process has:

A) increased over time.
B) been about the same over the last century.
C) decreased over time.
D) The mass media have never played a large part in the socialization process.

Question 36

The special contribution of schooling to the socialization process includes:

A) exposing the child to a bureaucratic setting.
B) exposing the child to people of similar social backgrounds.
C) teaching children to be highly flexible and to express their individuality.
D) helping children break free of gender roles.

Question 37

When people model themselves after the members of peer groups they would like to join, they are engaging in:

A) group conformity.
B) future directedness.
C) anticipatory socialization.
D) group rejection.

Question 38

The special importance of the peer group is the fact that it:

A) has a greater effect than parents on children's long-term goals.
B) lets children escape the direct supervision of parents.
C) gives children experience in an impersonal setting.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 39

Mead considered the "generalized other" to be:

A) important individuals in the child's life.
B) a person who provides complete care for a child.
C) any "significant other."
D) widespread cultural norms and values people take as their own.

Question 40

Looking at childhood in global perspective, we find that:

A) childhood is a time of play and learning everywhere.
B) rich societies extend childhood much longer than poor societies do.
C) poor societies extend childhood much longer than rich societies do.
D) biological immaturity is the main factor that defines childhood.

Question 41

Even years of social isolation in infancy may not cause permanent and irreversible developmental damage.

Question 42

The Harlow studies found that six months of social isolation was sufficient to permanently damage infant rhesus monkeys.

Question 43

Industrial societies typically define people in old age as:

A) the most wise.
B) the most knowledgeable about current fashion and trends.
C) more out of touch and less socially important than younger adults.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 44

What we know of the later lives of socially isolated children squares with the findings of the Harlow's research.

Question 45

What is the term sociologists give to a category of people with a common characteristic, usually their age?

A) age subculture
B) generation
C) age group
D) cohort

Question 46

In Freud's model of personality, the superego manages the opposing forces of the id and the ego.

Question 47

Below is a list of traits linked to a total institution all but one are correct. Which one is NOT correct?

A) Staff members supervise all the daily life of inmates.
B) Staff members encourage the individual growth and creativity of inmates.
C) Inmates have standardized food, clothing, and activities.
D) Formal rules direct people's daily routines.

Question 48

Which of the following best sums up Goffman's idea of the resocialization process?

A) break down an old identity, then build up a new identity
B) reward inmates for being creative
C) help integrate inmates into the larger society
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 49

Based on the text's survey of the life course, you might conclude that:

A) life-course stages are shaped by society and have nothing to do with biology.
B) life-course stages are much the same throughout the world.
C) while life-course stages are linked to biology, they are largely a social construction.
D) life-course stages have changed little over recent centuries.

Question 50

According to Erving Goffman, the goal of a total institution is:

A) to help integrate a troubled patient into the outside world.
B) to give a person greater choices about how to live.
C) to radically alter a person's personality or behavior.
D) to encourage lifelong learning in a supervised context.

Question 51

Which of the following concepts refers to a setting where a staff tries to radically change someone's personality through carefully controlling the environment?

A) anticipatory social center
B) cohort community
C) a total institution
D) a degradation ceremony

Question 52

The "ego" in Freud's model of personality is the same as "conscience."

Question 53

Psychologist John B. Watson claimed that specific patterns of behavior are not instinctive, but learned.

Question 54

In her research, Elisabeth Kübler-Ross found that death:

A) is defined in much the same way in every society.
B) is an orderly transition involving specific stages.
C) is a topic that people in the United States have always been comfortable discussing.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 55

Based on what you have read in this chapter, you would correctly conclude that:

A) society shapes how we think and act.
B) human beings are spontaneous and creative, with the power to change society.
C) human being have the capacity to overcome even great challenges.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 56

An inmate who loses the capacity for independent living is described as:

A) unsocialized.
B) integrated.
C) institutionalized.
D) dissociated.

Question 57

The "id" in Freud's work represents the human being's basic needs, which are unconscious and demand immediate satisfaction.

Question 58

The "Seeing Sociology in the News" box on

A) they receive conflicting messages about what they should be.
B) many of today's schools are very competitive.
C) today's young women want to be both feminine and assertive.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 59

The tragic case of Anna shows how, without adequate nutrition, a human being cannot develop a healthy personality.

Question 60

Based on what you have read in this chapter, how would sociologists explain the fact that many young people in the United States experience adolescence as a time of confusion?

A) There are cultural inconsistencies in the definition of this stage of life as partly childlike and partly adultlike.
B) Hormones greatly affect young people as they mature.
C) Growth always involves change, and change is confusing.
D) All of the above are correct.

Question 61

Industrialization brings with it a rise in the social standing of old people.

Question 62

Melvin Kohn demonstrated that parents of all social classes have much the same expectations of their children.

Question 63

According to Jean Piaget, language and other symbols are first used in the preoperational stage.

Question 64

During the last century, the mass media have had a declining influence on people in the United States.

Question 65

Childhood and other stages of the life course are defined in much the same way in all societies.

Question 66

Members of a peer group share common interests, social position, and a similar age.

Question 67

According to Carol Gilligan, the self-esteem of girls steadily increases through the teenage years.

Question 68

In the United States, many young girls feel they are expected to excel at school, to be feminine, attractive, and to "be themselves" as well-which is often difficult.

Question 69

Erik H. Erikson emphasized that almost all important socialization takes place in childhood.

Question 70

Anti-elderly bias in the United States will probably decrease as the percentage of older people rises.

Question 71

George Herbert Mead used the concept "the looking-glass self" to refer to significant people in our lives.

Question 72

Mead's theory of the self is completely social he recognized no role for biology in personality development.

Question 73

Anticipatory socialization refers to trying to avoid unpleasant social experiences.

Question 74

Lawrence Kohlberg claims that individuals develop the capacity for moral reasoning in stages as they grow older.

Question 75

During adolescence, the family's influence on children virtually stops.

Question 76

Of all social institutions, the family has the greatest impact on socialization.

Question 77

U.S. school children spend about as much time in front of a television as they do at school or interacting with their parents.

Question 78

Mead's concepts of the "I" and the "me" are close parallels of Freud's concepts of the id and the superego.

Question 79

Schools provide children with early experience of bureaucracy.

Question 80

While many researchers have studied outward behavior, George Herbert Mead focused on symbolic meaning-specifically the meaning people attach to behavior.