Deck 2: Culture and Social Structure

Question 1

Gestures used to communicate numbers are universal.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Two people may believe in the same value,such as social equality,yet have strongly opposite views as to how he or she should achieve this valued goal.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Culture provides individuals with a set of common understandings used to fashion behavior.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The only component that gives meaning to the term culture is the nonmaterial aspect that includes such tools for living as computers,axes,and paintings.

Question 5

Values are the codified rules of behavior,including the rule that classifies murder as a felony.

Question 6

Some analysts partly blame our surprise at the 9/11 attacks on ethnocentrism.

Question 7

Similar to humans,groups of orangutans have unambiguously symbolic elements in their cultures.

Question 8

In a cultural context,norms are the social rules that identify appropriate and inappropriate behavior in given situations.

Question 9

An example of expressive symbolism is found in the way lyrics of country music songs changed from the 1930s to the present.

Question 10

Norms are created by people,so they tend to be objective in nature and universal in their use by different societies.

Question 11

Values are very stable,and never change over time.

Question 12

Humans stand apart from other species in their use of language.

Question 13

Helen Keller was unable to acquire an intelligent understanding of her environment until she grasped the significance of symbols,specifically the connection between words and experiences.

Question 14

The "oughts" and "musts" of some societies are often the "ought nots" and "must nots" of other societies.

Question 15

The differences identified between folkways and mores include their relative importance to the well-being and survival of the society in which they exist.

Question 16

The story of the settlement on Pitcairn Island is an example of the founding of a society and the issues involved in the development of a culture.

Question 17

The idea that people view the world differently depending on the nature of the concepts available in their language is the linguistic ethnocentric hypothesis.

Question 18

The form and content of culture is rarely affected by economic,legal,or organizational factors.The primary influence is technological.

Question 19

Culture universals often include the specific details of actual behavior.

Question 20

Mirror imaging is the projection of American values and behavior onto America's enemies and rivals.

Question 21

A society is a relatively simple type of social structure in today's world.

Question 22

One may achgeive ascribed status through a great effort like winning a gold medal at the Olympics.

Question 23

The learned patterns of thinking,feeling,and acting,which are transmitted from one generation to the next,are referred to as

A) society.
B) social structure.
C) culture.
D) material culture.

Question 24

The old order Amish serve as an example of a counterculture.

Question 25

Gunnar Myrdal's book,An American Dilemma,exposed the inconsistencies in America's values and the reality of its societal behavior.

Question 26

The view that one's own group is "the center of everything" reflects the concept of ethnocentrism.

Question 27

A group is,essentially,the same as a category.

Question 28

All groups are ethnocentric.

Question 29

Sociologist William H.Sewell,Jr. ,observed that structure is static,not dynamic.

Question 30

Statuses carry with them a number of culturally defined rights and duties.These expectations are referred to as roles.

Question 31

Quarterback,choir director,ballet dancer,and college student are all examples of achieved statuses.

Question 32

Cultural relativism refers to the importance of evaluating a different culture's way of life from the point of view of the evaluator.

Question 33

Countercultures are identified as groups of people,such as delinquent gangs,who tend to be at odds with the larger mainstream society.

Question 34

Status refers to a person's social ranking in a society as determined by wealth,influence,and prestige.

Question 35

Roles frequently exist in isolation.

Question 36

Sumner's "strain of consistency" suggests that there are powerful forces linking the various elements of culture into an interwoven unit.

Question 37

The idea behind social structure is that most people tend to interact in a haphazard or random manner;therefore,they need structure in their lives.

Question 38

The development of the settlement on Pitcairn Island serves as an example of

A) the founding of a capitalist economy among a group of primitives.
B) the development of a new culture.
C) the establishment of religion in a previously satanist society.
D) how to maintain order in a military setting.

Question 39

Role performance is the actual behavior of a person occupying a particular status.

Question 40

Race,class,and gender are examples of the term master status in that they carry the primary weight in a person's interactions and relationships with other people.

Question 41

Primary methods for enforcing folkways include

A) gossip and ridicule.
B) ostracism.
C) death.
D) fines and imprisonment.

Question 42

________ are NOT an example of nonmaterial culture.

A) Physical artifacts
B) Values
C) Norms
D) Customs

Question 43

From the sociological perspective,wearing soiled clothing might be viewed as violating a

A) law.
B) more
C) folkway.
D) sanction.

Question 44

If someone constructed a playhouse in your backyard for his or her children and a group of neighbors complained that he or she had violated the written deed restrictions for the neighborhood,the basis of their complaint would best illustrate a(n)

A) social more.
B) law.
C) informal norm.
D) value.

Question 45

________ represent(s)symbols of American culture.

A) Gestures
B) Language
C) The U.S.flag
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 46

Acts or objects that are socially accepted as standing for something else are called

A) norms.
B) symbols.
C) values.
D) signs.

Question 47

Values provide us with

A) a legalistic approach to life,leaving no doubt as to what is right or wrong.
B) ways to evaluate people,objects,and events as to their relative worth,merit,beauty,or morality.
C) specific methods for judging the appropriateness of our behavior.
D) stable,unchanging guidelines for behavior.

Question 48

Major sets of values within the dominant American culture include the assignment of high importance to all but ________.

A) work and activity
B) efficiency and practicality
C) individuality
D) group effort and cooperation

Question 49

Norms include

A) folkways.
B) mores.
C) laws.
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 50

Norms

A) are essentially no more than moral rules.
B) are subjective in nature.
C) vary in type from folkways to mores to laws.
D) are subjective in nature and vary in type from folkways to mores to laws are correct.

Question 51

A society's shared ideas regarding what is desirable,correct,and good are called

A) norms.
B) laws.
C) values.
D) mores.

Question 52

_____________ have to do with the customary ways and ordinary conventions by which we carry out our daily actions,and we ordinarily do not attach moral significance to their violation.

A) Folkways
B) Mores
C) Laws
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 53

Social rules that specify appropriate and inappropriate behavior in given situations are called

A) cultural expectations.
B) socialized values.
C) norms.
D) cognitive expectations.

Question 54

______________ are rules that are seen as vital to a society's well-being and survival,people who break them are viewed as sinful,evil,and wicked.

A) Folkways
B) Mores
C) Laws
D) None of the choices are correct.

Question 55

While culture provides the meanings that allow people to interpret their daily lives,_____________ is the concept that represents the networks of social relations that develop among a group of people.

A) material culture
B) socialization
C) society
D) ethnocentrism

Question 56

________ is(are)NOT one of the major value configurations within the dominant American culture.

A) The assignment of high importance to leisure and relaxation
B) Work and activity
C) Efficiency and practicality
D) Material comfort

Question 57

In examining the relationship between values and norms,we generally can say that

A) values are based on norms.
B) values are based on mores.
C) norms are based on values.
D) there is no relationship.

Question 58

Stone axes,computers,skateboards,and lamp shades are examples of

A) society.
B) nonmaterial culture.
C) social structure.
D) material culture.

Question 59

Decency,justice,worth of the individual,and equal opportunity illustrate basic American

A) norms.
B) mores.
C) values.
D) folkways.

Question 60

______________ are rules enforced by a special political organization composed of individuals who maintain the right to use force.

A) Folkways
B) Mores
C) Laws
D) None of the choices are correct.

Question 61

According to existing research,chimpanzees

A) do not use tools.
B) have complex grooming and courtship behaviors.
C) cannot solve technical problems.
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 62

Primate researchers have concluded that great ape cultures probably have existed for at least __________ years.

A) 400,000
B) 1.4 million
C) 4 million
D) 14 million

Question 63

A Peace Corps volunteer living in Blantyre,Malawi reported that the post office there had two letter slots,one labeled "Blantyre" and the other labeled

A) "All points West."
B) "All points East."
C) "Elsewhere."
D) None of the choices are correct.

Question 64

Expressive symbolism

A) is an important way to communicate the norms,values,and beliefs in a society.
B) interferes with the ability of people to understand their society.
C) is a reflection of society.
D) is an important way to communicate the norms,values,and beliefs in a society and is a reflection of society are correct.

Question 65

Some analysts blame our surprise at the 9/11 attacks partly on

A) cultural relativism.
B) ethnocentrism.
C) anomie.
D) ethnicity.

Question 66

Sapir and Whorf

A) developed the linguistic relativity hypothesis.
B) proposed that people view the world differently depending on the nature of the concepts available in their language.
C) argued that language has a powerful influence on thoughts.
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 67

The most important symbols are found in

A) music.
B) mathematics.
C) language.
D) art.

Question 68

The often unavoidable process of judging the behavior of others by our standards and tending to see "them" as inferior to "us" is called

A) ethnicity.
B) entropy.
C) ethnocentrism.
D) cultural relativism.

Question 69

Two Americans in England note the "stupidity" of English drivers for driving on "the wrong side of the road." The Americans are exhibiting

A) cultural relativism.
B) syncretism.
C) ethnocentrism.
D) patriotism.

Question 70

The form and content of culture is

A) heavily affected by economic,organizational,legal,and technological factors.
B) unaffected by technology.
C) almost totally determined by its economic system.
D) separate from the legal system.

Question 71

The strain to achieve consistency in a culture means that

A) culture is always in a state of flux.
B) inconsistencies in values and behavior are always present in human societies.
C) powerful social forces link the various elements of a culture.
D) None of the choices are correct.

Question 72

The word computer

A) is a symbol.
B) is part of a powerful code that helps us deal with the world around us.
C) becomes a vehicle of communication because a group of people view the symbol and the object as linked.
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 73

When a trait or feature from one culture is rejected as being strange or immoral by another culture,it is an example of

A) syncretism.
B) synchronization.
C) sedition.
D) ethnocentrism.

Question 74

When social scientists examine the practice of the Inuits leaving their elderly to perish in the cold,they typically evaluate the behavior pattern in the context of the Inuit culture.This is an example of

A) Christianity.
B) Judaism.
C) syncretism.
D) cultural relativism.

Question 75

Based on research conducted with chimpanzees,which of the following is a specific behavior found among some chimps?

A) leaf clipping
B) drumming
C) nut-cracking
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 76

Helen Keller gained entrance to social life because

A) she grasped the significance of symbols.
B) she eventually could "see" the association between a word and an experience.
C) she could conceive of things apart from their actual presence.
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 77

Which of the following is not a cultural universal?

A) food quest
B) automobile purchase
C) social stratification
D) funeral rites

Question 78

The idea that language shapes our perceptions of reality is called the

A) symbolic reality hypothesis.
B) linguistic relativity hypothesis.
C) sign language hypothesis.
D) cultural diversity hypothesis.

Question 79

Researcher Christophe Boesch claims there are three components of culture common to humans and chimpanzees.Which of the following is NOT one of these?

A) Culture is learned from group members.
B) Culture is a distinctive collective practice.
C) Culture is objectively obtained.
D) Culture is based on shared meanings between members of the same group.

Question 80

The existence of cultural universals is due to

A) a law of nature.
B) the tendency of all people to desire the same,specific activities and relationships in their lives.
C) a human instinct.
D) people facing the same broad problems of survival.