Deck 1: How to Study Families in the Twenty-First Century

Question 1

Which of the following political views takes the position that the family is the most important social institution,"the fundamental building block and basic unit of our society?"

A)Conservative
B)Liberal
C)Feminist
D)Socialist

Answer 1

A

Question 2

According to C.Wright Mills,an important American sociologist cited by Aulette,

A)the micro and macro levels of society are nearly independent of one another.
B)the macro level affects the micro level,but the micro level has little effect on the macro level.
C)the micro level affects the macro level,but the macro level has little effect on the micro level.
D)the micro level and the macro level shape and determine each other.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Social structure includes

A)laws that allow some people to marry but not others.
B)media messages we are sent about acceptable ways for husbands and wives to treat each other.
C)technology available for housework.
D)all of the above.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

According to Aulette,politics is the expression and organization of

A)government.
B)justice.
C)power.
D)laws.

Question 5

C.Wright Mills,an important American sociologist,called individuals' lives __________,and used the term,________,for the "lives" of societies.

A)biographies ...social biographies
B)biographies ...history
C)individual history ...social history
D)social history ...collective history

Question 6

Which of the following is an example of the micro level of social experience?

A)An unmarried couple discussing whether to have sex.
B)A labor market in which many jobs are occupied predominantly by men.
C)Laws that designate a minimum wage.
D)Church doctrine about the accepted text for marriage ceremonies.

Question 7

Which of the following is an example of the micro level affecting the macro level?

A)Corporations layoff workers to move operations to other countries to take advantage of tax policies and/or avoid environmental and worker protection laws.The unemployed workers postpone marriage or having children until they get another good job.
B)The state changes marriage laws to allow gay people to marry.
C)Parents unable to get affordable health insurance send letters with pictures of their ill children to representatives in Washington DC to ask for a public option for health coverage.
D)The U.S.declare war and sends thousands of troops overseas,causing many soldiers to speed up marriage plans before they are shipped out.

Question 8

Which of the following political views takes the position that parents should be most responsible for their own children,with little interference from other institutions like schools and the government,and women should focus on the role of mother?

A)Conservative.
B)Liberal
C)Feminist
D)Socialist

Question 9

Which of the following is true?

A)The macro level affects the micro level but not vice versa.
B)The micro level affects the macro level but not vice versa.
C)The micro level and macro level do not affect each other.
D)The micro level and macro level both affect each other.

Question 10

Which of the following is an example of one of the questions sociologists ask when looking at how the macro level affects the micro level?

A)How do family members treat each other?
B)How does our society shape our family lives?
C)How do people seeking solutions to problems their families face create change in their society?
D)What ideas about families are being promoted by individuals and organizations for the purpose of changing social policy?

Question 11

C.Wright Mills,an important American sociologist cited by Aulette,named the ability to bridge the gap between society and the individual social experience

A)"The Sociological Biography."
B)"The Sociological Imagination."
C)"The Sociological History."
D)"The Sociological Theory."

Question 12

Aulette asserts that families are political institutions in two ways,including which of the following?

A)At the macro-level,families have a political relationship to the rest of society and the at the micro-level families include internal political relationships.
B)The husband's perspective most often connects their family and the economy while the wife's perspective most often connects their family with other families.
C)The politics of society determine family policy while the politics of the family determine a given family's contribution to society.
D)The politics of social structure and the politics of social dynamics.

Question 13

Which of the following is an example of the macro level affecting the micro level of family experience?

A)Parents concerned about the lack of childcare in the community go to City Council to ask that city to open up a daycare center.
B)A women's organization raises funds to open a shelter for battered women.
C)Teacher's agree to hold conference after 5:00 PM so that parents who work can become more involved in their children's education.
D)A fall in the stock market results in bankruptcy of several banks in Ohio,causing families of unemployed workers to move to another state.

Question 14

The macro level of family sociology focuses on

A)the family life of individual families.
B)individual family members in face-to-face relationships.
C)social structure including social institutions such as government and the economy.
D)Both A and B.

Question 15

Which of the following is an example of the type of question sociologists ask when they are looking at how the micro-level affects the macro level?

A)How does society shape our family lives?
B)How do factors like race,class and gender impact family life?
C)How does the social institution of the economy impact the social institution of the family?
D)How do people seeking solutions to problems their families face create change in their society?

Question 16

Which of the following is an example of the macro level of social experience?

A)A husband telling his wife that we wants a divorce
B)A teacher telling her students about her childhood
C)Laws that prohibit marriage between people of the same sex
D)A sister and a brother arguing about who should do the dishes.

Question 17

Sociologists take the position that although it is true that individuals make choices,they make them

A)within the limits of the society in which they live.
B)totally independent of the society in which they live.
C)based on rational purposeful motives.
D)based on emotional,unrecognized motives.

Question 18

C.Wright Mills,an important American sociologist cited by Aulette,taught that the focus of sociology should be

A)individual lives.
B)the "lives" of societies.
C)the relationship between biography and history.
D)the relationship between demographics and societies.

Question 19

The micro level of family sociology focuses on

A)the family life of individual families.
B)individual family members in face-to-face relationships.
C)social structure including social institutions.
D)Both A and B.

Question 20

Which of the following political perspectives takes the position that the practical and economic context in which families exist is more important than "family values"?

A)Conservative
B)Liberal
C)Feminist
D)Independent

Question 21

In her classic book,The Feminine Mystique,Betty Friedan described the white,middle-class families as

A)"natural,functioning families."
B)"functional prostitution."
C)"a pedestal for women."
D)"comfortable concentration camps."

Question 22

Aulette cites Stephanie Coontz who criticizes both the conservative and liberal positions.Which of the following is/are her criticisms of the conservative position?

A)The conservative model of what ought to be is too narrow and does not encompass the varieties of ways in which people successfully organize families.
B)The conservative model subjugates women and children to men.
C)The conservative model ignores the economic context.
D)All of the above.

Question 23

In her famous book about white,middle-class housewives titled The Feminine Mystique,Betty Friedan asserted that

A)traditional gender roles supported a "benign,natural,functional family."
B)such families were "comfortable concentration camps."
C)such families were best for husbands,wives and society.
D)structural functionalism is the best theory for organizing families.

Question 24

The U.S.Bureau of the Census identifies households as "family" or "nonfamily" households.Aulette suggests that this distinction may hide familial relationships because "non-family" households include

A)women or men who live alone.
B)gay or lesbian couples who are not allowed to marry.
C)unmarried heterosexual couples who are cohabiting.
D)B and C above.

Question 25

The United States Department of the Census defines a family household as one in which inhabitants

A)consider themselves families.
B)are related to each other through marriage,blood,or adoption.
C)function as an economic unit.
D)none of the above -- the U.S.Department of the Census does not distinguish between family and nonfamily households since it is not relevant to the count.

Question 26

What percent of households in the U.S.are composed of a father who is in the labor force,a mother who is a housewife,and their children?

A)1%
B)7%
C)28%
D)43%

Question 27

Structural functionalists believe that families are functional when

A)men make decisions and earn money while women provide for the nurturing needs of a family.
B)women make decisions and earn money while men provide for the nurturing needs of a family.
C)men and women share decision making,breadwinning,and nurturing tasks.
D)each family member does what he or she is best at,regardless of gender or family type.

Question 28

Structural functionalists believe that a system works best when the elements functionally serve the system.They think that a family works best when …

A)a husband focuses on instrumental functions and a wife focuses on expressive functions.
B)a husband focuses on expressive functions and a wife focuses on instrumental functions.
C)the husband and wife both work outside the home for wages.
D)the husband and wife share home care and child care functions.

Question 29

Aulette refers to the 19th century struggle for women's right to vote as the

A)First Wave Women's Movement.
B)Second Wave Women's Movement.
C)Third Wave Women's Movement.
D)Fourth Wave Women's Movement.

Question 30

Scholar activists and feminists have been revisioning the family for over 30 years.A major theme of this revisioning has been to

A)challenge the myth of the monolithic family and to appreciate the diversity of families.
B)replace legal,permanent marriage with cohabitation and renewable contracts.
C)integrate family into society and society into family.
D)align families more closely with traditional,Christian values.

Question 31

About two-thirds of Americans say that they …

A)were married in a religious ceremony
B)expect to be buried with a religious ceremony.
C)Both A and B above.
D)None of the above

Question 32

Aulette cites Stephanie Coontz who criticizes both the conservative and liberal positions.Which of the following is/are her criticisms of the liberal position?

A)The liberal model does not acknowledge the kinds of changes in our values that will be necessary to alter the economic context so that it supports families drowning in debt and declining wages.
B)The liberal model promotes too many diverse family structures.
C)The liberal model supports community responsibility for children.
D)A and B above.

Question 33

Which of the following positions reflects the liberal position?

A)Focuses on the practical and economic needs of families.
B)Parents should be most responsible for their own children with little interference from other institutions like schools and the government.
C)Promotes a family structure in which the husband is the primary provider and the wife is the primary nurturer.
D)B and C above.

Question 34

Which of the following positions reflects the conservative position?

A)Opposed to policies that inhibit divorce.
B)Promotes community responsibility for children.
C)Promotes a family structure in which the husband is the primary provider and the wife is the primary nurturer.
D)In favor of laws giving protection to gays and lesbians from discrimination.

Question 35

Religious people and organizations have been active in their involvement in the political arena over family issues.Their positions are similar to that of

A)conservatives.
B)liberals.
C)both conservatives and liberals.
D)neither conservative and liberals since religion transcends politics.

Question 36

Which of the following social movements was/were critical of the structural functionalist positions on family?

A)The civil rights movement.
B)The gay rights movement.
C)The women's movement.
D)All of the above.

Question 37

The myth that families are monolithic refers to the belief that

A)all families are basically the same.
B)only one way of organizing families is the most prevalent,natural and beneficial for humans.
C)the best family is one in which the father is a breadwinner and the mother is a housewife.
D)All of the above.

Question 38

The French missionaries in 16th and 17th century American were critical of the family values practiced by the Montagnais-Naskapi Native Americans because they felt that

A)the Native American males were too harsh in their treatment of women and children.
B)polygamy was a sin.
C)premarital sex was a sin.
D)the Native American women were too independent.

Question 39

The Second Wave Women's Movement

A)brought family issues such as sexuality,battering,and housework to the forefront.
B)focused on family economic issues such as property ownership,inheritance,and jobs.
C)won the right to vote for women.
D)passed the Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S.Constitution.

Question 40

The sociological theory of structural functionalism

A)examines society as a whole system.
B)believes that society is essentially stable and beneficial for nearly all members.
C)emphasizes social order and stability
D)All of the above.

Question 41

Aulette says that we need to identify goals for reconstructing families and societies in ways that provide for loving,egalitarian communities.She also asserts,however,that we need to be careful not to maintain or create relationships that place some people at a disadvantage.She cites Michele Hoffnung on the dilemma between advocating for individual freedom and equality and for societies that are nurturant and collectively run.Which of the following is the position asserted by Hoffnung?

A)Having children is an individual choice.Consequently child care is the individual responsibility of the parents and is not the concern of others.
B)It is not enough for women to be able to do men's work as well as women's; it is necessary to reconsider the value of mothering and to reorder public priorities so that caring for children counts in and adds to the lives of women and men.
C)The socialization of children is so important that mothers should be paid to stay home during the first three years of a child's life.
D)The socialization of children is so important that society should provide high quality child care and preschool education with low or no costs to parents.

Question 42

In 1850 two percent of the population lived past their sixty-fifth birthday.What percentage does so today?

A)10%
B)25%
C)50%
D)75%

Question 43

Juliet Mitchell,cited by Aulette,wrote that four essential social structures are interwoven throughout society and take place in families.Which of the following is NOT one of these activities?

A)production
B)reproduction
C)violence
D)socialization

Question 44

Feminist scholar activists involved with revisioning families are committed to implementing three principles into their research.These include all of the following EXCEPT

A)Replace the "view from above" with the "view from below."
B)Minimize harm to those being studied and maximize leveling hierarchies in the research process.
C)Use multiple measurements with larger samples to increase generalizability of findings.
D)Integrate research and social action with the intention of changing the status quo.

Question 45

Feminist theories ...
A)All of the above.

A)Seek to understand the gendered nature of virtually all social relations,institutions and processes.
B)Seek to understand how gender is related to social inequities,strains and contradictions.
C)See gender relations as the product of sociocultural and historical forces created by humans and can be changed.

Question 46

The myth of the monolithic family sometimes includes the belief that families have not changed historically.Viviana Zelizer (cited by Aulette)provides an example of the value of children in the late 1800's and today.In cases of wrongful death of young children,she found that courts awarded

A)more money in earlier times because of the greater emotional value of children then.
B)more money in the present day because of the greater value of the labor of children today.
C)more money in the present day because of the greater emotional value of children today.
D)little money in either case because children have never been highly valued in the U.S.

Question 47

Aulette asserts that it is important to see families as

A)moving through history and constantly changing so we can better understand the changes in our own time.
B)an unchanging social institution that give us stability through tradition.
C)swinging between conservative and liberal positions but not going too far in either direction.
D)independent of society and social policy to give individuals more freedom.

Question 48

According to Aulette,how does the "Greying of America" impact families?

A)Grandparents moving to Arizona,Florida or other retirement states means that grandchildren are less likely to interact with grandparents than in earlier times in history.
B)Family resources needed for elder medical care become less available for the needs of children.
C)The number of family attachments increase,especially intergenerational links.
D)The research is mixed with some indicating more stress and strain on families and some indicating less.