Deck 3: Contemporary Urban Sociology

Question 1

Which of the following terms can be defined as variation in the affluence of particular places, or the inequality in the distribution of people and capital across spatial locations, including the segregation of social classes?

A) Exaggerated growth
B) Uneven development
C) Spatial inequality
D) Accumulated space

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which of the following is an integrated perspective in studying urban sociology that works to explain both urbanization and social production of space while also examining political economy and cultural factors in city social life?

A) Social urbanization model
B) Sociospatial perspective
C) Capital accumulation theory
D) Network urbanization approach

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Which scholar noted capitalism's double tendency of concentration and examined the social problems created by the operation of capitalism in the industrial city?

A) Marx
B) Weber
C) Engels
D) Burgess

Answer 3

C

Question 4

According to Lefebvre, where does investment happen in the second circuit of capital?

A) Real estate
B) Non-profit industries
C) Education
D) Regulation

Question 5

Among the leading scholars of urban social life, who argued that social activities take place in space, and these social activities also produce space by creating objects in that space?

A) Engels
B) Burgess
C) Lefebvre
D) Harvey

Question 6

Which company built an experimental research center in Palo Alto in 1970 that lead to the development of Ethernet computing technology and contributed to the cluster of technology development in Silicon Valley?

A) Berkshire Hathaway
B) Xerox
C) Kodak
D) Amazon

Question 7

Which contemporary urban sociologist argued, unlike the way many sociologists write about social classes, that class conflict takes many forms as both the capitalist and working classes split up among themselves into various groups or fractions as a consequence of protracted struggles for advantage?

A) Marx
B) Durkheim
C) Engels
D) Harvey

Question 8

Which of the following are among the four assertions made by Harvey in his capital accumulation theory?

A) The city is defined as a spatial node that concentrates and circulates capital
B) A functionalist perspective helps understanding social class relations in urban space
C) The capitalist class relies on government intervention to support their profit making efforts within cities.
D) Answers A and B
E) Answers A and C

Question 9

Containment, as discussed in this chapter, is a form of what?

A) Racialized residential segregation and spatial inequality
B) Policy preventing urban sprawl
C) Bank practices to slow lending of capital
D) Congestion pricing to reduce traffic problems for city commuters

Question 10

What is the systematic study of language and meaning via signs and symbols and focuses on the how and who is involved in fusing signifiers to specific signifieds to create a sign's dominant meaning?

A) Semiotics
B) Theming
C) Narrative analysis
D) Circuital development

Question 11

What does Gottdiener's concept of theming refer to?

A) The reliance on markers of cultural trends to organize policy making by city governments.
B) The study of political statements made by local officials in urban sociology.
C) The use of signs to sell experiences and the built environment to consumers via cultural motifs.
D) The redevelopment of neighborhoods organized around unique design trends.

Question 12

Who is Henri Lefebvre? What major concepts did he bring to the study of urban sociology? How does his work continue to shape the field?

Question 13

Compare and contrast the perspectives and research of contemporary urban sociologists.

Question 14

What is political economy and how does interest in political economy shape the perspectives of contemporary urban sociologists?

Question 15

Discuss urban semiotics and explain how it is useful for understanding social life in the city.

Question 16

What are the primary and secondary circuits of capital? How do these circuits shape the physical space of metropolitan regions?

Question 17

What is uneven development? What forces contribute to the emergence of uneven development? How do urban residents navigate spaces shaped by uneven development?

Question 18

What factors contribute to sociospatial inequality? What roles do race, class, and culture play in this inequality?