Deck 1: Public and Private Families

Question 1

The ________ can be described as the tendency to obtain public goods by allowing others to do the work of providing them.

A)boundary problem
B)externality problem
C)utilitarian problem
D)free-rider problem

Answer 1

D

Question 2

If you want to determine how a family is adjusting to the daily expectations and changes of remarried life with children, the most effective sociological theory to employ would be

A)postmodern perspective.
B)conflict.
C)symbolic interaction.
D)feminism.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Today, most Americans view the family as a(n) ________ institution.

A)private
B)traditional
C)public
D)economic

Answer 3

A

Question 4

According to the ________ perspective, personal identity and choices have become more important and more often reflected upon over time.

A)interactionist
B)postmodern
C)reflexivity
D)functionalist

Question 5

Of the following, which group would not fit the definition of a public family?

A)A gay man caring for a partner with AIDS
B)A childless married couple with no dependents
C)A lesbian couple jointly raising a child born to one of them
D)A divorced mother and her children

Question 6

A social institution emphasizes

A)the history of the family as a social institution.
B)people's personalities and their interactions with other family members.
C)the rules, roles, and relationships in families.
D)the economic influences on the family.

Question 7

The best term to describe the attitude of many Americans toward marriage and family in the 2000s is

A)reluctance.
B)ambivalence.
C)intolerance.
D)confusion.

Question 8

While the public family is about ________, the private family is about ________.

A)caretaking and dependency; nurturing and intimacy
B)outsiders; insiders
C)government interference; husband-and-wife family unit
D)image and the media; the day-to-day living of family life

Question 9

The general trend of Americans' attitudes toward the unmarried has been from an attitude of ________ to an attitude of ________.

A)nonacceptance; acceptance
B)neutrality; nonacceptance
C)nonacceptance; neutrality
D)neutrality; tolerance

Question 10

Sociologists generally do not use experiments to prove or disprove relationships between two factors since ______ is seldom possible.

A)hypothesizing
B)data collection
C)observation
D)randomization

Question 11

A gay person caring for an HIV-positive partner is fulfilling a function of the ________.

A)private family
B)alternative family
C)public family
D)diversity defenders

Question 12

An adult child who takes care of elderly parents-shopping and cooking for them, taking them to doctors, and so on-is producing a ___________.

A)negative externality
B)private good
C)public good
D)mediocre externality

Question 13

Those most likely to view marriage as a socially constructed institution organized to maintain male dominance most likely subscribe to the principles of

A)feminist theory.
B)conflict theory.
C)postmodern perspective.
D)exchange theory.

Question 14

From a(n) _______, people are viewed as rational beings who decide whether to trade goods or services by considering the benefits they will receive, the costs they will incur, and the benefits they might receive if they chose an alternative course of action.

A)exchange perspective
B)functionalist perspective
C)symbolic interactionist perspective
D)postmodern perspective

Question 15

In the United States, there appears to have been a broad cultural shift in the values Americans hold most dear. The general trend has been from an emphasis on ________ to that on ________.

A)personal relationships; obligations
B)parenting; employee relationships
C)personal growth; service to others
D)parenting; self-fulfillment

Question 16

________ individualism can best be described as a style of life that emphasizes the development of one's own feelings and emotional satisfaction.

A)Objective
B)Utilitarian
C)Expressive
D)Emotional

Question 17

If you were concerned with the way families discipline their children, handle their disagreements, or share their affection, you would be focusing on the

A)public family.
B)sexually based primary relationship.
C)external family.
D)private family.

Question 18

Gender, the characteristics distinguishing men and women from each other, is thought to originate from ________ defined roles, according to feminist theorists.

A)biologically
B)culturally
C)scientifically
D)naturally

Question 19

To conduct ___________ studies, researchers may join the group they are interested in and live with them for a period of time.

A)survey questionnaire
B)experimental
C)random sample
D)observational

Question 20

Most people have used the ________ perspective in thinking about families throughout most of history.

A)optimist
B)functionalist
C)private
D)public

Question 21

Negative externalities occur when an individual or a business produces something that benefits others at a cost to itself.

Question 22

Which of the following statements regarding marriage is true?

A)The practical significance of marriage has increased over the years.
B)Getting married is seen as a personal achievement in America.
C)Marriage is no longer seen as a mark of distinction in America.
D)Getting married is still viewed as a social norm by most Americans.

Question 23

One disadvantage of survey research on family is the limited information that can be gathered.

Question 24

Postmodern perspective advocates and feminist perspective advocates would argue that no social scientist can conduct completely objective research. Why is this so?

Question 25

Most Americans still want to marry but have less of a need to do so in the 2000s.

Question 26

________ is a style of life that emphasizes self-reliance and personal achievement, especially in one's work life.

A)Utilitarian individualism
B)Expressive individualism
C)Axiological individualism
D)Semantic individualism

Question 27

Many Americans agree with both traditional and modern beliefs about family life.

Question 28

Anzstat PLC is a landscaping solutions company. The organization has built and maintained a park for its employees to relax. The park is also used free of cost by members of the public who are not employed by the company. In doing this, Anzstat has produced

A)negative externalities.
B)positive externalities.
C)random externalities.
D)assigned externalities.

Question 29

Reflexivity is the process where individuals take in knowledge, look carefully at it, and alter their behavior as a result of it.

Question 30

The adherents of the symbolic interaction theory see the world as a place where people rarely create and sustain meaning because doing so involves more costs than benefits.

Question 31

Which of the following is a difference between the methodologies used by the national social scientific surveys conducted in the United States and the opinion-poll surveys that come up on news sites online?

A)Unlike the typical opinion-poll survey, social scientific surveys tend to be longitudinal studies.
B)Most online opinion-poll surveys are meant for secondary analysis, whereas the social scientific surveys are meant for primary analysis.
C)Online opinion-poll surveys allow more flexibility in their administration than the social scientific surveys.
D)The questionnaires used in online opinion-poll surveys are always broader than those used in social scientific surveys.

Question 32

Globalization has eroded the ability of highly educated young adults to form long-term family bonds.

Question 33

The breadwinner-homemaker family consisted of a married couple and its children and was prevalent in the mid-twentieth century.

Question 34

Research evidence demonstrates that our biological makeup creates predispositions toward some behaviors and away from others, especially with respect to gender behaviors.

Question 35

How does the traditional view of family differ from that of the modernist viewpoint? Specifically, what does each view say about family change, what is a limitation of each view, and what would each view suggest as a solution to current family issues?

Question 36

Michael, a musician, does not have any blood relatives and is an avowed bachelor. He likes to spend his free time with a group of fellow musicians, whom he can depend on in any situation. His relationships with the fellow musicians are examples of

A)created kinship.
B)assigned kinship.
C)attributed kinship.
D)contrived kinship.

Question 37

According to the postmodern perspective, the late modern era is characterized by constrained choices and lives similar to those of our grandparents.

Question 38

There are strong similarities between American families and families in other Western nations.

Question 39

A state in which family members are unsure of who is and who is not in the family is referred to as

A)assigned kinship.
B)created kinship.
C)boundary ambiguity.
D)a public family.

Question 40

Name the major methods that sociologists use to study families. Describe one of these methods.

Question 41

On average, which person in an exchange is able to receive greater benefits and incur fewer costs?

Question 42

Explain how some positive externalities involve the production of what are called public goods.

Question 43

How are children a "public good" in the economic use of the phrase?

Question 44

What are the disadvantages of using surveys to collect data on U.S. families?

Question 45

Using knowledge gained from reading Cherlin, list the costs and benefits for a woman, a man, and a one-year-old child in a family where both adults work full time outside the home. In making such a list, what theoretical perspective in sociology would you be using?

Question 46

Name and briefly explain three of the classical social theories relating to the study of the family.

Question 47

Explain the connection between American individualism and the increasing tolerance of progressive views of marriage and the family.

Question 48

Why is the definition of family important in social, legal, and economic terms?

Question 49

How do attractive and acceptable alternatives to marriage, such as lifelong singlehood or cohabitation, change the importance of marriage within our culture?

Question 50

Explain the current Social Security system in this country in terms of the free-rider problem.

Question 51

How does created kinship differ from assigned kinship? Give a concrete, realistic example of each.

Question 52

How would a survey of 10 parents in your neighborhood differ from a random survey of parents all over the United States?

Question 53

Choose one of the following topics and outline the steps needed to analyze this topic scientifically:
Age at first marriage and the chances of divorce
Teenage drinking and driving
Effects of divorce on children's achievement in school
Link between child abuse and violent adult behavior
Effect of family structure on childhood achievement
Religion and duration of marriage
Class and age at first marriage
Educational level and income