Deck 20: Sex, Gender, and Culture

Question 1

What percentage of societies do not allow women to participate in warfare?

A) 87
B) 75
C) 67
D) 92

Answer 1

87

Question 2

Variation in gender contribution to primary subsistence relates directly to the type of ___________.

A) food getting
B) warfare
C) social stratification
D) gender roles

Answer 2

food getting

Question 3

Which of the following theories explains the differences between male and female roles based on the greater aerobic capacity of males?

A) compatibility with child care theory
B) economy of effort theory
C) expendability theory
D) strength theory

Answer 3

strength theory

Question 4

Of the following societies, which is the most pro-homosexual?

A) America
B) the Etoro
C) the Siwans
D) the Papago

Question 5

Many Agta women of the Philippines regularly hunt wild pig and deer. What percent of wild game is killed by Agta women?

A) almost 20%
B) almost 30%
C) almost 40%
D) almost 80%

Question 6

In Oman, there is a third gender role called

A) two-spirits.
B) Berache.
C) homosexuals.
D) Xanith.

Question 7

Humans display __________. That is, the females and males of the species exhibit fairly marked differences in size and appearance.

A) physiological differences
B) chromosomal differences
C) genotypic differences
D) sexual dimorphism

Question 8

Of the following societies, which is the most lenient about restrictions dealing with the timing of sexual intercourse inside of marriage?

A) the Yapese
B) the Chenchu
C) the Americans
D) the Lesu

Question 9

According to the __________ theory, men may produce musical instruments from wood because men are the ones who collect the wood in the first place and probably understand its physical properties better.

A) compatibility with child care
B) economy of effort
C) expendability
D) strength

Question 10

In societies with a high female contribution to primary subsistence,

A) infants are fed solid foods earlier, girls are likely to be trained to be industrious, and baby girls are more valued.
B) infants are fed solid foods later, girls are likely to be trained to be industrious, and baby girls are less valued.
C) infants are fed solid foods later, girls are not likely to be trained to be industrious, and baby girls are more valued.
D) infants are fed solid foods earlier, girls are likely to be trained to be industrious, and baby girls are less valued.

Question 11

In ________ of surveyed, societies only men were leaders.

A) 65%
B) 55%
C) 88%
D) 75%

Question 12

Of the following, the best explanation for why men typically make musical instruments is

A) men are usually more musical than women.
B) men normally collect the hard materials involved, and so may be more familiar with their properties and how to work them.
C) making a musical instrument requires long concentration, which is impossible for women engaged in child-care.
D) many musical instruments require a great deal of strength to make.

Question 13

In which type of societies are women most likely to contribute more than men to primary subsistence?

A) pastoral
B) hunter-gatherer
C) horticultural
D) intensive agriculture

Question 14

Mbuti pygmy women

A) are highly valued, but have few personal rights and virtually no influence in political decision-making.
B) have practically no rights, and very little influence.
C) have more political power than men, due in part to fear and awe-inspired by menstrual taboos.
D) have unusually high status.

Question 15

In all human societies yet examined, males generally have

A) greater grip strength than females.
B) lower aerobic work capacity than females.
C) proportionately smaller lungs than females.
D) proportionately smaller hearts than females.

Question 16

Of the following, which is not a primary subsistence activity?

A) gathering
B) corn grinding
C) fishing
D) herding

Question 17

Which of the following statements best describes humans as they grow taller?

A) Females achieve their ultimate height shortly after puberty, but boys continue to grow for years after puberty.
B) Boys achieve their ultimate height shortly after puberty, but females continue to grow for years after puberty.
C) Both sexes continue to grow for years after puberty.
D) Both sexes achieve their ultimate height shortly after puberty.

Question 18

In most societies, what is the average length of time for a mother to breastfeed her child?

A) 12 months
B) 18 months
C) 24 months
D) 30 months

Question 19

Which may explain why men generally have higher status than women in most societies?

A) economy of effort theory
B) political warfare theory
C) women's status will be high when they contribute substantially to primary subsistence
D) women's status will be highest when they contribute mostly to secondary subsistence activities

Question 20

Societies that frown on sexual expression by young children

A) allow premarital and extramarital sexual relations.
B) do not condone premarital sexual relations but allow extramarital relations.
C) also punish premarital and extramarital sex.
D) condone some premarital sexual expression but not extramarital sex.

Question 21

In the U.S. there are two genders, female and male. However, not everyone is comfortable with this and the term transgender is used because

A) some people feel the dichotomy works perfectly.
B) no one is ever sure what gender they are.
C) almost everyone wants to be a different gender.
D) some people do not feel that their assigned gender fits them well.

Question 22

One sex difference that appears very early in American children, as well as in children in all societies for which systematic data is available is

A) greater sociability in girls.
B) greater nurturance in boys.
C) greater responsibility in boys.
D) greater aggressiveness in boys.

Question 23

Extramarital sex

A) is common in only a small minority of the world's cultures.
B) is considered unacceptable in virtually all of the world's societies.
C) is permissible for women in most of the world's societies.
D) is generally more acceptable for men than for women.

Question 24

Colonial influence in various parts of the world seems to have

A) only slightly affected the status of women.
B) lowered the status of women.
C) generally resulted in greater sexual antagonism between men and women.
D) raised the status of women.

Question 25

The concept of homosexuality means different things to different cultures because

A) homosexuality is defined as sex with people of a different biological sex.
B) all societies do not have the same gender concepts, so the meaning of homosexuality is different.
C) no one has been able to define what homosexuality is.
D) none of the above.

Question 26

Male homosexual behavior

A) is frowned upon in all known human societies.
B) is severely punished by the Papago Indians of the Southwest.
C) although accepted in some societies, is always considered inferior to heterosexual behavior.
D) is considered superior to heterosexual behavior among the Etoro of New Guinea.

Question 27

In the past, economic development in most societies usually made things worse for women, but today

A) women find creative solutions like raising extra pigs for sale in China.
B) it is even worse.
C) it is not studied as much anymore.
D) men and women are both doing poorly.

Question 28

Among the Iroquois, women

A) had a great deal of say over who the group's leaders were.
B) participated alongside the men as warriors in battle.
C) had little say over how the goods they produced were distributed.
D) lived in their husband's home.

Question 29

In many animal species, unlike humans, males and females cannot be easily distinguished because

A) except for chromosome makeup and their organs of reproduction, they do not differ.
B) most animals have the ability to change their look at will.
C) in the wild, males and females all look different, but in domestication they change.
D) none of the above.

Question 30

Among the Lepcha, a man was believed to become homosexual if he _______.

A) engaged in intercourse with another male
B) ate the flesh of an uncastrated pig
C) did not marry
D) did not engage in premarital sex

Question 31

Which of the following personality traits did not differentiate between boys and girls in the Six Cultures project?

A) a tendency to seek help and interpersonal contact
B) aggressiveness
C) a tendency to play in larger groups
D) seeking and offering friendship

Question 32

Research on gender roles shows that many societies divide work up in similar ways. How is this explained?

A) strength theory.
B) compatibility with childcare theory.
C) expendability theory.
D) all of the above.

Question 33

Childhood sexual curiosity is

A) considered abhorrent by most of the world's societies.
B) discouraged in all of the societies for which we have information.
C) met with a tolerant and permissive attitude in some societies.
D) severely punished among the Hopi.

Question 34

Research has shown that previously held beliefs about behavioral differences between females and males are often wrong. These misconceptions include

A) the idea that girls are less sociable than boys.
B) the idea that boys are more passive than girls.
C) the idea that girls are more dependent than boys.
D) the idea that girls are more aggressive than boys.

Question 35

Despite the fact that sexuality is a part of nature, society imposes rules governing "proper" conduct. However

A) very little study has been done.
B) consistency among cultures is often observed.
C) there is a great deal of variation from one society to another.
D) sexual activity is rarely restricted.

Question 36

In almost every known society men dominate leadership in their society, this is explained in part because

A) women have not shown an interest in political power.
B) men's role in warfare gives them a political edge.
C) members of society only vote for men.
D) societies copy each other politically.

Question 37

The relative status of women means different things to different people. For example

A) how much power and authority men and women have relative to each other.
B) how much importance society confers on females vs. males.
C) what kinds of rights women and men possess to do what they want to do.
D) all of the above.

Question 38

Premarital sex is

A) considered good for boys in some societies but is apparently universally discouraged for girls.
B) frowned upon by almost all of the world's societies.
C) actively encouraged in some societies.
D) accepted in some societies but apparently never actively encouraged.

Question 39

When studying work, anthropologists have focused on subsistence activities because

A) they are not very consistent between cultures.
B) food is necessary for survival.
C) it is mostly what's observed in anthropological field work.
D) it was a choice made decades ago and no one wishes to change it.

Question 40

Cross-cultural studies show that which of the following factors is related to higher status for women in many areas of life?

A) being a member of an intensive agriculture society
B) less hunting
C) the presence of religions with many female deities, or a female high god
D) kin groups and marital residence organized around women

Question 41

Of the few, what restrictions exist about sexual relations inside of marriage?

Question 42

Why are women more restricted in their sexual behavior than men in most societies?

Question 43

How is male homosexuality expressed in Papago society? What function might this behavior play in the overall society?

Question 44

What are the misconceptions about the differences in behavior between boys and girls?
What needs to be done to clarify some of these misconceptions?

Question 45

How does the economy of effort theory explain why men tend to be the producers of such items as musical instruments and boats?

Question 46

Define primary subsistence and secondary subsistence activities. Why are men apparently more involved in primary activities?

Question 47

What influences did women have in Iroquois society? Do these powers make Iroquois a matriarchal society?