Question 1

Strategy
-Who became the president of the United States immediately following the assassination of William McKinley?
A)William Howard Taft
B)Grover Cleveland
C)Theodore Roosevelt
D)James A. Garfield

Accepted Answer

Theodore Roosevelt became the president of the United States immediately following the assassination of William McKinley.
Key Takeaway: William McKinley was shot while attending the Pan-American Exposition on September 6, 1901, in Buffalo, New York. At first, it seemed that McKinley would recover from his wounds, but he took a turn for the worse and died on September 14. Vice President Theodore Roosevelt succeeded McKinley as President. It is interesting to note that it was not until after President McKinley's murder that the Secret Service was tasked with protecting U.S. presidents.

Question 2

Who was Francis Perkins?
A)The person in charge of Roosevelt's Civilian Conservation Corps
B)The influential writer who coined the phrase "Great Depression"
C)The secretary of labor and the first woman ever elected to the U.S. cabinet
D)An economist who worked with the government in an effort to end the depression

Accepted Answer

Francis Perkins was the secretary of labor and the first woman ever elected to the U.S. cabinet.
Key Takeaway: Frances Perkins, a 1902 graduate of Mount Holyoke College, was the first woman to be appointed to the president's cabinet in the United States and was the Secretary of Labor from 1933 to 1945. A loyal supporter and friend of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Perkins helped to pull the labor movement into the New Deal. She and the Secretary of the Interior, Harold Ickes, were the only two members of the Roosevelt cabinet who remained in office for his entire presidency.

Question 3

John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath chronicled the lives of which of the following groups, as they were affected by the Great Depression?
A)Pennsylvania Coal Miners
B)Migrant farm workers from Mexico
C)Women and children who had worked in Massachusetts silk mills
D)Dust Bowl farmers who were forced to leave their homes, farms, and, therefore, livelihoods.

Accepted Answer

John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath chronicled the lives of Dust Bowl farmers who were forced to leave their homes, farms and, therefore, livelihoods.
Key Takeaway: Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath focuses on a poor family of sharecroppers who set out for California in search of a better life during the Great Depression. Steinbeck poignantly and passionately wrote about the lives of the poor and also became a great advocate for farm and migrant workers. Franklin D. Roosevelt became a quick advocate for aiding the lives of people who were similar to those in Steinbeck's work.

Question 4

What led to the dramatic increase in membership in CORE and the NAACP during World War II?
A)During WWII, the army preferred to recruit Native Americans over African Americans.
B)The post World War I-Black Power movement
C)Discriminatory employment practices toward African Americans
D)During WWII, the army preferred to recruit Mexicans over African Americans.

Accepted Answer

Discriminatory employment practices during the World War II era led to a dramatic increase in membership in CORE and the NAACP.
Key Takeaway: During the war, huge numbers of African Americans moved north to look for jobs in war plants. In 1941, as a result of A. Philip Randolph's threat to march on Washington, DC to demand equal opportunity for blacks in war jobs and in the military, FDR issued the Fair Employment Practices Commission. This order forbade discrimination based on race, leading to a dramatic increase in the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) and CORE (Congress of Racial Equality).

Question 5

For which of the following was Gloria Steinem most noted for in the 1970s?
A)Feminism
B)Environmentalism
C)Veganism
D)Racism

Accepted Answer

Gloria Steinem was most noted for her beliefs in feminism in the 1970s.
Key Takeaway: Beginning in the late 1960s, groups of Anti-war and Civil Rights radicals began what became known as the Second Wave of Feminism. For the first time, women openly discussed their difficulties in breaking out of traditional gender roles and realized that this was a society-wide political obstacle-not a personal obstacle. Issues such as abortion, rape, domestic abuse, and equal pay for equal work became commonplace conversational topics. Gloria Steinem was a key figure in this movement, along with Betty Friedan and Kate Millet.

Question 6

Among different regions of the United States, which of the following issues can be assumed to be the least controversial?
A)Gay marriage rules and rights
B)Prayer in public schools
C)Abortion rights
D)Increases in payment to Social Security

Accepted Answer

Of these issues, increases in payment to Social Security tends to be the least controversial among different regions of the United States.
Key Takeaway: Personal economic issues generally tend to be greatly supported by the public. Therefore, a Social Security payment issue would see the least controversy and opposition. Gay marriage rules and rights, abortion rights, and the issue of prayer in public schools all continue to meet with great opposition and controversy in different areas of the United States.

Question 7

Which of the following means is used when programs for assistance require recipients to show the government proof of need based on low-income levels?
A)Earned income tax credits
B)Cost-benefits analysis
C)Means testing
D)Workfare policies

Accepted Answer

Means testing is used when programs for assistance require recipients to show the government proof of need based on low-income levels.
Key Takeaway: When programs for government assistant require potential recipients to prove that they have a need for assistance (usually due to low income levels), these programs are using means testing. The means test is perhaps best recognized in the United States as the test used by courts to determine eligibility for bankruptcy.

Question 8

What does due process protect a United States citizen from?
A)Being imprisoned without a proper trial
B)Having private property seized without reimbursement
C)Being forced to house soldier in his or her home
D)Being required to register for military service

Accepted Answer

Due process protects a United States citizen from being imprisoned without a proper trial.
Key Takeaway: Due process protects a United States citizen from being unfairly imprisoned without a proper trial. These rights deal with the treatment of ac used criminals by the judicial system. This interpretation of the rights of accused citizens has been refined through several important Supreme Court decisions.

Question 9

Why was President Bill Clinton impeached by the House of Representatives?
A)Clinton demeaned the office of the presidency in the Lewinsky affair.
B)Clinton was accused of committing perjury when testifying about the Lewinsky affair.
C)Clinton falsely used his influence to arrive a high-power job for Paula Jones.
D)It was found that Clinton abused his presidential power to raise money for his 1996 re-election campaign.

Accepted Answer

President Bill Clinton was impeached by the House of Representatives because he was accused of committing perjury when testifying about the Lewinsky affair.
Key Takeaway: Under the Constitution, lying before a federal grand jury, otherwise known as "perjury" is considered a misdemeanor. Any misdemeanor committed by the President is grounds for impeachment. Clinton was accused of lying before the federal court about his affair with White House intern, Monica Lewinsky. Clinton's impeachment trial was held in 1999. After much debate, Clinton was acquitted and remained President for the duration of his term.

Question 10

What sociological approach focuses upon sociology as a means to advance the welfare of humans and improved the general human condition?
A)Scientific perspective
B)Sociological imagination
C)Humanist approach
D)Positive approach

Accepted Answer

The humanist approach focuses upon sociology as a means to advance the welfare of humans and to improve the general human condition.
Key Takeaway: Sociologists generally fall into two camps: those who follow the humanist approach and those who adopt the scientific perspective. Those who develop the humanist approach generally view sociology as a way to advance the welfare of their fellow humans, to develop a cultivated personality, and/or to seek self-realization.

Question 11

In the theoretical approach, which theory is based upon concrete observations, leading to general conclusions which are inferred due to reason?
A)Deductive theory
B)Interpretative theory
C)Conflict theory
D)Inductive theory

Accepted Answer

In the theoretical approach, inductive theory is based upon concrete observations, leading to general conclusions which are inferred due to reason.
Key Takeaway: Generally speaking, a theory describes or explains the relationships between observations. The two main sociological theories are the deductive theory (which infers from general knowledge or an understanding of the social world) and inductive theory (in which conclusions are inferred from concrete observations.

Question 12

What views society as being inherently characterized by inequality and conflict?
A)Conflict paradigm
B)Inductive phase
C)Structural functionalism
D)The metaphysical stage

Accepted Answer

The conflict paradigm views society as being inherently characterized by inequality and conflict.
Key Takeaway: The conflict paradigm is often centered on questions about who benefits-or suffers-from existing social arrangements and looks at how factors like age, sex, race, religion, and social class are associated with societal "goods," like power, money, health, and education. The conflict paradigm is often associated with the work of Mills, Dahrendorf, and Coser.

Question 13

Marcus recently finished medical school to become a primary physician. Marcus comes from a poor white family in Appalachia. For Marcus, being a primary physician is ­­­­­­------ .
A)An ascribed status
B)A master status
C)An achieved status
D)A status set

Accepted Answer

For Marcus, being a primary physician is an achieved status.
Key Takeaway: An achieved status is one that is assumed or "achieved" entirely through one's own efforts-despite any setbacks or where one comes from. Unlike an ascribed status, which is automatically attached to a person, an achieved status can change throughout the course of one's life and is obtained voluntarily.

Question 14

What theory argues that crowds of people do not always begin with singular individuals who hold the same motives and/or interests?
A)Contagion Theory
B)Convergence Theory
C)Emergent-Norm Theory
D)Turner/Killian Theory

Accepted Answer

The Emergent-Norm Theory argues that crowds of people do not always begin with singular individuals who hold the same motives and/or interests.
Key Takeaway: The Emergent-Norm Theory was first developed in the 1980s by Lewis Killian and Ralph Turner. These two men observed that crowds do not always begin with individuals who hold a similar set of motives and/or interests. Rather, leaders within the group tend to construct a new set of "normal" motives or interests that are then soon adopted by the entire collective of individuals-the crowd.

Question 15

Michael is an "A" student at Catembung High School. He is a Filipino-American male. Based upon this information, what is Michael's achieved status?
A)Michael is an "A" student.
B)Michael is male.
C)Michael is a Filipino-American.
D)Michael has no achieved status.

Accepted Answer

Based upon this information, Michael's achieved status is as an "A" student.
Key Takeaway: Remember that an achieved status is one that is largely attached to a person based upon an achievement that one has done through their own doing. Being an "A" student, a doctor, or being a history major in college would all be examples of achieved statuses. Achieved status is the opposite of an ascribed status.

Question 16

Some members of a given population are best suited for their environmental conditions and survive, reproduce, and thrive. What is the name for this?
A)Adaptation
B)Failure to thrive
C)Natural selection
D)Evolution

Accepted Answer

Some members of a given population are best suited for their environmental conditions and survive, reproduce, and thrive. This is called natural selection.
Key Takeaway: In Darwin's The Origin of Species, he argued that organisms who have more favorable versions of some traits will survive, thrive, and reproduce, passing those favorable traits on to their offspring. This is known as natural selection. He believed that over time, the traits preferred by natural selection would accumulate, leading a given species to evolve.

Quiz 7: CLEP: Social Sciences

Strategy -Who became the president of the United States immediately following the assassination of William McKinley?

Who was Francis Perkins?

John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath chronicled the lives of which of the following groups, as they were affected by the Great Depression?

What led to the dramatic increase in membership in CORE and the NAACP during World War II?

For which of the following was Gloria Steinem most noted for in the 1970s?

Among different regions of the United States, which of the following issues can be assumed to be the least controversial?

Which of the following means is used when programs for assistance require recipients to show the government proof of need based on low-income levels?

What does due process protect a United States citizen from?

Why was President Bill Clinton impeached by the House of Representatives?

What sociological approach focuses upon sociology as a means to advance the welfare of humans and improved the general human condition?

In the theoretical approach, which theory is based upon concrete observations, leading to general conclusions which are inferred due to reason?

What views society as being inherently characterized by inequality and conflict?

Marcus recently finished medical school to become a primary physician. Marcus comes from a poor white family in Appalachia. For Marcus, being a primary physician is ------ .

What theory argues that crowds of people do not always begin with singular individuals who hold the same motives and/or interests?

Michael is an "A" student at Catembung High School. He is a Filipino-American male. Based upon this information, what is Michael's achieved status?

Some members of a given population are best suited for their environmental conditions and survive, reproduce, and thrive. What is the name for this?