Question 1

The United States is not truly pluralistic because:

Accepted Answer

While it is true that some people live in "ethnic enclaves" and many people value ethnic diversity, the United States is not truly pluralistic because racial and ethnic categories do not have roughly equal social standing. This creates systemic inequalities and prevents true equality and representation for all groups in society.

Question 2

The claim that defining members of some minority as inferior will make them inferior is one application of:

Accepted Answer

The Thomas Theorem states that "If men define situations as real, they are real in their consequences." In the case of defining members of a minority as inferior, if enough people believe and act on this definition, it can have real consequences in terms of perpetuating inequality and limiting opportunities for that minority group.

Question 3

Institutional prejudice and discrimination refers to the fact that:

Accepted Answer

Institutional prejudice and discrimination refers to bias that is built into the operation of social institutions such as workplaces, schools, and governments. This type of prejudice and discrimination is often more subtle than personal prejudice, and may not be intentional. However, it can have significant impacts on marginalized groups and perpetuate inequalities.

Question 4

Conflict theory states that prejudice is:

Accepted Answer

Conflict theory posits that prejudice is used by individuals or groups with power to justify oppression and maintain their dominance over marginalized individuals or groups. In this sense, prejudice is not inherent in culture or limited to certain personality types or immigrant groups.

Question 5

When the first Europeans arrived in the Americas in the fifteenth century, Native Americans:

Accepted Answer

The generally accepted scientific theory is that Native Americans had inhabited the Americas for at least 12,000 years, with some evidence suggesting as many as 30,000 years. Therefore, they were already present in the Americas when the first Europeans arrived.

Question 6

Which of the following concepts refers to biological reproduction by people of different racial categories?

Accepted Answer

Miscegenation refers to reproduction between individuals from different racial categories. Assimilation refers to the process of adapting to the dominant culture, racial typology refers to the classification of races into categories, and pluralism refers to the coexistence of different racial and ethnic groups in society.

Question 7

Assimilation refers to the pattern by which:

Accepted Answer

Assimilation refers to the process by which minority groups adopt patterns of the dominant culture, often resulting in the loss or transformation of their original cultural practices. It does not necessarily involve increasing tolerance or social equality for all minority groups, nor does it involve regaining lost cultural heritage.

Question 8

Which of the following concepts refers to the physical and social separation of categories of people?

Accepted Answer

Segregation refers to the physical and social separation of categories of people based on characteristics such as race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status. Pluralism, assimilation, and miscegenation do not refer to separation, but instead to the coexistence or blending of different groups.

Question 9

Douglas Massey and Nancy Denton documented which of the following patterns in U.S. inner cities?

Accepted Answer

Massey and Denton documented hypersegregation, which is the extreme segregation of racial and ethnic groups in urban areas. They found that segregation had actually increased in some cities since the 1970s, leading to concentrated poverty and limited opportunities for minority populations.

Question 10

The ancestors of which of the following first settled the lands of the Western Hemisphere?

Accepted Answer

Native Americans were the first to settle in the lands of the Western Hemisphere, long before the arrival of Europeans or any other group.

Question 11

While prejudice is a matter of _____, discrimination is a matter of _____.

Accepted Answer

Prejudice refers to one's attitude or belief about a certain group of people, while discrimination refers to taking action or treating people differently based on that prejudice. Therefore, prejudice is a matter of attitude, while discrimination is a matter of action.

Question 12

The idea that prejudice and discrimination form a vicious cycle means that:

Accepted Answer

The vicious cycle of prejudice and discrimination refers to how bias can be easily continued over time. Prejudices can lead to discriminatory actions that reinforce and justify the prejudice, leading to a cycle of prejudice and discrimination. This reinforces biases and makes it harder to break the cycle.

Question 13

Which of the following concepts refers to a state in which racial and ethnic minorities are distinct, but have social parity?

Accepted Answer

Pluralism refers to a situation where different racial and ethnic minorities are able to maintain their distinct identities and cultural practices, while having social parity, or equal standing in society. This is different from segregation, which involves the physical separation of different groups, assimilation, which involves the blending of different groups into a dominant culture, and genocide, which involves the intentional destruction of a particular group.

Question 14

In the United States during the 1930s and 1940s, the existence of the "Negro leagues," with all African-American players, is an example of:

Accepted Answer

The "Negro leagues" were created due to segregation in American society which prevented African-American players from playing in the mainstream Major League Baseball.

Question 15

The adoption of the English language by Mexican immigrants to the United States is an example of:

Accepted Answer

Assimilation refers to the process by which immigrants adopt the culture and norms of the host country. The adoption of the English language by Mexican immigrants to the United States indicates their desire to assimilate into American culture.

Question 16

The Matsui family came to the United States from Japan thirty years ago. They now speak English at home and the Matsui children date non-Japanese students at college. This family's story is closest to which of the following concepts?

Accepted Answer

The Matsui family's story is closest to the concept of assimilation, which is the process by which a group or individual becomes part of a larger culture or society by adopting the customs, values, and language of that society. In this case, the Matsui family has adopted English as their primary language and their children have embraced aspects of American culture by dating non-Japanese students. This is an example of how immigrants can integrate into the dominant culture of a society.

Question 17

A good example of the culture theory of prejudice is:

Accepted Answer

Emory Bogardus's research on social distance is a good example of the culture theory of prejudice. This theory proposes that prejudice is learned through socialization and cultural norms, particularly through the social distance that exists between different groups. Bogardus conducted a survey asking people how willing they would be to have social interactions with members of different racial and ethnic groups. His findings showed that people who expressed greater social distance from certain groups were more likely to hold prejudiced attitudes towards those groups.

Question 18

According to T. W. Adorno's authoritarian personality theory, prejudiced people:

Accepted Answer

According to Adorno's authoritarian personality theory, prejudiced people view society as naturally hierarchical, with some groups being inherently superior to others. This belief in social hierarchy is a central feature of authoritarianism and contributes to a range of prejudicial attitudes and behaviors.

Question 19

Thomas Sowell studied the scores of categories of people in intelligence tests and concluded that:

Accepted Answer

Thomas Sowell concluded that people's culture explains much variation in intelligence test scores, suggesting that cultural factors play a significant role in determining intelligence. This implies that not all individuals have the same intelligence and that different categories of people may have different average test performance. Thus, only option A is correct.

Question 20

The killing of people in the Darfur region of Africa is a recent example of:

Accepted Answer

The killing of people in the Darfur region of Africa is a well documented case of genocide, where one group seeks to eliminate another group based on their ethnic, racial, or religious identity. The violence in Darfur has resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people and the displacement of millions.

Quiz 14: Race and Ethnicity