Chapter 1

Question 1

what is the focus of sociology?

Answer 1

human society and social behavior

Question 2

what element of sociological inquiry overlaps most closely with anthropology

Answer 2

all forms of society

Question 3

what does sociologist Bernard McGrane recommend in order to think like a sociologist

Answer 3

develop beginner’s mind

Question 4

the sociological imagination understands the interplay between which two features of human society

Answer 4

micro and macro

Question 5

what topic is more macrosociological?
self
group
culture
sociolization

Answer 5

culture

Question 6

what would a microsociologist study that a macrosociologist would not?

Answer 6

interactions between individuals

Question 7

in taking a positivist approach, what is Auguste Comte’s purpose

Answer 7

to identify laws that describe social life

Question 8

how did Harriet Martineau, a european, develop her views regarding the United States

Answer 8

she traveled to the United States

Question 9

which sociological concept is foundationalist theory?

Answer 9

solidarity

Question 10

according to conflict theory, which element is most important for understanding human society?

Answer 10

social inequality

Question 11

which social dynamic is most important in Weberian theory?

Answer 11

rationalization

Question 12

what statement describes the central tenets of symbolic interactionism?

Answer 12

meanings are not inherent but are created through interaction

Question 13

which early practitioner of symbolic interactionism posited the notion that communicative acts such as speech and gestures both shape society and are shaped by it?

Answer 13

George Herbert Mead

Question 14

which theory suggests that social reality is diverse, pluralistic, and constantly in flux?

Answer 14

postmodernism

Question 15

what is distinctive about midrange theory

Answer 15

it is not a theory of something in particular, but rather a style of theorizing

Question 16

What is one of the weaknesses of being an everyday actor when it comes to understanding everyday life?

Answer 16

making assumptions and failing to investigate or verify those assumptions

Question 17

According to the theoretical position developed by Karl Marx, what is the catalyst for social change?

Answer 17

Conflict between social groups

Question 18

According to C. Wright Mills, what is one quality of mind that all great sociologists possess?

Answer 18

Sociological Imagination

Question 19

Durkheim theorized that the rapidly changing conditions of modern life lead to anomie. What is anomie?

Answer 19

Normlessness or a loss of connections to the social world

Question 20

What term did Karl Marx use to describe the fact that most of the population accepts inequality even when it does not benefit them personally?

Answer 20

false consciousness

Question 21

What historical events convinced Auguste Comte that society needed to be guided by thinkers who understood social laws?

Answer 21

The French Revolution and the instability that followed it

Question 22

Karl Marx believed the lower classes, in order to end their oppression, needed to develop

Answer 22

class consciousness

Question 23

What is the sociological imagination?

Answer 23

the ability to understand the interplay between the self and larger social

Question 24

According to Robert Merton, manifest functions

Answer 24

are intended and obvious.

Question 25

Structural functionalist theory is concerned with the ways in which structures contribute to the stability of society. What is a structure?

Answer 25

A social institution that is stable over time and helps meet the needs of society

Question 26

The divorce rate has steadily increased over time, and now more than a quarter of all marriages end within the first four years. What sort of factors would C. Wright Mills suggest investigating to explain this increase?

Answer 26

structural

Question 27

What is the sociological imagination?

Answer 27

the ability to understand the interplay between the self and larger social

Question 28

A researcher spends years conducting fieldwork with an indigenous tribe in Papua New Guinea and has a difficult time reacclimating to Western society when he returns to it. He uses the experience of returning home to view his own society from an outsider’s perspective and learn something new about it. Which sociological concept best exemplifies the experience of this researcher?

Answer 28

Culture Shock

Question 29

According to Émile Durkheim, what is the basis for the bonds created through organic solidarity in industrialized societies?

Answer 29

difference, interdependence, and individual rights

Question 30

What is the key difference between anthropology and sociology?

Answer 30

Anthropology largely concentrates on traditional, small, or indigenous cultures, whereas sociology is interested in societies at all levels of development.

Question 31

Who must the social analyst take the perspective of in order to verify that which the everyday actor might just accept or assume to be true?

Answer 31

stranger

Question 32

Critical race theory is associated with which of the major theoretical perspectives or schools of thought in sociology?

Answer 32

Conflict Theory

Question 33

If someone makes money exclusively by selling their own labor, then they must be a member of what social group?

Answer 33

proletariat

Question 34

Why is it beneficial for sociologists to experience culture shock?

Answer 34

It makes us realize we lack an understanding of our surroundings so we can perceive what is right in front of us.

Question 35

What practice did Bernard McGrane suggest that individuals adopt to better understand the world around them?

Answer 35

beginner's mind

Question 36

What was the most important factor in social life according to Karl Marx?

Answer 36

relationship to the means of production

Question 37

There is a close relationship between sociology and the other social sciences. Why does sociology still exist as a separate discipline given how much overlap there is between these fields?

Answer 37

All the other social sciences are more specialized, but sociology is a field that considers a huge intellectual territory.

Question 38

What was probably Harriet Martineau’s MOST important contribution to the development of sociology as a discipline?

Answer 38

her translation of the work of Auguste Comte into English

Question 39

how does sociology differ from anthropology and paychology

Answer 39

anthropology focuses on cultural, small groups and psychology focuses on the individual while sociology focuses on the bigger picture

Question 40

who coined the term verstehem

Answer 40

it literally means to understand and was coined by Max Weber

Question 41

who created the concept of the sociological imagination

Answer 41

C. Wright Mills