MCQs

Question 1

Sociology is the:

a. study of other cultures and preliterate societies
b. study of human economic decisions and the creation of economies
c. scientific study of human behaviour
d. science of helping others and solving social problems

Answer 1

c. scientific study of human behaviour

Question 2

Social forces are:

a. less important than psychic forces
b. influences that arise from the society we are part of
c. mostly economic in origin
d. influences that arise from the use of physical force

Answer 2

b. influences that arise from the society we are part of

Question 3

If a person can see the impact of social forces on individuals, then he or she possesses
the:
a. sociological imagination
b. social insight
c. psychological vision
d. individual social view

Answer 3

a. Sociological imagination

Question 4

The Industrial Revolution was a major factor in converting some philosophers into
sociologists because the rise of industrialisation led to:
a. the creation of the field of psychology
b. new types of wealth
c. the development of science and technology
d. widespread social upheaval and change

Answer 4

d. widespread social upheaval and change

Question 5

In the Feudal era, the treatment of disease was usually:

a. left to the individual
b. an aspect of religion
c. the responsibility of the whole village
d. an elaborate and highly technical ritual

Answer 5

b. an aspect of religion

Question 6

The development of the germ theory of disease was significant because it:

a. led to overcrowded and filthy hospitals
b. initiated a scientific approach to disease
c. caused new diseases as scientists experimented with bacteria
d. led to a cure for viral diseases

Answer 6

b. initiated a scientific approach to disease

Question 7

According to Karl Marx, class conflict involved a clash between:

a. kings and priests
b. students and teachers
c. owners and workers
d. parents and children

Answer 7

c. owners and workers

Question 8

Karl Marx argued that the source of all change is rooted in:

a. social conflict
b. social problems
c. social laws
d. evolution

Answer 8

a. social conflict

Question 9

Conflict theory focuses primarily on:

a. inequality, competition and power
b. wars, revolution and violence
c. crime, divorce and social problems
d. the destructive nature of environmental forces

Answer 9

a. inequality, competition and power

Question 10

Conflict theorists would argue that stratification:

a. is a reflection of power, not necessity
b. is universal and necessary
c. is a western concept
d. will disappear eventually and gradually

Answer 10

a. is a reflection of power, not necessity

Question 11

The Functionalist perspective is known for its focus on:

a. the proletariat and bourgeoisie relationship
b. people interacting with one another
c. the functions of theories in sociology
d. society’s parts working together to maintain stability

Answer 11

d. society’s parts working together to maintain stability

Question 12

The structured inequality of entire categories of people in society is:

a. hegemony
b. social stratification
c. poverty
d. social inequality

Answer 12

b. social stratification

Question 13

Which of the following is a consequence of social stratification?

a. Almost all people live in poverty and squalor
b. Society operates more smoothly and in a more organised way
c. Governments set up programmes to distribute income more evenly
d. Some people get more social rewards than others

Answer 13

d. Some people get more social rewards than others

Question 14

For Marx, the relationship between the two main classes is characterised by:

a. open warfare
b. cooperation
c. equality
d. exploitation

Answer 14

d. exploitation

Question 15

According to Karl Marx, as specialisation and division of labour increase, workers:

a. have less boredom on the job
b. gain more wealth
c. experience more alienation toward their work
d. are allowed to be as creative as possible

Answer 15

c. experience more alienation toward their work

Question 16

Post-industrial societies are characterised by:

a. less wealth
b. a growing number of factory workers
c. less leisure time
d. greater reliance on computers

Answer 16

d. greater reliance on computers

Question 17

The significant increase in the number of women bearing poverty alone is known as the:

a. dispersion of poverty
b. reality of poverty
c. feminisation of poverty
d. culture of poverty

Answer 17

c. feminisation of poverty

Question 18

Which of the following statements about poverty is true?
a. Poverty is always beneficial for society
b. The number of people who are poor has dramatically decreased throughout the
entire world over the last ten years
c. Poverty is usually the result of people wasting their money
d. The number of people who are poor has dramatically increased throughout the
entire world over the last ten years

Answer 18

d. The number of people who are poor has dramatically increased throughout the
entire world over the last ten years

Question 19

The term ‘life chances’ refers to:

a. the opportunity to maintain good health
b. the chance of living to an advanced age
c. the tastes, preferences and ways of life of a class of people
d. the opportunities people have for obtaining desirable resources

Answer 19

d. the opportunities people have for obtaining desirable resources

Question 20

Culture is:

a. a sophisticated knowledge of opera and literature
b. a learned social heritage accumulated through time
c. people interacting with one another in a patterned way
d. abstract ideas that influence people but not tangible objects

Answer 20

b. a learned social heritage accumulated through time

Question 21

Which of the following would NOT be considered part of culture?

a. Beliefs
b. Music
c. Customs
d. Instincts

Answer 21

d. Instincts

Question 22

Ethnocentrism is:

a. found only among some specific cultures
b. a necessary and functional part of all cultures
c. the ability to judge cultures by scientific standards
d. an attitude that one’s own culture is superior to others

Answer 22

d. an attitude that one’s own culture is superior to others

Question 23

Stereotyping is:

a. believing your culture is best
b. categorising a group of people without allowing for differences
c. usually inaccurate
d. both b and c

Answer 23

d. both b and c

Question 24

Cultures within a larger culture are called:

a. counter cultures
b. subcultures
c. social groups
d. social deviants

Answer 24

b. subcultures

Question 25

The most important agency of socialisation in all societies is: a. the school b. television c. the family d. peer groups

Answer 25

c. the family

Question 26

``` Ideas about what is important and worthwhile that large numbers of people share are called: a. values b. norms c. signs d. laws ```

Answer 26

a. values

Question 27

As an agent of socialisation, the family: a. has a more pervasive role in modern societies than in traditional ones b. is important to an analysis of the power struggles among different generations c. is the earliest and most significant influence on an individual d. has been replaced by the mass media in terms of its overall importance

Answer 27

c. is the earliest and most significant influence on an individual

Question 28

Which of the following statements about race and ethnic relations in the world today is true? a. ethnic relations have improved in most countries b. ethnic problems are largely confined to North America and South Africa c. people largely accept each other’s cultures and therefore there are few problems d. ethnic minorities suffer mistreatment in a wide variety of countries around the world

Answer 28

d. ethnic minorities suffer mistreatment in a wide variety of countries around the world

Question 29

The sociological definition of race is based on: a. the genetic makeup of humans b. the purity of racial background c. body type and bone structure d. how societies perceive and define people as biologically different

Answer 29

d. how societies perceive and define people as biologically different

Question 30

Social Darwinism has been used to justify: a. the expansion of the welfare system b. socialism c. white supremacy d. communism

Answer 30

c. white supremacy

Question 31

The intense interest in race is due to the social fact that: a. people attach meanings and values to real or imagined physical differences between human groups b. characteristic values and attitudes are determined by race c. racial origins help to explain individual behaviour d. race is the biological variable that differentiates populations

Answer 31

a. people attach meanings and values to real or imagined physical differences between human groups

Question 32

Herbert Spencer’s classic evolutionary theory was given a boost by its similarity to: a. Marx’s class conflict theory b. Spengler’s majestic cycles theory c. Darwin’s theory of biological evolution d. Neo-evolutionary theories

Answer 32

c. Darwin’s theory of biological evolution

Question 33

Cultural safety challenges the nurse to: a. examine his/her practice carefully and recognise that the power relationship is biased toward the provider b. recognise the nurse’s own culture is not relevant when providing services c. recognise that if any tensions occur between the nurse and the people using the service it is not the nurse’s problem d. research all cultures and learn the appropriate cultural practices

Answer 33

a. examine his/her practice carefully and recognise that the power relationship is biased toward the provider

Question 34

Scientists have concluded that physical differences among human groups most likely resulted from: a. climate change b. long-term adaptations to different environments c. different ethnic groups and foods d. genetic and nutritional deficiencies

Answer 34

b. long-term adaptations to different environments

Question 35

Which of the following is an example of prejudice? a. Charging someone more money for goods or services based on their race b. Not selling a house to someone because of their ethnic background c. Not promoting someone based on race d. Feeling negatively about people from a specific ethnic group

Answer 35

d. Feeling negatively about people from a specific ethnic group

Question 36

Which of the following is an example of discrimination? a. Not hiring a person based on race b. Resenting people’s success because of their ethnicity c. Fearing people because of their race d. Assuming that people’s intelligence level is based on their background

Answer 36

a. Not hiring a person based on race

Question 37

To overcome assumptions: a. listen to your colleagues views b. it is important to question why you hold those beliefs c. watch for behaviours that reinforce your assumptions d. ask an interpreter if you are right in your assumptions

Answer 37

b. it is important to question why you hold those beliefs

Question 38

An essential component of Capitalism is: a. the pursuit of personal profit b. regulation of the economy c. public ownership of certain key industries d. co-operation rather than competition

Answer 38

a. the pursuit of personal profit

Question 39

Social stratification: a. has existed for most of the time that mankind has existed b. refers to indifferences in the statuses of individuals c. tends to perpetuate itself over generations d. is more pronounced in small-scale, preliterate societies

Answer 39

c. tends to perpetuate itself over generations

Question 40

Health is an aspect of life which: a. varies from one society to another but not within a society b. varies within a society, especially from one social class to another c. is fairly uniform at any given point in history d. varies among elderly people but no among the young

Answer 40

b. varies within a society, especially from one social class to another

Question 41

Which of the following phrases best defines culture? a. categories are based on specific physical characteristics b. a shared system of beliefs, values and behaviours c. where one's valuess are replaced by the values of the dominant culture d. a dominant group within a society

Answer 41

b. a shared system of beliefs, values and behaviours

Question 42

Which of the following questions would show cultural recognition in regard to food preferences for a hospitalised person? a. do you think you will be able to eat the food we have here? b. do you understand we cannot prepare special meals? c. what types of food do you eat for meals? d. why can't you just eat our food while you are here?

Answer 42

c. what types of food do you eat for meals?

Question 43

Minority groups living within a dominant culture may lose the cultural characteristics that made them different. This process is called: a. ethnocentrism b. cultural assimilation c. cultural diversity d. cultural imposition

Answer 43

b. cultural assimilation

Question 44

The sense of identification with a collective cultural group is defined as: a. ethnicity b. race c. cultural acquisition d. culture shock

Answer 44

a. ethnicity

Question 45

When one assumes that all older adults are too old to learn, what is being done? a. cultural imposition b. clustering c. cultural competency d. stereotyping

Answer 45

d. stereotyping

Question 46

A young Chinese mother comes to the local clinic because her baby is sick. She speaks only Mandarin and you speak only English. What would you do? a. use short words and talk more loudly b. ask an interpreter to help you c. tell your supervisor you can't look after her d. give her instructions in writing

Answer 46

b. ask an interpreter to help you

Question 47

How can knowledge be gained of a specific culture before actually assessing and caring for a person of that culture? a. talk to community health workers who belong to that culture b. review literature c. talk to members of the person's family d. ask others with more experience for help

Answer 47

a. talk to community health workers who belong to that culture

Question 48

Although all of the following are important to culturally competent nursing care, which one is most basic? a. learning another language b. having significant information c. treating each person as an individual d. recognising the importance of family

Answer 48

c. treating each person as an individual

Question 49

According to Max Weber, a primary difference between prestige and wealth is that: a. people do not fear the loss of prestige b. people do not seek fame as they do money c. prestige is not as concrete as wealth d. wealth is subjective

Answer 49

c. prestige is not as concrete as wealth

Question 50

Positions we are born into, such as sex and race, are called: a. ascribed statuses b. achieved roles c. achieved statuses d. ascribed roles

Answer 50

a. ascribed statuses

Question 51

In a caste system, status is based on: a. ascription more than achievement b. social mobility c. ethnicity and race d. achievement more than ascription

Answer 51

a. ascription more than achievement

Question 52

Cultural practises like language and food-gathering exist in all cultures because: Select one: a. all humans have the same survival needs b. humans need to get along with each other c. genetically, we all behave in largely the same way d. all cultures have had some contact with each other

Answer 52

a. all humans have the same survival needs