Sociology 101 (Test 1)

Question 1

Which of the following sociologists described the sociological imagination in an essay called ”The Promise” and later in a book by the same title?

a) Emile Durkheim
b) Karl Marx
c) Max Weber
d) C.W. Mills

Answer 1

C.W. Mills

Question 2

All of the following are examples of the sociological perspective except?

a) viewing human behavior as guided by “free will”
b) viewing situations from multiple perspectives
c) seeing patterns in what otherwise might be viewed as chaos
d) seeing the strange in the familiar

Answer 2

viewing human behavior as guided by “free will”

Question 3

What social problem did Emile Durkheim focus his research on in central Europe during the late 1800s?

a) Homicide
b) Suicide
c) Infanticide
d) War

Answer 3

Suicide

Question 4

Which one of the “founding fathers” in sociology worked to build the field of sociology around the principles of positivism and empiricism?
a) Weber
b) Durkheim
c) Marx
d) Comte

Answer 4

Comte

Question 5

Generally speaking, the sociological imagination refers to the ability to ______.
a) understand how one’s personal problems are linked to broader social forces
b) daydream in the middle of your sociology class
c) understand how we are all governed by our own free will
d) understand the role of instinct in determining how we behave

Answer 5

understand how one’s personal problems are linked to broader social forces

Question 6

Generally speaking, the concept of verstehen refers to ______________.
a) A German automobile company
b) understanding the world from another person’s point of view
c) treating something that is abstract as if it were concrete
d) the study of social facts

Answer 6

understanding the world from another person’s point of view

Question 7

Which of the following social theorist began to steer the field of sociology toward the micro level by introducing the idea of verstehen as a promising focus of our research?

a Weber
b Durkheim
c Marx
d Comte

Answer 7

Weber

Question 8

What were the three basic socio-cultural forces that led to the social disintegration which ultimately led Durkheim to focus on his topic of study (question #3)?
a. Social consensus, rural migration, religious revivals
b. Rise of cottage industries, agricultural living, the printing press
c. Rise of cottage industries, military conquest, the rise of monarchies
d. Industrial revolution, growth of cities, new political ideas (secularization)

Answer 8

Industrial revolution, growth of cities, new political ideas (secularization)

Question 9

When sociologists examine the world from a micro-level approach, they would focus on ________.

a. How we communicate in f2f situations
b. our economy
c. our social institutions
d. our social systems

Answer 9

How we communicate in f2f situations

Question 10

Which one of the following theoretical perspectives would explore how an athletic team or a sports industry is organized?
a. Conflict
b. Symbolic Interactionism
c. Structural / Functionalism
d. Behaviorism

Answer 10

Structural / Functionalism

Question 11

What social system did Karl Marx suggest was central to any sociological analysis of the human condition?
a. the family
b. the political
c. the economy
d. sports

Answer 11

the economy

Question 12

Which one of the following theoretical perspectives would explore how some sports continue to perpetuate social inequality? For instance, although many of the players in professional sports are members of minority groups, coaches, owners and athletic directors are still primarily white males.
a. Conflict
b. Interactionism
c. functionalism
d. behaviorism

Answer 12

Conflict

Question 13

Which one of the following theoretical perspectives views society as like a machine where the parts work in friction —when one system fails, others fail?

a. Structural functionalism
b. Symbolic interactionism
c. Conflict
d. All of the above

Question 14

Sometimes we find ourselves in a situation where the norms are unclear, confusing, or absent altogether. For instance, we come across an intersection where the traffic lights are out. Sociologists call this ______.

b. anomie
b. Reification
c. Verstehen
d. empiricism

Answer 14

anomie

Question 15

Which of the following answers provides the correct order of epistemological frameworks from a historical perspective?

a. realism, idealism, interactionism
b. interactionism, realism, idealism
c. idealism, realism, interactionism
d. idealism, interactionism, realism

Answer 15

idealism, realism, interactionism

Question 16

Quantitative sociology uses which of the following epistemological assumptions as its claim for establishing what is real?
a. Critical
b. Realism
c. Idealism
d. Interactionism

Answer 16

Realism

Question 17

Which of the following methods is least likely to be used when we engage in qualitative research?
a. Interviews
b. Observation
c. surveys
d. participant observation

Answer 17

surveys

Question 18

All of the following are Scientific Orientations discussed in class except
a. Critical
b. Epidemiology
c. Interpretive
d. Scientific

Answer 18

Epidemiology

Question 19

Given the relationship between the unemployment rate and the crime rate, the unemployment rate is the _____.
a. control variable
b. dependent variable
c. independent variable
d. spurious variable

Answer 19

independent variable

Question 20

A lonely (and not to bright) researcher noticed one day that there seemed to be a correlation between the stork population of his town and the number of births. In his investigation he discovered that as the number of storks increased, so did the number of births. He concluded that these storks must have been bringing the babies. However, the students in my introductory class would correctly recognize this as a ________.
a. cause and effect relationship
b. spurious relationship
c. valid relationship
d. ridiculous question

Answer 20

spurious relationship

Question 21

Empirical evidence refers to ________.
a. Information (or data) that cannot be directly observed
b. Information (or data) that
supports common sense
c. Information (or data) that can be verified by our senses
d. Information (or data) that is based on opinion and/or hypothesis

Answer 21

Information (or data) that can be verified by our senses

Question 22

What type of research involves the statistical analysis of social facts?
a. Qualitative
b. Interpretive
c. Subjective
d. Quantitative

Answer 22

Quantitative

Question 23

Which of the following terms captures at least one of the challenges of doing social research - the fact that when people know they are being studied, they often provide the behavior for which the researcher is studying?

a. The Carbonaro Effect
b. The Gestalt Effect
c. the Placebo Effect
d. The Hawthorne Effect
e. The Butterfly Effect

Answer 23

The Hawthorne Effect

Question 24

Which of the following scientific frameworks would be employed be someone who is interested in Verstehen?

a. Critical
b. Epidemiology
c. Interpretive
d. Scientific

Answer 24

Interpretive

Question 25

What type of research begins with a theory or hypothesis, and then sets out to gather data that will either confirm or reject the hypothesis? a. Deductive b. Inductive c. Productive d. Seductive

Answer 25

Deductive

Question 26

_________ Is a blueprint for living - guiding our thoughts, feelings and behaviors. a. Culture b. Theory c. Society d. Verstehen

Answer 26

Culture

Question 27

The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis states that ___________. a. language is uniquely human b. language shapes the way humans perceive reality c. culture is universal among all primates d. culture is possible without language

Answer 27

language shapes the way humans perceive reality

Question 28

All of the following are listed in our text as elements of culture except? a. Symbols b. Feelings c. Language d. Norms and Sanctions

Answer 28

Feelings

Question 29

_____ replaced physical evolution as the means by which we adapt to our environment . a. culture b. science c. religion d. the economy

Answer 29

culture

Question 30

Rules and expectations that guide human behaviors are called _____. a. norms b. values c. reification d. symbols

Answer 30

norms

Question 31

The tendency to judge another culture from one’s own is called _____ a. cultural relativity b. Reification c. Folkways d. Ethnocentrism

Answer 31

Ethnocentrism

Question 32

Which one of the following types of norms is the least influential and is based largely on customs, habits, and traditions? a. Laws b. Folkways c. Mores d. Taboos

Answer 32

Folkways

Question 33

Human beings have the unique ability to conjure up abstract ideas, concepts, and symbols that they then treat as real. For instance, some people believe that the number 13 is unlucky, or the the color white represents purity everywhere. From a sociological perspective, this is referred to as ________. a. Verstehen b. ethnocentrism c. the sociological imagination d. reification

Answer 33

reification

Question 34

Which one of the following animals can create and use symbols? a. Elephants b. Humans c. Apes d. All of the above

Answer 34

Humans

Question 35

_______ are based on the natural characteristics of a physical object and have the effect of grounding us to the biosphere (aka nature). a. symbols b. social facts c. reification d. signs

Answer 35

signs

Question 36

Fire is a ___ of Hell. a. Symbol b. Sign

Answer 36

symbol

Question 37

If you believe that the very stability of the U.S. as a nation depends on its citizens sharing a common set of core values (value consensus), then which sociological theory would you be supporting? a. structural / functionalism b. symbolic interaction c. conflict d. critical

Answer 37

structural / functionalism

Question 38

Which one of the following theoretical perspectives would be concerned that the “core values” that we as Americans are expected to embrace are only going to reinforce the status quo—legitimating and supporting those already in power? a. Conflict Perspective b. Symbolic Interactionism c. Structural Functionalism Perspective d. Behaviorism

Answer 38

Conflict Perspective

Question 39

How many ways did I portray America's current Culture Wars ? a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. 4

Answer 39

2

Question 40

With respect to the othodoxists and progressivists, the American Culture Wars are really centered around _________. a. Women’s rights b. human rights c. Gun rights d. who should be our moral authority

Answer 40

who should be our moral authority

Question 41

What word best describes the kind of culture land based societies have (herding, horticulture, agriculture)? a. nomadic b. Modern c. Agrarian d.. post modern

Answer 41

Agrarian

Question 42

Generally speaking, how many statuses are there in a foraging society? a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. 4

Answer 42

2

Question 43

Which one of the following Social Theorists coined the term Dialectical Materialism to describe how material wealth gets passed back and forth to new groups who obtain power through revolution? a. Durkheim b. Marx c. Weber d. Lenski

Answer 43

Marx

Question 44

Which of the following is the key element in Gerhard and Jean Lenski’s sociological approach to explaining societal development over time? a. conflict b. social solidarity c. ideas d. Technology (discovery / invention)

Answer 44

Technology (discovery / invention)

Question 45

What type of society engages in large-scale farming based on the use of plows? a. hunting and gathering b. agricultural c. horticultural d. industrial

Answer 45

agricultural

Question 46

What theoretical perspective would you characterize Gerhard and Jean Lenski’s approach to describing societal development? a. structural / functionalism b. symbolic interaction c. conflict d. critical

Answer 46

structural / functionalism

Question 47

According to Durkheim, which one of the following types of solidarity best describes social relationships in traditional societies ? a. organic b. adaptive c. fractured d. mechanical

Answer 47

mechanical

Question 48

Emile Durkheim explains societal development in terms of an ever expanding ____ from simple to complex. a. set of ideas b. division of labor c. revolution d. technology

Answer 48

division of labor

Question 49

Max Weber suggested the ideas are the catalyst to societal change. Specifically, he believed that the idea of ______ helped bring about the modern era and modern day science. a. rationality b. division of labor c. revolution d. verstehen

Answer 49

rationality

Question 50

What example did I use to capture the perennial debate over who should be responsible for determining the right path (blueprint for living) for our citizens to live out their lives? a. Star Wars b. Lord of the Flies c. Plato’s Republic and the Allegory of the Cave d. Dumb and Dumber

Answer 50

Plato’s Republic and the Allegory of the Cave