Sociology 102
Understanding Societies
Mid-term Examination
Professor Myers
Autumn 1999
YOUR NAME:___________________________________
YOUR TA:______________________________________
Your examination consists of 25 multiple choice questions and 1 essay response. For each of the multiple choice questions, choose the BEST response for each question and circle the letter of your choice. Each is worth 3 points. For the essay portion, there are three questions. Choose and answer one of these. Indicate which question you are answering. The essay is worth 25 points.
In accordance with the Honor Code, I will not be proctoring the exam although I will be here at times so that you may ask questions. You may have until 12:40 to complete your exam.
BE SURE TO WRITE YOUR NAME LEGIBLY ON YOUR BLUE BOOK!!!
1. According to Merton's Strain Theory, if you are a ritualist and you are having trouble with Sociology 102, you are likely to:
a
a. keep going to class
b. drop out of school
c. cheat on the midterm exam
d. write an essay on why Notre Dame shouldn't have grades.
2. Granfield’s article on working class students in an elite academic environment concentrates on how they
d
a. Easily alter their appearance and behavior to fit in
b. Face tough academic challenges due to their economic background
c. Resist peer pressure and stay true to their working class background
d. Feel ambivalence between their past and present economic position
3. Some deviance theories focus on the process by which a person comes to be known as a deviant and subsequently she starts to act like one. This is:
c
a. The functionalist theory of deviance
b. The conflict theory of deviance
c. The labeling theory of deviance
d. The "nuts, sluts, and perverts" (individual flaw) theory of deviance
4. In applying the sociological imagination to the study of pregnancy among unmarried teenagers, sociologists would be most likely to focus on
b
a. the psychological profile of teenage parents
b. the impact of the larger culture and social world on teens’ behavior
c. the moral issues involved in premarital sex
d. health considerations as they affect children of teenage mothers
5. Consequences of social structure which are largely unrecognized and unintended are called
d
a. paradigms
b. manifest functions
c. social marginality
d. latent functions
e. social dysfunctions
6. When socializing a child, punishment will work better if the parent does all of the following EXCEPT:
b
a. continues to monitor the child after the correction
b. waits 30 minutes until the child calms down to punish him or her
c. gives a reason why the child's behavior is unacceptable
d. models the appropriate behavior
7. In third stage of Culture Shock (Insulation), a person may:
a
a. Find people from their home culture to spend some time with
b. Immerse themselves completely in the new culture
c. Become fascinated by the differences between their new and home cultures
d. Usually leave the new culture and return home
8. The limits that the American military set for the media during the 1991 Persian Gulf War are an example of:
b
a. Symbolic interactionism
b. Institutional involvement in the social construction of reality
c. The economics of reality
d. Moral entrepreneurship
9. Which of the following household types matches the official U.S. Census Bureau definition of a family:
a
a. A single father and an adopted girl
b. Two lesbian women who have performed a commitment ceremony
c. Three college students who share all of their possessions
d. A single person
10. Jane has asked her landlord to fix her stairs for 3 months. She decides to withhold rent until he fixes the stairs. She is evicted. Which principle of deviance and capitalism does this example uphold?
a
a. the laws protect private property
b. respect for authority
c. support of the status quo
d. those who don’t work are seen as deviant
11. All of the following are examples of organizations EXCEPT:
c
a. The football team
b. Sociology 102
c. The friends you hang out with.
d. Catholic Church
12. The McDonaldization of our society
a
a. Is a sign of increased rationalization
b. Is a sign of the decline of family values
c. Proves the efficiency of consensual organizations
d. Is a sign of increasing social irrationality
13. Bureaucratic ritualism is:
d
a. the process of promoting people to their level of incompetence
b. the tendency of bureaucratic organizations to persist over time
c. the rule of the many by the few
d. a preoccupation with rules and regulations as ends in themselves rather than as means to advance organizational goals
e. the tendency for productivity to be limited by time constraints
14. When a student meets a significant other while participating in his/her sociology tutorial section, this is known as:
a
a. a latent function
b. a manifest function
c. none of these
d. a deviant function
15. Chris, a veterinarian who is also an volunteer firefighter, is fighting a raging house fire. In the middle of the disaster, the fire-house mascot, a Dalmatian named "Spots" starts to have a litter of puppies. Chris is unsure what to do: continue fighting the fire or help Spots deliver her pups? Chris is experiencing:
c
a. Status strain
b. Role Strain
c. Role Conflict
d. A post-conventional moral dilemma
16. The observation that each society has a different "sick role" ("a set of rules about how people are supposed to behave when sick") shows that:
d
a. ethnocentrism is socially constructed
b. illness is a more rather than a folkway
c. symbolic favoritism is socially constructed
d. illness is influenced by cultural factors
17. A visitor to the Basilica is warmly received by the parish priest and various members of the congregation. He is invited to dinner and given a Bible at no cost. He accepts these generous offers but does not give financially to the church and does not help the church in any visible way. This is an example of the sociological phenomenon called:
b
a. the commons structure
b. the free-rider problem
c. the free-driver problem
d. the tragedy of public goods provision
18. Western societies have changed their perception of marriage both in having more accepting attitudes toward divorce and in modifying divorce laws towards easier dissolution. The text calls this:
a
a. the normalization of divorce
b. the reconstituted family dilemma
c. the marital pathology conundrum
d. both b and c
19. Multi-national corporations are a product of all of following EXCEPT:
d
a. Globalization
b. International division of labor
c. Rationalization
d. Bureaucratization
20. Flaws in decision making among the NASA specialists which led to the destruction of the spaceship Challenger is an example of the process known as:
d
a. power playing
b. mass hysterics
c. gesticular corporeality
d. groupthink
21. According to Goffman’s dramaturgical analysis, when a professor is in her office complaining about how her students don’t pay attention
c
a. she is in the back stage
b. she is off in her little world with no connection to anything Goffman said
c. she is in the front stage for anyone in her office but back stage relative to the students
d. she is in the back stage for anyone in her office but front stage relative to the students
22. Which of the following statements concerning ethnocentrism is FALSE?
c
a. Members of one group tend to judge others who are different as being inferior.
b. Ethnocentrism is a consequence of cultural diversity.
c. Some societies do not exhibit ethnocentric tendencies.
d. Ethnocentrism tends to promote integration and high morale within a group or society.
23. Mead’s (1934) theory of role taking includes two socializing stages for children. These stages are:
b
a. front stage, back stage
b. game stage, play stage
c. primary stage, secondary stage
d. looking-glass stage, generalized stage
24. Teresa and Juan marry and begin living in the same home of the groom’s parents. This is an example of the
b
a. matrilocal pattern of residence
b. patrilocal pattern of residence
c. neolocal pattern of residence
d. supralocal pattern of residence
25. Which of the following is not a manifest function of schooling:
a
a. Child care
b. Acquisition of basic skills
c. Social placement in fulfilling statuses
d. Transmission of cultural values
ESSAY QUESTIONS: Select one of following:
1. In lecture I defined Weber's six characteristics of organizations. Describe four of these. Define the manifest and latent functions, and give examples, of each of the four you choose. (Examples don't necessarily have to come from the readings. Give examples from your own experience if you wish.)
2. In the Unites States, many people pass the myth of Santa Claus on to their children and teach the children that Santa Claus is "real." explain why this occurs from a conflict perspective.
3. Suppose you were asked your opinion about "Parental Advisory Lyrics" labels on popular music. Decide whether or not you think these labels should be allowed and defend your view point from a functionalist position.