ANTH 211 MIDTERM 2 EXAM
Final Examination Questions & Answers with Verified Solutions
2026/2027
1. What primary research methodology distinguishes cultural anthropology from other
social sciences?
A. Quantitative statistical survey collection
B. Long-term participant observation during fieldwork
C. Laboratory controlled experiment setups
D. Archival document analysis alone
Rationale: Long-term participant observation allows anthropologists to immerse themselves in a
community's daily life, gaining deep qualitative insight into cultural practices and lived experiences.
2. How do anthropologists define "ethnocentrism"?
A. The belief that one's own culture is superior and judging other cultures by one's
own standards
B. Practicing cultural relativism during field research
C. Blending foreign cultural elements into local traditions
D. The objective study of ethnic diversity
Rationale: Ethnocentrism involves assuming one's own cultural norms are the correct or superior
standard, leading to misinterpretation or devaluation of foreign practices.
3. What is the core principle of "cultural relativism"?
A. Accepting all human practices as morally unquestionable
B. Understanding a culture's beliefs and behaviors in terms of its own logic and
context
C. Ranking human societies on an evolutionary scale
D. Enforcing universal western legal standards globally
Rationale: Cultural relativism suspended bias so researchers can understand how beliefs and practices
make sense within the specific cultural framework of the community being studied.
, 4. In kinship studies, what does a "patrilineal descent" system trace ancestry through?
A. Both mother's and father's lineages equally
B. Exclusively the father's male bloodline
C. Exclusively the mother's female bloodline
D. Chosen spiritual guardians unrelated by blood
Rationale: Patrilineal descent traces group membership, inheritance, and social status strictly through
male ancestors and father-to-child links.
5. What is "exogamy"?
A. A social rule requiring individuals to marry outside their designated social or
kinship group
B. A rule mandating marriage strictly within one's own caste or religious group
C. The practice of having multiple husbands simultaneously
D. Remaining unmarried throughout adulthood for religious devotion
Rationale: Exogamy enforces marrying outside one's kin group or community, forging political alliances
and reducing internal genetic/social conflict.
6. Which economic system involves the redistribution of wealth, such as the Potlatch
ceremony among Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest?
A. Pure market capital exchange
B. Redistribution through ceremonial gift-giving to gain social prestige
C. Generalized silent barter trading
D. Standardized fiat currency transactions
Rationale: The Potlatch is a classic example of redistribution: leaders amass wealth and host lavish feasts
to distribute goods, converting material wealth into social status and prestige.
7. What is "bridewealth" (bride price) in marital transactions?
A. Goods given by the bride's family to the groom's family
B. Payment of valuable goods from the groom's family to the bride's family to
compensate for the loss of her labor and fertility
C. Taxes paid to the government upon marriage certification
D. Inheritance given to children upon reaching adulthood
Rationale: Bridewealth legitimizes marriage and transfers rights over reproductive capacity and labor from
Final Examination Questions & Answers with Verified Solutions
2026/2027
1. What primary research methodology distinguishes cultural anthropology from other
social sciences?
A. Quantitative statistical survey collection
B. Long-term participant observation during fieldwork
C. Laboratory controlled experiment setups
D. Archival document analysis alone
Rationale: Long-term participant observation allows anthropologists to immerse themselves in a
community's daily life, gaining deep qualitative insight into cultural practices and lived experiences.
2. How do anthropologists define "ethnocentrism"?
A. The belief that one's own culture is superior and judging other cultures by one's
own standards
B. Practicing cultural relativism during field research
C. Blending foreign cultural elements into local traditions
D. The objective study of ethnic diversity
Rationale: Ethnocentrism involves assuming one's own cultural norms are the correct or superior
standard, leading to misinterpretation or devaluation of foreign practices.
3. What is the core principle of "cultural relativism"?
A. Accepting all human practices as morally unquestionable
B. Understanding a culture's beliefs and behaviors in terms of its own logic and
context
C. Ranking human societies on an evolutionary scale
D. Enforcing universal western legal standards globally
Rationale: Cultural relativism suspended bias so researchers can understand how beliefs and practices
make sense within the specific cultural framework of the community being studied.
, 4. In kinship studies, what does a "patrilineal descent" system trace ancestry through?
A. Both mother's and father's lineages equally
B. Exclusively the father's male bloodline
C. Exclusively the mother's female bloodline
D. Chosen spiritual guardians unrelated by blood
Rationale: Patrilineal descent traces group membership, inheritance, and social status strictly through
male ancestors and father-to-child links.
5. What is "exogamy"?
A. A social rule requiring individuals to marry outside their designated social or
kinship group
B. A rule mandating marriage strictly within one's own caste or religious group
C. The practice of having multiple husbands simultaneously
D. Remaining unmarried throughout adulthood for religious devotion
Rationale: Exogamy enforces marrying outside one's kin group or community, forging political alliances
and reducing internal genetic/social conflict.
6. Which economic system involves the redistribution of wealth, such as the Potlatch
ceremony among Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest?
A. Pure market capital exchange
B. Redistribution through ceremonial gift-giving to gain social prestige
C. Generalized silent barter trading
D. Standardized fiat currency transactions
Rationale: The Potlatch is a classic example of redistribution: leaders amass wealth and host lavish feasts
to distribute goods, converting material wealth into social status and prestige.
7. What is "bridewealth" (bride price) in marital transactions?
A. Goods given by the bride's family to the groom's family
B. Payment of valuable goods from the groom's family to the bride's family to
compensate for the loss of her labor and fertility
C. Taxes paid to the government upon marriage certification
D. Inheritance given to children upon reaching adulthood
Rationale: Bridewealth legitimizes marriage and transfers rights over reproductive capacity and labor from
