Ch01
Student: ___________________________________________________________________________
1. Which concept describes the processes of examining the social world though understanding how
individuals are connected to the societies in which they live?
A. structural-functionalist theory
B. social viewpoint
C. sociology
D. sociological perspective
2. Sally grew up in the middle class. For school, she volunteered at a soup kitchen and, for the first time,
met individuals her own age who had grown up in poverty. Instead of dismissing these individuals as
lazy, she sought to understand what social forces worked to shape her life differently from those she met
at the soup kitchen. This is an example of
A. everyday sociology.
B. the sociological perspective.
C. a social viewpoint.
D. doing sociology.
3. A sociologist would understand the phenomena of poverty by examining
A. why individuals fail to find jobs that pay more.
B. the ways that employment is structured.
C. what race, class, and gender an individual possesses.
D. the neighborhood an individual lives in.
4. A sociological understanding of homelessness would include all of the following EXCEPT
A. an individual's social status.
B. the local employment structure.
C. individual's personal failures at locating work.
D. stratification in the society an individual lived in.
5. Who used the term "sociological imagination" to describe a way of viewing the connections individuals
have to their social worlds?
A. Karl Marx
B. Max Weber
C. Emile Durkheim
D. C. Wright Mills
6. The systematic study of the relationship between individuals and society is called
A. psychology.
B. anthropology.
C. sociology.
D. political science.
7. Which of the following questions would a sociologist ask?
A. How does collecting government assistance impact future employment?
B. How can politicians use government assistance policies in their campaigns?
C. What are the personalities of individuals on public assistance?
D. All of the answers are correct.
8. To what aspect of life is it impossible to apply the sociological perspective?
A. economics
B. politics
C. religion
D. The sociological perspective can be applied to all aspects of life.
,9. Which of the following questions would sociologists NOT ask about race?
A. How does living on a reservation shape how American Indians view their culture?
B. What is the racial composition of college students' friendship networks?
C. What are the major personality characteristics of Asian Americans?
D. How do African American parents teach their children about race?
10. In order to understand our lives, sociologists would argue that we need to
A. examine the contexts in which we live.
B. explore the motives behind our actions.
C. examine the way we interact with others.
D. explore the ways that other people live.
11. Which of the following topics is NOT among those a sociologist would study?
A. why people commit crimes
B. how children learn about gender
C. how personality develops
D. why homelessness exists
12. To what group of research-based disciplines does sociology belong?
A. the research sciences
B. the humanities
C. the hard sciences
D. the social sciences
13. Which of the following research questions would a sociologist ask?
A. How does being homeless impact people's ability to find work?
B. Does being homeless change someone's personality?
C. How do anti-poverty policies influence voting behaviors?
D. All of the answers are correct.
14. Julian and his friends like to watch movies together. One movie focused on a young black man who rose
out of poverty by playing basketball. His friend N'Cola commented that there would be no poverty if poor
people simply tried to find employment. Julian said that the solution to poverty was not that simple and
that N'Cola's understanding of how poverty worked was mistaken. What was the problem with N'Cola's
argument?
A. It was based on common sense.
B. It used the sociological perspective.
C. It ignores the rules of sociology as a discipline.
D. It viewed an individual problem as a social problem.
15. Maria wants to write a paper that explores how married couples divide household chores. She wants to
argue that gender shapes how couples share housework. Given her topic and argument, her class is a part
of what discipline?
A. psychology
B. sociology
C. statistics
D. economics
16. Which of the following characteristics is NOT part of the move towards modernity?
A. the growth of democracy
B. the shift to urban living spaces
C. a move towards industrial economies
D. an increased confidence in religion
,17. The historical period marked by a shift to urban industrial economies and increased faith in science and
reason is known as
A. modernity.
B. post-modernity.
C. industrialization.
D. democracy.
18. Maria lives in a society where physical illness is viewed as being caused by germs and unsanitary
conditions and not as the product of a curse or spell. In what historical context is she living?
A. modernity
B. capitalism
C. the Early Modern period
D. the Middle Ages
19. Which concept describes how reason and the gathering of objective facts are used to support theories
about the natural and social world?
A. sociology
B. science
C. common sense
D. logic
20. What is industrialization?
A. the creation of jobs that pay workers by the hour
B. the shift from living on farms to living in cities
C. the use of products in farming to increase crop yield
D. the use of machines to mass produce items for purchase
21. Which term is defined by the use of factories and mills to mass produce goods for sale?
A. urbanization
B. capitalism
C. modernity
D. industrialization
22. During the Middle Ages, who or what dominated European intellectual life?
A. enlightened monarchs
B. the Church and its clergy
C. science
D. philosophers
23. What was Immanuel Kant describing with the motto "Dare to know"?
A. modernity
B. urbanization
C. industrialization
D. the Enlightenment
24. Before 1800, approximately what percentage of Europeans lived in rural areas?
A. about 90 percent
B. about 50 percent
C. about 30 percent
D. about 70 percent
25. The movement of individuals from living in rural farming towns into centralized cities is known as
A. urbanization.
B. suburbanization.
C. gentrification.
D. industrialization.
, 26. Monty is a rich man who invests his money in small businesses. He recently purchased a small bakery
and hired a new manager to oversee changes to the business to make it more profitable. His investment
has paid off since he now makes more money than he spent to acquire the bakery. What term describes
Monty's role in this scenario?
A. industrialist
B. innovator
C. consumer
D. capitalist
27. Historically, which of the following events happened first?
A. urbanization
B. industrialization
C. capitalism
D. All of these events happened at the same time.
28. Which of the following events did NOT occur during the Industrial Revolution?
A. industrialization of goods
B. increased influence of religion
C. the growth of cities
D. the development of democracy
29. Sociology emerged from each of the following revolutions EXCEPT
A. religious.
B. economic.
C. cultural.
D. political.
30. The rise in scientific thought, the Age of Enlightenment, and the declining influence of religion in
everyday life are associated with ____________ revolution
A. social
B. economic
C. political
D. cultural
31. Auguste Comte is associated with which foundation of sociological thought?
A. positivism
B. structural-functionalism
C. conflict
D. postmodernity
32. The principle that true knowledge must be based on the scientific method is known as
A. postmodernity.
B. positivism.
C. science.
D. structural-functionalism.
33. Which of the following is the core belief of positivism?
A. People must do the best for the greater good.
B. Society is shaped by capitalism.
C. Knowledge must be based on evidence.
D. Truth is found in faith in religion.
34. Which of the following best summarizes Karl Marx's view of the social world?
A. Society is shaped by the competing interests of workers and capitalists.
B. Religion is the basis of social bonds.
C. Societies' shared values and goals allow for cultural growth.
D. Capitalism narrowed the gap between great wealth and crushing poverty.
Student: ___________________________________________________________________________
1. Which concept describes the processes of examining the social world though understanding how
individuals are connected to the societies in which they live?
A. structural-functionalist theory
B. social viewpoint
C. sociology
D. sociological perspective
2. Sally grew up in the middle class. For school, she volunteered at a soup kitchen and, for the first time,
met individuals her own age who had grown up in poverty. Instead of dismissing these individuals as
lazy, she sought to understand what social forces worked to shape her life differently from those she met
at the soup kitchen. This is an example of
A. everyday sociology.
B. the sociological perspective.
C. a social viewpoint.
D. doing sociology.
3. A sociologist would understand the phenomena of poverty by examining
A. why individuals fail to find jobs that pay more.
B. the ways that employment is structured.
C. what race, class, and gender an individual possesses.
D. the neighborhood an individual lives in.
4. A sociological understanding of homelessness would include all of the following EXCEPT
A. an individual's social status.
B. the local employment structure.
C. individual's personal failures at locating work.
D. stratification in the society an individual lived in.
5. Who used the term "sociological imagination" to describe a way of viewing the connections individuals
have to their social worlds?
A. Karl Marx
B. Max Weber
C. Emile Durkheim
D. C. Wright Mills
6. The systematic study of the relationship between individuals and society is called
A. psychology.
B. anthropology.
C. sociology.
D. political science.
7. Which of the following questions would a sociologist ask?
A. How does collecting government assistance impact future employment?
B. How can politicians use government assistance policies in their campaigns?
C. What are the personalities of individuals on public assistance?
D. All of the answers are correct.
8. To what aspect of life is it impossible to apply the sociological perspective?
A. economics
B. politics
C. religion
D. The sociological perspective can be applied to all aspects of life.
,9. Which of the following questions would sociologists NOT ask about race?
A. How does living on a reservation shape how American Indians view their culture?
B. What is the racial composition of college students' friendship networks?
C. What are the major personality characteristics of Asian Americans?
D. How do African American parents teach their children about race?
10. In order to understand our lives, sociologists would argue that we need to
A. examine the contexts in which we live.
B. explore the motives behind our actions.
C. examine the way we interact with others.
D. explore the ways that other people live.
11. Which of the following topics is NOT among those a sociologist would study?
A. why people commit crimes
B. how children learn about gender
C. how personality develops
D. why homelessness exists
12. To what group of research-based disciplines does sociology belong?
A. the research sciences
B. the humanities
C. the hard sciences
D. the social sciences
13. Which of the following research questions would a sociologist ask?
A. How does being homeless impact people's ability to find work?
B. Does being homeless change someone's personality?
C. How do anti-poverty policies influence voting behaviors?
D. All of the answers are correct.
14. Julian and his friends like to watch movies together. One movie focused on a young black man who rose
out of poverty by playing basketball. His friend N'Cola commented that there would be no poverty if poor
people simply tried to find employment. Julian said that the solution to poverty was not that simple and
that N'Cola's understanding of how poverty worked was mistaken. What was the problem with N'Cola's
argument?
A. It was based on common sense.
B. It used the sociological perspective.
C. It ignores the rules of sociology as a discipline.
D. It viewed an individual problem as a social problem.
15. Maria wants to write a paper that explores how married couples divide household chores. She wants to
argue that gender shapes how couples share housework. Given her topic and argument, her class is a part
of what discipline?
A. psychology
B. sociology
C. statistics
D. economics
16. Which of the following characteristics is NOT part of the move towards modernity?
A. the growth of democracy
B. the shift to urban living spaces
C. a move towards industrial economies
D. an increased confidence in religion
,17. The historical period marked by a shift to urban industrial economies and increased faith in science and
reason is known as
A. modernity.
B. post-modernity.
C. industrialization.
D. democracy.
18. Maria lives in a society where physical illness is viewed as being caused by germs and unsanitary
conditions and not as the product of a curse or spell. In what historical context is she living?
A. modernity
B. capitalism
C. the Early Modern period
D. the Middle Ages
19. Which concept describes how reason and the gathering of objective facts are used to support theories
about the natural and social world?
A. sociology
B. science
C. common sense
D. logic
20. What is industrialization?
A. the creation of jobs that pay workers by the hour
B. the shift from living on farms to living in cities
C. the use of products in farming to increase crop yield
D. the use of machines to mass produce items for purchase
21. Which term is defined by the use of factories and mills to mass produce goods for sale?
A. urbanization
B. capitalism
C. modernity
D. industrialization
22. During the Middle Ages, who or what dominated European intellectual life?
A. enlightened monarchs
B. the Church and its clergy
C. science
D. philosophers
23. What was Immanuel Kant describing with the motto "Dare to know"?
A. modernity
B. urbanization
C. industrialization
D. the Enlightenment
24. Before 1800, approximately what percentage of Europeans lived in rural areas?
A. about 90 percent
B. about 50 percent
C. about 30 percent
D. about 70 percent
25. The movement of individuals from living in rural farming towns into centralized cities is known as
A. urbanization.
B. suburbanization.
C. gentrification.
D. industrialization.
, 26. Monty is a rich man who invests his money in small businesses. He recently purchased a small bakery
and hired a new manager to oversee changes to the business to make it more profitable. His investment
has paid off since he now makes more money than he spent to acquire the bakery. What term describes
Monty's role in this scenario?
A. industrialist
B. innovator
C. consumer
D. capitalist
27. Historically, which of the following events happened first?
A. urbanization
B. industrialization
C. capitalism
D. All of these events happened at the same time.
28. Which of the following events did NOT occur during the Industrial Revolution?
A. industrialization of goods
B. increased influence of religion
C. the growth of cities
D. the development of democracy
29. Sociology emerged from each of the following revolutions EXCEPT
A. religious.
B. economic.
C. cultural.
D. political.
30. The rise in scientific thought, the Age of Enlightenment, and the declining influence of religion in
everyday life are associated with ____________ revolution
A. social
B. economic
C. political
D. cultural
31. Auguste Comte is associated with which foundation of sociological thought?
A. positivism
B. structural-functionalism
C. conflict
D. postmodernity
32. The principle that true knowledge must be based on the scientific method is known as
A. postmodernity.
B. positivism.
C. science.
D. structural-functionalism.
33. Which of the following is the core belief of positivism?
A. People must do the best for the greater good.
B. Society is shaped by capitalism.
C. Knowledge must be based on evidence.
D. Truth is found in faith in religion.
34. Which of the following best summarizes Karl Marx's view of the social world?
A. Society is shaped by the competing interests of workers and capitalists.
B. Religion is the basis of social bonds.
C. Societies' shared values and goals allow for cultural growth.
D. Capitalism narrowed the gap between great wealth and crushing poverty.
