Sex, gender, and society Exam 1
The term sex refers to the symbolism of masculinity and femininity that we connect to being male or
female. T/F - ✔✔ correct answer False
Which of the following descriptions best conveys the meaning of the term gender binary? - ✔✔ correct
answer The idea that there are two types of people - male-bodied people who are masculine and
female-bodied people who are feminine
Which of the following facts or statements is evidence that the gender binary fails to describe reality? -
✔✔ correct answer People with intersexed bodies, Transsexuals (transgender individuals), We feel
compelled to work hard to make our body appear feminine or masculine.
According to a social constructionist approach to gender, which of the following statements is NOT true?
- ✔✔ correct answer The gender binary is universal.
Distinction is a foundation concept for an understanding of the sociology of gender because: - ✔✔
correct answer Without distinguishing men from women, there would be no basis for gender difference
or inequality.
Which one of the following examples demonstrates that gender ideologies vary considerably from
culture to culture? - ✔✔ correct answer In Albania, girls can live as boys and grow up to be socially
recognized men. In Afghanistan, families without sons pick a daughter to become a boy. This way the
child "dressed up like a boy" can obtain an extensive education and/or support their family by working
outside the home. The Dutch do not teach children that men have "male" hormones and women have
"female" hormones, but that hormone levels vary among men and among women and that these levels
rise and fall in response to different situations and as people of both sexes age.
During her research in the community of Gerai in West Borneo, anthropologist Christine Helliwell
described how her gender was uncertain among the Dayak for the duration of her fieldwork. This was
because: - ✔✔ correct answer For the Dayak, a "woman" is a person who excels at distinguishing types
of rice and its preparation, but Helliwell did not master these tasks.
What percentage of the population are estimated to be intersexed? - ✔✔ correct answer 1%
How does our associative memory work to make the gender binary seem more real than it is? - ✔✔
correct answer We constantly overlook, forget, or misremember any exceptions to the gender binary.
, Sex, gender, and society Exam 1
According to the Kimmel reading, sociology adds which three crucial dimensions to the study of gender?
- ✔✔ correct answer Life-course perspective, institutional analyses, and the interactionist approach
In agreement with C. Wright Mills, Kimmel would argue that to a sociologist, our biographies and
histories are gendered. T/F - ✔✔ correct answer True
The statement--our identities are a fluid assemblage of the meanings and behaviors that we construct
from the values, images, and prescriptions we find in the world around us--best describes which of the
following perspectives on gender? - ✔✔ correct answer Social Construction
Kimmel believes that sex role theory is an accurate explanation of gender. T/F - ✔✔ correct answer False
Kimmel argues that theories of gender are inadequate without being understood in the context of
power. T/F - ✔✔ correct answer True
Kimmel agrees with the biological explanation for the age gap in death between men and women; on
average, men die younger than women because of their biology. T/F - ✔✔ correct answer False
According to Kimmel, gender is something we "do" in constant interaction with others, throughout our
lives. T/F - ✔✔ correct answer True
What is sexual dimorphism? - ✔✔ correct answer The average differences between males and females
of a species
What is meant by the idea that many biological characteristics are mutable? - ✔✔ correct answer They
are responsive to external influences
Estrogens and androgens are both types of activational hormones released by glands or cells in the
human body. Which of the following statements best describes their relationship to sex differences? -
✔✔ correct answer Hormones have been linked to only a few of the differences between males and
females
The term sex refers to the symbolism of masculinity and femininity that we connect to being male or
female. T/F - ✔✔ correct answer False
Which of the following descriptions best conveys the meaning of the term gender binary? - ✔✔ correct
answer The idea that there are two types of people - male-bodied people who are masculine and
female-bodied people who are feminine
Which of the following facts or statements is evidence that the gender binary fails to describe reality? -
✔✔ correct answer People with intersexed bodies, Transsexuals (transgender individuals), We feel
compelled to work hard to make our body appear feminine or masculine.
According to a social constructionist approach to gender, which of the following statements is NOT true?
- ✔✔ correct answer The gender binary is universal.
Distinction is a foundation concept for an understanding of the sociology of gender because: - ✔✔
correct answer Without distinguishing men from women, there would be no basis for gender difference
or inequality.
Which one of the following examples demonstrates that gender ideologies vary considerably from
culture to culture? - ✔✔ correct answer In Albania, girls can live as boys and grow up to be socially
recognized men. In Afghanistan, families without sons pick a daughter to become a boy. This way the
child "dressed up like a boy" can obtain an extensive education and/or support their family by working
outside the home. The Dutch do not teach children that men have "male" hormones and women have
"female" hormones, but that hormone levels vary among men and among women and that these levels
rise and fall in response to different situations and as people of both sexes age.
During her research in the community of Gerai in West Borneo, anthropologist Christine Helliwell
described how her gender was uncertain among the Dayak for the duration of her fieldwork. This was
because: - ✔✔ correct answer For the Dayak, a "woman" is a person who excels at distinguishing types
of rice and its preparation, but Helliwell did not master these tasks.
What percentage of the population are estimated to be intersexed? - ✔✔ correct answer 1%
How does our associative memory work to make the gender binary seem more real than it is? - ✔✔
correct answer We constantly overlook, forget, or misremember any exceptions to the gender binary.
, Sex, gender, and society Exam 1
According to the Kimmel reading, sociology adds which three crucial dimensions to the study of gender?
- ✔✔ correct answer Life-course perspective, institutional analyses, and the interactionist approach
In agreement with C. Wright Mills, Kimmel would argue that to a sociologist, our biographies and
histories are gendered. T/F - ✔✔ correct answer True
The statement--our identities are a fluid assemblage of the meanings and behaviors that we construct
from the values, images, and prescriptions we find in the world around us--best describes which of the
following perspectives on gender? - ✔✔ correct answer Social Construction
Kimmel believes that sex role theory is an accurate explanation of gender. T/F - ✔✔ correct answer False
Kimmel argues that theories of gender are inadequate without being understood in the context of
power. T/F - ✔✔ correct answer True
Kimmel agrees with the biological explanation for the age gap in death between men and women; on
average, men die younger than women because of their biology. T/F - ✔✔ correct answer False
According to Kimmel, gender is something we "do" in constant interaction with others, throughout our
lives. T/F - ✔✔ correct answer True
What is sexual dimorphism? - ✔✔ correct answer The average differences between males and females
of a species
What is meant by the idea that many biological characteristics are mutable? - ✔✔ correct answer They
are responsive to external influences
Estrogens and androgens are both types of activational hormones released by glands or cells in the
human body. Which of the following statements best describes their relationship to sex differences? -
✔✔ correct answer Hormones have been linked to only a few of the differences between males and
females
