SOC 215 Race and Ethnicity Pre-Course Study Exam Questions

Race - correct answer Social construction; Differences among peoples- skin color, facial features, stature and the like- that are transmitted from generation to generation Ethnicity - correct answer When a subpopulation of individuals reveals shared historical experiences as well as unique organizational, behavioral, and cultural characteristics (ex. country of origin, religion, language, values) Subpopulation - correct answer Individuals in a society can be distinguished by their history as well as their distinctive behavior, organization, culture, and perhaps superficial biological features Ethnic Group - correct answer Subpopulation of individuals who are labeled and categorized by the general population and often by members of the group itself as being of a particular type of ethnicity Minority Groups - correct answer An ethnic subpopulation in a society subject to discrimination by members of more powerful ethnic subpopulations; A group whose members suffer oppression and various disabilities at hand of another group Discrimination - correct answer Behaviors and actions which arbitrarily deny power, privileges and status to members of a group whose qualifications are equal to those of the dominant group Ethnic Discrimination - correct answer Process by which the members of a more powerful and dominant ethnic subpopulation deny the members of another, less powerful and subordinate ethnic subpopulation full access to valued resources (ex. denied access to jobs, incomes, health, education Reverse Discrimination - correct answer Programs designed to overcome efforts of past discrimination often deny some members of the dominant subpopulation equal access to valued resources (ex. affirmative action) Prejudice - correct answer Set of beliefs and stereotypes about a category of people; provides the rationale for discrimination; Ideology; An attitude of aversion or hostility toward members of a group 7 Adaptations to Prejudice and Discrimination - correct answer 1) Passive Acceptance 2) Marginal Participation 3) Assimilation 4) Withdrawal and Self-Segregation 5) Rebellion and Revolt 6) Organized Protest 7) Ethnogenesis Assimilation - correct answer Process by which members of an ethnic group become part of broader culture and society, losing their distinctive character Ethnogenesis - correct answer Creation of new ethnic identity based on common experiences, ex) Arab Americans Racial/ Ethnic Inequalities - correct answer Social arrangements that confer privileges on 1 group at the expense of another Power - correct answer Refers to ability of 1 group or person to behave any way they choose even in the face of resistance; The ability to control behavior of others even in absence of their consent Ascribed Membership - correct answer When one is born into a group (ex. Jewish) Racism - correct answer A group ideology/ belief system that is used to justify racially organized social order; happens at the level of society Biological Definition of Race - correct answer Genetically isolated group characterized by a high degree of in-breeding that leads to distinctive gene frequencies; indicated by presence of hereditary physical characteristics that differentiate group members Institutional Discrimination - correct answer Involves complex, multi-facet organizational and societal processes that subtly maintain historical inequalities, and that recreate them in every generation of minorities, women and the poor 6 Patterns of Race Relations - correct answer 1) Extermination (Genocide) 2)Continued Subjugation 3) Population Transfer 4) Legal Protection of Minorities 5)Pluralism 6) Assimilation Extermination (Genocide) - correct answer Attempt by dominant group to remove entirely the minority; extreme pattern which is actually dysfunctional in many cases for the dominant group; ex) Nazi Germany and South African Boer extermination of Hottentots (native group) Continued Subjugation - correct answer The majority is intent on maintaining its privilege over the subordinate group forever; Ex) South Africa and the blacks; 19 and 20th Century US whites slave system Population Transfer - correct answer Minority group is not liked or needed, and majority would simply like to remove them; ex) Trail of Tears Legal Protection of Minorities - correct answer Majority will make laws to protect the minorities from the hostile sentiments and action of a segment of the majority population; Ex) Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts in US Pluralism - correct answer The dominant group is willing to permit or encourage cultural variations within the broader confines of national unity;