WGU C273 Introduction to Sociology Unit
Assessment Exam Questions and Answers
1.Equal pay for women and men is an issue currently being fought for in the
United States. Which one of the following names the issue equal pay will
fix?
a) gender segregation
b) gender typing
c) gender wage gap
d) gendered marketing
Answer C. The gender wage gap is the difference between the
average earnings by men and the average earning by women.
2.Which of the following is a sociological theory about why boys (on
average) get lower grades than girls (on average)?
a) Girls benefit more from higher education.
b) Doing poorly in school is a gender norm for boys among their peers.
c) Boys' intellectual capacity develop later than girls'.
d) Teachers have lower expectations for boys than for girls.
Answer B. One theorist, Amy Hsin, speculated that since Asian-American
boys' grades fell in high school, their peers' social norms for
"masculine" behavior might be more influential than the early social
norms inculcated by their parents.
3.What sociological observations have led to the term "second shift?"
a) Working women pick up more of the housework than working men.
b) Most women have shifted their focus from family life to their careers,
and are therefore working longer hours than men.
c) Women are more frequently forced to work in lower-paying jobs than men.
d) Women often have to take second jobs because their first jobs pay little
money.
Answer A. The "second shift" refers to the housework and child rearing
,that must be done after work, (a "second shift"), and surveys have found
that working women on average spend more time on such chores than
working men.
4.The conflict perspective argues which of the following about gender?
a) The balance of society is dependent on women and men upholding
the proper gender roles.
b) Society's historically matriarchal culture holds men and women to
unequal standards.
c) Gender roles dominate the way people behave and interact with one
anoth- er.
d) Inequality in society stems from the gender roles assigned to and
expected from men and women.
Answer D. The conflict perspective attributes society's differences in
how men and women are treated to inequality, especially now that
gender roles are changing.
5.An exchange student from China studying in Massachusetts adopts an
English name, eats only American foods, and joins an intramural football
team
at his college. Which of the following concepts is this student exemplifying?
a) discrimination
b) systemic racism
c) assimilation
d) implicit bias
Answer C. Assimilation is the process by which someone gives up their
distinctive culture and adopts the patterns of the dominant culture.
6.What social institution led to the "one drop" rule?
a) the law, since the law said that a person is Black if his or her mother is
Black
b) the law, since the law said that a person is Black if his or her mother is
a slave
,c) slavery, since the law that said that a child was a slave if his or her
mother was, which eventually led to the idea that a single Black ancestor
makes a person Black
d) slavery since the law said that only Black people were slaves, therefore
people who looked sufficiently White could escape slavery
Answer C. Early Colonial laws stated that any children of slaves were
slaves, even if they had White paternity. Over generations, even people
whose racial heritage was largely White could still be considered slaves,
feeding into the idea that a single Black ancestor made someone Black.
7.Which is an example of systemic racism?
a) A single police officer, operating under the "stop and frisk" policy,
dispro- portionately stops and frisks more citizens of color.
b) Police officers in the United States, on average, operating under the
"stop and frisk" policy, stop disproportionately more citizens of color.
c) A new law forces businesses to cover the names of applicants prior to
and during the review process so that they are not accidentally influenced
by implicit bias.
d) all of the above
e) none of the above
Answer B. In this example, we see that a disproportionate number of
racial and ethnic groups being stopped and frisked reveals an
underlying bias that is present in the United States. This is an example
of a societal attitude that drives forms of racism. In letter A, a single
officer demonstrates individual bias, and in letter C, a law aims to
mitigate the effects of systemic or individual racism in the workplace.
8.What practice do employers use to decrease the ability of low-wage
workers to negotiate their wages?
a) Employers appeal to the law to restrict what their employees can do
to improve their working conditions.
b) Employers work with their employees to ensure the wages they are
paying are fair.
, c) Employers regularly pay less than minimum wage in order to reap
the maximum amount of profit.
d) Employers keep a reserve army of workers they can hire if current
employ- ees misbehave.
Answer D. Employers keep a reserve of potential employees, which
allows them to threaten current employees with firing.
9.Which of the following BEST illustrates the difference between absolute
and relative poverty?
a) Absolute poverty fluctuates depending on the country; relative poverty
is a fixed financial number.
b) Absolute poverty is a fixed definition of how poor one is; relative
poverty fluctuates depending on the standard of living.
c) Absolute poverty occurs only in urbanized areas; relative poverty can
be found anywhere.
d) Absolute poverty occurs only in developing countries; relative poverty
occurs only in developed countries:
Answer B. Those in absolute poverty lack access to basic needs like
food and water, regardless of how wealthy others are; those in relative
poverty are poor compared to those who live in comfort and luxury
around them.
10.Which of the following types of households has the highest poverty
rate in the United States?
a) households headed by single females
b) households headed by single males
c) households with married couples
d) households with unmarried couples:
Answer A. The poverty rate of households headed by single females is
currently about 30%, which is significantly higher than any other type of
household.
11.What is the salience principle?
Assessment Exam Questions and Answers
1.Equal pay for women and men is an issue currently being fought for in the
United States. Which one of the following names the issue equal pay will
fix?
a) gender segregation
b) gender typing
c) gender wage gap
d) gendered marketing
Answer C. The gender wage gap is the difference between the
average earnings by men and the average earning by women.
2.Which of the following is a sociological theory about why boys (on
average) get lower grades than girls (on average)?
a) Girls benefit more from higher education.
b) Doing poorly in school is a gender norm for boys among their peers.
c) Boys' intellectual capacity develop later than girls'.
d) Teachers have lower expectations for boys than for girls.
Answer B. One theorist, Amy Hsin, speculated that since Asian-American
boys' grades fell in high school, their peers' social norms for
"masculine" behavior might be more influential than the early social
norms inculcated by their parents.
3.What sociological observations have led to the term "second shift?"
a) Working women pick up more of the housework than working men.
b) Most women have shifted their focus from family life to their careers,
and are therefore working longer hours than men.
c) Women are more frequently forced to work in lower-paying jobs than men.
d) Women often have to take second jobs because their first jobs pay little
money.
Answer A. The "second shift" refers to the housework and child rearing
,that must be done after work, (a "second shift"), and surveys have found
that working women on average spend more time on such chores than
working men.
4.The conflict perspective argues which of the following about gender?
a) The balance of society is dependent on women and men upholding
the proper gender roles.
b) Society's historically matriarchal culture holds men and women to
unequal standards.
c) Gender roles dominate the way people behave and interact with one
anoth- er.
d) Inequality in society stems from the gender roles assigned to and
expected from men and women.
Answer D. The conflict perspective attributes society's differences in
how men and women are treated to inequality, especially now that
gender roles are changing.
5.An exchange student from China studying in Massachusetts adopts an
English name, eats only American foods, and joins an intramural football
team
at his college. Which of the following concepts is this student exemplifying?
a) discrimination
b) systemic racism
c) assimilation
d) implicit bias
Answer C. Assimilation is the process by which someone gives up their
distinctive culture and adopts the patterns of the dominant culture.
6.What social institution led to the "one drop" rule?
a) the law, since the law said that a person is Black if his or her mother is
Black
b) the law, since the law said that a person is Black if his or her mother is
a slave
,c) slavery, since the law that said that a child was a slave if his or her
mother was, which eventually led to the idea that a single Black ancestor
makes a person Black
d) slavery since the law said that only Black people were slaves, therefore
people who looked sufficiently White could escape slavery
Answer C. Early Colonial laws stated that any children of slaves were
slaves, even if they had White paternity. Over generations, even people
whose racial heritage was largely White could still be considered slaves,
feeding into the idea that a single Black ancestor made someone Black.
7.Which is an example of systemic racism?
a) A single police officer, operating under the "stop and frisk" policy,
dispro- portionately stops and frisks more citizens of color.
b) Police officers in the United States, on average, operating under the
"stop and frisk" policy, stop disproportionately more citizens of color.
c) A new law forces businesses to cover the names of applicants prior to
and during the review process so that they are not accidentally influenced
by implicit bias.
d) all of the above
e) none of the above
Answer B. In this example, we see that a disproportionate number of
racial and ethnic groups being stopped and frisked reveals an
underlying bias that is present in the United States. This is an example
of a societal attitude that drives forms of racism. In letter A, a single
officer demonstrates individual bias, and in letter C, a law aims to
mitigate the effects of systemic or individual racism in the workplace.
8.What practice do employers use to decrease the ability of low-wage
workers to negotiate their wages?
a) Employers appeal to the law to restrict what their employees can do
to improve their working conditions.
b) Employers work with their employees to ensure the wages they are
paying are fair.
, c) Employers regularly pay less than minimum wage in order to reap
the maximum amount of profit.
d) Employers keep a reserve army of workers they can hire if current
employ- ees misbehave.
Answer D. Employers keep a reserve of potential employees, which
allows them to threaten current employees with firing.
9.Which of the following BEST illustrates the difference between absolute
and relative poverty?
a) Absolute poverty fluctuates depending on the country; relative poverty
is a fixed financial number.
b) Absolute poverty is a fixed definition of how poor one is; relative
poverty fluctuates depending on the standard of living.
c) Absolute poverty occurs only in urbanized areas; relative poverty can
be found anywhere.
d) Absolute poverty occurs only in developing countries; relative poverty
occurs only in developed countries:
Answer B. Those in absolute poverty lack access to basic needs like
food and water, regardless of how wealthy others are; those in relative
poverty are poor compared to those who live in comfort and luxury
around them.
10.Which of the following types of households has the highest poverty
rate in the United States?
a) households headed by single females
b) households headed by single males
c) households with married couples
d) households with unmarried couples:
Answer A. The poverty rate of households headed by single females is
currently about 30%, which is significantly higher than any other type of
household.
11.What is the salience principle?
