SPMT 319 ACTUAL COMPREHENSIVE EXAM QUESTIONS
WITH ANSWERS A+ 2025
✔✔Power of sport to shape values and change - ✔✔Sport and its value systems can
influence society in both good and bad ways, and sport can be a platform to point to the
need for change in society
Sport fosters development of social capital
---------------------------------
- Social capital is the "features of social organization such as networks, norms, and
social trust that can facilitate coordination and cooperation for mutual benefit
- Bonding vs. bridging social capital
✔✔Bonding social capital - ✔✔Bonding social capital occurs when individuals form
relationships w/ similar others (e.g. peers, neighbors), whereas bridging social capital is
when relationships and networks are formed with dissimilar others
✔✔what are 5 ways that science and common sense differ? - ✔✔the use of theory
systematic and empirical examination
alternative explanations
Relationships among factors
Explanations of observed phenomena
✔✔the use of theories: Formal vs. lay theories - ✔✔Non-scientists commonly use
"theories" to explain behaviors, but their theories differ from those scientists employ --
Lay theories are frequently based on unfounded explanations not subjected to scrutiny
Scientists on the other hand, systematically build theories, and theories are routinely
subjected to scrutiny to determine their merit
✔✔Systematic and empirical examination
Anecdotal evidence vs. empirical data - ✔✔Non-scientists test theories in selective
fashion and against their own predispositions --- In this case, a supportive anecdote is
seen as evidence, while disconfirming evidence is dismissed as an anomaly
Scientists, on the other hand, tests predictions and theories in laboratory settings or
field research, and their findings are subjected to scrutiny from others
,✔✔Alternative explanations - ✔✔Scientists try to rule out factors that can provide
alternative explanations of their findings --- They might achieve this through study
design (e.g. have a control group and an experimental group) or statically (e.g. by
controlling for possible extraneous factors in their analyses)
On the other hand, non-scientists will generally accept information in accord w/ their
views and dismiss other factors --- For instance, if they believe African Americans are
naturally more athletic than whites, they will ignore or dismiss instances where this is
not the case
✔✔Relationships among factors - ✔✔Social scientists are concerned with
understanding and explaining how factors are related to one another, and as a result,
they deliberately and systematically examine and scrutinize those relationships
Laypersons might be interested in relationships, but they do not investigate them in any
sort of controlled or precise fashion
✔✔Explanations of observed phenomena - ✔✔1) Scientists examine factors that can be
readily observed and are not concerned with metaphysical explanations
a) For instance, to suggest that someone wins a boxing match because of God or that
is wrong to express a particular view is to speak metaphysically -- They shy away from
such discourse because these sentiments cannot be tested or observed
Non-scientists are not concerned with these limitations, and thus, frequently engage in
such debates
✔✔Theory - ✔✔a statement of constructs and their relationships to one another that
explain how, when, why, and under what conditions phenomena take place (C
✔✔Social theories - ✔✔"logically interrelated explanations 0f the actions and
relationships of human beings and the organization and dynamics of social worlds
They provide frameworks for asking research questions, interpreting information, and
making sense of the meanings and stories associated with sports
Research and theories go hand in hand because sociologists use research to test the
validity (credibility) of theories, and theories are developed based on research findings
✔✔Functionalism Theory - ✔✔Views society as an organized system of
interrelated/interdependent parts held together by shared values and established social
arrangements that maintain the system in a state of balance and equilibrium
Sport and physical activity are seen as parts of this system and serve to bring about
positive benefits and change to society
a. Sport preserves the status quo
, b. Often used by people in positions of power to make decisions about sports and
sports programs at national and local levels (e.g., organized youth sport, e.g., FOP little
league baseball; "Commit to be Fit" programs in major cities)
✔✔Conflict Theory - ✔✔Focuses on the ways that sports are shaped by economic
forces and used by powerful people to increase their wealth and influence
Rooted in the work of Marx and the assumption that every society is a system of
relationships and social arrangements that are shaped by economic factors
a. Sports are viewed as tools of the wealthy
b. Conflict theorists focus research on class relations or those social processes that
center around who has economic power; how this power is used; and who has
advantages and disadvantages because of the economic organization of society
c. The focus is on the rights and empowerment of the worker or less powerful
✔✔Critical theories - ✔✔Assume the social order in society and sport is negotiated
through struggles over ideology, representation, and power; social life is seen as
diverse, complex, and sometimes contradictory
These group of theories not only focus on societal norms and structures, but also on
human agency or the choices people make in how they deal with and respond to the
larger social structures and norms
✔✔types of critical theories - ✔✔Hegemony theory
Feminist theory
Critical race theory
Researchers adopting a critical lens frequently employ one of three theories
✔✔Hegemony theory - ✔✔critical theory
Draws from conflict theory and focuses on social class and power, while highlighting
issues of ideologies and culture
The focus is on the steps that the powerful elite (e.g., Whites, males) take to ensure
their privilege in maintained/sustained
Example: Stadium financing issue in major cities
✔✔Feminist theory - ✔✔People's life experiences in various social contexts are
gendered in nature
WITH ANSWERS A+ 2025
✔✔Power of sport to shape values and change - ✔✔Sport and its value systems can
influence society in both good and bad ways, and sport can be a platform to point to the
need for change in society
Sport fosters development of social capital
---------------------------------
- Social capital is the "features of social organization such as networks, norms, and
social trust that can facilitate coordination and cooperation for mutual benefit
- Bonding vs. bridging social capital
✔✔Bonding social capital - ✔✔Bonding social capital occurs when individuals form
relationships w/ similar others (e.g. peers, neighbors), whereas bridging social capital is
when relationships and networks are formed with dissimilar others
✔✔what are 5 ways that science and common sense differ? - ✔✔the use of theory
systematic and empirical examination
alternative explanations
Relationships among factors
Explanations of observed phenomena
✔✔the use of theories: Formal vs. lay theories - ✔✔Non-scientists commonly use
"theories" to explain behaviors, but their theories differ from those scientists employ --
Lay theories are frequently based on unfounded explanations not subjected to scrutiny
Scientists on the other hand, systematically build theories, and theories are routinely
subjected to scrutiny to determine their merit
✔✔Systematic and empirical examination
Anecdotal evidence vs. empirical data - ✔✔Non-scientists test theories in selective
fashion and against their own predispositions --- In this case, a supportive anecdote is
seen as evidence, while disconfirming evidence is dismissed as an anomaly
Scientists, on the other hand, tests predictions and theories in laboratory settings or
field research, and their findings are subjected to scrutiny from others
,✔✔Alternative explanations - ✔✔Scientists try to rule out factors that can provide
alternative explanations of their findings --- They might achieve this through study
design (e.g. have a control group and an experimental group) or statically (e.g. by
controlling for possible extraneous factors in their analyses)
On the other hand, non-scientists will generally accept information in accord w/ their
views and dismiss other factors --- For instance, if they believe African Americans are
naturally more athletic than whites, they will ignore or dismiss instances where this is
not the case
✔✔Relationships among factors - ✔✔Social scientists are concerned with
understanding and explaining how factors are related to one another, and as a result,
they deliberately and systematically examine and scrutinize those relationships
Laypersons might be interested in relationships, but they do not investigate them in any
sort of controlled or precise fashion
✔✔Explanations of observed phenomena - ✔✔1) Scientists examine factors that can be
readily observed and are not concerned with metaphysical explanations
a) For instance, to suggest that someone wins a boxing match because of God or that
is wrong to express a particular view is to speak metaphysically -- They shy away from
such discourse because these sentiments cannot be tested or observed
Non-scientists are not concerned with these limitations, and thus, frequently engage in
such debates
✔✔Theory - ✔✔a statement of constructs and their relationships to one another that
explain how, when, why, and under what conditions phenomena take place (C
✔✔Social theories - ✔✔"logically interrelated explanations 0f the actions and
relationships of human beings and the organization and dynamics of social worlds
They provide frameworks for asking research questions, interpreting information, and
making sense of the meanings and stories associated with sports
Research and theories go hand in hand because sociologists use research to test the
validity (credibility) of theories, and theories are developed based on research findings
✔✔Functionalism Theory - ✔✔Views society as an organized system of
interrelated/interdependent parts held together by shared values and established social
arrangements that maintain the system in a state of balance and equilibrium
Sport and physical activity are seen as parts of this system and serve to bring about
positive benefits and change to society
a. Sport preserves the status quo
, b. Often used by people in positions of power to make decisions about sports and
sports programs at national and local levels (e.g., organized youth sport, e.g., FOP little
league baseball; "Commit to be Fit" programs in major cities)
✔✔Conflict Theory - ✔✔Focuses on the ways that sports are shaped by economic
forces and used by powerful people to increase their wealth and influence
Rooted in the work of Marx and the assumption that every society is a system of
relationships and social arrangements that are shaped by economic factors
a. Sports are viewed as tools of the wealthy
b. Conflict theorists focus research on class relations or those social processes that
center around who has economic power; how this power is used; and who has
advantages and disadvantages because of the economic organization of society
c. The focus is on the rights and empowerment of the worker or less powerful
✔✔Critical theories - ✔✔Assume the social order in society and sport is negotiated
through struggles over ideology, representation, and power; social life is seen as
diverse, complex, and sometimes contradictory
These group of theories not only focus on societal norms and structures, but also on
human agency or the choices people make in how they deal with and respond to the
larger social structures and norms
✔✔types of critical theories - ✔✔Hegemony theory
Feminist theory
Critical race theory
Researchers adopting a critical lens frequently employ one of three theories
✔✔Hegemony theory - ✔✔critical theory
Draws from conflict theory and focuses on social class and power, while highlighting
issues of ideologies and culture
The focus is on the steps that the powerful elite (e.g., Whites, males) take to ensure
their privilege in maintained/sustained
Example: Stadium financing issue in major cities
✔✔Feminist theory - ✔✔People's life experiences in various social contexts are
gendered in nature
