CHAPTER 01: What Is Sociology?
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. According to the sociological perspective, people’s behavior is:
a. mostly a result of their personality
b. entirely determined by the social context
c. mostly a result of their genes
d. influenced by the social context
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Recognize that sociology involves not only acquiring knowledge but also
developing a sociological imagination. MSC: Applying
2. The idea of a sociological imagination originated with:
a. Anthony Giddens
b. C. Wright Mills
c. Émile Durkheim
d. Karl Marx
ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Recognize that sociology involves not only acquiring knowledge but also
developing a sociological imagination. MSC: Remembering
3. The significance of a sociological imagination is that:
a. sociology should be considered a philosophy rather than a science
b. sociologists are primarily interested in predicting the unobservable
c. sociology attempts to connect individual experiences to a conception of a larger
social structure
d. sociology is rarely concerned with empirical verification of theories
ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
, OBJ: Recognize that sociology involves not only acquiring knowledge but also
developing a sociological imagination. MSC: Remembering
4. When sociologists visit college campuses, they witness a variety of behaviors and
social relationships that are not necessarily immediately apparent to the members of the college
community because this community is unlikely to be focusing on how the college context
connects to the larger social framework. The ability to interpret all the events taking place within
the campus context is referred to as:
a. theory
b. macrosociology
c. feminism
d. sociological imagination
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Recognize that sociology involves not only acquiring knowledge but also
developing a sociological imagination. MSC: Applying
5. Sociologists often observe individual people’s behavior, even though they are
typically analyzing these observations for how they reveal patterns or regularities of social
behaviors beyond the individuals themselves. This relates to sociology’s focus on .
a. socialization
b. anomie
c. bureaucracy
d. social structure
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Learn what sociology covers as a field and how everyday topics are shaped by
social and historical forces. MSC: Understanding
6. The norms, beliefs, and values that we learn through socialization make
possible.
a. agency
b. power struggles
, c. social order
d. bureaucracy
ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Learn what sociology covers as a field and how everyday topics are shaped by
social and historical forces. MSC: Understanding
7. Sociologists recognize that when a group of people agree on an idea or practice, it
becomes a taken-for-granted reality. This is called .
a. rationalization
b. social construction
c. social constraint
d. latent function
ANS: B DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Learn what sociology covers as a field and how everyday topics are shaped by
social and historical forces. MSC: Remembering
8. A child’s father is likely to tell the child to ―say thank-you‖ when the child
receives a gift. This is an example of:
a. social construction
b. rationalization
c. socialization
d. social structure
ANS: C DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Learn what sociology covers as a field and how everyday topics are shaped by
social and historical forces. MSC: Applying
9. We can say that something is socially constructed when it occurs through:
a. anomie
b. rationalization
, c. social intelligence
d. social interactions
ANS: D DIF: Easy REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Learn what sociology covers as a field and how everyday topics are shaped by
social and historical forces. MSC: Remembering
10. In their 2002 study comparing the average yearly income of students who had
been admitted to and attended an Ivy League college with the average yearly income of students
who had been admitted to but did not attend an Ivy League college, Alan Krueger and Stacy Dale
found that:
a. the individual matters despite an apparent disparity in opportunities between Ivy
League and non–Ivy League colleges
b. highly motivated students are far less likely to succeed if they attend a non–Ivy
League college
c. institutional structures are always a greater determinant of success than personal
ambition
d. non–Ivy League college graduates have a significantly higher average income
than graduates of Ivy League colleges
ANS: A DIF: Difficult REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Recognize that sociology involves not only acquiring knowledge but also
developing a sociological imagination. MSC: Understanding
11. Early sociological theorists often differed in their analyses of social behavior and
social institutions. Nevertheless, Auguste Comte, Émile Durkheim, Karl Marx, and Max Weber
strove to explain the new relationships that emerged as an outgrowth of the:
a. American Revolution
b. French Revolution
c. Russian Revolution
d. Industrial Revolution
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: 1.2 The Development of
Sociological Thinking
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. According to the sociological perspective, people’s behavior is:
a. mostly a result of their personality
b. entirely determined by the social context
c. mostly a result of their genes
d. influenced by the social context
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Recognize that sociology involves not only acquiring knowledge but also
developing a sociological imagination. MSC: Applying
2. The idea of a sociological imagination originated with:
a. Anthony Giddens
b. C. Wright Mills
c. Émile Durkheim
d. Karl Marx
ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Recognize that sociology involves not only acquiring knowledge but also
developing a sociological imagination. MSC: Remembering
3. The significance of a sociological imagination is that:
a. sociology should be considered a philosophy rather than a science
b. sociologists are primarily interested in predicting the unobservable
c. sociology attempts to connect individual experiences to a conception of a larger
social structure
d. sociology is rarely concerned with empirical verification of theories
ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
, OBJ: Recognize that sociology involves not only acquiring knowledge but also
developing a sociological imagination. MSC: Remembering
4. When sociologists visit college campuses, they witness a variety of behaviors and
social relationships that are not necessarily immediately apparent to the members of the college
community because this community is unlikely to be focusing on how the college context
connects to the larger social framework. The ability to interpret all the events taking place within
the campus context is referred to as:
a. theory
b. macrosociology
c. feminism
d. sociological imagination
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Recognize that sociology involves not only acquiring knowledge but also
developing a sociological imagination. MSC: Applying
5. Sociologists often observe individual people’s behavior, even though they are
typically analyzing these observations for how they reveal patterns or regularities of social
behaviors beyond the individuals themselves. This relates to sociology’s focus on .
a. socialization
b. anomie
c. bureaucracy
d. social structure
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Learn what sociology covers as a field and how everyday topics are shaped by
social and historical forces. MSC: Understanding
6. The norms, beliefs, and values that we learn through socialization make
possible.
a. agency
b. power struggles
, c. social order
d. bureaucracy
ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Learn what sociology covers as a field and how everyday topics are shaped by
social and historical forces. MSC: Understanding
7. Sociologists recognize that when a group of people agree on an idea or practice, it
becomes a taken-for-granted reality. This is called .
a. rationalization
b. social construction
c. social constraint
d. latent function
ANS: B DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Learn what sociology covers as a field and how everyday topics are shaped by
social and historical forces. MSC: Remembering
8. A child’s father is likely to tell the child to ―say thank-you‖ when the child
receives a gift. This is an example of:
a. social construction
b. rationalization
c. socialization
d. social structure
ANS: C DIF: Moderate REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Learn what sociology covers as a field and how everyday topics are shaped by
social and historical forces. MSC: Applying
9. We can say that something is socially constructed when it occurs through:
a. anomie
b. rationalization
, c. social intelligence
d. social interactions
ANS: D DIF: Easy REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Learn what sociology covers as a field and how everyday topics are shaped by
social and historical forces. MSC: Remembering
10. In their 2002 study comparing the average yearly income of students who had
been admitted to and attended an Ivy League college with the average yearly income of students
who had been admitted to but did not attend an Ivy League college, Alan Krueger and Stacy Dale
found that:
a. the individual matters despite an apparent disparity in opportunities between Ivy
League and non–Ivy League colleges
b. highly motivated students are far less likely to succeed if they attend a non–Ivy
League college
c. institutional structures are always a greater determinant of success than personal
ambition
d. non–Ivy League college graduates have a significantly higher average income
than graduates of Ivy League colleges
ANS: A DIF: Difficult REF: 1.1 Basic Concepts
OBJ: Recognize that sociology involves not only acquiring knowledge but also
developing a sociological imagination. MSC: Understanding
11. Early sociological theorists often differed in their analyses of social behavior and
social institutions. Nevertheless, Auguste Comte, Émile Durkheim, Karl Marx, and Max Weber
strove to explain the new relationships that emerged as an outgrowth of the:
a. American Revolution
b. French Revolution
c. Russian Revolution
d. Industrial Revolution
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: 1.2 The Development of
Sociological Thinking
