Unit 1 Examination 38 GED 216 Sociology Multiple Choice Questions (Enter your answers on the enclosed answer sheet) Because there is more social isolation in rural areas of the United States than in urban areas, 1. we would expect suicide rates to be higher in urban areas.a. higher in rural areas.b. high in both urban and rural areas.c. low in both urban and rural areas. d. Sociologists use the term “social marginality” to refer to 2. people who have little understanding of sociology.a. people who have special social skills.b. people who are defined by others as an “outsider.”c. people who are especially sensitive about their family background. d. If social marginality encourages sociological thinking, we would expect people in which 3. category listed below to make the most use of the sociological perspective? the wealthya. disabled persons or people who are a racial minorityb. politiciansc. the middle class d. Following the thinking of C. Wright Mills, we would expect the sociological imagination to be 4. more widespread in a population during times of peace and prosperity. a. among the very rich.b. among very religious people.c. during times of social crisis. d. Wright Mills claimed that the “sociological imagination” transformed 5. common sense into laws of society.a. people into supporters of the status quo.b. personal problems into public issues.c. scientific research into common sense. d. Unit 1 Examination 39 GED 216 Sociology The United States falls within which category of the world’s nations? 6. low-income nationsa. middle-income nationsb. high-income nationsc. socially marginalized nations d. Countries in which average people’s income is typical for the world as a whole and in which 7. people are as likely to live in a rural area as in an urban area are categorized as low-income nations.a. middle-income nations.b. high-income nations.c. socially marginalized nations. d. The nations of Western Europe, Israel, Japan, and Australia fall into which category of 8. countries? low-income nationsa. middle-income nationsb. high-income nationsc. socially marginalized nations d. It is difficult to establish all the cause-and-effect relationships in a social situation because 9. most patterns of behavior have a single cause.a. most patterns of behavior are random and have no cause at all.b. most patterns of behavior are caused by many factors.c. sociologists are not able to reach conclusions about cause and effect. d. The ideal of objectivity means that a researcher must 10. not personally care about the topic being studied.a. try to adopt a stance of personal neutrality toward the outcome of the research.b. study issues that have no value to society as a whole.c. carry out research that will encourage desirable social change. d. Unit 1 Examination 40 GED 216 Sociology The sociologist who called on his colleagues to be “value-free” in t ...

1. Unit 1 Examination
38
GED 216 Sociology
Multiple Choice Questions (Enter your answers on the enclosed
answer sheet)
Because there is more social isolation in rural areas of the
United States than in urban areas, 1.
we would expect suicide rates to be
higher in urban areas.a.
higher in rural areas.b.
high in both urban and rural areas.c.
low in both urban and rural areas. d.
Sociologists use the term “social marginality” to refer to 2.
people who have little understanding of sociology.a.
people who have special social skills.b.
people who are defined by others as an “outsider.”c.
people who are especially sensitive about their family
background. d.
If social marginality encourages sociological thinking, we
would expect people in which 3.
category listed below to make the most use of the sociological
perspective?

2. the wealthya.
disabled persons or people who are a racial minorityb.
politiciansc.
the middle class d.
Following the thinking of C. Wright Mills, we would expect the
sociological imagination to be 4.
more widespread in a population
during times of peace and prosperity. a.
among the very rich.b.
among very religious people.c.
during times of social crisis. d.
Wright Mills claimed that the “sociological imagination”
transformed 5.
common sense into laws of society.a.
people into supporters of the status quo.b.
personal problems into public issues.c.
scientific research into common sense. d.
Unit 1 Examination
39
GED 216 Sociology
The United States falls within which category of the world’s
nations? 6.

3. low-income nationsa.
middle-income nationsb.
high-income nationsc.
socially marginalized nations d.
Countries in which average people’s income is typical for the
world as a whole and in which 7.
people are as likely to live in a rural area as in an urban area are
categorized as
low-income nations.a.
middle-income nations.b.
high-income nations.c.
socially marginalized nations. d.
The nations of Western Europe, Israel, Japan, and Australia fall
into which category of 8.
countries?
low-income nationsa.
middle-income nationsb.
high-income nationsc.
socially marginalized nations d.
It is difficult to establish all the cause-and-effect relationships
in a social situation because 9.
most patterns of behavior have a single cause.a.
most patterns of behavior are random and have no cause at all.b.
most patterns of behavior are caused by many factors.c.
sociologists are not able to reach conclusions about cause and
effect. d.

4. The ideal of objectivity means that a researcher must 10.
not personally care about the topic being studied.a.
try to adopt a stance of personal neutrality toward the outcome
of the research.b.
study issues that have no value to society as a whole.c.
carry out research that will encourage desirable social change.
d.
Unit 1 Examination
40
GED 216 Sociology
The sociologist who called on his colleagues to be “value-free”
in the conduct of their research 11.
was
Karl Marx.a.
Emile Durkheim.b.
Herbert Spencer.c.
Max Weber. d.
Imagine that you are repeating research done by someone else in
order to assess the accuracy. 12.
You are doing which of the following?
replicationa.
objectificationb.
reliabilityc.

5. scientific control d.
Sociologists cannot precisely predict any person’s behavior
because 13.
human behavior is highly complex and has many causes.a.
the discipline of sociology is too new.b.
there are too many competing sociological approaches.c.
sociology is not scientific. d.
Positivist sociology 14.
focuses on the meaning people attach to behavior.a.
seeks to bring about desirable social change.b.
favors qualitative data.c.
favors quantitative data. d.
Interpretive sociology refers to sociology that 15.
focuses on action.a.
sees an objective reality “out there.”b.
focuses on the meaning people attach to their social world.c.
seeks to bring about change. d.
Unit 1 Examination
41
GED 216 Sociology

6. Which German word meaning “understanding” was used by Max
Weber to describe his 16.
approach to sociological research?
Gemeinschafta.
Gesellschaftb.
Verstehenc.
Verboten d.
Critical sociology 17.
focuses on the meaning people attach to behavior.a.
seeks to bring about desirable social change.b.
endorses the principle of being value-free.c.
is based on Weber’s principle of verstehen. d.
Critical sociology can best be described as a(n) ________
approach. 18.
activista.
scientificb.
qualitativec.
value-free d.
The Sapir-Whorf thesis states that 19.
language involves attaching labels to the real world.a.
people see the world through the cultural lens of their
language.b.
most words have the same meaning if spoken in different
languages.c.
every word exists in all known languages. d.

7. Standards by which people who share culture define what is
desirable, good, and beautiful are 20.
called
folkways.a.
norms.b.
mores.c.
values. d.
The dominant values of U.S. culture include 21.
a deep respect for the traditions of the past.a.
a belief in equality of condition for all.b.
a belief in individuality.c.
a belief in intuition over science.d.
Unit 1 Examination
42
GED 216 Sociology
According to sociologist Robin Williams Jr.j one value of U.S.
culture is 22.
equality of condition.a.
unequal opportunityb.
material comfort.c.
belief in tradition. d.
Key values of U.S. culture 23.

8. always fit together easily.a.
change quickly, even from year to year.b.
are shared by absolutely everyone in a society.c.
are sometimes in conflict with one another. d.
An emerging value in our society is 24.
“What was good enough for my parents is good enough for
me.”a.
“The present is better than the past.”b.
“Work is important, but I want more time for leisure and
personal growth.”c.
“It’s good to be free.” d.
Low-income countries have cultures that value 25.
economic survival.a.
equal standing for women and men.b.
self-expression.c.
individualism.d.
Unit 2 Examination
82
GED 216 Sociology
Multiple Choice Questions (Enter your answers on the enclosed
answer sheet)
Carol Gilligan’s work on the moral develop of girls and boys

9. showed that: 1.
girls have a justice perspective and boys have a responsibility
perspective.a.
girls have higher self-esteem than boys.b.
boys have higher self-esteem than girls.c.
boys have a justice perspective and girls have a responsibility
perspective. d.
George Herbert Mead considered the self to be 2.
the part of an individual’s personality that is composed of self-
awareness and self-image.a.
the presence of culture within the individual.b.
basic drives that are self-centered.c.
present in infants at the time of their birth. d.
Mead placed the origin of the self on 3.
biological drives. a.
genetics.b.
social experience.c.
the functioning of the brain. d.
According to Mead, social experience involves 4.
understanding the world in terms of our senses.a.
the exchange of symbols.b.
a mix of biological instinct and learning.c.
acting but not thinking. d.
By “taking the role of the other,” Mead had in mind 5.

10. imagining a situation in terms of past experience.a.
recognizing that people have different views of most
situations.b.
imagining a situation from another person’s point of view. c.
trading self-centeredness for a focus on helping other people. d.
When Cooley used the concept of the “looking-glass self,” he
claimed that 6.
people are self-centered.a.
people see themselves as they think others see them.b.
people see things only from their own point of view.c.
our actions are a reflection of our values.d.
According to Mead, children learn to take the role of the other
as they model themselves on 7.
important people in their lives, such as parents. Mead referred
to these people as
Unit 2 Examination
83
GED 216 Sociology
role models.a.
looking-glass models.b.
significant others.c.
the generalized other. d.
In Mead’s model, which sequence correctly orders stages of the
developing self? 8.

11. imitation, play, game, generalized othera.
imitation, generalized other, play, gameb.
imitation, game, play, generalized otherc.
imitation, generalized other, game, play d.
Mead used the concept “generalized other” to refer to 9.
important individuals in the child’s life.a.
a person who provides complete care for a child.b.
any “significant other.”c.
widespread cultural norms and values people take as their own.
d.
Mead would agree that 10.
socialization ends with the development of self in childhood.a.
if you won $100 million in a lottery, your self might change.b.
people are puppets with little control over their lives.c.
human behavior reflects both nature and nurture. d.
Erik H. Erikson’s view of socialization states that 11.
personality develops over the entire life course.a.
personality involves tensions between the forces of biology and
forces of culture.b.
we come to see ourselves as we think others see us.c.
most of our personality development takes place in childhood.
d.
Critics of Erikson’s theory of personality development point out
that 12.

12. not everyone confronts the stages in the exact order given by
Erikson.a.
his theories are difficult to test scientifically. b.
a large percentage of people never reach the last stage of
development.c.
his research suffers from a gender bias.d.
Unit 2 Examination
84
GED 216 Sociology
Family is important to the socialization process because 13.
family members are often what Mead called “generalized
others.”a.
families pass along social identity to children in terms of class,
ethnicity, and religion.b.
families begin the process of anticipatory socialization.c.
families set the stage for resocialization. d.
Shawna is an excellent artist, but as a mother, she feels that she
cannot work and devote 14.
enough time to her family. She is experiencing
role conflict. a.
role strain.b.
role ambiguity.c.
role exit. d.

13. Which concept refers to the tension among roles connected to a
single status? 15.
role conflicta.
role strainb.
role ambiguityc.
role exit d.
Which concept is involved when a surgeon chooses not to
operate on her own son because the 16.
personal involvement of motherhood could impair her
professional objectivity as a physician?
role conflicta.
role strainb.
role ambiguityc.
role exit d.
Which concept is involved when a plant supervisor wants to be
a good friend and confidant to 17.
the workers, but must remain distant in order to rate the
workers’ performances?
role conflicta.
role strainb.
role ambiguityc.
role exit d.
Unit 2 Examination
85

14. GED 216 Sociology
What is the term for the process by which people disengage
from important social roles? 18.
role rejectiona.
role reversalb.
role lossc.
role exit d.
Rebuilding relationships with people who knew you in an
earlier period of life is a common 19.
experience for those who are undergoing
role conflict. a.
role strain.b.
role ambiguity.c.
role exit. d.
Which concept is used to designate the process by which people
creatively shape reality as 20.
they interact?
status interactiona.
social construction of realityb.
interactive realityc.
role reality d.
Flirting is a playful way of seeing if someone is interested in
you without risking outright 21.
rejection. From this point of view, flirting illustrates

15. the Thomas theorem.a.
the process of role exit.b.
the social construction of reality.c.
street smarts. d.
The Thomas theorem states that 22.
a role is as a role does.a.
people rise to their level of incompetence.b.
situations defined as real are real in their consequences.c.
people know the world only through their language. d.
Garfinkel’s research, an approach called ethnomethodology,
involves 23.
studying the way people make sense of their everyday
surroundings.a.
tracking people’s roles over the life course.b.
the study of interaction in terms of theatrical performance.c.
studying unfamiliar cultural systems.d.
Unit 2 Examination
86
GED 216 Sociology
An example of a secondary group is 24.
a fraternity chapter meeting on campus.a.
a Microsoft Corporation awards banquet.b.
parents meeting with their daughter and her coach.c.

16. girl scouts at a cookout. d.
In general, we see a(n) _______ as a means to an end; we see
a(n) _____ as an end in itself. 25.
expressive group; instrumental groupa.
crowd; categoryb.
secondary group; primary groupc.
primary group; secondary groupd.
Unit 3 Examination
127
GED 216 Sociology
Multiple Choice Questions (Enter your answers on the enclosed
answer sheet)
Edwin Lemert described “primary deviance” as 1.
the most serious episodes of deviance.a.
actions that parents define as deviant.b.
a passing episode of deviance that has little effect on the
person’s self-concept.c.
the experience of deviance early in life. d.
His friends begin to criticize Marco as a “juice-head,” pushing
him out of their social circle. 2.
Marco begins to drink even more, becomes bitter, and joins a
new group of friends who also are
heavy drinkers. According to Lemert, Marco’s situation

17. illustrates
the onset of primary deviance. a.
the onset of secondary deviance.b.
the formation of a deviant subculture.c.
the onset of retreatism. d.
What concept did Erving Goffman use to refer to a powerful and
negative label that greatly 3.
changes a person’s self-concept and social identity?
a deviant rituala.
a degradation ceremonyb.
a secondary identityc.
stigma d.
The concept “retrospective labeling” refers to the process of 4.
interpreting someone’s past consistent with present deviance.a.
defining someone as deviant for things done long before.b.
criminal adults encouraging their children to become deviant.c.
predicting someone’s future based on past deviant acts. d.
Thomas Szasz made the controversial assertion that 5.
deviance is only what people label as deviant.a.
most people in the United States will become insane for some
period during their lives.b.
mental illness is a myth so that “insanity” is only “differences”
that bother other people.c.
our society does not do nearly enough to treat the mentally ill.
d.

18. Unit 3 Examination
128
GED 216 Sociology
An example of the “medicalization of deviance” is 6.
theft being redefined as a “compulsive stealing.”a.
drinking too much being redefined as a personal failing.b.
promiscuity being redefined as a moral failing.c.
when people steal drugs to self-medicate. d.
Whether people respond to deviance as a moral issue or a
medical matter affects 7.
whether a person is labeled retrospectively or projectively.a.
whether the person is subject to punishment or treatment.b.
whether the person’s deviance is labeled as primary or
secondary.c.
whether or not the person gets the appropriate care. d.
Edwin Sutherland’s differential association theory links
deviance to 8.
how labeling someone as deviant can increase the deviant
behavior.a.
the amount of contact a person has with others who encourage
or discourage conventional b.
behavior.
how well a person can contain deviant impulses.c.

19. how others respond to the race, ethnicity, gender, and class of
the individual. d.
Travis Hirschi’s control theory suggests that the category of
people most likely to engage in 9.
deviance is
students enrolled in college.a.
teenagers on sports teams with after-school jobs.b.
youngsters who “hang out” waiting for something to happen.c.
young people with respect for their parents. d.
According to the social-conflict approach, what a society labels
as deviant is based primarily on 10.
how often the act occurs.a.
the moral foundation of the culture.b.
how harmful the act is to the public as a whole.c.
differences in power between various categories of people. d.
Alexander Liazos speaks for the social-conflict approach when
he states that 11.
powerless people are at the highest risk of being defined as
deviant.a.
deviance has both functions and dysfunctions.b.
deviance exists only in the eye of the beholder.c.
society should ignore victimless crime.d.
Unit 3 Examination

20. 129
GED 216 Sociology
Using a Marxist approach, Steven Spitzer claims that prime
targets for deviant labeling include 12.
people who try to take the property of others.a.
people who work hard but are poor.b.
perpetrators of white-collar crime.c.
people who have social power. d.
Crime committed by persons of high social position during the
course of their occupations is 13.
called
victimless crime.a.
white-collar crime.b.
organized crime.c.
street crime. d.
Edwin Sutherland stated that white-collar crime 14.
almost always leads to a criminal conviction.a.
provokes a strong response from the community.b.
is usually resolved in a civil rather than a criminal court.c.
rarely involves serious harm to the public as a whole. d.
_________ refers to the illegal actions of a corporation or
people acting on its behalf. 15.
Corporate crime a.
Organized crimeb.

21. Victimless crimec.
Secondary deviance d.
Organized crime refers to 16.
illegal actions by people with white-collar jobs.a.
illegal actions on the part of a corporation or large business.b.
crime involving the cooperation of two or more businesses.c.
any business that supplies illegal goods or services. d.
A hate crime is defined as 17.
any crime against a person who is a minority.a.
any crime involving anger or other powerful emotion.b.
a criminal act motivated by race or other bias.c.
any violation of antidiscrimination laws. d.
Unit 3 Examination
130
GED 216 Sociology
Feminist theory states that gender figures into the study of
deviance because 18.
women account for most of the arrests for serious crimes in the
United States.a.
every society in the world applies stronger normative controls
to females than to males.b.
most researchers in this area are women.c.
women are more likely than men to commit a serious crime. d.

22. Women commit 19.
far more crimes than men.a.
far fewer crimes than men.b.
the same number of crimes as men.c.
more property crimes than men, but men commit more violent
crimes. d.
In legal terms, a crime is composed of which two components?
20.
the act and criminal intenta.
a criminal and a victimb.
the act and the social harmc.
the law and the violation d.
“Crimes against the person” includes all but 21.
murder.a.
aggravated assault.b.
burglary.c.
forcible rape. d.
Mike reports the theft of his dirt bike from the front yard of his
house. The police would record 22.
this as which type of crime?
burglarya.
larceny-theftb.
robberyc.
auto-theft d.

23. Prostitution is widely regarded as a 23.
crime against the person. a.
crime against property.b.
victimless crime.c.
corporate crime.d.
Unit 3 Examination
131
GED 216 Sociology
Criminal statistics gathered by the Federal Bureau of
Investigation reflect 24.
all crimes that take place.a.
offenses cleared by arrest.b.
offenses resulting in a criminal conviction.c.
offenses known to the police. d.
Victimization surveys show that the actual amount of crime in
the United States is about _____ 25.
what official reports indicate.
half as great asa.
the same asb.
more than twice as high asc.
ten times greater thand.

24. Unit 4 Examination
171
GED 216 Sociology
Multiple Choice Questions (Enter your answers on the enclosed
answer sheet)
Which of the following concepts refers to a political system in
which power resides in the 1.
hands of the people as a whole?
democracya.
monarchyb.
totalitarianismc.
aristocracy d.
Which nations in the world today claim to be democratic? 2.
all low-income nationsa.
no nationsb.
most high-income nationsc.
all nations d.
For which of the following reasons might you argue that the
United States is not truly 3.
democratic?
There is a lot of economic inequality.a.
Millions of bureaucratic officials are not elected.b.
Rich people have much more influence on our way of life than
poor people.c.

25. All of these are correct. d.
In 2013, about what percentage of the world’s people lived in
countries that can be considered 4.
politically “free”?
3 percenta.
23 percentb.
43 percentc.
63 percent d.
The concept “political economy” refers to 5.
any system in which people are unequal.a.
the interplay of politics and economics.b.
democratic political systems.c.
the most efficient form of government. d.
Unit 4 Examination
172
GED 216 Sociology
Capitalist societies base their claim to democracy on 6.
people having personal liberty.a.
meeting the basic needs of all.b.
maintaining public order.c.
their high living standards. d.

26. Socialist societies base their claim to democracy on 7.
people having personal liberty.a.
meeting the basic needs of all.b.
maintaining public order.c.
their high living standards. d.
The concept “authoritarian” refers to a political system that 8.
is well legitimated.a.
relies on more than one kind of authority.b.
denies most people participation in government.c.
has free elections. d.
A totalitarian political system 9.
mixes politics with religion.a.
is completely democratic.b.
is government without any bureaucracy.c.
concentrates power and closely regulates people’s lives. d.
Which of the following nations comes closest to having a
political system that is “totalitarian”? 10.
Mexicoa.
Franceb.
North Koreac.
Japan d.
Which of the following statements correctly describes how the
U.S. population falls on the 11.

27. political spectrum?
About 36 percent of people are moderates who fall near the
political center.a.
About 16 percent fall on the political left.b.
About 46 percent fall on the political right.c.
About 26 percent claim to have no political opinions at all.d.
Unit 4 Examination
173
GED 216 Sociology
Which from the following list would be described as an
economic issue? 12.
the abortion controversya.
povertyb.
gay rightsc.
the family values debate d.
Typically, industrial societies make use of which of the
following systems to trace ancestry? 13.
bilateral descenta.
matrilineal descentb.
patrilineal descentc.
neolocality d.
Matrilineal descent is typically found in which type of
societies? 14.

28. hunting and gathering, where women gather vegetationa.
horticultural, where women are the main food producersb.
industrial, where women enter the workplacec.
All of these responses are correct. d.
To which region of the world would you travel if you wanted to
visit many countries where the 15.
law permits polygamy?
Africa a.
North Americab.
South Americac.
Scandinavia d.
According to the structural-functional approach, which of the
following is counted among the 16.
tasks of the family?
socialization of the younga.
regulation of sexual activityb.
social placementc.
All of these responses are correct. d.
The incest taboo 17.
exists only in industrial societies.a.
is found in all societies.b.
is found among all living species.c.
is defined the same way in all societies.d.

29. Unit 4 Examination
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GED 216 Sociology
Following structural-functional theory, the family 18.
operates to perpetuate social inequality.a.
is important enough to be called the backbone of society.b.
encourages patriarchy.c.
All of these responses are correct. d.
A social-exchange analysis of family life is likely to consider
19.
how families keep society as a whole operating.a.
how families perpetuate social inequality.b.
how individuals select partners who offer about as much as they
do to the relationship.c.
how families regulate sexual activity. d.
Social conflict and feminist theories explain that families
perpetuate social inequality in U.S. 20.
society through
inheritance of private property.a.
encouraging patriarchy.b.
passing on racial and ethnic inequality.c.
All of these responses are correct. d.
In traditional regions of many lower-income countries, such as
Sri Lanka, marriage 21.

30. has little to do with romantic love.a.
is unknown.b.
is delayed until the people reach their thirties.c.
almost always ends in divorce. d.
The concept “homogamy” means that 22.
people marry because they benefit from being married.a.
women usually marry older men.b.
people marry others who are socially like themselves.c.
most marriages are based on romantic love. d.
In the United States, romantic love 23.
is the reason most people expect to marry.a.
is not a very stable foundation for marriage.b.
may contribute to a high divorce rate.c.
All of these responses are correct. d.
Unit 4 Examination
175
GED 216 Sociology
Supporters of liberation theology hope that this social
movement will achieve which of the 24.
following goals?
keeping politics out of the churcha.
helping people endure their sufferingb.

31. encouraging personal growthc.
reducing social inequality and, especially, poverty d.
A religious organization that is well integrated into the larger
society is called a 25.
church. a.
sect.b.
cult.c.
denomination.d.