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Henri is studying sociology and has to write a paper on the structure of employment in a particular society using any of the main sociological perspectives. He elects to use conflict theory.

Which of the following elements is Henri likely to miss when he uses conflict theory?

The factors that cause social change

The factors that lead to social stability

The effects of class on society

The effects of unequal power on society

RATIONALE
Conflict theory focuses on the way inequalities contribute to social differences and perpetuate differences in power. It examines how conflicts arise from competition for scarce resources. Conflict theory can also explain the effect class has on people’s behaviors and lives. The element Henri is likely to miss is that it fails to adequately explain social stability. It also sometimes focuses on class to the exclusion of other axes of conflict.

CONCEPT
Comparing the Paradigms
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2
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Which of the following should a sociologist use to test cause and effect relationships?

Secondary data analysis

Participant observation

Ethnography

Experiments

RATIONALE
An experiment involves the deliberate manipulation of social customs and mores. It is used to test cause and effect relationships.

CONCEPT
Collecting Data: Qualitative Approaches
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3
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Which of the following statements best describes the reason why surveys are the most widely used research method?

The data can be easily tabulated and organized.

They accurately estimate public opinion using a small sample.

The data collected do not have to be recorded.

They do not require direct contact with the test subjects.

RATIONALE
Surveys are the most widely used scientific research method in sociology because the data can be easily organized and tabulated. As the data collected are in the numerical form, a survey is a quantitative research method. Survey research is a research method in which subjects respond to the researchers’ questions directly, either in an interview or on a questionnaire, and it requires direct contact with the test subjects. Surveys target specific populations or groups of people and do not accurately estimate the public opinion of the entire population.

CONCEPT
Collecting Data: Quantitative Approaches
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4
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A group of sociologists is studying the prevalence of anxiety among teenagers in a school.

Which of the following methods is a quantitative research method?

Observing students as they go about their daily activities in school

Having students fill out a questionnaire to describe the incidents that caused them anxiety in the past week

Measuring the heart rates and blood pressures of students at different times throughout the day

Conducting detailed interviews with students to understand which events make them more anxious

RATIONALE
Quantitative research includes research methods that focus on gathering data from experiments or studies. Measuring physiological changes like heart rate and blood pressure is a quantitative method. Qualitative research focuses on gathering information in a narrative format instead of designing a study, such as through participant observation or surveys.

CONCEPT
Introduction to Sociological Research
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5
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Which of the following research methods would a symbolic interactionist most likely use?

Social experiment that involves a control group

Extended participant observation

Secondary research on published sources

Quantitative data collection

RATIONALE
Symbolic interactionism is a micro-level theory that focuses on meanings attached to human interaction, both verbal and nonverbal, and to symbols. Studies that use the symbolic interactionist perspective are more likely to use qualitative research methods, such as in-depth interviews or participant observation, because they seek to understand the symbolic worlds in which research subjects live. Social experiments, collection and analysis of demographic data, and construction of models to predict behavior are not research methods that are likely to be used by a symbolic interactionist.

CONCEPT
Symbolic Interactionism
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6
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Which of the following statements best summarizes the Hawthorne effect?

Participation in a research study can modify participants’ values and beliefs.

People change their behavior when they know they are being observed.

Conducting a research study can modify researchers’ values and beliefs.

Researchers’ personal values usually shape their interpretation of study data.

RATIONALE
The Hawthorne effect is an unavoidable phenomenon in research where people change their behavior because they know they are being watched as part of a study.

CONCEPT
Ethics in Sociology
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7
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Which of the following occurs in snowball sampling?

The researcher avoids interacting with respondents to avoid creating bias.

The researcher picks respondents at random from government or census data.

The researcher asks acquaintances to be the initial subjects.

The researcher picks a sample that represents the entire population.

RATIONALE
In snowball sampling, the researchers find the initial respondents or subjects through acquaintances who are already in their network. They then use those acquaintances to find their acquaintances and so on, and the process snowballs.

CONCEPT
Formulating a Hypothesis
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8
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Your company is not handing out bonuses to anyone this year. You are extremely disappointed because you were counting on your bonus to plan a trip abroad.

Which reaction demonstrates that you are using your sociological imagination?

You start looking for a new job because you believe that your company is the only one holding back annual bonuses.

You examine your work over the past year and see if there is anything you could have done differently.

You look at the bigger picture and examine how your company is affected by the current economic climate.

You resign because you believe that your company does not value your contribution.

RATIONALE
If you use your sociological imagination, you would connect your personal problems with broader social trends. In this situation, you would look at how your company is affected by the current economic climate and understand that it is withholding bonuses because there is a recession and companies are not doing well financially. Examining your work over the past year and assuming that your company does not value your contribution would mean you are not connecting your personal situation with the broader social environment. If you believe that yours is the only company holding back annual bonuses, you would not look at the broader social environment.

CONCEPT
The Sociological Imagination
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9
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Which of the following best summarizes the symbolic interaction approach to social thinking?

Society results from the relationships between different people playing different roles.

Society grows when a group of people start following the same sociological paradigm.

Society functions only when different large social structures start functioning together.

Society evolves when groups with different interests are in conflict with one another.

RATIONALE
According to the symbolic interaction approach, society is the result of all of our interactions combined. Society is constructed as a result of a series of interactions.

CONCEPT
What is Theory?
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10
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Which of the following statements is true of a literature review?

It decreases the time required for research as most of the data can be duplicated from existing sources.

It is used by researchers to identify gaps in existing research that can be filled.

It refers to the short summary of the research at the end of the article.

It is the first step that researchers perform when using the scientific method.

RATIONALE
A literature review is a survey of any existing similar or related studies on a topic of study. By reviewing the existing research, people will be able to familiarize themselves with the existing data available and find new ideas that might not have occurred to them before. Researchers may identify gaps in existing scholarly papers that their work can help fill, or they may read an interesting theory that could be applied to their work.

CONCEPT
Researching Existing Sources
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11
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Which of the following contradicts the assumptions of conflict theory?

In addition to economic inequalities, inequalities of political power and social structure cause conflict.

Many social structures have gradually progressed over time rather than changing abruptly.

Large social institutions like the government, education, and religion help maintain unequal social structures.

Society is a competition among different classes for limited resources.

RATIONALE
Conflict theory has been criticized because it tends to focus on conflict to the exclusion of recognizing stability. Many social structures are extremely stable or have gradually progressed over time rather than changing abruptly, as conflict theory would suggest.

CONCEPT
Conflict Theory
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12
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Which of the following refers to the consequences of a social process that disrupts the working of a society?

Dysfunctions

Social institutions

Manifest functions

Social facts

RATIONALE
Robert Merton pointed out that social processes often have many functions. Manifest functions are the consequences of a social process that are sought or anticipated, while latent functions are the unsought consequences of a social process. Latent functions can be beneficial, neutral, or harmful. Social processes that have undesirable consequences for the operation of society are called dysfunctions.

CONCEPT
Structural Functionalism
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13
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Which of the following is a desired characteristic of a good research topic?

The topic should be narrow and cover only a small group of people across all time.

The topic should be broad enough to cover all people within a category.

The topic should be narrow enough to study within a location and time frame.

The topic should be as broad as possible and cover multiple categories.

RATIONALE
The first step of the scientific method is to ask a question, describe a problem, and identify the specific area of interest. The topic should be narrow enough to study within a geography and time frame.

CONCEPT
Asking Questions
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14
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Which of the following is the correct sequence of steps that a researcher would adopt while using the scientific method?

Hypothesize, review others’ work, identify a problem, and interpret data.

Identify a problem, hypothesize, design a research plan, and pose new questions.

Hypothesize, identify a problem, gather raw data, and interpret your findings.

Identify a problem, design a research plan, hypothesize, and report your findings.

RATIONALE
The scientific method is a multistep procedure that involves systematically formulating questions, gathering data, and questioning hypotheses. There are eight steps in the scientific method. The sequence of steps is as follows: defining a problem, reviewing the work others conducted about the problem, hypothesizing, designing a research plan, collecting raw data, interpreting the collected data, and finally posing new questions or proposing new directions for future research.

CONCEPT
The Scientific Method
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15
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In sociology, which of the following characteristics is essential for a group of people to be considered a “society”?

A common culture and geographic location

A common educational background

A shared religion and value system

Shared relationships through blood or marriage

RATIONALE
In sociology, a society is a group of people who live in a defined geographic area, who interact with one another, and who share a common culture.