question

Which statement about the definition of deviance is TRUE?

answer

Sociologists cannot agree on a precise definition of deviance.

question

To say that deviance is determined behavior implies that humans

answer

cannot choose between good and bad.

question

All of the following are part of the positivist perspective on deviance, EXCEPT that deviance is

answer

a label.

question

Among sociologists, there is

answer

a lack of consensus about what behavior should be seen as deviant.

question

According to the labeling theory, deviance is

answer

a label imposed by others upon a given behavior.

question

According to the constructionist perspective, sociologists need to

answer

develop an internal, subjective view of people.

question

Which of the following kinds of deviance is best understood through a positivist perspective?

answer

higher-consensus deviance

question

To say that deviance is a subjective experience means that the deviant person is

answer

a conscious, feeling, thinking subject.

question

Deviant behavior is any behavior that

answer

is considered deviant by public consensus, which may range from maximum to minimum.

question

According to the constructionist perspective, deviant behavior is

answer

an expression of human volition.

question

Sociologists who study the role of power in the definition of deviance have discovered that the rich and powerful

answer

can avoid the label of deviance.

question

According to sociologists who study the role of power in the definition of deviance, deviance is any act that

answer

the powerful consider to be a violation of some social rule.

question

The fact that the same behavior can be seen as normal by some and as deviant by others is called the

answer

relativist view.

question

Determinist, objectivist, and absolutist are other terms for aspects of the __________ perspective on deviance.

answer

positivist

question

Which of the following aspects of deviance would be of special interest to constructionist sociologists?

answer

how deviants seek positive meanings in deviant activity

question

Attributing deviant behavior to choice is a form of pseudo explanation because the concept of choice

answer

does not explain why someone chooses either deviance or normal behavior.

question

The positivist perspective assumes that deviance is

answer

determined behavior.

question

The main purpose of the positivist approach to deviance is

answer

seeking out the causes of deviant behavior.

question

The author argues that an integrated definition of deviant behavior must focus on

answer

both deviant behavior and the deviant label.

question

All of the following are definitions of deviance proposed by different sociologists, EXCEPT that deviance is

answer

always immoral behavior.

question

Today's positivist sociologists now recognize the importance of __________ for understanding deviant behavior.

answer

social factors

question

Which of the following types of people are examples of positive deviants?

answer

the saint, the intellectual, and the genius

question

All of the following are assumptions of the constructionist perspective on deviance, EXCEPT that deviance should be seen as

answer

an objective fact.

question

Which of the following conditions separates the positivist and constructionist perspectives on deviance?

answer

the amount of public consensus about what type of behavior is deviant.

question

Early criminologists believed deviance was intrinsically real because they believed criminals possessed

answer

certain biological traits absent in non-criminals.

question

Which of the following is one reason why, for U.S. citizens, deviant behavior is more or less, rather than completely, deviant?

answer

U.S. society is pluralistic.

question

Definitions of deviance fall into two opposing perspectives, the positivist and the

answer

constructionist.

question

Deviance as an "observable object" means that deviance

answer

can be studied in a factual way.

question

From the constructionist perspective, deviants are

answer

actively seeking meaning in the deviant activities.

question

Which of the following statements about the definition of deviance is TRUE?

answer

There is usually a great deal of disagreement among people as to what they consider deviant.

question

Most positivist sociologists today continue to reject the idea of free will as an explanation of deviance because free will cannot explain why one person

answer

commits deviant acts while others do not.

question

If you believe that deviant behavior has characteristics that distinguish it from conforming behavior, you believe deviance is

answer

intrinsically real.

question

Early in the twentieth century, criminologists believed that

answer

criminals are born, not made.

question

Which ONE of the following questions reflects the constructionist and labeling perspective on deviance?

answer

Why is a given act defined by society as deviant?

question

Millions of people at one time or another have smoked marijuana. If sociologists asked a sample of U.S. citizens about this behavior, they would most likely discover that

answer

many people disagreed about the deviant status of marijuana.

question

One problem positivist sociological researchers face that natural scientists do not is

answer

sociologists have difficulties with personal biases and making moral judgments about research subjects.

question

The __________ perspective is more pertinent for studying less serious kinds of deviance.

answer

constructionist

question

Labeling theory interprets deviance as a(n)

answer

process of symbolic interactionism.

question

Which of the following are ways feminist theory shifts the focus of theories of deviance?

answer

a focus on women as offenders and victims related to their subordinate roles

question

This theoretical perspective attributes deviance to the unequal distribution of resources brought about by the exploitative capitalist system.

answer

Marxist theory

question

One reason why labeling theory has enjoyed tremendous popularity among sociologists is because this theory

answer

has considerable data to support some of its basic ideas.

question

Harold Garfinkel studied Agnes, who was a person seeking a sex change operation, and discovered that she considered herself

answer

a normal woman with a physical defect (a penis).

question

All of the following are the results of capitalism's creation of economic marginality and coercive control of the workers, EXCEPT for

answer

a greater reliance on the family.

question

Which of the following is NOT a statement about the nature of postmodernist theory?

answer

It is relatively disinterested in the most modern forms of deviant behavior.

question

Feminist theorists argue that most theories of deviance

answer

are only about men.

question

Chambliss called the observing of how legal authorities actually discharge their duties the study of

answer

the law in action.

question

Chambliss stated that the tendency of the police, prosecutors, and judges to become tools of power and privilege is caused by the __________, or the need of organizations to compel their members to maximum rewards.

answer

organizational imperative

question

The sociologist Jack Katz studied a variety of murderers and armed robbers and discovered that they

answer

felt morally superior to their victims.

question

At the heart of the conflict between phenomenologists and positivists is

answer

different philosophical views of humanity.

question

According to the power theory, the types of deviance and the types of persons who commit deviant acts are strongly influenced by

answer

social inequality.

question

According to phenomenologists, what deviance means is

answer

fundamentally problematic.

question

Ethnography is defined as the style of research that seeks to understand

answer

the meanings the people under investigation ascribe to their experiences.

question

What Marxists call "marginal surplus population" refers to

answer

those who are relatively superfluous or useless to the economy.

question

Quinney and other conflict theorists see something terribly wrong with existing society and have called for

answer

political action.

question

To analyze how their subjects feel and think about deviance, phenomenologists use the method of

answer

ethnography.

question

All of the following are criticisms of phenomenological theory EXCEPT that phenomenologists

answer

incorrectly assume that powerless deviants are powerless people who have little free will.

question

According to labeling theory, being labeled deviant produces

answer

negative consequences.

question

The conflict approach contributes to our understanding of deviant behavior by showing how

answer

social inequality influences the making and enforcing of norms and laws.

question

Which of the following theories examines the subjectivity of people, including their attitudes, feelings, and opinions about deviance?

answer

phenomenological theory

question

Chambliss's analysis of the English legal system showed that the vagrancy laws

answer

served the interests of the influential members of society.

question

According to this theoretical perspective, power, or the lack of it, determines the type of deviance one is likely to commit.

answer

power theory

question

According to Erikson and others, labeling other persons as deviant has

answer

positive consequences for the community or individuals who apply the label.

question

According to labeling theory, the focus of sociological research should be on

answer

the interaction between the supposed deviant and conventional people.

question

According to Jack Douglas, there are two types of meanings: abstract meanings and __________ meanings.

answer

situated

question

When the language of the strong dominates the language of the weak, the weak experience

answer

linguistic domination.

question

According to Richard Quinney, there are different ways for the dominant class to define the social reality of crime. Which of the following is NOT one of them?

answer

It engages in behavior that is defined as criminal.

question

The incompatible interests, needs, and desires of diverse groups of people in society can lead to

answer

social conflict.

question

All of the following are reasons the powerful are more prone to deviance EXCEPT for

answer

greater deviant tendencies.

question

According to labeling theory, the final step leading to secondary deviation involves

answer

acceptance of and adjustment to deviant social status by the deviant.

question

According to the Marxist explanation of deviance, the cause of deviance can be traced to

answer

the exploitative nature of capitalism.

question

______________ study the underlying causes of deviance through social and environmental factors.

answer

Positivists

question

According to Albert Cohen, when lower-class boys experience status frustration, they set up their own competitive system in the form of

answer

delinquent subcultures.

question

The essence of several types of anomie-strain theory is that the experience of

answer

socially induced strain pressures individuals to commit deviant acts.

question

According to critics, reintegrative shaming can work only with

answer

first-time offenders.

question

Joe, a steel worker in Cleveland, Ohio, has no aspirations of being rich and successful. Nevertheless, he works hard and takes pride in his job. According to Merton's theory, this is an example of

answer

ritualism.

question

Albert Cohen's theory is similar to Merton's approach, but Cohen replaced the word "success" with the word "__________."

answer

status

question

According to the deterrence doctrine, all of the following would help reduce the rate of crime, EXCEPT for making punishment

answer

more general.

question

Most control theorists seem to

answer

accept the Freudian assumption that our inborn animal impulses, if unchecked, will turn into deviant behavior.

question

According to control theories of deviance, the central question is

answer

what causes conformity.

question

Recent developments in anomie-strain theory have located new sources of strain that might push individuals toward deviance. Which of the following is NOT one of those newly identified strains?

answer

the discrepancy between success aspirations and the opportunities for realizing those aspirations

question

The deterrence doctrine assumes that human beings, when anticipating deviant behavior, are

answer

basically rational.

question

According to Robert Merton's goal-means gap theory, the psychoanalytic approach to deviant behavior is wrong because that theory incorrectly assumes

answer

society discourages the individual from engaging in deviant behavior.

question

If a society makes a deviant feel guilty while showing understanding and forgiveness, it practices __________ shaming.

answer

reintegrative

question

Which of the following concepts constitutes the core of Sutherland's differential association theory?

answer

an excess of criminal over anticriminal contacts

question

According to Glaser, before a person pursues criminal behavior, he or she must first __________ real or imaginary persons whose criminal behavior seems acceptable.

answer

identify with

question

Many sociologists have criticized Merton's version of anomie-strain theory for assuming that lower-class people

answer

have the same level of success aspirations as other social classes.

question

All of Jane's friends have jewelry and new clothes, but she had no money to buy them. She therefore resorted to shoplifting to get what she wanted. According to Merton's theory, her behavior is an example of

answer

innovation.

question

According to Merton, the only cultural value of importance in American society is

answer

material success.

question

One positive contribution of anomie-strain theory is that

answer

society, not the individual, causes much deviance.

question

According to Cloward and Ohlin, lower-class boys experience different opportunities in the form of three subcultures, which are

answer

criminal, conflict, and retreatist.

question

Which of the following statements is an accurate criticism of Burgess-Akers's social learning theory?

answer

It cannot explain why a person initially commits a deviant act.

question

Burgess and Akers argued that before one becomes criminal, a process of __________ must occur where he or she is rewarded for continuing deviant behavior.

answer

differential reinforcement

question

According to Merton's anomie-strain theory, which of the following statements is true?

answer

The legitimate means of achieving high success goals are not freely available to all classes of people.

question

According to Merton, when persons hold high success aspirations and are not given the opportunity to realize them, they might

answer

resort to illegitimate means of achieving their aspirations.

question

Burgess and Akers find Sutherland's differential association theory inadequate because Sutherland

answer

did not specify what is involved in the process of learning to become a criminal.

question

According to Hirschi's theory of social control, if elements of bonding to society are weak, the individual might

answer

slide into deviance.

question

Which of the following is NOT a primarily positivist theory of deviance?

answer

phenomenological theory

question

Sociologists criticizing control theory point out that control can become a possible cause of deviance. They therefore conclude that most versions of this theory are too

answer

simplistic.

question

According to Hirschi, which of the following is NOT a way for individuals to bond themselves to society?

answer

an experience of a gap between goals and means

question

According to Cohen's theory, status frustration is most likely to occur among

answer

lower-class boys.

question

The theories of positivist sociologists attempt to explain the __________ of deviance.

answer

causes

question

Hank is a sociologist investigating the causes of crime. He is interested in how some areas of the city have traditions of crime that persist over generations, and how individuals easily move into groups following those traditions. What theory of deviance is guiding Hank's research?

answer

differential association theory

question

Which of the following is NOT a kind of social control that can prevent deviance?

answer

differential association

question

Daniel Glaser felt that Sutherland's theory was too __________ and proposed that a process of identification with criminals also had to take place.

answer

mechanistic

question

According to Sutherland's differential association theory, a person becomes deviant or delinquent when there is a(n)

answer

excess of deviant contacts favorable to violation of the law.

question

Cloward and Ohlin attempt to extend Merton's central idea that the lower classes are denied legitimate opportunity by introducing the concept of

answer

differential illegitimate opportunity.

question

Cloward and Ohlin used the concept of differential illegitimate opportunity to mean that some members of the lower class have

answer

fewer opportunities to pursue illegitimate opportunities.

question

According to Henry and Short's theory, all of the following are factors that promote suicide, EXCEPT for the

answer

cultural.

question

Cutters fall into the "loner" category of deviance.

answer

False

question

In the last two decades, the gender difference in suicide attempts has

answer

narrowed significantly.

question

Sociological theories, as opposed to psychological ones, assume that the causes of suicide reside within rather that outside of the individual.

answer

False

question

Societies whose cultures are communal in nature tend to have higher rates of suicides, compared to societies that are more individualistic.

answer

False

question

Which of the following statements is FALSE?

answer

Women have a higher suicide rate than men.

question

Compared with suicide threateners, suicide attempters are more ambiguous in expressing their suicidal feelings.

answer

True

question

Almost all Americans argue that suicide is wrong, immoral behavior.

answer

False

question

College students in the United States have higher suicide rates than their non-college peers because they

answer

are single and experience much stress.

question

Psychological theories of suicide assume that suicide comes from

answer

a defect in the person.

question

Jacobs assumes that suicide is no longer defined by our society as "a violation of the sacred, God-given trust of life."

answer

False

question

According to the Durkheimian model, people with too much individualism commit altruistic suicide.

answer

False

question

Suicide is a relatively rare form of deviant behavior, but it is more common than homicide.

answer

True

question

One of the reasons why recently diagnosed, less-sick, HIV-infected patients are more suicidal than those dying of AIDS-related illnesses is

answer

the sudden transformation from being a totally healthy person to a seriously ill person.

question

The type of suicide that slaves are more likely than free people to commit is called __________ suicide.

answer

fatalistic

question

In Western societies today, higher suicide rates are due in part to

answer

increasingly permissive attitudes toward suicide.

question

Generally, whites commit suicide

answer

twice as often as blacks

question

Well-publicized suicides actually lead to a temporary reduction in suicide rates.

answer

False

question

A strong religious identity and degree of religious conservatism is associated with a(n) _______ suicide rate.

answer

lower

question

The Internet has helped to de-stigmatize cutting.

answer

True

question

If a person wanted to attempt suicide, but was not sure he or she wanted to die, which of the following methods would be the least favored?

answer

hanging or shooting

question

Over the last 20 years, teenage suicides have

answer

increased dramatically.

question

Even though few persons have requested assisted suicide in Oregon, that state's assisted suicide law has been gaining support throughout the U.S. because of growing recognition of the patient's

answer

wishes to die for all of the above reasons.

question

Which of the following statements about the relationship between economic conditions and suicide is TRUE?

answer

Suicide rates are higher in affluent societies than in poor ones.

question

Those who threaten suicide

answer

would rather live than die.

question

The Patient's Self-Determination Act passed by Congress requires hospitals to

answer

inform patients of rights to control their treatment through living wills.

question

Compared with suicide threateners, suicide attempters are more detailed in expressing their suicidal thoughts and feelings.

answer

False

question

The main impact of the Oregon assisted suicide law has been to create more support for assisted suicide throughout the U.S.

answer

True

question

According to Jerry Jacobs's theory of the suicidal process, suicide victims overcome prohibitions against suicide through a series of events. What is the first stage of this process?

answer

finding themselves faced with unexpected and unsolvable problems

question

Suicide is basically a mental disorder, and sociology has little to say about it.

answer

False

question

One kind of reason suicide committers give for their action is a surrealistic view of reality.

answer

True

question

The suicide bombers who attacked the U.S. on 9/11/2001 came from poor families and were paid to commit suicide.

answer

False

question

Suicide rates depend significantly on

answer

how society responds to suicide.

question

In his study on suicide, Emile Durkheim showed that

answer

All of the above

question

Which of the following groups of people has the LOWEST suicide rates?

answer

married women with children

question

Henry and Short's theory of suicide contains the concept of external restraint, which is similar to Durkheim's idea of "social regulation."

answer

True

question

Durkheim argued that the extent of group integration and regulation influences suicide rates.

answer

True

question

If a person kills him- or herself after murdering another, it is called __________ suicide.

answer

atonement

question

In practically all countries, men are more prone to suicide than women.

answer

True

question

Suicide prevention centers cannot substantially reduce suicide rates because

answer

suicide is basically a sociological problem.

question

Some countries with developing economies like China have high suicide rates because they

answer

experience rapid social change.

question

All cutters attempt suicide.

answer

False

question

Research has documented that the greater the air time given to country music, the higher the suicide rate. Which of the following is a possible reason?

answer

the themes of country music, many of which are suicide-related

question

Which of the following is a way suicide attempters differ from suicide committers?

answer

They are more likely to be young.

question

In the past, most researchers attributed the link between urbanization and suicide to

answer

conflicting social norms.

question

Which of the following statements about the suicide bombers who attacked the U.S. on 9/11/2001 is TRUE?

answer

They came from relatively well-off, middle-class families.

question

One kind of reason suicide committers give for their action is a surrealistic view of reality.

answer

True

question

All of the following are conditions under which doctors in the Netherlands can carry out euthanasia, EXCEPT that

answer

it must be approved by a panel of government officials.

question

According to liberals, pornography does serve a practical purpose in society.

answer

True

question

According to the text's author, men participate in adultery more than women because of

answer

a widespread belief that men should prove their masculinity.

question

Teenage girls with high self-esteem generally

answer

abstain from sex.

question

If you believe that pornography is dangerous to communal values such as marriage and the family, you agree with the __________ view of pornography.

answer

conservative

question

Teenage sex is not tabooed in the United States.

answer

False

question

The definition of adultery is relative across cultures.

answer

True

question

According to the text, approximately ________ of American men do not participate in extramarital sex.

answer

75 percent

question

The following are more likely to engage in extramarital sex, EXCEPT for

answer

those who have not experienced premarital sex.

question

According to the author of the text, sexual harassment

answer

reflects men's attempt to preserve their traditional dominance over women.

question

Unlike other prostitutes, call girls

answer

seem to adhere to a professional code of ethics.

question

For most women today, affairs are mainly for sex and have little relationship to love or a lasting relationship.

answer

False

question

The highest status prostitute is the

answer

call girl.

question

All of the following are aspects of the feminist theory of prostitution, EXCEPT that

answer

prostitution should become a legitimate women's profession.

question

The pimp is a man who

answer

The pimp is a man who

question

According to the conservative view, pornography is merely erotic and harmless material that should not be controlled by the government.

answer

False

question

Call girls are generally more discreet in their operations, compared to streetwalkers.

answer

True

question

To support their professional ideology, a number of prostitutes claim that their work does all of the following, EXCEPT for

answer

introducing women to a highly skilled profession.

question

Among the Kofyar of Nigeria, a woman who is unhappy with her husband but does not want to divorce may take an extra lover who lives openly with her in her husband's house. This is an example of

answer

legitimate adultery.

question

The popular belief that a woman can earn a lot of money as a prostitute is one of the __________ factors that cause women to become prostitute.

answer

attracting

question

It is relatively rare for prostitutes in the United States and other Western countries to contract the AIDS virus from their sex work.

answer

True

question

Which of the following statements reflects a conservative position on sex education?

answer

Schools should teach only abstinence from sex.

question

A call girl is especially skilled at making her commercial transactions appear non-commercial.

answer

True

question

The madam is one who

answer

solicits customers for a prostitute in return for a share of the proceeds.

question

In some cultures, adultery may take both legitimate and illegitimate forms.

answer

True

question

Which of the following is the most common reason why women enter prostitution?

answer

economic problems like unemployment and the need to support a family

question

Which of the following is an example of a compulsive john?

answer

a man who cannot keep away from prostitutes, from whom he wants sex only

question

The majority of the prostitute's customers are what Greenwald calls "occasional johns."

answer

True

question

According to Davis's functional theory, prostitution exists to protect the moral order.

answer

True

question

Pimps generally take 50 percent of a prostitute's earnings.

answer

False

question

In the eyes of U.S. society,

answer

teenage sex is seen as deviant.

question

__________ is the exchange of sex for money.

answer

Prostitution

question

If a caller to a phone sex operator sounds attractive and is able to arouse the operator's personal or sexual interest, he is a ______ type of caller.

answer

likable

question

Which of the following statements about adultery in other cultures is TRUE?

answer

In some cultures, certain adulteries are legitimate.

question

Phone sex and nude dancing are similar in that both are selling sexual fantasies.

answer

True

question

Teenage boys with high self-esteem generally

answer

have sex.

question

What do phone sex and nude dancing have in common?

answer

The same women are involved in both businesses.

question

Which of the following statements does NOT belong to the constructionist perspective on deviant behavior

answer

Deviance is an observable, objective set of behaviors.

question

Cloward and Ohlin used the concept of differential illegitimate opportunity to mean that some members of the lower class have what?

answer

fewer opportunities to pursue illegitimate opportunities

question

Merton's version of anomie-strain theory is based on which of the following premises?

answer

society encourages the individual to engage in deviance

question

In 1965, J. L. Simmons asked a sample of the general public who they thought were deviant. Which of the following did significant numbers of people feel were deviant?

answer

all of the above have been considered deviant at some point

question

Chambliss's analysis of the English legal system showed that the vagrancy laws

answer

served the interests of the influential members of society

chapter 1, Chapter 3, Chapter 2, chapter 7, Chapter 9 – Flashcards

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