61. The diffusion of a single culture throughout the world is termed:
a. cultural commerce.
b. cultural relativism.
c. global culture.
d. infusion.
62. The emergence of a global culture has resulted in
a. a more heterogeneous world culture.
b. a greater appreciation for the diverse folk cultures throughout the world.
c. an increase in the influence of capitalism.
d. a significant decrease in ethnocentrism throughout the world.
63. Some argue that many of the recent conflicts in the world are the result of a struggle between the values of a
consumer-based, capitalist Western culture and the
a. influence of socialist cultures.
b. values of a merchant-based Eastern culture.
c. traditional values of local communities.
d. global environmental movement.
64. The widespread dissemination of information and entertainment through widely available channels of
communication is called _____ media.
a. mass
b. cyber
c. cultured
d. elite
65. Television is so ever-present in people’s lives that today about _____ of U.S. households are “constant television
households” in which the television is on almost all the time.
a. 2 percent
b. 12 percent
c. 24 percent
d. 42 percent
66. WhichofthefollowingmediasourcesdominatesmostAmericans’leisuretime?
a. Newspaper
b. Books
c. Music
d. Television
67. What were the results of the media blackout experiment that your text author, Anderson, did with her students?
a. Students were able to live without their cell phones, but not without television.
b. Students reported feeling alienated, isolated, and detached.
c. Students noted that they could not study at all if they did not have background music.
d. Most students found the experiment much easier than they had expected.
68. The concept of cultural hegemony implies that culture is highly
a. politicized.
b. gendered.
c. racist.
d. religious.
69. The growth of media conglomerates means that fewer organizations are involved in producing and distributing
culture. Which of the following is not a consequence of this growth?
a. There may be less diversity in content of the media.
b. People may conform to the interests of the dominant groups without realizing they are doing so.
c. Cultural messages in the media become more homogeneous.
d. Over time, there inevitably will be a single corporation controlling all media sources.
70. Sociologists refer to the concentration of cultural power as cultural _____.
a. borrowing
b. relativism
c. hegemony
d. pervasiveness
71. Cultural hegemony refers to
a. the pervasive influence of just one culture.
b. the social agreement that the powerful should control the media.
c. thebeliefthatmassmedia’sinfluenceislargerthandesirable.
d. multiple cultures merging to create a new mass media.
72. Cultural hegemony is the term for
a. the commercialization of the media.
b. the excessive influence of one culture in society.
c. the resistance of localized cultures to the dominant culture.
d. phenomena such as the struggle between “McWorld vs. Jihad.”
73. Mass media influences
a. values alone.
b. styles, but not values.
c. language, but not styles.
d. values, styles, and language.
74. Beliefs, practices, and objects that are part of everyday traditions, such as music and films, mass-marketed books
and magazines, newspapers, and Internet websites are known collectively as _____ culture.
a. popular
b. high
c. elite
d. institutional
75. Content analyses of media show that there are patterns for how race, gender and social class are presented. For
example, research on the content of television reveals that
a. during prime time the majority of television characters are women.
b. Hispanics have caught up with whites and are now equally well-represented on television.
c. more women are shown in professional roles, and beauty has become much less important.
d. racial and gender stereotypes continue to dominate on television.
76. Recent research on the content of television programs has found that
a. the popular media has been influential in expanding the boundaries of what is considered female beauty in
our society.
b. the working class are now depicted as intelligent and involved members of society.
c. there has been a recent increase in the portrayal of gays and lesbians.
d. images of racism have increased despite the decline of racism within the larger society.
77. Sociological research on the impact of media images has found that
a. most people are unable to distinguish between fantasy on television and real life.
b. music videos are the only type of media that does not have a negative impact.
c. White girls in particular believe they are judged according to media standards of beauty.
d. media has little overall influence of individual lives.
78. The reflection hypothesis contends that
a. media organizations create popular values.
b. the mass media reflects the values of the general population.
c. nonmaterial culture shapes material culture.
d. the media tries to appeal to the rich and powerful.
79. Which of the following is true about prime time media?
a. Women are often the large majority of characters.
b. Women are presented as professionals late in their careers.
c. Black women are accurately depicted.
d. Men are a large majority of the characters shown.
80. The digital divide refers to:
a. inequality based on access to electronic information.
b. differences in technology.
c. differences in perception of media.
d. None of the answer choices are correct.
81. Classical theorists of sociology were primarily interested in the relationship of culture to
a. standards of beauty.
b. nonmaterial culture such as values and beliefs.
c. other social institutions.
d. the material artifacts that were produced.
82. According to Max Weber,
a. the capitalist economy is the most beneficial to a culture.
b. culture is a source of power.
c. culture influences other institutions.
d. nonmaterial and material culture are equally important.
83. The classic analysis of the Protestant work ethic and the emergence of capitalism was conducted by _____.
a. Emile Durkheim
b. Pierre Bourdieu
c. Max Weber
d. Robert Putnam
84. _____ theorists are most likely to emphasize that cultural norms and beliefs integrate people into groups and
create social bonds.
a. Functionalist
b. Conflict
c. Symbolic interactionist
d. New cultural studies
85. According to functionalists, culture
a. is unpredictable and changing.
b. creates group meanings.
c. serves the interests of powerful groups.
d. integrates people into groups.
86. Conflict theorists see contemporary culture as
a. produced within institutions that are based on inequality and capitalist principles.
b. functional for society.
c. the product of social interactions in everyday life.
d. the product of the Protestant ethic.
87. Classical sociologists placed most emphasis on _____.
a. material culture
b. nonmaterial culture
c. real culture
d. cultural constructions
88. Which type of theorist is most likely to emphasize that culture serves the interest of powerful group in society?
a. Functionalism
b. Conflict theory
c. Symbolic interaction
d. New cultural studies
89. Conflict theorists view culture in which of the following ways?
a. A form of integration
b. Controlled by economic monopolies
c. Multiple interests
d. A form of stability around other areas of conflict
90. Which of the following statements is false regarding culture from a conflict perspective?
a. Cultural conflict may be driven by intense group hatred.
b. Culture is dominated by economic interests.
c. Culture promotes solidarity within society.
d. Culture is produced within institutions that perpetuate inequality.
91. Cultural resources that are socially designated as worthy and that give advantages to groups that possess them
are called cultural _____.
a. “zeitgeist”
b. capital
c. margins
d. frames
92. What is the significance of the concept of cultural capital for sociologists?
a. It helps explain how one group may maintain its dominant social status.
b. It refers to the urban centers in which cultural change is most likely to occur.
c. The concept is central to resistance movements and counter cultures.
d. None of these; cultural capital is not a sociological concept.
93. The theoretical perspective that examines how culture creates group identity from diverse cultural meanings is
_____.
a. functionalism
b. conflict theory
c. symbolic interaction
d. new cultural studies
94. According to symbolic interactionists, culture
a. serves the interests of powerful groups.
b. creates group identity from diverse cultural meaning.
c. provides coherence and stability to society.
d. is unpredictable and constantly changing.
95. Symbolic interactionists emphasize the
a. economic basis of behavior.
b. role of culture in creating social solidarity.
c. manifest and latent functions of culture.
d. social construction of culture.
96. According to the text, the interdisciplinary field known as cultural studies builds on the insights of _____.
a. functionalism
b. conflict theory
c. symbolic interaction
d. feminist theory
97. _____ is an interdisciplinary field that builds on symbolic interactionism and is often critical of classical
sociological approaches.
a. Cultural studies
b. Conflict analysis
c. Communication studies
d. Critical sociology
98. The orientation that sees society as comprised of the images and words that people use to represent behavior
and ideas is called _____.
a. new cultural studies
b. postmodernism
c. critical sociology
d. new age theory
99. Which of the following is true of postmodernism?
a. It places a strong emphasis on the economic basis of behavior.
b. To postmodern theorists, culture is a series of images that may be interpreted in a number of ways.
c. Postmodernism places a strong emphasis on the unifying features of culture.
d. Traditions are the most important aspects of culture.