Question 1

What is one reason why cultural diffusion is a selective process?

Accepted Answer

A)  The overt form of a trait may have a different meaning for the second culture. 
B)  Cultures may only allow certain traits to be borrowed by other groups. 
C)  Technological traits diffuse easily, while ideological traits are much harder to borrow. 
D)  Diffusion is a slow process, so only a small fragment of cultural traits will be transmitted. 
A)  The overt form of a trait may have a different meaning for the second culture. 
B)  Cultures may only allow certain traits to be borrowed by other groups. 
C)  Technological traits diffuse easily, while ideological traits are much harder to borrow. 
D)  Diffusion is a slow process, so only a small fragment of cultural traits will be transmitted. A

Question 2

How do anthropologists take into account the wide range of behavioral variation seen in any culture? Explain the use of a modal response when describing a culture.

Accepted Answer

The ideal answer should include: 1. Distinction between individual behavior and culture
2. Definition of modal response or modal behavior
3. Description of the usefulness of identifying a modal response

Question 3

Which of the following statements is true regarding ethics across cultures?

Accepted Answer

A)  All cultures have ethical standards, but what they emphasize varies. 
B)  All cultures have similar ethical standards. 
C)  All cultures have identical ethical standards. 
D)  Some cultures have no ethical standards. 
A)  All cultures have ethical standards, but what they emphasize varies. 
B)  All cultures have similar ethical standards. 
C)  All cultures have identical ethical standards. 
D)  Some cultures have no ethical standards. A

Question 4

The process of cultural change known as __________ describes a situation in which a subordinate society adopts cultural traits or technologies through contact with a more powerful society, either through force or due to perceived economic or social advantages.

Accepted Answer

A)  acculturation 
B)  stimulus diffusion 
C)  unconscious invention 
D)  enculturation 
A)  acculturation 
B)  stimulus diffusion 
C)  unconscious invention 
D)  enculturation

Question 5

The ideal cultural traits of a society __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  consist of the ideas people have about how they ought to behave 
B)  consist of the cultural patterns that most people always exhibit 
C)  generally reflect the way a society was in the past 
D)  are usually followed by the most respected members of a community, but not necessarily by others 
A)  consist of the ideas people have about how they ought to behave 
B)  consist of the cultural patterns that most people always exhibit 
C)  generally reflect the way a society was in the past 
D)  are usually followed by the most respected members of a community, but not necessarily by others

Question 6

What are the ultimate sources of all cultural change?

Accepted Answer

A)  discovery and invention 
B)  diffusion and discovery 
C)  invention and modification 
D)  modification and diffusion 
A)  discovery and invention 
B)  diffusion and discovery 
C)  invention and modification 
D)  modification and diffusion

Question 7

Do you believe that cultural relativism prevents anthropologists from finding fault with another culture's practices or from trying to make social change? Why or why not?

Accepted Answer

The ideal answer should includ

Question 8

Variations in individual behavior are confined within __________ acceptable limits.

Accepted Answer

A)  socially 
B)  historically 
C)  legally 
D)  ethically 
A)  socially 
B)  historically 
C)  legally 
D)  ethically

Question 9

While there are many negative consequences to globalization, the United Nations has suggested an improvement in __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  literacy rates 
B)  the spread of disease 
C)  workers' wages 
D)  deforestation rates 
A)  literacy rates 
B)  the spread of disease 
C)  workers' wages 
D)  deforestation rates

Question 10

Explain how cultural constraints regulate cultural norms by giving specific examples of both direct and indirect cultural constraints common to your own culture.

Accepted Answer

The ideal answer should include: 1. A cl

Question 11

The most powerful transmitter of culture is probably __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  language 
B)  the elders of a society 
C)  the school system 
D)  parents 
A)  language 
B)  the elders of a society 
C)  the school system 
D)  parents

Question 12

Anthropologists, as well as other social scientists, feel that culture is __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  learned and shared 
B)  inherited 
C)  transmitted only from one group to another 
D)  only a small part of how people learn their behaviors 
A)  learned and shared 
B)  inherited 
C)  transmitted only from one group to another 
D)  only a small part of how people learn their behaviors

Question 13

Emile Durkheim stressed that culture is something __________ us exerting a strong __________ power on us.

Accepted Answer

A)  outside; coercive 
B)  outside; limiting 
C)  inside; limiting 
D)  inside; coercive 
A)  outside; coercive 
B)  outside; limiting 
C)  inside; limiting 
D)  inside; coercive

Question 14

Because a word or phrase can represent what it stands for, whether or not that thing is present, we say that language is __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  symbolic 
B)  adaptive 
C)  interpretive 
D)  naturalistic 
A)  symbolic 
B)  adaptive 
C)  interpretive 
D)  naturalistic

Question 15

Which important tenet of anthropology was first championed by Franz Boas to challenge the attitude that Western culture was inherently superior to others?

Accepted Answer

A)  cultural relativism 
B)  participant-observation 
C)  ethnocentrism 
D)  evolutionism 
A)  cultural relativism 
B)  participant-observation 
C)  ethnocentrism 
D)  evolutionism

Question 16

An adaptive custom is one that __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  enhances survival and reproduction 
B)  changes with other cultural fluctuations 
C)  persists over several generations 
D)  was learned from other cultures 
A)  enhances survival and reproduction 
B)  changes with other cultural fluctuations 
C)  persists over several generations 
D)  was learned from other cultures

Question 17

When a member of a group diverges from acceptable standards, or norms, of social behavior, he/she may be ridiculed, arrested, or otherwise pressured into conformity through what Emile Durkheim referred to as __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  cultural constraints 
B)  cultural relativism 
C)  cultural penalties 
D)  ethnocentrism 
A)  cultural constraints 
B)  cultural relativism 
C)  cultural penalties 
D)  ethnocentrism

Question 18

The !Kung hunter-gatherers of the Kalahari Desert in Africa live in small, nomadic groups and own few material possessions. Anthropologists refer to these cultural traits as __________ that help them survive in their social and physical environment.

Accepted Answer

A)  adaptive customs 
B)  maladaptive customs 
C)  assimilations 
D)  backward traits 
A)  adaptive customs 
B)  maladaptive customs 
C)  assimilations 
D)  backward traits

Question 19

Some scholars argue that cultural relativists are acting hypocritically by __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  claiming that tolerance is a universal principle 
B)  pushing democracy on other nations 
C)  prioritizing non-Western belief systems over Western ones 
D)  assuming that all cultures have similar ethical systems 
A)  claiming that tolerance is a universal principle 
B)  pushing democracy on other nations 
C)  prioritizing non-Western belief systems over Western ones 
D)  assuming that all cultures have similar ethical systems

Question 20

Why might a superior innovation not be adopted?

Accepted Answer

A)  The costs of adopting the new innovation might exceed the benefits. 
B)  People may not be intelligent enough to master the new technology. 
C)  The habits of the old system are more important than finding something that works better. 
D)  New innovations are generally viewed suspiciously for a while. 
A)  The costs of adopting the new innovation might exceed the benefits. 
B)  People may not be intelligent enough to master the new technology. 
C)  The habits of the old system are more important than finding something that works better. 
D)  New innovations are generally viewed suspiciously for a while.

What is one reason why cultural diffusion is a selective process?

How do anthropologists take into account the wide range of behavioral variation seen in any culture? Explain the use of a modal response when describing a culture.

Which of the following statements is true regarding ethics across cultures?

The process of cultural change known as __________ describes a situation in which a subordinate society adopts cultural traits or technologies through contact with a more powerful society, either through force or due to perceived economic or social advantages.

The ideal cultural traits of a society __________.

What are the ultimate sources of all cultural change?

Do you believe that cultural relativism prevents anthropologists from finding fault with another culture's practices or from trying to make social change? Why or why not?

Variations in individual behavior are confined within __________ acceptable limits.

While there are many negative consequences to globalization, the United Nations has suggested an improvement in __________.

Explain how cultural constraints regulate cultural norms by giving specific examples of both direct and indirect cultural constraints common to your own culture.

The most powerful transmitter of culture is probably __________.

Anthropologists, as well as other social scientists, feel that culture is __________.

Emile Durkheim stressed that culture is something us exerting a strong power on us.

Because a word or phrase can represent what it stands for, whether or not that thing is present, we say that language is __________.

Which important tenet of anthropology was first championed by Franz Boas to challenge the attitude that Western culture was inherently superior to others?

An adaptive custom is one that __________.

When a member of a group diverges from acceptable standards, or norms, of social behavior, he/she may be ridiculed, arrested, or otherwise pressured into conformity through what Emile Durkheim referred to as __________.

The !Kung hunter-gatherers of the Kalahari Desert in Africa live in small, nomadic groups and own few material possessions. Anthropologists refer to these cultural traits as __________ that help them survive in their social and physical environment.

Some scholars argue that cultural relativists are acting hypocritically by __________.

Why might a superior innovation not be adopted?

What Is Anthropology

Culture and the Individual

Understanding and Explaining Culture

Communication and Language

Getting Food

Economic Systems

Social Stratification: Class, Ethnicity, and Racism

Sex and Gender

Marriage and the Family

Marital Residence and Kinship

Associations and Interest Groups

Political Life: Social Order and Disorder

Religion and Magic

The Arts

Practicing and Applying Anthropology

Health and Illness

Global Problems

Filters

Exam 2: Culture and Culture Change

What is one reason why cultural diffusion is a selective process?

How do anthropologists take into account the wide range of behavioral variation seen in any culture? Explain the use of a modal response when describing a culture.

Which of the following statements is true regarding ethics across cultures?

The process of cultural change known as __________ describes a situation in which a subordinate society adopts cultural traits or technologies through contact with a more powerful society, either through force or due to perceived economic or social advantages.

The ideal cultural traits of a society __________.

What are the ultimate sources of all cultural change?

Do you believe that cultural relativism prevents anthropologists from finding fault with another culture's practices or from trying to make social change? Why or why not?

Variations in individual behavior are confined within __________ acceptable limits.

While there are many negative consequences to globalization, the United Nations has suggested an improvement in __________.

Explain how cultural constraints regulate cultural norms by giving specific examples of both direct and indirect cultural constraints common to your own culture.

The most powerful transmitter of culture is probably __________.

Anthropologists, as well as other social scientists, feel that culture is __________.

Emile Durkheim stressed that culture is something __________ us exerting a strong __________ power on us.

Because a word or phrase can represent what it stands for, whether or not that thing is present, we say that language is __________.

Which important tenet of anthropology was first championed by Franz Boas to challenge the attitude that Western culture was inherently superior to others?

An adaptive custom is one that __________.

When a member of a group diverges from acceptable standards, or norms, of social behavior, he/she may be ridiculed, arrested, or otherwise pressured into conformity through what Emile Durkheim referred to as __________.

The !Kung hunter-gatherers of the Kalahari Desert in Africa live in small, nomadic groups and own few material possessions. Anthropologists refer to these cultural traits as __________ that help them survive in their social and physical environment.

Some scholars argue that cultural relativists are acting hypocritically by __________.

Why might a superior innovation not be adopted?

What Is Anthropology

Culture and the Individual

Understanding and Explaining Culture

Communication and Language

Getting Food

Economic Systems

Social Stratification: Class, Ethnicity, and Racism

Sex and Gender

Marriage and the Family

Marital Residence and Kinship

Associations and Interest Groups

Political Life: Social Order and Disorder

Religion and Magic

The Arts

Practicing and Applying Anthropology

Health and Illness

Global Problems

Filters

Emile Durkheim stressed that culture is something us exerting a strong power on us.