Exam 1: The Sociological Perspective and Research Process

Sociologists use the term __________ to refer to the relative location of a person or group within the larger society, based on wealth, power, prestige, or other valued resources.

To understand the process coroners use to determine whether or not a death is suicide, a sociologist works for six months in the coroner's office and spends as much time as possible observing coroners at work. This is an example of __________.

__________ perspectives are based on the assumption that society is a stable, orderly system composed of interrelated parts, each of which (ideally) contributes to the overall stability of the society.

__________ refers to the process by which societies are transformed from dependence on agriculture and handmade products to an emphasis on manufacturing and related industries.

Because of his radical views and his emphasis on social action, not just the study of society, the work of Karl Marx has been largely discredited today.

David has developed the hypothesis that the stress felt by unemployed men increases the probability of spousal abuse. Stress would be considered the __________ variable and spousal abuse would be considered the __________ variable.

A __________ is a large social grouping that shares the same geographical territory and is subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations.

When designing a study, the researcher considers the __________ to be the cause of the relationship or outcome.

How does sociology differ from common sense?

The first department of sociology in the United States was established at __________.

When studying the problem of suicide, sociologists are most interested in explaining its?__________.

A __________ is anything that meaningfully represents something else and includes signs, gestures, written language, and shared values.

In a study of the behavior of undergraduate students, a researcher moves into a university residence hall and lives there for the semester, participating in daily life of students. This is an example of __________.

A broken thermometer that measures the same temperature every day lacks both reliability and validity.

A(n) __________ is the method most commonly used to study people's behavior and beliefs.

The sociological imagination helps us place personal troubles, such as losing our job or attempting suicide, into a larger social context, where we can distinguish whether and how personal troubles may be related to public issues.

Sociologists understand that there are multiple causes and effects of social issues.

In a study of education in the United States, __________ would look at the role the schools play in maintaining the social system as a whole; how education provides the young with skills they need later in life; and how education transmits cultural values from one generation to the next.

Sociologists obtain their knowledge of human behavior through __________, which is the process of systematically collecting information for the purpose of testing an existing theory or generating a new one.

From a functionalist perspective, the wife/mother is responsible for the __________ tasks, including housework, caring for the children, and providing emotional support for the entire family.