Question 1

A reciprocal situation in which neither the time nor the value of return is specified is identified by anthropologists as a form of

Accepted Answer

A)   generalized reciprocity.
B)   balanced reciprocity.
C)   negative reciprocity.
D)   redistribution. A

Question 2

According to Hann and Hart, neoclassical economic theory

Accepted Answer

A)   replaced the classical view of economic value as an objective property of produced commodities.
B)   rejected the subjective calculations of individuals seeking to maximize their own utility.
C)   was developed by Adam Smith.
D)   focused on the economic views of Marcel Mauss. D

Question 3

Define the concept of mode of production, and describe and discuss the three major modes of production outlined by Eric Wolf.

Accepted Answer

Wolf's three modes of production have been particularly important in human history: (1) a kin-ordered mode (Figure 11.5(in the text ), in which social labor is deployed on the basis of kinship relations (e.g., husbands/fathers clear the fields, the whole family plants, mothers/wives weed, children keep animals out of the field); (2) a tributary mode, "in which the primary producer, whether cultivator or herdsman, is allowed access to the means of production while tribute [a payment of goods or labor] is exacted from him by political or military means" (Wolf 1982, 79); and (3) the capitalist mode, which has three main features: the means of production are private property owned by members of the capitalist class, workers must sell their labor power to the capitalists to survive, and surpluses of wealth are produced that capitalists may retain as profit or reinvest in production, to increase output and generate further surpluses and higher profits.

Question 4

Describe and discuss the elements in Marshall Sahlins's argument about "the original affluent society." How do these elements compare and contrast with your own society? What does this mean for production, distribution, and consumption in the contemporary world?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Describe and discuss the elements in Marshall...

Question 5

According to Wilk and Cliggett, the development of neoclassical economic theory was a key turning point in the history of economics because it

Accepted Answer

A)   produced a unified position about human nature that resolved disputes that used to divide those who analyzed economic systems.
B)   realized Adam Smith's original views which had previously been suppressed.
C)   gave rise to the divergent theoretical positions on human nature about which economic anthropologists continue to disagree.
D)   finally paid attention to the economic views of Marcel Mauss.

Question 6

The tools, skills, organization, and knowledge used to extract energy from nature are the

Accepted Answer

A)   means of production
B)   mode of production
C)   relation of production
D)   subsistence strategy

Question 7

Anthropologist I. M. Lewis compared the social organization of the northern Somalis and the Boran Galla, who live next to each other in semiarid scrubland and herd the same animals. His comparison showed that

Accepted Answer

A)   environment determines social structure.
B)   the Somali and Boran are quite different in social structure.
C)   the Somali and the Boran speak the same language and are intermarried.
D)   the Somali and the Boran work for each other in turn.

Question 8

Describe the different modes of exchange operating in the society of the United States. What are their interrelationships with one another? Provide examples for each mode of exchange. How do they interact with each other?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Describe the different modes of exchange operating...

Question 9

According to Wilk and Cliggett, which model of human nature originated during the Enlightenment and is based on the assumption that individuals are first and foremost interested in their own well-being?

Accepted Answer

A)   The self-interested model
B)   The social model
C)   The moral model
D)   The religious model

Question 10

The distributive process known as exchange is central to the functioning of capitalist free enterprise.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 11

The three major phases of economic activity are production, distribution, and consumption.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 12

The activity linking human social groups to the material world around them is referred to as

Accepted Answer

A)   labor.
B)   production.
C)   distribution.
D)   exchange.

Question 13

Ranked groups within a hierarchically stratified society whose membership is defined primarily in terms of wealth, occupation, or other economic criteria are called

Accepted Answer

A)   classes.
B)   modes of production.
C)   kin.
D)   statuses.

Question 14

The patterning of human interdependence in a given society through the actions and decisions of its members is called

Accepted Answer

A)   social hierarchy.
B)   social equality.
C)   social organization.
D)   social stratification.

Question 15

According to Wilk and Cliggett, which model of human nature is based on the assumption that people's motivations are shaped by culturally specific belief systems and values guided by a culturally patterned view of the universe and the human place within it?

Accepted Answer

A)   The self-interested model
B)   The social model
C)   The moral model
D)   The religious model

Question 16

Analyze what is meant by the claim that consumption needs are culturally shaped. Illustrate your analysis with examples.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Analyze what is meant by the claim...

Question 17

An economic system dominated by the supply-demand-price mechanism called the "market" is

Accepted Answer

A)   capitalism.
B)   communism.
C)   market exchange.
D)   redistribution.

Question 18

In the early twentieth century, food production in Tuscany corresponded to which of the following?

Accepted Answer

A)   An egalitarian model
B)   No division of labor between men and women
C)   A model based on large landholdings worked by peasant laborers
D)   Coca-Cola

Question 19

The economic theory which represented a formal attempt to explain the workings of capitalist enterprise and paid particular attention to distribution is

Accepted Answer

A)   distribution theory.
B)   neoclassical economic theory.
C)   Marxist economic theory.
D)   commodity exchange.

Question 20

Discuss the consumption of Western market commodities throughout the world in our current era of globalization. In your answer, pay attention to how commodities are used, as well as to the effects of contemporary economic institutions on most of the world's population.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Discuss the consumption of Western market commodities...

Exam 11: Why Do Anthropologists Study Economic Relations