Full Test Bank Structural Functionalism Chapter 9

Test Bank

Chapter 9: Structural Functionalism

Multiple Choice

1. A hypothetical actor in a hypothetical situation restricted by conditions is a ______.

a. unit act

b. role-set

c. function

d. social system

2. Parsons saw social action as composed of which four basic elements?

a. gender, class, race, effort

b. class, agency, situations, effort

c. goals, agency, norms, class

d. goals, situations, norms, effort

3. A ______ is a complex arrangement of interconnected social roles.

a. unit act

b. personality system

c. role-set

d. social system

4. Expectations for behavior that accompany a particular status are referred to as a ______.

a. role-set

b. system

c. unit act

d. personality

5. Parsons defines the personality system as a system of action organized by ______.

a. role-sets

b. cultural systems

c. unit acts

d. needs-dispositions

6. Values, norms, and symbols constitute central characteristics of what concept?

a. social system

b. needs-dispositions

c. cultural system

d. manifest and latent functions

7. Which of the following is the process by which we learn our roles in society?

a. socialization

b. internalization

c. culturalization

d. institutionalization

8. Which of the following refers to priorities in social systems and values in cultural systems?

a. role-set

b. universalism

c. pattern variables

d. Gesellschaft

9. Which of the following is most likely to be encountered in a traditional community?

a. affective neutrality

b. universalism

c. specificity

d. particularism

10. Two of the requirements that all action systems must confront are ______ and ______.

a. adaptation and integration

b. integration and achievement

c. adaptation and individualism

d. achievement and individualism

11. Overall, where does Parsons fall in the metatheoretical framework?

a. nonrational/collective

b. nonrational/individual

c. rational/collective

d. rational/individual

12. Which of the following must be present for a behavior to be considered an action?

a. attainment of a goal and normative regulation

b. normative regulation and interactions

c. needs dispositions and motivation

d. interactions and value systems

13. Which pattern variable refers to the presence or absence of evaluation and gratification?

a. self-orientation – collective-orientation

b. specificity – diffuseness

c. universalism – particularism

d. affectivity – affective neutrality

14. Manifest functions refer to ______, while latent functions refer to _______.

a. intended purpose of an action; unintended consequences of that action

b. unintended consequences of an action; intended purpose of that action

c. the positive effects of an action; the negative effects of that action

d. the negative effects of an action; the positive effects of that action

15. ______ refers to those actions that stray from the accepted norms and values in a society.

a. Dysfunction

b. Latent function

c. Deviance

d. Manifest function

16. Which of the following produces dysfunction?

a. A mismatch between socialization and internalization

b. When people develop new goals for society

c. A disconnect between cultural and social realms

d. When parts of a system are at odds with each other

17. Merton’s concepts of social status and role expectations fall within which basic theoretical orientation?

a. nonrational and collective

b. nonrational and individual

c. rational and collective

d. rational and individual

18. Merton critiqued contemporary sociologists for focusing too much on ______.

a. latent functions

b. manifest functions

c. deviance

d. dysfunction

19. Which type of adaptation most directly ensures continuity and stability of society?

a. conformity

b. innovation

c. ritualism

d. retreatism

20. Someone who is selling illegal drugs as a means of obtaining wealth and success is using which mode of adaptation?

a. conformity

b. innovation

c. ritualism

d. retreatism

21. When someone follows the norms of society but has lowered their expectations for success, they are using which mode of adaptation?

a. conformity

b. innovation

c. ritualism

d. retreatism

22. According to Merton, the most common adaptation is ______ and the least common adaptation is ______.

a. conformity; retreatism

b. ritualism; innovation

c. innovation; conformity

d. retreatism; ritualism

23. Someone who fails to meet society’s goals and has tried unsuccessfully to innovate may turn to which adaptation?

a. conformity

b. ritualism

c. retreatism

d. rebellion

24. How is rebellion different from the other forms of adaptation?

a. Rebellion rejects the goals and norms of society.

b. Rebellion ultimately would destroy society.

c. Rebellion seeks to create new societal goals.

d. Rebellion reflects individuals’ hostility and antipathy.

25. Merton’s types of adaptation are useful for studying ______ behavior.

a. normative

b. deviant

c. socializing

d. internalizing

True/False

26. Recent sociologists regard structural functionalism as having a conservative bias.

27. Parsons’s single most important idea is that action must not be viewed in isolation.

28. Functionalism remained the dominant theoretical approach through the 1970s.

29. C. Wright Mills was a famous student of Talcott Parsons.

30. Parsons first studied sociology outside of the United States.

31. Parsons falls in a nonrational quadrant due to his emphasis on moral cohesion.

32. Actions are behaviors that occur outside of systems.

33. Because the goal of a society is to maintain equilibrium, very little social change occurs.

34. Status refers to a set of expectations for behavior.

35. Internalization occurs when an individual incorporates the values of society into their roles.

36. Parsons believed personality, social, and cultural systems together produce social order and stability.

37. Pattern variables are the four requirements of action systems.

38. Pattern variables apply at the individual and collective levels.

39. According to Parsons, change happens even in societies that are in equilibrium.

40. Integration refers to how subsystems adjust to meet the needs of society.

41. Parsons worked in middle-range theories, while Merton developed master theories.

42. Manifest functions are intended consequences of an action.

43. Merton argues that major sociological contributions come from studying manifest functions.

44. Deviance occurs when the values of a society are out of sync with the means available for achieving them.

45. Overall, structural functionalism tends to emphasize the collective/nonrational realm.

46. Buying expensive brand-name clothing is an example of conspicuous consumption.

47. Focusing only on manifest functions can lead to moral judgments.

48. Ritualism involves pursuing cultural goals through noninstitutionalized means.

49. Retreatism focuses on changing the structure of society.

50. If conformity became less common, society would become less stable.

Essay

51. Define “pattern variables.” Then pick two of the variables and provide examples of the different choices they embody.

52. Explain and define the social, personality, and cultural systems. In addition, define and explain how these systems interpenetrate one another.

53. According to Parsons, what four needs must all social systems meet in order to sustain equilibrium? Provide a concrete example for each.

54. Define the pattern variable of universalism/particularism. Then, give concrete examples of what universalism and particularism look like in the cultural, personality, and social system aspects.

55. Define need-dispositions and role-expectations, and explain how they are connected.

56. Explain the interaction of ego and alter in your own words. How are these connected to the social and cultural systems?

57. What are the main properties of systems? How do allocation and integration help maintain equilibrium?

58. How does Parsons distinguish between social action and behavior?

59. Define and explain in detail how the personality, social, and cultural systems interpenetrate each other.

60. How does Parsons explain structural change? Illustrate his explanation with an original example.

61. What are two manifest functions of offering extra credit in classes? What might be two latent functions?

62. Explain how Veblen’s concept of “conspicuous consumption” relates to manifest and latent functions. Provide an original example to strengthen your explanation.

63. Discuss how Merton’s concepts of manifest and latent functions enhanced Parsons’s notion of society.

64. How does Merton define deviance and dysfunction? How do these concepts relate to Parsons’s body of work?

65. Imagine that an athlete has worked very hard to achieve the goal of being a top professional athlete (conformity). However, they keep falling short of being an all-star. Using Merton’s theory of deviance, explain two different adaptations to which that athlete may turn.