Free Social Institutions MCQs with Answers

• A. bestowing status
• B. transmitting knowledge
• C. promoting social and political change
• D. all of the above

Explanation: The most basic manifest function of education is the deliberate transmission of knowledge and skills to the next generation.

• A. two-thirds of divorced men
• B. three-fourths of divorced women
• C. 80 percent of divorced women
• D. two-thirds of divorced women

Explanation: Marriage and divorce research in the United States has commonly reported that about two-thirds of divorced women eventually remarry…

• A. function as "specialists in recreational care-giving"
• B. carry on a "ritualistic"(primarily symbolic) relationship with their grandchildren
• C. never see their grandchildren
• D. be actively involved in everyday routine care of their grandchildren and exercise substantial authority over them

Explanation: Cherlin and Furstenberg described the common grandparent role as a specialist in recreational caregiving, offering enjoyment and support…

• A. increase in the number of men with a college education
• B. shift in the economy of the United States from manufacturing to service industries
• C. increasing birth-rate
• D. all of the above

Explanation: The shift from manufacturing to service-sector employment increased the demand for paid workers and encouraged both spouses to participate…

• A. Neighborhood
• B. Class
• C. Family
• D. None of these

Explanation: A family is formed through relationships of consanguinity, affinity, and often shared residence.

• A. Market economies rely on privately held property whereas command economies rely on publicly-held property
• B. Market economies rely on cooperation whereas command economies rely on conflict
• C. Market economies rely on free markets whereas command economies rely on consumer sovereignty
• D. Market and command economies do not differ substantially, but their political institutions doEconomics

Explanation: Market economies are primarily organised around private ownership and voluntary exchange, whereas command economies place major productive…

• A. are organizations designed to gain control of the government but not necessarily by putting their own people in office
• B. must appeal to a broad base of the electorate in order to win
• C. tend to be pulled to the "right"
• D. tend to be barriers between citizens and the government

Explanation: Political parties must attract support beyond a narrow interest group, so they appeal to a broad electorate to win elections.

• A. is the authoritative formulation of policies that are binding and pervasive throughout the society?
• B. is a state in which the government is concerned with satisfying the needs of the total person?
• C. is a state in which the government seeks to control all subordinate governmental units all institutions and even personal associations and individual families
• D. can incorporate only in a socialist society

Explanation: Totalitarianism seeks comprehensive control over government, institutions, associations, families and even private life.

• A. The state has existed throughout human history
• B. External factors such as threats and trading partners played no part in the rise of the state
• C. The existence of the state requires that some people are able to devote time and energy to organizing power resources
• D. The production of a social surplus hindered the rise of the state

Explanation: A state requires an organised authority and enough social surplus for some people to specialise in administration, coercion and political…

• A. where those elected simply represent the views of the electors
• B. which ensures political equality and protects liberty
• C. where decisions are made communally by those affected by themPeople & Society
• D. where decisions are taken by people elected by the community as a whole

Explanation: Representative democracy transfers decision-making to people elected by the community, who govern on its behalf.

• A. one third
• B. one fifth
• C. about half
• D. one tenth

Explanation: Comparative sociology texts commonly estimate that roughly one-third of the world's societies are authoritarian rather than democratic.

• A. 1989
• B. 1998
• C. 2001
• D. 1991

Explanation: The Soviet Union dissolved in 1991 after its constituent republics declared independence, with the USSR formally ending in December of…

• A. behaviorist
• B. egalitarian populist
• C. residua list
• D. social insurance

Explanation: The residualist conception treats welfare as a last-resort safety net for people who cannot meet their needs through the family or market.

• A. determining how much each individual should be paid
• B. determining how to employ limited resources
• C. determining what goods and services to produce
• D. determining for whom goods and services should be produced

Explanation: The basic economic questions are what to produce, how to produce it using scarce resources, and for whom to produce it.

• A. the procedures for changing government officials may change with each administration
• B. the powers of government derive from the consent of the governed
• C. the people govern directly
• D. the government tolerates little opposition

Explanation: In a democracy, governmental authority is ultimately based on the consent of the governed, expressed directly or through elected…

• A. Democracy
• B. Power
• C. Government
• D. Totalitarianism

Explanation: Government is the institutional political process through which binding and society-wide policies are formulated and implemented.

• A. enforcement of norms planning and direction arbitration of conflicting interests and protection against other societies
• B. oppression of minorities enforcement of norms planning and direction protection against enemies within society
• C. enforcement of norms planning and direction protection against other societies protection against enemies within society
• D. arbitration of conflicting interests maintaining social contracts distributing goods and services protection against internal threats

Explanation: A functionalist view assigns the state four broad tasks: enforcing norms, planning and directing collective activity, arbitrating…

• A. Physicians serve as "gatekeepers" for the sick role either verifying a patient's condition as "illness" or designating the patient as "recovered"
• B. Multinational corporations based in industrialized countries have reaped significant profits by "dumping" unapproved drugs on unsuspecting Third World countries
• C. Patients play an active role in health care by failing to follow a physician's advice
• D. The designation "healthy " or "ill" generally involves social definition by others

Explanation: The conflict perspective highlights how powerful corporations can use unequal global relationships to profit, including by marketing or…

• A. functionalist perspective
• B. conflict perspective
• C. interactionist perspective
• D. labeling theory

Explanation: The interactionist perspective examines the meanings and actions created in face-to-face encounters, including how patients actively seek…

• A. Patients judgments regarding their own state of health may be related to their gender age social class and ethnic group
• B. The sick role may be more applicable to people experiencing short-term illnesses than those with recurring long-term illnesses
• C. Even simple factors such as whether a person is employed or not seem to affect willingness to assume the sick role
• D. all of the above

Explanation: All three statements criticize the sick role because its expectations do not apply equally across illnesses or social groups.