Sociology CH. 10

Question 1

systems and structures within society that shape the activities of groups and individuals

Answer 1

social institutions

Question 2

methods and tactics intended to influence government policy, policy-related attitudes, and activities

Answer 2

politics

Question 3

the formal, organized agency that exercises power and control in modern society, especially through the creation and enforcement of laws

Answer 3

government

Question 4

the ability to impose one’s will on others

Answer 4

power

Question 5

the legitimate right to wield power

Answer 5

authority

Question 6

system of government by and for a small number of elites that does not include representation of ordinary citizens

Answer 6

authoritarianism

Question 7

a government ruled by a king or queen, with succession of rulers kept within the family

Answer 7

monarchy

Question 8

a political system in which all citizens have the right to participate

Answer 8

democracy

Question 9

stripped of voting rights, either temporarily or permanently

Answer 9

disenfranchised

Question 10

a relatively small group of people in the top ranks of economic, political, and military institutions who make many of the important decisions in American society

Answer 10

power elite

Question 11

a system of political power in which a wide variety of individuals and groups have equal access to resources and the mechanisms of power

Answer 11

pluralist model

Question 12

organizations that raise and spend money to influence elected officials and/or public opinion

Answer 12

special interest groups

Question 13

organizations that raise money to support the interests of a select group or organization

Answer 13

political action committees (PACs)

Question 14

high-profile individuals whose interpretation of events influences the public

Answer 14

opinion leaders

Question 15

an image or media representation that does not reflect reality in any meaningful way but is treated as real

Answer 15

simulacrum

Question 16

the process by which a society transmits its knowledge, values, and expectations to its members so they can function effectively

Answer 16

education

Question 17

the practice of dividing or arranging a territorial unit into election districts in a way that gives one political party an unfair advantage in elections

Answer 17

gerrymandering

Question 18

the placement of students in educational “tracks,” or programs of study (e.g., college prep, remedial), that determine the types of classes they take

Answer 18

tracking

Question 19

values or behaviors that students learn indirectly over the course of their schooling

Answer 19

hidden curriculum

Question 20

public schools run by private entities to give parents greater control over their children’s education

Answer 20

charter schools

Question 21

payments from the government to parents whose children attend failing public schools; the money helps parents pay private school tuition

Answer 21

school vouchers

Question 22

the education of children by their parents, at home

Answer 22

homeschooling

Question 23

a homeschooling alternative that rejects the standard curriculum in favor of student-driven types of learning

Answer 23

unschooling

Question 24

institutions in which students earn a high school diploma and two years of credit toward a bachelor’s degree

Answer 24

early college high schools

Question 25

programs that allow high school students to simultaneously enroll in college classes, earning credit for both high school and college degrees

Answer 25

dual enrollment

Question 26

A society that views credentials (e.g., certificates, degrees, and diplomas) as essential for employment in certain jobs, serving as evidence of the ability to perform specialized tasks.

Answer 26

credential society

Question 27

two-year institution that provides students with general education and facilitates transfer to a four-year university

Answer 27

community college

Question 28

any institutionalized system of shared beliefs and rituals that identify a relationship between the sacred and the profane

Answer 28

religion

Question 29

the holy, divine, or supernatural

Answer 29

sacred

Question 30

the ordinary, mundane, or everyday

Answer 30

profane

Question 31

a term describing religions that worship a single divine figure

Answer 31

monotheistic

Question 32

a movement within the Catholic Church to understand Christianity from the perspective of the poor and oppressed, with a focus on fighting injustice

Answer 32

liberation theology

Question 33

the regular practice of religious beliefs, often measured in terms of frequency of attendance at worship services and the importance of religious beliefs to an individual

Answer 33

religiosity

Question 34

a person’s public display of commitment to a religious faith

Answer 34

extrinsic religiosity

Question 35

a person’s inner religious life or personal relationship to the divine

Answer 35

intrinsic religiosity

Question 36

the practice of emphasizing literal interpretation of texts and a “return” to a time of greater religious purity; represented by the most conservative group within any religion

Answer 36

fundamentalism

Question 37

a term describing conservative Christians who emphasize converting others to their faith

Answer 37

evangelical

Question 38

a term describing those who consider themselves spiritual but not religious and who often adopt aspects of various religious traditions

Answer 38

unchurched

Question 39

nonreligious; a secular society separates church and state and does not endorse any religion

Answer 39

secular