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Links:    •  Notes - Mod 12
               •  Notes - Mod 13
                •  Self Test (Print Ready)
                 •  SP Topic Index

Ψ  Self Test for
- Human Nature & Cultural Diversity -
- Gender, Genes, & Culture -


Note: These questions are part of a larger data base of questions on modules 12 & 13. The questions are selected to represent the type of question you should expect on unit exam two. You can, in fact, expect to see many of these very same questions on that exam. Exam questions, however, may deal with topics not covered in the self tests or in lectures but are discussed in your textbook. You are responsible for the content of your text book plus the content of lectures, interactive activities, & material on the web site.

    Use these sample questions to test yourself & to practice for the test. Click on your choice to see if you are right.

1. The study of how natural selection predisposes adaptive traits & behavior is called

•  genetic psychology.
 •  behavioral genetics.
  •  biological behaviorism.
   •  evolutionary psychology.

2. Historian Arthur Schlesinger calls __________ “the explosive problem of our times.”

a anarchy
b diversity
c totalitarianism
d mindless conformity

3. Darwin proposed that nature selects traits that best equip organisms to survive & reproduce in their environment. This process is called

a devolution.
b natural selection.
c adaptation syndrome.
d selection of only the fittest.

4. Enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, & traditions shared by a large group of people & transmitted from one generation to the next defines

a culture.
b social heritage.
c evolutionary heritage.
d the collective unconscious.

5. A cultural perspective

a defines society.
b spotlights human adaptability.
c highlights universals in human nature.
d highlights the role of our evolved genes in determining cultural patterns.

6. Human kinship is to the ___________ perspective as social diversity is to the ______________ perspective.

a humanistic; cultural
b evolutionary; cultural
c biological; humanistic
d cognitive; psychoanalytic

7. Cultural diversity is best illustrated in which of the following?

a norms regarding incest
b norms regarding etiquette
c norms regarding status & authority
d all of these factors illustrate cultural diversity.

8. According to Roger Brown, a “universal norm” governs the tendency for people to

a feel indebted to friends or relatives.
b avoid eye contact with people they do not know.
c talk to higher-status people & strangers in the same respectful way.
d excuse themselves when they accidentally make physical contact with strangers.

9. In languages that distinguish between the two forms of “you,” the familiar form is used with _____ and the respectful form is used with _____.

a children; adults
b inferiors; superiors
c intimates; strangers
d all of the above!

10. The incest taboo is

a a universal norm.
b is only of interest to sociologists.
c violated less often than psychologists once believed.
d explained by the theory of psychodynamic relativism.


11. The characteristics people associate with male & female define

a gender.
b sexuality.
c sex roles.
d sex differences.

12. In general, women more than men give priority to

a creativity
b skill mastery.
c independence.
d close relationships.

13. In groups, men talk more ______________, whereas women talk more _____________.

a about people; about issues
b to show support; to criticize
c about others; about themselves
d to give information; to show support

14. Men are more likely than women to gravitate toward jobs that

a reduce inequalities.
b enhance inequalities.
c require empathy skills.
d enhance independence.

15. In essentially every society, men, relative to women,

a are socially dominant.
b have higher self-esteem
c are more communitarian.
d have poorer vocabularies.

16. Across cultures, men

a are more likely to initiate sexual activity.
b prefer women with physical features that suggest fertility.
c strive to offer women external resources & physical protection.
d do all of the things noted above.

17. Evolutionary psychologists respond to their critics by saying

a the criticisms are “flat-out wrong.”
b cultural explanations are guilty of hindsight explanations.
c their field is an empirical science that tests its predictions with a variety of data.
d all of the above

18. A set of behavior expectations for males or females defines gender

a roles.
b types.
c positions.
d identities.

19. Which of the following terms best describes the relationship between biology & culture?

a interaction
b competition
c interpolation
d reciprocation

20. A very strong cultural norm dictates that males should be taller than their female mates. This height norm is evidence that

a what is biologically “fit” may be culturally disastrous.
b biology and culture interact to develop gender-role norms.
c relationship behavior is influenced more by biology than culture.
d gender roles are essentially cultural and thus completely arbitrary.

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Social Psychology
Robert C. Gates
 
Neurosis is the inability to tolerate ambiguity.  -- Freud