DSST Social Sciences 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which psychological theory emphasizes that behavior is shaped by environmental stimuli and consequences rather than internal mental states?
- Psychoanalysis
- Behaviorism (Correct answer)
- Humanistic psychology
- Cognitive psychology
Correct answer: Behaviorism
Behaviorism, championed by B.F. Skinner and John Watson, focuses on observable behaviors and the role of stimulus-response conditioning in shaping them.
Question 2: What term describes the process by which immigrants adopt the cultural norms and values of their new country?
- Multiculturalism
- Assimilation (Correct answer)
- Segregation
- Acculturation
Correct answer: Assimilation
Assimilation is the process by which individuals or groups adopt the cultural practices of the dominant culture, often losing aspects of their original culture.
Question 3: The 'tragedy of the commons,' as described by Garrett Hardin, refers to:
- The decline of traditional values in modern society
- The overuse and depletion of shared resources when individuals act in self-interest (Correct answer)
- The failure of democratic governments to provide public goods
- The exploitation of workers in a capitalist economy
Correct answer: The overuse and depletion of shared resources when individuals act in self-interest
Hardin's concept describes how shared resources are inevitably depleted when individuals, acting independently and rationally in their own self-interest, overuse them.
Question 4: Which type of government is characterized by a concentration of power in a single leader or small group with no constitutional limits?
- Democracy
- Oligarchy
- Authoritarianism (Correct answer)
- Theocracy
Correct answer: Authoritarianism
Authoritarian governments concentrate power in a single authority, limiting political freedoms and operating without meaningful constitutional constraints on leaders.
Question 5: In Keynesian economics, during a recession the government should:
- Cut spending to reduce the deficit
- Raise taxes to balance the budget
- Increase spending to stimulate aggregate demand (Correct answer)
- Reduce the money supply to control inflation
Correct answer: Increase spending to stimulate aggregate demand
John Maynard Keynes argued that government spending should increase during recessions to stimulate demand and pull the economy out of downturns.
Question 6: Which social science discipline primarily studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services?
- Sociology
- Political science
- Anthropology
- Economics (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes how individuals, businesses, and governments allocate scarce resources for production and consumption.
Question 7: The 'social contract' theory, as developed by Rousseau, holds that:
- Governments derive power from divine right
- Political authority is legitimate only when based on the consent of the governed (Correct answer)
- Individual rights are less important than social order
- Property rights are the foundation of all political systems
Correct answer: Political authority is legitimate only when based on the consent of the governed
Rousseau argued that legitimate political authority comes from a social contract in which individuals collectively agree to form a society governed by the general will.
DSST Social Sciences 4
Which psychological theory emphasizes that behavior is shaped by environmental stimuli and consequences rather than internal mental states?