MCAT Sociology 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which sociological concept describes the process by which individuals learn the norms, values, and behaviors appropriate to their culture?
- Socialization (Correct answer)
- Stratification
- Assimilation
- Acculturation
Correct answer: Socialization
Socialization is the lifelong process through which individuals internalize the norms, values, and roles of their society.
Question 2: A researcher finds that individuals from lower socioeconomic backgrounds have poorer health outcomes even when controlling for access to healthcare. This best illustrates the concept of:
- Fundamental cause theory (Correct answer)
- Sick role theory
- Labeling theory
- Conflict theory
Correct answer: Fundamental cause theory
Fundamental cause theory posits that socioeconomic status is a root cause of health disparities because it determines access to resources that protect health across many risk factors.
Question 3: Erving Goffman's concept of 'impression management' refers to:
- The process by which people control how others perceive them in social interactions (Correct answer)
- The way media shapes public opinion about social issues
- A cognitive bias toward first impressions in hiring decisions
- The management of stigmatized identities in clinical settings
Correct answer: The process by which people control how others perceive them in social interactions
Goffman described impression management as deliberate efforts individuals make to control the impressions others form of them, similar to actors on a stage.
Question 4: Which of the following is an example of a master status?
- Being identified primarily as 'the cancer patient' rather than as a professional or parent (Correct answer)
- Holding multiple social roles simultaneously
- Changing careers at midlife
- Participating in a religious community while also working full-time
Correct answer: Being identified primarily as 'the cancer patient' rather than as a professional or parent
A master status is a social position that overrides all other statuses a person holds, as when a serious illness becomes the defining characteristic others use to identify someone.
Question 5: The Thomas Theorem states that:
- If people define situations as real, they are real in their consequences (Correct answer)
- Social structures constrain individual behavior regardless of personal beliefs
- Inequality is reproduced through cultural capital and education
- Social deviance is defined by those in power
Correct answer: If people define situations as real, they are real in their consequences
The Thomas Theorem holds that subjective perceptions of reality shape behavior and outcomes, even when those perceptions may be objectively incorrect.
Question 6: In Merton's strain theory, an individual who rejects both the cultural goals of society and the legitimate means to achieve them, then substitutes new goals and means, is classified as a:
- Rebel (Correct answer)
- Retreatist
- Ritualist
- Innovator
Correct answer: Rebel
Rebels reject society's goals and means and actively seek to replace them with alternative ones, as seen in revolutionary social movements.
Question 7: The concept of 'intersectionality' in sociology was developed to explain:
- How overlapping social identities such as race, gender, and class create compounded experiences of privilege or oppression (Correct answer)
- The intersection of formal and informal social norms in institutional settings
- How cultural and economic globalization intersect to produce inequality
- The point at which social mobility between classes becomes impossible
Correct answer: How overlapping social identities such as race, gender, and class create compounded experiences of privilege or oppression
Intersectionality, developed by Kimberlé Crenshaw, describes how multiple social identities interact to shape unique experiences of discrimination or advantage.
MCAT Sociology 2
Which sociological concept describes the process by which individuals learn the norms, values, and behaviors appropriate to their culture?