Ethnology Exam Solutions
Course Introduction
Ethnology is the comparative and analytical study of cultures and peoples, focusing on the patterns, differences, and similarities among human societies. This course explores methodologies for understanding social structures, belief systems, languages, rituals, and customs, drawing from case studies across the globe. Students will examine how cultural identities are shaped and maintained, and consider issues such as globalization, power dynamics, and cultural change. Through theoretical frameworks and ethnographic research, the course provides insight into the complexity of human diversity and the processes that influence cultural development.
Recommended Textbook
Cultural Anthropology 14th Edition by Carol R. Ember
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18 Chapters
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Page 2
Chapter 1: What Is Anthropology
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Sample Questions
Q1) Although archaeologists and historians are both interested in the past, how does archaeology differ from history in its approach?
A) Unlike historians, archaeologists study past societies that pre-date written records, using only material remains such as pottery and stone tools.
B) Unlike historians, archaeologists only care about the writing systems of non-English speakers.
C) Archaeologists dig up dinosaurs, while historians focus on humans.
D) Archaeologists only rely on fossil remains from human ancestors.
Answer: A
Q2) What is the difference between a paleontologist and a paleoanthropologist?
A) Paleontologists study many different types of animals, while paleoanthropologists focus on humans and their relatives.
B) Paleontologists work in the lab, while paleoanthropologists work in the field.
C) Paleontologists study humans, while paleoanthropologists study dinosaurs.
D) Paleontologists study archaeological and biological remains, while paleoanthropologists focus on only skeletal remains.
Answer: A
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Page 3
Chapter 2: Culture and Culture Change
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Q1) How did early evolutionists tend to think of Western cultures?
A) They viewed Western cultures as being at the most progressive stage of evolution.
B) They believed they were lacking in important knowledge that other cultures already possessed.
C) They were extremely relativistic in their thinking, seeing all cultures as morally equivalent.
D) There was a rift between ethnocentric and relativistic evolutionists at the time.
Answer: A
Q2) The adoption and later elimination of the sepaade tradition among the Rendille is an example of __________.
A) intentional cultural change
B) acculturation
C) diffusion
D) a maladaptive custom
Answer: A
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4
Chapter 3: Culture and the Individual
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Q1) Humans are unusual among mammals in our __________.
A) long post-reproductive life span for females
B) close connections between mothers and their infants
C) high lifetime reproductive rates in males
D) tendency to live in social groups of unrelated adults
Answer: A
Q2) What assumption of psychological development was called into question by Bronislaw Malinowski, based on his research with Trobriands?
A) the Oedipus complex
B) development of the id, ego, and superego
C) attachment theory
D) activation model of dreaming
Answer: A
Q3) Whatever the reason for parental rejection, it is evident that children who are rejected __________.
A) tend to reject their own children
B) are affectionate toward other people's children
C) are likely to remain childless as adults
D) become overprotective parents
Answer: A
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Chapter 4: Understanding and Explaining Culture
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Q1) What earlier theoretical approach did Leslie White's neoevolution counter?
A) historical particularism
B) diffusionism
C) cultural evolution
D) participant-observation
Q2) Anthropological research can be classified by its __________ and __________ scope.
A) spatial; temporal
B) temporal; ecological
C) ecological; economic
D) economic; spatial
Q3) A __________ cannot be observed or verified directly.
A) theoretical construct
B) statistical association
C) sampling universe
D) testable hypothesis
Q4) Discuss the pros and cons of anthropologists using pseudonyms and fake community names in their publications.
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Page 6
Chapter 5: Communication and Language
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Q1) Which of the following findings would best support the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis?
A) a language that lacks gendered pronouns is associated with an acceptance of fluid gender roles
B) multilingual individuals have trouble code-switching in some situations
C) men and women have identical internal syntax and grammar, but choose to speak differently
D) all languages represent the same basic ideas, just in different ways
Q2) Compared to people in simpler societies, people in complex societies __________.
A) commonly can give a larger number of general, or life-form, terms for plants and animals
B) commonly have fewer terms for plants but many for animals
C) commonly have the same number of general terms for plants, but more terms for specific plants
D) usually have more names for specific plants, but the same number of general plant terms
Q3) How does language reflect social status? Give three specific examples in which members of different social positions use different forms of language.
Q4) Explain how the field of historical linguistics traces cultural connections through related languages.
Page 7
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Chapter 6: Getting Food
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Q1) Studies of two aboriginal Australian groups and one African foraging group suggest that foraging societies spend __________ time getting food than most agricultural societies.
A) less
B) more
C) about the same amount of D_ much more
Q2) In which region are foraging societies least likely to be found today?
A) temperate climates
B) dense tropical forests
C) deserts
D) the Arctic
Q3) Although food production is not necessarily __________ than food collection, it is generally __________ per unit of land.
A) easier; more productive
B) harder; more productive
C) easier; less productive
D) harder; less productive
Q4) What social characteristics are associated with foragers and complex foragers?
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Chapter 7: Economic Systems
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Q1) In parts of Melanesia, pigs can be purchased using strings of shells, which cannot be used to buy any other goods or services. This is an example of __________.
A) special-purpose money
B) general-purpose money
C) bartered commodities
D) peasant money
Q2) What is the difference between market exchange (when money is not involved) and balanced reciprocity?
A) In market exchange, supply and demand determine the price.
B) In balanced reciprocity, supply and demand determine the price.
C) In market exchange, the person giving is of a higher social status than the person receiving.
D) In balanced reciprocity, the person giving is of higher social status than the person receiving.
Q3) Taxation is an indirect form of __________.
A) forced labor
B) reciprocity
C) redistribution
D) voluntary labor
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Page 9
Chapter 8: Social Stratification: Class, Ethnicity, and Racism
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Q1) Who is an Aryan?
A) anyone who speaks one of the Indo-European languages
B) blond-haired, blue-eyed, white-skinned people
C) an imaginary category of socially advantaged people
D) a member of the Nazi party
Q2) In societies that contain many different ethnic groups, __________.
A) ethnicity is part of the system of stratification
B) all ethnic groups have equal access to resources
C) the caste system prevents immigrant groups from achieving social mobility
D) the largest ethnic group is always the most politically dominant one
Q3) The Trobriand Islanders have relatively equal access to economic resources and power, but some social groups do have unequal access to prestige. What type of society do they represent?
A) ranked
B) egalitarian
C) a class society
D) a caste society
Q4) What developments are required to move an egalitarian society into a ranked society? Is it inevitable that societies would progress in this direction? Why or why not?
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Chapter 9: Sex and Gender
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Q1) Crafts such as making baskets, mats, and pottery are __________.
A) performed by women in noncommercial societies but by men when produced for trade
B) exclusively men's tasks
C) exclusively women's tasks
D) performed by men in noncommercial societies but by women when produced for trade
Q2) Variation in gender contribution to primary subsistence relates directly to the type of
A) food-getting
B) warfare
C) social stratification
D) gender roles
Q3) Egalitarian societies have no social groups with unequal access to power, prestige, or resources, __________.
A) but they generally afford greater access of these to men than to women
B) and they ensure equality by sorting social groups by gender
C) and they often afford the same balance across genders
D) but they usually afford greater access of these to women than to men
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Page 11
Chapter 10: Marriage and the Family
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Q1) How has the tradition of arranged marriage changed in recent years?
A) Marriages are still arranged by families, but couples have more say in the pairing.
B) Arranged marriages are now big business and performed mostly by professional matchmakers.
C) Marriages are only arranged when very large dowries are involved.
D) Arranged marriage is now illegal in nearly all countries.
Q2) Same-sex marriages are __________.
A) not typical in any known society
B) prohibited in all societies
C) fairly common in some societies
D) the norm in a few societies
Q3) In which society did people not marry, but rather lived their whole lives in a residential group made up of maternal kin?
A) Na
B) Subanun
C) Kwakiutl
D) Hadza
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Chapter 11: Marital Residence and Kinship
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Q1) Why is an ambilineal society not divided into separate kin groups, as in unilineal systems?
A) A person belongs to more than one group and cannot live in several places at once.
B) They are organized by religious group membership, rather than kin groups.
C) The number of relatives in an ambilineal society is too small to create large kin groups.
D) Intermarriage between groups makes it hard to keep track of kin groups in ambilineal systems.
Q2) What modern factor is making it less common for people to seek help from their kindred?
A) aid from the state
B) increasing population
C) more frequent divorce
D) smaller family size
Q3) In which type of societies are adolescents most likely to be rebellious?
A) those with neolocal residence and considerable geographic mobility
B) those with unilocal residence and little geographic mobility
C) those with unilocal residence and considerable geographic mobility
D) those with neolocal residence and little geographic mobility
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Page 13
Chapter 12: Associations and Interest Groups
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Q1) Which associations are likely to have dramatic initiation ceremonies?
A) both age-set and unisex associations
B) age-set associations
C) unisex associations
D) neither age-set nor unisex associations
Q2) Why are NGOs sometimes more powerful than government organizations?
A) They can raise money privately.
B) They are usually bigger.
C) NGOs have more fluid leadership.
D) Only NGOs can enforce laws.
Q3) The Chinatowns in many large cities in the United States and Canada are an example of __________, which function to bring together migrants from a common geographical background and help them adapt to new conditions.
A) regional associations
B) complementary societies
C) religious clubs
D) geographical sets
Q4) Compare and contrast ethnic associations with multiethnic associations.
Q5) Discuss the reasons that may explain why voluntary associations exist.
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Chapter 13: Political Life: Social Order and Disorder
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Q1) Which of these features is characteristic of a band?
A) low population density
B) intensive agriculture
C) social stratification
D) strict territoriality
Q2) What is the consequence of the spread of state societies for the number of politically autonomous cultures found around the world?
Q3) Which of these is an example of a codified law?
A) paying according to your tax bracket
B) saying the pledge of allegiance
C) testifying in front of a jury
D) giving gifts for birthdays
Q4) The Mekranoti have a generally egalitarian society. Despite this, __________ are more likely to become leaders.
A) sons of leaders
B) wealthy men
C) daughters of leaders
D) women with many sons
Q5) Compare and contrast the political life of bands and tribal organizations.
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Chapter 14: Religion and Magic
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Q1) Conversion to one of the world religions has often been associated with __________.
A) colonialism
B) democracy
C) technology
D) industry
Q2) If a society has only two types of religious practitioners, they are usually a shaman healer and a __________.
A) priest
B) medium
C) witch
D) sorcerer
Q3) Which type of society is most likely to have a monotheistic religion?
A) a society with hierarchical political systems
B) a society that is located near the equator
C) a relatively small society in which most members know each other well
D) a society in which children are harshly disciplined
Q4) Outline the ways in which people interact with the supernatural.
Q5) Analyze the different explanations put forth to explain the universality of religion.
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Chapter 15: The Arts
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Q1) John Fischer argues that in a stable society artists will respond to those conditions in a society that __________.
A) bring security or pleasure
B) represent cultural values
C) create fear or disgust
D) are taboo
Q2) How has the art of the Shoshone-Bannock people changed over the last 100 years?
A) It has become more complex as social stratification has increased.
B) It has changed from a male domain to one dominated by women.
C) Nearly all of the traditional patterns have been replaced with Westernized ones.
D) They have borrowed motifs from disparate Native American groups, making a wholly new style.
Q3) Are the categories "tourist art" and "fine art" mutually exclusive? Why or why not?
Q4) What evidence is there for ethnocentric attitudes in our viewing of the art of other cultures? What can we learn from this about our definition of art?
Q5) What information about a society is reflected in its folklore? Give specific examples.
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Chapter 16: Practicing and Applying Anthropology
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Q1) Why did early archaeological artifacts usually end up in natural history museums?
A) At the time, non-Western artifacts were not considered art, nor were the cultures of non-Western peoples considered part of history.
B) Art and history museums were not separated from natural history museums until the late 19th century.
C) Archaeological relics were usually provided by treasure-hunters, who did not have the necessary information to identify the pieces accurately.
D) Natural history museums had the lowest attendance in the 18th century, so they served as the repositories for miscellaneous items.
Q2) How does a "top down" approach differ from policy changes based on community participation? How do environmental anthropologists approach change programs?
Q3) Which of these cannot be detected by forensic anthropologists?
A) skin color
B) age
C) sex
D) size
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18
Chapter 17: Health and Illness
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Q1) Patients with __________ education are __________ likely to seek alternatives to physicians.
A) more; more
B) less; more
C) scientific; less
D) religious; less
Q2) As it stands today, the medical profession cannot tell us __________.
A) why the effectiveness of treatments varies from one group to another
B) which treatments are most effective for killing a virus
C) what medical side effects may come from a particular treatment
D) the major risk factors involved in spreading common diseases
Q3) Do people in your own society have any beliefs regarding the role of supernatural forces in health and illness? Give examples, and compare these to cross-cultural patterns identified by medical anthropologists.
Q4) How long does it take, on average, after exposure to the HIV virus for symptoms to appear?
A) four years
B) six months
C) three weeks
D) 10 years
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Chapter 18: Global Problems
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Q1) In the United States, what factor predicts more overt aggression in adulthood, even after controlling for factors like parental neglect and family income?
A) more television
B) classroom crowding
C) family size
D) poor nutrition
Q2) What do cross-cultural studies of capital punishment show?
A) Capital punishment may legitimize violence.
B) Capital punishment deters would-be murderers.
C) Capital punishment is practiced in most societies.
D) Capital punishment has been abolished in most societies.
Q3) What has been responsible for more deaths than all the wars of the 20th century?
A) state terrorism by totalitarian governments
B) human trafficking and slavery
C) AIDS and malaria
D) famine in Africa during the 1970s and 1980s
Q4) How does homelessness in the United States compare to homelessness in other parts of the world?
Q5) How is terrorism distinct from other forms of crime or acts of war?
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