Download Multiple-choice

Multiple-choice: Choose the one best answer to each question.
25 questions, 1 point each, 25 points total.
1. Anthropology can best be defined as
A. a branch of study that seeks to reconstruct the daily life and customs of people who lived
in the past.
B. the study of all aspects of human beings with particular emphasis upon human culture and
human development.
C. the study of how and why recent cultures differ and are similar.
D. the study of the emergence of humans and their later physical evolution.
E. a branch of study that is primarily interested in biological characteristics of people.
2. How long has anthropology been officially recognized as a field of study?
A. about 50 years
B. about 100 years
C. about 200 years
D. about 400 years
E. about 800 years
3. Which of the following is most commonly used by paleontologists to help them clarify the
evolutionary relationships in the human record?
A. historical documents obtained from people who lived prior to 30,000 B.C.
B. fossil records
C. study of modern cultures
D. study of modern climate patterns
E. study of modern plants and animals
4. Which of the following is the best definition for culture?
A. a group of people who occupy a particular territory and speak a common language not
generally understood by neighboring peoples
B. standards and rules about acceptable behavior in a society
C. the collective term for all human beings alive today
D. a fairly small, usually nomadic local group that is politically autonomous
E. the set of learned behaviors, beliefs, attitudes, values, and ideals that are characteristic of
a particular society or population
5. Approximately how old is the world's oldest written language?
A. 1,500 years
B. 3,000 years
C. 5,000 years
D. 7,500 years
E. 9,000 years
6. What type of work usually is not performed by applied anthropologists?
A. serving as advisors at construction sites
B. working in local businesses to help improve customer services
C. working with government agencies to better meet the needs of a nation
D. working as researchers in libraries and museums
E. observing and interpreting data collected on climate and geological formations
7. According to the textbook, which of the following is the best reason for studying
anthropology?
A. to help us gain a better understanding of the physical world we live in
B. to help us understand the events of the past and learn from them
C. to help us avoid misunderstandings that develop from cultural prejudices
D. to help us realize the importance of our own culture and realize that it is superior to other
cultures
E. to help us understand the importance of climate upon the development of early Homo
sapiens and upon our modern culture
8. Which species has the longest childhood of all animals?
A. whales
B. apes
C. tigers
D. wolves
E. humans
9. What term describes the belief that cultures develop in a uniform and progressive manner?
A. early evolutionism
B. political economy
C. behavioral ecology
D. interpretative approach
E. social orientation
10. When an American places the right hand over the heart when the national anthem is played,
he or she is following
A. a custom restraint.
B. a social abnormality.
C. a maladaptive custom.
D. a cultural norm.
E. a form of social disrespect.
11. Ideal cultural patterns are best defined as
A. the way some people in a society behave in a certain situation.
B. the ways in which all people in a society behave in a certain situation.
C. the way a society believes that people should behave in a specific situation.
D. the way anthropologists should act while observing a new culture for the first time.
E. the way an anthropologist records information concerning a new culture.
12. What early 1800s American religious society clearly exemplified the problems associated
with using maladaptive customs?
A. Presbyterians
B. Roman Catholics
C. Lutherans
D. Methodists
E. Shakers
13. Culture norms can be used to
A. judge the value and importance of a society.
B. adapt to a physical environment.
C. show the superiority of one biological group over another biological group.
D. create maladaptive social demands upon neighboring people.
E. illustrate the value of ethnocentrism.
14. What major theoretical orientation suggests that imperialism and colonialism are the primary
influences upon cultural change?
A. cultural ecology
B. political economy
C. behavioral ecology
D. interpretative approach
E. scientific orientation
15. Which of the following anthropologists most strongly supported the cultural ecology
theoretical orientation?
A. Julian Steward
B. Eric Wolf
C. Sidney Mintz
D. Andre Gunder Frank
E. Immanuel Wallerstein
16. Which of the following theoretical orientations would an anthropologist most likely use to
arrive at objective answers to specific questions?
A. cultural ecology
B. political economy
C. behavioral ecology
D. interpretative approach
E. scientific orientation
17. What is the term for a person who spends time living with, interviewing, and observing a
group of people so that their customs can be described?
A. archaeologist
B. paleontologist
C. linguist
D. ethnographer
E. primatologist
18. According to the textbook, what is the ultimate goal of anthropology?
A. to achieve accurate descriptions of most societies
B. to fully understand the origins of the human species
C. to decipher the meanings of prehistoric languages
D. to fully record and describe the features of all the world's societies
E. to describe societies and to know why people have certain customs and beliefs
19. In the study of anthropology, an association is
A. a standard or rule about acceptable behavior in a society.
B. a prohibition that if violated is believed to bring supernatural punishment.
C. an explanation of an association.
D. a predictable relationship of variables.
E. a prediction that may be derived from a theory about how variables are related.
20. Which statement about theories is true?
A. Theories cannot be proven to be absolutely true.
B. Theories have little practical value in the study of anthropology.
C. Theories cannot be used to help develop an understanding of a complex issue.
D. Theories cannot be used to suggest relationships or imply new predictions.
E. Theories are very simple, while associations are more detailed.
21. Which of the following is a criterion that must be met before a theory can be said to be valid?
A. It must have significant statistical associations that are unpredictable.
B. It must not be replicated by other researchers to test its findings.
C. Other predictions should be derived from the theory to see if they are also supported.
D. It is not necessary to test alternative explanations against the theory.
E. The theory must have no exceptions to its premise.
22. What is the foundation of modern cultural anthropology?
A. historical analysis
B. cross-cultural comparisons
C. the development of hypotheses
D. the establishment of cultural norms
E. fieldwork
23. Which of the following is a major limitation on the use of cross-cultural studies?
A. Researchers may not have enough specific knowledge about the societies that are being
studied.
B. These studies can only be performed on societies in which the required information has
not yet been collected.
C. These studies require the existence of few ethnographies.
D. The findings from these studies can almost never be applied to other societies.
E. They can only be used to test information from societies that have never been previously
studied.
24. Where did Margaret Mead do her anthropological fieldwork in the 1920s?
A. Tanzania
B. Sierra Leon
C. Pakistan
D. American Samoa
E. Korea
25. What is the primary benefit of historical studies for anthropologists?
A. They utilize firsthand information exclusively.
B. They take little time to collect.
C. They always detail societies accurately.
D. They help us understand the reasons for cultural variations.
E. They provide few opportunities to test hypotheses.
https://muhigh.missouri.edu/exec/data/courses/6648/public/lesson01/lesson01.aspx