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Sociological Explanations of Deviance and Social Sanctions Online Quiz Questions

Use this free practice quiz with 20 questions to review Sociological Explanations of Deviance and Social Sanctions, test your knowledge, and prepare for your next test or exam.

20 questions
01
True or false
1 point

True or false: Any behavior considered deviant is also a crime.

  1. A

    True

  2. B

    False

02
Choose one
1 point

Which example is a formal positive sanction?

  1. A

    A friend thanks someone for helping

  2. B

    An employee receives a promotion for strong work

  3. C

    A person receives disapproving looks for interrupting

  4. D

    A driver receives a parking fine

03
Choose one
1 point

According to Durkheim's functionalist perspective, what can public responses to violations do?

  1. A

    They show that every rule protects only the interests of powerful groups.

  2. B

    They teach people how to break rules through close-peer interaction.

  3. C

    They can clarify shared expectations and strengthen group solidarity.

  4. D

    They explain conformity mainly through people's conventional social bonds.

04
Written response
1 point

A student learns how to cheat and comes to see cheating as acceptable because close peers routinely do so. What theory best explains this learning process?

05
Fill in the blank
1 point

Merton's explains how a gap between culturally valued goals and access to approved means can create pressure that helps explain some deviance.

06
True or false
1 point

True or false: Social-control theories ask only why people deviate, not why they conform.

  1. A

    True

  2. B

    False

07
Choose all
1 point

Which are the four bonds identified in Hirschi’s social-bond theory? Select all four correct answers.

  1. A

    Attachment to people whose opinions matter

  2. B

    Surveillance by an authority

  3. C

    Commitment to conventional goals and achievements

  4. D

    Involvement in conventional activities

  5. E

    Belief in the legitimacy of shared rules and values

08
Written response
1 point

A school imposes a penalty under its official rules. What is the general type of sanction, based on how it is administered?

09
Choose all
1 point

A researcher studies how a workplace enforces the same rule across job levels. Which questions fit a conflict perspective? Select all correct answers.

  1. A

    Compare how similar violations are handled for executives and entry-level employees.

  2. B

    Investigate whether close peers teach employees to justify rule-breaking.

  3. C

    Ask whose interests workplace standards protect.

  4. D

    Assess whether sanctions are applied consistently across levels of authority.

  5. E

    Measure whether public reactions to violations strengthen group solidarity.

10
Fill in the blank
1 point

When someone repeatedly interrupts, other people give disapproving looks. This is an .

11
Choose one
1 point

A behavior is accepted when performed by one person but labeled deviant when performed by another, partly because of who has authority to define the situation. Which perspective most directly emphasizes this possibility?

  1. A

    Functionalist perspective

  2. B

    Interactionist perspective

  3. C

    Conflict perspective

  4. D

    Social-control approach

12
True or false
1 point

True or false: Unequal or excessive sanctions can weaken trust in authorities and make a rule seem illegitimate.

  1. A

    True

  2. B

    False

13
Open ended
1 point

A person values financial success but has limited access to approved educational and occupational opportunities. At the same time, the person has supportive relationships and is engaged in conventional activities. Explain how strain theory and social-bond theory offer different ways to understand the person's circumstances.

14
Choose one
1 point

A person wears casual clothes to a picnic and receives no criticism, but wears the same clothes to a formal ceremony and is disapproved of. Which explanation best fits the sociological definition of deviance?

  1. A

    Casual clothes are always deviant because they differ from formal clothing.

  2. B

    The same clothing can be ordinary in one setting and considered deviant in another.

  3. C

    An act is deviant only if it is also a crime.

  4. D

    A behavior is deviant only when it causes harm.

15
Choose one
1 point

An organization officially promotes an employee in recognition of strong work. How should this sanction be classified?

  1. A

    Informal positive sanction

  2. B

    Formal negative sanction

  3. C

    Formal positive sanction

  4. D

    Informal negative sanction

16
Choose one
1 point

After someone repeatedly interrupts a conversation, others give them disapproving looks. Which category best describes this response?

  1. A

    Informal negative sanction

  2. B

    Formal negative sanction

  3. C

    Informal positive sanction

  4. D

    Formal positive sanction

17
Choose one
1 point

According to Émile Durkheim, how can public responses to norm violations contribute to social life?

  1. A

    It ensures that everyone who violates a norm will commit further violations.

  2. B

    It shows that deviance is found only in societies with weak social order.

  3. C

    It prevents norms from changing over time.

  4. D

    It can clarify shared expectations and strengthen group solidarity.

18
Choose one
1 point

A student learns how to cheat from close peers who also describe cheating as acceptable. Which explanation best matches this situation?

  1. A

    People break rules mainly because formal punishments are too weak.

  2. B

    People can learn practices and justifications supportive of deviance through interaction with others.

  3. C

    People become deviant whenever others assign them a label.

  4. D

    People violate norms only when they lack ties to conventional society.

19
Written response
1 point

A society strongly values financial success, but some people face blocked access to education and occupations and may pursue success through prohibited means. Which sociological theory describes this kind of pressure?

20
Written response
1 point

In Hirschi’s social-bond theory, what is the bond involved when a person has invested in conventional goals and achievements they could risk losing by breaking rules?