Vocabulary Activity Content Vocabulary Directions: Answer each of the following questions. Include in your answers the vocabulary words in parentheses. 1. A candidate runs for president, has a wildly successful campaign, and is elected in a landslide. Is this an example of charismatic authority, traditional authority, rational-legal authority, or a combination? Explain. (charismatic authority, traditional authority, rational-legal authority) 2. Why might you expect elitism to be a characteristic of authoritarianism? (elitism, authoritarianism) 3. Think about shopping in your town s businesses. Do the cashiers who take your money work in the primary sector, the secondary sector, or the tertiary sector of the economy? Explain. (primary sector, secondary sector, tertiary sector) 4. What are interlocking directorates? What keeps them from becoming heads of monopolies or oligopolies? (interlocking directorates, monopolies, oligopolies) 5. How might the existence of multinationals create downsizing for workers in the United States? (multinationals, downsizing) Sociology and You 1
Vocabulary Activity cont. 6. Directions: Look at the phrases in the list below. If the phrase describes some characteristic of power, check the box next to the phrase. (power) a. takes an extreme form under totalitarianism b. can be obtained through personal charisma or through force c. shows how goods and services in a society are related d. refers to the ability to control the way that people act e. is considered legitimate only when citizens vote to grant it Directions: For each term in the left column, write the letter of the correct definition in the right column. (authority, capitalism, coercion, occupations, pluralism, power elite) 7. authority 8. capitalism 9. coercion a. categories of jobs involving similar activities at varied work locations b. power that is accepted as legitimate by those who are subject to it c. the use of force to control others 10. occupations 11. pluralism 12. power elite Academic Vocabulary d. a system in which political decisions result from bargaining and compromise among special-interest groups e. a unified group of leaders from the military, business world, and government f. an economic system based on private ownership of property and the pursuit of profit Directions: Write S in front of each word that is a synonym (a word with the same or nearly the same meaning) of the listed word and A for each word that is an antonym (a word with an opposite or nearly opposite meaning). (collapse, deviation, disposable, enhance) 13. collapse rise failure destruction success breakdown 14. deviation conformity loyalty variation departure sameness 15. disposable unnecessary vital dispensable useful nonessential 16. enhance boost upgrade worsen enlarge lower 2 Sociology and You
Vocabulary Activity cont. Directions: Write the letter of the phrase or sentence that best answers each question or completes each sentence. 17. Which of the following topics would most likely be of interest to a person who has environmental concerns? (environmental) a. correcting flaws in a nation s legal system b. protecting a minority group s civil rights c. cleaning up a nation s polluted waterways d. feeding the world s impoverished peoples 18. Which of the following is a synonym of guarantee? (guarantee) a. payment c. authority b. assurance d. consideration 19. A person tells you, I am inherently nervous about speaking in public. What does he mean? (inherently) a. Being nervous is a fundamental, natural part of his personality. b. Public speaking makes others nervous, but he has no problem with it. c. He doesn t like being nervous, and he would like to change. d. His nervousness is strong enough to make him physically ill. Sociology and You 3
Readings and Case Studies Activity Reading 18 The Development Impact of Militarization and Corruption When we think of casualties of war, we usually think of soldiers rather than civilians. And we certainly do not think of civilian deaths as those of children under five years of age. In the article below, the researchers perform an in-depth study by examining global forces and systems. They explain how a country s form of government and its decision to build up its military have direct and measureable effects on the lives of the youngest citizens. Read the article below to learn more. A country s military and the military s relationship to its government have a strong influence on how long children live. Children living in countries with militaries that either directly or indirectly control their governments rather than the governments controlling the military praetorian militaries die at particularly high rates. Such militaries tend to spend money on themselves rather than on health or education, spending on the military that is way out of proportion to what the country can really afford spending per soldier that is much higher than the country s yearly average economic activity (the country s gross domestic product per person or gdp per capita). Countries with praetorian militaries come from around the globe: for example, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Mozambique, Papua New Guinea, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Tanzania, and South Africa. In a highly praetorian country such as Kenya, the military spends about 20 times its gdp per capita on each soldier each year. In these often very poor countries, up to half of the population lives on less than the equivalent of $1.25 per day. In contrast, in countries with non-praetorian militaries, the spending per member of the military is much lower compared to the country s gdp per capita. Countries with very low levels of praetorian military spending for example Armenia, Austria, Belarus, Guatemala, Kazakhstan, Cambodia, Laos, Moldova, Panama, Singapore, and Uruguay are also found all across the globe. For example, in Guatemala (which has a non-praetorian military) the country spends only about 1.5 times its average per person income on each member of the military. These countries are on average wealthier than those with praetorian militaries. In the middle are countries like Australia, Burundi, Chad, China, Great Britain, Nigeria, Pakistan, and the United States, which spend about 7 times gdp per capita on each soldier. Compared to countries with lower levels of praetorian spending, countries with high levels of praetorian spending tend to be poorer and less democratic, and have governments rated as more corrupt and less likely to use a rule of law than countries with lower levels of praetorian spending. As we might expect, countries with low levels of praetorian spending tend to be wealthier and more democratic and to have governments that are less corrupt and more effective. The effect on the nation s people, especially on children, is clear. On average, countries with highly praetorian militaries have child mortality rates that are about double those of countries that have the lowest levels of praetorian spending, but with comparable levels of armed conflict, government corruption, democracy, general level of economic activity, level of military spending, and the size of the military (the proportion of the population that is in the military). Sociology and You 1
Readings and Case Studies Activity cont. The quality of government also makes a substantial difference. Some countries have governments that enforce a rule of law and minimize corruption. In such countries neither businesses nor individuals have to provide bribes to provide or obtain goods and services. Corruption, in contrast, tends to drive up the cost of doing business, often putting goods and services out of reach of the average person. When we contrast countries with the best governments those with low levels of corruption and a strong rule of law with countries with high levels of corruption and weak rule of law, we see that poor governance leads to more than a doubling of the child mortality rate. Children around the world die of diseases that people in the United States think of as treatable nuisances diseases like pneumonia, measles, diarrhea, and other infectious diseases all of which are made more serious by malnutrition. Prioritizing the military draws money and other resources away from basic infrastructures like safe water and sanitation and from health services and primary education, all of which could help prolong children s lives. Credit: The Development Impact of Militarization and Corruption by Steve Carlton-Ford and T. David Evans. All rights reserved. Directions: Using information from the reading, answer the following questions. 1. Identifying The researchers list several countries that spend a great deal maintaining praetorian militaries. Although the countries are spread across the globe, they share several characteristics. List those characteristics. 2. Analyzing The researchers explain that praetorian militaries require high levels of spending even though their economies tend to be poor. What services, institutions, and structures could those countries spend their money on if they wanted to invest in lowering their child mortality rates? 2 Sociology and You
Readings and Case Studies Activity cont. 3. Making Connections Many chapters in the textbook focus on micro-sociology, that is, examining issues that affect individuals outlooks and emotional lives. The focus in this chapter is much broader, examining political and economic systems and how they affect the people who live under them. Given that focus, how does this article illustrate the ideas of conflict theory? 4. Making Decisions What do you think the United States should do to lower child mortality rates in the countries that spend heavily to maintain praetorian military forces? Sociology and You 3