Unit 6: Media and Social Shaping - Practice Quiz

SOC371 — Sociology Of Media 50 Questions
0 Correct 0 Wrong 50 Left
0/50

1 Which sociologist is most closely associated with the concept of 'networked publics' regarding how youth navigate social media?

A. danah boyd
B. Henry Jenkins
C. Sherry Turkle
D. Marshall McLuhan

2 According to Marc Prensky, individuals who were born during or after the general introduction of digital technologies and through interacting with digital technology from an early age are known as:

A. Digital Natives
B. Networked Individuals
C. App Generation
D. Digital Immigrants

3 In the context of growing up online, 'context collapse' refers to:

A. The flattening of multiple distinct audiences into a single context.
B. The loss of internet connection during critical social interactions.
C. The decline of traditional social values due to online anonymity.
D. The psychological breakdown caused by cyberbullying.

4 Sonia Livingstone’s research on children and the internet emphasizes that increased opportunity often comes with increased:

A. Risk
B. Isolation
C. Surveillance
D. Intelligence

5 Which term describes the phenomenon where people act out more intensely or aggressively online than they would in person?

A. The Online Disinhibition Effect
B. The Third-Person Effect
C. The Spiral of Silence
D. The Cultivation Effect

6 Sherry Turkle's book 'Alone Together' argues that mobile technology leads to:

A. The expectation of more from technology and less from each other.
B. Enhanced community building in local neighborhoods.
C. Greater intimacy in physical relationships.
D. A complete abandonment of digital communication.

7 The concept of 'absent presence' in the sociology of mobile phones refers to:

A. The ghosting phenomenon in dating apps.
B. Being physically present but mentally disengaged due to interaction with a mobile device.
C. Tracking the location of friends via GPS.
D. The feeling of missing a phone when it is left at home.

8 According to Rich Ling, 'micro-coordination' refers to:

A. The government surveillance of small groups.
B. The detailed design of mobile circuitry.
C. The nuanced management of social interactions and logistics in real-time via mobile phones.
D. The use of mobile phones to organize large-scale political protests.

9 What is 'phubbing'?

A. Using a phone to track physical fitness.
B. Snubbing someone in a social setting by looking at your phone instead of paying attention.
C. Hacking into private phones.
D. Publishing fake news via mobile apps.

10 In the context of the 'App Generation' (Gardner and Davis), what does it mean to be 'App-dependent'?

A. Developing one's own applications for profit.
B. Using apps to enhance creativity and explore new identities.
C. Looking to apps for answers to all questions and avoiding risk or ambiguity.
D. Refusing to use technology for daily tasks.

11 Conversely, Gardner and Davis define 'App-enabled' as:

A. Being addicted to social media scrolling.
B. Having parental controls disabled on a device.
C. Using apps as a starting point for creativity and self-expression.
D. The technical ability to code software.

12 A key criticism of the 'App Generation's' identity formation is:

A. They have too many secret identities.
B. They view identity as a 'packaged' brand to be curated and polished.
C. They prefer anonymity over recognition.
D. They have no interest in how others perceive them.

13 Which theorist is most associated with the distinction between 'stickiness' and 'spreadability' in media?

A. Jean Baudrillard
B. Henry Jenkins
C. Erving Goffman
D. Pierre Bourdieu

14 According to Limor Shifman, an internet meme is defined as:

A. A single viral video that gets millions of views.
B. A group of digital items sharing common characteristics, created with awareness of each other, and circulated/imitated by many users.
C. Any picture with text overlay.
D. A group of digital items sharing common characteristics strictly created by corporations.

15 The concept of 'FOMO' (Fear Of Missing Out) is best described sociologically as:

A. A form of social anxiety characterized by a desire to stay continually connected with what others are doing.
B. A marketing strategy used by television broadcasters.
C. A clinical anxiety disorder unrelated to technology.
D. The fear of losing internet connectivity during a storm.

16 Which term describes the practice of supporting a political or social cause by means such as social media or online petitions, characterized as involving very little effort or commitment?

A. Micro-coordination
B. Hacktivism
C. Activism
D. Slacktivism

17 In gamer culture, the 'Magic Circle' (Huizinga) refers to:

A. The coding loop that runs the game engine.
B. The elite group of professional gamers.
C. The circular controller used in early consoles.
D. The boundary separating the game world, where special rules apply, from the real world.

18 What is 'Ludology' the study of?

A. The economic impact of e-sports.
B. The psychological effects of violence.
C. The narrative structure of games.
D. Games as systems of rules and mechanics.

19 The controversy known as 'Gamergate' highlighted which negative aspect of gamer culture?

A. The high cost of consoles.
B. Harassment, sexism, and exclusionary attitudes toward women and minorities.
C. The addiction levels of MMORPGs.
D. The rigging of e-sports tournaments.

20 In the context of mobile technology, 'tethering' refers to:

A. The use of wires to charge devices.
B. Connecting a phone to a laptop for internet.
C. Restricting internet access for children.
D. The psychological feeling of being constantly tied to one's social network and parents via the mobile device.

21 Which term describes the integration of game mechanics (points, leaderboards) into non-game contexts to motivate participation?

A. Gamification
B. Ludification
C. Simulation
D. Virtualization

22 What is an 'Avatar' in the context of digital sociology?

A. A social media moderator.
B. A type of computer virus.
C. A high-grossing film.
D. A digital representation of a user within a virtual environment.

23 The 'quantified self' movement is closely linked to which technological trend?

A. Wearable technology and health apps.
B. Viral marketing.
C. MMORPGs
D. Console gaming.

24 In the context of viral media, 'participatory culture' implies that:

A. Only professionals create content.
B. Participation requires a subscription fee.
C. Audiences are not just consumers but also contributors and producers of content.
D. Media consumption is passive.

25 Which of the following is a characteristic of 'Networked Individualism'?

A. All social interactions are anonymous.
B. Individuals no longer rely on social support.
C. People interact mostly within tightly knit, geographically bound groups.
D. The person, rather than the household or group, is the primary unit of connectivity.

26 The 'Privacy Paradox' refers to the finding that:

A. Users do not care about privacy.
B. Users claim to care about privacy but often freely disclose personal information online.
C. Governments protect privacy better than corporations.
D. Privacy settings are impossible to understand.

27 What is 'Modding' in gamer culture?

A. Moderating a chat room.
B. Playing in 'moderate' mode.
C. Buying modern equipment.
D. The act of players altering the game's code or assets to create new content.

28 The 'algorithm' in social media shaping refers to:

A. The legal terms of service.
B. The physical server storing data.
C. A set of rules used by platforms to prioritize and filter content presented to users.
D. The rhythm of typing on a keyboard.

29 According to T.L. Taylor, e-sports challenge the traditional definition of sport by:

A. Replacing physical exertion with cognitive and fine-motor skill mastery.
B. Removing the element of competition.
C. Eliminating spectators.
D. Allowing cheating.

30 Which term describes the blurred boundary between work and leisure caused by mobile technology?

A. The Always-On Culture
B. Professionalization
C. Gamification
D. The Digital Divide

31 The 'bedroom culture' of the late 20th century has evolved in the digital age into:

A. Media-rich personal spaces where youth socialize with the outside world from within their room.
B. Outdoor play.
C. Communal living rooms.
D. Strictly study environments.

32 What is the 'Filter Bubble'?

A. A photography filter used on Instagram.
B. A protective screen for mobile phones.
C. A method of censoring inappropriate content.
D. A state of intellectual isolation resulting from algorithms serving users only content they agree with.

33 In the context of the App Generation, 'transactional relationships' implies:

A. Banking online.
B. Business networking only.
C. Viewing social interactions as exchanges to be managed efficiently rather than deep connections.
D. Paying for dating apps.

34 Which of the following is an example of 'technical determinism' regarding mobile phones?

A. Phones have no impact on society.
B. The belief that mobile phones cause social isolation inevitably.
C. Society shapes how phones are designed.
D. People use phones to reinforce existing social patterns.

35 The concept of 'Gold Farming' in MMORPGs relates to:

A. Players (often in developing nations) playing to acquire in-game currency to sell for real money.
B. Winning a championship trophy.
C. Planting crops in FarmVille.
D. Finding hidden levels in games.

36 Who authored the influential book 'The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life', which is often applied to social media profile curation?

A. Erving Goffman
B. Sherry Turkle
C. Mark Zuckerberg
D. Karl Marx

37 In viral media, 'remix culture' refers to:

A. A society that allows and encourages derivative works by combining or editing existing materials.
B. Illegal piracy of software.
C. The decline of original thought.
D. Listening to music while browsing.

38 What is 'Doomscrolling'?

A. scrolling to the bottom of a webpage.
B. The tendency to continue surfing or scrolling through bad news, even though that news is saddening or depressing.
C. Deleting old apps.
D. Playing the game Doom.

39 The term 'Second Life' refers to:

A. A famous virtual world where users navigate via avatars.
B. Having a secret Instagram account.
C. Backing up your hard drive.
D. Reincarnation beliefs online.

40 Which factor most contributes to the 'virality' of content according to Jonah Berger?

A. Standard formatting.
B. Length of the text.
C. Posting at midnight.
D. High physiological arousal (awe, anger, excitement).

41 In the context of the App Generation, the 'algocratic' governance means:

A. No rules at all.
B. Governance by algorithms/code rather than human laws or discretion.
C. Government by the people.
D. Rule by the wealthy.

42 The distinction between 'public' and 'private' spaces is ____ by mobile technology.

A. Reinforced
B. Eliminated
C. Blurred
D. Reversed

43 What is 'Doxxing' in online culture?

A. Blocking a user.
B. Sending documents via email.
C. Creating a digital avatar.
D. The malicious practice of publishing private or identifying information about a particular individual on the internet.

44 Which generation is typically characterized as having never known a world without the internet?

A. The Silent Generation
B. Gen Z / iGen
C. Gen X
D. Boomers

45 The 'Echo Chamber' effect is best described as:

A. The noise made by notifications.
B. Improved audio quality in video chats.
C. A situation where beliefs are amplified or reinforced by communication and repetition inside a closed system.
D. Open debate between opposing sides.

46 In gaming, 'immersion' refers to:

A. The state of being deeply engaged or absorbed in the game world.
B. The cost of the game.
C. The installation process.
D. Water-based levels.

47 Which of these is considered a 'Third Place' in the context of digital sociology (Oldenburg)?

A. The Commute
B. MMORPGs / Online Communities
C. Home
D. Work

48 The 'democratization of content creation' generally refers to:

A. The ability for ordinary users to create and distribute media without traditional gatekeepers.
B. Government voting apps.
C. Only politicians being allowed to tweet.
D. Free internet for everyone.

49 Why do sociologists study 'memes'?

A. They are easy to archive.
B. They serve as complex cultural artifacts that reflect shared values, anxieties, and political discourse.
C. They generate ad revenue.
D. They are funny.

50 The 'Google Effect' (or Digital Amnesia) refers to:

A. The increase in IQ due to search engines.
B. The dominance of Google in search.
C. Visual impairment from screens.
D. The tendency to forget information that can be found readily online.