UGC NET Paper 2 Sociology Mock Test - 9 - UGC NET MCQ

The Correct answer is ​A and C.

Key Points

• Issues in the Information Society:
  • ​Privacy and Freedom: ICTs offer more freedom, yet they enable surveillance by governments and others, raising concerns about privacy and freedom.
    • The fear of privacy loss might lead people to avoid using technologies, posing serious consequences.
    • There's a risk of societies becoming technologically surveilled in the name of openness and free access to information.
  • Digital Divide: Around 500 million people, mostly in developing countries, lack access to knowledge resources and services.
    • The digital divide exists not only between nations but also within countries, like the gap between urban and rural populations.
    • Bridging this divide requires addressing structural disadvantages and ensuring people have the knowledge to use technology.
  • Control of the Network: ​The issue of network control involves considerations of open standards, public control, proprietary systems, and ownership.
    • Challenges arise in Information Age disasters originating from the network of networks.
    • Questions about who controls the network and its standards need attention.
  • Commercialization of Knowledge: The increasing commercialization of knowledge and information access is seen as a potential threat to the transition to a knowledge society.
    • The information industry's emergence is driven by the commercial value of information and the challenge of information overload.
  • Legal and Rights Issues: Ownership of information and intellectual property rights becomes a crucial issue as knowledge possession, access, and application contribute to economic growth.
    • Addressing legal and rights issues is closely connected to the commercialization of knowledge.
• Other Emerging Issues:
  • ​Information Overload: Coping with too much information and limited time.
  • Organization of Work: Changes in the work environment due to the networked economy, teleworking, flexible working, and virtual workplaces.\
  • Death of Distance; The End of Time: The 24-hour global economy and the impact of technology on time and distance.

The correct answer is Offender computer skills and victim ignorance of computer technology.

Key Points

Cybercrime

• Cybercrime is the use of a computer as an instrument to further illegal ends, such as committing fraud, trafficking in child pornography and intellectual property, stealing identities, or violating privacy.
• The Cybercrime occurs primarily because of the skill of the offender who is called the Hacker.
• Cybercrime becomes easier for the offender to commit when the victim has a lack of knowledge towards computer technology.

The correct answer is- Because it focused on areas from which women have historically been excluded.

Important Points

• The passage argues that sociology, by focusing predominantly on spheres of influence traditionally held by men (like paid labor, politics, and formal organizations), and excluding areas tied more closely to women’s experiences, turned into an implicitly masculine discipline.

The correct answer is - Sociology unwittingly serving as a vehicle for alienating women from their own lives.

Important Points

• The passage points out that sociology, by failing to take into account the perspectives and experiences of women, created a discipline that could inadvertently further alienate women from their own lives.

The right answer is - Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. The passage mentions these areas will see substantial urban growth in the future, indicating demographic shifts and urbanization challenges likely to be faced in these regions.

Important Points

•  In Sub-Saharan Africa, urban growth is fueled by both high fertility rates and rural-urban migration. As a result, many cities experience a high influx of young people looking for employment opportunities.
• This poses challenges related to housing, infrastructure, education, and providing essential services such as water, sewage, and healthcare for the rapidly growing population.
• South Asian countries, particularly India and Bangladesh, are also experiencing rapid urbanization including the expansion of mega-cities and growth of smaller towns. Similar to Africa, this trend has been driven by rural-urban migration as people search for employment and opportunities in urban areas. This growth has implications for infrastructure, housing, and service provision, with the additional challenge of managing this growth sustainably.

Both regions, therefore, face the critical task of urban planning and infrastructure development to meet the needs of their rapidly growing urban populations. This includes ensuring affordable housing, preventing the rise of informal settlements, and providing public services like education, healthcare, and transportation.

t also underscores the urgency for these regions to invest in sustainable urban development strategies addressing issues such as pollution, waste management, and climate resilience.

The passage mentions various forms of degradation as a result of increasing urbanization. This includes deforestation, water strain, pollution, and land use changes, all of which can strain the carrying capacity of the affected areas. Therefore, the correct answer is -"Changes in land use from agricultural to residential and industrial/commercial, deforestation, water depletion, and pollution."

Important Points

• Urbanization, while bringing many benefits, also has various negative impacts, such as ecological degradation and resource strain.
• The shift of land use from agriculture to residential and industrial has implications like deforestation, water depletion, pollution and increased waste, which are noted as significant challenges posed by urban sprawl.

The correct answer is Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.Key Points

•  Assertion (A) is true, Language is a system of symbols and rules that allows humans to communicate and negotiate to mean.
• Through language, humans are able to express their thoughts, feelings, and experiences, and to understand the thoughts, feelings, and experiences of others.
• Reason (R) is also true, Naming, or assigning words to concepts, objects, and experiences, is a fundamental aspect of language.
• The ability to name things allowed early humans to communicate about the world around them and to develop more complex forms of social organization.
• Naming and language use have allowed humans to accumulate knowledge and build on the knowledge of previous generations.

• Reason (R) is the correct explanation of Assertion (A) because it provides further information and context that supports the assertion.

​So we can conclude that the correct answer is Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.

The Logic of Scientific Theory (1959) is work of Karl Popper.

Key Points

• The Logic of Scientific Theory (1959) is work of Karl Popper.
  • This work also contains his famous concept of falsification.
  • He distinguishes true science from false science.
  • According to him, true science is something that can be rejected based on new observations that are inexplainable by the old theory.
  • A false science can not be falsified. For example- Marxism doctrine is a false science as it proclaims only itself to be the true path to the egalitarian world. It gives a predefined formula from which there is no scope of deviation.
  • Thomas Kuhn's work titled "The Structure of Scientific Revolution (1962)" and Verification is often seen as counterpart to this work.
  • Kuhn draws distinction between normal science and extraordinary science.

Additional Information

• The Rules of Sociological Method (1895) is a work by Emile Durkheim.
  • In this book Durkheim introduced the concept of social fact.
  • The main objective behind this book was to defend his position as proposed in Division of Labour (1893) and establish Sociology as a distinct, scientific discipline having its own unique subject matter.
  • He discusses the ways to observe the social facts as things, how to isolate them from mundane/common sensical knowledge.
• Protestant Ethic and Spirit of Capitalism (1904) is a work by Max Weber.
  • The book began as series of essays. It was translated in English by Talcott Parsons in 1930.
  • The work deals with finding the interlinkages between religious and economical system of society.
  • He chose Calvanism branch of protestant ethic and Capitalism as economic system.
  • This work also led him to do comparative study on the same theme with different religious systems (Ancient judaism, Religion of China and Religion of India owe their origin to this particular work only).
  • His work showed a strong correlation between religious ethic and capitalism
• Economy and Society is a work originally done by Max Weber.
  • Later it was translated in English.
  • It was published in 1920s after death of Weber.
  • In this book he presented economy and society as two entities which share dialectical relationship with one another.
  • He provided a framework to understand the relations between social action, individual action and economic actions and economic institutions.
  • also contains debate on different types of authority and their efficacy.

The Correct answer is Both (A) and (R) are true.

Key Points

• Assertion (A): Big Data is a product of data being generated constantly, automatically, and rapidly.

​ Big Data refers to extremely large sets of data that cannot be easily managed or processed using traditional data processing tools.

The assertion correctly identifies key characteristics of Big Data:

• Generation: Data is continuously and consistently produced, often in real-time. This can come from various sources such as sensors, social media, online transactions, and more.
• AuConstanttomatic Generation: The data generation process is automated and often occurs without direct human intervention.
• Rapid Generation: Data is produced at a high velocity. This rapid generation is facilitated by the increasing speed of data transmission and the use of technologies that generate data quickly.
• Reason (R): Due to the omnipresence of personal computing devices and smartphones, individuals generate massive amounts of data through e-commerce, e-communication, social media, online searches, and GPS Navigation.

​The reason provides a contextual explanation for why data is generated constantly, automatically, and rapidly.

It points out that the proliferation of personal computing devices and smartphones has led to a surge in data production:

• E-commerce: Transactions made through online shopping platforms generate data.
• E-communication: Communication through emails, messaging apps, and other online platforms contributes to data generation.
• Social Media: Interactions on social media platforms involve the creation of data through posts, likes, shares, comments, etc.
• Online Searches: Search engines collect data on user queries and behavior.
• GPS Navigation: Location-based services, like GPS navigation on smartphones, generate data about users' movement and location.

The correct option is A is true, but R is false.Key Points

• Assertion (A) is true: Technology has indeed played a significant role in developing more advanced economies.
• It has done so through enabling improvements in productivity, fostering innovation, creating new industries, and improving the efficiency of existing ones.
• These contributions are pivotal in advancing the economic development and capacity of a nation or region.
• Reason (R) is considered false in this context:
• While it's acknowledged that technology can contribute to aspects of life that some might find hectic, stating that technology has made life more hectic as a blanket statement does not encapsulate the broad impacts of technology.
• Specifically, it overlooks the numerous ways technology has made life easier and more manageable for many people.
• From automating laborious tasks to enabling instant communication across the globe, the conveniences and efficiencies brought about by technology have significantly contributed to easing the complexities of daily life and enhancing quality of life.

The first science policy formulated by the Government of India was in 1958.Key Points

• The first science policy of India, also known as the Scientific Policy Resolution, was adopted by the Indian government in 1958.
• The policy aimed to promote scientific research and development in the country and emphasized the importance of utilizing science and technology for the country's economic and social development.
• The resolution was formulated by a committee headed by the renowned physicist Meghnad Saha, and it laid the foundation for the establishment of several scientific institutions and research centres in the country, including the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and the Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISERs).
• The policy also recognized the need for international collaborations in science and technology and emphasized the importance of training and educating a new generation of scientists and researchers in the country.

• Overall, the Scientific Policy Resolution of 1958 was a significant milestone in the development of science and technology in India and set the stage for the country's rapid progress in these fields over the subsequent decades.

Hence we can conclude that the first science policy formulated by the Government of India was in 1958.

The correct option is Only 1.Key Points

• The digital divide refers to the unequal distribution of access to and use of digital technologies between different groups in society.
• One of the primary causes of the digital divide is socioeconomic inequality.
• People who are economically disadvantaged are less likely to have access to digital technologies, such as computers and high-speed internet, compared to those who are more affluent.
• This can further exacerbate existing inequalities, such as disparities in education and job opportunities.
• Broad levels of education can actually help to reduce the digital divide.
• By providing individuals with the necessary skills and knowledge to use digital technologies, they are more likely to be able to access and utilize these technologies to their fullest potential.
• Educational institutions, such as schools and universities, can also play a role in providing access to technology and digital literacy training to disadvantaged communities.
• In summary, while education can help to bridge the digital divide, it is not a cause of the digital divide.

• The biggest cause of the digital divide is socioeconomic inequality, which can limit access to digital technologies and further exacerbate existing inequalities.

Hence we can conclude that the correct option is Only 1.

All of the listed barriers can impede the implementation of e-governance:

• Unequal access to computer technology can create a digital divide, making it difficult for some citizens to access e-government services.
• High initial costs for setting up e-government solutions can be a barrier, particularly for smaller or less developed countries or localities.
• Digital security issues can raise concerns about data privacy and protection, and can undermine public trust in e-government systems.
• Resistance to change can be a challenge, particularly if citizens or government officials are not familiar with the benefits or potential of e-government solutions, or if they are attached to traditional ways of doing things.

Additional Information

• Unequal access to computer technology can be a result of factors such as income inequality, geographical location, age, and education level. Governments can address this barrier by investing in digital infrastructure and providing training and support for citizens to use e-government services.
• The high initial costs of setting up e-government solutions can include expenses such as hardware and software procurement, IT infrastructure development, and staff training. Governments may be able to mitigate these costs by partnering with private sector organizations or other governments to share resources and expertise.
• Digital security issues can include risks such as data breaches, identity theft, and cyberattacks. To address these concerns, governments can implement measures such as data encryption, two-factor authentication, and regular security audits.
• Resistance to change can be a natural human reaction to new technologies or processes, particularly if people are not familiar with the benefits or potential of e-government solutions. Governments can address this barrier by engaging with citizens and stakeholders to communicate the benefits of e-government services and address concerns or misconceptions.

Hence, all of the listed elements are the barriers to the implementation of e-governance.

The correct answer is All of the above.

Key Points

• Application of information and communication technology in government work processes.
• This is the core of e-governance. It involves using technologies like computers, networks, and the internet to automate and improve government processes. This includes activities like
  • Online applications and forms: Citizens can apply for services, submit documents, and track their applications online.
  • Electronic payments: Citizens can pay taxes, fees, and other dues online.
  • Online information and services: Citizens can access government information and services, such as birth certificates, land records, and voter registration, online.
  • Decision-making and communication: Government officials can use technology to share information, collaborate on projects, and make decisions more efficiently.
• E-Governance: Use of information and communication technology by the public sector.
  • This definition emphasizes that e-governance is a broader concept than just automating government processes. It also includes using technology to improve communication and engagement between the government and citizens. This can be done through
  • Websites and social media: Government websites and social media pages can provide information and services to citizens, answer their questions, and collect their feedback.
  • Mobile applications: Mobile apps can provide government services to citizens on their smartphones and tablets.
• Smart is the way to make governance. This definition emphasizes that e-governance is not just about technology, but also about using technology in a smart way to improve governance. This means using technology to:
  • Increase efficiency and effectiveness: E-governance can help government agencies to work more efficiently and effectively by automating tasks, reducing paperwork, and improving communication.

Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, was one who put great emphasis on Science and Technology. Key Points

• Jawaharlal Nehru was deeply committed to the development of science and technology in India.
• He believed that science and technology were essential for India's progress and development as a nation. In 1947, soon after India gained independence, Nehru became the country's first Prime Minister.
• One of his top priorities was to build a strong scientific and technological base in the country.
• Under Nehru's leadership, India established a number of institutions of national importance, such as the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), and the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC).
• These institutions were designed to promote scientific research, technological innovation, and industrial development in the country.
• Nehru also laid the foundation for India's space and nuclear programs.
• In 1962, India established the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) with the objective of developing space technology for national development.
• In 1964, India conducted its first nuclear test, which was led by the Atomic Energy Commission under Nehru's guidance.
• Nehru's emphasis on science and technology paved the way for India's rapid industrialization and economic growth in the decades that followed.

• Today, India is one of the world's leading producers of software and IT services, and its space and nuclear programs are among the most advanced in the world.

Hence we can conclude that Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, was one who put great emphasis on Science and Technology.

The correct answer is A is true, but R is false.Key Points

• The assertion that pilgrimage is a journey or search for moral or spiritual significance is widely accepted, as a pilgrimage has historically been a way for individuals to connect with their faith or spirituality.
• People embark on pilgrimages to visit holy sites, perform religious rituals, or seek a deeper understanding of their beliefs.
• However, the reason that people going on pilgrimage are of communal nature is not necessarily true.
• While some pilgrimages may involve large groups of people travelling together, such as the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, others may be undertaken individually or with just a few companions.

• Therefore, while both the assertion and reason may be true, the reason does not provide a correct explanation for the assertion, making the option the correct answer.

So we conclude that the correct answer is A is true, but R is false.

Answer: The correct answer is, a-iv, b-i, c-ii, d-iii.
Solution:

• The neo-liberal approach sees globalization as a positive, inevitable and irreversible process driven by technological progress and market forces. It believes globalization leads to economic growth, efficiency and prosperity.
• The neo-Marxist view is critical of globalization. It argues that globalization perpetuates global inequality by benefiting the developed core countries at the expense of the underdeveloped periphery. It leads to exploitation and dependency.
• The realist approach looks at globalization through the lens of national interest. It supports globalization insofar as it enhances the power, security and prosperity of the nation-state. But it opposes aspects of globalization that undermine national sovereignty.
• The environmentalist approach is concerned about the ecological consequences of unbridled globalization. It argues that the resource-intensive lifestyle promoted by globalization is unsustainable and leads to environmental degradation, climate change and loss of biodiversity.

Key Points
Neo-Liberal Approach:

• Sees globalization as driven by technological progress and market forces
• Believes globalization is inevitable and irreversible due to economic logic
• Argues that free trade, open markets and global integration lead to efficiency, growth and prosperity
• Supports policies like deregulation, privatization, liberalization
• Criticisms: ignores inequalities, social disruptions, loss of cultural diversity

Neo-Marxist Approach:

• Argues that globalization perpetuates global inequality and exploitation
• Sees globalization as benefiting the developed core countries at the expense of the underdeveloped periphery
• Globalization leads to dependency, unequal exchange, and underdevelopment of the periphery
• Multinational corporations and international financial institutions are instruments of neo-imperialism
• Criticisms: ignores benefits of technology transfer, growth opportunities, poverty reduction

Realist Approach:

• Sees globalization through the lens of national interest and state power
• Supports aspects of globalization that enhance national power, security and prosperity
• Opposes aspects of globalization that undermine national sovereignty and state's ability to control domestic affairs
• Concerned about the unequal impact of globalization on different states
• Criticisms: narrow focus on national interest, ignores non-state actors, global commons

Environmentalist Approach:

• Concerned about the environmental consequences of globalization
• Argues that the consumerist lifestyle promoted by globalization is ecologically unsustainable
• Globalization leads to environmental degradation, climate change, loss of biodiversity
• Critique of corporate-led globalization that externalizes environmental costs
• Supports sustainable development, green technologies, localization

Additional Information

These theoretical approaches offer different lenses to understand the complex phenomenon of globalization. They highlight different aspects, impacts and implications of globalization.

1. The neo-liberal approach has been dominant in shaping policies of governments and international institutions. But it has faced pushback due to rising inequalities and social disruptions.
2. The neo-Marxist approach provides a critical perspective on the power dynamics and inequalities inherent in globalization. But it is criticized for being too deterministic and ignoring agency of the periphery.
3. The realist approach highlights the continuing relevance of the nation-state in the era of globalization. But it is criticized for ignoring non-state actors, global issues and interdependence.
4. The environmentalist approach underscores the ecological limits to unbridled globalization. But it is criticized for sometimes ignoring the development needs of the global South.

The correct answer is A is true, but R is false.Key Points

• Max Weber was a German sociologist, philosopher, and political economist who studied various religions, including Hinduism. Therefore, assertion (A) is true.
• However, the reason given in (R) is not entirely accurate.
• Weber did not argue that modern capitalism does not develop in India solely due to its otherworldly orientation.

• Instead, he suggested that Hinduism's emphasis on karma and the cyclical nature of time created a worldview that did not align with the rational and linear thinking required for the development of modern capitalism.

​​​So we can conclude that the correct answer is A is true, but R is false.

Sovereignty is the full right and power of a governing body over itself, without any interference from outside sources or bodies. In political theory, sovereignty is a substantive term designating supreme authority over some polity.

Alfred Reginald Radcliffe-Brown was one of the most eminent anthropologists of the first half of the twentieth century. By example and teaching, he helped to develop and establish modern “social” anthropology as a generalizing, theoretical discipline. Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behaviour, human biology, and societies, in both the present and past, including past human species. 

The mean, median, and mode of a normal distribution are equal. Mean in the centre, Median on the left, Mode on the right. The area under the normal curve is equal to 1.0. Normal distributions are denser in the centre and less dense in the tails. Normal distributions are defined by two parameters, the mean (μ) and the standard deviation (σ).

The provisions of Part IX of the constitution relating to the Panchayats are not applicable to the Fifth Schedule areas. However, the Parliament may extend these provisions to such areas, subject to such exceptions and modifications as it may specify. Under this provision, the Parliament has enacted the "Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act", 1996, popularly known as the PESA Act or the Extension Act. So, statements 1 and 3 are correct.

At present (2016), ten states have Fifth Schedule Areas. These are: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Chhatisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha and Rajasthan. All the ten states have enacted requisite compliance legislations by amending the respective Panchayati Raj Acts. So, statement 2 is incorrect.

The growing number of slum dwellers is the result of both urbanization and population growth that are outpacing the construction of new affordable homes. Adequate housing is a human right, and the absence of it negatively affects urban equity and inclusion, health and safety, and livelihood opportunities.

G.P. Murdock has divided family into 'Family of Orientation' and 'Family of Procreation'.

A nuclear family is a family which consists of husband, wife and their unmarried children. Murdock divides nuclear family into two types: (a) The Family of orientation (b) the Family of procreation

The family in which an individual is born and reared and socialized is known as the family of orientation. It consists of father, mother, brother and sister. The family of procreation refers to the family established by the person through marriage. It consists of husband, wife their sons and daughters.

Endogamy is the practice of marrying within a specific social group, caste, or ethnic group, rejecting those from others as unsuitable for marriage or other close personal relationships. Endogamy is common in many cultures and ethnic groups.

Civil society can be understood as the "third sector" of society, distinct from government and business, and including the family and the private sphere. By other authors, civil society is used in the sense of the aggregate of non-governmental organizations and institutions that manifest interests and will of citizens or 2 individuals and organizations in a society which are independent of the government.

A type I error (false-positive) occurs if an investigator rejects a null hypothesis that is actually true in the population; a type II error (false-negative) occurs if the investigator fails to reject a null hypothesis that is actually false in the population.

A null hypothesis is a type of hypothesis used in statistics that proposes that there is no difference between certain characteristics of a population (or data-generating process).

(i) (iv) (ii) (iii) respectively are correct.

The Elementary Forms of Religious Life, published by the French sociologist E. Durkheim in 1912, is a book that analyzes religion as a social phenomenon.

Fifty years ago, William J. Goode published World Revolution and Family Patterns, a highly influential study of international family change.

The Power Elite is a 1956 book by sociologist C. W. Mills, in which Mills calls attention to the interwoven interests of the leaders of the military, corporate, and political elements of society and suggests that the ordinary citizen in modern times is a relatively powerless subject of manipulation by those three entities.

The Sociological Interpretation of Religion was written by Roland Robertson a sociologist and theorist of globalization who lectured at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland.

"Thinking is simply an internalized or implicit conversation of the individual with himself by means of significant gestures" is said by G.H. Mead. He is regarded as one of the founders of symbolic interactionism and of what has come to be referred to as the Chicago sociological tradition.

Gender refers to the socially constructed differences between men and women. It refers to the masculine and feminine qualities, behavior, roles, and responsibilities that society upholds.

• Gender role is a social construct that means that females and males can play only specific roles. For example, boys can perform well in mathematics and science whereas girls can perform better in art, dance, and music.
• Gender roles are culturally influenced rather than biologically determined as it is developed by society by segregating the works, and cultures, on the basis of the sex of people.
• The cultural conception of gender divides the entire boundaries of human quality into two opposite areas of masculinity and womanhood and their regressive behavior.
• It is harmful as it limits women’s and men’s capacity to develop their personal abilities, pursue their professional careers, and/or make choices about their lives.

So, both of them are correct.