Chapter 9 - Kinship, Family, and Marriage

The system of meaning and power created to determine who is related to whom and to define their mutual expectations, rights, and responsibilities is

kinship.

a descent group.

fictive kinship.

a social network.

kinship.

What model of kinship does the idea that a family consists of a mother, a father, and their children reflect?

a nearly universal, cross-cultural understanding of kinship

a Euro-American ideal

a stable model that matches the lived experience of most Americans

a model proven to be the best structure for society

a Euro-American ideal

Most descent groups in the United States are based on consanguinity. What is the basis of this relationship?

size of group

paternity

blood

maternity

blood

What do anthropologists call descent groups based on a claim to a founding ancestor but lacking genealogical documentation?

relations

clans

marriages

lineages

clans

Which form of marriage that allows multiple spouses is the LEAST common?

polygyny

monogamy

polyandry

exogamy

polyandry

Worldwide, what is the most prevalent strategy in use today to track kin group membership?

consanguinity

matrilineality

ancestry

patrilineality

patrilineality

The kinship unit of mother, father, and children is called a

chosen family.

family of procreation.

family of orientation.

nuclear family.

nuclear family.

In the United States, interracial marriage is no longer illegal; however, data on marriage patterns suggests that Americans continue to practice

religious exogamy.

kindred endogamy.

racial endogamy.

racial exogamy.

racial endogamy.

Melanie Medeiros’s research on the impact of a new tourism industry on families in Brogodo, Brazil, demonstrates which pattern?

Changing gender roles and opportunities led to higher rates of sexual assault and domestic abuse.

Globalization generally improved economic opportunities for men and led to more stable marriages.

As economic opportunities for women increase, approval for gay marriage also increases.

Expanding economic opportunities for women are linked to a rapid rise in divorce.

Expanding economic opportunities for women are linked to a rapid rise in divorce.

The parents of an upper-class family in the United States send their two children to a private boarding school and then to an elite college. Both children marry other members of the upper class, whom they met at school. Their parents encouraged what kind of an arranged marriage?

companionate

class endogamy

class exogamy

polygamous

class endogamy

Although some kinship relationships are established through biology or common descent, others are established through marriage. What do anthropologists call relationships established through marriage or alliance?

legal

exogamous

extramarital

affinal

affinal

Many people today forge kinship ties with unrelated people. What might explain why consanguineal kin relationships are being supplemented by affinal ones?

By blurring the distinction between what historically has been considered a kinship group, people can forge stronger and more extensive kinship ties through bonds of community and culture.

Families serve as the ultimate social safety net and so these new relationships make little sense.

Community and culture cannot replace family.

Families are small and cannot always fulfill all the necessary functions.

By blurring the distinction between what historically has been considered a kinship group, people can forge stronger and more extensive kinship ties through bonds of community and culture.

A custom like marriage exists in every known culture. However, many anthropologists observe that

marriage practices do not vary widely across cultures.

marriage practices vary so widely across cultures that it is difficult to define any characteristic as universal.

there are four main types of marriages worldwide.

there is no need to change the definition of marriage.

marriage practices vary so widely across cultures that it is difficult to define any characteristic as universal.

Except for a few rare historical examples, such as Incan, Hawaiian, and ancient Egyptian royalty, incest taboos universally prohibit sexual relations and marriage between

parents and children, between siblings, and between all cousins.

first cousins and between second cousins.

parents and children and between siblings.

half-siblings and between parallel cousins.

parents and children and between siblings.

Benny’s family tree is constructed based on his female ancestors. What kind of descent group is this?

cognatic kin

matrilineal kin

affinal kin

bilateral kin

matrilineal kin

When Juan José speaks of his dream to get married and have children, he is talking about a(n)

extended family.

family of procreation.

family of orientation.

lineage.

family of procreation.

Humita’s mother’s mother enthralls her with legends of their first ancestor, the Spider Woman. Humita is prohibited from marrying another descendant of the Spider Woman, but she may marry a descendant of her father’s mother’s apical ancestor. The term that best describes her society’s kinship structure is

matrilineal lineage.

bilateral descent group.

matrilineal clan.

patrilineal descent group.

matrilineal clan.

A marriage built on love, intimacy, and personal choice rather than social obligation is a(n)

arranged marriage.

family of orientation.

exogamous marriage.

companionate marriage.

companionate marriage.

Carol Stack, Gerb Baumann, and Dana Davis all found that fictive kin

create moral expectations between biologically unrelated people.

are indicative of disorganized dysfunctional cultures of poverty.

occur within homogenous racial-ethnic groups.

only result from family and structural violence.

create moral expectations between biologically unrelated people.

According to Dana Davis, the presence of unrelated aunts, uncles, and sisters in shelters for battered women indicated that

violence affected entire families and passed from generation to generation.

consanguine familial ties did not disintegrate, even during difficult times.

women created fictive kin to re-create lost families and have a safety net in times of need.

the U.S. Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act impoverished entire families.

women created fictive kin to re-create lost families and have a safety net in times of need.

Among Malay villagers on the island of Langkawi, kinship is not only given at birth but also acquired through

reproductive technologies.

initiation rituals.

co-residence and co-feeding.

genealogical research.

co-residence and co-feeding.

In the London suburb of Southall, young people of different ethnic backgrounds form communities where they call each other “cousin.” Which of the following is a reason why forming “cousin” relationships works in this community?

The term “cousin” is common in many of the languages and cultures of the community.

The term “cousin” is different in many of the languages and cultures of the community.

Cousins are still fully within the bounds of kinship rather than friendship.

Cousins can be maternal or paternal.

The term “cousin” is common in many of the languages and cultures of the community.

In 2004, the American Anthropological Association publicly stated that a “vast array of family types” contribute to “stable and humane societies.” Why did the organization issue this statement?

to support heterosexual marriage

to support same-sex marriage

to expand research into the nature of families

to increase economic support for families in poverty

to support same-sex marriage

To what kind of culture is the “detachable” nuclear family unit, commonly associated with Western industrialized cultures, well adapted?

a culture that prioritizes geographic stability and intergenerational continuity over economic success, independence, and mobility

a culture that prioritizes economic success, independence, and mobility over geographic stability and intergenerational continuity

a culture that prioritizes values like those held by early American colonial society

a culture that deprioritizes following job opportunities

a culture that prioritizes economic success, independence, and mobility over geographic stability and intergenerational continuity

In Melanie Medeiros’s study of Brogodo, Brazil, what impact did economic shifts have on gender and the family?

In Melanie Medeiros' study of Brogodo, Brazil, economic shifts significantly altered gender roles and family dynamics by increasing women's financial independence while challenging traditional expectations. As job opportunities expanded in urban areas, many men migrated for work, leaving women to take on both economic and household responsibilities, which shifted power dynamics within families. Women's growing participation in the workforce allowed them more autonomy in decision-making, but it also created tension as traditional gender norms clashed with these new realities. Additionally, economic instability led to delayed marriages and increased rates of seperation, as financial hardships made long-term commitments more difficult to maintain. These changes disrupted the historical reliance on male breadwinners, forcing families to adapt to new structures where women played a more central economic role. Overall, economic shifts reshaped gender relations in Brogodo by redefining family structures, challenging patriarchal norms, and increasing women's social and financial agency.