SDB exam 3 critical thinking

Suicide rates are high in the happiest countries; how could this be?

explained by Reference Group Theory

- ppl compare themselves to happy ppl

- feel worthless, isolated, hopeless

- comparison increases shame

What is Reference Group Theory?

ppl compare themselves to others

- reference group = ppl around u

- comparison → worthlessness

What are Deaths of Despair?

deaths in relation to suicide, drug overdose, alcohol deaths

How do Case & Deaton explain Deaths of Despair?

Usually affects those who working-class (40s–50s), mostly white, no BA

• economic decline

- lack of jobs

- wages not matching productivity

- failing American Dream

- isolation

- hopelessness

What is the Suicide Paradox?

happiest countries = highest suicide rates

- explained by reference group theory it is a paradox because it contradicts itself

Difference between physician-assisted suicide, active euthanasia, passive euthanasia

Physician-Assisted: Phyisican provides advice/medication to end life (patient decides)

Active Euthanasia: physician participates in killing in order to relief pain. Illegal in the USA (doctor Decides) 
Passive Euthanasia: Caregiver stops providing necessary needs to cause death. (caregiver decides)

What was the War on Drugs really about?

President Nixon targeted Black ppl + anti-war activists

- weed=hippies, heroin=Black ppl

- raids, arrests, defamation

What does Donald Noel’s model have to do with social control?

different groups culturally, socially different meet superior groups which then

- ethnocentrism

- dominant group blocks opportunities

- keeps others subordinate

How do sociologists explain violence? (include example)

interpersonal: Causing person → person harm physically, sexually, or emotionally ex: Penn State coach abuse

intergroup: causing harm on a group motivated by race or even politics. ex: violence against black people due to racism.

Why is it difficult to answer: Is the U.S. a violent country?

• high murder and political violence rates 

• no unified tradition

  - history not tradition

  - mostly intergroup violence

• diverse and random 

What is the Second Amendment controversy?

• The controversy is about how to interpret the phrase “the right to bear arms.”

• One side:

  • believes it means every individual person has the right to own guns

  • mainly for self-defense and personal protection

• Other side:

  • believes it refers to a “well-regulated militia,” meaning gun ownership is tied to a state-controlled military group

  • gun rights are not guaranteed to every individual, and the state can regulate them

• These two interpretations create a major debate today around gun control, gun rights, and public safety.

According to Richard Hofstadter, what is the paradox about violence in America?

• U.S. is politically stable like England/Scandinavia

• BUT has high violence like unstable countries

• People blame diversity, but Hofstadter says that's not the cause

• Real danger = backlash + polarization in society

• Violence comes from rising division, not young militants

Stable democracy + high violence, with the true risk coming from polarization and backlash, not diversity.

How did God and guns get intertwined?

• guns + Christianity linked in U.S. culture

• evangelicals = highest gun-owning group

Bible-based marketing:

• Daniel Defense → uses Bible verses, says supporting guns = supporting the Gospel, Christian duty → Second Amendment

• Spike’s Tactical → engraves weapons with Psalms

• phrase: “Jesus, guns, and the Constitution”

Historical roots:

• Muscular Christianity → pastors on the frontier w/ Bible + gun

• physical strength = spiritual strength

• stories like the “Two Gun Sermon”

Beliefs today:

• guns viewed as “God-given rights”

• firearms tied to Christian + American identity

• helped create the “good guy with a gun” as a moral/religious role

1. According to the 2025 Gallup survey, what is the support for same-sex marriage by subgroup - age, political affilation, residence, and educaton?

• LGBTQ+ U.S. adults: 9.3%

By age:

• Gen Z: 23%

• Millennials: 14%

By political affiliation:

• Liberals: 21%

• Conservatives: 3%

By residence:

• Cities: 11%

• Suburbs: 10%

• Rural: 7%

By education:

• College grads: 9%

• Non-college: 10%
  

What changes did we discuss in class that have taken place in marriage rights in the last three decades?

• 1996 – DOMA

  • marriage = one man + one woman

  • same-sex marriages NOT recognized federally

• 2003 – Massachusetts

  • 1st state to legalize same-sex marriage

  • reason: right to marry means choosing the person you want

• 2013 – Supreme Court

  • married same-sex couples get federal benefits

• 2015 – Obergefell v. Hodges

  • Constitution guarantees right to same-sex marriage

  • same-sex marriage becomes legal nationwide

• 2022 – Respect for Marriage Act (Biden)

  • codifies federal protection for same-sex + interracial marriage

Is homosexuality a good example of social constructionism? What evidence supports this?

• Yes, homosexuality is a good example of social constructionism.

• Social constructionism = meaning + knowledge are socially created, not natural or fixed.

• Society decides what is seen as “normal.”

Evidence:

• Views on homosexuality changed over time:

  • once illegal

  • then labeled a mental illness

  • now accepted and legally protected

• Different cultures understand sexuality in different ways.

• Shows sexuality is made + remade by society, not an objective reality.