Uncategorized

In This Post we are  providing  CHAPTER 2 TERMS, CONCEPT AND THEIR USE IN SOCIOLOGY NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION for Class 11 SOCIOLOGY which will be beneficial for students. These solutions are updated according to 2021-22 syllabus. These   can be really helpful in the preparation of Board exams and will provide you with a brief knowledge of the chapter.

NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION ON TERMS, CONCEPT AND THEIR USE IN SOCIOLOGY

Question 1.
Why do we need to use special terms and concepts in sociology?
Answer:
As opposed to commonsensical knowledge, sociology like any other science has its own body of concepts and methods of data collection.

As a social science, sociology does need to have certain agreed upon meanings of social realities and processes in studying. Each subject is required to have a standard vocabulary, terminology, language and concepts through which professionals can converse and maintain the different identity of its subject.
It becomes all the more important to discuss sociological terms so as to distinguish what they mean from commonsensical usage which may have varied meanings and connotations.

Question 2.
As a member of society you must be interacting with and in different groups. How do you see these groups from a sociological perspective?
Answer:
Social group refers to the members or individuals defined by formal or informal criteria of membership, who share a feeling of unity or are bound together in relatively stable patterns of interaction is known as social group.
The members of social group establish relationships on the basis of common characteristics and goals and influence each other.

Social groups can be defined as an organised structure of two or more persons who interact with one another, have shared goals, are interdependent, and consider themselves as members of a group.
Groups have the following salient characteristics:

• A social unit consisting of two or more individuals who perceive themselves as belonging to the group. This characteristic of the group helps in distinguishing one group from the other and gives the group its unique identity.
• A collection of individuals who have common motives and goals. Groups function either working towards a given goal or away from certain threats facing the group.
• Persistent interaction to provide continuity.
• A stable pattern of interaction.
• Acceptance of common norms and structures.
• A collection of individuals who are interdependent on what one is doing may have consequences for others.
• There is an organised structure by a set of roles, norms, status and cohesiveness.

Sociologists, Anthropologists and Social Psychologists categorised groups into different types:
Primary and Secondary groups

• Primary groups are pre-existing formations which are usually given to the individual whereas secondary groups are those which the individual joins’ by choice, e.g., family, caste and religion are primary groups, whereas membership of a political party is an example of secondary group.
• In a primary group, there is face to face interaction, members have close physical proximity and they share warm emotional bonds.
• Primary groups are central to individual functioning and have a major role in developing values and ideals of the individual during the early stages of development.
• Secondary groups are those where relationships among members are more impersonal, indirect and less frequent.
• In the primary group, boundaries are less permeable i.e. members do not have the option to choose membership as compared to secondary groups where it is easy to leave and choose another group.
• Primary groups have a sense of belongingness whereas secondary groups are relatively large in size, maintain formal and impersonal relationships e.g. schools, offices, hospitals etc.

Formal and informal groups
The functions of the group are stated explicitly and formally in formal groups
The formation of formal groups is based on specific rules or laws and members have
definite roles.
Formal groups differ to informal groups on the basis of structure.
Informal groups are more flexible and members have close relationship.

In group – Out group:
The term In-group refers to one’s own group and Out-group refers to another group.

For In-group members, we use the word ‘we’ while for Out-group members the word ‘they’ is used.
Persons in the In-group are generally supposed to be similar and viewed favourably and have desirable traits.
Members of this group are viewed differently and are often perceived negatively in comparison to the In-group members.

Peer group:
A set of individuals who, share certain common characteristics such as age, ethnicity or occupation, perceive themselves and are recognised by others as a distinct social collectivity.
The group is seen to have its own culture, symbols, sanctions and rituals, into which the new members must be socialised according to which those who fail to comply with group norms may be ostracized.

Reference group:
The term ‘Reference group’ was coined by Herbert Hyman.
Hyman distinguished between a membership group to which people actually belong to and a reference group which is used as a basis for comparison.
A reference group may or may not be a membership group.

We all have a world of our dreams and desires. In sociological perspective, we all live in a social world. We get fascinated and attracted towards a group which might appear to be leading a more fulfilling life. When we look up to other people or groups, we secretly aspire to be like them. We start identifying with them, we internalise their traits, behavioural patterns and actions so that we may like them. Thus we do not belong to our reference groups, we only identify them.

Newcomb (social psychologist) used reference groups to help explain the changing values and attitudes of students of a liberal women’s college. Many of the women who came from politically conservative background developed increasingly liberal attitudes over the course of their college careers, as they came to identify more with the college faculty and less with their family of origin. The girls who changed most were those characterised by independence from their parents, a sense of personal adequacy in social relations in achieving their goals.

For example, many a time school and college girls and boys who are basically members of students group admire, appreciate and identify with the stars of Bollywood e.g. Sadhna, Rajesh Khanna etc. and develop desire to become like them secretly. They initiate their life style, hair style, talking style, clothes etc. Basically their membership group is students group but they get fascinated with the film stars group which for them is the reference groups.
From sociological perspective if a society has strong healthy role models related to politics, religion, profession etc. as reference group then young generation do get influenced with them accordingly.

Question 3.
What have you observed about the stratification system existing in your society? How are individual lives affected by stratification?
Answer:
The term ‘stratification’ in sociology is usually applied to studies of structured social inequality i.e. studies of any systematic inequalities between groups of people, which
arise as the unintended consequence of social processes and relationships. When we ask why there is poverty, why Dalits and women in India are disadvantaged, we are posing questions about social stratification.

Social stratification is the core issue of micro sociology, the study of whole society. Social stratification is concerned in different ways with the issues of class and status – group formation as the key to understanding social integration, that is, the extent to which social relationships are cohesive (togetherness) or divisive which in consequence determines social order.

I have observed that stratification system in our society denotes existence of structure, of inequality between different groups of Indian society.
Indian society consists of a strata in hierarchy i.e. most favoured people at the top and least privileged people at the bottom of the society. Economic disparity leading to class system, caste system, etc. play significant role in stratification in Indian society.

• In Indian caste stratification system, individual’s status is ascribed by birth rather than individual’s achievements and his/her contribution or his/her psychological attributes.
• Against this stratification of Indian society there is a ray of hope. Due to economic growth, constitutional provision, urbanisation, industrialisation, education, easy communication and enlightened media our society is gradually changing towards betterment.
• Stratification is a natural process of any society. As we know, society is a group. And group is an organised structure in which members have a status role.
• Social stratification gets evolved to ensure that the most important position should be occupied by qualified people.
• The roles refer to expectations which is dynamic and behavioural aspect of status. Status refers to position of each member in the society. The status of any member has an institutionalised role. The role becomes regularised, standardised and formalised in the society.
• Social stratification begins from general assumption or based on the belief of functionalism that no society is classless or without stratification. The only thing required is coordination, balance, integration and development of everyone should be the objective of any healthy society.

Question 4.
What is social control? Do you think the modes of social control in different spheres of society are different? Discuss.
Answer:
The term ‘social control’ refers to the social process by which the behaviour of individuals or group is regulated.
Society is a harmonious organisation of human beings and expected to perform their functions accordingly. In order to exist and progress society has to exercise certain control over its members, such controls are termed as social control. Consequently social control is pervasive feature of any society.
Social control helps to restrain the unwanted behaviour of the individuals and the groups. It is an influence, exercised by society for promoting the welfare of the group as a whole.

Social control varies from one society to another because each society has its own rules and norms. Different types of societies like individualistic society or collectivistic societies have different expectations (roles) from their members.
Indian cultural values and general standards of life are different from western individualistic society, therefore both the societies have different patterns of social control. We emphasise on socialisation whereas technologically advanced western society focuses on individual liberty

Social control considers customs, traditions, rituals, rules and sub rules according to the social demands. Accordingly in that particular society, family system, marriage system, positive and negative conventions, religion and education systems develop. Members of that particular society should conform these systems. Society develops an appropriate social control for that particular society.

Question 5.
Identify the different roles and status that you play and are located in. Do you think roles and status change? Discuss when and how they change.
Answer:
For self-attempt.

Question 6.
Define formal group.
Answer:
The groups which are arranged and organised. These are large or a part of large organisation. Formal groups are always normative hierarchal structure in which relationship bonds are professional, e.g. university, army etc.

Question 7.
Explain the concept of social stratification.
Answer:
Social stratification refers to division of members of a society into different social categories or strata which are ranked into hierarchy, according to their relative power, prestige and wealth. It is not an individual fact, it is rather a social fact.
It refers to the ranking of a large number of individuals into hierarchy organised strata.
It has little to do with individual merits/abilities and more to do with socially patterned inequalities.
Major systems of stratification include: caste, class, gender, slavery and estate.
State main functions of stratification.

• Determination of nature of social relations.
• Stratification accelerates the process of social change.
• It is helpful in determining social order and organisation.
• Stratification functions as a safety valve from frustrations, conflict and tension because it helps to place the individuals where they actually fit in.
• Social stratification gives rise to division of labour and specialisation which helps in social integration.
• Social stratification leads to social progress through the spirit of competitions.

Question 8.
How ‘Ascribed Status’ is different from ‘Achieved Status’? (HOTS)
Answer:
Status, which an individual gets by birth or due to nominations is known as ‘Ascribed Status.’ e.g. Brahmins higher status in Hindu society is simply ‘ascribed’.
Ascribed status is determined by age, sex, birth, caste, kinship, race, class etc.
The bases of ascribed status is usually fixed and the sources of ‘Ascribed Status’ are the customs, traditions, values and names of the society.
An individual acquires ‘Achieved Status’ because of his intelligence, aptitude, efforts, diligence, skills and personality characterisation.
The sources of ‘Achieved Status’ are individual’s own personality traits and his/her ability to make best use of his/her potentials.

Question 9.
What do you understand by role?
Answer:
Role refers to the expected behaviour of an individual who holds a certain status and it is the status which determines the behaviour pattern, obligations and privileges. Role is the dynamic aspect of status. The functions which an individual performs in society are referred to as ‘Role taking’ and the functions that he/she is expected to perform are known as ‘Role expectations’.

Question 10.

What are social groups? Discuss various types of group.
Answer:
A number of individuals, defined by formal and informal criteria of membership, who share a feeling of unity or are bound together in relatively stable pattern of interaction are called social groups.

Sociology is primarily concerned with social relations and how these relations develop as a result of social interaction. When some people establish social relations with one another, their gathering is called a group. Direct or indirect relations between two or more people is the fundamental basis of a social group. A collection of human beings may be called a group only when it has a permanent set of patterns. The members need to influence one another by their internal activities. When members establish relationships on the basis of common characteristics and goals and influence each other, it is called a group.

Social groups differ in size, ranging from intimate associations, like a family to large collectivities such as a political party. Groups are organised system of two or more individuals. People join groups because they provide security, status, self-esteem, satisfaction of one’s psychological and social needs, goal achievement, knowledge and information. Group formation is a natural process of society. Proximity, similarity and common motives and goals facilitate group formation. Groups are of different types i.e. primary and secondary, formal and informal and ‘in-group’ and ‘out-group’.

Primary groups are preexisting formations in which face to face interaction is possible and relationship bonds are based on personal relationship. In primary groups a person knows one another well and they establish close relationship among them, boundaries are more permeable. Secondary groups are those where relationship among members are more impersonal, indirect and less frequent. In this group it is easy to leave and join another group. Secondary groups provide experience lacking in intimacy.

Formal groups differ in degree to which the functions of the group are stated explicitly and formally. The functions of a formal group are explicitly stated as in the case of an office organisation. The roles to be performed by group members are stated in the explicit manner. The formal and informal groups differ on the basis of structure. The formations of formal groups is based on same specific rules or laws and members have definite roles.

There are a set of norms which help in establishing order.
On the other hand, the formation of informal groups is not based on rules or laws and there is close relationship among members. Formal groups are groups that are arranged and organised e.g. university. Formal groups tend to be large or a part of large organisation having a normative hierarchial structure. Informal groups are typically small and casually or spontaneously formed and function without formal rules, goals or leaders.

The term in-group refers to one’s own group, and out-group refers to another group. For in-group members, we use the word ‘we’ group while for out-group members the word ‘they’ group is used. By using the word ‘they’ and ‘we’, one is categorising people on similar or different basis. It has been found that persons in the in-group are generally supposed to be similar, are viewed favourably, and have desirable traits. Members of the out-group are viewed differently and are often perceived negatively in comparison to the in-group members.

Perceptions of in-group and out-group affect our social lives. Co-operation and proximity are common features of in-group members. Hostile and aggressive relationship leading to conflict and competition is common feature towards out-group members. In-group members maintain mutual dependence, solidarity, faithfulness, friendship, cooperation and communication for members whereas out-groups are known as stranger group.

In This Post we are  providing  CHAPTER 3 UNDERSTANDING SOCIAL INSTITUTION NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION for Class 11 SOCIOLOGY which will be beneficial for students. These solutions are updated according to 2021-22 syllabus. These   can be really helpful in the preparation of Board exams and will provide you with a brief knowledge of the chapter.

NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION ON UNDERSTANDING SOCIAL INSTITUTION

Q. no 1. Social Institution. Give example of two social institution. 

Ans : Social Institution are forms of procedure which are recognized and accepted by society. Society Institution governs the relationship between individuals and usage. For example, marriage is an institution. 

Q. no 2. Mention the functions of Social Institution. 

Ans :Social Institution perform various important functions is the society. 

They are –

(i) Social Institution gives guide to the people so that people can live a social life. 

(ii) Social Institutions maintains social control over the individuals. 

(iii) Social Institutions determine the role and status of an individual in the society. 

(iv) Social Institutions transfers cultural elements from one generation to another. 

(v) Social Institutions brings unity and cultural harmony in the society. 

Q. no 3. Write a short note on division of labour.

Ans : In all type of societies division labour have existed. However in modern societies division of labour is more prominent and more complex. With the development of industrialization. division of labour increases in all societies. In simple word it means division of work and its specialization. It refers to a system of distribution of work among the people according to their skill and competence. 

Q. no 4. What is the meaning of religion. 

Ans : Religion is the system of belief in the existence of God or some kind of supernatural being. It implies a system of belief and practices related to sacred things. Every religion has its specific mode of worship. Religion considers some acts as righteous and sacred. It also regards some acts as sinful and profane. Religion encourages righteousness and sacred things and discourages sinful and profane. 

Q. no 5. What is monogamy and polygamy? 

Ans : Monogamy is a kind of marriage in which one man marries only one woman . Polygamy is a kind of marriage in which one man marries more than one woman and one woman marries more than one man. 

Q.  no 6. What do you mean by Nuclear family and Joint family. 

Ans : Nuclear family is small family. Nuclear family is a group of persons consisting of husband, wife and their unmarried children . 

Joint family is large family. Within a joint family two or more family reside sharing common residence, kitchen and property  . 

Q. no 7. Write the meaning of ideology. 

Ans : Ideology refers to a set. of beliefs or ideas. Ideology exists in all societies  . It is related to power. Ideology is used to justify the interests of dominant groups or classes. 

Q. no 8. Mention four characteristics of Matriarchal family. 

Ans : (i) In Matriarchal family. mother becomes the head of the family. 

(ii) Woman manage and own property and other belongings of the family. 

(iii) Women stays on her mother’s house after the marriage. The husband goes to the wife’s house. 

(iv) The status of woman is higher than men in matriarchal family. 

Q. no 9. What is kinship system? What are the kinds of kinship ? 

Ans : Kinship is a system of the way the relations between individuals in the family and between families are organized. In simple words the close relatives through birth and marriage is called kinship system. 

Q. no 10. Mention four social functions of religion. 

Ans : (i) Religion acts as an agent of social control. 

(ii) Religion promotes social solidarity and unity. 

(iii) Religion promotes social welfare. 

(iv) Religion provides peace of mind to the people. 

In This Post we are  providing  CHAPTER 4 CULTURE AND SOCIALISATION NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION for Class 11 SOCIOLOGY which will be beneficial for students. These solutions are updated according to 2021-22 syllabus. These   can be really helpful in the preparation of Board exams and will provide you with a brief knowledge of the chapter.

NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION ON CULTURE AND SOCIALISATION

Question 1.
Discuss the sources of culture.
Answer:
Sources of culture:
Internal (Endogenous cause)

• Inner pressure, stress and conflicts
• Conflict between ideals and realities
• Change in individual
• Planning

External (Exogenous cause)

• Urbanisation
• Industrialisation
• Migration
• Attack
• War
• Domination
• Trade
• Means of communication
•  Movements of their societies.

Physical Environment

• Drought
• Woods
• earthquake
• Deforestation
• Pollution
• Destruction of wildlife
• Ecological changes.

Question 2.
Discuss dimensions of culture.
Answer:
Cognitive-Ideas and beliefs
Normative-Norms (Value, norms, sanctions).
Customs or normative something is right or wrong-not an idea of something. Cognitive, myths, superstition, belief, customs, stories (mostly not true)

• Ideas etc. which refer to the thinking of the people, our understanding, how we absorb all information we get from the society. ‘
• Little tradition: It is transmitted orally from generation to generation in the form of songs/plays, stories (folklores) etc. It moves in illiterate and rural societies.
• Great tradition: It is transmitted from generation to generation through written work. Usually in literate societies ideas are recorded, written down and are available to us in the form of books etc.
• It is the cognitive dimension of culture which helps us to comprehend and relate to the societies.
• Little and great tradition can be converted into each other.
• Universalisation—converting great to little tradition.

Normative
It deals with controlling people’s behaviour by rules, norms, customs, values. It is basically different ways of controlling deviant behaviour.
To make society disciplined, to behave in a particular way etc.

Question 3.
How laws are different from norms?
Answer:
Laws may be formal and written exercised by institutions e.g.; Parliament, police.
Laws are explicit-very clear on paper and are the same for everybody in that society. They also provide severe, specific, unchangeable punishment. Rewards in forms of citations, medal, honor, cash prize, Bharat Ratna. Formal laws are the same everywhere and depend upon societal requirement.
Norms: Norms are informal and unwritten. They are exercised by the primary group which includes family and friends.
Laws are:

• Implicit: Ambiguity can be there, depends upon the people and situations.
• Punishment given in indifferent contexts.
• Informal reward like pat on back etc. hug etc.
• Differs from person to person, place to place, based on values/cultures of society.

Question 4.
What do you mean by cultural lag? Discuss its main features.
Answer:

Cultural lag: When the material culture is moving ahead and fast with times, but the non-material culture is not able to keep up with the fast pace of material culture propounded the theory a cultural lag.

• Let us consider the basic need of hunger. We know that it has a biological basis, which is common among animals and human beings, but the way this need is gratified by human beings is extremely complex. For example, some people eat vegetarian food, while others eat non-vegetarian food.
• Sexual behaviour can be taken as another example. We know that this behaviour involves hormones and reflexive reactions in animals and human beings alike.
• While among animals sexual behaviour is fairly simple and reflexive (all animals indulge in sexual behaviour almost in the same manner).
• It is so complex among human beings that it can hardly be described as reflexive.
• Partner preferences are a key feature of human sexual behaviour. The bases of these preferences widely differ within and across societies.
• Human sexual behaviour is also governed by many rules, standards, values, and laws.
• These examples illustrate that biological factors alone cannot help us very much in understanding human behaviour.
• Human nature has evolved through an interplay of biological and cultural forces. These forces have made us similar in many ways and different in others.

Question 5.
Explain the concept of culture.
Answer:
Concept of culture
Human behaviour is fundamentally social. It involves relationships with other people, reactions to their behaviour, and engagement with innumerable products made available to us by our predecessors. Although many other species are also social like us, human beings are cultural as well.

In the simplest terms, culture refers to “the man-made part of the environment”. It comprises diverse products of the behaviour of many people, including ourselves. These products can be material objects (e.g., tools, sculptures), ideas (e.g., family, school). We find them almost everywhere. They influence behaviour, although we may not always be aware of it.

Let us look at some examples. The room you might be in now is a cultural product. It is the result of someone’s architectural ideas and building skills. Your room may be rectangular, but there are many places where rooms are not rectangular (e.g., those of Eskimos).

You might be sitting on a chair that some people designed and built some time ago. Since sitting in a chair requires a particular posture, this invention is shaping your behaviour. There are societies without chairs. Just try to think how people in those societies would be sitting in order to do some reading.
Much of our life as human beings involves interacting with various cultural products and behaving in accordance with them. This means that culture shapes our behaviour in a significant manner.

Question 6.
How culture and society are related to each other?
Answer:
The terms ‘culture’ and ‘society’ are often considered to carry similar meaning. Let us note at this point that they are not the same thing. A society is a group of people who occupy a particular territory and speak a common language not generally understood by neighbouring people. A society may or may not be single nation, but every society has its own culture. It is culture that shapes human behaviour from society to society. Culture is the label for all the different features that vary from society to society. It is these different features of society whose influences psychologists want to examine in their studies of human behaviour. Thus, a group of people, who manage their livelihood through hunting and gathering in forests, would present a life characterised by certain features that will not be found in a society that lives mainly on agricultural produce or wage earnings.

Question 7.
Discuss various socialisation agents of society.
Answer:
Socialisation agents of society:

• A number of people who relate to us possess power to socialise us. Such people . are called “socialisation agents”.
• Parents and family members are the most significant socialisation agents.
• Legal responsibility of child care, too, lies with parents. Their task is to nurture children in such a manner that their natural potentials are maximized and negative behaviour tendencies are minimized or controlled.

Parents

• Parents have most direct and significant impact on children’s development. Children respond in different ways to parents in different situations.
• Parents encourage certain behaviours by rewarding them verbally (e.g., praising) or in other tangible ways (e.g., buying chocolates or objects of child’s desire). They also discourage certain behaviours through non-approving behaviours.
• They also arrange to put children in a variety of positive experiences, learning opportunities, and challenges. While interacting with children parents adopt different strategies, which are generally known as parenting styles.
• A distinction is made between authoritative, authoritarian and democratic or permissive parenting styles.
• Studies indicate that parents vary enormously in the treatment of children in terms of their degree of acceptance and degree of control.
•  The conditions of life in which parents live (poverty, illness, job stress, nature of family) also influence the styles they adopt in socialising children.

School

• School is another important socialising agent. Since children spend a long time in schools, which provide them with a fairly organised set up for interaction with teachers and peers.
• Nowadays school is being viewed as a more important agent of child socialisation than parents and family. Children learn not only cognitive skills (e.g., reading, writing, doing mathematics) but also many social skills (e.g., ways of behaving with elders and age mates, accepting roles, fulfilling responsibilities).
• They also learn and internalise the norms and rules of society.
• Several other positive qualities, such as self-initiative, self-control, responsibility and creativity are encouraged in schools.

Peer Groups

• Friendship acquires great significance in this respect.
• It provides children not only with a good opportunity to be in company of others, but also for organising various activities (e.g., play) collectively with the members of their own age.
• Question ualities like sharing, trust, mutual understanding, role acceptance and fulfilment develop in interaction with peers.
• Children also learn to assert their own point of view and accept and adapt to those of others.
• Development of self-identity is greatly facilitated by the peer group. Since communication of children with peer groups is direct, process of socialisation is generally smooth.

Media influences

• In recent years media has also become the medium of socialisation.
• Through television, newspapers, books and cinema the external world has made/ is making its way into our home and our lives.
• While children learn about many things from these sources, adolescents and young adults often derive their models from them, particularly from television and cinema.
• There is a need to use this agent of socialisation in a better way in order to prevent children from developing undesirable behaviours.

Question 8.
What is acculturation?
Answer:
Culture is determined by dynamic and evolving process. It is not static. Cultural changes occur due to acculturation and defusion.

• Acculturation refers to cultural and psychological changes resulting from contact with other cultures.
• Contact may be direct (e.g., when one moves and settles in a new culture) or indirect (e.g., through media or other means).
• It may be voluntary (e.g., when one goes abroad for higher studies, training, job, or trade) or involuntary (e.g., through colonial experience, invasion, political refuge).
• In both cases, people often need to learn (and also they do learn) something new to negotiate life with people of other cultural groups. For example, during the British rule in India many individuals and groups adopted several aspects of British lifestyle.
• Acculturation can take place any time in one’s life. Whenever it occurs, it requires re-leaming of norms, values, dispositions, and patterns of behaviour.
• For any acculturation to take place contact with another cultural group is essential. This often generates some sort of conflict. Since people cannot live in a state of conflict for a long time, they often resort to certain strategies to resolve their conflicts.
• Studies carried out with immigrants to western countries and native or tribal people in different parts of the world have revealed that people have various options to deal with the problem of acculturative changes. Thus, the course of acculturative change is multidirectional.
• Changes due to acculturation may be examined at subjective and objective levels. At the subjective level, changes are often reflected in people’s attitudes towards change. They are referred to as acculturation attitudes. At the objective level, changes are reflected in people’s day-to-day behaviours and activities. These are referred to as acculturation strategies.

Question 9.
Discuss differences between social change and cultural change.
Answer:
Malinowike, Gillin and Gillin and others gave their same opinions regarding social and cultural changes.
However Prof. Dawis has pointed out some difference between the two. According to him, change in social structure only represents social change.

Some important differences between social and cultural changes are:
Social Change:

• Change in social relations
• Change in social structure and relationship is a must.
• Scope of social change is limited.
• Social change effects culture.
• Society has its roots in the present, hence change in it has relative implications.

Cultural Change

• Changes in religion and art, language or literature which in turn effect social relationships.
• Cultural change is primarily responsible for new discoveries, inventions and change in cultural activities.
• Scope of cultural change is large.
• Cultural change effects social change.
• As culture has got its roots in their past, hence change in it has relatively less implications.

If society is a tributary while culture is the main river, cultural changes are more relevant. Still both the changes cannot be taken independently from each other as they effect mutually.

Question 10.
How material culture is different from non-material culture?
Answer:
Material Culture: Anything paid for stuff or money related is example of material culture. Material culture is tangible, concrete, physical, quantified and can be replaced. Non-material Culture: Values, respect, honesty, consideration, gratitude etc. are non-material culture.

Values are basically morals.
Values are those which are concerned with the morals of human beings. They are either right or wrong. They guide us as to how we are supposed to behave in society.
They define, what is proper and improper for an individual in order to reach his/her goal as per societal norms.
Non-material culture is standard of social life. Certain values which everyone has to follow in social life are: honesty, respect, integrity, responsibility.

In This Post we are  providing  CHAPTER 5 DOING SOCIOLOGY: RESEARCH METHOD NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION for Class 11 SOCIOLOGY which will be beneficial for students. These solutions are updated according to 2021-22 syllabus. These   can be really helpful in the preparation of Board exams and will provide you with a brief knowledge of the chapter.

NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION ON DOING SOCIOLOGY: RESEARCH METHOD

Question 1.
What is objectivity?
Answer:
The ability to carry out an investigation and to collect data without personal interpretation or bias to influence the process. If we have to rely on a subjective interpretation of an event (such as ‘Was that an act of aggression or of playfulness?’), we may find it difficult to maintain our objectivity. Psychologists may choose either to concentrate on actions which are unquestionably relating to the behaviour of interest (stabbing someone in the back, for example, could hardly be interpreted as playfulness) or relying on the shared agreement of more than one observer of the same event (inter¬observer reliability).

Question 2.
What is observation?
Answer:
This term is used to describe any situation where an observer records behaviour that is exhibited by a participant. The term ‘observation’ may be used as a technique for gathering data (i.e. we observe somebody doing something) or as the design of a study. It leads to such a variety of usage. To give a precise definition of the term
‘observation’ means contrasting it with an experimental study. In an observation there is no manipulation of an independent variable. There are different types of study that would be classified as ‘observational’ under this definition.

Question 3.
What is reliability?
Answer:
If a finding is repeated, it is described as being reliable. Within the general meaning of the term, it is also used more specifically within psychological assessment and research. For a research finding to be reliable, it must be shown to exist on successive investigations under the same condition (replication).

For a psychometric assessment to be reliable, it should have both internal and external reliability. Answers to a questionnaire or inventory may be checked to see if respondents answer all questions in the same way or if they contradict themselves. This is a measure of internal reliability. Responses may also be checked over a period of time to see if there is stability of measurement over times. If respondent gives the same responses or obtains the same scores consistently over time, then the measure is said to have external reliability.

Question 4.
Discuss the research process in sociology.
Answer:
Steps in Research
1. Selection of a specific problem (relevant, current): The problem should have sociological significance. Define and formulate the problem. Reviving literature/ secondary research-use different sources e.g. Internet, magazine together information about the problem (reliable sources). Find out information about a specific aspect of the problem. This helps to formulate a conceptual framework. Now the path for the research is paved. Formulating a hypothesis. Assumption/tentative, conclusion/opinion of the researcher on certain aspects of the problem – may/may not be true.

2. Measurement – [Quantitative and Qualitative]:
By assigning values to variables that can be measured by features, attributes etc. It means research from abstract to concrete and further to a conclusion. It involves validity and reliability-reliable sources and measuring.
What do you want to measure objectively? When the researcher gets the same result, if he conducts a research in the same way as another researcher in the same circumstances by using quantitative methods like statistics and analysis of data.

3. Choosing a research design/technique: Survey is the best research technique. It is a method used to gather information about a particular issue/problem and also finding out the views of people and/or interests of people. It is the most common/ effective method of research. It is usually quantitative.

• Sample survey: A small audience represents the population. These are selected from an area and they represent the whole area.
• Random survey: It is done asking people randomly (people selected at random) and they represent the population.

In a survey, there are three most common ways:

• Question uestionnaire
• Interview
• Case study

4. Collection of Data: After the questionnaire is formed, it is distributed and data is collected from respondents.
Depending upon the problem, the respondents are selected.

•  Keep in mind the age/gender/class and the kind of questions when distributing the questionnaire.

5. Analysis and interpretation of Data:
After the data is collected the whole information is analysed and interpreted. Analysis is always in percentages specially for close ended questions (choices).
eg. Yes – 75%  No – 15 %

6. Evaluation: Conclusion of the whole analysis and the interpretation of the data.
Summary of all the questionnaires/hypothesis Includes

1. Summary
2. Whether your hypothesis has been proved or not.
3. Problems the researcher faces while doing the research such as :
   • Dishonesty
   • No interest
   • Incomplete
   • Stupid answers
   • No time
   • Shyness
   • If someone was offended by a certain question etc.
   • More serious problems.

Besides survey, other methods of collecting data can be used:

• Ethnography-Field work, stay with population for months and find out the stuff.
• Archives-historical facts.
• Do commentary (make a movie about it).

Question 5.
What is questionnaire? Discuss advantages and disadvantages.
Answer:
Questionnaire:
Set of questions prepared by the investigator and given to the respondent with option like yes, no, mock.
A method of collecting data systematically by asking questions which are answered by the respondent.

Types of Question:

1. Close Ended: Fixed choices are given and you have to tick one. MCQuestion s, Yes/No/ May be. An analysis is easier.
2. Easier to understand as it is based on facts. Easier for respondent to answer.
3. Objective.
4. Open Ended.
5. Opinion of respondent is asked. Subjective analysis is difficult as you will get different answers for the same question. It gives more detailed information.
6. A questionnaire should be a combination of these with more close ended questions to make analysis easier. This will give us percentage of choice and reasons for that choice.

• Question uestions should not be lengthy.
• Question uestions should be short/precise and to the point.
• Use simple language and convey the same meaning to everyone.
• Question uestions should be sensitive to the audience.
• Question uestions should not be too personal/ more general.
• No G.K. questions like who is the prime minister.

Advantages

• You can cover a large area in limited time period and large number of people.
• Objective, subjectivity doesn’t enter into it.
• Comparatively less expensive.
• Investigator’s presence is not required.
• No bias as there is no face to face interaction.
• Many questions can be covered.
• No hesitation for the respondent.

Disadvantages

• Many a time questionnaires are not taken seriously.
• Might be incorrectly filled out.
• False identity.
• You may not get it back.
• Could be incomplete.
• Can’t clarify doubts.
• Illiterate people can’t answer.

Question 6.
What is an interview? Discuss its advantages and disadvantages. (HOTS)
Answer:
In interview, a set of questions are asked face to face by the interviewer. Interview may be structured or unstructured. The success of interview depends on the following factors:

• Interviewer must be framed, sensitive, confident and qualified.
• Have some background of Interviewee.
• Should be well prepared for the discussion.
• Should be in control.
• Patient not pushy.
• Just guide the interviewee.
• Be as objective as possible.
• Has to have alternative questions.
• Should not deviate from the topic chosen.
• Question uestions showed always go from easy to difficult.

Advantages

• Facial expressions can give away emotions to a certain extent. Almost all questions are answered.
• No false identity.
• Question uestions are taken seriously.
• Universally acceptable.

Disadvantages

• Interviews are time consuming
• Expensive
• There is bias and subjectivity.

How can a researcher avoid bias and error?

• Interviewer should not get involved emotionally.
• Not forget the objective of the interview.
• Not deviate from what he /she has to find out.

Question 7.
What is observation? Discuss its types.
Answer:
Observation: It refers to systematically attending, recording and processing information through direct participation and observation of the group, tribe or community which is included in the study. •

• There is use of vision for collection of data.
• Collection of data by watching people’s behaviour without actually interfering with it.
• Noting down the data as it happens with regard to the cause, phenomenon and effect.

Observation – as a sociological research:

• Specific, valid, reliable, accountable, precise
• Precise and no extra details
• Objectivity.
• Researcher’s opinion should not be expressed.
• Validity is important. What you are observing must be related to the problem.
• Has to be reliable and accurate.

Types of Observation
Participant

• When you are a part of the observation, e.g. in a wedding, you are part of music and dancing along with observing.
• Participant takes active part in all activities of the observed group.
• Observed may or may not know the identity of the observer.
• Usually the identity of the observer is not known as the observed will become very conscious.
• Subjectivity is present and will be more as your identity bias.
• Complete participant observation : identity of observer is not known.
• Observer stays with the people for days/months. He gets completely involved in activities of group and stays with them in order to understand them completely and thorougly.

Non-Participant

• When you observe from outside. The observer is not part of the group that is being observed, e.g.; sitting out in sangeet.
• Observed may or may not know of the observer’s identity.
• More objectivity than subjectivity-less bias.
• Notes more than participant observer.
• Personal bias may contaminate the results.
• Question uantitative data is less and difficult to find.
• Noting sequence is after observation.

Steps involved for participant and non-participant observation:

1. Selection of appropriate group.
2. Familiarise with group and its activities.
3. Do research in sequence.
4. Get involved /observe from outside depending on the type of participation.

Question 8.
Elaborate on the functional method used for the study of sociology.
Answer:
This approach appeared initially as a reaction against the methods and claims of the evolutionists. Functional analysis is a method of sociological enquiry which examines social and cultural items by locating them in a wider context. This usually means showing how these items affect and are affected by others with which they coexist over time, within the same social system. In other words, functional method refers to the functional analysis which is also known as “functionalism”. This asserts that the principal task of sociology is to examine the contribution of social items that make the social and cultural life of human collectivities. It examines social phenomenon in a way so as to explain why these items occur at all,why they have persisted?
The central concern is with the source of order and stability in society.
The focus is on:

1. The way social institutions help to maintain order and continuity in social life.
2. The way structural arrangements in society influence behaviour.

It may be said that functional analysis is a method which refers to factors and forces of integration, equilibrium and also disequilibrium. At a given time, inter-relation between components of society can be studied from functional point of view.

Question 9.
What is survey method?
Answer:
Survey: It is a systematic collection of facts about a defined social group. The term usually refers to data collections that employ both interviewing and sampling to produce quantitative date-sets, amenable to computer based analysis.
Sampling and interviewing are employed in many other research designs. It is the combination of the two that has led to the social survey or sample survey, becoming the most important single type of social research, used by all the social sciences, market research and opinion polls.

1. Surveys can be used to provide descriptive statistics for national, regional or local population; to examine the clustering of social phenomena; to identify the social location and characteristics of subgroups for more intensive follow-up case-study research and to analyse causal processes and test explanations.

2. In recent years sociological survey analysis has been greatly extended to include the sophisticated multivariate modelling techniques that are common in econometrics.

3. One of the main attractions of the sample survey for both policy research and theoretical research is its transparency and accountability, methods and procedures can be made visible and accessible to other parties, unlike research designs that depend heavily on the contribution of individual researchers.

4. The key disadvantage is that surveys normally use structured questionnaires, which constrain an enquiry to paths fixed at the start of fieldwork.

5. Other criticism which are sometimes levelled at surveys are that numerical variables rarely provide adequate operationalization of sociological constructs; the highly asymmetric power relatipn between researcher and interviewee is detrimental to the quality of the data collected; they provide a false aura of objectivity which makes their result vulnerable to political manipulation.

6. Many of these criticisms can be overcome by good survey design and implementation.
Survey interviews may be personal, postal or conducted by telephone. Telephone surveys are particularly common.

Question 10.
What is sample?
Answer:
A group of people that take part in a research investigation and are presumed to be representative of the population from which they have been drawn. Because of the constraints of time, money and practicality, psychologists can hardly ever study the whole population and therefore are forced to sample from it using one of the sampling methods.

Sampling refers to the process by which research psychologists attempt to select a representative group from the population under study. As an entire population tends to be too large to work with, a smaller group of participants must act as a representative sample. In an attempt to select a representative sample and thus avoid sampling bias (the over-representation of one category of participant in the sample), psychologists utilize a variety of sampling methods, such as:

1. Random Sample: Each member of the population under study stands the same chance of being selected.
2. Stratified Sample: The composition of the sample reflects the composition of the population, e.g. 30 percent males, 70 percent females in the population determines that the sample shall contain a selection of 70 percent females, 30 percent males.
3. Question uota Sample: The researcher selects a quota of people roughly in proportion to their occurrence in the population (e.g. a quota of different age groups).
4. Opportunity Sample: Roughly a case of selecting whoever is available at the time at that location.

In This Post we are  providing  CHAPTER 7 HUMAN MEMORY NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION for Class 11 PSYCHOLOGY which will be beneficial for students. These solutions are updated according to 2021-22 syllabus. These   can be really helpful in the preparation of Board exams and will provide you with a brief knowledge of the chapter.

NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION ON HUMAN MEMORY

Question 1. What is the meaning of the terms ‘encoding’, ‘storage’ and ‘retrieval’?
Answer: Memory is conceptualized as a process consisting of three independent, though interrelated stages. These are:

1. Encoding:
   • It is the first stage which refers to a process by which information is recorded and registered for the first time so that it becomes usable by our memory system.
   • In encoding, incoming information is received and some meaning is derived.
2. Storage: It is the second stage of memory:
   •  Information which was encoded must also be stored so that it can be put to use later.
   • Storage refers to the process through which information is retained and held over a period of time.
3. Retrieval: It is the third stage of memory.
   •  Information can be used only when one is able to recover it from his/her memory.
   • Retrieval refers to bringing the stored information to his/her awareness so that it can be used for performing various cognitive tasks.

Question 2. How is information processed thrdugh sensory, short-term and long-term memory systems?
Answer: Atkinson and Shiffrin model of memory also known as stage model of memory.

• This proposes the existence of three separate but sequentially linked memory systems, the sensory memory, the short-term memory and the long-term memory.
• The sensory memory—contains a fleeting impression of a sensory stimulus (a sight or a sound). It is initial process that preserve brief impression of stimuli. It has a large capacity. It is of very short duration that is less than a second.
• The short-term memory—a limited recollection of recently perceived stimuli (a telephone number or an order of drinks). It holds small amount of information for a brief periocfof time i.e. less than 30 seconds. It is primarily encoded acoustically.
• The long-term memory—a more or less permanent store of memories for later retrieval (e.g. our telephone numbers). In this stage informations are encoded semantically and storage capacity is unlimited.
• Each of these memory system is seen as differing in the way they process information, how much information they can hold and for how long they can hold that information.
  The model can be expressed in the following diagram:
  

Question 3. How are maintenance rehearsals different from elaborative rehearsals?
Answer:  Maintenance rehearsals:

• It is an important control process of STM.
• It is used to retain the information for as much time as required.
• As the name suggests these kinds of rehearsals simply maintain information through repetition and when such repetitions discontinue the information is lost.
• It is carried through silent or vocal repetition.

Elaborative rehearsals:

• From the STM information enters the long term memory through elaborative rehearsals.
• This rehearsal attempts to connect the “to be retained information” to the already existing information in long term memory.
  e.g. the task of remembering the meaning of the work “humanity” will be easier if the meaning of concepts such as “compassion”, “truth” and “benevolence” are already in place.
• In elaborate rehearsals, one attempts to analyse the information in terms of various information it arouses.
• Assignment of meaning and associations are formed. –
•  It involves organization of the incoming information in as many ways as possible e.g. we can expand the information in some kind of logical framework, link it to similar memories or else create a mental image.

Question 4. Differentiate between declarative and procedural memories.
Answer: Difference between declarative and procedural memories are following:
Declarative Memory

• All information pertaining to facts, names, date, such as rikshaw has three wheels or that India became independent on August 15,1947 or a frog is an amphibian or you and your friend share the same name are part of this.
• Facts retained in this memory are related to amenable to verbal descriptions.

Procedural Memory

•  It refers to memories relating to procedures of accomplishing various tasks, i.e. skill learning e.g. how to make tea, play basketball or drive a car. .
• Contents of this memory can not be described easily.

Question 5. Discuss the hierarchical organisation in long-term memory?
Answer:

• Allan Collins and Ross Quillian suggested that knowledge in long-term memory is organized in terms of concepts, categories and images and are organised hierarchically and assumes a network structure. Elements of this structure are called nodes.
• Nodes are concepts While connections between nodes are labelled relationships, which indicate category membership or concept attributes.
• According to this view, we can store all knowledge at a certain level that ‘applies to all the members of a category without having to repeat that information at the lower levels in the hierarchy’.
• This ensures a high degree of cognitive economy, which means maximum and efficient use of the capacity of long-term memory with minimum effort.
• Images: An image is a concrete form of representation which directly conveys the perceptual attributes of an object.
• All concrete objects generate images and the knowledge related to them is encoded both verbally as well as visually. This is known as dual coding hypothesis, originally proposed by Paivio. Such information can be recalled with greater ease.
• According to this hypothesis, concrete nouns and information related to concrete objects are images.
• Information related to abstract concepts assume a verbal and a descriptive code. For example, if you are asked to describe a bird, the first thing that happens is that an image of a bird is generated and based on this image, you describe a bird. But, on the other hand, the meanings of concepts like ‘truth’ or ‘honesty’ will not have such accompanying images.

Question 6. Why does forgetting take place?
Answer:  Each one of us has experienced forgetting and its consequences almost routinely. There | . are some reasons because of which we forget:

1.  It is because the information we commit to our long term memory is somehow lost.
2.  It is because we did not memorise it well enough.
3.  It is because we did not encode the information correctly or it is because during storage, it got distorted or misplaced.

There are theories which have been developed to explain forgetting:

1. Theory of forgetting developed by Hermann Ebbinghaus:
   According to him the rate of forgetting is maximum in the first nine hours,particularly during the first hour. After that, the rate slows down and not much is forgotten even after many days.
2.  Forgetting due to Trace decay:
   (a)Trace theory (also called disuse theory) is the earliest theory of forgetting.
   (b)The assumption here is that memory leads to modification in the central nervous system, which is akin to physical changes in the brain called “memory traces”. When these memory traces are not used for a long time, they simply fade away and become unavailable.
   Drawbacks:
   • If forgetting takes place because memory traces decay due to disuse, then people who go to sleep after memorizing should forget more compared to those who remain awake.
   • Those who remain awake after memorizing show greater forgetting than those , who sleep.
3. Forgetting due to interference:
   • The interference theory suggests that forgetting is due to interferences between various informations that the memory store contains.
   • Interference comes about at a time of retrieval when these various sets of associations compete with each other for retrieval.
     There are two kinds of interferences that may result in forgetting.
     (a) Proactive (forward moving): Proactive means what you have learnt earlier interferes with the recall of your subsequent learning. In other words, in proactive interference past learning interferes with the recall of later learning, e.g. If you know English and you find it difficult to learn French it is because of proactive interference.
     (b) Retroactive (backward moving): Retroactive refers to difficulty in recalling
     what you have learnt earlier because of learning a new material. In retroactive interference the later learning interferes with the recall of past learning.e.g. If you cannot recall English equivalents of French words that you are currently memorizing then it is because of retroactive interference.
     
4. Forgetting due to retrieval failure:
   • Forgetting can also occur because at the time of recall, either the retrieval cues are absent or they are inappropriate.
   • Retrieval cues are aids which help us in recovering information stored in the memory.
   • This view was advanced by “Tulving and his associates” who carried out several experiments to show that recall of content become poor either due to absence or inappropriateness of retrieval cues that are available /employed at the time of recall.
   • Without getting any cues one may recall a couple of them only but if the learner get cues like category names then the recall improves significantly.
     Category names may act as retrieval cues.

Question 7. How is retrieval related forgetting different from forgetting due to interference?
Answer:  According to Tulving retrieval cues are adds which help us in recovering information stored in the memory.

• Tulving said that contents of memory may become inaccessible either due to absence or inappropriatance of retrieval cues that are available at the time of recall.
• According to interference theory of forgetting we forget due to interference between various informations the memory store contains.
• According to this theory learning and memorizing involve forming of associations between items and these associations remain in the memory.

Question 8. What evidence do we have to say that ‘memory is a constructive process’?
Answer: “Bartlett” saw memory as a constructive and not a reproductive process.

1. He used the method of “serial reproduction” in which the participants of his experiments recalled the memory materials reportedly at varying time intervals.
   • While engaging in this method of learning material, his participants committed a wide variety of errors which Bartlett considered useful in understanding the process of memory construction.
2. Using meaningful materials such as texts, folk tales, fables etc.
   • He attempted to understand the manner in which content of any specific memory gets affects by a person’s knowledge, goals, motivation, preferences and various other psychological process.
3.  Schemas play an important role in the process of memorization. Schemas refer to an organization of past experiences and knowledge which influence the way in which incoming information is interpreted, stored and later retrieved.
   • Memory, therefore becomes encoded and is stored in terms of a person’s understanding and within his/her previous knowledge and expectations.

Question 9. Define Mnemonics? Suggest a plan to improve your own memory.
Answer:  All of us desire to possess an excellent dependable memory system. There are a number of strategies for improving memory called “mnemonics” (pronounced ni – mo-nicks) to help you improve your memory.
Some of these mnemonics involve use of images whereas others emphasise self- induced organization of learned information.
Mnemonics using Images: Mnemonics using images require that you create vivid and interacting images of and around the material you wish to remember. The two prominent mnemonic devices, which make use of images are following:

1. The Keyword Method: In this method, an English word that sounds similar to the word of a foreign language is identified. This English word will function as a keyword, e.g. If you want to remember the Spanish word for duck which is “pato” you may choose “pot” as the keyword and then evoke images of keyword and the target word (Spanish word) and imagine them as interacting. You might imagine a duck in a pot full of water.
   This method of learning words of a foreign language is much superior compared to any kind of rote memorization.
2. The Method of Loci:
   • This method is particularly helpful in remembering items in serial order.
   • It requires that you first visualize objects/places that you know well in a specific sequence, imagine the objects you want to remember and associate them one by one to the physical locations.
   • Suppose you want to remember bread, eggs, tomatoes and soap on your way to the market, you may visualize a loaf of bread and eggs placed in your kitchen, tomatoes kept on a table and soap in the bathroom. When you enter the market all you need to do is to take a mental walk along the route from your kitchen to the bathroom recalling all the items of your shopping list in a sequence.
3. Mnemonics using organization: Organization refers to imposing certain order on the material you want to remember. Mnemonics of this kind are helpful because the framework you create while organization makes the retrieval task fairly easy.
   (a)Chunking: In chunking, several smaller units are combined to form large chunks. For creating chunks, it is important to discover some organization principles, which can link smaller units. This method is very much used to improve short term memory.
   (b)First letter technique: For this method you need to pick up the first letter of each word you want to remember and arrange them to form another word or a sentence, e.g. colours of a rainbow are remembered in this way (VIBGYOR— that stands for Violet, Indigo, Blue, Green, Yellow, Orange and Red).
   Drawbacks of mnemonics:
   (a)Mnemonics strategies for memory enhancement are too simplistic.
   (b)It underestimates complexities of memory tasks and difficulties people experience while memorizing.

More comprehensive approaches to memory improvement:
(a)Engage in Deep Level processing:

• “CRAIK and LOCKHART” have demonstrated that processing information in terms of meaning that they convey leads to better memory as compared to attending to their surface features.
• Deep processing would involve asking as many questions, related to the information as possible, considering its meaning and examining its relationships to the facts you already know.
• In this way, the information will become a part of your existing knowledge framework and the chances that it will be remembered are increased.

(b)Minimise interference: Maximum interference is caused when vary similar materials are learned in a sequence.

• To avoid this, Arrange your study in such a way that you do not learn similar subjects one after the other.
• Instead pick, up some other subject unrelated to the previous one. Give yourself rest periods while studying to minimize interference.

(c)Give yourself enough Retrieval cues: Cues will be easier to remember compared to the entire content and make link to the parts of the study material to these cues. Then this content will facilitate the retrieval process.
“THOMAS and ROBINSON” have developed another strategy to help students in remembering, more which they called the method of “PQRST”. It stands for Preview, Question, Read, Self-recitation and the test.

• “Preview” refers to giving a cursory look at the chapter and familiarizing oneself with its contents.
• “Question” means raising questions and seeking answers from the lesion.
• “Read”—Now start Reading and look for answers of questions you have raised.
• “Self-recitation”—After reading try to rewrite what you have read.
• Test-At the end test how much you have been able to understand.

Question 10.Give two points of difference between Episodic and Semantic memory.

Answer:

Episodic Memory	Semantic Memory
Episodic memory contains biographical details of our lives.	Semantic memory, is the memory of general awareness and knowledge.
Memories relating to our personal life experiences constitute the episodic memory and it is for this reason that its contents are generally emotional in nature.	All concepts, ideas and rules of logic are stored in semantic memory.

In This Post we are  providing  CHAPTER 9 MOTIVATION AND EMOTION NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION for Class 11 PSYCHOLOGY which will be beneficial for students. These solutions are updated according to 2021-22 syllabus. These   can be really helpful in the preparation of Board exams and will provide you with a brief knowledge of the chapter.

NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION ON MOTIVATION AND EMOTION

1. Explain the concept of motivation.
Answer
The term motivation is derived from the Latin word ‘movere’ referring to movement of activity. Thus it pushes an individual (organism) into activity.• It can be used to explain drives, needs, goals and incentives. Any behaviour is goal driven, demand persistent and often preferred or is in favour of one goal over the other.• It is individuals internal force which energises and directs the behaviour.
2. What are the biological bases of hunger and thirst needs?
Answer
Hunger:• The stimuli of hunger include stomach contractions, which signify that the stomach is empty.• A low concentration of glucose in the blood• A low level of protein and the amount of fats stored in the body.• The liver also responds to the lack of bodily fuel by sending nerve impulses to the brain.• The aroma, taste or appearance of food may also result in a desire to eat.• They all in combination act with external factors (such as taste, colour by observing other’s eating, and the smell of food, etc.) to the help one understands that she/he is hungry.
Thirst:• When we are deprived of water for a period of several hours, the mouth and throat become dry, which leads to dehydration of body tissues.• Drinking water is necessary to wet a dry mouth.• The processes within the body itself control thirst and drinking of water.• Water must get into the tissues sufficiently to remove the dryness of mouth and throat.• Motivation to drink water is mainly triggered by the conditions of the body.• Loss of water from cells and reduction of blood volume.• When Water is lost by bodily fluids, water leaves the interior of the cells. The anterior hypothalamus contains nerve cells called ‘osmoreceptors’, which generate nerve impulses in case of cell dehydration. These nerve impulses act as a signal for thirst and drinking.
Ist View:• The mechanism which explains the intake of water is responsible for stopping the intake of water.
IInd View:• The role of stimuli resulting from the intake of water in the stomach have something to do with stopping of drinking water.• The precise physiological mechanisms underlying the thirst drive are yet to be understood.
3. How do the needs for achievement, affiliation, and power influence the behaviour of adolescents ? Explain with examples.
Answer
Needs for achievement:• It energies and directs behaviour as well as influences the perception of situations.• During the formative years of social development, children acquire achievement motivation. They learn it from their parents, other role models, and socio-cultural influences.• We are social being. We maintain some form of relationship with others. Nobody likes to remain alone all the time. Formation of group is an important feature of human life. It involves motivation for social contact.• Need for affiliation seeking other human beings and wanting to be close to them both physically and psychologically is called affiliation. It involves motivation for social contact.• It is aroused when individuals feel threatened or helpless and also when they are happy.• People high on this need are motivated to seek the company of others and to maintain friendly relationships with other people.• Need for power is an ability of a person to produce intended effects on the behaviour and emotions of another person. The various goals of power motivation are to influence, control, persuade, lead and charm others.
4. What is the basic idea behind Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? Explain with suitable examples.
Answer
Abraham Maslow, a humanist psychologist proposed a hierarchy of needs in which human needs are arranged in a sequence from primitive to human. They are interrelated in the sense that when one need is fulfilled, the next one takes on the mind. At the lowest level are the physiological needs followed by the other higher level needs as given below:

• Physiological needs:These are needs which are basic for survival. They include such as hunger, thirst.
• Safety needs: The need to be free from any possible threat-both real and imaginary. It is of both physical and psychological nature.• Belongingness: Needs to belong, to affiliate, to love and to be loved by others. One can’t live alone and needs other’s company.• Esteem needs: Individual strives for the need for self-esteem to develop a sense of self worth once his belongingness needs are fulfilled.• Self-actualisation: It means to attain the fullest developments of one’s potential. Such people are self-aware, socially responsible, creative, spontaneous, open to novelty and change, has a sense of humour and capacity for deep interpersonal relationships.
5. Does physiological arousal precede or follow an emotional experience? Explain.
Answer
William James and Carl Lange argued that the perception about bodily changes, like rapid breathing, a pounding heart and running legs following an event, – brings forth emotional arousal. This theory of emotion holds that body’s reaction to a stimulus produces emotional reaction. The theory suggests that environmental stimuli elicit physiological responses from viscera (the internal organs like heart and lungs), which in turn, are associated with muscle movement.
James-Lange theory argues that your perception about your bodily changes, like rapid breathing, a pounding heart, and running legs, following an event, brings forth emotional arousal.The theory can be expressed in the following hierarchy:

According to this theory, felt emotion and the bodily reaction in emotion are independent of each other; both get triggered simultaneously. This theory of emotion holds that bodily changes and the experience of emotion occurs simultaneously. Theory claims that the entire process of emotion is governed by thalamus. Thalamus conveys the information simultaneously to the cerebral cortex and to the skeletal muscles and sympathetic nervous system. The cerebral cortex then determines the nature of the perceived stimulus. By referring to the past experiences. This determines the subjective experience of emotion. Simultaneously the sympathetic nervous system and the muscles provide physiological arousal and prepare the individual to take action.Following diagram shows the Cannon-Bard theory of emotion:

As proposed by the theory we first perceive potential emotion-producing situation which leads to activity in the lower brain region such as the hypothalamus which in turn sends output in two directions:(a)To internal body organs, external muscles to produce bodily expressions(b)To cerebral cortex where the pattern of discharge from the lower brain areas is perceived as felt emotion.
6. Is it important to consciously interpret and label emotions in order to explain them? Discuss giving Suitable examples.
Answer
• Schacter-Singer theory: In 1970, the American psychologists Stanley Schachter and Jerome Singer, while adopting an eclectic approach to both the earlier theories of emotion, introduced a new theory named Cognitive theory of emotion.
• They suggested that our physical arousal together with our perception and judgement of situation (cognition) jointly determine which emotions we feel.
• In other words, our emotional arousal depends on both physiological changes and the cognitive or mental on both physiological changes and the cognitive or mental interpretation of those changes. One cannot work without the other.
• The necessary detection and explanation for an emotional state always rests with the interpretation of situation. Since this interpretation is purely a subject of cognitive functioning, the cognitive factors are said to be the potent determiners of our emotional states.
• The views expressed by Schachter and Singer was also supported by Magda Arnold by stating that cognitive processes control how we interpret our feelings and how we act on them. She used the term Cognitive Appraisal for the identification and interpretation of emotion provoking stimuli.
• A third element, in understanding the relationship between physical reactions and emotional experience aroused on account of the perception of an emotion provoking stimulus.
• Cognitive theory helped us to learn that the emotional experience and physiological changes through which we pass are determined by the way we interpret a situation through the cognitive element of our behaviour in the form of our previous knowledge and our interpretation of the present situation directly affect our emotional experience

7. How does culture influence the expression of emotions?
Answer
• Emotional expression involves posture, facial expression, actions, words and even silence.• Cultural similarities in the facial expression of emotions such as anger, fear, disgust, sadness, happiness etc. have been observed. It must however, be noted that facial expression can, in some cases, be also misleading.
• The display rules that regulate emotional expression and emotional vocabulary do vary across cultures.
• It has been found that children would cry when distressed, shake their heads when defiant and smile when happy.
• Despite similarities in expressions of certain basic emotions, cultures do vary in why and how they express emotions.

8. Why is it important to manage negative emotion? Suggest ways to manage negative emotions.
Answer
• It is important to control negative emotions in order to ensure an effective social functioning. Positive emotions should be enhanced. We can reduce/manage negative emotions in the following manner.
• Negative emotions like fear, anxiety, disgust are such emotions if allowed to prevail for a long time, they are likely to have adverse effects on our well¬being. Anxious individuals find it difficult to concentrate. They are not able to take decisions. Depression impairs individuals ability to think rationally, feel realistically and work effectively.
• Following tips prove useful to manage negative emotion effectively The following tips prove useful for achieving the desire balance of emotion:
1. Enhance self-awareness: Try to get insight into your own emotions and this makes you understand them in a better way. Knowing about your capabilities and limitation helps.
2. Appraise the situation objectively: An evaluation of situation and gaining insight into it determines the level and direction of emotion.
3. Self monitoring: A periodic evaluation of past accomplishments, emotional and physical states and other positive experiences enhance faith in yourself and leads to contentment.
4. Self-modeling: Analyzing past performances and the positive aspects attached to it provides with inspiration and motivation to perform better next time.
5. Perceptual reorganization and cognitive rest-ructuring: Changing old patterns and following new positive ones. Restructure your thoughts to enhance positively and eliminate negative thoughts.
6. Be creative: Take up some hobby or develop and interest in something creative and innovative. Create fun for yourself by pursuing such activity of interest.
7. Develop and nurture good relationship: One who shares good interpersonal relationship with others never feel alone and disheartened.
8. Empathy: Looking at other’s situation as it was your own. Understanding others well help you in understanding your own self in a better way. It adds meaning to your life.
9. Participation in community services: this can prove to be very effective in creating a balance of emotion in your life.

9. Explain the concept of motivation.
Answer: The term motivation is derived from the Latin word ‘movere’ referring to movement of activity. Thus it pushes an individual (organism) into activity.

• It can be used to explain drives, needs, goals and incentives… Any behaviour is goal driven, demand persistent and often preferred or is in favour of one goal over the other.
• It is individuals internal force which energises and directs the behaviour.

10. What are the biological bases of hunger and thirst needs?
Answer: Hunger:

• The stimuli of hunger include stomach contractions, which signify that the stomach is empty.
• A low concentration of glucose in the blood
• A low level of protein and the amount of fats stored in the body.
• The liver also responds to the lack of bodily fuel by sending nerve impulses to the brain.
• The aroma, taste or appearance of food may also result in a desire to eat.
• They all in combination act with external factors (such as taste, colour by observing other’s eating, and the smell of food, etc.) to the help one understands that she/he is hungry.

Thirst: When we are deprived of water for a period of several hours, the mouth and throat become dry, which leads to dehydration of body tissues.

• Drinking water is necessary to wet a dry mouth.
• The processes within the body itself control thirst and drinking of water.
• Water must get into the tissues sufficiently to remove the dryness of mouth and throat.
• Motivation to drink water is mainly triggered by the conditions of the body.
• Loss of water from cells and reduction of blood volume.
• When Water is lost by bodily fluids, water leaves the interior of the cells. The anterior hypothalamus contains nerve cells called ‘osmoreceptors’, which generate nerve impulses in case of cell dehydration. These nerve impulses act as a signal for thirst and drinking.

Ist View:

• The mechanism which explains the intake of water is responsible for stopping the
  intake of water.

IInd View:

• The role of stimuli resulting from the intake of water in the stomach have something to do with stopping of drinking water.
• The precise physiological mechanisms underlying the thirst drive are yet to be understood.

In This Post we are  providing  CHAPTER 8 THINKING NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION for Class 11 PSYCHOLOGY which will be beneficial for students. These solutions are updated according to 2021-22 syllabus. These   can be really helpful in the preparation of Board exams and will provide you with a brief knowledge of the chapter.

NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION ON THINKING

Question 1. Explain the nature of thinking.
Answer: Thinking is a complex mental process involved in manipulating and analyzing information, either collected through the senses from the environment, or stored in memory from past experiences.
Such manipulation and analysis occur by means of abstracting, reasoning, imagining, problem solving, judging and decision-making. It is an internal process that can be inferred from overt behavior.
Main features:

1. Thinking is the base of all cognitive activities.
2. It involves manipulation and analysis of information received from the ! environment.
3. Thinking is mostly goal directed and one desires to reach the goal by planning. Two building blocks of thinking?

• Thinking is a complex mental process and people think by means of mental images or concepts.
• Mental image refers to an image which is a mental representation of a sensor}’ experience. In this we actually try to form a visual image of the whole situation.
•  A concept is a mental representation of a category. It refers to a class of objects,
  ideas, events that share common properties, e.g. When we encounter new social situation, we try to categorise it on the basis of past experience and take action towards such situations.

Question 2. What is a concept? Explain the role of concept in the thinking process.
Answer: Concepts are mental categories for objects and events, which are similar to each other in one or in more than one way.

• They may be organised in schema. They are mental frameworks which represents our knowledge and assumptions about the world.
• Concepts are building blocks of thinking. They allow us to organize knowledge in systematic ways.
• Concept formation is a basic task of thinking i.e., identifying the stimulus properties that are common to a class of objects or ideas, e.g., in the activity, the participant has to classify the stimuli either on the basis of colour or shape. It is very helpful in the thinking process.

Question  3. Identify obstacles that one may encounter in problem solving.
Answer: Problem solving is thinking directed towards the solution of a specific problem,
Problem solving involves following mental operations which are as follows :

1. Identify the problem
2. Represent the problem
3. Plan the solution: Set sub-goals
4. Evaluate all solutions (plays)
5. Select one solution and execute it
6.  Evaluate the putcome
7. Rethink and redefine problems and solutions

There are two major obstacles to solving a problem. These are mental set, and lack of motivation.
Mental set is a tendency of a person to solve problems by following already tried mental operations or steps.
Lack of motivation is another obstacles to solving problems. Due to lack of motivation people give up easily when they encounter a problem or failure in implementing the : first step. Therefore, there is a need to persist in their effort to find a solution.

Question 4. How does reasoning help in solving problems?
Answer:  Reasoning is a form of problem solving. It is goal directed activity and involves ‘ inferences.
Reasoning is the process of gathering and analyzing information to a arrive at a conclusion.
Types of reasoning:

1. Inductive Reasoning: Reasoning is based on specific facts and observations. Through this reasoning people analyzing other possible reasons. Scientific reasoning is inductive in nature.
2. Deductive Reasoning: The deductive reasoning begins with general solution and then draws specific solution.
3. Analogy: Analogy helps us in identifying and visualizing the salient attributes of an object.

Question 5. Are judgement and decision-making interrelated processes? Explain.
Answer: Judgement and decision-making are interrelated processes. .

• In decision-making the problem before us is to choose among alternatives by evaluating the cost and benefit associated with each alternative. For example, when you have the option to choose between psychology and economics your decision will be based on future prospects.
• Decision making differs from other type or problem solving. In decision-making we already know the various solutions of choices.
• Judgements are not decisions although they make yield information necessary for decision.

Question 6. Why is divergent thinking important in creative thinking process?
Answer:  Divergent thinking^ is important in creative thinking process. It’s abilities facilitate generation of a variety of ideas which may not seem to be related.
Fluency, flexibility, originality and elaboration are the abilities of divergent thinking.

1. Fluency : produces many ideas for a given task or a problem. The more ideas a person produces, the higher his fluency ability.
2. Flexibility: indicates variety in thinking. It may be thinking of different uses of an object, or different interpretation of a picture, story or different ways of solving a problem
3. Originality : ability to produce ideas that are rare or unusual by seeing new relationship, combining old ideas with new ones, looking at things from different prospective.
4. Elaboration : ability that enables a person to go into details and workout implications of new ideas.
   • Divergent thinking ability facilitate generations of a variety of ideas which may not seem to be related.
   • Divergent thinking is essential in generating a wide range of ideas. Convergent thinking is important to identify the most useful or appropriate idea.

Question 7. What are the various barriers to creative thinking?
Answer: Barriers to creative thinking can be characterized as habitual, perceptual, motivational, emotional and cultural.

1. The tendency to be overpowered by habits can be detrimental to creative expression as it becomes difficult to think in novel ways.
2. Motivational and emotional barriers show that creativity is more than just a cognitive process. Lack of motivation, fear of failure, fear of rejection, poor self concept and negativism may hamper creative thinking.
3. Cultural barriers are related to excessive adherence to tradition, expectations, conformity, pressures and stereo types. It arises due to the fear of being different, mediocrity, social pressure, over-dependence, personal security and tendency to maintain the things as it is.
   Strategies to overcome the barriers of creative thinking.

There are certain attitudes, dispositions, and skills, which facilitate creative thinking.
Here are some strategies to help you enhance your creative thinking abilities and skills:

• Cultivate the habit of wider reading, exposure to a variety of information, and develop the art of asking questions, pondering over the mysteries of situations and objects.
• Try deliberately to look for multiple angles of a task and situation to increase flexibility in your thinking.
• Obsbom’s Brainstorming technique can be used to increase fluency and flexibility of ideas to open-ended situations. This helps in increasing the fluency of ideas and piling up alternatives. Brainstorming can be practiced by playing brainstorming games with family members and friends keeping its principles in mind.
• Originality can be developed by practicing fluency, flexibility, and habit of associative thinking, exploring linkages, and fusing distinct or remote ideas.
• Indulgence in activities, which require use of imagi-nation and original thinking rather than routine work according to the interest and hobbies.
• Generate a number of possible ideas or solutions, then select the best from among them.
• Think of what solutions someone else may offer for the problems.
• Give your ideas the chance to incubate. Allowing time for incubation between production of ideas and the stage of evaluation of ideas may bring in the ‘Aha!’ experience.
• Sometimes ideas cluster like branches of a tree. It is useful to diagram your thinking so that you can follow each possible branch to its completion.
• Resist the temptation for immediate reward and success and cope with the frustration and failure. Encourage self-evaluation.
  Develop independent thinking in making judgments.
• Visualize cause and consequence and think ahead, predicating things that have never happened, like, suppose the time starts moving backwards, what would happen? If we had no zero?, etc.
• Be self-confident and positive.

Question 8. How can creative thinking be enhanced ?
Answer: Strategies to enhance memory:

1. Originality: Originality can be developed by practicing fluency, flexibility, habit of associative thinking, exploring linkages, and fusing distinct or remote idea.
2. Use of Imagination: Engaging more frequently in activities which require use of imagination and original thinking rather than routine work according to interest and hobbies.
3. Not to accept initial ideas: Never accepting the first ideas or solution. Many ideas die because we reject them thinking that the idea might be a silly idea i.e. we have to first generate a number of possible ideas or solutions, then select the best from among them.
4. Getting feedback: Getting a feedback on the solutions we decide one from others who are less personally involved in the task.
5. Chance to Incubate : Giving ideas the chance to incubate. Allowing time for incubation between production of ideas and the stage of evaluation of ideas, may bring in the ‘Aha!’ experience.
6. Diagram thinking: Sometimes ideas cluster like branches of a tree. It is useful to diagram our thinking so that we can follow each possible branch to its completion.
7. Developing independent thinking: Developing independent thinking in making judgements, figuring out things without any help or resources.
8. Self confident : To be self-confident and positive. Never undermine to your creative potential to experience the joy of your creation.

Question 9. Does thinking take place without language ? Discuss.
Answer:

• Thinking is a silent speech
• It cannot take place without language.
• Benjamin Lee Whorf was of the view that language determines the contents of thought. This view is known as linguistic relativity hypothesis. In its strong version, this hypothesis holds what and how individuals can possible think is determined by the language and linguistic categories they use (linguistic determinism).
• Experimental evidence, maintains that it is possible to have the same level or quality of thoughts in all languages depending upon the availability of linguistic categories and structures.
• Some thoughts may be easier in one language compared to another.

Question 10. How is language acquired in human beings?
Answer: To achieve linguistic competence, children must master the four sub-systems or language :

• Phonology – the ability to understand and produce speech sounds
• Semantics – the ability to understand words and the different combinations of words
• Grammar – the ability to understand the rules by which words are arranged into sentences and the rules by which words can indicate tense and gender
• Pragmatics – the ability to understand the rules of effective communication such as turn-taking, initiating and ending conversations and so on.

There are two contrasting views on how language is acquired. Some suggest that language acquisition is primarily biologically determined. This is typical nativity position in nature-nurture debate. Other position is the environmentalist position which views learning as the basis of language acquisition.
Language development for behaviourists like B.F. Skinner follow the learning principles such as association, imitation and reinforcement. They explain it in terms of operant conditioning.
Regional differences in pronunciation and phrasing illustrate how different patterns are reinforced in different areas.

• The nativist view supported by Noam Chomsky argues that human being’s extra ordinary capacity to learn and use language is based on certain innate mechanisms.
• Chomsky suggested that children are born with powerful language acquisition, device, LAD, which represents a knowledge of universal grammar.
• Children throughout the world seem to have a critical period that is form infancy to puberty where learning must occur if it is to occur successfully for learning language.
  Most psychologists accept that both nature and nurture are important in language acquisition.

In This Post we are  providing  CHAPTER 2 METHODS OF ENQUIRY IN PSYCHOLOGY NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION for Class 11 PSYCHOLOGYwhich will be beneficial for students. These solutions are updated according to 2021-22 syllabus. These   can be really helpful in the preparation of Board exams and will provide you with a brief knowledge of the chapter.

NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION ON METHODS OF ENQUIRY IN PSYCHOLOGY

Question 1. What are the goals of scientific enquiry?
Answer: There exists diversity in types of researches or studies undertaken by psychologists but they all seem to share some common goals of enquiry, which are as follows-:

1. Description
   • This helps to define the phenomena and distinguish it from other phenomenas.
   • Description is necessary because any event or behaviour may have many aspects.
   • For example, the idea of entertainment varies from reading books to going to pubs, depending on the individual.
   • The recording of event or behaviour is an integral part of description.
2. Prediction
   • Prediction means forecasting of events.
   • It establishes relationship between two variables.
   • For example, one might say exercising leads to weight loss.
   • In psychology all predictions are made within a certain margin of error i.e. they are not pin-pointed or exact.
3. Explanation
   • Explanation involves knowing the cause or the reason behind the behaviour.
   • It also tries to understand the conditions under which a particular behaviour occurs. For example, a child behaves rudely whenever he is disturbed so his disturbances become the cause of his rude behaviour.
4. Control
   • Control means creating change in the phenomenon or behavior.
   • It refers to making behaviour happen, reduction in it or enhancement in it.
   • The changes produced by psychological treatment in terms of therapy are good examples of control.
5. Application
   • Psychological researches are often conducted to solve various problems faced by file society.
   • Psychology helps in solving problem at individual, organizational or community level.
   • For example, therapies are provided to individuals and counseling is also there to help them.
   • At file organizational level, various psychological concepts like work motivation are used to enhance performance. At file community level, counseling is provided to help people engage in various , helpful and eco-friendly behaviours.

Question 2. Describe the various steps involved in conducting a scientific enquiry.
Answer:  Scientific research or study is a clearly defined process that goes through a series of steps—

1. Conceptualising a problem
   • The process begins when a researcher selects a theme or topic for study.
   • Then the research questions or problems for the study are formulated.
   • Problem is based on the review of past researches, observations and personal experiences.
   • Problem indicates the relationship between variables.
     For example, what is the relationship between reward and classroom learning?
   • After formulation of problem, the hypothesis is formed, which is the tentative and testable statement about the relationship between two variables.
     For example, increased amount of reward will lead to betterment in learning.
2. Collecting data
   • Data collection requires developing a research design or a blueprint of the entire study.
   • Participants of the study are decided, depending on the nature of study, they could be children, adolescents, college students, teachers, workers, elder people etc.
   • Methods of data collection like observation, experimental, correlational method etc are decided.
   • The next decision is taken about the tools to be used, like interview schedule,. questionnaire, survey etc.
   • Procedure for data collection is decided i.e. how the tools need to be administered to collect data i.e. individual to collect data i.e. individual or group administration.
   • This is followed by actual data collection.
3. Drawing conclusions
   • The next step is to analyse data to understand its meaning.
   • The graphical representation of data is made using, bar diagram, pie chart, histogram, mean, median, mode, standard deviation etc.
   • The purpose of analysis is to verify a hypothesis and draw conclusions accordingly.
4. Revising research conclusions
   • The research begins with the hypothesis.
   • Then researcher sees whether the conclusions support this hypothesis or not.
   • If conclusions support the hypothesis then it is confirmed.
   • If it is not confirmed researcher revises or states an alternative hypothesis/theory and again tests it and the same process continues.

Question 3. Explain the nature of psychological data.
Answer:  Data is any information related to mental processes, experiences and behaviour, collected by using various tools.
Psychological data are of different types, such as-:

1. Demographic information
   This information includes personal information related to a particular individual. This includes name, age, gender, education, marital status, residence, caste, religion, income etc, which are personally relevant.
2. Physical information
   This includes information pertaining to physical environment i.e. ecological condition.
   It also includes information about economy, housing conditions, facilities at the home, in the school, transportation etc.
3. Physiological data
   This is related to Biological data.
   For example, height, weight, heart rate, level of fatigue, EEG, reaction time, sleep, blood pressure etc is collected.
   Data related to animal’s biological functioning is also collected.
4. Psychological information
   This includes data regarding psychological functioning of individual.
   It involves data about intelligence, personality, attitudes, values, emotions, motivation, psychological dysfunctions, consciousness etc.
   Thus obtained data is divided into various categories, so that it can be analysed using statistical measures.

Question 4. How do experimental and control group differ? Explain with the help of an example.
Answer:

1. Experimental group: The subjects in study who receive some special treatment in regard to the independent variable.
   In an experiment this group is administered the independent variable (the variable that is manipulated to see its effect on any other variable under study).
2. Control Group: control group is a comparison group.
   • The independent variable is not administered on this group.
   • Subjects in a study who do not receive the special treatment given to the experimental group.

The purpose is to see whether any difference occur in two groups as a result of application of independent variable on experimental group.
For example, suppose, an experiment is carried out to study the effect of presence of others on helpful behaviour, one participant was put in a situation requiring help, say, someone drowning in swimming pool, here five other people were also present, another participant was alone in the emergency situation.
In an experiment except for the experimental manipulation, other conditions are kept constant for both the groups.

Question 5.  A researcher is studying relationship between speed of cycling and the presence of people. Formulate a relevant hypothesis and identify the independent and dependent variables.
Answer:

• Variable: It is any stimulus or event which varies or can take on different valves can be measure e.g. weight, height.
• Hypothesis: It is a tentative and testable statement which expresses relation between two or more than two variables, e.g.: those who are rewarded shall require lesser number of trials to learn than those who are not rewarded.
• Independent variable: It is the variable which is systematically manipulated or altered in an experiment. It is the cause.
• Dependent variable: It is the variable that is measured in an experiment. It is the effect.
• As per the question:Hypothesis. Presence of others will enhance the speed of cycling.
  Independent variable. Presence of others Dependent variable. Speed of cycling

Question 6.Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of experimental method as a method of enquiry.
Answer: Experimental method is aimed at discovering causal relationship between various factors by manipulating the situation under totally controlled conditions.
Characterstics:

• Experimentation involves manipulation of variables to study their effect on other aspects.
• Experiments are carried out in totally controlled condition.
• Subjects or individuals are assigned to experimental and control group, randomly.
• All factors other than manipulated variable that might affect the dependent variable are kept constant.

Advantages:

• Experimental method aims at establishing cause-effect relationship between the variables.
• Replication and verification of obtained result is possible.
• The investigator can manipulate the independent variable according to the
  demands of the situation.
• It can be performed at any time.
• It is very objective—No personal bias exists.

Limitations:

• Experiments are conducted in a very artificial and unrealistic situations-the setting is not natural.
• They lack external validity i.e. generalizability. Since they are not done in natural settings, the results can’t be generalized with confidence.
• It is difficult to control and know all extraneous variables like – motivation, emotion, state etc.
• It is not always possible to study a problem experimentally.
  For example, personality can’t be studied experimentally.

Question 7. Dr. Krishnan is going to observe and record children’s play behaviour at a nursery school without attempting to influence or control the behaviour. Which method of research is involved? Explain the process and discuss its merits and demerits.
Answer:  Dr. Krishnan would use the method of non-participant observation to observe and record children’s behaviour at play without attempting to influence or control the behaviour. He would sit in a corner and observe the children’s behaviour without them being aware of it. He would note the behaviour of children while playing, how ’ they interact with each other and their reaction towards winning or losing. He would collect all the data in a file and then match the conclusion with the hypothesis.
Merits of non-participant observation:

• The researcher observes the people and their behaviour in naturalistic settings.
• The observer can get first hand information regarding the subject.

Demerits:

• This method is time consuming, labour intensive and subject to personal biases.
•  The researcher may interpret the behaviour based on personal values.

Question 8. Give two examples of the situations where survey method can be used. What are the limitations of this method?
Answer:  Survey Method is a research method utilizing written questionnaires or personal interviews to obtain data of a given population.
For example: Surveys are used in variety of situations such as

1. They can be used in political regime to know whether people approve or disapprove any particular policy of government, say for example, policy of reservation in higher education or Nuclear deal with America in recent times.
2. They are used during elections also to know who will people vote to.
3. Surveys can also be used to test hypothesis about the relationship among variables. One may try to find out the effect of some event on people’s behaviour.
   For example – Surveys have been conducted after the earthquake at Bhuj in Gujarat to find out the impact of earthquake on people’s lives.
4. In marketing area, before launching a product surveys are often conducted. They are used to assess people’s attitude on various social issues such as family planning and gender equality.

Limitation:

1. The major difficulty is the issue of accuracy and honesty of the responses as the respondents attempt to create favourable impression – faking is possible.
2. Surveyor’s bias also affects the results. He/she may ask the question in such a way as to elicit desired response.
3. Surveys remain at the surface and it does not penetrate into the depth of the problem. They are time-consuming and expensive.
4. These techniques make the respondent conscious. So he/she may mould his/her responses.
5. Survey demand expertise, research knowledge and competence on the part of the researcher. Most of the survey researchers don’t possess these qualities in the required amount. This invalidates the quality of survey.
6. Sample selected might not be the true representative of the population.

Question 9. Differentiate between interview and questionnaire.
Answer:  Interview :

• Interview is a face to face interaction between two people
• They can be structured or unstructured
• Interviews are flexible; questions can be added or altered.
• Interviewer can dig deeper by posing counter question and by noticing non-verbal clues.
• They are subjective in nature.
•  It is not a good tool for those who can’t express themselves verbally
• It requires highly skilled person as interviewer.

Questionnaire :

• It consists of a form containing a series of questions where the respondents themselves fill in the answers.
• Questionnaire is always structured.
• It is not possible to know anything more that what is asked in the question.
• They are highly objective.
• Sometimes someone else can also fill in the questionnaire other than the target person.
• Clarification of questions is sometimes not possible.
• They can be administered to a large number of people at a time.
• Comparatively less skilled person can do the Interpretation.

Question 10. Explain the characteristics of a standardised test.
Answer:  Characteristics of a standardised test:

1. Reliability: Reliability refers to the consistency of scores obtained by an individual on the same test on different occasions. If the test is reliable, these showed not be any variation in the scores obtained by the students on the 2 occasions.
   For this we can complete the following:
   (i)Test-retest reliability: it indicates the temporal stability. It is computed by finding out co-efficient of correlation b/w the 2 sets of same people.
   (ii) Split-half reliability: It gives an indication about the degree of intends, consistency of the test. .
2. Validity: For a test to be usable, it must be valid. Validity refers to the question “does the test measure what it claims to measures”. E.g. If a test is for assessment intelligence, it should only be testing intelligence and not aptitude.
3. Norms: A test becomes standardized if norms are developed for the test, norm is the normal average performance of the group. The test is administered on a large number of students. Their average performance standards are based in their age, sex, place of residence, etc. this helps us in compassion of performance of groups and individual students.

In This Post we are  providing  CHAPTER 3 THE BASES OF HUMAN BEHAVIOUR NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION for Class 11 PSYCHOLOGYwhich will be beneficial for students. These solutions are updated according to 2021-22 syllabus. These   can be really helpful in the preparation of Board exams and will provide you with a brief knowledge of the chapter.

NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION ON THE BASES OF HUMAN BEHAVIOUR

Question 1:

How does the evolutionary perspective explain the biological basis of behaviour?

ANSWER:

The evolutionary perspective explains the biological behaviour by demonstrating the behavioural and physiological changes that occur as a result of evolution being necessary for the survival of species. For instance, increase in the capacity for cognitive behaviour like perception, memory and use of language for communication among humans is a result of the evolution. Such type of changes have occurred due to the impact of the surrounding environment and is related to abilities like finding food, avoiding predators and protecting the offspring. This is manifested in humans in the following ways:

• The human brain has evolved from smaller to bigger in size.

• Human beings can walk upright on their two legs.
• Human beings have got a free hand with a workable opposing thumb.

Thus, the evolutionary perspective highlights the importance of the developed body and mind that humans have inherited from their ancestors and provides a biological basis of behaviour.

Question 2:

Describe how neurons transmit information?

ANSWER:

Neurons transmit information with the help of its dendrites, axon, soma and terminal buttons by converting stimuli into electrical impulses. This is done by the following method:

• Dendrites receive the incoming neural impulses, from adjacent neurons or directly from the sense organs, in electrochemical form.
• The nerve impulse is then passed on to the soma that is the main body of the neuron.
• From soma, impulse passes on to the axon.
• The axon transmits the information/impulse along its length to terminal buttons.
• The terminal buttons transmit the information to another neuron, gland and muscle.

Question 3:

Name the four lobes of the cerebral cortex. What functions do they perform?

ANSWER:

The four lobes of the cerebral cortex are frontal lobe, parietal lobe, temporal lobe and occipital lobe. Their functions are as follows:

• Frontal lobe − It is responsible for cognitive functions such as attention, thinking, memory, reasoning and learning. It also inhibits the autonomic and emotional responses.
• Parietal lobe − It is mainly concerned with cutaneous sensations and their coordination with visual and auditory sensations.
• Temporal lobe − It processes the auditory information.
• It also helps in understanding of speech and written language and memorising symbolic sounds and words.
• Occipital lobe − It interprets visual impulses, memorises visual stimuli and helps in colour visual orientation.

Question 4:

Name the various endocrine glands and the hormones secreted by them. How does the endocrine system affect our behaviour?

ANSWER:

The various endocrine glands and the hormones secreted by them are as follows:

Endocrine glands	Hormones
Pituitary gland	Growth hormones
Gonadotropic
Thyroid gland	Thyroxin
Adrenal gland	Corticoids
EpinephrineNorepinephrine
Pancreas	Insulin
Gonads	EstrogensProgesteroneAndrogensTestosterone

The endocrine system controls or regulates our behaviour with the help of chemical substances known as hormones. Hormones enable the individual to react to the stimuli present in the environment. They also enable the growth of individuals, their maturity and help in reproduction. For example, growth hormones help in growth of a child while gonadotropic hormones bring primary and secondary sexual changes. Thyroxin maintains the metabolic rate of the body while estrogens and testosterone help in reproduction. This system works with different parts of the nervous system and also known as neuroendocrine system.

Question 5:

How does the autonomic nervous system help us in dealing with an emergency situation?

ANSWER:

The autonomic nervous system helps us in dealing with an emergency situation with the help of its two divisions namely, Sympathetic division and Parasympathetic division.

1. Sympathetic division

• During an emergency situation the sympathetic division helps in quick and powerful actions.
• It stops the digestion of food and causes the flow of blood from internal organs to the muscles and also increases the breathing rate, oxygen supply, heart rate and blood sugar level.

0. Parasympathetic division

• Parasympathetic division decelerates the sympathetic division after the emergency gets over.
• It brings the heart beat, breathing and blood flow to the normal levels. It also calms down the individual to the normal condition.

Question 6:

Explain the meaning of culture and describe its important features.

ANSWER:

The term culture refers to the shared customs, beliefs, values, norms institutions and other products of a community which are transmitted from one generation to another. It includes all materialistic, abstract and behavioural particulars that exist prior to the individual and consists of features that vary across societies. The important features of culture are as follows:

• It contains values and language that can be expressed.
• It contains a way of life that is followed by individuals who have grown in that context.
• It is a historically transmitted pattern of meanings embodied in symbols.
• It has influence upon human behaviour.

Question 7:

Do you agree with the statement that ‘biology plays an enabling role, while specific aspects of behaviour are related to cultural factors’? Give reasons in support of your answer.

ANSWER:

The statement that biology plays an enabling role while, specific aspects of behaviour are related to cultural factors, is correct. The reasons are as follows:

• Culture decides the norms of behaviour for an individual while biology helps in materialising the behaviour.
• The biological frame of the body enables the individual to create culture. The human brain, endocrine glands, hormones etc. are responsible for humans being intelligent and different from other species.
• Culture ascribes meaning to biological actions and lends them rationality.

Question 8:

Describe the main agents of socialisation.

ANSWER:

The main agents of socialisation are as follows:

1. FAMILY

• The socialisation of a child starts with the help of parents and other members of the family. Parents introduce the child to the society and provide the building blocks of socialisation.
• Parents approve and discourage certain types of behaviour among children.
• Parenting styles are based upon strategies that can be authoritative, authoritarian and democratic or permissive. They exert varying degrees of acceptance and control upon their children.
• The parenting style is also influenced by conditions of life like poverty, illness etc. Grandparents and network of social relationships also socialise children through parental influences.
• This agency has a direct and significant effect upon the child’s behaviour and personality.

0. SCHOOL

• Schools provide children with an organised set up for interaction with teachers and peers.
• Children in schools learn various cognitive skills, social skills, self-control, self-initiative, responsibility, and creativity and also internalise the norms set by the society.
• Schooling therefore, can transform a child’s personality since children learn to become self-reliant.

0. SOCIAL INTERACTION

• Development of self-identity is greatly facilitated by the peer group.
• Children not only learn to assert their own point of view, but also accept and adapt to those of others.
• They also acquire qualities like sharing, trust, mutual understanding, role acceptance and fulfilment.
• The interaction is direct, therefore the socialisation is smooth.

0. MEDIA

• Children learn about many things through television, newspaper, books and cinema. Adolescents and young adults often derive their models from them.
• Children learn to form their own opinions and ideas with interaction to mass media.
• However, this agency may also promote anti-social aspects that have to be avoided by the individuals.

Question 9:

How can we distinguish between enculturation and socialisation? Explain.

ANSWER:

Enculturation and socialisation can be distinguished in the following ways:

	Enculturation		Socialisation
1.	Enculturation is the learning that takes place without direct, deliberate teaching.	i.	Socialisation is a deliberate process that takes place through agencies like family, school, peer group and mass media.
2.	Enculturation leads to acquisition of ideas, concepts and values in a specific socio-cultural context.	ii.	Socialisation is a general process that helps in development of knowledge, skills and dispositions that enable individuals to function effectively as members of the society.
3.	Enculturation takes place through observation.	iii.	Socialisation takes place through interaction.
4.	The effects of enculturation are visible in the cultural behaviour of the individual.	iv.	The effects of socialisation are to condition the individual towards socially accepted behaviour through rewards and punishment.

Question 10:

What is meant by acculturation? Is acculturation a smooth process? Discuss.

ANSWER:

Acculturation refers to the cultural and psychological changes that result from contact with other cultures. This process can be direct, indirect, voluntary or involuntary.

The smoothness of the process of acculturation depends upon the re-socialisation of the people, this is because

sometimes it is easy for people to learn new norms, values, dispositions and patterns of behaviour. Successful adaptation in such instances leads to a smooth process of acculturation towards the group that is responsible for it. Contrary to this,

individuals also face difficulties while adopting new cultural traits and it results in a state of conflict.

This situation arises mostly when acculturation is involuntary and is painful as it leads to experience of stress and other behavioural difficulties.

In This Post we are  providing  CHAPTER 4 HUMAN DEVELOPMENT NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION for Class 11 PSYCHOLOGYwhich will be beneficial for students. These solutions are updated according to 2021-22 syllabus. These   can be really helpful in the preparation of Board exams and will provide you with a brief knowledge of the chapter.

NCERT MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION ON HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

Question 1.
Explain the meaning of the term ‘Development.
Answer:
The meaning of the concept of development is different for different people. One thing is definitely common that development means the diffusion of growth to all sections of the society to raise the standard of life of the people. The development conveys the ideas of improvement, progress well-being, and inspiration for a better life. Through the process of development, society seeks to achieve the vision of the future for the future generation.

The development has also been Understood and used in a narrow sense y understanding it related with limited goals such as increasing the .ate of economic growth or modernizing the society. In fact, the development is not concerned with just achieving the present targets or completing projects like dams and factories i.e. growth of infrastructure but it is more concerned with realizing the broader vision of society. We can say that development is a value ridden concept.

Question 2.
Explain various issues that are involved in the process of development.
Answer:
Since the concept of development is very wide, a number of issues are involved in it which are as under

1. The rights of the people should be taken into account during the course of development.
2. To make development more pervasive, there should be the democratization of the social, economic, and political environment.
3. The benefits of development should reach all sections of society.
4. There should be qualitative improvement in the lives of the people.

Question 3.
Explain socialist, communist, and capitalistic model of development.
Answer:
Every state has its own model of development. Every state is concerned with the welfare of its people and raising the standard of living of its people. Although the number of models has been evolved there have been three main models of development in prevalence. These models are as under

1. Socialistic model
2. Communistic model
3. Capitalist model

1. Socialistic model:- Socialist pattern of development prevailed in developing countries of Asia and Africa to make distribution of resources as per the reeds of the people and to exploit the potentialities of the people to the fullest.

2. Communist model:- Communist model of development initially started in the countries of Eastern Europe and then spread to some other countries. It was based on the principles of Marxism.

3. Capitalist model:- This model of development become popular in the USA. and European countries which are based on the principle of economic pursuits on competition basis and profit basis with the minimum role of the state.

Question 4.
What are the main targets of development?
Answer:
The process of development seeks to achieve positive changes and improvement in the following areas

1. Poverty
2. Unemployment
3. Illiteracy
4. Unexploited resources
5. Regional imbalances
6. Social backwardness.
7. Fatalism
8. Impact of colonialism.

Question 5.
Enumerate certain features of development undertaken in different parts of the world.
Answer:
The process of development has undergone many changes over the years in different countries as it is understood in its meaning. Initially, it was linked with the economic growth and social development with the purpose of modernization of societies. The main features and activities undertaken were as under:

1. Industrialization
2. Commercialization
3. Urbanization
4. Agrarian reforms
5. Use of science and technology
6. Educational development
7. Secularisation
8. Democratization.

In the process of development, the state was given a leading role to play in the above areas.

Question 6.
Explain the mode of development in India.
Answer:
After independence, India got the colonial legacy at the social, economic, and political levels. India adopted a mixed economy for its development. Planning Commission was set to start planned economic development. The first five-year plan was started in 1951-56. So far we have successfully completed the ten five years plan which has helped in transforming the Indian society and economy to an appreciable extent. Today India is on its way to being a modernized society. The process of liberalization, globalization, and privatization has fastened the pace of development. In India, the process of development is going in Libera secular democratic framework. All efforts are being made to take the benefits of development to all sections of the society through their participation at all levels.

Question 7.
What is the impact of development in India?
Answer:
India, through its planned socio-economic development, has achieved tremendous growth in different areas i.e. agriculture, roads, housing, industry, medicine, health, raising employment opportunities, education, and developing infrastructure. Through the doses of modernization, India has been able to transform Indian society in the last sixty years. In fact through the development face of India is changed from an agrarian, traditional and backward, and undeveloped society to a modem, secular, democratic, and developing society.

But still, we have not been able to achieve the goals of development in the real sense and as per the true meaning of development. We are still in grip of inequalities, disparities, and imbalance. Still, we have 26% of people who are yet to reach the level of subsistence needs. Still, we have situations of excess and deprivation. The ultimate objective of development is rational utilization of the resource and to take the fruits of development to the last man. We feel that we are far away from these two goals of development.

Question 8.
What are the main hindrances in achieving the goals of development in developing countries like India?
Answer:
Almost every society is in the process of development and is trying to get the goals of development. But there are certain structural hindrances in the path of development, particularly in developing countries. Some of the hindrances are as under:-

1. Lack of definite and relevant model of development.
2. Lack of political will.
3. Lack of people’s awareness.
4. Traditional social structure.
5. Traditional occupations.
6. Lack of people-oriented approach of bureaucracy.

Question 9.
What do you know about the social cost of development?
Answer:
The process of development involves a lot of desirable and undesirable activities with negative and positive consequences which can be called social costs. These social costs can be understood as under

1. Displacement of persons due to developmental projects like bridges and dams and other such projects.
2. Migration of people in search of better opportunities and better quality of life in which they lose their old identities and due course of time acquire new values and new identities.
3. Pressure on urban civic amenities due to the process of urbanization in the wake of development.
4. Loss of traditional skills acquired in a long time.
5. Loss of culture.
6. Regional and cultural confrontations.
7. Social agitations.
8. Unemployment and uncertainties.

Question 10.
Define development, its objective and suggest the best modes of development.
Answer:
Lucian Pye, a great politician scientist explained the idea of development in his famous book ‘Aspects of Development’ “as a process of rational utilization of the available resources to establish modern society. In the contemporary world, however, the word of development has been used for progress, change, modernization, and growth. In fact” Lucian Pye explained the concept of development in terms of socialization, modernization, democratization, secularisation, and people’s participation.

As far as the objectives are concerned, they are not just material progress in different fields like production, goods, amenities, dams, projects, and the well-being of a few. In fact, its objectives are wide. The ultimate objective of the development is as under:-

1. To make the best use of the resources by identifying them properly.
2. To ensure the fair distribution of fruits of development to all sections of society, particularly up to the underprivileged class.
3. To raise the standard of living of the people.
4. To achieve the common good of the people.

There have been different models of development in different parts of the world with democratic and dictatorial governmental structures In all these models of development, there has been the Top-down approach in decision making which prohibited the local initiative and participation in policymaking and decision-making process. To achieve the desired goals of development, there is a need to adopt such a system or model of development which ensure the people’s participation up to a desirable extent and recognizes their rights and claims.