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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What American president called groups organized around particular interest or passions "mischiefs of faction"?

2. In 1998, what percent of American adults were married?

3. How large of a gorilla did Robinson and Godbey compare television to?

4. When were Americans born who were the most engaged or tolerant?

5. In Figure 59, what percent of Americans spent their evenings watching TV?

Short Essay Questions

1. Materially, how did the standard of living improve in the United States during the 50 years after the Civil War?

2. What did teachers report in areas where civic engagement in community affairs in general was high?

3. How might social capital serve as a physiological triggering mechanism?

4. What characteristics did criminologist Robert J. Sampson see in communities that had increased crime and violence?

5. Why when looking for a job, did Mark Granovetter document that acquaintances were more important than other factors?

6. Why did John Stuart Mill laud the effects of participatory democracy on character?

7. What were some inventions that transformed American life after 1870?

8. What did the most systematic study of civic skills in contemporary America suggest?

9. How did the school integration busing issue illustrate the trade-offs between bridging and bonding social capital?

10. When people said that television was their main form of entertainment, what activities did these people participate in less often?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

There was a debate in the book regarding trends in religious behavior. Argue whether society was increasingly becoming secularized in the twentieth century or not.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the value and problems of social networks. What areas of life benefit from these networks? Do the benefits outweigh the problems?

Essay Topic 3

Putnam's book frequently uses the term "social capital." Discuss social capital and compare it with physical and human capital.

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