2023 Cambridge IAS-Level Sociology (9699) Practice Paper with Answers

First way: Enforcement of conformity through informal social control. Peer groups apply positive sanctions, like praise or inclusion, to reward desired behavior, and negative sanctions, such as teasing, exclusion, or ridicule, to punish non-conformity. Through this process, individuals learn the group's accepted behavioral standards. Second way: Development of independent subcultural identities. Peer groups allow youth to experiment with lifestyles, slang, and fashion distinct from their family's values. This teaches them specific subcultural norms and facilitates transition into independent adult social identity.

For each of two ways: 1 mark for identifying a valid way (up to 2 marks), 1 mark for describing how it socialises the individual (up to 2 marks). Total: 4 marks.

Peer groups play a vital role as secondary agents of socialisation in shaping gender identities. 1. Peer pressure and gender policing: Peers enforce traditional gender norms by criticizing or marginalising those who do not conform. For example, boys who show vulnerability may be labelled as 'feminine' or subjected to verbal abuse, while girls who act assertively might be labelled 'bossy'. This pressures individuals to adopt culturally approved gender roles to fit in. 2. Gendered play and activities: Peer groups often segregate by gender, engaging in distinct activities. Boys' groups may emphasise competitive sports and risk-taking, reinforcing ideas of masculinity, while girls' groups may focus on fashion, relationships, and cooperation, reinforcing traditional ideas of femininity. 3. Subcultural values and peer approval: Adherence to peer norms brings status and popularity. Within male peer groups, displays of physical strength or mechanical interest are highly valued, establishing a masculine identity. In female peer groups, relational skills and conformity to beauty standards are often validated, reinforcing a feminine identity.

7.5 marks total: Level 3 (6-7.5 marks): Answers at this level will show a sophisticated and detailed understanding of how peer groups influence gender identity. Multiple sociological concepts (e.g., peer pressure, gender policing, subcultures) will be used accurately. The explanation will be clear, logical, and well-supported with sociological examples. Level 2 (3-5.5 marks): Answers at this level will provide a reasonable explanation of how peer groups construct gender identity, but may lack depth or rely on a narrower range of points. Some sociological concepts will be applied, though perhaps with minor gaps in detail. Level 1 (1-2.5 marks): Answers will show a limited understanding of the topic, perhaps offering common-sense descriptions of peer groups or gender roles without clear sociological framing. Accept: Any valid sociological concepts, theories (e.g., feminist accounts of gender socialisation), or empirical examples of peer-group interaction. Reject: General essays on socialisation that do not focus specifically on peer groups and gender identity.

Semi-structured interviews are a widely used qualitative research method. Their key strengths include: 1. High Validity: The researcher has a basic set of questions but can ask follow-up questions or prompt the participant to elaborate. This flexibility allows participants to explain their views in their own words, leading to deeper, more authentic data that reflects their true meanings. 2. Discovering Unexpected Insights: Unlike structured interviews, semi-structured interviews allow the conversation to flow naturally. This can lead to the discovery of new topics or issues that the researcher had not previously considered, enriching the sociological findings. 3. Clarification of Ambiguities: Both the researcher and the participant can ask for clarification if a question or response is misunderstood. This reduces misinterpretation and enhances the accuracy of the gathered data. 4. Ethical sensitivity: This method allows the interviewer to build rapport with the respondent, making it highly suitable for researching sensitive topics where empathy and flexibility are required.

7.5 marks total: Level 3 (6-7.5 marks): Answers at this level will explain several distinct strengths of semi-structured interviews with depth, using appropriate sociological terminology (e.g., validity, rapport, qualitative, interpretivism). The explanation will clearly link the features of the method to its strengths. Level 2 (3-5.5 marks): Answers will outline a few strengths but may lack detail or fail to apply key research terminology consistently. The discussion may be somewhat descriptive. Level 1 (1-2.5 marks): Answers will show a basic understanding of interviews but fail to distinguish clearly between semi-structured and other types of interviews, or offer only vague common-sense points. Accept: Strengths relating to both practical, theoretical (interpretivist), and ethical advantages. Reject: Strengths that apply exclusively to structured interviews (e.g., high reliability, ease of quantification) or unstructured interviews.

The education system serves as a powerful agent of socialisation that reproduces and reinforces social class identities: 1. Cultural Capital: Middle-class parents possess 'cultural capital' (knowledge, values, and language codes) that matches the school culture. Working-class students, who may use a restricted language code, feel alienated, which reinforces their identity as 'outsiders' or academic underachievers. 2. Teacher Labelling and Streaming: Teachers often label students based on class-based stereotypes. Working-class pupils are more likely to be placed in lower streams or sets, leading to a self-fulfilling prophecy where they internalise a failure-oriented, working-class anti-school subculture. 3. The Hidden Curriculum: Schools teach values like obedience and conformity. For working-class pupils, this prepares them for working-class jobs, reinforcing their submissive class position, whereas middle-class pupils in elite schools are encouraged to develop leadership and independence, reinforcing their dominant class identity.

7.5 marks total: Level 3 (6-7.5 marks): Answers will demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of how schools reinforce social class identity, integrating key sociological concepts (e.g., cultural capital, language codes, hidden curriculum, labelling, anti-school subcultures). The explanation will be detailed, coherent, and sociologically informed. Level 2 (3-5.5 marks): Answers will explain at least one or two ways that education reinforces class identity but may lack depth, conceptual range, or use concepts in a superficial way. Level 1 (1-2.5 marks): Answers will show limited understanding, perhaps offering simple descriptions of school life or general statements about rich/poor pupils without sociological analysis. Accept: Marxist perspectives (e.g., Althusser, Bowles and Gintis) and Interactionist perspectives (e.g., Willis, Ball) on class socialisation in school. Reject: Explanations focusing solely on material deprivation without linking it back to the reinforcement of social class identity or socialisation.

Qualitative secondary data, such as personal diaries, letters, historical documents, and media articles, is favoured by many sociologists, particularly interpretivists, for several reasons: 1. High Validity and Authenticity: Personal documents like diaries or letters are often written without the knowledge that they will be analyzed by researchers. Therefore, they offer a highly genuine, unprompted insight into the thoughts, feelings, and experiences of individuals, avoiding the 'Hawthorne Effect'. 2. Access to the Past: For historical sociology, qualitative secondary data is often the only way to reconstruct the meanings and experiences of people from earlier eras (e.g., studying the lives of working-class women in Victorian England through letters). 3. Depth and Richness of Meaning: Unlike quantitative data, qualitative secondary sources allow sociologists to understand the subjective experiences and motives of individuals (verstehen), giving depth to sociological explanations. 4. Practical and Ethical Advantages: It can save time and money compared to conducting primary research, and because the data is already produced, there are fewer immediate ethical issues regarding harm to participants (though privacy concerns still exist).

7.5 marks total: Level 3 (6-7.5 marks): Answers will show a thorough understanding of the theoretical, practical, and historical reasons for choosing qualitative secondary data. Key concepts such as validity, subjectivity, verstehen, authenticity, and interpretivism will be applied accurately. Level 2 (3-5.5 marks): Answers will explain some reasons for using qualitative secondary data but may lack depth or confuse secondary qualitative data with secondary quantitative data (e.g., focusing on statistics). Level 1 (1-2.5 marks): Answers will show a very basic understanding, perhaps merely defining secondary data or listing generic advantages without linking them to qualitative sources or sociological theory. Accept: Theoretical arguments (interpretivism), practical benefits (access to historical data, cost-effectiveness), and ethical benefits. Reject: Advantages that only apply to primary qualitative research (e.g., ability to ask follow-up questions) or quantitative secondary data (e.g., official statistics).

### Indicative Content

**Arguments for the view that social class is the primary influence on identity:**
* **Marxist and Neo-Marxist Perspectives:** Argue that class positions within the capitalist system dictate economic power, which fundamentally shapes life chances, values, and class consciousness.
* **Cultural Capital (Bourdieu):** Suggests that middle-class families pass on cultural, social, and economic capital, ensuring their children internalize a 'habitus' (disposition) that shapes their academic and social identity.
* **Socialisation and Language Codes:** Bernstein’s work on elaborated and restricted speech codes shows how early class-based socialization prepares individuals for different social roles, entrenching class identity.
* **Peer Groups and Subcultures:** Traditional working-class identity was historically reinforced through manual labor, trade unions, and localized communities, while middle-class identity is reinforced through professional networking and consumer patterns.

**Arguments against the view / Alternative influences on identity:**
* **Postmodernist Perspectives:** Theorists like Pakulski and Waters argue that class is 'dead' as a major source of identity. In contemporary 'consumer societies,' individuals construct fluid, fragmented identities through lifestyle, leisure, and brand consumption, rather than through their relationship to the means of production.
* **Gender:** Feminists argue that gender is a more pervasive influence on identity than class. From primary socialization (canalisation, verbal appellations) to secondary socialization, gender roles dictate self-concept and societal expectations.
* **Ethnicity and Nationality:** For many, ethnic heritage, religious affiliation, or national identity provides a stronger sense of belonging and collective identity than class. Post-colonial and multicultural societies have also seen the rise of hybrid identities.
* **Interactionism / Agency:** Interactionists emphasize human agency, suggesting that identity is not simply imposed by social structures (like class) but is actively negotiated and constructed through social interactions (e.g., Cooley’s 'looking-glass self' or Goffman's presentation of self).

**Conclusion:**
While postmodernists are correct that identities are more diverse and fluid today, material resources associated with social class still heavily constrain or enable the choices individuals can make in constructing their identities.

Award marks according to the Cambridge International AS Level Sociology Level Descriptors for essay questions (26 marks total):

**Level 4: 19–26 marks**
* **Knowledge and Understanding (8–10 marks):** Shows detailed, highly accurate sociological knowledge of both the significance of social class and alternative factors (gender, ethnicity, postmodernism) in shaping identity.
* **Application and Analysis (6–8 marks):** Applies a range of relevant sociological theories (e.g., Marxism, Postmodernism, Feminism) and concepts (e.g., habitus, cultural capital, fluid identities) accurately to the question.
* **Evaluation (5–8 marks):** Provides a sustained, balanced, and critical evaluation of the claim. Reaches a sophisticated, well-reasoned conclusion.

**Level 3: 13–18 marks**
* **Knowledge and Understanding (6–7 marks):** Good sociological knowledge of class-based identity and at least one other factor, but may lack depth in some areas.
* **Application and Analysis (4–5 marks):** Some successful application of concepts/theories, though some points may be descriptive.
* **Evaluation (3–6 marks):** Evaluation is present but may rely on juxtaposition (putting two different theories side-by-side without fully analyzing their interaction).

**Level 2: 7–12 marks**
* **Knowledge and Understanding (4–5 marks):** Basic knowledge, perhaps focusing only on class or presenting a generic discussion of socialization.
* **Application and Analysis (2–3 marks):** Limited application of sociological concepts, largely descriptive.
* **Evaluation (1–4 marks):** Evaluation is weak, anecdotal, or non-existent.

**Level 1: 1–6 marks**
* **Knowledge and Understanding (1–3 marks):** Minimal understanding. Answers may rely heavily on common-sense views.
* **Application and Analysis (0–1 marks):** Very little or no application of sociological ideas.
* **Evaluation (0–2 marks):** No creditworthy evaluation.