Question

read the following paragraph from a sociology textbook written by brad dudley: most people learn about acceptable behavior from their families, friends, and communities. it is human nature to want to fit in and be accepted, and that is a powerful force behind the development of social norms. these unwritten rules of conduct are more important to maintaining an orderly society than laws. which option below accurately paraphrases the paragraph without plagiarizing it? laws don’t do as much to preserve society as the need to fit in with family, friends, and neighbors. in his book, brad dudley writes that proper conduct is learned from one’s community, friends, and family. although these principles of behavior are not written down like laws, they are even more vital to preserving society. dudley, author and sociologist, suggests that people who don’t conform to accepted standards of behavior will destroy a society. sociologist brad dudley believes that peer pressure does more to ensure proper behavior and preserve order than legal rules and regulations.

Explanation:

To determine the correct paraphrase, we analyze each option:

• Option 1 ("Laws don’t do as much to preserve society as the need to fit in with family, friends, and neighbors") misinterprets the original text, which emphasizes that unwritten rules (from family, friends, community) are more vital than laws, not that "need to fit in" is compared to laws.
• Option 2 ("In his book, Brad Dudley writes that proper conduct is learned from one’s community, friends, and family. Although these principles of behavior are not written down like laws, they are even more vital to preserving society") accurately captures the key points: learning proper conduct from community, friends, family; unwritten nature of these principles; and their greater importance than laws for society preservation.
• Option 3 ("Dudley, author and sociologist, suggests that people who don’t conform to accepted standards of behavior will destroy a society") introduces a new idea (destruction by non - conformers) not present in the original, which focuses on how people learn behavior and the importance of unwritten rules.
• Option 4 ("Sociologist Brad Dudley believes that peer pressure does more to ensure proper behavior and preserve order than legal rules and regulations") replaces "unwritten rules of conduct (from family, friends, community)" with "peer pressure" and "laws" with "legal rules and regulations", which is a misrepresentation of the original text.

Answer:

The correct option is the second one: In his book, Brad Dudley writes that proper conduct is learned from one’s community, friends, and family. Although these principles of behavior are not written down like laws, they are even more vital to preserving society.