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SOCIETY-AND-CULTURE · CSAT (대학수학능력시험)

SOCIETY-AND-CULTURE/11

Society and Culture

Society and Culture · 2020 · Variant 1

Relative difficulty

Demanding · 4.0/5

Analysis source: Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation (KICE)

Analysis aligned to the official syllabus and assessment design.

Relative difficulty

4.0 / 5

Total marks

50

Duration

30 min

Most tested topic

Research-method tables, status/role cases, stratification data, and culture or deviance concepts.

Cohort performance

Session statistics from official examination reports

Total marks

50

Duration

30 min

Session difficulty

4.0 / 5

Calculator policy

No calculators in any CSAT section. All arithmetic must be done by hand. English includes a listening section with broadcast audio.

Key examiner messages

Top priorities from the principal examiner before you revise

1

KICE Society and Culture assesses sociological concepts, research methods, socialization, culture, inequality, stratification, organizations, deviance, and social change. The 2024 CSAT inquiry format is 20 questions, 30 minutes, 50 points, with candidates selecting up to two i…

2

KICE designs Society and Culture items from the national curriculum achievement standards and publishes all questions and answers after the exam.

3

EBS-linked items about 50% means concepts, source themes, or problem types are linked, but wording and contexts are commonly transformed.

4

The official timing is 30 min for 20 questions; pacing practice should match the actual OMR marking burden.

5

KICE publishes annual test-design directions (출제 방향) emphasising syllabus-faithful items, EBS textbook linkage (~50% of Korean, Mathematics, and English items), and post-2024 exclusion of extreme “killer” items outside public-education scope.

Question difficulty map

How candidates performed on each question in this series

No data available in official reports

Assessment objectives

Skill and AO weighting from official examiner commentary

Use sociological concepts to analyze individuals, groups, institutions, and culture.
Interpret research methods, sampling, variables, tables, and survey results.
Compare theories of stratification, inequality, deviance, and social change.
Apply concepts such as status, role, socialization, norms, and organization to cases.
Evaluate data-based items accurately under time pressure.

Skill weighting

Cognitive skills emphasised in official test design.

Conceptual understandingConceptualunderstandingSource and data interpretationSource and datainterpretationApplication Tourism unfamiliar contextsApplicationTourismChronology and comparisonChronology andcomparison
SkillWeightShare
  • Conceptual understanding

    Weight: 30100%
  • Source and data interpretation

    Weight: 30100%
  • Application Tourism unfamiliar contexts

    Weight: 2583%
  • Chronology and comparison

    Weight: 1550%

Method marks watchlist

Where working, steps, or method marks were commonly lost

No data available in official reports

Recurring mistakes across years

Themes examiners flag in multiple recent sessions for this subject

Research methods: Answering from memory before checking the condition in the stem. — Underline the limiting condition and restate it in y…

2024 20242023 20232022 20222021 20214 sessions

Social concepts: Treating a familiar source, graph, or scenario as identical to a past EBS example. — Compare variables and wording; tran…

2024 20242023 20232022 20222021 20214 sessions

Stratification data: Losing marks on easy items because time was spent on one high-difficulty question. — Use a two-pass strategy and mar…

2024 20242023 20232022 20222021 20214 sessions

Culture and deviance: Eliminating options based on a keyword match rather than the full causal relationship. — Check subject, time period…

2024 20242023 20232022 20222021 20214 sessions

Question choice intelligence

Mean scores and popularity for optional questions (HKDSE electives)

No data available in official reports

Level exemplars

What candidate scripts at each grade level looked like

No data available in official reports

Grade & admission context

How marks relate to grade thresholds and entry standards

Official body

Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation (KICE)

Grading system

KICE standard score (mean 50, SD 10; range 0–100) with percentile and Grade 1–9 bands

Scale band

Std score

Scale band

Percentile

Scale band

1

Scale band

2

Deep insights

What top candidates did

Techniques and approaches examiners rewarded in this series

1. Build a concept map first

Society and Culture rewards understanding relationships among concepts. Before timed practice, connect definitions, causes, effects, and examples for concept definitions and research design.

2. Read sources before options

Many items begin with documents, maps, graphs, or dialogues. Identify the period, actor, region, or policy in the source before looking at answer choices.

3. Compare similar ideas

Create two-column comparisons for easily confused pairs in status vs role, primary vs secondary group, and different sampling methods; KICE distractors often swap one condition or consequence.

4. Drill graph and table language

For survey tables, mobility charts, and inequality data, state what increases, decreases, stays fixed, and which variable is controlled before calculating or choosing.

5. Keep a wrong-answer notebook

Record each mistake as concept, source clue, calculation, or time-pressure error. Revisit the same domain after 48 hours with a new item.

Command word playbook

How to match each command word to the expected response style

No data available in official reports

Time traps

Sections where candidates spent disproportionate time relative to marks

No data available in official reports

Syllabus traceability

Topics linked to questions and mark weighting in this session

Sociological perspective, research methods, data, and ethics

Official topic weighting

Individual, society, socialization, status, role, groups, and organizations

Official topic weighting

Culture, norms, subculture, media, and cultural change

Official topic weighting

Inequality, stratification, welfare, deviance, and social mobility

Official topic weighting

Modern society, globalization, demographic change, and social problems

Official topic weighting

MCQ trap analytics

Commonly chosen wrong options from examiner commentary

No data available in official reports

Topic heatmap across years

Mark concentration by topic and exam year for this subject

Mark intensity

LowHigh
Topic
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
Σ

Inequality, stratification, welfare, deviance, and social mobility

13
13
13
13
13
65

Sociological perspective, research methods, data, and ethics

12
12
12
12
12
60

Individual, society, socialization, status, role, groups, and organizations

11
11
11
11
11
55

Culture, norms, subculture, media, and cultural change

9
9
9
9
9
45

Modern society, globalization, demographic change, and social problems

5
5
5
5
5
25

Difficulty trend

How session difficulty has shifted across recent years

20202021202220232024
2020 2020 · 4.0/52021 2021 · 4.0/52022 2022 · 4.0/52023 2023 · 4.0/52024 2024 · 4.2/5

Paper comparison

Marks and duration breakdown across papers in this session

Society and Culture: 20 multiple-choice social inquiry questions

50 marks30 min

Marks you can still earn

Where valid approaches outside the mark scheme may still gain credit

No data available in official reports

Practise what examiners flagged

Target weak topics from this report inside the Revui app

Self-diagnostic checklist

Key actions before you sit this paper — copy and tick off as you revise

  • 1Message

    KICE Society and Culture assesses sociological concepts, research methods, socialization, culture, inequality, stratification, organizations, deviance, and social change. The 2024 CSAT inquiry format is 20 questions, 30 minutes, 50 points, with candidates selecting up to two i…

  • 2Message

    KICE designs Society and Culture items from the national curriculum achievement standards and publishes all questions and answers after the exam.

  • 3Message

    EBS-linked items about 50% means concepts, source themes, or problem types are linked, but wording and contexts are commonly transformed.

  • 4Message

    The official timing is 30 min for 20 questions; pacing practice should match the actual OMR marking burden.

  • 5Message

    KICE publishes annual test-design directions (출제 방향) emphasising syllabus-faithful items, EBS textbook linkage (~50% of Korean, Mathematics, and English items), and post-2024 exclusion of extreme “killer” items outside public-education scope.

  • 6Pitfall

    Research methods: Answering from memory before checking the condition in the stem. — Underline the limiting condition and restate it in y…

  • 7Pitfall

    Social concepts: Treating a familiar source, graph, or scenario as identical to a past EBS example. — Compare variables and wording; tran…

  • 8Pitfall

    Stratification data: Losing marks on easy items because time was spent on one high-difficulty question. — Use a two-pass strategy and mar…

  • 9Pitfall

    Culture and deviance: Eliminating options based on a keyword match rather than the full causal relationship. — Check subject, time period…

  • 10Strength

    1. Build a concept map first: Society and Culture rewards understanding relationships among concepts. Before timed practice, conne

  • 11Strength

    2. Read sources before options: Many items begin with documents, maps, graphs, or dialogues. Identify the period, actor, region, or

  • 12Strength

    3. Compare similar ideas: Create two-column comparisons for easily confused pairs in status vs role, primary vs secondary grou

Teacher briefing pack

One-page session summary for tutors and classroom review

2020 2020

Society and Culture

KICE Society and Culture assesses sociological concepts, research methods, socialization, culture, inequality, stratification, organizations, deviance, and social change. The 2024 CSAT inquiry format is 20 questions, 30 minutes, 50 points, with candidates selecting up to two inqu

  • KICE Society and Culture assesses sociological concepts, research methods, socialization, culture, inequality, stratification, organizations, deviance, and social change. The 2024 CSAT inquiry format is 20 questions, 30 minutes, 50 points, with candidates selecting up to two i…

  • KICE designs Society and Culture items from the national curriculum achievement standards and publishes all questions and answers after the exam.

  • EBS-linked items about 50% means concepts, source themes, or problem types are linked, but wording and contexts are commonly transformed.

  • Research methods: Answering from memory before checking the condition in the stem. — Underline the limiting condition and restate it in y…

  • Social concepts: Treating a familiar source, graph, or scenario as identical to a past EBS example. — Compare variables and wording; tran…

Total marks
50
Duration
30 min
Session difficulty
4.0 / 5
Calculator policy
No calculators in any CSAT section. All arithmetic must be done by hand. English includes a listening section with broadcast audio.

Session analysis

KICE Society and Culture assesses sociological concepts, research methods, socialization, culture, inequality, stratification, organizations, deviance, and social change. The 2024 CSAT inquiry format is 20 questions, 30 minutes, 50 points, with candidates selecting up to two inquiry subjects and EBS linkage around 50%. Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation (KICE) emphasises research-method tables, status/role cases, stratification data, and culture or deviance concepts.. Priority revision: Sociological perspective, research methods, data, and ethics, Individual, society, socialization, status, role, groups, and organizations, Culture, norms, subculture, media, and cultural change, Inequality, stratification, welfare, deviance, and social mobility. Society and Culture rewards understanding relationships among concepts. Before timed practice, connect definitions, causes, effects, and examples for concept definitions and research design.

Updated 2026-07-03

Paper breakdown

Society and Culture: 20 multiple-choice social inquiry questions

50 marks30 min

Top chapters

Sociological perspective, research methods, data, and ethics12 marks
Individual, society, socialization, status, role, groups, and organizations11 marks
Culture, norms, subculture, media, and cultural change9 marks
Inequality, stratification, welfare, deviance, and social mobility13 marks
Modern society, globalization, demographic change, and social problems5 marks

Exam structure insights

Marks by syllabus topic

Revision priority from official test-design weighting.

Sociological perspective, research m12 marks
Individual, society, socialization, 11 marks
Culture, norms, subculture, media, a9 marks
Inequality, stratification, welfare,13 marks
Modern society, globalization, demog5 marks

Mark accessibility

Estimated difficulty spread based on official design.

Research-method tables, status/role cases, stratification data, and culture or d

23
46
31
Easy: 23 marksMedium: 46 marksHard: 31 marks

Paper structure

Official paper breakdown for this subject.

50Marks
  • Society and Culture

    50·10·100%

Official syllabus scope

KICE Society and Culture assesses sociological concepts, research methods, socialization, culture, inequality, stratification, organizations, deviance, and social change. The 2024 CSAT inquiry format is 20 questions, 30 minutes, 50 points, with candidates selecting up to two inquiry subjects and EBS linkage around 50%.

Difficulty verdict

Rated 4/5 for November sessions. Research-method tables, status/role cases, stratification data, and culture or deviance concepts.

What examiners measure

1. Use sociological concepts to analyze individuals, groups, institutions, and culture. 2. Interpret research methods, sampling, variables, tables, and survey results. 3. Compare theories of stratification, inequality, deviance, and social change. 4. Apply concepts such as status, role, socialization, norms, and organization to cases. 5. Evaluate data-based items accurately under time pressure.

Where the marks are

Highest-weight syllabus areas: Sociological perspective, research methods, data, and ethics; Individual, society, socialization, status, role, groups, and organizations; Culture, norms, subculture, media, and cultural change; Inequality, stratification, welfare, deviance, and social mobility; Modern society, globalization, demographic change, and social problems.

Examiner notes & key calculations

  • KICE designs Society and Culture items from the national curriculum achievement standards and publishes all questions and answers after the exam.
  • EBS-linked items about 50% means concepts, source themes, or problem types are linked, but wording and contexts are commonly transformed.
  • The official timing is 30 min for 20 questions; pacing practice should match the actual OMR marking burden.
  • Distractors usually represent common misconceptions, not random wrong answers, so elimination must be evidence-based.
  • High-discrimination items often combine two syllabus domains or require interpreting a new source, graph, table, or scenario.
  • A full mock should include answer-sheet transfer and a post-test error log organized by domain and mistake type.
  • Society and Culture often uses short source extracts or data displays to test whether concepts transfer to new cases.
  • Because social inquiry subjects are selected competitively, small mistakes can strongly affect percentile ranking.
  • Paper 1: Society and Culture · 50 marks · 30 min · 20 multiple-choice social inquiry questions.

Exam tips

Paper format

Duration
30 min
Total marks
50
Weighting
100%
Question types
20 multiple-choice social inquiry questions
  • Society and Culture rewards understanding relationships among concepts. Before timed practice, connect definitions, causes, effects, and examples for concept definitions and research design.
  • Many items begin with documents, maps, graphs, or dialogues. Identify the period, actor, region, or policy in the source before looking at answer choices.
  • Create two-column comparisons for easily confused pairs in status vs role, primary vs secondary group, and different sampling methods; KICE distractors often swap one condition or consequence.

Common mistakes

  • Research methods

    Answering from memory before checking the condition in the stem.

    How to avoid: Underline the limiting condition and restate it in your own words before selecting an option.

  • Social concepts

    Treating a familiar source, graph, or scenario as identical to a past EBS example.

    How to avoid: Compare variables and wording; transformed linkage often changes the required inference.

  • Stratification data

    Losing marks on easy items because time was spent on one high-difficulty question.

    How to avoid: Use a two-pass strategy and mark unresolved items after 60-75 seconds.

Analysis is paraphrased for study purposes. Always verify against the official examiner report and mark scheme.

SOCIETY-AND-CULTURE/11 — CSAT (대학수학능력시험) Society and Culture (2020) | Revui