Samuel Morton contributed which theory about race?

Samuel Morton contributed which theory about race?

• A. 1779 - 1851 - Polygenism; theory of multiple racial creations, cranial capacity defines race & correlates with intelligence (white smartest, black least), behavioral racial stereotypes
• B. 1779 - monogenist with one race
• C. 1832 - environmental determinism
• D. 1900 - eugenics

Answer: (A)

The idea being tested is how 19th‑century theories framed race and used physical measurements to justify hierarchy. Samuel Morton promoted polygenism, the view that distinct races have separate origins and were created independently rather than as variants of a single lineage. He collected skulls and used cranial capacity as a stand‑in for intellect, arguing that whites had larger brain sizes on average and thus higher intelligence, with Black individuals at the lower end. This combination—multiple origins plus a supposed link between brain size and worth—was used to defend racial stereotypes and social inequalities. Understanding this helps explain why this option is the best choice: it explicitly names polygenism and the use of cranial capacity to tie race to intelligence and behavior. Modern science rejects these notions; human variation is continuous and not determined by simple brain-size differences, and race is understood as a social construct with limited biological basis.

The idea being tested is how 19th‑century theories framed race and used physical measurements to justify hierarchy. Samuel Morton promoted polygenism, the view that distinct races have separate origins and were created independently rather than as variants of a single lineage. He collected skulls and used cranial capacity as a stand‑in for intellect, arguing that whites had larger brain sizes on average and thus higher intelligence, with Black individuals at the lower end. This combination—multiple origins plus a supposed link between brain size and worth—was used to defend racial stereotypes and social inequalities.

Understanding this helps explain why this option is the best choice: it explicitly names polygenism and the use of cranial capacity to tie race to intelligence and behavior. Modern science rejects these notions; human variation is continuous and not determined by simple brain-size differences, and race is understood as a social construct with limited biological basis.