MAT Practice — Analogies Involving the Social Sciences

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Some of the 120 analogies (questions) on your MAT will test your knowledge of the Social Sciences — a broad field that includes history, political science, geography, sociology, economics, and psychology. On this page are five MAT-style practice analogies involving social science. Further down the page you'll find an analysis of each question.

Directions: In each of the following questions, you will find three terms in upper-case letters and, in parentheses, four answer options lettered (a), (b), (c) and (d). Select the answer option that best completes the analogy with the three other terms.
  1. LA SALLE : GREAT LAKES :: PONCE DE LEON : (a. Mississippi River, b. Mediterranean Sea, c. Atlantic Ocean, d. Caribbean Sea)

  2. WHEN IN THE COURSE : (a. declaration, b. proclamation, c. constitution, d. treatise) :: FOUR SCORE AND SEVEN : ADDRESS

  3. (a. Fromm, b. Skinner, c. Jung, d. Adler) : COLLECTIVE UNCONSCIOUS :: FREUD : OEDIPUS COMPLEX

  4. PRIME MERIDIAN : LONGITUDE :: (a. equinox, b. North and South poles, c. equator, d. Tropic of Capricorn) : LATITUDE

  5. PARLIAMENT : (a. senators, b. Lords, c. conservatives, d. Commons) :: CONGRESS : REPRESENTATIVES

Answers and Explanations
[Types of Relationships in MAT Analogies]

  1. The correct answer is (d). La Salle was a French explorer of the Great Lakes region, while Spaniard Ponce de Leon explored lands in and around the Caribbean Sea (e.g., Hispaniola and Florida). (Analogy type: association)

  2. The correct answer is (a). The Declaration of Independence begins with the words "When in the course [of human events]," while Lincoln's Gettysburg Address begins with the words "Four score and seven [years ago]." (Analogy type: association)

  3. The correct answer is (c). The term collective unconscious refers to an integral aspect of a theory developed by psychiatrist Carl Jung, while the term Oedipus complex refers to an integral aspect of a theory developed by Sigmund Freud. (Analogy type: association)

  4. The correct answer is (c). The prime meridian is the base line (0 degrees) from which all other lines of longitude around the Earth are identified (by degree). Similarly, the equator is the base line (0 degrees) from which all other lines of latitude around the Earth are identified (by degree, either North or South). (Analogy type: classification)

  5. The correct answer is (d). The House of Commons in the British Parliament is structurally equivalent to the House of Representatives in the U.S. Congress. (Analogy type: classificaton)

Widely recommended for MAT prep:

MAT book    Miller Analogies Test (MAT) with TestWare, 6th Ed.
Published by REA

This book/CD package provides testing information and tips, substantive reviews of all major content areas covered on the exam, and 8 practice tests (on CD).