Deck 4: Class Privilege

Question 1

The distribution of income in the United States shows

A) an hourglass with many rich, many poor, and few in between
B) almost everyone clustered in the middle
C) many clustered in the lower-middle beneath a narrow tower of high incomes
D) a pyramid with many in absolute poverty, fewer in the middle, and a handful at the top

Answer 1

C

Question 2

In the United States, many retired people are concentrated

A) in the lower income brackets
B) in absolute poverty
C) in the highest income brackets
D) in service-sector occupations

Answer 2

A

Question 3

In recent decades, the share of income going to the top fifth of households has

A) begun to decline with heavier taxation
B) increased relative to all other quintiles (fifths)
C) shown an increase in the 1980s and a decrease in the 1990s
D) stayed constant despite economic changes

Answer 3

B

Question 4

In the United States, the distribution of wealth is

A) more concentrated than the distribution of income
B) less concentrated than the distribution of income
C) identical to the distribution of income
D) determined by educational attainment and income

Question 5

Erik Olin Wright contends that social class is still largely dependent on

A) wealth and authority
B) style of life
C) personal interests and affiliations
D) subjective self-understanding

Question 6

The social class that has been hardest hit by deindustrialization has been the

A) capitalist class
B) white-collar middle class
C) blue-collar working class
D) upper-middle class

Question 7

For Karl Marx, the key determiner of social class was

A) education
B) occupation
C) wealth and ownership
D) prestige and social influence

Question 8

In the United States, wealth is more concentrated than income.

Question 9

The growth of agribusiness in the United States has resulted in the employment of many more agricultural workers.

Question 10

In the United States, professionals and managers with advanced degrees and family incomes of $120,000 or more comprise the

A) very rich
B) middle class
C) upper-middle class
D) national median

Question 11

A controversial term used for those excluded from the formal economy and stuck in multifaceted poverty is

A) deadbeats
B) underclass
C) service class
D) third class

Question 12

Typically, agribusiness attempts to produce more at lower cost through the use of

A) ecologically appropriate crops
B) chemicals, equipment, and economies of scale
C) local farm organizations and cooperatives
D) simple, organically grown foods rather than highly processed products

Question 13

Extensive job growth in the United States is expected in

A) medicine, technology, and personal services
B) food production, processing, and farm labor
C) oil, gas, and mineral extraction
D) automotive parts and assembly

Question 14

The sector of the economy with the greatest decline in percentage of the labor force over this century has been

A) farming and farm labor
B) white-collar professional
C) blue-collar factory work
D) low-wage service sector

Question 15

A major transition in the past several decades has been the movement of workers from the industrial sector to the service sector.

Question 16

Most Americans identify themselves as belonging to the middle class.

Question 17

The poorest 45% of the U.S. population, on balance, control

A) 45% of the nation's wealth
B) about 10% of the nation's wealth
C) net assets of a few thousand dollars each
D) no net wealth whatsoever

Question 18

The wealthiest sector of the U.S. population receives most of its money from:

A) high-salary occupations such as law and medicine
B) returns on investments and assets
C) movie and sports contracts
D) the combined salaries of two professional careers

Question 19

The underclass in the United States:

A) includes seasonal and part-time workers
B) has a high school education or better
C) is better off than the working class
D) is disappearing due to economic change

Question 20

Early industrialization brought new demand for paid labor done by

A) women and children
B) software engineers
C) elderly workers
D) migrant laborers

Question 21

Since 1979, all U.S. households have seen their family income decline.

Question 22

The income gap between the capitalist class of property owners and the rest of the population continues to grow.

Question 23

Female-headed households earn less than married couple households among white non-Hispanic Americans, but not among African Americans and Hispanic Americans.

Question 24

What economic and social forces tend to make wealth so concentrated in the United States? What are the consequences of this concentration of wealth?

Question 25

What are the major trends in the distribution of income over the past several decades? How do median incomes differ by race and ethnicity, by age, and by family type?

Question 26

One of the occupations with the lowest wages is personal care and service.

Question 27

Give the three key determiners of social class examined in the chapter.

Question 28

Since the 1970s, the movement of workers from industry to service jobs has resulted in substantial increases in real wages.

Question 29

What are the major changes in sectors of the economy that have occurred over the past 100 years? How have these affected occupations and class structure? What are the current trends in occupation growth, and what effect will these likely have on the distribution of income?

Question 30

List the six-part outline of the American class structure created by Gilbert and Kahl.