Deck 7: Stratification, class, and Inequality

Question 1

A stratification system in which certain people are owned as property is known as:

A) capitalism
B) caste
C) estates
D) slavery

Answer 1

D

Question 2

In an industrialized society,which term is most often used to analyze stratification?

A) occupation
B) slavery
C) class
D) caste

Answer 2

C

Question 3

According to the textbook,what is the main reason that slavery does not exist in most societies around the world today?

A) It is an inefficient economic system.
B) Slaves are too expensive to buy.
C) Human rights became an important concept in industrial societies.
D) A postindustrial society required a different economic system.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Workers picking strawberries can pick 100 baskets an hour,but it costs the employer only a value of 20 baskets to pay them their hourly wages.The income the employer collects from the extra baskets is __________,according to Karl Marx.

A) extra wages
B) surplus value
C) wage theft
D) surplus income

Question 5

Scholars believe that __________ has encouraged a shift to class-based systems in countries such as India that have been traditionally caste-based systems.

A) morality
B) globalization
C) the Internet
D) high divorce rate

Question 6

Sociologists study ________ when they are looking at the structured inequalities in a society.

A) social stratification
B) social disapproval
C) social inequity
D) strategic sociality

Question 7

According to Karl Marx,a class is made up of people who have the same relationship to the:

A) means of production
B) means of employment
C) means of consumption
D) government

Question 8

In systems of stratification,people are typically ranked by:

A) personality
B) social categories
C) intelligence
D) social capital

Question 9

Which of the following is NOT an example of a caste system?

A) forcing rural women in Thailand into sex work
B) giving political and economic rights in South Africa only to white people
C) forcing children to accept their parents' status as their own in India
D) denying all civil rights to blacks in the United States

Question 10

The caste system of stratification can be best classified as:

A) an open system in which a person's intelligence and hard work determine social position
B) an open system in which individuals can move out of the social position in which they are born
C) a closed system in which all individuals stay within the social position they are born into
D) a closed system in which people are able to own other individuals as property

Question 11

Today people are taken against their will and forced to work as bricklayers in Pakistan or sex workers in Thailand.According to the textbook,these examples are best described as:

A) modern-day slavery
B) a caste system based on occupation
C) cheap labor in a capitalist system
D) the worst occupations in a class system

Question 12

Karl Marx called those who own the means of production __________ and those who make their living by selling their own labor power for a wage __________.

A) capitalists; the working class
B) producers; consumers
C) merchants; consumers
D) the working class; capitalists

Question 13

Which of the following concepts Max Weber introduced says the idea that your probability of economic success is largely dependent on the social position you are born into?

A) caste
B) life course
C) life chances
D) status

Question 14

According to Karl Marx,the working class in industrialized countries would remain poor and live near subsistence level.Marx was right about the persistence of poverty in industrialized countries,but he was wrong in thinking that:

A) there would be very few poor people in most industrialized countries
B) most people would own the means of production collectively in capitalist countries
C) the income of most of the population would remain extremely low
D) industrial capitalism would bring about a decreasing gap between the wealth of the capitalist minority and the poverty of the large proletarian population

Question 15

In class systems,the boundaries between classes are:

A) stable and very clear-cut
B) fluid and not very clear-cut
C) determined and set at birth
D) based on religion and tradition

Question 16

Oprah Winfrey was born into poverty and raised by a single mother,yet today she is one of the richest women in America.According to the textbook,her life story demonstrates that in a class system,the social position we are born into affects our life chances,but our class position is also:

A) based on luck
B) based on looks
C) in some part achieved
D) determined in part by affirmative action for women and racial minorities

Question 17

What do sociologists call a large group of people who occupy a similar economic position in society?

A) workers
B) laborers
C) caste
D) class

Question 18

Which country has a caste system based on occupation groupings?

A) India
B) the United States
C) South Africa
D) a and b only

Question 19

Which of the following is NOT true of systems of social stratification?

A) People are ranked according to social categories,such as race and gender.
B) One's social category significantly influences his or her life chances.
C) Ranks of social categories tend to change slowly over time.
D) If a person no longer identifies with the other members of his or her category,he or she is no longer classified at that level.

Question 20

Caste systems require that individuals marry within their social group.This is referred to as:

A) caste marriage
B) endogamy
C) social marriage
D) endomarriage

Question 21

Max Weber argued that class divisions can derive from resources such as people's:

A) surplus value
B) gender
C) qualifications
D) last name

Question 22

According to the textbook,the upper class in the United States:

A) is made up of the wealthiest 20 percent of the population
B) has a distinctive lifestyle and is politically influential
C) does not include people who get their wealth from investments
D) is accessible to all Americans with a college education

Question 23

According to the textbook,Jewish people have been considered a __________ throughout most of European history.

A) capitalist group
B) uneducated class
C) contradictory class
D) pariah group

Question 24

According to the textbook,some scholars argue that __________,not __________,is the main determinant of class position.

A) income; wealth
B) education; wealth
C) wealth; income
D) home ownership; income

Question 25

Max Weber believed that __________ are equally as important as class distinctions in understanding social stratification.

A) status distinctions
B) religious distinctions
C) ethnic distinctions
D) gender distinctions

Question 26

According to Karl Marx,because workers produce more than is actually needed to pay them,the relationship between workers and capitalists in an industrial society is:

A) motivational
B) easy to negotiate
C) equal
D) exploitative

Question 27

The super-rich in the United States were able to accumulate vast amounts of wealth partly because globalization enabled them to:

A) exploit low-wage labor in other countries
B) sell products to consumers in the United States
C) make investments locally
D) produce their products in one place

Question 28

When people are asked to identify which class they belong to,most respond that they are:

A) underclass
B) poor
C) upper class
D) middle class

Question 29

The money a person gets from a wage or salary or from investments is __________; the assets an individual owns are __________.

A) wealth; property
B) income; wealth
C) wealth; income
D) income; income

Question 30

In 2012,which group had the lowest percentage for achievement of a high school diploma,at 62 percent?

A) Latinos
B) African Americans
C) whites
D) Asian Americans

Question 31

Wealth and income are both important determinants of social class.Which of the following best characterizes the relationship between wealth and income in the United States?

A) Income disparities between rich and poor have increased in the past three decades,whereas wealth disparities have decreased during the same time.
B) Wealthy people almost always inherited their money; thus there is no relationship between wealth and income.
C) The same factors that limit people's incomes also limit their ability to accumulate wealth.
D) Whereas race,education,and age influence income,wealth is independent of these variables.

Question 32

The social honor or prestige that other members of society accord to individuals is referred to as:

A) status
B) reputation
C) social class
D) fame

Question 33

In studies where individuals were asked to rank the prestige of an occupation,they ranked jobs that required __________ as having the highest prestige.

A) the most professional clothing
B) the most work hours
C) the most education
D) the most titles

Question 34

According to the textbook,members of the lower middle class today:

A) work at primarily blue-collar jobs
B) make up about 90 percent of American households
C) are racially and ethnically diverse
D) make over $200,000 annually

Question 35

Wealth refers to:

A) the value of one's home
B) all the assets an individual owns
C) how much money one makes in a year
D) the estimated earnings over one's life

Question 36

An economy based on computer and information technology has had what effect on social stratification in recent years?

A) It has made a college education more expensive.
B) It has made a college education more accessible.
C) It has increased the importance and value of a college education in the job market.
D) It has made it more difficult to attend college.

Question 37

Income inequality has increased dramatically since the 1970s as the income of the richest 20 percent saw its incomes rise __________,while the poorest 20 percent saw its incomes rise by __________.

A) 70 percent; 1 percent
B) 15 percent; 60 percent
C) 100 percent; 5 percent
D) 75 percent; 25 percent

Question 38

__________ argued that social stratification is functional and ensures that the most talented people fill the roles they are best suited for by rewarding them accordingly.

A) Karl Marx
B) Max Weber
C) Kingsley Davis and Wilbert E.Moore
D) Émile Durkheim

Question 39

Which of the following theorists would be most likely to argue that a medical doctor achieved the position solely based on his or her own talent and efforts?

A) Kingsley Davis and Wilbert E.Moore
B) Max Weber
C) Karl Marx
D) Liz Murray

Question 40

Which of the following is a strong predictor of one's occupation,income,and wealth in later life?

A) one's willingness to work hard
B) the religious background of one's parents
C) the performance of the stock market
D) one's educational attainment

Question 41

Working-class children are most likely to do which of the following after graduating from high school?

A) travel around Europe
B) attend a four-year college
C) attend a two-year college
D) immediately start working

Question 42

Eddie is a factory worker who makes about $32,000 a year.Eddie's husband,Dustin,works part-time as a dental assistant and makes about $15,000.Their combined income is just enough to pay their mortgage and make ends meet.Eddie and Dustin are considered:

A) lower middle class
B) upper middle class
C) old middle class
D) working class

Question 43

Today,the gap between rich and poor in the United States is the largest it has been since:

A) 1929,after the stock market crash
B) 1970,when the United States started to outsource jobs
C) 1947,when the United States started to measure the gap
D) Never; the gap has been getting smaller

Question 44

Workers in dead-end jobs that pay low wages are most likely found in the:

A) lower class
B) working class
C) lower middle class
D) upper middle class

Question 45

Intergenerational mobility is best described as when:

A) a person achieves a different class position than the one he or she thought they would have
B) a person maintains the same class position as his or her parents or grandparents
C) a person has a different class position from that of his or her parents or grandparents
D) a person achieves a different class position from his or her siblings

Question 46

According to Pierre Bourdieu,working-class parents are just as interested in their children's education as middle- and upper-class parents,but they lack the __________ to help their children experience social mobility.

A) social capital
B) cultural capital
C) tuition capital
D) educational capital

Question 47

While the average income of __________ households has been increasing,that of __________ households has been declining in the past decade.

A) black and Latino; white
B) lower class; middle class
C) white; black and Latino
D) Latino; black

Question 48

People in blue-collar occupations,such as plumbers and hotel workers,make up the:

A) lower middle class
B) working class
C) old middle class
D) new middle class

Question 49

Which of the following is an example of what Pierre Bourdieu refers to as cultural capital?

A) the ability to pay for cultural events,such as art museums,opera companies,and symphony orchestras that charge for admission
B) parents paying for school tutoring
C) parents reading to their children and encouraging them to do well in school
D) learning more than one language

Question 50

Inequality and the gap between rich and poor have been steadily growing in the United States.The richest 20 percent has __________ of the total income,while the poorest 20 percent has __________ of the total income.

A) 51 percent; 3.2 percent
B) 3.2 percent; 51 percent
C) 25 percent; 25 percent
D) 33 percent; 34.3 percent

Question 51

The lower class has a higher percentage of __________ than any other class in the United States.

A) bilingual speakers
B) educators
C) men
D) nonwhites

Question 52

Who among the following is most likely to experience intergenerational mobility?

A) the child of a high school teacher
B) the child of two university professors
C) the child of the CEO of a large corporation
D) the child of a school janitor

Question 53

Which of the following occupations is LEAST likely to be held by a lower-middle-class individual?

A) police officer
B) nurse
C) school teacher
D) upper-level manager

Question 54

A farmer with a high school diploma who makes $115,000 a year,lives in a large home,and drives an expensive car is most likely to be in which class category?

A) upper middle class
B) lower middle class
C) upper class
D) middle class

Question 55

Social mobility refers to:

A) the movement of individuals and groups between class positions
B) the migration of people from the countryside to town
C) the movement of people between caste positions
D) the change in racial or ethnic identification when individuals intermarry

Question 56

According to the textbook,what factor accounts for racial disparities in wealth and income?

A) higher social and cultural capital
B) education
C) genetics
D) luck

Question 57

In the U.S.class system,the poorest of the poor,who are structurally disadvantaged and are least likely to move out of their class position,are called the:

A) poor class
B) lower class
C) left-behind class
D) underclass

Question 58

Researchers of social mobility,including Peter Blau and Otis Dudley Duncan in the 1960s and William Sewell and Robert Hauser in the 1980s,have shown that:

A) educational attainment has a great deal to do with ultimate social status
B) the family's social status has little to do with social mobility
C) social position is not inherited but solely achieved
D) all of the above

Question 59

Which of the following best explains why Latino household income has stagnated and fallen far behind that of white households?

A) a culture of poverty among Latinos that discourages achievement and saving money
B) the large number of immigrants from Mexico and Latin America that are in low-wage jobs
C) high unemployment among Latinos
D) high divorce rate among Latinos

Question 60

When sociologists examine how far an individual moves up or down the socioeconomic scale in his or her lifetime,they are studying:

A) optimal mobility
B) intergenerational mobility
C) life change
D) intragenerational mobility

Question 61

When a person moves from one position in a class structure to a nearly identical position,the person is said to experience:

A) short-range downward mobility
B) long-range downward mobility
C) declining mobility
D) across-position mobility

Question 62

One of the most distressing signs of the growing stratification in the United States is the growth in the number of:

A) substance abusers
B) mentally ill individuals
C) women with college degrees
D) homeless people

Question 63

Those who believe that the culture of poverty theory explains why most people are in poverty would most likely favor which of the following antipoverty programs?

A) subsidized housing
B) universal health care
C) welfare-to-work programs
D) food stamps

Question 64

Compare and contrast slavery,caste,and class as systems of stratification.What is the basis of inequality in each? How much social mobility exists in each? What system of stratification best describes the United States?

Question 65

According to the sociologist Charles Murray,there are groups among the poor who do not enter the labor market and rely on government interventions,which undermines self-help and personal ambition.He says that these poor are part of:

A) the unambitious culture
B) the dependency culture
C) the least motivated poor
D) the poverty problem

Question 66

Downward mobility is when:

A) retired people stop receiving Social Security
B) the whole economy declines and all people see a decline in their income
C) when a person chooses a lower occupation than he or she is qualified for
D) when a person's income,wealth,or status is lower than that of his or her parents

Question 67

According to the textbook,__________ in addition to Social Security ,has/have helped lift many of the elderly out of poverty.

A) food banks
B) Meals on Wheels
C) unemployment
D) Medicare

Question 68

According to the textbook,child poverty rates in the United States are:

A) relative to the poverty rates of men
B) the highest in the world
C) the lowest in the industrialized world
D) the highest in the industrialized world

Question 69

How does the government determine the poverty line?

A) It multiplies the cost of an adequate,nutritious diet by three.
B) It multiplies the cost of an average household's rent by three.
C) It calculates the average cost of living in each of four regions of the United States and divides that number by the average cost of rent in those places.
D) Because the cost of living varies across the country,it calculates the cost of living in each region and determines a poverty line for each U.S.region.

Question 70

Of those who are currently in poverty in the United States,how many are working?

A) 50 percent
B) 25 percent
C) 90 percent
D) none

Question 71

The income of most elderly people is dependent on:

A) their part-time jobs
B) money from their children
C) pensions
D) Social Security

Question 72

At the beginning of her sophomore year of high school,Janis's family cannot afford to buy her new clothes and shoes or enough supplies for school.Janis feels poor compared to her classmates who can afford these things.Janis is experiencing:

A) absolute poverty
B) relative poverty
C) downward mobility
D) exchange mobility

Question 73

Individuals living in rural communities cut off from resources and opportunities and individuals living in inner cities with high crime rates are both likely to experience what sociologists call:

A) social exclusion
B) social deprivation
C) unequal education
D) economic exclusion

Question 74

Those who believe that poverty results from structural factors beyond the control of individuals would see which of the following as a source of poverty?

A) unequal distribution of educational resources
B) universal health care
C) decreasing income inequality
D) immorality of the poor

Question 75

If a person believes that people are poor because they have been socialized into a set of values,beliefs,and norms that result in behavior that leads to poverty,then that person is said to believe which of the following theories of poverty?

A) culture of poverty
B) structural poverty
C) value poverty
D) dependency poverty

Question 76

Although official estimates show that relatively few elderly people live in poverty,these statistics may be misleading because:

A) they do not consider the large number of elderly people who go hungry
B) they do not consider the large number of elderly people who live alone
C) they do not consider the vast gender,race,and marital status differences of older adults
D) they do not consider the high cost of rent

Question 77

According to the textbook,which phenomenon erased many of the gains in child well-being made in the past twenty years?

A) The 2008 economic recession
B) The war in Afghanistan
C) Student debt
D) Increases in welfare benefits

Question 78

In which of the following countries is the poverty rate the highest?

A) Germany
B) Norway
C) United States
D) Sweden

Question 79

When a person does not have adequate resources to maintain his or her health,such as enough food to eat,the person is said to be in:

A) absolute poverty
B) relative poverty
C) downward mobility
D) exchange mobility

Question 80

What is meant by the phrase feminization of poverty?

A) the fact that women are more likely not to marry until they find a rich man
B) the fact that a majority of the poor are women
C) the notion that women are not as likely to pursue education or other skill development and end up in lower-paying jobs
D) the idea that women do not work as hard as men and are therefore more likely to be poor