Question 1

Canada's resource-extraction communities often attract large numbers of workers who come there to make a lot of money quickly. They don't have any strong feelings, either negative or positive, about their bosses, since all they are interested in is earning money and spending it, either immediately or some time later. Which of the following concepts would David Lockwood have used to identify such workers?
A) Privatized workers.
B) Proletarian workers.
C) Maximizing workers.
D) Deferential workers.

Accepted Answer

David Lockwood would have used the term "Privatized workers" to describe individuals who are primarily focused on their personal financial gain, without a strong allegiance or opposition to their employers. This concept aligns with the description of workers who are motivated by the desire to earn and spend money, rather than by loyalty or conflict with their bosses.

Question 2

Which of the following aspects of Karl Marx's writings about capitalism did he share with Renaissance philosophies about what it means to be human?
A) His emphasis on class conflict as the source of major social change.
B) His description of the alienation experienced by workers in capitalist society.
C) His analysis of surplus labour and how it generates social inequality.
D) His belief that capitalism would eventually be transformed into socialism.

Accepted Answer

Renaissance philosophers, such as Pico della Mirandola, emphasized the potential for human beings to achieve self-realization and fulfillment through their rational and creative capacities. Marx's description of alienation in capitalist society, in which workers are estranged from the products of their labor and from their own essential nature as creative beings, shares this emphasis on the importance of human self-realization. The other aspects listed do not have clear parallels in Renaissance philosophy.

Question 3

The Japanese economy began to change rapidly in the 1990s. Which of the following occurred during this time?
A) Large companies began to rely much more on immigrant workers.
B) The Chinese government began buying up big Japanese companies.
C) Large companies stopped offering lifetime jobs to their employees.
D) Unions became much more powerful.

Accepted Answer

Large companies in Japan stopped offering lifetime jobs to their employees in the 1990s as the economy shifted towards a more competitive and globalized market. This change led to a rise in contract and part-time work, as well as a decrease in job security for many workers. A and B are incorrect as there was not a significant increase in reliance on immigrant workers or Chinese acquisition of Japanese companies in the 1990s. D is also incorrect as unions in Japan have generally become weaker over time.

Question 4

Which of the following arguments is made by Jeremy Rifkin in his book The End of Work?
A) New technologies are creating many more jobs than they are destroying.
B) As more people acquire postsecondary education, fewer people will view their jobs negatively.
C) More knowledge-intensive jobs will be created as the service sector expands further.
D) New work values are needed to make working in the voluntary sector more attractive for people who can't find paid work.

Accepted Answer

Jeremy Rifkin argues in his book The End of Work that as technology continues to replace jobs, new work values are needed to make working in the voluntary sector more attractive for people who can't find paid work. Rifkin also suggests that there will be a shift towards a more service-oriented economy in which knowledge-intensive jobs will be created, but he does not argue that this will offset job losses from automation. In fact, Rifkin believes that automation will ultimately lead to a dramatic reduction in the number of available jobs. He does not argue that postsecondary education will lead to more positive attitudes towards work or that new technologies are creating more jobs than they are destroying.

Question 5

At a family gathering, your uncle, a lawyer, starts talking about how "crazy" life is becoming. The people he works with brag about their long hours, and burn themselves out trying to make more money to buy expensive cars and clothes. He says he can't believe they are "doing this to themselves," and that we need to think more about improving society and less about working hard to get rich. Which of the following authors would you suggest he read, since they make the same arguments?
A) Andre Gorz.
B) Madeline Bunting.
C) Jeremy Rifkin.
D) Jamie Swift.

Accepted Answer

The answer of At a family gathering, your uncle, a...

Question 6

Which of the following would be a "latent function" of work, according to Marie Jahoda?
A) Enjoyable interactions with coworkers.
B) A pension that helps maintain a person's standard of living after retirement.
C) The need to get a good education in order to get a good job.
D) The profits a company owner obtains from the work of employees.

Accepted Answer

Latent functions are the unintended, unrecognized consequences of activities that help a system adjust. Marie Jahoda identified social interaction as a key latent function of work, meaning that enjoyable interactions with coworkers are an unintended but beneficial aspect of employment.

Question 7

In recent decades, some politicians have expressed concerns about a declining work ethic among the poorest members of society. Recent research typically leads to which of the following conclusions?
A) Poor immigrants are willing to work hard, but not poor native-born Canadians.
B) The urban poor, but not those in rural areas, seem to have a declining work ethic.
C) The real problem is that most poor people do not have adequate skills and training.
D) The main problem is not enough good jobs and inadequate government policies.

Accepted Answer

Recent research suggests that the main problem is a lack of good jobs and inadequate government policies, rather than a declining work ethic among the poorest members of society. Many individuals are willing and able to work, but there are not enough suitable job opportunities available to them. Additionally, government policies that do not provide adequate support for those living in poverty, such as access to affordable housing and basic healthcare, can hinder their ability to obtain and maintain steady employment.

Question 8

Martin Luther, a 16th-century Protestant leader, used the concept of a "calling" to describe which of the following beliefs?
A) Industriousness and hard work in one's job, no matter how good or bad it is, is the way to fulfill God's will.
B) Some occupations (priest and farmer, for example) are better than others such as merchant, since they contribute directly to the good of society.
C) Men should work outside the home while women should do caring work in the home.
D) Social class differences in society are natural, and should be accepted.

Accepted Answer

Martin Luther believed in the concept of a "calling," which meant that one's occupation was a way to fulfill God's will. He believed that all jobs, no matter how menial, were important and that individuals should work hard and strive to do their best in their chosen profession. This concept emphasized the value of hard work and personal responsibility, which were core values of Protestantism.

Question 9

Recent research on the work commitment of Canadian youth leads to which of the following conclusions?
A) They are now comfortable with being unemployed, but they still do not want to receive social assistance.
B) Only a very small minority would feel OK about being unemployed or about receiving social assistance.
C) They are now comfortable with receiving social assistance, but not with being unemployed.
D) Young people in central and eastern Canada are comfortable with being unemployed, but their counterparts in western Canada are not.

Accepted Answer

Recent research on the work commitment of Canadian youth has shown that only a small minority would feel okay about being unemployed or about receiving social assistance. The research found that the majority of Canadian youth still value employment and financial independence.

Question 10

Which of the following is the central argument in the humanist perspective on work?
A) Work should be a fulfilling and liberating activity.
B) If people only did enough work to "pay the bills," they would have more time for other activities that would give them pleasure.
C) Workers should be treated humanely, not like slaves.
D) Work should be done by human beings, not by machines.

Accepted Answer

The central argument in the humanist perspective on work is that work should be a fulfilling and liberating activity, rather than just a means of earning a living. Humanists believe that work should allow individuals to use their creative potential and develop their skills, and that workers should be treated with respect and dignity.

Question 11

Which of the following generalizations best reflects current research findings on work orientations of Canadian workers?
A) Canadian workers consider good pay and benefits to be much more important than 	interesting and challenging work.
B) Canadian workers consider work that allows them to make decisions to be much more important than job security.
C) Canadian workers are strongly motivated by both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards.
D) The shift to nonstandard work has led to an increase in extrinsic motivations.

Accepted Answer

Current research indicates that Canadian workers are motivated by both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards, such as interesting and challenging work, good pay and benefits, and opportunities for advancement. This suggests that a combination of both internal and external factors is important for job satisfaction and motivation of Canadian workers. Choices A, B, and D are not supported by current research.

Question 12

Which of the following conclusions best reflects recent Canadian research on the work orientations of adult women and men?
A) Women continue to be more focused on extrinsic work rewards, compared to men.
B) Men continue to be more focused on extrinsic work rewards, compared to women.
C) Gender differences in both extrinsic and intrinsic rewards have disappeared.
D) Gender differences in both extrinsic and intrinsic rewards exist only among recent immigrants.

Accepted Answer

Recent Canadian research indicates that gender differences in work orientations regarding extrinsic and intrinsic rewards have largely disappeared, reflecting a shift towards more similar work values between men and women.

Question 13

Which of the following would be evidence that clearly contradicts arguments about the impact of the "Confucian work ethic" on economic development? A) Rapid economic growth in Singapore, Taiwan, and South Korea in the 1990s. B) Capitalist economic development in Communist China. C) Late industrialization in Canada, compared to western Europe and the United States. D) Rapid economic growth in India and Brazil over the past decade.

Accepted Answer

The "Confucian work ethic" is often cited as a contributing factor to the economic success of East Asian countries. Rapid economic growth in India and Brazil, which do not share this cultural heritage, contradicts the argument that the Confucian work ethic is a necessary condition for such development.

Question 14

An historical examination of the meaning of work leads us to which of the following conclusions?
A) The ancient Greeks and Romans had a very positive view of work.
B) Early Hebrew and Christian religious values portrayed the need to work hard as punishment from God.
C) By the 13th century, Western religious philosophers were portraying the work done by merchants and business leaders as the most valued in society.
D) During the Protestant Reformation in Europe, work came once again to be seen as something to be avoided.

Accepted Answer

Early Hebrew and Christian religious values often portrayed work as a form of punishment or consequence of human actions, particularly in the context of the biblical story of Adam and Eve. This perspective saw hard work as a result of the fall from grace, rather than something inherently positive or to be sought after.

Question 15

Which of the following best defines the concept "underclass"?
A) The long-term unemployed who become dependent on social assistance.
B) Workers who have no interest in class conflict, so long as they get paid.
C) The disappearing middle class in Karl Marx's analysis of capitalist class relations.
D) Part-time and temporary workers whose job security is precarious.

Accepted Answer

The concept of underclass refers to a group of people who are persistently marginalized and excluded from participating in society's opportunities and benefits. This group includes the long-term unemployed who have become dependent on social assistance and lack access to stable employment and adequate resources for social mobility.

Question 16

In the British TV series Downton Abbey, the servants working for the wealthy upper-class family are usually very loyal and generally seem to accept that the rigid class structure within which they live and work as the way things should be. In his analysis of class relations in Britain in the mid-20th century, David Lockwood would have used which of the following concepts to describe such servants?
A) Privatized workers.
B) Proletarian workers.
C) Deferential workers.
D) The privileged working class.

Accepted Answer

David Lockwood would have used the concept of deferential workers to describe the loyal and accepting servants in Downton Abbey. The term "deferential" refers to the behavior of showing respect and submission to those perceived as higher in status or authority, which was a common attitude among working-class individuals towards the upper-class during Lockwood's time. The other options do not accurately describe the specific characteristics of the servants in Downton Abbey, as the concept of privatized workers refers to those who work for private companies rather than the government, proletarian workers are members of the working class who do not have ownership of the means of production, and the privileged working class refers to those in the upper strata of the working class who have more economic and social resources compared to others in the same class.

Question 17

In recent decades, employers have frequently expressed concerns about the inadequate skills young people bring to the labour market, and have recommended that schools spend more time teaching "employability skills." Based on recent research, which of the following do employers typically focus on when hiring young people for entry-level jobs?
A) Academic skills.
B) Personal management skills.
C) Teamwork skills.
D) Personality and perceived work ethic.

Accepted Answer

The answer of In recent decades, employers have frequently expressed...

Question 18

Kelly works extremely hard because he feels that this is the right way to live. He saves as much money as he can, and is critical of his friends who spend their money on what he thinks are nonessential things. If he could travel back in time, in which of the following religious or cultural groups would he be most comfortable?
A) In ancient Greek culture.
B) In early Hebrew or Christian culture.
C) Among the Calvinists, an early Protestant religious group.
D) Among the Lutherans, another early Protestant religious group.

Accepted Answer

Among the options given, the Calvinists believed in hard work as a means of achieving salvation, and also held strict views on spending money on nonessential things. This aligns well with Kelly's values and beliefs.

Question 19

In his book Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture, Douglas Coupland suggested that corporate and government downsizing, and the shift to nonstandard employment, had changed the work orientations of contemporary youth. Which of the following best describes young people as Coupland wrote about them?
A) They are much more entrepreneurial than their parents were.
B) Compared to their parents, they are moving more quickly from youth to adulthood.
C) They are much more willing to take risks, compared to their parents.
D) They are cynical and alienated, with limited career goals.

Accepted Answer

The answer of In his book Generation X: Tales for...

Question 20

Which of the following best defines the concept "work orientations"?
A) The meaning attached to work in a particular society.
B) The meaning attached to work by the dominant elites within a society.
C) The aspects of work that a particular individual does not enjoy.
D) The meaning attached to work by particular individuals within a society.

Accepted Answer

Work orientations refer to the attitudes, beliefs, and values attached to work by individual workers within a society. It includes an individual's perception of the importance of work, their motivation for working, and their satisfaction or dissatisfaction with their work. Work orientations vary from person to person and can be influenced by factors such as culture, upbringing, and personal experiences.

Quiz 13: Work Values and Work Orientations

Which of the following aspects of Karl Marx's writings about capitalism did he share with Renaissance philosophies about what it means to be human?

The Japanese economy began to change rapidly in the 1990s. Which of the following occurred during this time?

Which of the following arguments is made by Jeremy Rifkin in his book The End of Work?

Which of the following would be a "latent function" of work, according to Marie Jahoda?

In recent decades, some politicians have expressed concerns about a declining work ethic among the poorest members of society. Recent research typically leads to which of the following conclusions?

Martin Luther, a 16th-century Protestant leader, used the concept of a "calling" to describe which of the following beliefs?

Recent research on the work commitment of Canadian youth leads to which of the following conclusions?

Which of the following is the central argument in the humanist perspective on work?

Which of the following generalizations best reflects current research findings on work orientations of Canadian workers?

Which of the following conclusions best reflects recent Canadian research on the work orientations of adult women and men?

Which of the following would be evidence that clearly contradicts arguments about the impact of the "Confucian work ethic" on economic development?

An historical examination of the meaning of work leads us to which of the following conclusions?

Which of the following best defines the concept "underclass"?

Which of the following best defines the concept "work orientations"?