Deck 8: Social Stratification in the United States

Question 1

Jennifer Lopez is a very wealthy television star,singer,and dancer,yet she has very little power in the political world.These differences exemplify which of these?

A)status consistency
B)status stratification
C)status inconsistency
D)status incompatibility

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Research shows that people in the U.S.______ the amount of upward mobility.

A)underestimate
B)overestimate
C)do not believe in
D)have no interest in

Answer 2

B

Question 3

According to Thomas Piketty's book Capital in the Twenty-First Century,which is more important,income or wealth?

A)income
B)wealth
C)They are equally important.
D)Neither is important.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Which of these is defined as the ability to get others to do what you want them to do?

A)status
B)social class
C)power
D)wealth

Question 5

Joe,the CEO of a major corporation,earns a salary of $500,000.His position affords him a great deal of respect and he is an active member of the community in which he resides.Joe is an example of which of these?

A)status consistency
B)status stratification
C)status inconsistency
D)status incompatibility

Question 6

According to Thomas Piketty,which of these is the only way to decrease wealth inequality?

A)a state tax on wealth
B)an inheritance tax on wealth
C)a federal tax on wealth
D)a global tax on wealth

Question 7

In the U.S.and many other countries which of these is the basis of stratification?

A)the money economy
B)symbolic exchanges
C)the ability to own the means of production
D)the prestige attached to a person's position

Question 8

The income gap between the top 1% of earners in the U.S.and the bottom 20% of the population has ______ since 1979.

A)increased
B)decreased
C)stayed the same
D)not been recorded

Question 9

The reality that the cost of college in the U.S.is a significant impediment for poor and middle-class students exemplifies which of these?

A)the low stratification in the U.S.
B)the differences between relative and absolute poverty in the U.S.
C)the importance of meritocracy in the U.S.
D)the high stratification in the U.S.

Question 10

Which of these is an exchange where both the process,itself,and the humans who are involved in it are equally valued?

A)money economy
B)value economy
C)economic exchange
D)symbolic exchange

Question 11

Which social theorist is credited with identifying the three dimensions of social stratification?

A)Karl Marx
B)Emile Durkheim
C)Erving Goffman
D)Max Weber

Question 12

Karl Marx believed that social class was defined by which of these?

A)social status
B)ownership of the means of production
C)income and wealth
D)social status and social power

Question 13

Which of these is TRUE of middle-class decline?

A)Wages have not kept up with the cost of living and thus have led to middle class decline.
B)Workers are demanding jobs that pay more and,as a result,are unwilling to work in middle class jobs which has caused middle class decline.
C)Most of the middle class were not willing to take government assistance during the Great Recession which caused the numbers of middle class to decline.
D)Middle class decline is a myth-the upper class is declining.

Question 14

Which of these are the three dimensions of social stratification?

A)lower,middle,and upper class
B)power,elite,and mobility
C)class,status,and power
D)status,symbolism,and ascription

Question 15

Which of these is associated with recent increases in income inequality?

A)industrialization
B)increasing presence of labor unions
C)technological advances
D)decreasing power of people at the top

Question 16

Owen makes $25,000 a year.He has just inherited $100,000 dollars.Owen owes 25,000 and has 25,000 in savings.What is his wealth?

A)$150,000
B)$125,000
C)$100,000
D)$25,000

Question 17

How are wealth and income linked?

A)Wealth produces sources of income.
B)Wealth is simply a more specific measurement of income.
C)Wealth includes one's status,and status can help someone earn income.
D)They are only linked by being measures of money; disparities in one don't influence inequalities in the other one.

Question 18

Which of these refers to the loss of high-paying manufacturing jobs and the rise of low-paying service jobs?

A)deindustrialization
B)industrialization
C)McDonaldization
D)desegregation

Question 19

Bill has worked as a Walmart cashier for 5 years and makes $28,000 annually,while Jane has worked as a customer service representative at Target for 4 years,making $32,000 annually.Bill and Jane appear to share which of these?

A)the same social strata
B)the same social environment
C)the same social class
D)the same economic division

Question 20

The top 10% of the U.S.owns ______ of the nation's wealth,while the bottom 50% own ______ of the nation's wealth.

A)96%; 1%
B)76%; 2%
C)66%; 5%
D)50%; 10%

Question 21

Which of these is compatible with is the structural-functional theory of stratification?

A)Stratification is needed because it ensures that people with the right abilities end up in the right positions.
B)Stratification is based on power relations that are structured into society.
C)Stratification is in all societies,but only becomes inequality at the face-to-face level.
D)When societies are structured poorly,they have dysfunctional ways to stratify people.

Question 22

The ability,or inability,to change one's place within the social classes in a society is called which of these?

A)stratification
B)mobilization
C)social mobility
D)achievement status

Question 23

What is the status of poverty in the U.S.since 1959?

A)It has stayed the same.
B)It has consistently grown.
C)It has grown in number but has become a smaller proportion of the population.
D)It has varied from year to year,from a share increase during the Great Recession to a slight decrease in recent years.

Question 24

The largest occupational category,from 1930 to today,has changed from which of these?

A)white-collar to blue-collar
B)blue-collar to white-collar
C)farming to white-collar
D)farming to blue-collar

Question 25

Upward and downward mobility are the key components of which of these?

A)horizontal mobility
B)vertical mobility
C)intragenerational mobility
D)intergenerational mobility

Question 26

Which of these does the chapter text list as a major disadvantage of being in the lower class in the U.S.?

A)limited ability to move up in an occupation
B)increased likelihood of domestic issues
C)a shorter life expectancy
D)a higher likelihood of being affected by hard economic times

Question 27

Which of these factors is the least likely to explain the feminization of poverty?

A)women's longer life spans
B)men's likelihood to live alone
C)men's higher average earnings
D)the demographic shift to single motherhood

Question 28

In 2016 what percentage of the women in the U.S.are below the poverty line?

A)4%
B)14%
C)24%
D)34%

Question 29

Which of these family types has the lowest rate of poverty?

A)married-couple families
B)divorced families with shared custody
C)male householders with no wife present
D)female householders with no husband present

Question 30

Lindsay is a part-time teacher at a local preschool.She decides to go to school and get her teaching certificate.Eventually,she becomes a full-time math teacher.Which of these is exemplified by her change of position?

A)vertical mobility
B)occupational mobility
C)structural mobility
D)horizontal mobility

Question 31

The caste system,found among the Hindus of India,is primarily based on which of these?

A)achievement
B)accomplishment
C)attainment
D)ascription

Question 32

According to the text,how many people in the U.S.were living below the poverty line in 2016?

A)7.7%
B)12.7%
C)22.7%
D)33.7%

Question 33

Sean,31,earns $10,000 a year as a seasonal worker at Macy's.His parents earn a combined income of $200,000 as lawyers.Which of these terms applies to Sean's position relative to his parents?

A)upward intergenerational mobility
B)upward intragenerational mobility
C)downward intergenerational mobility
D)downward horizontal mobility

Question 34

Fred has been homeless for over 10 years.He often does NOT have adequate food each day.Which of these best describes the type of poverty Fred is experiencing?

A)relative poverty
B)limited poverty
C)absolute poverty
D)comparative poverty

Question 35

The poverty line in the U.S.is measured by the federal government using which of these formulas?

A)the median cost of rent based on one's geographic region multiplied by two
B)the cost of a nutritionally adequate food plan multiplied by three
C)the median cost of rent in one geographic region plus the standard cost for a nutritionally adequate food plan times number of people in household
D)the sum total of the average cost for the four major household expenses: transportation,housing,food,and child care

Question 36

Sharon is a cashier at a grocery store,making $20,000 a year.When the store goes out of business,she takes a job at a department store making $21,000 a year.Which of these is exemplified by her change of position?

A)vertical mobility
B)occupational mobility
C)structural mobility
D)horizontal mobility

Question 37

Nathan and Cynthia are both factory workers who earn a combined annual income of $30,000.They have four children.They rarely go out to eat,and they rely on family and friends for help with day care and other needs.Their family would be considered to live in which of these?

A)relative poverty
B)limited poverty
C)absolute poverty
D)comparative poverty

Question 38

Single-parent households headed by women are more likely to live in poverty compared to single-parent households headed by men.What does this exemplify?

A)feminization of poverty
B)poverty-gender threshold
C)feminist poverty line
D)stratification of poverty

Question 39

Britain's Prince William and Prince Harry,sons of Prince Charles,were born into royalty and thus gained instant notoriety.This is an example of which characteristic?

A)achievement
B)accomplishment
C)attainment
D)ascription

Question 40

Mary is a real estate agent who makes $100,000 a year.The economy takes a downturn and she loses her job,then her home,and her vehicle.She becomes homeless.Which of these explains Mary's situation?

A)upward mobility
B)relative poverty
C)intergenerational mobility
D)downward mobility

Question 41

Many celebrities purchase large mansions and expensive vehicles.In addition,they also often purchase designer clothing and wear lavish jewelry.According to Pierre Bourdieu,this is an example of which of these?

A)status inconsistency
B)status offense
C)distinction
D)consumption

Question 42

Wealth refers to money earned from wages and rents,whereas income refers to assets.

Question 43

Which theorist argued that elite members of society want their social class membership to be obvious to others,and they accomplish this through conspicuous consumption?

A)Pierre Bourdieu
B)Jean Baudrillard
C)Erving Goffman
D)Thorstein Veblen

Question 44

Which of these is TRUE of Matthew Desmond's study of eviction?

A)Landlords lose substantial income when they rent to poor renters.
B)Women of color are most likely to be evicted.
C)People who are evicted tend to spend only about 25% of their income on housing before their eviction.
D)Most poor families receive public assistance but fail to manage it well.

Question 45

The three dimensions of social stratification are social class,income,and power.

Question 46

Which theorists advocate for narrowing the income gap between the very rich and the very poor?

A)structural/functional
B)conflict/critical
C)inter/actionist
D)feminist

Question 47

Sociologists use a month-by-month measure to determine income.

Question 48

Which perspective would be most likely to observe that certain occupations,such as surgeons and attorneys require a great deal of education and must be rewarded with higher salaries and extensive benefit packages?

A)conflict
B)inter/actionist
C)structural/functional
D)feminist perspective

Question 49

The greatest economic differences in U.S.society are due to differences in income.

Question 50

Karl Marx and Max Weber shared the same definition of social class.

Question 51

Many actors and actresses earn millions each year and display their wealth by living in upscale mansions and driving expensive vehicles.What does their behavior exemplify?

A)stratified consumption
B)conspicuous consumption
C)trickle-down theory
D)ranked consumption

Question 52

A woman helps her elderly neighbor by running weekly errands for her and her elderly neighbor helps her by keeping an eye on her house while she is at work.This is an example of symbolic exchange.

Question 53

The U.S.' tax system is designed to decrease wealth inequality.

Question 54

High income is always associated with high status and high social power.

Question 55

Which theorist focused on the cultural elements of consumption?

A)Pierre Bourdieu
B)Jean Baudrillard
C)Erving Goffman
D)Thorstein Veblen

Question 56

Which perspective is likely to focus on what people do within a stratified structure,such as how they present their authority or lack of authority in their body language?

A)structural/functional
B)conflict/critical
C)inter/actionist
D)feminist

Question 57

What is exemplified when elites are copied by classes below them and then adopt a new fashion to differentiate themselves?

A)trickle-down theory
B)conspicuous consumption
C)a cultural omnivore
D)stratified consumption

Question 58

Wealth helps people buy or otherwise acquire high status and power.

Question 59

What is exemplified when a lower-class person buys an imitation item of the upper class to imitate the upper-class position?

A)imitative stratification
B)conspicuous consumption
C)a cultural omnivore
D)stratified consumption

Question 60

New York trash collectors who earn a higher income than local business owners exemplify status inconsistency.

Question 61

The trickledown theory of consumption is that elites distinguish themselves from others by their cultural tastes.

Question 62

Cultural omnivores are people in the elite class who enjoy culture and consumption from across a wide range of available offerings.

Question 63

Sam's father is unemployed and living on welfare,whereas Sam is the president of his company,an auto parts warehouse.Sam exemplifies intergenerational mobility.

Question 64

According to structural-functional theory,brain surgeons should earn higher salaries and more lucrative stock options than doctors who work in family practices.

Question 65

The major reason for the decline of the middle class is the decline of middle-income jobs,often because of technological change.

Question 66

Occupational gender segregation results in the phenomenon of overwork for women in the labor market.

Question 67

Social mobility is defined as the ability to move up higher in the social system.

Question 68

Mike owns a collection business and sees his employees as servants who should adhere to all his rules.He pays them well below minimum wage.Symbolic Interactionists are the theorists who would be most interested in Mike's sense of entitlement and how it impacts wage inequality.

Question 69

Stagnation of wages has led to a higher standard of living for low wage workers.

Question 70

In 2018,Jenna,a single mom who heads a family of four had a pretax income of $15,100.Jenna would be above the poverty line according to U.S.Department of Health and Human Service guidelines.

Question 71

Actors who wear expensive diamonds and pearl necklaces to award shows exemplify stratified consumption.

Question 72

The key difference between Georg Simmel and Thorstein Veblen's theories of stratified consumption is that Simmel thinks the lower classes invent their own fashionable styles,while Veblen thinks they simply mimic the taste of the upper class.

Question 73

A cashier at Walmart who eventually becomes the district regional manager exemplifies horizontal mobility.

Question 74

Families who inherit over one million dollars must pay estate taxes.

Question 75

Given current economic patterns,contemporary youth are likely to be more well-off than their parents.

Question 76

Relative poverty is a measure of what people need to survive.

Question 77

Elites,according to the author,are cultural omnivores,who are varied in their tastes.

Question 78

Those who see poverty as a moral problem believe that poverty hurts the economy because the poor are unable to consume very much.

Question 79

Poverty disproportionately effects men.

Question 80

The sharing economy is a place where profit making is absent from decisions about goods and services.