Deck 8: The Middle Class

Question 1

The middle class has existed as a social class throughout history

Answer 1

False

Question 2

In colonial times the structure of stratification did not include a middle class.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

During the 19^th century, patterns off housing segregation by class developed and those doing white-collar work tended to live in one place, indicating that their jobs were stable.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The middle class is absent in the political process fo the United States.

Question 5

All of the following are characteristic of white collar jobs except:

A) At work, they usually sit at desks.
B) They usually stay physically clean while they work.
C) They rarely supervise others.
D) They sometimes engage in entrepreneurial activity
E) They often have high incomes

Question 6

Prior to industrialization, all societies can be divided into two main classes:

A) a middle class and the wealthy.
B) a small ruling class and the great mass of people.
C) the poor and the middle class.
D) farmers and landowners
E) royalty and serfs

Question 7

The colonial stratification structure was unique in history because it was . . .

A) rigidly structured by colonial government
B) the first to be based on socialist principles.
C) relatively open.
D) based on trade with Europe.
E) fueled by external revenue.

Question 8

The middle class arose over the course of the 19th century as the:

A) most powerful political group at the time.
B) number of white collar jobs increased.
C) class which the cast majority of people belonged to.
D) result of genetic experimentation.
E) result of the sudden loss of wealth among the rich.

Question 9

The term __________ refers to people's way of living as indicated by their consumption habits, use of leisure time, and fundamental choices and values.

A) lifestyle
B) class
C) socio-economic status
D) new age living
E) political ideology

Question 10

Often called "fringe benefits," job perquisites are not fringe at all; rather, they are fundamental aspects of remuneration and constitute a significant element in the structure of stratification in the United States.

Question 11

Employee job perquisites decrease the inequality resulting from class differences in income.

Question 12

The higher the social class, the fewer the job perquisites.

Question 13

Sick leave constitutes protection against income loss for short periods of physical incapacity and allows workers the chance to return to full productivity after becoming ill and avoids spreading disease to coworkers.

Question 14

For most people today medical insurance is obtained through out-of-pocket private plans.

Question 15

The data illustrate that individuals not participating in employer-based group medical insurance plans are disproportionately middle class.

Question 16

Defined contribution plans provide that both the employer and employee will contribute a percentage of employees' wages to a pension fund each month, but the eventual benefits after retirement are dependent on employees' ability to manage their money.

Question 17

It appears that the job perquisite hypothesis accurately summarizes the relationship between social class and fringe benefits.

Question 18

_______________ consist of any protections, privileges, or benefits tied to one's employment status.

A) Capital
B) Non-cash exchanges
C) Class requisites
D) Insurance
E) Job perquisites

Question 19

Job Perquisite Hypothesis states that _____________, the greater the job perquisites.

A) the more important the work
B) the higher the social class
C) the lower the social class
D) the lower the overhead of employers
E) the more powerful unions are in a given state

Question 20

All of the following are job perquisites, except:

A) sick leave
B) pension plans
C) disability insurance
D) medical insurance
E) conspicuous consumption insurance

Question 21

Middle class people, ____________________, are more likely than their working class counterparts to have paid sick leave.

A) who frequently abuse their vacation leave
B) who receive less pension payments than unionized blue collar workers
C) who are exposed to less disease-causing toxins
D) who are more likely to need sick leave
E) who are less likely to want sick leave

Question 22

Participation in employer paid long-term disability plans varies by _____________.

A) housing status
B) number of dependents
C) income
D) family background
E) occupation

Question 23

_____________ pension plans provide annuities equal to a percentage of employees' pre-retirement earnings, usually calculated based on years of service to a company.

A) Defined contribution
B) Defined benefit
C) Annuity
D) Graduated
E) Working class

Question 24

Each of the following are considered "top level" perquisites except:

A) access to an private executive dining room and other meal allowances.
B) stock options.
C) housing subsidies
D) disability insurance
E) supplemental executive retirement plans.

Question 25

Income and lifestyle are not related.

Question 26

Compared to people in blue collar jobs, most people in white-collar jobs find that their work pays off, not only in pleasure and prestige, but monetarily as well.

Question 27

The Inequality Reduction Hypothesis is supported by contemporary sociological theory.

Question 28

The term public goods refers to products that anyone can purchase at a store.

Question 29

Between 1950 and 1970, there was little change in the level of income inequality in the United States.

Question 30

Beginning in about 1980, the level of income inequality in the United States began to decline.

Question 31

Tax expenditures help to reduce income inequality.

Question 32

The emergence of the middle class led to today's traditional gender norms.

Question 33

Encouraging contraceptive use to prevent unwanted pregnancy is the solution to the "abortion problem."

Question 34

Inequality Reduction Hypothesis states that _________________, then the greater the benefit from income transfers and the lower the level of inequality from 1950-1970.

A) the higher the social class
B) the more middle the class
C) the lower the social class
D) the more prestigious the occupation
E) the taller people are

Question 35

The term "income transfers" refers to government spending that provides money or benefits to individuals without:

A) other means of support.
B) inspection by federal regulators.
C) obtaining goods or services in exchange.
D) any visible means of support.
E) true value in the open market.

Question 36

The Income Reduction Hypothesis wrongly assumes that public assistance reduces poverty, ignoring the fact that recipients must remain poor in order to continue receiving benefits and that:

A) poor people like being poor, because it allows them to work less.
B) poor people are more motivated than other classes.
C) large amounts of income transfers go to middle class people.
D) working class people are often formerly poor.
E) poverty appears to be linked to genetics.

Question 37

The Inequality Stability Hypothesis states that the higher the social class, then the greater the benefit from income transfers such that the overall distribution of income:

A) increased substantially since 1990.
B) increased substantially since 1980.
C) decreased since 1980.
D) remained unchanged from 1950-1970.
E) remained unchanged since 1980.

Question 38

Data for __________ show that the income distribution became more unequal as the bottom quintiles began receiving less income and the richest fifth (and top 5%) began receiving more.

A) the early 1800s
B) the last three decades of the 1800s
C) the period following WWII
D) the great depression of the 1930s
E) 1980-2005

Question 39

The term _________________ refers to provisions of the tax code that provide special or selective reductions in taxes for certain groups of citizens and corporations.

A) tax relief
B) tax expenditures
C) tax opportunities
D) revenue
E) cheating on taxes

Question 40

All of the following are tax expenditure programs except:

A) exclusion of employer provided pension contributions
B) all of these are tax expenditure programs
C) deductibility of mortgage interest on one's private home
D) exclusion of employer contributions for medical insurance premiums
E) reduced tax rates on long-term capital gains

Question 41

The premise of supply side economic theory is that:

A) placing more money in the hands of the rich through reduced taxes will benefit everyone
B) the middle class will grow if it receives most of the tax cuts
C) the manufacturing base of the nation will stabilize.
D) the supply of wealth will decline over time with tax cuts
E) the wages of women would eventually become similar to that of men.

Question 42

It is probable that:

A) increasing income inequality always leads to increasing economic prosperity
B) the level of income inequality is unrelated to economic prosperity
C) inequality can be reasonably low and prosperity reasonably robust
D) declining inequality always leads to high prosperity
E) none of these are correct