Deck 11: Social Class in Canada

Question 1

Education is an important determinant of _______ in industrial societies.

A) meritocracy
B) endogamy
C) labour force participation
D) gender identity and roles

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which of the following factors affects social position in Canada?

A) a person's perceived socio-economic status
B) a person's race
C) a person's religious affiliation
D) a person's political affiliation

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Based on the statistics in the textbook, it is correct to say that in Canada the richest 20 percent of the population earn about _____ times as much as the poorest 20 percent.

A) two
B) twelve
C) forty-four
D) eighty-five

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Statistics Canada has recently found that differences in household access to the internet is best explained by education level of household head and _____________.

A) age of household head
B) number of children in the home
C) Blishen score of female parent
D) ages of children

Question 5

Based on what you know about occupational prestige, which of the following statements is correct?

A) Most of the highest-ranked occupations in Canada are dominated by women.
B) Occupational rankings are much the same in all high-income nations.
C) White-collar work and blue-collar work have about the same social prestige.
D) In Canada, occupation has little to do with social standing.

Question 6

Nothing affects social standing in Canada as much as

A) ancestry.
B) schooling.
C) gender.
D) ethnicity.

Question 7

Which of the following contributes to a blurred line between social classes?

A) social mobility
B) an ineffective social welfare and unemployment insurance program
C) use of a relative definition of poverty that changes by geographical area
D) inflation and an increasing cost of living for all Canadians

Question 8

The richest 20 percent of U.S. families owns about what share of all wealth?

A) 6 percent
B) 20 percent
C) 52 percent
D) 85 percent

Question 9

The total amount of financial assets, minus any debts, is referred to as

A) income.
B) personal property.
C) wealth.
D) power.

Question 10

Which of the following is NOT defined in your text as a dimension of social inequality?

A) wealth
B) power
C) occupational prestige
D) birth order

Question 11

The upper-upper class is often referred to as

A) elitist society.
B) popular society.
C) high society.
D) ideal society.

Question 12

Being in the upper-upper class is usually the result of _____; being in the lower-upper class is more a matter of _____.

A) birth; achievement
B) business success; birth
C) gender; birth
D) high-income; low-income

Question 13

A professional Canadian hockey player has just signed his first million-dollar contract to play in the NHL. He has just entered the _______________ class.

A) upper-upper
B) lower-upper
C) upper-middle
D) elite

Question 14

Which of the following provinces/territories has the highest median income in Canada?

A) Nunavut
B) Ontario
C) Alberta
D) the Yukon

Question 15

Which of the following concepts refers to earnings from work or any investments?

A) income
B) personal property
C) wealth
D) power

Question 16

Women of the upper-upper class often

A) remain at home because of no financial need for employment.
B) maintain a full schedule of volunteer work for charitable organizations.
C) gain employment through their husbands' "network."
D) have a clearly altruistic motive when engaging in volunteer community services.

Question 17

The lower-upper class

A) can enjoy the same levels of prestige enjoyed by those with rich and famous grandparents.
B) depend on wealth, as much as earnings, as their primary source of income.
C) can readily join prestigious clubs because they can afford high initiation and yearly fees.
D) are often referred to as the "nouveau riche."

Question 18

Among the following, which has the lowest median income?

A) British Columbia
B) Quebec
C) the Yukon
D) Newfoundland

Question 19

The family of actor Will Smith and actress Jada Pinkett Smith would best be described as

A) working class.
B) middle class.
C) "old money."
D) lower-upper class.

Question 20

If you followed the lead of Max Weber, you would think of social stratification in terms of

A) a multidimensional status hierarchy.
B) two major social classes.
C) a middle-class society.
D) six different social classes.

Question 21

The concept "conspicuous consumption" refers to

A) buying things that are popular with the most people.
B) buying more than what you need for the moment.
C) the practice of buying things to make a statement about one's social position.
D) acting as if one had a lower social position than is really the case.

Question 22

In general, people of lower-class position

A) live in safer and less stressful environments.
B) are more likely to describe their own health as "excellent."
C) live fewer years overall.
D) live more years overall.

Question 23

According to Karl Marx, which class forms the core of the industrial proletariat?

A) the upper-middle class
B) the middle class
C) the upper class
D) the working class

Question 24

Richer people live longer for several reasons. Which of the following is NOT one of these reasons?

A) They eat more nutritious foods.
B) They live in safer environments.
C) They have been shown by biologists to have fewer genetic anomalies.
D) They receive better health care.

Question 25

According to your text, which of the following is NOT a characteristic of a person from the top half of the middle class?

A) the accumulation of considerable property
B) a comfortable house in a fairly expensive area
C) several automobiles
D) limited involvement in local political affairs

Question 26

The higher the level of education and occupation of _________________, the more years of schooling one is likely to complete.

A) one's peers
B) one's mother
C) one's father
D) one's grandparents

Question 27

Which of the following concepts refers to change in social position during a person's lifetime?

A) intragenerational social mobility
B) intergenerational social mobility
C) structural social mobility
D) horizontal social mobility

Question 28

In Canada, the middle class encompasses about _____ percent of the population.

A) 10-20
B) 20-30
C) 40-50
D) 80-90

Question 29

Working class people might also be described as _____.

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

Question 30

According to your text, _____________ is the key to occupational mobility in Canada.

A) networking
B) wealth
C) personality
D) education

Question 31

The working poor

A) live primarily on welfare.
B) often work two or three jobs to make ends meet.
C) have average levels of literacy.
D) are mostly optimistic about the future.

Question 32

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of lower-class families?

A) They typically work in low-prestige jobs that provide minimal income and little intrinsic satisfaction.
B) They are widely dispersed into neighbourhoods with the middle class.
C) They are most often found in cities, where large numbers of poor families live in rental housing and may be shunned by other social classes.
D) The children learn that many people consider them only marginal members of society.

Question 33

The lower class makes up ________ percent of the Canadian population.

A) 20
B) 30
C) 45
D) 55

Question 34

Which of the following categories of people are most likely to be tolerant on controversial behaviours such as homosexuality?

A) rich, highly-educated people
B) average, middle-class people
C) less-educated, working class people
D) the working poor

Question 35

A good example of a person in the upper-upper class is

A) J. K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books.
B) Elizabeth II, the Queen of England.
C) anyone who is part of the "working rich."
D) the president of the United States.

Question 36

According to your textbook, which of the following is NOT a characteristic of the average middle-class person?

A) They work in less prestigious white-collar occupations.
B) They work in highly skilled blue-collar occupations.
C) Few of them own their own houses.
D) Their children often go to university close to home.

Question 37

Which of the following class levels contains the least amount of racial and ethnic diversity?

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

Question 38

The concept of "intergenerational social mobility" refers to change in social position

A) over a person's lifetime.
B) when moving from one type of job to another.
C) in a downward direction.
D) by children in relation to their parents.

Question 39

Relative poverty

A) is found everywhere.
B) is life threatening.
C) is not found in Canada.
D) is more dire than absolute poverty.

Question 40

Many working-class jobs require ____, but rarely, _____________.

A) intelligence; creativity
B) continual supervision; discipline
C) imagination; intelligence
D) discipline; imagination

Question 41

In Canada, wealth is distributed more equally than income.

Question 42

Which of the following statements about homelessness is TRUE?

A) Most homeless adults are mentally ill.
B) Most homeless adults are substance abusers.
C) The elderly is the fastest-growing category of the homeless.
D) One-third of all homeless people are entire families.

Question 43

The lowest level of poverty in Canada is found in which of the following educational groups?

A) some high school
B) some post-secondary
C) diploma completion
D) degree completion

Question 44

The fastest growing category of the homeless is

A) mentally ill individuals.
B) divorced females.
C) drug addicts.
D) children.

Question 45

Without exception, white-collar work confers greater prestige than blue-collar work.

Question 46

The richest 20 percent of U.S. families earn almost 49 percent of all income and own 89 percent of all wealth.

Question 47

The concept "feminization of poverty" refers to the fact that, in the United States,

A) more and more women are becoming poor.
B) today's women have fewer legal rights.
C) women make up an increasing share of the poor.
D) fewer women now work for income.

Question 48

A deprivation of resources that is life-threatening is called

A) comparable poverty.
B) analogous poverty.
C) absolute poverty.
D) relative poverty.

Question 49

The societal factors which contribute to homelessness include

A) a lack of low-income housing.
B) lower levels of ambition among the poor.
C) the trend toward high-tech jobs.
D) increased welfare payments.

Question 50

Social inequality in Canada is not easily recognized because our primary groups typically have the same social standing as we do.

Question 51

Occupation is a major determinant of wealth, income, power, and prestige.

Question 52

The anthropologist Oscar Lewis suggested the cause of poverty lies in

A) a lower-class culture of poverty.
B) lack of government action.
C) too few available jobs.
D) bad public schools.

Question 53

Which of the following ethnic or racial categories rank in the bottom fifteen (of sixty) for average male income?

A) French
B) Scottish
C) West Indian
D) Jewish

Question 54

William Ryan (1976) argues that

A) the poor are responsible for their own situation.
B) poverty is inevitable.
C) lack of ambition on the part of poor people is a cause of their unfortunate situation.
D) society is responsible for the existence of poverty.

Question 55

Jobs typically performed by women carry more prestige than those typically performed by men.

Question 56

In Canadian society, wealth stands as an important source of power.

Question 57

Canada does not measure or tax wealth.

Question 58

Edward Banfield (1974), in his description of a distinctive lower-class subculture, suggests that

A) poor people live largely for the future.
B) poor people are not responsible for their poverty.
C) poor people who live largely for the moment are basically irresponsible.
D) the poor deserve better than what they get in our society.

Question 59

Who, of the following, would be most likely to be poor?

A) an urban male
B) a rural male
C) an urban woman
D) a rural woman

Question 60

Canadian society is not highly stratified.

Question 61

Health is closely related to social standing.

Question 62

As surprising as it may seem, in Canada, poor people typically have better health than rich people.

Question 63

Education is an important determinant of labour force participation.

Question 64

Because education is a right in Canada, there is very little inequality in schooling.

Question 65

In Canada, about 15 percent of people are officially counted among the poor.

Question 66

Big houses are an example of conspicuous consumption.

Question 67

In Canada, social class, race, and ethnicity are clearly associated.

Question 68

Aboriginal businesses are new and generally smaller than their mainstream counterparts, but many are multimillion-dollar ventures.

Question 69

Historically, though not as much today, women have had less opportunity for upward social mobility than men.

Question 70

Societal factors that contribute to homelessness include low wages and a lack of low-income housing.

Question 71

People in the lower-upper class are sometimes said to have "old money."

Question 72

The age category of the Canadian population most likely to be poor is children.

Question 73

Intergenerational mobility refers to changes in social position within an individual's lifetime.

Question 74

Explanations of poverty given in the text also apply to homelessness.

Question 75

Canadian women working full-time earn approximately 71 percent as much as comparable men.

Question 76

The working class is sometimes called the "lower-middle class."

Question 77

The primary cause of poverty is society, not individual character traits.

Question 78

Non-immigrants have higher low-income rates than immigrants.

Question 79

The feminization of poverty refers to the trend by which women represent an increasing proportion of the poor.

Question 80

Approximately 59% of children living in female-headed lone-parent families live in poverty.