Deck 5: Race, Ethnicity, and Families

Question 1

The decline in marriage among African Americans can be explained by the following phenomenon:

A)the lack of suitable marriage partners for women due to job losses and incarceration among men.
B)the fact that most African American men marry white women.
C)increasing intermarriage between the different ethnic groups.
D)the cultural reasons that de-emphasize marriage and children as an important step to forming a family.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

When Barack Obama was born in Hawaii to an interracial married couple in 1961 at least ________ states had laws forbidding marriages between whites and non-whites.

A)eleven
B)fifteen
C)twenty two
D)twenty six

Answer 2

B

Question 3

To overcome their economic hardships, Puerto Ricans have used a system of __________, much as African Americans have used a system of __________.

A)consensual unions; female-centered kin networks
B)grandfamilies; consensual unions
C)grandfamilies; female-centered kin networks
D)female-centered kin networks; consensual unions

Answer 3

A

Question 4

The economically disadvantaged position of American Indian families is most comparable to that of

A)Puerto Rican families.
B)African American families.
C)Mexican American families.
D)Asian American families.

Question 5

The number of births and deaths among American Indians did not change dramatically between 1970 and 1980. How would you explain the 72 percent rise in their population during this same time period?

A)There was finally a category of Native American to check on U.S.Census forms.
B)There was a high immigration rate from South and Central America.
C)More people began to think of themselves as American Indian and reported themselves to the U.S.Census as that.
D)None of these are true.

Question 6

One way mentioned by Cherlin in which Asian culture differs from American culture pertains to

A)how to educate children.
B)the responsibility assumed by adult children for their parents.
C)the importance of mediating structures.
D)the average age at first marriage.

Question 7

Nagel wrote of "ethnic renewal" where people increasingly identify themselves as

A)American Indian.
B)Black American.
C)Hispanic American.
D)Asian American.

Question 8

The most economically disadvantaged racial-ethnic group among Hispanics is

A)Mexican American.
B)Cuban.
C)Puerto Rican.
D)Guatemalan.

Question 9

The ________ category has become an umbrella for an extremely diverse group of people that differ in language, religion, and physical features.

A)African American
B)American Indian
C)European American
D)Asian American

Question 10

The __________ family is thought to be superior in allowing people to be upwardly mobile, as is evidenced by the success of Cubans.

A)conjugal
B)female-centered
C)male-centered
D)cohabitation-based

Question 11

When comparing African American and non-Hispanic white families, it can be said that black families are more likely to

A)include an extended family member.
B)face adversities without seeking support from kin.
C)be headed by a married couple.
D)have a higher asset-to-income ratio.

Question 12

The __________ strategy, used by Cubans-especially those living in and around Miami-is a viable way for an immigrant group to achieve economic success.

A)assimilation
B)female-centered network
C)grand family
D)enclave

Question 13

The first wave of Cuban American immigrants, in contrast to most other major immigrant groups in the United States, arrived in _____.

A)a political migration
B)a labor migration
C)a social migration
D)an unpopular (with the U.S.government) migration

Question 14

Puerto Ricans have the least selective migration patterns among Hispanics. This would partially explain their __________.

A)higher economic standing among Hispanic groups living in the United States
B)low economic standing among Hispanic groups living in the United States
C)equally successful economic standing with other Hispanic groups living in the United States
D)equally unsuccessful economic standing with other Hispanic groups living in the United States

Question 15

Statistics from 2006 show that ____ of American Indian births were to mothers who were unmarried.

A)32%
B)36%
C)54%
D)65%

Question 16

Which of the following is not an example of a mediating structure?

A)a church
B)a neighborhood
C)the court system
D)the family

Question 17

Which of the following people have a long tradition of consensual unions?

A)Asian Americans
B)Cubans
C)Puerto Ricans
D)African Americans

Question 18

The number of middle-class African American families in the United States has been increasing, but one critical aspect that distinguishes them from middle-class white families is their

A)education.
B)assets, such as savings, investments, and homes.
C)salaries.
D)family support.

Question 19

Family households in the United States most likely to marry someone from a different race are from the ________ racial-ethnic group.

A)African American
B)Asian American
C)non-Hispanic white
D)Hispanic

Question 20

The racial-ethnic group with the greatest number of children under 18 not living with either parent is

A)non-Hispanic white.
B)Hispanic.
C)American Indian.
D)African American.

Question 21

Which of the following statements is true of whiteness as an ethnicity?

A)Only poor immigrants from Europe were originally considered white.
B)Whiteness is an inherent characteristic of people.
C)Nearly all whites descended from European immigrants.
D)Who is or is not considered white has not changed at all over time.

Question 22

Which of the following groups has the lowest incidence of poverty among Hispanics?

A)Cuban Americans
B)Mexican Americans
C)Puerto Rican Americans
D)Central Americans

Question 23

Why have social scientists been reluctant to acknowledge the role of culture (as compared to the role of economics) in explaining the differences between African American and white families?

Question 24

Grandparents play a more important role, on average, in the lives of black families than in white families.

Question 25

Sixty-nine percent of black men without high school diplomas are incarcerated by the time they are in their early thirties.

Question 26

Explain why the racial gap in nonmarital childbearing has been narrowing.

Question 27

The most prosperous Hispanic group in the United States today is the Cuban American group.

Question 28

Why were early waves of Cuban immigrants more successful over time in the United States than later waves?

Question 29

________ immigrants appear to have used conjugal families as a means of pooling the labor and accumulating the capital necessary to start a business.

A)Cuban
B)Mexican
C)Puerto Rican
D)Guatemalan

Question 30

The prosperity of Cuban Americans is derived in large part from the support they received from mediating structures.

Question 31

Welfare has been the major factor contributing to an increase in out-of-wedlock births to African American women in the United States.

Question 32

Social capital is the resources that a person can access through his or her relationships with other people.

Question 33

One recent study predicts that by 2040 Mexican immigrants since the 1980s and their descendants will have produced 36 million additional births.

Question 34

Which of the following is a reason why college-educated black women are less likely to marry than their white peers?

A)because more black men have intermarriages than black women
B)because more white women are open to marriage than black women
C)because black women usually take longer to graduate than white women
D)because of the prevalence of consensual unions among black women

Question 35

Many Hispanic family households are headed by an unmarried male.

Question 36

Mexican Americans have more high-birthrate, multigenerational families than any other racial-ethnic group in the United States.

Question 37

Which of the following is the reason for the prevalence of intermarriages among American Indians?

A)a growing identity crisis among the American Indians
B)the large proportion of American Indians who consider themselves multiracial
C)a growing movement among American Indians to spread their way of life
D)the collapse of the traditional kinship systems of American Indian communities

Question 38

Using information you have read in your text, compare and contrast any three U.S. racial-ethnic groups in terms of size (proportionate to the total U.S. population), marriage patterns, fertility patterns, and economic advantages or disadvantages.

Question 39

Which of the following is the reason behind high birthrates among Mexican Americans?

A)increased willingness among illegal immigrants from Mexico to be enumerated
B)low rates of contraception use
C)a patriarchal family system
D)the family patterns of recent immigrants from Mexico

Question 40

Why is it difficult today to talk about the American Indian family?

Question 41

Describe why the rates of racial and ethnic marriage vary so greatly. Using one of the low-end groups and one of the high-end groups, give some of the differences between the two racial-ethnic groups and explain why they are less inclined or more inclined to intermarry.

Question 42

Explain the two major factors that Cherlin believes explain the decrease in African American marriages and the increase in children born to unmarried mothers.

Question 43

Describe some of the trends in patterns of immigration to the United States among Mexican Americans and Puerto Rican Americans. How might these have affected family life?

Question 44

Puerto Americans in the United States tend to be the most economically disadvantaged Hispanics. Thinking in terms of immigration and other factors, how would you explain this disadvantage?

Question 45

Why do sociologists separate racial-ethnic groups for the study of family?

Question 46

Name two kinds of socially recognized unions among Puerto Ricans. How do they differ?

Question 47

What is meant by a "mediating structure", and what does it do for African American families?

Question 48

Explain how the following fact affects family relationships in the United States: For every three black unmarried women in their twenties, there is roughly one unmarried black man with earnings above the poverty line.

Question 49

In what three ways do the marriage patterns of black women differ from those of white women in the United States?