Deck 8: Social Class in the United States

Question 1

Marx's model of the social classes included

A)managers.
B)workers.
C)petty bourgeoisie
D)royalty

Answer 1

B
workers.

Question 2

The total value of everything that someone owns,minus debts,is

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

Answer 2

C
wealth.

Question 3

Income and wealth are

A)different terms for the same thing.
B)often confused.
C)related in the same way that output is related to input.
D)related in that if a person has a lot of one,they are certain to have a lot of the other.

Answer 3

B
often confused

Question 4

Wright Mills called the top people in U.S.corporations,the military,and politics who make the nation's major decisions the

A)power elite.
B)intelligentsia.
C)nation's finest.
D)bourgeoisie.

Question 5

_____ is respect or regard.

A)Status consistency
B)Power
C)Prestige
D)Status inconsistency

Question 6

The money that someone receives,usually from a job,business,or assets,is referred to as

A)capital.
B)property.
C)wealth.
D)income.

Question 7

In 2013,the highest-paid U.S.CEO received

A)$950,000.
B)$3 million.
C)$21 million.
D)$77 million.

Question 8

Status consistency refers to

A)day-to-day stability.
B)ranking high or low on at least two dimensions of social class.
C)ranking high or low on all three dimensions of social class.
D)lateral mobility.

Question 9

_____ is Wright's term for a position in the class structure that generates contradictory interests.

A)Contradictory class locations
B)The proletariat
C)Inconsequential others
D)Capitalist

Question 10

Ranking high on some dimensions of social class and low on others is called

A)status inconsistency.
B)prestige.
C)status consistency.
D)limited power.

Question 11

What percentage of the nation's wealth is owned by the wealthiest 1% of Americans?

A)1%
B)10%
C)35%
D)93%

Question 12

_____ is the ability to carry out your will,even over the resistance of others.

A)Social class
B)Status
C)Power
D)Prestige

Question 13

In tracking income in the United States from 1935 to 2013,

A)income inequality has decreased since 1970.
B)income inequality has increased since 1970.
C)nothing has changed.
D)income equality has steadily increased since 1935.

Question 14

June was the president of her neighborhood association,which in that group afforded her a high

A)status inconsistency.
B)status.
C)degree of wealth.
D)status consistency.

Question 15

What percentage of the nation's wealth is owned by the wealthiest 10% of Americans?

A)10%
B)22%
C)58%
D)77%

Question 16

Which occupation has the most prestige in the United States-physician,banker,actress,or plumber?

A)Physician
B)Banker
C)Actress
D)Plumber

Question 17

_____ is material possessions.

A)Wealth
B)Property
C)Income
D)Power

Question 18

If we use the analogy that some U.S.families have an income that could be represented by the height of Mount Everest,then the average American family has an income that is about _____ feet off the ground.

A)3
B)15
C)700
D)4,000

Question 19

Durkheim called it _____ when people become detached from the usual norms that guide their behavior.

A)frustration
B)the underclass
C)politics
D)anomie

Question 20

_____,according to Weber,is (are)a large group of people who rank close to one another in property,power,and prestige.

A)Status consistency
B)Social class
C)The proletariat
D)Capitalists

Question 21

In his modification of Marx's model of social classes,Wright added

A)workers.
B)capitalists.
C)managers.
D)clergy.

Question 22

When it comes to child rearing,lower-class parents tend to focus more on

A)developing their children's creative skills.
B)encouraging their children to question authority.
C)getting their children to follow rules and obey authority.
D)developing their children's leadership skills.

Question 23

Most members of the working poor class

A)are high school dropouts.
B)are really lower middle class people who are unemployed.
C)have spent some time in college.
D)have earned a bachelor's degree.

Question 24

The upper end of the capitalist class is occupied by those

A)with old money.
B)who are philanthropists exclusively.
C)with new money.
D)with the highest level of happiness.

Question 25

Compared to the working class,the lower middle class generally has

A)less prestige.
B)a higher income.
C)the same attributes.
D)a lower income.

Question 26

In Mexico,Javier was a physician.Javier emigrated to the United States and ended up working as a carpenter (which had been his hobby in Mexico).Javier experienced _____ mobility.

A)downward social
B)upward social
C)intergenerational
D)exchange

Question 27

Homeless people are part of the

A)working poor.
B)working class.
C)underclass.
D)lower middle class.

Question 28

Which statement is true about people toward the bottom of the class structure?

A)They are more likely to be politically active.
B)On economic issues,they are conservative.
C)They are less likely to be politically active.
D)They walk the same political paths as the rich.

Question 29

As you go up the social-class ladder,what happens to your health?

A)It improves.
B)It stays the same.
C)There is no change.
D)It worsens.

Question 30

When it comes to religion,the lower classes tend to be attracted to

A)more subdued worship.
B)more expressive worship services and louder music.
C)the Episcopalian denomination.
D)the nearest church.

Question 31

Lee started as a bank teller and 15 years later ended up running the bank.This is an example of _____ mobility.

A)upward social
B)intergenerational
C)downward social
D)lateral

Question 32

Philanthropist Bill Gates has given away

A)$30 million.
B)$100 million.
C)$3 billion.
D)$30 billion.

Question 33

Seth did menial work-mostly house cleaning-when he could find it.He had been homeless for a year,and since then simply did not have a good enough employment record to find a regular job.He relied on welfare,a subsidized rental,food stamps,and even the occasional visit to a food pantry to supplement his work income.In terms of class,Seth would belong to the

A)working poor.
B)underclass.
C)working class.
D)lower middle class.

Question 34

The class most shaped by education is the _____ class.

A)upper middle
B)lower middle
C)working
D)upper

Question 35

Based on the histories of lottery winners,sudden wealth brings

A)only pleasant consequences.
B)a threat.
C)many genuine offers of friendship.
D)guaranteed happiness.

Question 36

Who is at the top of Wright's modification of Marx's model of social classes?

A)Workers
B)Petty bourgeoisie
C)Managers
D)Capitalists

Question 37

Members of the _____ tend to think of themselves as having "real jobs" and regard the "suits" above them as paper pushers.

A)underclass
B)working poor
C)working class
D)upper middle class

Question 38

_____ refers to the change that family members make in social class from one generation to the next.
a.Structural mobility
b.Exchange mobility
c.Intergenerational mobility
d.Anomie

Question 39

White-collar crimes are likely to be dealt with

A)by the police.
B)by the courts.
C)outside the criminal justice system.
D)by prison sentences.

Question 40

As you go down the social-class ladder,what happens to your mental health?

A)It improves.
B)It stays the same.
C)There is no change.
D)It worsens.

Question 41

The region of the United States that has the most poverty is the

A)South.
B)North.
C)West.
D)East.

Question 42

The reason why families headed by a mother,rather than by a mother and father or a father alone,are more likely to be poor is because

A)two-parent families are more stable.
B)women average only 72% of what men earn.
C)women have less education.
D)women are less inclined to work if they have children.

Question 43

Going without something in the present in the hope of achieving greater gains in the future is called

A)the geography of poverty.
B)deprivation.
C)deferred gratification.
D)immediate gratification.

Question 44

It is likely to be painful to

A)go up the social ladder.
B)go down the social ladder.
C)move on the social ladder,either up or down.
D)remain at the same spot on the social ladder.

Question 45

Most of the poor

A)live on welfare.
B)are single mothers and their children.
C)live in the inner city.
D)are less educated.

Question 46

The official measure of poverty of the U.S.government is

A)called the poverty line.
B)kept secret.
C)five times a low-cost food budget.
D)nine times a low-cost food budget.

Question 47

What proportion of all African American adults works at white-collar jobs today?

A)One-fourth
B)More than one-half
C)Two-thirds
D)More than three-fourths

Question 48

In _____ mobility,many people move up the social class ladder,and many move down,with the social class system showing little change.

A)downward
B)structural
C)exchange
D)upward

Question 49

Which statement about poverty is true?

A)Poverty is unusual.
B)Most poor people are poor because they do not want to work.
C)More children than adults are poor.
D)There is more poverty in urban than in rural areas.

Question 50

_____ mobility is movement either up or down the social class ladder due more to changes in society than to the actions of individuals.

A)Structural
B)Upward
C)Downward
D)Intergenerational