Deck 14: Family Policy for the Twenty-First Century

Question 1

The abortion rate in the United States was at its highest point in the twentieth century.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Which of the following is not consistent with the progressive perspective on the family?

A) Social policies must support today's diverse family forms.
B) Policies that promote traditional families are likely to be ineffective because this family form is incompatible with contemporary social realities.
C) Trends observed among U.S. families are generally unique to this society.
D) Global economic restructuring has reshaped U.S. families.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

The U.S.family leave policy entitles all employed women to a twelve-week unpaid maternity leave.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Since 1980,the U.S.abortion rate has been

A) increasing.
B) declining.
C) static.
D) the lowest among developing nations.

Question 5

The United States has a coherent,overall family policy.

Question 6

Which of the following is consistent with the conservative ideology of the family?

A) Recent family change is attributable to structural conditions.
B) The organization of family is based on essential biological differences between women and men.
C) Women, in the exercise of their individual freedom, may choose full-time paid employment or unpaid work at home.
D) none of the above

Question 7

Services such as prenatal care and preschool education have been shown to save public dollars in the long run.

Question 8

Progressives identify which of the following as major influences on families today?

A) economic problems
B) the trend away from rigid gender-based roles
C) a crisis in care-giving among different generations
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 9

Which of the following is true of restrictions on abortion?

A) Most Americans are opposed to restrictions on abortion.
B) Many states have restrictions on abortion.
C) The Supreme Court has found that restrictions on abortion are unconstitutional.
D) State restrictions on abortion have not affected the availability of abortion.

Question 10

The 1996 Welfare Act guarantees a job to everyone currently on welfare.

Question 11

Abstinence-only sex education

A) has received little support from the federal government.
B) seems to show little success in enabling young people to postpone sex until marriage.
C) has dramatically reduced the rate of sexually-transmitted diseases.
D) increases the likelihood that young people will use contraception.

Question 12

Poor women have higher rates of unplanned pregnancy than the non-poor.The text suggests that one explanatory factor is

A) welfare dependence.
B) lack of moral standards.
C) the high cost of contraception.
D) the availability of abortion.

Question 13

The infant mortality rates for African American and White babies are approximately the same.

Question 14

Head Start serves most of the children who are eligible for this program.

Question 15

What percentage of pregnancies in the United States are unplanned?

A) 15%
B) 26%
C) 50%
D) 62%

Question 16

Recent data on abortions in the United States finds that

A) a majority of those who have abortions are already mothers.
B) a majority of those who have abortions are in their twenties.
C) fewer than 1% are done after 24 weeks.
D) all of the above

Question 17

The 1996 Welfare Act placed a five-year lifetime limit on welfare receipt.

Question 18

With regard to same-sex marriage,in 2013,

A) more than 50% of Americans supported same-sex marriage.
B) less than 50% of Americans favor civil unions.
C) the opposition to same-sex marriage increased.
D) all of the above

Question 19

Research suggests that abstinence-only sex education can reduce pre-marital sex by more than 50%.

Question 20

The conservative position on family policy holds that family forms are changing due to cultural and political factors.

Question 21

Which of the following is not one of the authors' family policy recommendations?

A) universal health insurance
B) local funding of all programs
C) paid maternity leave
D) job training for young single mothers

Question 22

During the Great Recession,the welfare rolls

A) increased in every state.
B) declined in every state.
C) increased in some states, but were cut in many others.
D) increased, but food stamp applications remained the same.

Question 23

The term "extreme poverty" refers to

A) inter-generational poverty.
B) families who have been poor for more than five years.
C) welfare dependence.
D) families with incomes less than half the poverty threshold.

Question 24

Which of the following statements does not accurately describe Head Start?

A) Head Start programs have been documented to raise IQ scores of poor children.
B) Head Start serves nearly all children who are eligible for the program.
C) Head Start is inadequately funded.
D) Head Start prepares children for school.

Question 25

What other benefits are often available to those who are receiving welfare assistance?

A) education
B) child care
C) transportation
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 26

Women encounter which obstacle when they use federally mandated leaves from employment?

A) co-worker resentment
B) Women's commitment to their work is questioned.
C) management promotion of more ʺreliableʺ male workers
D) all of the above

Question 27

A major problem with the federal parental leave policy is

A) parental leave is for only four weeks.
B) it contains no guaranteed job provision.
C) job benefits are not retained during the leave.
D) parental leave is unpaid.

Question 28

The United States differs from most industrialized nations in which way?

A) The United States has no comprehensive child care system.
B) The United States does not have paid maternity leave.
C) U.S. children are at high risk for child poverty.
D) all of the above

Question 29

According to the text,the failure of business and government to respond to women's work-related needs is associated with

A) women's unwillingness to take full-time jobs.
B) men's increased responsibility for child care.
C) the cultural belief that women really belong at home.
D) private sphere solutions to these needs.

Question 30

Which of the following provides the rationale for the current U.S.policy of providing minimal supports to working parents and poor families?

A) individualism
B) conservative ideology
C) adherence to a modern nuclear family ideal
D) all of the above

Question 31

Which of the following is not part of the 1996 welfare legislation?

A) Welfare is funded by federal block grants to the states.
B) All recipients who are required to work are guaranteed a job.
C) Welfare is a program administered by the states.
D) Legal immigrants are denied access to many benefits.

Question 32

Children of which racial group experience the highest poverty rate?

A) White
B) African American
C) Latino
D) All groups have similar rates.

Question 33

Which of the following ideas guided the formulation of the 1996 Welfare Act?

A) Lawmakers constructed new policies that reflected the findings of social science research.
B) The idea that the previous welfare system provided women with incentives to bear children and discouraged them from working.
C) Lawmakers modeled U.S. programs after the most successful public assistance programs in Europe.
D) The specific intent of the 1996 Welfare Act is to reduce poverty (rather than to reduce welfare receipt).

Question 34

Which of the following is not a provision of the 1996 welfare legislation?

A) Children are entitled to assistance for as long as they need it.
B) Unmarried teen parents must live at home and go to school to receive assistance.
C) Welfare receipt is limited to a lifetime total of five years.
D) Federal funding for welfare is capped, with no provision for inflation or population growth.

Question 35

According to the text,which of the following assistance programs serves primarily White children in single parent families?

A) AFDC
B) Medicaid
C) Survivors Insurance (SI)
D) WIC

Question 36

From 1970 to the present,what has been the relationship between child poverty and elder poverty?

A) Both elder poverty and child poverty have increased since 1970.
B) Both elder poverty and child poverty have decreased since 1970.
C) In 1970, the elder poverty rate was substantially higher than child poverty, but now the child poverty rate is much higher.
D) In 1970, the child poverty rate was substantially higher than elder poverty, but now the elder poverty rate is much higher.

Question 37

Since 1970,benefits from which of the following assistance programs have risen five times as fast as the average family income?

A) AFDC
B) Free school lunches
C) Survivors Insurance (SI)
D) WIC

Question 38

Poor children are at increased risk of

A) infant mortality.
B) educational deficits.
C) exposure to toxic chemicals.
D) all of the above

Question 39

The largest special interest organization in the United States is

A) the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP).
B) the Children's Defense Fund.
C) the National Organization of Women (NOW).
D) Right to Life.

Question 40

Recent congressional decisions not to cut programs assisting the elderly while cutting programs to assist children reflects

A) the lower economic status of the elderly.
B) past over-funding of assistance to children.
C) the improved economic status of children.
D) the political clout of the elderly.

Question 41

Although the 1996 welfare legislation has reduced the number of welfare recipients,some analysts are skeptical about the outcome of this legislation.What are some of the concerns related to the long-term outcome of welfare reform?

Question 42

Discuss the contention that investing in children's programs now will actually save money in the long run.What kinds of programs are good investments? How does this save public money?

Question 43

Discuss the conservative and progressive understandings of families.How does each explain the family changes of recent decades?

Question 44

Compare and contrast conservative and progressive approaches to the problems of welfare and poverty.Which policies make the most sense to you? Why?

Question 45

The public policy issues especially relevant to working parents are parental leave and child care.Discuss the ways in which government has addressed these issues,as well as the adequacy or inadequacy of government measures.How does the United States compare to other developed countries on these issues?