Deck 6: Inequalities of Race and Ethnicity

Question 1

Why have sociologists avoided the scheme of only three racial categories?

A) Biological characteristics can accurately place people into only two mutually exclusive racial categories.
B) Racial categories and classification schemes vary widely over time and place.
C) There is only one "pure" race.
D) It is a genetic issue, not a sociological issue.

Answer 1

Racial categories and classification schemes vary widely over time and place.

Question 2

What does the case of Alexina Morrison, an escaped slave who was taken in by a White family and sued to legally obtain her freedom, reveal about racial classifications?

A) Race is a scientific categorization determined by biological characteristics.
B) Race can only be determined through birth records and other legal documents.
C) Race is a socially constructed category.
D) Race follows tight, logical rules of classification.

Answer 2

Race is a socially constructed category.

Question 3

How do sociologists define race?

A) using a scheme that involves three racial categories: Caucasoid, Negroid, and Mongoloid.
B) as any group with a shared cultural heritage
C) as a self-conscious identification with a group that most closely resembles one's culture
D) as a category of people that is formed when there is widespread agreement on the identification of a group and the definition of the group as a "race"

Answer 3

as a category of people that is formed when there is widespread agreement on the identification of a group and the definition of the group as a "race"

Question 4

The concept of race __________.

A) has changed over time
B) has remained consistent
C) has proven to be biological
D) is a personal choice

Question 5

People who share similar cultural features, such as language, religion, dress, food, and values, are known as a(n) __________.

A) ethnic group
B) ethnic identity
C) ethnic category
D) minority group

Question 6

Which of the following statements is true about minority groups?

A) They share similar cultural features, such as language, religion, dress, food, and values.
B) They are numerically smaller in number than the majority group.
C) They have significantly less power than the majority group.
D) The term "minority group" only refers to race/ethnicity.

Question 7

Which of the following would be considered a minority group in the United States?

A) African American women
B) Protestants
C) Heterosexuals
D) White men

Question 8

Which of the following statements accurately represents the way the Census Bureau determines race?

A) It uses a biological process involving birth records and family histories.
B) It uses a self-administered questionnaire about self-identification.
C) It asks individuals about their racial identification, but not about their ethnicity.
D) It asks individuals if they are members of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish ethnic categories and uses those responses to assign them a race.

Question 9

Based on the 2010 Census, which of the following accurately portrays the racial/ethnic population of the United States in order from largest population to smallest?

A) White - Hispanic - African American - Asian - Multi-Racial - Native American
B) White - Asian - African American - Hispanic - Native American - Multi-Racial
C) Hispanic - White - African American - Asian - Native American - Multi-Racial
D) Hispanic - White - Asian - African American - Multi-Racial - Native American

Question 10

When do demographers predict the United States will become a minority-majority country?

A) within the next decade
B) at about mid-century or a little later
C) probably not for another 60 years or more
D) There's no way to predict this outcome.

Question 11

Which of the following is one of the elements that characterizes settler colonialism?

A) Settlers regard themselves as temporary guests in a new land.
B) Settlers work with the indigenous population to establish new divisions of land.
C) Settlers maintain a minority status due to their numerical size among the indigenous peoples.
D) Settlers subjugate the indigenous peoples and then drive them away through political and physical force.

Question 12

According to the text, which of the following qualifications is being considered as a possible requirement for immigration to the United States?

A) having a high school diploma
B) the ability to speak English
C) employment experience in a job that would benefit the American economy
D) not having children under age 5

Question 13

Which of the following is true about Native Americans as a racial/ethnic group?

A) Once the United States became a sovereign nation, the government forcibly removed Native Americans from their homelands and transferred their land to White settlers.
B) Today, the American Indian population stands at roughly 13 million people.
C) Indian tribe-nations do not have the legal authority to establish gambling casinos on tribal land because state laws ban gambling.
D) According to DNA evidence, the forebears of Native Americans migrated from Africa to the North American mainland more than 10,000 years ago.

Question 14

__________ constitute the largest White group in the United States.

A) Italians
B) French
C) Germans
D) Russians

Question 15

White Europeans who are not Anglo-Saxon Protestants are referred to as __________.

A) Appalachians
B) White ethnics
C) Cajuns
D) Deutsch

Question 16

The Supreme Court's 1954 landmark ruling in Brown v. Board of Education ended __________.

A) integration
B) segregation
C) the separate but equal doctrine
D) the unlawful detainment of suspects

Question 17

The majority of the Hispanic American population are __________.

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

Question 18

Which of the following is a U.S. commonwealth?

A) Mexico
B) Puerto Rico
C) Cuba
D) Haiti

Question 19

Which of the following is true about Arab Americans?

A) They are represented in the United States as peaceable and non-threatening.
B) They constitute the largest minority group in the United States.
C) The majority of Arabs in the United States are native born and Christian.
D) Their levels of education, workforce participation, and median earning fall below the national average.

Question 20

Which of the following is true about Chinese Americans?

A) The majority who immigrated to California during the gold rush returned to China as rich and well-respected.
B) In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, which not only barred future immigration from China but forced the Chinese who were in the United States to return to China.
C) Chinese Americans were rounded up and sent to incarceration centers located throughout the West at the onset of World War II.
D) Today, many Chinese immigrants are coming from Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Question 21

What was the "Gentlemen's Agreement of 1907"?

A) a U.S. congressional act that barred further immigration from China
B) a series of diplomatic accords between Japan and the United States that barred new immigration
C) a presidential order that rounded up two-thirds of Japanese American citizens and sent them to incarceration centers at the onset of World War II
D) a policy instituted after the Vietnam War whereby Vietnamese citizens were housed in refugee camps and supported by the U.S. government

Question 22

The functional perspective on race/ethnicity best helps to explain which of the following issues?

A) why some people self-identify into specific racial/ethnic groups
B) why racial/ethnic divisions continue to persist in today's society
C) why racism is dysfunctional for society
D) why racial/ethnic minorities get funneled into lower-paying occupations

Question 23

The __________ perspective explains racial/ethnic inequality by examining the impact of interaction, meaning, and symbols in daily life.

A) functional
B) conflict
C) symbolic interaction
D) feminist

Question 24

The idea that racial inequality can contribute to social equilibrium is part of the __________ perspective.

A) functional
B) conflict
C) symbolic interaction
D) feminist

Question 25

The idea that ethnic and racial inequality results from the competition among groups for power, wealth, status, and other social resources is the main tenet of the __________ perspective.

A) functional
B) conflict
C) symbolic interaction
D) feminist

Question 26

According to the conflict perspective, which of the following is a criticism of the functional perspective on racial/ethnic inequality?

A) Inequality produces a cycle of oppression leading to new rebellions and new forms of oppression.
B) The group with the most power, wealth, and status installs itself as the dominant group, and everyone else becomes the subordinate group.
C) It is based on a consciousness of kind that is not functional for society.
D) Funneling racial/ethnic groups into jobs may benefit the public, but it exploits a powerless group of people.

Question 27

Blacks from South Africa, Somalia, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico have different cultural backgrounds, but when they come to the United States, they are considered "African American." The concept of __________ predicts that over time, they likely will come to think of themselves as African Americans.

A) consciousness of kind
B) racial formation
C) racial project
D) intergroup threat theory

Question 28

An attitude that predisposes an individual to prejudge an entire group of people unfairly is known as __________.

A) discrimination
B) prejudice
C) racial epithet
D) a stereotype

Question 29

Discrimination is __________.

A) an image of the most representative member of a category that is inaccurate, exaggerated, rigid, and derogatory
B) unfair and harmful treatment of people based on their group membership
C) an attitude that predisposes an individual to prejudge an entire group of people unfairly
D) a system of practices that favors one race over others and becomes embedded in culture and societal institutions

Question 30

Which of the following is an example of prejudice?

A) Clayton believes that America is the best country in the world.
B) Jacinta prefers to date men who are tall.
C) Phillip refuses to hire Muslims to work in his office.
D) Sam believes that all women are liars and gold diggers.

Question 31

Which of the following is an example of discrimination?

A) Raven believes all poor people are lazy.
B) Elliot refuses to rent an apartment to Hector because he thinks Hispanics are noisy.
C) Jane believes people in urban areas are more likely to be criminals.
D) Aiesha is sure that the Asian American students in her class are naturally better at math.

Question 32

Prejudice is to discrimination as __________.

A) behavior is to attitude
B) status is to norm
C) attitude is to behavior
D) culture is to society

Question 33

A __________ is a term that refers to a racial/ethnic group with derogatory implications and with the intent to disparage it.

A) prototype
B) racial formation
C) stereotype
D) racial epithet

Question 34

Which of the following statements is true about the Us and Them mentality?

A) It can lead to greater group understanding.
B) It is the foundation of social solidarity.
C) Once labeled Them, a group falls outside of the normal range of humanity.
D) It is not about being derogatory or having the intent to disparage another group.

Question 35

An image people have of the most representative members of a category is called __________, whereas an image of the most representative member of a category that is inaccurate, exaggerated, and derogatory is called __________.

A) a prototype; a stereotype
B) a stereotype; a prototype
C) prejudice; discrimination
D) discrimination; prejudice

Question 36

__________ refers to racialized practices that become embedded in culture and societal institutions.

A) Racism
B) Institutional racism
C) Racial formation
D) Racial project

Question 37

Institutional racism is a form of domination that often goes unchallenged; therefore, it is consistent with the __________ perspective.

A) conflict
B) functional
C) symbolic interaction
D) feminist

Question 38

The theory of racial formation explains how __________.

A) race is embedded into the structure of society
B) racial beliefs and practices infiltrate the broader society
C) racial/ethnic group members have feelings of being like one another and different from outsiders
D) one race claims itself as superior and deserving of special treatment

Question 39

U.S. government agencies aiding in the sterilization of Black, Native American, and Puerto Rican women is an example of __________.

A) stereotypes
B) institutional racism
C) racial projects
D) prejudice

Question 40

__________ refers to a system of links between racial beliefs and practices and the broader society.

A) Prejudice
B) Racial epithet
C) Institutional racism
D) Racial project

Question 41

__________ theory seeks to discover what happens when racial/ethnic groups come into contact with each other.

A) Functional
B) Symbolic interaction
C) Institutional discrimination
D) Intergroup threat

Question 42

The fear some Americans have that they will lose their jobs to immigrants could best be explained by __________.

A) institutional racism
B) the intergroup threat theory
C) racial formation
D) the contact hypothesis

Question 43

__________ refers to the assertion that intergroup contacts reduce prejudice and lead to harmonious interactions between disparate groups under certain conditions.

A) Intergroup threat theory
B) Contact hypothesis
C) Racial formation
D) Ethnic identity

Question 44

According to the contact hypothesis, which of the following conditions must be met in order for intergroup contact between disparate groups to be successful?

A) The groups must be of equal socioeconomic status.
B) The contact must be temporary or short-lived.
C) The groups must maintain similar views about gender and sexuality.
D) The groups must share the same political ideologies.

Question 45

__________ refers to the unearned power, privilege, and prestige that accrue to people classified as "White."

A) Ethnic identity
B) Color-blind racism
C) White privilege
D) Racial formation

Question 46

White privilege is the idea that Whites, as a group, experience unearned advantages and that group members __________.

A) are unaware of the many subtle ways that race confers benefits that are denied to non-White groups
B) actively work to keep all the benefits and privileges to themselves as a group
C) are working to reverse the damages non-White groups have experienced due to racial inequality
D) are working to overturn diversity incentives in education, employment, and government

Question 47

__________ refers to the actions and discourse of an individual who claims a commitment to racial equality in the abstract but who naturalizes racial inequality in practice.

A) Institutional racism
B) Contact hypothesis
C) Racial formation
D) Color-blind racism

Question 48

__________ refers to a small insult, usually unintended, involving a person's status.

A) Discrimination
B) Color-blind racism
C) White privilege
D) Microaggression

Question 49

In 2009, Barack Obama became the first African American president in U.S. history. To many, his election demonstrated that racism was no longer a problem. This type of thinking is consistent with __________.

A) institutional racism
B) color-blind racism
C) racial formation
D) contact hypothesis

Question 50

Telling an African American person that she or he is not like other Black people is an example of __________.

A) prejudice
B) a microaggression
C) color-blind racism
D) a racial epithet

Question 51

Explain how sociologists do-and do not-define race.

Question 52

Describe settler colonialism and provide an example from history.

Question 53

Explain how the conflict perspective differs from the functional perspective on the issue of racial/ethnic inequality.

Question 54

What is color-blind racism, and how does it coexist with the idea of White privilege?

Question 55

Explain intergroup threat theory.