soc 101 exam 3

Defining social class can be very subjective. There is one class, however, that has a more quantifiable measure. What class is that and why?

Because the government has established a poverty line for different-size families, the poor class is a much "easier" class to define.

People who are born with ambiguous genitalia are usually referred to as transsexuals. T/F

False

Sex is binary, but gender exists on a continuum. T/F

False

The three dimensions of social stratification are social class, income, and power. T/F

False

Women make less than men in the formal economy, but men and women make the same amount in the informal economy; they both make equally low wages. T/F

False

Timid bigot

One who is prejudiced but doesn't discriminate

Fair-weather liberal

One who isn't prejudiced but still discriminates

Whites are a racial group. T/F

True

Passing

blending with the dominant group

The ____________ argument was that poor people adopt certain practices that differ from those of middle-class society in order to adapt and survive in difficult economic circumstances.

culture of poverty

structural mobility

describes changes in technology or the economy. Ex.: Martha had worked as a seamstress in a factory most of her life, but she suddenly found herself unemployed when the factory closed and moved to China. Finding another job became impossible because there were none.

____________________________ refers to the dispersal, typically involuntary, of a racial or ethnic population from its traditional homeland and over a wide geographic area.

diaspora

Equality of outcome

each player should end up with the same amount regardless of the fairness of the game. Ex.: Even though some people may not have the same abilities as others, they still reap the same benefits.

The hallmarks of ____________ are fixity, lack of history, absolutism, and biological determinism.

essentialism

____________ is the judgment of other groups by one's own standards and values.

ethnocentrism

Equality of opportunity

everyone has equal chances in the beginning, but luck or skill bring varying results. Ex.: Men and women have the same chance to become successful, but sometimes a person may just be in the right place at the right time.

Ontological equality

everyone is created equal in the eyes of God. Ex.: Even though men and women are different, they are equal in value, worth, and dignity.

The basic idea behind ____________ is that women and men should be accorded equal opportunities and respect.

feminism

While women may face a ____________ as they struggle to climb the occupational ladder, men are likely to encounter a ____________, especially in female-dominated occupations.

glass ceiling/glass elevator

Arlie Hochschild named the networks of immigrants who migrate to complete domestic work in the global economy "______________".

global care chain

Withdrawal

groups experiencing persecution or discrimination may leave for good.

Because men are the dominant group in society, their behavior often goes unscrutinized. This complete dominance is referred to as ____________.

hegemonic masculinity

social construction of reality

how society tells us what is meaningful, valuable, and real, based on our social interactions and understandings.

A society with a low degree of assimilation and several distinct ethnic or racial groups is said to be ____________.

pluralistic

___________ refers to negative attitudes, beliefs, and feelings toward minorities.

prejudice

Assimilation

process by which immigrants achieve full integration in a homogeneous country. Ex.: Irish immigrants adopt the values and language of the dominant group. Soon they become indecipherable from the dominant group.

____________ refers to a relationship that is entered into for what each partner can get from it, and in which those involved remain only as long as each derives enough satisfaction from it.

pure relationship

The belief that members of separate races possess different and unequal traits is called ____________.

racism

When a minority group is defined as a race and then negative characteristics are attributed to that group, it is called: ______________.

racism

Vertical mobility

refers to the rise or fall of an individual from one social stratum to another. Ex.: Sue grew up in an upper-status family, but she became addicted to drugs, was rejected by her family, and ultimately became homeless.

____________ is an illegal form of discrimination that ranges from inappropriate jokes on the job to threatening a person for sexual favors.

sexual harrasment

Equality of condition:

situations need to be altered in order to compensate for inequalities in the relative starting positions. Ex.: When women compete in physical contests with men, the requirements are manipulated to account for differences in physical ability.

Essentialism explains ___________ phenomena in terms of _________________.

social; natural phenomena

Pre-reflective Gut Racism:

tendency to feel fear, anxiety, insecurity and suspicion certain motivational dispositions such as rejection, aggression, dominance and superiority ignorance of racial minorities, which leaves people open to the too- ready acceptance of myths, stereotypes and other fear-arousing communications

Segregation

the legal, social practice of separating people on the basis of their race or ethnicity. Ex.: Blacks, until the 1960s, were not allowed in "white" hotels.

Acceptance versus resistance

the oppressed group feigns compliance and hides its true feelings of resentment or resists through a movement such as a nonviolent protest.

Institutional Racism

the way that the institutional arrangements and the distribution of resources in our society serve to reinforce the advantages of the white majority long- established organizational practices which disadvantage members of racial or ethnic minorities

Paternalistic Racism

white people have the right to interfere in the lives of blacks for their own good and the power to define that good.

When a set of ideas that reflects the point of view of a white person is accepted as the taken for granted understanding of how to interpret culture, it is referred to as: __________________.

white racial frame

Color-Blind Racism

"unintentional" the disadvantaging of black people by ignoring or marginalizing their distinctive needs, experiences and identity

Pluralism

: a society where distinct ethnic groups are accepted. Ex.: People in large cities' China towns still continue to practice their culture, speak their language, and live as they did in China. But they follow American laws and live peacefully alongside the dominant group.

Active bigot

A person who is prejudiced and discriminates

All-weather liberal

A sociologist's ideal. People have no prejudice and don't discriminate

According to the text, globalization is associated with narrowed global disparities in life span and health outcomes. T/F

False

According to the text, men have to think more about what it means to be a "man," while women can take for granted what being a "woman" means. T/F

False

Globalization plays little role in the creation of ethnic identity. T/F

False

What has globalization done to influence income and wealth inequality in the United States? Include the influence of the Industrial Revolution and geography in your answer. Why did Europe develop first?

Globalization has affected inequality and income in the United States by bifurcating labor into high-skilled and low-skilled jobs. Before the industrial revolution most of the world lived in poverty. Due to technology, food was made more available, and as industrialization grew, cottage industries disappeared and the inequality gap grew. . Europe has a longer growing season, better water supplies, and, due to cooler temperatures, less disease than other regions, for example, Africa.

How does symbolic ethnicity fit into explanations of ethnicity?

Symbolic ethnicity is a choice for white middle-class Americans. Race is not a choice; it is assigned by society. Ethnicity is something whites can choose to express or repress. People of color cannot

Cultural Racism

The culture of minority groups is seen as flawed in some way, and thus as standing in the way of their progress. Minorities are encouraged to turn their back on their own culture and to become absorbed by the majority culture. (White Racial Frame)

Explain the culture of poverty.

The culture of poverty thesis argues that poor people adopt certain practices in order to adapt and survive in difficult economic circumstances.

Why is whiteness referred to as an "invisible knapsack of privileges"?

The white experience involves more than 50 daily privileges and often involves not having to think about race at all. Included in this "knapsack" of special privileges is the ability to shop without attention or to turn on the TV and see others like themselves

What was the premise behind eugenics? How did eugenics explain race? What is the problem with this explanation? Give examples.

They believed that they could trace everything from criminality and feeblemindedness to disease and intelligence.

browning of America

This narrowing of the gap between blacks and whites could render the whole concept of whiteness, (the "invisible knapsack of privileges") null and void. As racial groups become more homogenous, the privileges that whites have historically experienced may be disappearing, or expanding to more nonblacks

Why is there such unequal distribution of wealth in the United States? How does the United States compare to other nations?

Timing, institutional structure, cultural history, and race were a few reasons given for the unequal distribution, but they don't explain the situation sufficiently. The United States has one of the highest poverty rates in the advanced world, but countries with the worst relative income distributions are of English origin.

Discrimination can exist in a culture even if there are no prejudiced people. T/F

True

One of the five factors, according to Cherlin, in the deinstitutionalization of marriage is that the norms about having children within the context of marriage and the family have been eroding. T/F

True

One of the reasons that women accept work in the informal economy, despite its insecurity and low wages, is to be able to work at home and complete their family obligations. T/F

True

The United States has had an increase in the number of one-person households over the last 40 years. T/F

True

Explain the concept of race from a sociological perspective. Discuss the racial distinction with regard to the Anglo-Saxons in the mid-1800s.

Was black/white Americans categorized themselves into 36 to 75 different races organized into hierarchies, with Anglo-Saxon at the top followed by Slav, Mediterranean, Hebrew, and so on down the list. Today Irish descent is a matter of ethnic—not racial—identification.

Some social scientists argue that members of the underclass are no different from the rest of us. Their negative behavior is just a response to ____________.

a lack of opportunity

Conflict

antagonistic groups live together in racial hostility. Ex.: The KKK fought, and is still fighting, to keep their "white power."

It has been argued that poverty is neither cause nor effect, but rather a condition that acts as a proxy for the underlying social diseases ____________ and ____________.

inequality; economic segregation

When hospitals give preferential treatment to whites as opposed to members of minority groups, this is referred to as: _____________________.

institutional racism

social mobility

is the movement between different positions within a system of social stratification in any given society. ex: John grew up in the projects, but through hard work and luck he became a millionaire in his thirties.

Post-reflective Gut Racism

justification for the continuation of racial privilege, and this may involve the creation of an ideology of racial superiority and domination

Horizontal Mobility

means transitioning from one social status to another on the same rung of the ladder. Ex.: Jack moved from Wilmington to Raleigh and changed jobs, but his salary and the value of his home remained the same.

Describe the definitions of race in ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, and early Christendom. How do they compare to modern racial thinking among the European colonizers up to the present day?

physical markers were the result of different environmental factors.