Sociology 101 - Quiz 8
If you followed the lead of Max Weber, you would think of social stratification in erms of A) a multidimensional status hierarchy B) two major social classes. C) a middle-class society D) six different social classes.
a multidimensional status hierarchy
People of low social position are more liberal onissues and more conservative on issues. A) social; economic B) economic; social C) very few; almost all D) almost all; almost no
economic; social
The 1996 welfare reforms created which program? A) Aid for Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) B) Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) C) Food stamps D) Social Security benefits
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
Today, the wealth of the average U.S. family is about A) $1,000. B) $20,000. C ) $ 90,000 D) $290,000
$ 90,000
The concept of "intergenerational social mobility" refers to change in social position A) over a person's lifetime B) when moving from one type of job to another C) in a downward direction. D) when comparing children to their parents
when comparing children to their parents
The concept "feminization of poverty" refers to the fact that, in the United States A) more and more women are becoming poor B) today's women have fewer legal rights. C) women make up an increasing percentage of the poor D) fewer women now work for income.
women make up an increasing percentage of the poor
Recent data from the Federal Reserve shows that median wealth for non-Hispanic, white families was about $142,000. For minority families, including African Americans, Asian Americans, and Hispanics, the median figure was. A) $88,100 B) $48,100 C) $18,100 D) $8,100.
$18,100
In the United States, the median wealth of minority families is about of the median wealth of non-Hispanic white families. A) 1.3 percent B) 13 percent C) 63 percent D) 93 percent
13 percent
In 2015, about what share of the U.S. population was officially counted as poor? A) 1.5 percent B) 13.5 percent C) 33.5 percent D) 53.5 percent
13.5 percent
About what share of U.S. adults over the age of twenty-five are college graduates? A) 13 percent B) 33 percent C) 53 percent D) 73 percent
33 percent
The wealthiest 1 percent of U.S. families (the "super-rich") controls aboutof the nation's privately held wealth. A) 17 percent B) 37 percent C) 67 percent D) 87 percent
37 percent
Based on what you have learned in the chapter, about what percentage of all U.S families has little or no wealth? A) 10 percent B) 40 percent C) 70 percent D) 90 percent
40 percent
In 2015, about how many people were counted by the U.S. government as having income below the official poverty line? A) 430,000 B) 4.3 million C) 43 million D) 430 million
43 million
In 2015, the percentage of all poor families in the United States headed by single women was A) 1 percent. B) 21 percent. C) 51 percent. D) 81 percent.
51 percent.
A federal government study in 2016 found that about how many people in the United States homeless on a single night in January? A) 550 B) 5,500 C) 55,000 D) 550,000
550,000
In 2015, according to government statistics, what percentage of the heads of poor U.S. families did not work at all? A) 16 percent B) 36 percent C) 56 percent D) 86 percent
56 percent
In the United States, the median income for African American families is about as much as that for a non-Hispanic, white family A) 37 percent B) 57 percent C) 77 percent D) 97 percent
57 percent
In the United States, which age category has the highest poverty rate? A) Children under the age of eighteen B) People in their thirties C) Middle-aged persons about forty years of age D) Seniors over sixty five years of age
Children under the age of eighteen
A good example of a person in her society's upper-upper class is A) Beyoncé, who grew up in a middle-class family B) Elizabeth II, the queen of England C) anyone who is part of the "working rich." D) Oprah Winfrey, who was born into a poor family in Mississippi
Elizabeth II, the queen of England
Which concept refers to change in social position during a person's lifetime? A) Intragenerational social mobility B) Intergenerational social mobility C) Structural social mobility D) Horizontal social mobility
Intragenerational social mobility
Which of the following factors tends to raise your social standing? A) Divorce B) Leaving school to get a job C)Marrying and staying married D)Having children
Marrying and staying married
During the last twenty years, which category of the U.S. population has experienced the largest gains in average income? A) The lowest-paid 20 percent B) The middle 20 percent C)The highest-paid 20 percent D) All income categories have experienced about the same level of upward social mobility
The highest-paid 20 percent
According to Karl Marx, which class forms the core of the industrial proletariat? A) The upper-middle class B) The middle class C) The upper class D) The working class
The working class
If you were looking for data supporting the claim that U.S. society is very stratified, you would make the strongest case by pointing to which of the following factors? A) Occupational prestige B) Education C) Income D) Wealth
Wealth
If you believe that people living in central cities are likely to be poor because there are few jobs available in these areas, you are in agreement with A) Oscar Lewis. B) William Julius Wilson. C) Kingsley Davis and Wilbert Moore D) Karl Marx
William Julius Wilson.
The anthropologist Oscar Lewis suggested the cause of poverty lies in. A) a lower-class culture of poverty B) lack of government action. C) too few available jobs. D)bad public schools.
a lower-class culture of poverty
Being in the upper-upper class is usually the result of: being in the lower- upper class is more a matter of A) birth: achievement B) business success; birth C) gender; birth D) high-income; low-income
birth: achievement
The highest rate of poverty in the United States is in A) rural areas. B) central cities. C) suburbs. D) coastal cities
central cities.
During the last three decades, the real income of African American families in the United States has A) gone down a lot. B) kept pace with the gains made by white people C) gone up a lot. D) changed very little.
changed very little.
By 2008, the welfare reforms enacted in 1996 had A) cut the number of people receiving assistance by more than half B) dramatically reduced the poverty rate to almost zero C) had no effect on the number of people receiving public assistance D) doubled the number of people receiving assistance.
cut the number of people receiving assistance by more than half
People who supported the 1996 welfare reform claim that the earlier system A) encouraged welfare dependency B) encouraged women to marry C) discouraged women from having children. D) did not do enough to help the poor
encouraged welfare dependency
One - third of all homeless people are A) mentally ill B) employed full-time. C) elderly D) entire families.
entire families.
Social position in the United States is affected by a person's A) family, race, and gender B) race only C) gender only D) family only
family, race, and gender
Relative poverty is A) found everywhere. B) life threatening. C) not found in the United States D) only a problem for minority groups.
found everywhere.
Critics of the 1996 welfare reforms claim the new system A) has done little to reduce poverty in the United States B) has strengthened families in the United States. C) encourages welfare dependency D) encourages unmarried women to have children.
has done little to reduce poverty in the United States
In the United States, people of are most likely to vote A) low social position B) high social position C) average social position D) any social position
high social position
In general, people of low social class position A) live in less safe and more stressful environments. B) are likely to describe their own health as "excellent" C) live as long as people of higher class positions. D) live longer than people of higher class positions.
live in less safe and more stressful environments.
Working class people might also be described as.... A) lower-middle class B) lower-upper class. C) lower-class. D) upper-middle class.
lower-middle class
The family of actor Will Smith and actress Jada Pinkett Smith would best be described as A) working class. B) middle class. C) "old money." D) lower-upper class.
lower-upper class.
Roughly 40 to 45 percent of the U.S. population falls within the A) upper class. B) middle class. C) lower class D) poor
middle class.
The highest concentration of high-income people is found A) in small towns of the Midwest. B)near large metropolitan areas, especially on the East and West Coasts. C) in the Southwest. D) in the deep South
near large metropolitan areas, especially on the East and West
In terms of absolute numbers, most poor people in the United States A) African American B) Asian American. C) Hispanic. D) non-Hispanic whites.
non-Hispanic whites.
Based on what you know about occupational prestige, you would assume that A) most of the highest-ranked occupations in the United States are dominated by women. B) occupational rankings are roughly the same in all high-income nations. C) white-collar work and blue-collar work have about the same social prestige D) in the United States, occupation has little to do with social standing
occupational rankings are roughly the same in all high-income nations.
About of the richest people in the United States gained at least some of their fortune from inheritance A) one-tenth B) one-fourth C) one-third D) two-thirds
one-third
Those most likely to be liberal on social issues (say, by supporting feminism) are A) rich, highly-educated people B) average, middle-class people. C) less-educated working-class D) people. average lower-class people.
rich, highly-educated people
Contrasting living standards in the United States during Marx's lifetime with living standards in the United States today, we see that U.S. living standards have A) risen. B) fallen. C) risen for the very rich, but fallen for everyone else D) risen for the very poor, but remained steady for the very rich.
risen.
According to Lisa Keister's research, A) social mobility has never existed in the United States B) social mobility is the same for people at all levels of the wealth hierarchy C) social mobility is lowest for people in the middle of the wealth hierarchy D) social mobility is lowest for people at the top and the bottom of the wealth hierarchy
social mobility is lowest people at the top and the bottom of the wealth hierarchy
The concept "conspicuous consumption" refers to A) buying things that are popular with the most people B) buying more than what you need for the moment. C) the practice of buying things to make a statement about one's social position D) acting as if one had a lower social position than is really the case.
the practice of buying things to make a statement about one's social position
The least amount of racial and ethnic diversity is found in A) the upper-upper class. B) the middle class. C) the working class. D) the poor
the upper-upper class.
Sociologist William Julius Wilson suggests the cause of poverty lies in A) a lower-class culture of poverty B) lack of government action. C) too few available jobs. D) bad public schools.
too few available jobs.
