Sociology Chapter 7: Stratification

Identify the following statements about class stratification as either being true of the immediate postwar period (1944-1973) or the late twentieth century (1974-2000). a) Employers adhered to social norms regarding equality in pay and salary increases. b) Job growth primarily occurred at the very high and low ends of the job sector. c) Educational expectations employers held for workers increased. d) Rising incomes for blue-collar workers made middle class lifestyles attainable for a large segment of society

Postwar period: a and d Late twentieth century: b and c

Match each type of equality to the policy or policy proposal it is meant to support. (equality of outcome, equality of opportunity, equality of condition) a) Law mandates that young people in the United States attend school (or be homeschooled) until their late teens. b) The "independent living proposal" provides training, services, and benefits to youth who were in foster care in the past but are now legally adults. This helps them get jobs and learn to live independently. c) The "guaranteed minimum income" proposal would provide every family with a standard income they could live on comfortably, regardless of employment status or education.

Equality of outcome: c Equality of opportunity: a Equality of condition: b

In reference to sociologists who think that social institutions affect global inequality more than geography does, identify the following as either likely to spur economic growth or hinder it. a) colonizers invest resources in transportation and infrastructure b) colonizers establish a judiciary system c) colonizers extract natural resources d) colonizers do not settle within society's borders

Spur: a and b Hinder: c and d

Identify the characteristics of an elite-mass dichotomy system of which Pareto would approve. a) Greater power is bestowed on the more intelligent and physically able members of society. b) Societies are dominated by the military elite. c) About 20 percent of the population holds more power than the remaining 80 percent. d) Members of the elite are born into their positions.

Would approve: a and c

Thinkers of the Scottish Enlightenment, such as Adam Ferguson and John Millar, believed that private property was a beneficial institution. What was their reasoning? a) People are more productive when they are able to keep what they produce. b) Private owners make more intelligent use of assets than the government does. c) Private property works as a brake on population growth. d) Property can be redistributed by law, improving equality.

a

Identify the examples of types of inequality that must be eliminated to achieve social equality, according to Rousseau. a) inequality based on wealth b) inequality based on social status c) inequality based on physical health d) inequality based on character

a and b

Identify the factors that are necessary for rapidly lowering birthrates in a developing nation, according to Jeffrey Sachs. a) free contraception and other health services b) girls' education c) improved methods of agriculture d) elimination of the patriarchal elements in a culture

a and b

Identify the factors that are responsible for recent increases in income inequality, as reflected in an ever-larger ratio between CEO pay and worker pay. a) the changing requirements for existing jobs b) greater responsibilities for today's CEOs, especially those in the technology industry c) the changing mix of available jobs d) changes in the federal tax code

a and c

Identify the factors that were responsible for the shrinking size of the American middle class after the early 1970s. a) the emergence of the low-wage service sector b) greater demand for higher-skill jobs c) a more regressive federal income tax d) an expanding income gap between the highest paid executives and employees in the middle ranks

a, b, and d

Identify the distinguishing characteristics of an estate system of social stratification. a) there is a high degree of mobility between strata b) the stratification is based on religion c) different strata have different rights and duties, such as the right to vote d) the stratification is a matter of law

characteristics: c and d

Identify the factors that explain Africa's lag behind the rest of the world in social and economic development, according to Columbia University's Jeffrey Sachs. a) disease-related factors b) the aftereffects of colonialism c) geographic and climatological factors d) lack of key institutions

factors: a, b, c

Exchange mobility

occurs when individuals move between classes but the overall distribution does not change

Identify the reasons why the ideology of equal opportunity resonates with most Americans. a) We live in a bourgeois society, in which the maximization of profit is the primary business incentive. b) We have higher standards of equality than other modern capitalist societies. c) We tend to believe that the "rules of the game" should be altered to compensate for inequalities resulting from an "uneven playing field." d) Americans tend to believe that inequality of opportunity stifles meritocracy.

reasons: a and d