Chapter 7: Practice Quiz Questions

Question 1

The term __________ includes property such as buildings, land, farms, houses, factories, and cars, as well as other assets such as bank accounts, corporate stocks, bonds, and insurance policies.

Answer 1

wealth

Question 2

Meredith studies how waiters are treated by diners at a country club in order to learn about the daily structure of inequality and how these patterns are enacted and replicated. Meredith is a __________.

Answer 2

symbolic interactionist

Question 3

In the model of American social classes based on Weber’s theory, the __________ is made up of prominent families that have held great wealth for several generations.

Answer 3

upper-upper

Question 4

The model of the American class system based on the work of __________ is based on three elements: education, occupation of family head, and family income.

Answer 4

Dennis Gilbert

*Max Weber with my other sources, but the quiz counted me wrong and told me the correct answer is Dennis Gilbert….

Question 5

Sociologist Max Weber placed categories of people who have a similar level of wealth and income in the same class. He referred to the privileged commercial class of wealthy bankers, ship owners, professionals, and merchants who possess similar financial resources as __________.

Answer 5

entrepreneurs

Question 6

Most women who made the Forbes magazine wealthiest list __________.

Answer 6

inherited their wealth or acquired it through marriage

Question 7

From the perspective of __________, social inequality is not only inevitable, but it is also an essential part of any healthy society.

Answer 7

functionalism

Question 8

Marx predicted that when workers realized that capitalists were the source of their oppression, they would overthrow the capitalists and take over the government, creating a(n) __________ society.

Answer 8

egalitarian

Question 9

Workers have not overthrown capitalism as Marx predicted because __________.

Answer 9

many workers have experienced a rising standard of living

Question 10

A difference between the caste system in India and the caste system in South Africa is that in India caste was based in part on __________.

Answer 10

occupation

Question 11

In the Marxian model of Erik Wright, business owners and craftspeople that may hire a small number of employees but largely do their own work would be considered __________ class.

Answer 11

small-business

Question 12

In the late 1970s, sociologist Diana Pearce coined the term __________to refer to the trend in which women are disproportionately represented among individuals living in poverty.

Answer 12

the feminization of poverty

Question 13

The annual income for people in the underclass is in the __________ range.

Answer 13

$15,000

Question 14

Alicia works as an administrative assistant for a large corporation. According to Wright’s Marxian model, Alicia would be categorized as a member of the __________ class.

Answer 14

working

Question 15

Corporations have been disinvesting in the United States, displacing millions of people from their jobs. Economists refer to this displacement as the __________ of America.

Answer 15

deindustrialization

Question 16

The dimension of Weber’s system of stratification that helps determine one’s class consists of the respect or regard that a person is given by others and is called __________.

Answer 16

prestige

Question 17

Poor people in the United States______________________________.

Answer 17

are at greater risk for heart disease and cancer than more affluent persons

Question 18

Until the 1990s, white South Africans controlled the government, the police, and the military by enforcing __________, the term used in South Africa for “the separation of the races.”

Answer 18

apartheid

Question 19

In a caste system, marriage is __________, meaning that people are allowed to marry only within their own group.

Answer 19

endogamous

Question 20

__________ is the most likely to have life-threatening consequences, such as when a homeless person freezes to death on a park bench.

Answer 20

Absolute poverty

Question 21

__________ poverty exists when people may be able to afford basic necessities but are still unable to maintain an average standard of living.

Answer 21

Relative

Question 22

For many of the working poor, medical insurance is out of the question. In 2014, approximately __________ of U.S. households with income less than $25,000 were without health insurance coverage.

Answer 22

16 percent

Question 23

Both Karl Marx and Max Weber identified ___________ as an important determinant of social inequality and social change.

Answer 23

class

Question 24

Which of the following statements about the CLASS system is incorrect?

a. The boundaries are more distinct than in a caste system.
b. Status is based on access to and ownership of resources.
c. Status comes at least partly through achievement.
d. In part, the type of work one does determines one’s class.

Answer 24

The boundaries are more distinct than in a CASTE system

Question 25

Weber called the class consisting of skilled, semiskilled, and unskilled workers the __________.

Answer 25

working class

Question 26

__________ occurs when people experience a gain or loss in position and/or income that does not produce a change in their place in the class structure.

Answer 26

Horizontal mobility

Question 27

__________ theorists view education as the “elevator” to social mobility. They see education as providing all students with opportunities, and they argue that students’ abilities are now more important than their class, race, or gender in determining success.

Answer 27

Functionalist

Question 28

Today, the net worth of each U.S. household in the wealthiest 1 percent is nearly __________ times greater than the net worth of the median U.S. household.

Answer 28

300

Question 29

Sociologist Karl Marx believed that workers are exploited as capitalists maximize their profit by paying the workers less than the resale values of what they produce. Marx believed that this resulted in a feeling of powerlessness and estrangement that he called __________.

Answer 29

alienation

Question 30

According to the social class model developed by Gilbert and Kahl, and based on the theory of Weber, the upper (capitalist) class of the United States includes about __________ of the population.

Answer 30

1 percent

Question 31

In Wright’s Marxian model, persons who have substantial control over production and over workers but do not participate in key corporate decisions such as how to invest profit are the __________.

Answer 31

managerial class

Question 32

In 2014, the wealthiest 20 percent of households in the United States received approximately __________ of the total income pie.

Answer 32

50 percent

Question 33

Sociologist Max Weber’s term __________ refers to the extent to which individuals have access to important societal resources such as food, clothing, shelter, education, and health care.

Answer 33

life chances

Question 34

Caste systems and slavery are both __________.

Answer 34

systems where status is determined at birth

Question 35

According to the text, one of the most important characteristics of systems of stratification is their degree of __________.

Answer 35

flexibility

Question 36

Which of the following was NOT one of the primary characteristics of slavery as it was practiced in the United States?

a. Slaves had only minimal civil rights protections.
b. Slaves were considered property, not human beings.
c. Slavery was lifelong and inherited.
d. Coercion was used to keep slaves “in their place.”

Answer 36

Slaves had only minimal civil rights protections

Question 37

Sociologists often use the term __________ to refer to a classification that reflects a combination of factors such as income, occupation, and education.

Answer 37

socioeconomic status

Question 38

When __________ behavior occurs between nonequals, it confirms the inequality of the relationship.

Answer 38

deference

Question 39

Marx believed that the exploitation of workers by the capitalist class would ultimately lead to __________, or the struggle between the capitalist and working classes.

Answer 39

class conflict

Question 40

A factory worker is promoted to the position of foreman in the factory. She receives a small increase in pay. This person has experienced __________ mobility.

Answer 40

horizontal

Question 41

In 2014, the poorest 20 percent of households in the United States received approximately __________ of the total income pie.

Answer 41

3 percent

Question 42

__________ poverty refers to the condition in which people do not have the means to secure the most basic necessities of life.

Answer 42

Absolute

Question 43

The open stratification system based on the ownership and control of resources, as well as the type of work people do, is termed __________.

Answer 43

class

Question 44

The model of the American class system based on the work of __________ is based on three elements: education, occupation of family head, and family income.

Answer 44

Max Weber

Question 45

In addition to unemployment, structural problems contribute to __________, where people work at jobs that do not pay a living wage and lack security.

Answer 45

underemployment

Question 46

In the context of the Weberian model of the U.S. class structure, the __________ includes people who are employed in the service sector as clerks, salespeople, and fast-food workers whose job responsibilities involve routine, mechanized tasks requiring little skill beyond basic literacy; some people in this class are employed in pink-collar occupations.

Answer 46

working class?

Question 47

Lijuan’s mother is an architect, and her father is a college professor. Lijuan left home at age 16 to live with her boyfriend. When their relationship ended, Lijuan no longer communicated with her parents and did not return to high school. After working briefly at a fast-food restaurant, Lijuan resorted to asking passersby at a local shopping area for money. Lijuan’s story illustrates the concept of __________.

Answer 47

vertical mobility?

Question 48

According to Marx, the capitalist class maintains its position at the top of the class structure by control of the society’s __________, which is composed of the government, schools, churches, and other social institutions.

Answer 48

superstructure?

Question 49

According to the text, one of the most important characteristics of systems of stratification is their degree of __________.

Answer 49

flexibility?

Question 50

When analyzing social class, __________ are most likely to consider the degree of control that workers have over the decision-making process and their ability to plan and implement their own work.

Answer 50

conflict theorists