Social Stratification

 According to conflict theory, social stratification exists because

• some people are willing to exploit others.
• self esteem is higher among the upper class.
• certain jobs are more important than others.
• different occupations have different levels of prestige

Which of the following is least likely to live in poverty in the United States today?

• a 30-year-old white man
• an African American mother of two preschoolers
• a 14-year-old Latino boy
• a mentally ill 45-year-old white woman

When you add up all the economic resources a person has, such as her savings, home, personal property, etc., you have determined that person’s

• caste.
• power.
• wealth.
• prestige.

Which of the following best describes the functionalist theory of social stratification?

• Inequality exists because some people are willing to exploit others.
• Social stratification will eventually be eliminated when the workers revolt.
• Children in the United States.are taught that a person’s social class is the result of his or her talent and effort.
• The inequality of social classes helps assure that the most qualified people fill the most important positions.

The most distinguishing characteristic of a caste system is that

• people’s social class can change vertically but not horizontally.
• people can only change from one generation to the next.
• social status is inherited and cannot be changed.
• social status can be changed by education and hard work

After attending night school for five years, Sondra moves from a job as a warehouse worker to a job as a bank executive. This is most likely an example of

• intergenerational mobility.
• horizontal mobility.
• vertical mobility.
• the caste system.

People who do not earn enough money to pay for a safe place to live and for food

• live in absolute poverty.
• live in relative poverty.
• are members of the working class in the United States.
• belong to the aristocracy.

Which of the following people would most likely be a member of the working poor?

• a man with few marketable skills who comes from a family in which people typically worked only enough to get by
• a single woman with a college degree
• a husband and wife who both have technology-related skills
• a skilled carpenter with a wife and two children

Which of the following describes rates of poverty for African Americans and Latinos?

• lower than rates for whites
• about the same as rates for whites
• slightly higher than rates for whites
• much higher than rates for whites

What word best describes the amount of money a person earns within a specific time period?

• wealth
• stratification
• income
• prestige