Sociological Stratification

What factor makes caste systems closed?

• They are run by secretive governments.

• People cannot change their social standings.

• Most have been outlawed

• They exist only in rural areas.

What factor makes class systems open?

• They allow for movement between the classes.

• People are more open-minded.

• People are encouraged to socialize within their class.

• They do not have clearly defined layers.

Which of these systems allows for the most social mobility?

• Caste

• Monarchy

• Endogamy

• Class

Which statement illustrates low status consistency?

• A suburban family lives in a modest ranch home and enjoys a nice vacation each summer.

• A single mother receives food stamps and struggles to find adequate employment.

• A college dropout launches an online company that earns millions in its first year.

• A celebrity actress owns homes in three countries.

Which person best illustrates opportunities for upward social mobility in the United States?

• First-shift factory worker

• First-generation college student

• Firstborn son who inherits the family business

• First-time interviewee who is hired for a job

Based on meritocracy, a physician’s assistant would:

• receive the same pay as all the other physician’s assistants

• be encouraged to earn a higher degree to seek a better position

• most likely marry a professional at the same level

• earn a pay raise for doing excellent work

In the United States, most people define themselves as:

• middle class

• upper class

• lower class

• no specific class

Structural mobility occurs when:

• an individual moves up the class ladder

• an individual moves down the class ladder

• a large group moves up or down the class ladder due to societal changes

• a member of a family belongs to a different class than his or her siblings

The behaviors, customs, and norms associated with a class are known as:

• class traits

• power

• prestige

• underclass

Which of the following scenarios is an example of intragenerational mobility?

• A janitor belongs to the same social class as his grandmother did.

• An executive belongs to a different class than her parents.

• An editor shares the same social class as his cousin.

• A lawyer belongs to a different class than her sister.