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68 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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What is social stratification?
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Society’s system of ranking categories of people in a hierarchy
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What are social classes?
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Categories of people who have similar access to resources and opportunities
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In the United States, how does inequality in income compare to inequality in wealth?
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Income is salary or wages from a job plus earnings from investments and other sources. Wealth is the value of all the economic assets owned by a person or family, minus any debts.
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Why is one distributed more unequally than the other?
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Wealth is not just based on Income. Also, the wealthy generally have higher incomes, they have accumulated far more assets than just income can provide.
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What is the difference between regressive taxation and progressive taxation?
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RT- A tax that has a rate that declines as the amount to be taxed increases.
PT- Characterizes a convex tax schedule that results in a higher effective tax rate on higher income levels. |
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How is the official poverty line set?
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To represent an annual income three times what a family has to spend in order to eat a basic, nutritious diet.
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Why do some people believe this underestimates the number of poor?
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Most poor families in the United States live on much less than the poverty line income.
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What is the culture of poverty?
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Cultural patterns that make poverty a way of life
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How is poverty related to age, gender, race, family pattern, and region?
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Age-children, who make up 35 percent of the U.S. poor. 13 million of young people under the age of eighteen were living in poor households.
Gender- Women are at greater risk of poverty: Sixty-one percent of all U.S. adults who are poor are poor are women and 39 percent are men. Race—African Americans-24.9 percent, Hispanics-21.8 percent, and Asian-11.1 Family pattern-the poverty rate for married people is 5.1 percent, compared to 17.9 percent for single men and 24.1 percent for single women. Region-low of 5.6 percent in New Hampshire and 6.8 percent in New Jersey to a high of 21.3 percent in the District of Columbia and 20.1 percent in Mississippi. |
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What is the underclass?
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Poor people who live in areas with high concentrations of poverty and limited opportunities for schooling or work
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What is characteristic of the following types of solutions to poverty: conservative, liberal, radical?
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C-begin pointing out that almost all the poverty in the United States is relative poverty.
L-think that helping the poor is a job for everybody. RL-agree with liberals that poverty is a societal issue and that we cannot expect poor people to improve their situation on their own. RR-claim that the way to solve the problem of poverty is to replace capitalism with a more just and humane economic system. |
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What does research suggest about whether poverty tends to be temporary or persisting?
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Although persistent poverty is the experience of many people in the underclass, temporary poverty is more the rule for the poor as a whole.
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What other social problems are related to poverty?
How are they related? |
Poor health, substandard housing, homelessness, limited schooling, and crime.
Without the income needed for a safe and conforatable life, the poor suffer in many ways. |
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What are social welfare programs?
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Organized effort by government, private organizations, or individuals to assist needy people considered worthy of assistance
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What is characteristic of the following types of solutions to poverty: conservative, liberal, radical?
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Conservatives: Personal Responsibility
Liberals: Societal Responsibility The Radical Left: Change the System |
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How have attitudes about social welfare changed over the course of American history?
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During the colonial era neighbors and family assisted the poor. Some looked down on the poor as being morally weak.
During the Early Industrial Era the attitude toward the poor was more negative and most aid came with moral counseling. The Twentith Century and the Great Depression left millions poor and the government became the major source for aid to the poor. |
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What were the central elements of the Federal Welfare Reform Act of 1996?
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Welfare was "once considered an open-ended right," but welfare reform converted it "into a finite program built to provide short-term cash assistance and steer people quickly into jobs." Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) was replaced by Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).
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How do multicultural theorists view poverty?
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Multicultural Theory says that poverty is closely linked to race and ethnicity.
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How did Marx explain poverty?
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Marx argued that poverty is not abnormal but a normal part of capitalist society.
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How can poverty be linked to social disorganization?
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A breakdown in social order is caused by rapid social change. People arrive to fast for neighborhoods, schools and factories to absorb them. This situation leads to poverty.
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How have sociologists argued that poverty exists because it useful to society?
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The Modern Functional Theory says that inequality is useful. Attaching greater rewards to some jobs creates social stratification, but attacts people to the most important jobs.
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How did Herbert Gans respond to this argument?
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He says the inequality is useful to affluent people to ensure there is a supply of poor people will to do almost any job and buy things no one else wants.
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What is the structuralist explanation of poverty?
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At least some poverty is natural part of life that has some useful consequences. They say that poverty is the result of personal flaws.
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What does research suggest about the structuralist argument?
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Some neighborhoods have poverty for for generations.
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How does symbolic-interaction theory view poverty?
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Symbolic interactionism analysis is useful in showing that poverty is not simply an issue about money, but also how we view the poor. It says society is the cause of poverty, but does not say how.
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What is cultural capital and what role does it play in creating poverty?
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Cultural capital is the knowledge, experience and or connections one has had through the course of their life that enables them to succeed more so than someone from a less experienced background. Skills, values, attitudes, and schooling that increase a person’s chances of success.
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How do feminist theorists see poverty?
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Feminist Theory says that US society provides more income, wealth, power and prestige to men than women because of this more women live in poverty than men.
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How would you describe Angie’s personality?
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Bitter and harsh, hateful, strongest out of all of them she tries/makes an effort to find a better life.
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How would you describe Jewell’s personality?
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Concentrating on babies then finding a job. Wasn’t as strong as Angie but better than opal.
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Before the welfare reform of 1996 (covered in later chapters), what jobs did Angie hold? How did she get each job? Why did she leave each job?
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Nursing home- she graduated from nursing program. KFC and popeyes- just started off with it. Post office-job’s program. Nursing home- she didn’t want to follow requirements thought she was going to do something better. For KFC and gets hired twice at post office jobs- wasn’t making enough money. 1. she got lazy and didn’t like it. 2. had kids and quit because depressed and too afraid to live alone. 3. started drinking
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Before the welfare reform of 1996 (covered in later chapters), what jobs did Jewell hold? How did she get each job? Why did she leave the job?
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Post office- from the job’s program and she leaves because she doesn’t like it.
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The cultural explanation of poverty focuses on the role of attitudes and values (mostly learned from parents and family) in determining whether someone becomes more or less successful economically. What do you think would be the best way to test this hypothesis? Should we ask people what values and attitudes they hold? Should we look at what they do? Or something else?
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How much their parents influenced them. How motivated to get a job. Material things like a car, it is easier to get a job. Attitudes they hold. Yes, we should ask what values and attitudes they hold, find out if they had to be successful. Yes, we should look at what they do.
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The structural explanation of poverty focuses on the role opportunities play in determining whether someone succeeds economically. What do you think would be the best way to test this hypothesis? How can we determine whether people have real opportunities or not?
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Where they live, how their parents succeeded, education level, prej./discrimination. Job market/economy. Level of education.
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Which of these two explanations seems to best fit what you learn about Angie and Jewell in Chapters 1, 3, and 4?
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In chapter 3, is where they are getting the most influence from parents and cultural explanation best fit.
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When asked whether she sees herself as a “welfare mother” or a “working mother”, Angie is puzzled by the question. She says she is “of course” both. Why do you think Angie responds to this question in this way?
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She holds most amount of jobs, but still depends on welfare but still depends on welfare after she quits those jobs. By her working, she is trying to do the night thing and not be on welfare.
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Statistics suggest a relationship between absent fathers and poverty. What is more difficult to understand is the nature of the connection. Describe some of the specific ways relationship decisions might contribute to ending up in poverty.
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When they find out their dad did a certain thing, they want to follow in their footsteps so they will want him. No father to discipline them.
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Describe some of the specific ways that living in poverty may contribute to marital and family instability.
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Money issues, childcare, putting food on the table, living expenses
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Why did the idea of delivering welfare funding to the states in the form of block grants appeal to Congressional conservatives?
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It would end the continuous uncontrolled increases in welfare spending that matching grants caused.
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Why were most liberals opposed to this approach?
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They were concerned that the states would not spend the money needed to care for the poor.
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Why did most governors eventually go along with the block grant idea?
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People wanted welfare reform and the governors wanted control of how the money was being spent.
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How did conservatives “repackage” their message to try to avoid being seen as “attacking the poor” by supporting cuts in welfare spending?
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They advocated ending welfare because the welfare system was broken with 12 year-olds having babies and 15 year olds killing.
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How did President Clinton respond to the battle between conservatives and liberals in Congress?
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He moved back and forth on many of the aspects of the proposals. Backing them and opposing them at various times without really taking a fixed position.
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How did use triangulation to reshape the bill a little more to his liking? According to the author, why did Clinton sign the bill?
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He really believed in welfare reform and could not afford to oppose reform again by vetoing it.
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How did Angie, Jewell, and Opal do in their attempts to find work, after the changes in the welfare system?
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Angie receive a work notice and found her own job. Jewell volunteering for awhile at her son’s school, but eventually went to training to be a nursing aid. Jewell went through training and also went to work in a nursing home. Both would rather have real jobs then do community service for welfare.
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What changes did Jason Turner make in the Wisconsin welfare system?
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He established the work requirement for aid. He also required job search and financial counseling before getting aid.
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How did Angie and Jewell gradually find steady work?
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Angie went to work at a nursing home and because she could not return to welfare remained at work instead of taking one of her breaks and eventually moved to a better paying nursing home job. Jewell quit as a nursing aid, but eventually got a job in a factory.
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Did the new system provide effective means for welfare recipients to find steady work?
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Although some welfare recipients did find steady work, many could not maintain a steady job.
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How did the new work rules affect those who received Medicaid and Food Stamps? What does the author mean by “half a safety net”?
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Although, there were still programs to address the needs, many of those in the worst situations were unwilling for unable to work through the paperwork and bureaucracy to get it.
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What happened to Opal, as Angie and Jewell made the transition to steady work?
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Opal continued to use drugs and fool the W2 system to get checks. She also had more children and continued to use drugs. The state would take each drug addicted baby away and Opal would get three months of checks without having to participate in W2.
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What challenges did Michael Steinborn face as a caseworker in the new system?
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Many of the welfare recipients he had to deal with had numerous problems to include drug addiction. Also, many of his co-workers and superiors were corrupt or inept. The computer system that had to me used was also difficult and ineffective.
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Why did he persist in his job, despite almost quitting on numerous occasions?
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He had the work ethic he was trying to instill in his clients and he felt that he was making a difference.
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How has Angie’s life changed after several years of steady work?
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Angie was making more money, but you life style choices were still bad. She did not care for her children and continued to allow Opal to set a bad example and steal things from your children that Angie could not afford to replace.
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Should Angie be seen as a success story of the new welfare system?
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Yes and no. Yes she is a more productive member of society than she had been for years, however, he success is overshadowed by her inability or unwillingness to make the kinds of decisions to improve her lot in life.
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What obstacles continue to prevent Angie from moving further ahead economically?
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Angie wants to make more money, but what little she has she often squanders on others. To move ahead, she really needs some of the counseling that was promised by W2. But this counseling and assistance must be long term, not just a few weeks.
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How does Angie feel about her situation?
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She is proud of her working, but is frustrated by her inability to make it on her own and is often disappointed. Without W2 forcing her to work, she would probably have returned to welfare.
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The motto of the modern marriage movement is “marriage matters.” What does the motto mean?
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Strong marriages lead to strong families and strong families lead to strong communities. It means that getting married before having a family is important.
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How is the movement enlisting the support of ministers? What would they like ministers to do?
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They are traveling across the country to conferences with ministers and they would like the ministers to sign a petition to teach marriage classes before they marriage anyone and them provide counseling.
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Why do some believe that in communities like the one in Chicago, there are too few marriages?
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In Chicago, welfare recipients are not getting divorced; they are not even getting married in the first place. Very few of these couples are not married because the low-income fathers are frequently unemployed, on drugs or in jail.
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What was the Moynihan Report, and why was it so controversial?
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The Moynihan Report said that a third of black children live with only one parent and he was attacked because he singled out the problem black families were having.
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What was the controversy involving Vice President Dan Quayle and the Murphy Brown television show?
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VP Quayle said that Murphy Brown glamorized single motherhood as a life-style choice.
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What is the PREP program?
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It is a government funding and run marriage preparation program in Oklahoma. It is a 12 hour course that teaches commitment to marriage.
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What did Prof. Kathryn Edin of Northwestern University find in her study of attitudes toward marriage among low-income single mothers?
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Marriage is not something you do now and work on and grow in as a couple to achieve your dreams. Marriage is the finish line when everything is right.
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What considerations were part of the process Ashaki and Steven went through in deciding whether or not to marry?
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They feel that they are soul mates and that nothing can go wrong.
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What is the case for getting government involved in promoting marriage?
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Marriage is the primary child raising institution in society. Children born out of wedlock have higher dropout rates, higher drug use rates, higher crime rates and are more likely to have children out of wedlock. These problems impact on society as a whole and require government involvement. If marriage can reduce the problems, the government should promote it.
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What is the case against getting government involved in promoting marriage?
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Marriage is a life-style choice that should not be government sanctioned. And there are concerns that abused women will be unwilling to leave a marriage because of the additional government pressure.
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Statistical evidence clearly shows a correlation between many family problems and poverty. Does a correlation automatically tell us two things are causally related? Why or why not? Why is establishing the time order of family problems and poverty difficult?
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Yes. Statistically speaking children are better off in two parent homes.
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What does William Julius Wilson mean by the “declining significance of race?” What evidence seems to support his argument? How has this argument been criticized? Why is selective prejudice, and how might it be relevant to inner-city workers?
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More and more children of all races are being born out of wedlock. This is making the marriage and subsequent poverty issues no longer a ‘black’ issue.
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How do social pathology theories explain poverty?
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When there is no room for people to react to problems they encounter, it harm the whole society. On the other hand, these transfers or burdens are not delivered equally. Opposite to that they often fall on the shoulders of this or that person, who then gets ill. The real subject of illness is not therefore individual driven into placelessness, but the society that has driven him in there.
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