Social Class in America Chapter 8. Chapter Overview I.Introduction II.Social Class Structure Models...
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Transcript of Social Class in America Chapter 8. Chapter Overview I.Introduction II.Social Class Structure Models...
Social Class in America
Chapter 8
Chapter Overview
I. Introduction II. Social Class Structure ModelsIII. Does Social Class Really Effect
You?IV. Yet another “Quiz”V. Social MobilityVI. Poverty in the U.S.VII. Is Horatio Algers Dead or Alive?VIII.Review
I. Introduction
1. “Quiz”
1. Wealth and income are not the same.
True
2. Americans live in a classless society.
False.No kidding.
3. When some people graduate from college, they are offered positions in very large corporations with stock
options and with the expectation that they will
become a millionaire.True
4. Wealthy parents have a much greater say in their
children’s marriage partners than the lower
classes.True
5. Generally speaking, social class has no
bearing on a person’s longevity.
False
6. The reason that there is so much mental illness in the
lower social classes is that they are mentally ill to begin
with so their situation prohibits them from getting
an education and a good job.
Mostly false.
7. New technology is a great equalizer in that it benefits all social classes
equally. False
8. The average welfare recipient is an African
American male or female.False
9. Most impoverished Americans are poor
because they are lazy.False
10. Anyone in America can succeed if he or she
tries hard enough.It’s debatable.
B.Weber’s Concept of Social Class
1. Definitionsa.Social Classb.Wealth c.Power d.Prestige e.Status Consistencyf. Status inconsistency
2. Gerhard Lenski’s Conclusion:
Frustration from status inconsistency => political radicalism
II. Social Class Structure Models
A. Erik Wright: Modification of Marx’s Model
1. Capitalists2. Petty bourgeoisie3. Managers4. Workers
B.Gilbert & Kahl: the Social Ladder or Modifying Weber
1. Capitalist2. Upper middle3. Lower middle4. Working class5. Working poor6. Underclass
III. Yet Another Quiz
1. Some social scientists view sickness as a special form of deviant behavior.
True
However, it is not equivalent to other forms of deviance such as crime or violent behavior.
Societies typically provide the sick with therapeutic care so
that their health will be restored and they can fulfill their roles in society, unlike those defined as criminals.
2. The field of epidemiology focuses
primarily on how individuals acquire
disease and bodily injury.False. Its primary focus is on the
health problems of social aggregates or large groups of people, not on individuals as
such.
3. The primary reason that African Americans
have shorter life expectancies than Whites
is the high rate of violence in central cities
and the rural South.False
It is due to a higher prevalence of life
threatening illnesses, such as cancer, heart disease, hypertension, and AIDS. Note: African American
males do have the highest death rates from homicide of any racial-ethnic category in
the U.S.
4. Native Americans have shown dramatic
improvement in their overall health level since the 1950s.
True
Some analysts attribute this change to better nutrition and health care services. However, other analysts
point out that Native Americans continue to have high rates of mortality from
diabetes, alcohol-related illnesses, and suicide.
Native American Hospital Near Little Big Horn
5. Health care in most high-income, developed nations is organized on a fee-for-
service basis as it is in the United States.
False
The U.S. is one of only two high-income, developed nations that do not have some form of universal health coverage. In the U.S, health care has traditionally been purchased by the patient. In most other high-income countries, health care is provided by the government.
6. The ,medical-industrial complex has operated in the
U.S. with virtually no regulation, and allegations of health care fraud have
largely been overlooked by federal and state
governments.
False
In the mid-to-late 1990s, government investigation
focused on rising health care payments and allegations of fraud in health care. Billing frauds have been found in
Medicare and Medicaid payments to physicians,
hospitals, nursing homes, home health agencies, medical labs, and medical equipment
manufacturers.
7. Media coverage of chronic depression and other mental conditions
focuses almost exclusively on these problems as “women’s illnesses.”
False
In the 1991s, male celebrities have made the general
public more aware of male depression. However, it
should be noted that women average higher levels of depression than men do,
perhaps because women and men have unequal adult
statuses.
8. It is extremely costly for employees to
“mainstream” persons with disabilities in the
workplace.False
Although disability expenditures may be costly, individual
employers often find that they can accommodate the needs of
a disabled worker at costs ranging from zero to several thousand dollars. This opens
new doors for people previously excluded from certain types of jobs and
careers.
IV. Does Social Class Really Effect You?
You Tell Me: Group work.
A. Family lifeB. EducationC. ReligionD. PoliticsE. Physical Health F. Mental HealthG. Criminal JusticeH. New Technology
IV. Yet Another Quiz
1. People no longer believe in the American
Dream.False.
2. Individuals over age 65 have the highest rate of
poverty.False
3. Men account for two out of three impoverished
adults in the United States.False
4. African Americans receive the majority of
welfare benefits.False
5. Most poverty-level households headed by
women have only one or two children below age 18 residing in the household.
True
6. Income is more unevenly distributed than
wealth.False
7. People who are poor usually have personal
attributes that contribute to their impoverishment.
False
8. A number of people living below the official
poverty line have full-time jobs.True
9. The majority of poor people receive welfare
benefits.False
10. The average welfare recipient stays on welfare
less than two years.True
V. Social Mobility
A. Three Types of Social Mobility1. Intergenerational2. Exchange mobility3. Structural
B. Upward & Downward Movement
Changing Structure of Occupations, U.S. 1900-2000
VI. Poverty In the U.S.
A. Drawing the Poverty Line1. Demonstration and
Definitionsa. Poverty lineb. Absolute povertyc. Relative povertyd. Subjective poverty
2.Who are the poor?a.Female-headed householdsb.Childrenc.Minority Group Members
The Pay Gap by Race, Ethn
Poverty in the U.S. by Age and Race/Ethnicity
3. How Long Does Poverty Last?
How long does poverty last?
VII. Why Are they Poor?A. Myths (see p. 196 of the
textbook) 1. Poor people are lazy2. Poor people are trapped in a cycle
of poverty that few escape.3. Most of the poor are African
Americans and Latinos.4. Most of the poor are single
mothers and their children.5. Most of the poor live in the inner
city.6. The poor live on welfare.
B. Structural factors1. Geography2. Race-ethnicity3. Education4. Sex
VIII. Is Horatio Alger Dead or Alive?
Ramifications of the mythA.Encourages people to get
aheadB.Blames failure on the
individual’s attributes.
Review
1. What is social class?2. What is status inconsistency3. How did Wright update Marx?4. How did Gilbert and Kahl
update Weber?5. How does social class influence
family life?
• 6. How does social class influence education?
• 7. How does social class influence religion?
• 8. How does social class influence politics?
• 9. How does social class influence physical health?
• 10. How does social class influence mental health?
• 11. How does technology influence social class?
12.What are the 3 types of social mobility?
13.Tell about women and social mobility.
14.What are new fears connected with technology?
15.What is the poverty line?16.Who are the poor?17.Tell about children in poverty.18.What are the dynamics of
poverty?19.Why are people poor?20.What is the Horatio Alger myth?
VIII.Additional Key Terms
Key TermAnother TermYet Another TermYou Guessed It
Key TermAnother TermYet Another TermYou Guessed It