Identify the parts of the sociological definition of poverty.
answer
Part(s) of Definition:
-caused by economic
circumstances
-involves material deprivation
-prevents people from living with dignity
Not Part(s) of Definition:
-measured on a relative scale
-measured on an absolute scale
question
In 1963, Mollie Orshansky tried to define poverty in terms of income relative to the cost of food. This calculation eventually became the basis for the official poverty line in the United States.
Identify the initial criticisms of Orshansky's definition of poverty.
answer
Criticism(s):
-The multiplier used to extrapolate from food costs to the total cost of living is too low.
-The multiplier used to extrapolate from food costs to the total cost of living is too high.
-The calculation should focus on the cost of housing instead of the cost of food.
Not Criticism(s):
-The calculation should not use a multiplier to extrapolate from food costs to the total cost of living.
question
What did Edward Banfield assert in 1970 was the fundamental problem with the lower class, trapped in poverty?
answer
Their thinking and behavior was not future-oriented
Banfield's thesis was that a lack of future orientation led to problems like spending rather than saving, and having more children than one could support.
question
Match each retirement savings plan to its description.
answer
IRA: An individual retirement account, funded by occasional out-of pocket payments
Incentivized IRA: An individual retirement account, funded by automatic bank transfers, with matching government contributions
401k: Optional payroll deduction, sometimes with matching employer contributions
Social Security: Mandatory payroll tax now, benefits upon retirement
question
Expanding on the - theory, journalist Ken Auletta introduced the concept of -, which posited that poor people were different from the mainstream due to their poverty, and were also increasingly socially -.
answer
-culture of poverty
-the underclass
-deviant
question
Identify the factors that might prevent poor people from getting welfare benefits for themselves or their families.
answer
Factor(s):
-a lack of childcare
-being employed
-having a disability
Not Factor(s):
-cultural differences
question
Identify the arguments David Grusky makes about the "perverse incentives" theory.
answer
Argument(s):
-Grusky argues that Americans are culturally primed to value work.
-Grusky argues that the Clinton reforms of the 1990s removed any possibility of "perverse incentives."
Not Argument(s):
-Grusky argues that welfare encourages the poor not to work so that they can receive government assistance.
-Grusky argues that the poor are fundamentally different from the rest of society, and therefore respond to social programs differently.
question
Two studies, one in the mid-1980s and the other in the early 2000s, examined the effects on families that received a financial windfall. Identify the findings of these studies.
answer
Finding(s):
-Winners who previously did not work at all became more interested in finding work.
-Winners' children tended to have fewer behavioral problems than before.
-Winners who received a large windfall (around $80,000 per year) reduced work hours.
Not Finding(s):
-Even a very modest windfall led to a significant reduction in weekly hours worked.
question
In the United States today, the official federal definition of poverty is based on a 1960s-era definition in which a family's income is compared to the cost of food and other core necessities, such as housing.
Identify the problems with this definition.
answer
Problem(s):
-What counts as a necessity cannot be defined once and for all.
-The same necessities can have very different costs from one part of the country to another.
-Defining poverty solely in terms of income ignores the role of wealth.
Not Problem(s):
-People have fewer children today, on average, than they used to.
-The definition ignores the cost of transportation, for instance to and from work.
question
Place the stages that contribute to the cycle of poverty in the correct position on the diagram.
answer
1) Men leave their children and the children's mothers, either voluntarily or by being sent to jail or prison
2) Men avoid women with
children whose fathers might
return.
3) Boys grow up with no father
figures who are positive role
models.
4)Young men have children
before being properly settled and ready to support them.
question
Identify the factors that contribute to the "Aspen effect."
answer
Contributing Factor(s):
-high levels of wealth inequality
-high housing prices
economic segregation
Not Contributing Factor(s):
-poor public transportation
-rising numbers of service workers
question
Identify the scenarios that would likely help poor people save for retirement.
answer
Helpful Scenario(s):
-jobs that offer steady, full-time work
-matching retirement contributions from a job
-a program that allows individuals to opt in once and commit a portion of their savings to retirement
Not Helpful Scenario(s):
-a program that asks the poor to set aside a portion of their tax refund for saving
question
Identify each statement as either being true of measures of absolute poverty or relative poverty.
answer
This measure is better for evaluating inequality across countries.
Correct label:
relative poverty
This measure defines poverty by what is needed to survive.
Correct label:
absolute poverty
The only information needed to calculate this measure of poverty is household income.
Correct label:
relative poverty
This measure takes income and the cost of essentials (e.g., food, housing) into account.
Correct label:
absolute poverty
question
The Move to Opportunity (MTO) study of the 1990s was the converse of the negative income tax of the 1960s and 1970s. The MTO study changed families' - but not their -, whereas the negative income tax experiments did the reverse. Together, the results of these studies suggest that - based on economic circumstance is a bigger source of social problems than - itself.
Identify the methods the federal government used to discriminate against black Americans, effectively excluding them from many government benefits.
answer
Method(s):
-The federal government used seemingly race-neutral policies to block many black Americans from receiving government support.
-The federal government ceded authority for providing benefits to the states and local authorities.
Not Method(s):
-The federal government established literacy tests for receiving benefits.
-The federal government maintained control over the distribution of benefits.
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