Exam 7: Class and Stratification in the United States

The model of the American class system based on the work of __________ is based on three elements: education, occupation of family head, and family income.

Social mobility is always upward and between generations.

Members of the __________ have earned most of their money during their own lifetime. This class includes entrepreneurs, presidents of major corporations, sports or entertainment celebrities, and top-level professionals.

Max Weber was in complete disagreement with Karl Marx about the nature of class.

In 2012, the top 5 percent of households in the United States received more than 20 percent of all income-an amount greater than that received by the bottom __________ of all households.

Marx used the term __________ for the feeling of powerlessness and estrangement from other people and from oneself that he suggested resulted from continually being exploited.

Corporations have been disinvesting in the United States, displacing millions of people from their jobs. Economists refer to this displacement as the __________ of America.

Computers and other technologies perform a great deal of work today, reducing the need for workers with special expertise. As a result, high-paying positions have been replaced with low-paying positions. This process has been termed __________.

Whereas Marx defined class in purely economic terms, sociologist __________ developed a multidimensional approach to social stratification that reflects the interplay among wealth, prestige, and power.

__________ occurs when people experience a gain or loss in position and/or income that does not produce a change in their place in the class structure.

Define the difference between income and wealth.

Among high-income nations, the United States has the greatest amount of income inequality.

Weber called the class consisting of skilled, semiskilled, and unskilled workers the __________.

Outline sociologist Max Weber's multidimensional approach to social stratification and explain how people are ranked on all three dimensions.

In Wright's Marxian model, persons who have substantial control over production and over workers but do not participate in key corporate decisions such as how to invest profit are the __________.

The dimension of Weber's system of stratification that helps determine one's class consists of the respect or regard that a person is given by others, and is called __________.

__________ theorists stress that schools are agencies for perpetuating social inequality because parents with limited income are not able to provide the same educational opportunities for their children as are families with greater financial resources. ​

The term __________ refers to those who are poor, are seldom employed, and experience long-term deprivation.

According to Forbes magazine, the richest people in the world are Mexican entrepreneur Carlos Slim Helu, Bill Gates (co-founder of Microsoft Corporation), and investor Warren Buffet.  In Wright's Marxian model these men would be members of the __________ class.

In the model of American social classes based on Weber's theory, the __________ is made up of prominent families that have held great wealth for several generations.