Deck 10: Health and Health Care

Question 1

Which social theory is most closely associated with medicalization?

A) structural-functionalism
B) chaos theory
C) social conflict theory
D) symbolic interactionism

Answer 1

C

Question 2

What percentage of deaths in the United States can be attributed to tobacco use?

A) 1%
B) 5%
C) 18%
D) 28%

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which of these examples illustrates a problem with Parson's analysis of the sick role?

A) Joan has the flu and her co-workers tell her to go home and rest.
B) Mark has been diagnosed with diabetes and is changing his eating habits to get his glucose under control.
C) Diane has food poisoning from the lunch she ate with her colleagues. They feel sorry for her and have gone to the store to get some fluids and nausea medication to help her feel better.
D) Madison was just diagnosed with HIV. Many people find it difficult to be sympathetic toward her because she has a history of having unprotected sex with men she does not know.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

As of 2010,how many Americans under the age of 65 lacked health insurance?

A) 15 million
B) 22 million
C) 37 million
D) 49 million

Question 5

What is the leading cause of preventable death identified by Mokdad and his colleagues?

A) tobacco use
B) poor diet and inadequate exercise
C) workplace pollution
D) alcohol use

Question 6

Why did insurance companies approve gastric bypass surgery for coverage?

A) They realized that people were truly suffering from being obese.
B) They were convinced that gastric bypass surgery was the best treatment for obesity.
C) They saw that allowing people the surgery actually reduced their costs in the long run.
D) They wanted to insure that obese people were not discriminated against in terms of medical treatment.

Question 7

________ refers to the process through which a condition or behavior becomes defined as a medical problem requiring a medical solution.

A) Sick role labeling
B) Labeling
C) Medicalization
D) Social diagnosis

Question 8

According to Talcott Parsons,how does society control illness in order to increase social stability?

A) It doesn't.
B) It allows people to consider illness desirable.
C) It describes norms through the sick role.
D) It prescribes people to work even though they are sick.

Question 9

According to conflict theory,in order for medicalization to occur:

A) a disease must be observed and diagnosed for the first time.
B) one or more social groups must have something to gain and the power to convince others that a condition is an illness.
C) a majority of doctors must be in agreement that there is sufficient evidence that a disease actually exists.
D) the condition must be biologically described and unaffected by social forces.

Question 10

The classic sociological theory of illness was first formulated by:

A) Karl Marx.
B) Max Weber.
C) Talcott Parsons.
D) Emile Durkheim.

Question 11

Which of the following is a norm associated with the sick role?

A) Sick persons should enjoy being sick.
B) Sick persons should be held responsible for their own illness.
C) Sick persons should seek and follow medical advice.
D) Sick persons should work as much as they can despite their illness.

Question 12

Which of these is NOT a possible outcome for patients using the Internet in relation to their health care?

A) Online drug sales give doctors and the government more control over drug use.
B) There is an increased risk of violations of patient privacy.
C) People with stigmatized medical conditions may find emotional support.
D) The balance of power between doctors and patients is affected.

Question 13

The strongest force currently driving medicalization is the:

A) AARP.
B) pharmaceutical industry.
C) U.S. Congress.
D) American Medical Association.

Question 14

According to Parsons,illness is:

A) functional.
B) a form of deviance.
C) a form of mental illness
D) not allowed in capitalist societies

Question 15

Which of the following is a criticism of Parson's analysis of the sick role?

A) Sometimes sick people should be expected to fulfill their normal social roles.
B) Sometimes people should be held responsible for their illnesses.
C) Some people cannot afford to seek and follow medical advice.
D) All of these are criticisms of Parson's analysis of the sick role.

Question 16

Which of the following is NOT a benefit of online medical records?

A) They permit multiple health care providers to access patient information.
B) They reduce the chances of dangerous drug interactions.
C) They have the potential to shift power to anyone who has access to the record.
D) They help doctors gain a broader understanding of a patient's condition.

Question 17

Medicalization occurs when:

A) a condition or behavior becomes defined as a medical problem requiring a medical solution.
B) language barriers may make it difficult to obtain medical care and follow orders.
C) medical metaphors are used to describe the problems within society.
D) the health care system causes a new illness.

Question 18

Which of the following is NOT among the nine leading causes of preventable death?

A) suicide
B) motor vehicle accidents
C) pollution
D) bacteria and virus exposure

Question 19

According to your book,what may be the result of a physician chastising a patient for noncompliance?

A) Patients show less willingness to comply, creating a self-fulfilling prophecy.
B) Patients show greater compliance.
C) Patients are forced to learn to communicate more clearly with their physicians.
D) Chastising for noncompliance has no impact.

Question 20

According to symbolic interaction,why might patients engage in medical noncompliance?

A) The orders they were given may have been confusing.
B) They may have lacked the time, money, or other resources needed to comply.
C) The negative side effects of the treatment may have outweighed the benefits of the treatment.
D) All of these are reasons for medical noncompliance.

Question 21

Why do women have higher rates of illness than men?

A) They are biologically weaker.
B) They experience more stress.
C) Their hormones may cause them to have higher rates of illness.
D) Their hormones may cause illness and they may experience more stress.

Question 22

Which of the following statements is true?

A) Men live longer than women.
B) Women are more likely than men to report that their health is excellent.
C) Life expectancy at birth in 2005 was 82 years.
D) The lower a person's income, the greater the likelihood s/he will report poor health status.

Question 23

Who are the manufacturers of illness?

A) the people who define what is and isn't a disease
B) groups that promote deadly behaviors and social conditions
C) hypochondriacs
D) pharmaceutical companies

Question 24

The health belief model is associated with the:

A) ways in which societies address the health of their citizens.
B) conditions that predict whether individuals will adopt healthy behaviors.
C) theoretical approaches to sociological understanding of health and illness.
D) value that a society places on good health.

Question 25

At the beginning of the 1900s,life expectancy was:

A) about 75 years.
B) about 60 years.
C) less than 50 years.
D) less than 30 years.

Question 26

Why do men die quicker than women?

A) They engage in riskier behavior.
B) They experience more stress.
C) Their hormones cause them to be sicker.
D) Their hormones may cause illness and they may experience more stress.

Question 27

Individuals are most likely to engage in unsafe behaviors:

A) if they have nothing to look forward to anyway.
B) when celebrating successful events in their lives.
C) when they are least educated.
D) when they live in urban neighborhoods.

Question 28

Which of the following is a condition of the health belief model?

A) Individuals must know the health risks that run in their family.
B) Individuals must believe their appearance will be affected by the health problem.
C) Individuals must believe that adopting a preventive measure will reduce their risk significantly.
D) Individuals must have friends who are also attempting to change the same behaviors.

Question 29

Which of the following would NOT be an example of a manufacturer of illness?

A) cigarette companies
B) food processors
C) the American Medical Association
D) the automobile industry

Question 30

Why do women get sicker but men die quicker?

A) biology
B) society
C) Both biology and society explain this.
D) It is not true that women get sicker and men die quicker.

Question 31

Which of these statements about obesity in the U.S.is FALSE?

A) Obesity and the high-fat diet and sedentary lifestyle that contribute to it are the second most common cause of premature death in the U.S.
B) Poor diet and insufficient exercise contribute to the risk of colon cancer, cardiovascular disease, and stroke.
C) Since 1980, the American public has gotten more health-conscious and rates of obesity have been on the decline.
D) High-fat diets and sedentary lifestyles are major factors contributing to obesity in the U.S.

Question 32

Today,life expectancy is

A) about 78 years.
B) about 60 years.
C) less than 50 years.
D) less than 30 years.

Question 33

Whether an individual will adopt behaviors that promote good health or endanger their own health is predicted by the:

A) health belief model.
B) Andersen-Newman model.
C) medicalization model.
D) Jones model.

Question 34

Which of the following statements is true?

A) Men report more stress than women.
B) Women report worse health than men.
C) Men are more likely to suffer from diabetes and arthritis.
D) Men are more likely than women to enter a nursing home.

Question 35

__________ are more likely to have diabetes; __________ are more likely to have arthritis.

A) Women; women
B) Men; men
C) Women; men
D) Men; women

Question 36

Which of the following is an example of the health belief model?

A) A person wants to lose weight, but says they can't afford a gym membership.
B) A person needs to lose weight, but thinks that the health warnings are overblown by the media.
C) A person sees a news story about heart disease and obesity and loses 15 pounds over the next month.
D) A person who is overweight thinks they do not have a weight problem.

Question 37

According to your text,females are inherently ______ than males.

A) stronger
B) weaker
C) smarter
D) less likely to survive to old age

Question 38

Which of these is NOT a condition of the health belief model?

A) Individuals must believe they are at risk for a particular health problem.
B) Individuals must have friends who are also attempting to change the same behaviors.
C) Individuals must believe that adopting a preventive measure will reduce their risk significantly.
D) Individuals must not perceive any significant financial, physical, or emotional barrier to adopting preventive behaviors.

Question 39

The people most likely to engage in unsafe behaviors:

A) tend to be trapped at the bottom of the social class system.
B) are typically the youngest and the wealthiest.
C) ironically have the highest levels of education.
D) do so only when pressured by others.

Question 40

Women are:

A) more likely to die young than men.
B) more likely to live in a nursing home than men.
C) less likely to be disabled than men.
D) report better health than men.

Question 41

Life expectancy for Russian men today is ________ before the collapse of the Soviet Union.

A) twice as long as
B) ten years longer than
C) much shorter than
D) the same number of years as

Question 42

The most important predictors of health,illness,and death is:

A) race and ethnicity.
B) gender.
C) age.
D) income.

Question 43

The most commonly reported forms of mental illness in the U.S.are:

A) major depression and problems with alcohol.
B) obsessive compulsive disorder and depression.
C) schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
D) alcohol and drug abuse.

Question 44

What explains the relationship between social class and mental illness?

A) Greater social stress associated with lower-class life may cause mental illness.
B) The onset of mental illness may cause people to lose their jobs and move downwards in the social classes.
C) Sociologists disagree as to whether lower-class life causes mental illness or the onset of mental illness causes people to move down in social class.
D) There is no relationship between social class and mental illness.

Question 45

African American,Hispanics,and Native Americans:

A) have reached the same average levels of health status as whites.
B) are as likely to have health insurance as Asian Americans.
C) are more likely to die at any given age than whites.
D) receive more attention from doctors because of their presumed lower social status.

Question 46

What explains the drop in life expectancy in the Soviet Union in recent years?

A) higher cancer rates and respiratory illnesses caused by pollution
B) lack of investment in treatment for chronic illnesses
C) high rates of stress
D) all of the above

Question 47

All of the following are barriers to healthcare for older minority adults EXCEPT:

A) they are more likely to be poor than older whites.
B) they were less likely to have held jobs that gave them health care than whites.
C) they are more likely to have cultural and communication barriers with physicians than whites.
D) they are more likely to have cultural and communication barriers with staff at nursing homes than whites.

Question 48

The chances of dying or developing a disabling illness begin to rise:

A) gradually beginning at about the age of 40.
B) substantially at about the age of 30.
C) gradually only once one reaches 60.
D) not until one reaches 50.

Question 49

Which of these is NOT a reason that poorer people have lower health status and shorter life expectancy?

A) The poor experience more stress but have less control over the sources of stress.
B) The poor are more likely to live in substandard housing and near air-polluting industries.
C) The poor are more likely to hold dangerous jobs and be unable to afford healthy food.
D) The poor are more likely to engage in dangerous and high-risk sports.

Question 50

Approximately what percentage of adults in the United States experiences some diagnosable form of mental illness in any given year?

A) 5%
B) 10%
C) 30%
D) 50%

Question 51

At what age do the social class differences in health start to emerge?

A) infancy
B) childhood
C) middle adulthood
D) old age

Question 52

Among older adults,which group is most likely to consider that they are healthy?

A) non-Hispanic whites
B) women
C) African Americans
D) Asians

Question 53

Compared to other developed nations,infant mortality in the United States:

A) has disappeared.
B) is very low.
C) is comparable.
D) is extremely high.

Question 54

The average life expectancy for an African American man is _______ than that of the average white non-Hispanic male.

A) 2 years more
B) 2 years less
C) 6 years less
D) 10 years less

Question 55

Infant mortality rates for African American infants are:

A) twice as high as they are for non-Hispanic whites.
B) about the same as those for non-Hispanic whites.
C) lower than those for non-Hispanic whites.
D) unknown because statistics on infant mortality are not kept by race.

Question 56

Of American children who have dangerously high levels of lead in their blood,_______ are African American.

A) 10%
B) 20%
C) 60%
D) 75%

Question 57

In general,both women and those in the lowest socioeconomic class:

A) tend to care less about their health.
B) are less affected by stress than others.
C) have more stress but less control over the sources of stress.
D) report better overall health status than others.

Question 58

The most important social factor affecting mortality is:

A) use of tobacco.
B) region of residence.
C) standard of living.
D) race.

Question 59

Which of the following is NOT a health care consequence of having a population that is increasingly older and more likely members of minority groups?

A) less risk of medical noncompliance
B) greater risk of poor communication
C) higher poverty rates
D) more likelihood that people will lack health insurance

Question 60

African Americans and Hispanic Americans are more likely than non-Hispanic whites to:

A) not have health insurance.
B) live near a hazardous waste facility.
C) live in a neighborhood where violence poses a health risk.
D) All of these are more likely for African Americans and Hispanics than for whites.

Question 61

All of the following are signs of change among physician services EXCEPT:

A) a growing proportion of physicians work in group practices.
B) the public has grown increasingly critical of physicians.
C) fees and treatments are increasingly regulated by insurance companies.
D) more physicians are becoming their own bosses and establishing their own working conditions.

Question 62

Which of the following is true regarding the changing status of physicians in the U.S.?

A) A growing proportion of physicians work in incorporated group practices.
B) The social esteem of physicians in the U.S. has increased dramatically in the last 25 years.
C) The health-care industry is less regulated than it was 25 years ago.
D) Patients are more trusting of doctors than in previous decades.

Question 63

Which of these people is most likely to experience depression?

A) Melinda, a single woman with no children who is a corporate attorney
B) James, a married man who recently received a promotion at work but is struggling to work up the corporate ladder
C) Dianne, who does not work and has three small children at home and a demanding husband who expects the home to be perfect
D) Betsy, a recent retiree who is volunteering for several agencies and traveling a great deal

Question 64

Physicians are responsible for all of the following EXCEPT:

A) taking care of the daily needs of the patient.
B) defining ill health.
C) setting hospital standards.
D) directing the behavior of other health-care workers.

Question 65

Rates of depression are highest among:

A) working mothers and fathers.
B) unemployed men.
C) married mothers and unemployed women.
D) women without children or husbands.

Question 66

Physicians comprise about ______ of the medical workforce.

A) 5%
B) 10%
C) 25%
D) 50%

Question 67

In the United States:

A) anyone could claim the title of physician until about 100 years ago.
B) physicians have always been licensed under federal regulations, although not always as rigidly as today.
C) training procedures for physicians have always been uniformly administered through teaching hospitals.
D) physicians make up the bulk of the health-care system's labor force.

Question 68

In the U.S.,most mental health treatment:

A) goes to the people with the most serious mental illnesses.
B) goes to middle-class people with short-term emotional problems.
C) goes to people in the lower social classes.
D) None of these are true about mental health treatment.

Question 69

Which of the following is true regarding nurses?

A) Nurses have a great deal of independence within their jobs.
B) Nursing is considered a profession.
C) A bachelor's or master's degree has become the educational standard in the profession.
D) Nurses play a critical role in health care.

Question 70

A/an __________ is a special kind of occupation that demands specialized skills and permits creative freedom.

A) employee
B) profession
C) career
D) white-collar job

Question 71

The American Medical Association was established in:

A) 1802.
B) 1848.
C) 1957.
D) 1963

Question 72

Fees for services in the health-care industry are increasingly regulated by:

A) the physicians.
B) the market (patients are becoming more conscious of price).
C) insurance companies.
D) hospitals.

Question 73

How many U.S.prisoners in jail are mentally ill?

A) less than a quarter
B) about a quarter
C) about 40%
D) about half

Question 74

Compared to women,men have higher rates of:

A) alcoholism and depression.
B) depression and personality disorders.
C) compulsive gambling and depression.
D) substance abuse and personality disorders.

Question 75

The American Medical Association:

A) opposed Medicaid and Medicare legislation.
B) was the first to propose Medicare and Medicaid legislation.
C) supports proposals to create a national health insurance system.
D) can boast that 95% of all physicians in the U.S. are members.

Question 76

From a structural-functional point of view,which best explains why physicians are paid so highly?

A) policies of the American Medical Association (AMA)
B) physicians outnumbering nurses
C) emphasis on fee-for-service methods of payment
D) long and arduous periods of training

Question 77

The average income of a registered nurse is about __________ that of a physician in family practice.

A) one-half
B) one-third
C) one-fourth
D) one-tenth

Question 78

Why has the drive to increase nurses' education and their status only partially succeeded?

A) Men have entered the profession.
B) Very few universities have elected to offer advanced degrees in nursing.
C) Associate-degree programs are the most popular among employers, and more services are provided out-patient, reducing the need for nurses.
D) Because of improvements in technology, people are not as likely to get sick.

Question 79

Lower-class persons with mental illness:

A) are hospitalized for longer periods of time receiving less effective treatment.
B) receive more effective treatment than higher-class individuals.
C) receive more overall mental health treatment than any other class.
D) receive more sympathy than middle-class people, who are seen as being able to prevent their own illnesses.

Question 80

Which of the following is true regarding the changing status of physicians in the U.S.?

A) The public has grown increasingly critical of physicians.
B) The social esteem of physicians in the U.S. has increased dramatically in the last 25 years.
C) The health-care industry is less regulated than it was 25 years ago.
D) None of these are true about the status of physicians.