Deck 5: Poverty and Inequality

Question 1

Most Medicaid expenditures are used for

A)the care of low-income children.
B)the care of low-income families.
C)the care of low-income disabled and elderly.
D)the care of low-income adults and their families.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

In the colonial period, the principle of local responsibility meant

A)residents turned to local authorities for relief from poverty.
B)the "unsettled poor" had no place to turn for relief.
C)strict residency requirements were in place, to be eligible for relief.
D)all of these.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Proponents of the Charity Organization Societies (COS) believed

A)it was important to make voluntary relief efforts more scientific.
B)poverty could be reduced through moral education of the worthy poor.
C)the poor had to be taught how to read and write.
D)both that it was important to make voluntary relief efforts more scientific and thatpoverty could be reduced through moral education of the worthy poor.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Nixon's "Family Assistance Plan"

A)drew opposition from social workers.
B)converted AFDC to a block grant program.
C)would have lowered AFDC benefits in the North.
D)all of these.

Question 5

The Federal Poverty Threshold is based on the expectation that a family will spend about _____ of its income on food.

A)1/2
B)1/4
C)1/3
D)1/8

Question 6

The Section 8 housing program

A)provides loans for the construction of low-income housing.
B)provides rent vouchers for low-income families.
C)offers housing assistance to the aged, blind, or disabled.
D)was eliminated in the 1996 welfare reform legislation.

Question 7

The federal program known as Aid to Dependent Children

A)was part of the 1935 Social Security Act.
B)provided federal assistance directly to widows and their children.
C)was the result of advocacy efforts by social workers.
D)all of these.

Question 8

Under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, AFDC, Food Stamps, and Medicaid were converted from federal entitlements to block grants to the states.

Question 9

A person who believed the "pauperization" argument would be strongly opposed to

A)giving cash relief to the poor.
B)civil rights legislation.
C)Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty.
D)providing education or training to end poverty.

Question 10

President Andrew Johnson opposed the continued operation of the Freedman's Bureau because he thought

A)it was too costly.
B)it was ineffective.
C)it was unconstitutional.
D)all of these.

Question 11

The principle of "less eligibility" stems from the view that

A)poverty motivates people to work.
B)without the threat of poverty, factories would be unable to find workers.
C)people who get relief should not be paid as well as the lowest-paid worker.
D)all of these.

Question 12

The primary argument in support of the idea that the federal poverty threshold overestimates hardship is

A)in the United States, anyone with initiative can avoid poverty.
B)the threshold should take into account the in-kind benefits received by the poor.
C)welfare provides sufficient income to raise families out of poverty.
D)all of these.

Question 13

A person who argues that poverty can be eliminated through skills education and job training is using a ________ explanation of poverty.

A)culture of poverty
B)restricted opportunities
C)human capital
D)personal failings

Question 14

In Regulating the Poor, Piven and Cloward argued

A)that expanded relief efforts created dependency.
B)that public relief efforts supported an oppressive economic structure.
C)that poverty and addiction were closely related.
D)all of these.

Question 15

The Family Welfare Reform Act signed by President Reagan

A)provided a guaranteed minimum income for all Americans.
B)required welfare recipients to go to work or pursue job training.
C)allowed states the option of establishing AFDC-UP programs.
D)all of these.

Question 16

Jane Addams was a leader in

A)the Settlement House movement.
B)the COS movement.
C)the administration of public relief for the poor.
D)all of these.

Question 17

In England, the Statute of Labourers passed in 1348 was a response to

A)a growing population on relief.
B)a change of government.
C)an economic downturn.
D)a labor shortage.

Question 18

During the 1990s, the fastest-growing population of homeless Americans was

A)single adult men.
B)single adult women
C)families with children.
D)the elderly.

Question 19

Estimates of the extent of homelessness based on a point-in-time approach are typically _________ than those based on a period-prevalence approach.

A)higher than
B)lower than
C)about the same as
D)varied by location: rural vs. urban and by state

Question 20

Those who argue that the federal poverty threshold underestimates hardship say

A)the multiplier used to determine the threshold as three times the cost of food is too low.
B)the Economy Food Plan requires too much knowledge and effort to implement.
C)it is not based on the long-term needs of a family.
D)all of these.

Question 21

To finance relief for the poor, the Elizabethan Poor Law levied a progressive income tax.

Question 22

Under the PRWORA, states were permitted to use their TANF block grant to encourage two-parent families.

Question 23

Discuss at least three of the beliefs or explanations for poverty and how each one influences corresponding policy or intervention.

Question 24

Frances Perkins was the nation's first woman cabinet official.

Question 25

Historically, reductions in public relief efforts have resulted in declining poverty in the U.S.

Question 26

Most Americans living in poverty are people of color.

Question 27

The establishment of Social Security stimulated the U.S. economy and brought an end to the Great Depression.

Question 28

Under the TANF program, more discretion is left to the states than was true under AFDC.

Question 29

Social workers in the COS movement were strong advocates for the establishment of mothers' pensions.

Question 30

In 2011, more than half of Americans with incomes below poverty received food stamps.

Question 31

During the Great Recession of 2008, TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) saw a dramatic increase in enrollment.

Question 32

Able-bodied adults without children are not eligible for food stamps.

Question 33

The Federal Poverty Threshold is an absolute measure of inequality.

Question 34

Most of America's poor live in rural settings.

Question 35

In the U.S., more money is lost through welfare fraud than tax evasion and health insurance fraud combined.

Question 36

Early Christian relief efforts were based in part on the belief that providing charity was good for the rich.

Question 37

What is meant by the term "less eligibility?" Which belief about poverty does this term reflect?

Question 38

The Food Stamp program is administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Question 39

Participation in the Food Stamp program has decreased since the 1996 passage of PRWORA.

Question 40

Americans aged 65 and over have a lower rate of poverty than children.

Question 41

Define and give an example of relative poverty measure.

Question 42

Discuss how the Elizabethan Poor Law of 1601 became the foundation for US poverty interventions.

Question 43

List three of the major changes for benefit recipients that occurred when moving from AFDC to TANF.