Question 1

The term policy outcomes refers to

Accepted Answer

A) the extent to which the policy solves the problem. 
B) people's reaction to the social problems process. 
C) critics' concerns about how the policies are implemented. 
D) all of the above

Question 2

The term troubling conditions is used when describing the situations people make claims about in order to draw our attention to the fact that

Accepted Answer

A) we often notice problems for the first time while they are still small and manageable. 
B) claimsmaking is about people pointing out things that trouble them rather than making a purely objective assessment of problematic conditions. 
C) problems are often blown out of proportion once people begin to make claims about them. 
D) what troubles some people may not turn out to be a real social problem.

Question 3

The role of rhetoric in the social problems process can be seen in how

Accepted Answer

A) claimsmakers put together an effective argument. 
B) the media make decisions about which claims to cover. 
C) policymakers choose to focus on certain aspects of a problem and not others. 
D) all of the above

Question 4

Choose any social problem with which you are familiar and briefly describe the extent to which you believe it followed the natural history of the social problems process and why.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Choose any social problem with which you...

Question 5

Claimsmaking can most accurately be described as a process in which people

Accepted Answer

A) claim the right to profit from a troubling situation. 
B) lie about conditions to make them seem problematic. 
C) bring to the attention of others a situation that they find troubling. 
D) find objective proof of a problem.

Question 6

Social problems workers are typically responsible for

Accepted Answer

A) developing an accurate definition of what a problem really is. 
B) helping policymakers better understand a problem. 
C) carrying out the practical actions deemed necessary to manage a problem. 
D) identifying the implications of particular solutions proposed for a problem.

Question 7

When it comes to claimsmaking about obesity as a social problem,__________ may act as claimsmakers.

Accepted Answer

A) experts who have done research on obesity 
B) people who have direct experience with obesity 
C) policymakers who must deal with public opinion regarding obesity 
D) all of the above

Question 8

The term natural history refers to the sequence of stages that social problems

Accepted Answer

A) often move through. 
B) move through when they are not interfered with by claimsmakers. 
C) create in a typical community. 
D) create through their environmental impact.

Question 9

Claimsmakers who are activists typically must

Accepted Answer

A) draw attention to their cause. 
B) recruit people to join their movement. 
C) manage their movement's operations. 
D) all of the above

Question 10

Saying that something is socially constructed means that it is

Accepted Answer

A) not real. 
B) only real because a group of people created it. 
C) real only to those who have had experience with it. 
D) shaped by people's definitions and understandings of it.

Question 11

Resources primarily impact the social problems process at the level of

Accepted Answer

A) media coverage. 
B) claimsmaking. 
C) policymaking. 
D) all of the above

Exam 1: The Social Problems Process