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Social Inequality: Exercise 1 - Social inequality
Instructions:
Read the passage and click on the correct answer. If wrong, try
again. Scroll down if you do not see the Answer box. Click
here to review the key terms for this exercise.
Social stratification results in social
inequality. Income is one important aspect of social inequality. Income
is money a person is paid for work or money a person earns from investments.
According to the Census Bureau, the
average family income in 1998 was $47,467. However when we look at
income distribution, we find a big difference between poor and rich
Americans. For example, in 1998, the average family income of the
poorest 20% of Americans was $12,526, while the average family income
of the richest 20% of Americans was $140,846. The wealthy members
of the American society are the most powerful and influence the political
and economic direction of the country.
Social inequality creates poverty. There are two types of poverty.
Relative poverty refers to a condition of poverty where some people have fewer resources
than others. Absolute poverty, on the other hand, is a condition of poverty which
is so serious that it is life threatening. In 1998, the poverty line (the income
below which the U.S. government considers a household poor) was $16,660. However, the average
income of poor families was even below the poverty line: $10,040. There are a variety of factors,
such as age, race, ethnicity and gender, that contribute to poverty. White people get more
schooling and earn more money than African Americans. In 1998, the average income of an African
American family was $30,636, while that of a White family was $49,781. In 1998, 18.9% of people
under 18 years of age were poor. Women too represent a large share of the people who live
in poverty.
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Instructions:
Read the passage and click on the correct answer. If wrong, try
again. Scroll down if you do not see the Answer box.
