Chapter 12 – Work & The Economy

Question 1

What is the social institution that organizes the production, distribution, and consumption of a society’s goods and services?

Answer 1

Economy

Question 2

What is the most important sector for less developed countries?

Answer 2

Primary

Question 3

What is the most important sector for more developed countries?

Answer 3

Tertiary

Question 4

What are the two major economic systems in modern society?

Answer 4

Capitalism and socialism

Question 5

What combines elements of both capitalism and socialism?

Answer 5

Social democracies

Question 6

What economic system has achieved high economic growth while maintaining political freedom and personal liberty?

Answer 6

Social democracies

Question 7

What is the U.S. economic type?

Answer 7

Capitalist, but still mixed

Question 8

What is the economic system in which the means of production are privately owned?

Answer 8

Capitalist

Question 9

What is the most important goal of capitalism?

Answer 9

Pursuit of personal profit

Question 10

What helps ensure the production of the best products at the lowest prices & that no single party controls an entire market?

Answer 10

Competition

Question 11

What economy type is marked by private ownership of the means of production, the pursuit of profit, competition for profit, & lack of government intervention in competition?

Answer 11

Capitalist

Question 12

What is the economic system in which the means of production are collectively owned, usually by the government?

Answer 12

Socialism

Question 13

What is the most important goal of socialism?

Answer 13

Work for the collective good

Question 14

In what economic system are the needs of society are considered more important than the needs of the individual?

Answer 14

Socialism

Question 15

In what economic system do individuals not compete for profit, but work together for the good of everyone?

Answer 15

Socialism

Question 16

In what economic system does the government control the economy?

Answer 16

Socialism

Question 17

According to Marx, what is the ideal outcome of socialism?

Answer 17

A classless society

Question 18

What economic system produces greater economic growth & productivity, at least in part because it provides more incentives (i.e., profit) for economic innovation?

Answer 18

Capitalism

Question 19

What economic system has greater political freedom in the form of civil rights & liberties?

Answer 19

Capitalism

Question 20

What economic system has more economic inequality and much greater difference between the rich and poor?

Answer 20

Capitalism

Question 21

What economic system has more individualistic attitudes, less cooperative/collective views?

Answer 21

Capitalism

Question 22

Do all segments of capitalism share growth equally?

Answer 22

No

Question 23

What economic system encourages harmful behavior by maximizing profits and creates many losers (small businesses lose out to big business)?

Answer 23

Capitalism

Question 24

A move to what kind of economy has resulted in a loss of jobs and wages in the US, thanks in part to capital flight & outsourcing?

Answer 24

postindustrial

Question 25

How have wages and the cost of living changed since the 1980s?

Answer 25

Stagnated wages, much higher cost of living

Question 26

How has wealth inequality changed since the 1980s?

Answer 26

Growing difference between CEOs and typical worker

Question 27

What rose in the 19th century with industrialization?

Answer 27

Labor unions

Question 28

Who conflicts with management over wages and working conditions?

Answer 28

Labor unions

Question 29

Who negotiates for better working conditions & better pay?

Answer 29

Labor unions

Question 30

Who was met with stark opposition from companies, the government, and the courts?

Answer 30

Labor unions

Question 31

What led to labor protests & labor strikes?

Answer 31

Labor unions

Question 32

Have labor unions increased or decreased in influence since the 1980s?

Answer 32

Decreased

Question 33

What has been the effect of the decline of labor unions?

Answer 33

Lowered wages & less likely to have employer-paid health insurance

Question 34

What leads to the decline in family income, difficulty paying bills, borrowing money from family & friends, declined emotional and mental health, loss of self-esteem, strained family relations, lost contact with close friends, sleep difficulties, drug & alcohol problems?

Answer 34

Unemployment

Question 35

What is a formal organization that has a legal existence, including the right to sign contracts, that is separate from that of its members?

Answer 35

Corporation

Question 36

What are the dominant actors in today’s economy?

Answer 36

Corporations

Question 37

What provides most of our products & many of our services & employ millions of people?

Answer 37

Corporations

Question 38

What also stifles competition through mergers and acquisitions, break the law, and exploit people and natural resources in developing nations?

Answer 38

Corporations

Question 39

How does the economic inequality in the U.S. compares to other Western nations?

Answer 39

Much worse than anywhere else

Question 40

What is the biggest reason for increasing economic inequality in the U.S.

Answer 40

Tax policy changes

Question 41

What is associated with a high degree of poverty & shrinking middle class?

Answer 41

Economic inequality

Question 42

What is associated with low economic mobility (the movement of people up or down the socioeconomic ladder)?

Answer 42

Economic inequality

Question 43

What undermines social cohesion, increases polarization, worse physical & mental health, lower life expectancy, higher rates of violent crime?

Answer 43

Economic inequality