Ch 8 Lesson 2 Social Class and Poverty in America
Directions: Read the lesson and complete the outline below. Refer to your textbook to fill in the blanks.
1. Class Consciousness
A. The term class consciousness refers to a sense of
B. Historically, Americans have believed in individualism and have had little
social class.
C. Only recently have sociologists attempted to describe the
II. The Social Classes
A. Sociologists identify
B. The
with the
and interests of the members of a particular social class.
D. Members of the
main classes in American society.
class is the most elite; its members qualify by their aristocratic
or by their ability to achieve a high level of earned
C. Most Americans place themselves in the
of variety. Its members may be professionals or may own businesses, may have some
education, and may take an interest in civic affairs.
B. Since the 1960s,
of the poor.
of American society.
A. According to the 2010 census, about
African Americans and
class, but this group has a great deal
in
E. People who work at low-skill jobs for very low pay are part of the working
F. People in the
usually are unemployed, as were their relatives in previous
generations. They have a lack of education and often receive public
they have jobs, they cannot make enough money to meet their basic
Even when
III. Poverty in the United States
class generally have a below-average income and unstable
percent of Americans live in poverty.
of this group.
make up more than
and children have made up an increasingly larger proportion
C. Some of the programs established under the War on Poverty, meant to provide
self-
for the poor, were criticized as encouraging people to depend on the
D. Welfare reform has had little success in reducing the number of Americans living in