Chapter 4
The Basis of Social Allocation
Test Bank
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of the following policies has found a compromise between universalism and
selectivity?
a. Social Security
b. Medicare
c. Earned Income Tax Credit
d. The Negative Tax Credit
2. Which of the following allows the EITC to be a negative tax credit?
a. refundability
b. distributability
c. universality
d. selectivity
3. How much money would Child Support Assurance give to single-parent families?
a. $1,000-$1,500 per child
b. $2,000-$2,500 per child
c. $3,000-$3,500 per child
d. $4,000-$4,500 per child
4. What percentage of means-tested transfers did single-parent families in the 1990s
receive?
a.
28%
b.
56%
c.
74%
d.
94%
5. Which of the following serves as a starting point in the universal-selective dichotomy
of benefits allocation?
a. attributed need
b. compensation
c. residual conceptions
d. eligibility
6. Which of the following best describes the poverty line?
a. absolute
b. relative
c. inappropriate
d. constructive
7. Which of the following best explains the necessity of having various types of social
welfare policies and programs in the U.S.?
a. Universal welfare policies are not the answer to solving the poverty problem.
b. Specialized welfare policies are not the answer to solving the poverty
problem.
c. Society often changes its opinion on matters of social welfare policy.
d. Society cannot benefit if policy makers constantly argue about welfare
policies.
8. Which of the following best explains why few homeless youth with children receive
welfare benefits?
a. The youth are not aware of the benefits available to them.
b. The youth refuse help because they want to be independent.
c. The youth instead rely on their families and friends for aid.
d. The youth can find jobs, but they refuse to do any work.
9. Which of the following is the best example of a universal policy or program?
a. day care
b. food stamps
c. unemployment
d. babysitters
10. Which of the following is the best example of a selective policy or program?
a. education
b. healthcare
c. library access
d. affirmative action
1. Why is it difficult for policy makers to determine who should receive welfare benefits?
Bloom’s Level: Understand
2. Why do conservatives promote systems of public aid focusing on jobs, time-limited
assistance, and the reduction of teen pregnancy?
3. Illustrate how a children’s allowance would provide a family with the basic means to
survive through a description of a hypothetical situation.
4. Show how it is possible for welfare to produce people who become dependent on the
benefit funds through a description of a hypothetical situation.
5. Contrast universal welfare policies and selective welfare policies. Which is more
effective in alleviating poverty?
6. Briefly describe a policy that relies on attributed need-based allocation. What are the
pros and cons of this kind of policy?
Essay Questions
1. Identify why many people see selective welfare assistance as having a negative
stigma. Then describe why many see universal welfare assistance as a “right.” Why
is there such a stark difference in the reception of the two main types of welfare
assistance?
2. Why does welfare assistance only sometimes make it to the people who need it the
most? Who is at fault? Illustrate how this could be changed so that more people in
poverty received the welfare assistance that they need through a description of
improvements that could be made.
3. Briefly explain a policy that caters exclusively to only one age group. What was the
purpose behind this policy? How is this policy accepted by people who are not eligible
to receive this assistance? Do people who are not eligible have the right to criticize this
type of policy?
4. Predict whether the United States will pass more universal policies or more selective
policies. What social issues contribute to your prediction? Assess whether this will be a
positive step for the United States.