Health & Environment
Name one epidemic that preceded the Covid-19 pandemic
Black Death, smallpox, AIDS, etc.
Define inequality
Unequal distribution of valued goods and opportunities
Differentiate between migration, emigration, and immigration
Migration: moving from one place to another
Emigration: leaving one place
Immigration: arriving and settling in another place
What are some measurements of fertility?
Crude Birth Rate; Age-Specific Fertility Rate; or Total Fertility Rate (the average number of children a woman would have if she were to live to the end of her childbearing years)
Name one example of how class power is organized from below (working class power)
unions, social movements, interest groups
What is one policy that might contribute to solving environmental challenges?
International coordination; Cap and Trade; Adding a marginal cost to garbage
How does income inequality in the U.S. compare to income inequality in peer countries?
The U.S. has a higher level of income inequality than other advanced capitalist countries.
Briefly describe the changes of U.S. immigration policies in the past 250 years.
Unrestricted -> Exclusions based on characteristics (e.g. Chinese Exclusion Act) -> Numerical quota based on national origins -> No national quota; Unlimited visas for relatives of citizens; limited visas for everyone else
What is the first demographic transition?
A population's transition from high fertility and high mortality to low fertility and low mortality.
What are some critical functions of the state? Name at least five.
(1) War-making (2)Rulemaking/regulation (3) Legal enforcement (criminal/civil)(4) Social welfare/welfare state (5) Tax
What is the idea behind the "population model of prevention"?
Lower population incidence of health problems instead of focusing on high-risk individual.
What is the Gini coefficient and the Lorenz curve?
The Gini coefficient is a measure of societal inequality from 0-1, with 0 being the most equal and 1 the most unequal. The Lorenz curve maps the cumulative percentage of a population (poorest to richest) to cumulative percentage of national income. Egalitarian = 45 degree line. If the area under the curve is bigger, the society is more unequal.
What is the neoclassical economic theory of international migration? What is the new economics of migration theory?
Why do we care if a country’s total fertility rate is above versus below 2.1?
2.1 is considered replacement fertility. TFR below 2.1 implies that the population is below replacement and will contract/diminish/become less populous.
Name and describe the three dimensions of power
1) One party openly prevails in conflict, often as a result of force or greater resources
2) Agenda-setting, the power to prevent or deflect challenges
3) Ideological, those in power convince those without that their views are correct
How does Prof. Jerolmack's concept of the "public-private paradox" relate to environmental inequalities?
The public-private paradox refers to how one's pursuit or prioritization of private rights/freedoms may contribute to negative outcomes for a larger collective (like society as a whole). This relates to the issue of environmental inequality, because people do not all consume at the same level and people are not affected by environmental degradation and disaster to the same degree. Although our private environmental decisions are our own, they may have negative consequences for the world as a whole, and certain groups within that will be disproportionately harmed, compared to others.
Why is college completion considered the great equalizer in terms of intergenerational social mobility?
Studies show that among college graduates, people who come from different socio-economic backgrounds do not have significantly different income and occupational prestige. This suggests that college completion reduces the impact of parents' socioeconomic status in determining their children's life outcome.
Define the world system theory and give one example of a phenomenon that supports the theory
What is the population balancing equation?
Pop t+1 = Pop_t + births –deaths + immigration –emigration
What are the structural power of business and the power elite theories?
Structural power of business: Governments in capitalist societies are compelled to focus on policies that keep the economy growing and health (favoring businesses)
Power elite thesis: A small group of interconnected leaders wield a disproportionate influence over society through control of key institutions. People in power predisposed to favor the interests of the power elite.
Describe how social determinants of health contribute to health disparities in the United States. Discuss at least two specific determinants and analyze how broader social structures, cultural norms, and institutional policies shape unequal health outcomes among different social groups.
SES, race, gender, neighborhood. These social determinants of health shape unequal health outcomes through, for example, redlining, unequal education funding, lack of universal healthcare policy, limited access to grocery stores, higher exposure to environmental toxins, doctor bias and stereotyping, high cost of healthcare, etc.
Discuss Sean Reardon’s work on the historical trends of the "income achievement gap". How is this research related to the "social reproduction theory" of education?
Sean Reardon finds that test score differences between kids with higher income and lower income parents have been increasing in the U.S. in the fast couple decades. This research provides evidence for the "social reproduction theory," which suggests that rather than equalizing the playing field in which students will develop the skills that will be of value in the labor market, the system reproduces or exacerbates the advantages and disadvantages that students enter with.
Discuss the meaning of "crimmigration" and its potential consequences. And then come up with a related research question and methods that could test your argument.
Crimmigration: The immigration enforcement system becomes intertwined with the criminal justice system.
One potential consequence is that Latino undocumented immigrants are more likely to face deportation, as contact with police officers can lead to deportation.
RQ: Are Latino immigrants more likely to be deported in counties where local law enforcement officers can screen immigration status?
We could use survey data to examine the statistical relationship between local crimmigration policy (whether local law enforcement officers can screen immigration status) and the proportion of Latino immigrants who are deported.
Discuss "The Epidemiological Transition" and explain some reasons behind this phenomenon. What might be one empirical/research question about cross-national differences in this phenomenon?
The Epidemiological Transition refers to the shift in the primary causes of death and disease in a population—from infectious and acute diseases to chronic ones—as societies develop. Overall, this has lead to steady decline of mortality and rise of life expectancy.
According to Angus Deaton (2013), the increase in life expectancy observed across many countries is not solely the result of targeted health interventions but also reflects broader improvements in living standards.
One empirical/research question that could be asked about cross-national differences in the epidemiological transition is: "How do differences in investment in public health infrastructure explain variation in the rate of infectious diseases across countries?"
Analyze how each of the three dimensions of power are present in current university student protests across the country
1) police force, prisons, weapons such as tear gas, arrests
2) university admins making decisions about their responses to encampments/protests (e.g. whether or not to call the police) do not have student input in decision-making
3) anything about media framing which convinces people of the validity of the perspective of the powerful