Social Tensions and Change
This group faced segregation and inequality despite economic growth.
Who are African Americans?
This household item became a central part of American life, bringing shows like I Love Lucy into homes.
What is a television?
This economist wrote The Affluent Society in 1958.
Who is John Kenneth Galbraith?
The pressure to conform and fear of communism during the 1950s led to this anti-communist movement.
What is McCarthysim?
This type of residential community grew rapidly outside cities during the 1950s.
What is the suburb?
Galbraith argued that the U.S. had too much of this type of consumption, and not enough public investment.
What is private consumption?
Many 1950s women were expected to take on this domestic role.
What is a housewife?
This ideal family structure was promoted heavily during the 1950s.
What is the nuclear family?
Galbraith believed this sector—like schools and roads—was underfunded in America.
What is the public sector?
Critics like David Riseman and Galbraith warned that Americans were becoming too focused on this.
What is materialism or consumerism?
This industry boomed in the 1950s, promoting mass consumption of goods through media.
What is advertising?
In The Affluent Society, this term describes how private wealth grows while public needs go unmet.
What is public poverty?
This future decade saw major social movements sparked by tensions from the 1950s.
What is the 1960s?
American culture in the 1950s strongly emphasized this, leading to widespread conformity.
What is traditionalism or conformity?
Galbraith believed advertising created this kind of artificial demand for products.
Galbraith believed advertising created this kind of artificial demand for products.