The Assault on EqualityBloomsbury Academic, 1996 M08 20 - 281 pages ^IThe Assault on Equality^R critiques the social theory underpinning the social policies of the new political right. It focuses on the attempt by Herrnstein and Murray in ^IThe Bell Curve^R to provide theoretical justification for social program cutbacks and coercive social policies. ^IThe Assault on Equality^R reanalyzes Herrnstein and Murray's own data and demonstrates that their conclusions are questionable results of polemic and ideology that ignore and contradict the fundamental findings and methods of 20th-century sociology and genetics. The policy proposals of Newt Gingrich are the political counterpart to the flawed social theory of ^IThe Bell Curve^R. Both scholarly and readable, this is an appropriate supplement in courses such as race relations, stratification, theory, policy, and research methods. It shows the contemporary relevance of basic theoretical and methodological insights of sociology contradicted by ^IThe Bell Curve^R and other works of the new political right. Appendices present the statistical issues and the theoretical background ignored by such works. From a multi-disciplinary perspective, the authors take issue with the social policy positions of the new right concerning affirmative action, education, family, race, social class, and welfare. |
Contents
Introduction | 1 |
Family Matters and Moral Values | 89 |
Race Relations | 107 |
Copyright | |
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affirmative action AFQT scores analysis argument assumptions behavior Bell Curve biological causal causes central century changes Chapter cognitive ability cognitive elite compensatory concept Contract with America correlated crime cultural cumulative causation D'Sousa disadvantage discrimination divorce economic effect eliminate environment environmental equal opportunity ethnic evidence example force genes genetic genotype Gingrich heritability Herrnstein and Murray ignore illegitimacy illegitimate income increase individual individualistic inequality inherited institutional racism intelligence IQ tests issues logistic regression marriage mean measure ment meritocratic mobility moral Murray argue Murray's norms of reaction parents percent phenotype Phillipe Rushton political poor population position poverty privilege produce question race racial rates reductionism regression relation result Right SAT scores segregation Social Darwinism Social Darwinist social policy social problems social structures society statistical suggest test scores theorists theory tion trait unemployment United variation welfare women York