Quiz questions
What common insight do Levitt and Dubner use in the opening chapter about schoolteachers and sumo wrestlers?
- Both respond to incentives that can encourage cheating or match-fixing.
- Both groups are primarily shaped by genetic differences.
- Both are heavily regulated by international bodies.
- Both behaviors are best explained by cultural traditions alone.
Why do Levitt and Dubner compare the Ku Klux Klan to real-estate agents?
- Because both exploit information asymmetry and secrecy to gain power or profit.
- Because both are declining due to urbanization.
- Because both primarily function through violent enforcement.
- Because both are legally required to disclose membership lists.
Why, according to the book, do many drug dealers still live with their mothers?
- Because most street-level dealers earn very little and drug organizations have steep hierarchies like corporations.
- Because drug dealing is highly lucrative for everyone involved.
- Because most dealers receive government housing subsidies.
- Because living with parents is a cultural preference unrelated to earnings.
Which controversial explanation does Levitt give for the large crime decline of the 1990s?
- That improved policing was the single dominant cause.
- That legalized abortion reduced the number of high-risk births, substantially lowering later crime.
- That the rise of video games was the primary factor.
- That immigration increases were the main driver of the decline.
What do Levitt and Dubner conclude about many common parenting practices?
- Following popular parenting practices guarantees better test scores and behavior.
- Many commonly recommended parenting choices have small or no measurable effect compared with socioeconomic background.
- Only private schooling determines child outcomes.
- A child's baby name is the single strongest predictor of future success.
Active recall prompts
What common insight do Levitt and Dubner use in the opening chapter about schoolteachers and sumo wrestlers?
Why do Levitt and Dubner compare the Ku Klux Klan to real-estate agents?
Why, according to the book, do many drug dealers still live with their mothers?
Which controversial explanation does Levitt give for the large crime decline of the 1990s?
What is the main idea of "What Do Schoolteachers and Sumo Wrestlers Have in Common?", and how would you explain it without looking back?
What is the main idea of "How Is the Ku Klux Klan Like a Group of Real-Estate Agents?", and how would you explain it without looking back?
What is the main idea of "Why Do Drug Dealers Still Live with Their Moms?", and how would you explain it without looking back?
What is the main idea of "Where Have All the Criminals Gone?", and how would you explain it without looking back?