During the Nineteenth Century, Occupational Information about Women GMAT Reading Comprehension

Reading Passage Question

During the nineteenth century, occupational information about women that was provided by the United States census—a population count conducted each decade—became more detailed and precise in response to social changes. Through 1840, simple enumeration by household mirrored a home-based agricultural economy and hierarchical social order: the head of the household (presumed male or absent) was specified by name, whereas other household members were only indicated by the total number of persons counted in various categories, including occupational categories. Like farms, most enterprises were family-run, so that the census measured economic activity as an attribute of the entire household, rather than of individuals.

The 1850 census, partly responding to antislavery and women's rights movements, initiated the collection of specific information about each individual in a household. Not until 1870 was occupational information analyzed by gender: the census superintendent reported 1.8 million women employed outside the home in "gainful and reputable occupations." In addition, he arbitrarily attributed to each family one woman "keeping house." Overlap between the two groups was not calculated until 1890, when the rapid entry of women into the paid labor force and social issues arising from industrialization were causing women's advocates and women statisticians to press for more thorough and accurate accounting of women's occupations and wages.

Solutions and Explanation

The primary purpose of the passage is to

(A) explain and critique the methods used by early statisticians
(B) compare and contrast a historical situation with a current-day one
(C) describe and explain a historical change
(D) discuss historical opposition to an established institution
(E) trace the origin of a contemporary controversy

Correct Answer: C
Explanation: The purpose of the passage is to depict the historical change in chronological order. The first paragraph of the passage discusses the 1850 census that partly responds to the women's rights movements and antislavery. These movements are initiated on the basis of certain information provided by the household. It was not until 1870 was occupational information that is analysed by gender. Therefore, there is a clear indication of a change. Therefore, option C is the correct answer as it satisfies the claims of the passage.

Each of the following aspects of nineteenth-century United States censuses is mentioned in the passage EXCEPT the

(A) year in which data on occupations began to be analyzed by gender
(B) year in which specific information began to be collected on individuals in addition to the head of the household
(C) year in which overlap between women employed outside the home and women keeping house was first calculated
(D) way in which the 1890 census measured women’s income levels and educational backgrounds
(E) way in which household members were counted in the 1840 census

Correct Answer: D
Explanation: The passage depicts that not until 1870, information on occupation was analysed by gender. It further depicts the 1850 census initiated the collection of information on individuals in the household. Moreover, the passage cites the year which calculates the overlapping of the women employed outside the home and women in the house. The passage also mentions the ways the 1840 census counts household members. Therefore, all options are related to the detailed facts given in the passage except option D. Therefore option D is the correct answer.

It can be inferred from the passage that the 1840 United States census provided a count of which of the following?

(A) Women who worked exclusively in the home
(B) People engaged in nonfarming occupations
(C) People engaged in social movements
(D) Women engaged in family-run enterprises
(E) Men engaged in agriculture

Correct Answer: B
Explanation: From the last sentence of the first paragraph of the passage, it can be analysed that ‘farms’ are compared to ‘most enterprises’. This outlines a comparison between other businesses and farms. The passage depicts the businesses as family run. Thereof, option B is the correct answer as it justifies the fact provided in the passage.

The author uses the adjective “simple” in line 5 most probably to emphasize that the

(A) collection of census information became progressively more difficult throughout the nineteenth-century
(B) technology for tabulating census information was rudimentary during the first half of the nineteenth century
(C) home-based agricultural economy of the early nineteenth century was easier to analyze than the later industrial economy
(D) economic role of women was better defined in the early nineteenth century than in the late nineteenth century
(E) information collected by early-nineteen-century censuses was limited in its amount of detail

Correct Answer: E
Explanation: The passage depicts simple remuneration that indicates that the deductions were relatively easy through the applications of numbers. The technique by which the early-nineteen-century censuses information was collected is simple which leads to inferring that it was limited. Therefore, option E is the correct answer as it satisfies the claim of the passage.

The passage suggests which of the following about the “women’s advocates and women statisticians” mentioned in lines 27-28?

(A) They wanted to call attention to the lack of pay for women who worked in the home.
(B) They believed that previous census information was inadequate and did not reflect certain economic changes in the United States.
(C) They had begun to press for changes in census-taking methods as part of their participation in the antislavery movement.
(D) They thought that census statistics about women would be more accurate if more women were employed as census officials.
(E) They had conducted independent studies that disputed the official statistics provided by previous United States censuses.]

Correct Answer: B
Explanation: This is an inference sort of question. The passage depicts “women’s advocates and women statisticians” that they started to retain more through censuses from 1890. This is because changes are taking place in industrialization and labor forces. However, the information had not been reflected in the previous censuses. Therefore, it can be inferred that women’s advocates and statisticians need to dig deeper since they believed that the previous census possessed inadequate data. Hence, Option B is correct as it holds the relevant information as stated in the passage.

“During the nineteenth century, occupational information about women”- is a GMAT reading comprehension passage. The candidates must have sufficient knowledge of the English language in order to grasp English GMAT reading comprehension. The GMAT Reading Comprehension Practice Questions help students to strengthen their reading skills.

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During the Nineteenth Century, Occupational Information about Women GMAT Reading Comprehension

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