The dramatic increase in automobile ownership after World War II in the United States was both a cause and consequence of which development?

The dramatic increase in automobile ownership after World War II in the United States was both a cause and consequence of which development?

• A. the rise in real wages
• B. the expansion of suburbia
• C. the growth of large corporations
• D. the homogenization of U.S. culture

Answer: (B)

The key idea is how widespread car ownership reshaped where Americans lived and how that living pattern, in turn, encouraged more car use and dependence. After World War II, many Americans had more money and access to affordable cars, and the new highway system made longer commutes practical. This made it feasible to move away from crowded city centers to new, planned communities on the suburbs, giving rise to a housing boom and the famous "bedroom communities." As suburbs expanded, they created a strong demand for cars, roads, and related services, which in turn reinforced the suburban way of life and the national car culture. Real wages rising helped people buy cars, but the formation and growth of suburbs is the best way to understand why automobile ownership became both a cause and consequence of that development. The growth of large corporations and the homogenization of culture are related trends of the era, but they don’t map as directly onto the mutual reinforcement between cars and suburban expansion as this pattern does.

The key idea is how widespread car ownership reshaped where Americans lived and how that living pattern, in turn, encouraged more car use and dependence. After World War II, many Americans had more money and access to affordable cars, and the new highway system made longer commutes practical. This made it feasible to move away from crowded city centers to new, planned communities on the suburbs, giving rise to a housing boom and the famous "bedroom communities." As suburbs expanded, they created a strong demand for cars, roads, and related services, which in turn reinforced the suburban way of life and the national car culture.

Real wages rising helped people buy cars, but the formation and growth of suburbs is the best way to understand why automobile ownership became both a cause and consequence of that development. The growth of large corporations and the homogenization of culture are related trends of the era, but they don’t map as directly onto the mutual reinforcement between cars and suburban expansion as this pattern does.