Chapter 6: Poverty and Economic Inequality

1. Chapter 6:Poverty and Economic Inequality “We are the first generation that can look extreme poverty in the eye, and say this and mean it—we have the cash, we have the drugs, we have the science. Do we have the will to make poverty history?” —Bono, U2

2. Poverty and Economic Inequality WorldwideDefining and Measuring Poverty • Poverty is the lack of resources necessary for material well-being: food, water, housing, land, and health care. • Lack of resources that leads to hunger and physical deprivation is absolute poverty. • Relative poverty refers to a deficiency in material and economic resources compared with some other population. • Extreme poverty: Living on less than $1.25 a day.

3. Poverty and Economic Inequality WorldwideDefining and Measuring Poverty

4. Ask the Class… • How much money per year would a family with 2 working parents and 2 small children need to “make it” in your community?

5. Poverty and Economic Inequality WorldwideDefining and Measuring Poverty • When a 2007 Gallup Poll asked the American public to estimate the minimum amount of yearly income a family of four would need “to get along in your local community,” the average answer was $52,000 • The Basic Economic Security Tables Index (BEST), a measure of the basic needs and income workers require for economic security, finds that a family with two working parents (who receive employment-based benefits) and two young children needs to earn $67,920 a year, or about $16 an hour per worker.

6. Poverty and Economic Inequality WorldwideThe Extent of Global Poverty and Economic Inequality • The inequality in the distribution of global wealth is even greater than income inequality. • Wealth refers to the total assets of an individual or household minus liabilities (mortgages, loans, and debts).

7. Sociological TheoriesStructural-Functionalist Perspective • According to the structural-functionalist perspective, poverty results from institutional breakdown or dysfunction: • economic institutions that fail to provide sufficient jobs and pay • educational institutions that fail to equip members of society with the skills they need for employment • government institutions that do not provide sufficient public support.

8. Sociological TheoriesStructural-Functionalist Perspective • From a structural-functionalist perspective, economic inequality within a society can be beneficial for society • A system of unequal pay motivates people to achieve higher levels of training and education and to take on jobs that are more important and difficult by offering higher rewards for higher achievements.

9. Sociological TheoriesConflict Perspective • Karl Marx (1818–1883) proposed that economic inequality results from the domination of the bourgeoisie (owners of the factories, or “means of production”) over the proletariat (workers). • Modern conflict theorists recognize that the power to influence economic outcomes comes not only from ownership of the means of production but also from management position, interlocking board memberships, control of media, and financial contributions to politicians.

10. Sociological TheoriesConflict Perspective • Corporations and the wealthy buy political influence. • Laws and policies that benefit corporations, such as low-interest government loans to failing businesses and special subsidies and tax breaks to corporations, are known as corporate welfare. • Free-market reform policies benefit wealthy corporations and investors, but increase poverty. • Wealthfare - Laws and policies that benefit corporations and the wealthy.

11. Sociological TheoriesSymbolic Interactionist Perspective • Persons who are labeled “poor” are stigmatized as lazy; irresponsible; lacking in motivation, ability, and morals. • Wealthy persons are viewed as capable, hard working, motivated, deserving of wealth.

12. Sociological TheoriesSymbolic Interactionist Perspective • The symbolic interactionist perspective also focuses on the meanings of being poor. • A qualitative study of more than 40,000 poor women and men in 50 countries revealed that the experience of poverty involves psychological dimensions such as powerlessness, voicelessness, dependency, shame, and humiliation.

13. Patterns of Poverty in the United StatesAge and Poverty • Children are more likely than adults to live in poverty. More than one third (35.5 percent) of the U.S. poor population are children. • Compared with other industrialized countries, the United States has the highest child poverty rate.

14. Patterns of Poverty in the United StatesAge and Poverty

15. Patterns of Poverty in the United StatesSex and Poverty • Women are more likely than men to live below the poverty line—a phenomenon referred to as the feminization of poverty.

16. Patterns of Poverty in the United StatesEducation and Poverty • Education is one of the best insurance policies for protecting an individual against living in poverty. • In general, the higher a person’s level of educational attainment, the less likely that person is to be poor.

17. Patterns of Poverty in the United StatesEducation and Poverty

18. Patterns of Poverty in the United StatesRace or Ethnicity and Poverty • Poverty rates are higher among blacks, Hispanics, and Asians than among non-Hispanic whites. • Past and present discrimination has contributed to the persistence of poverty among minorities.

19. Patterns of Poverty in the United StatesRace or Ethnicity and Poverty

20. Patterns of Poverty in the United StatesLabor Force Participation and Poverty • A common image of the poor is that they are jobless and unable or unwilling to work. • Many U.S. poor are classified as working poor—individuals who spend at least 27 weeks per year in the labor force, but whose income falls below the official poverty level.

21. Consequences of Poverty and Economic InequalityHousing Problems • Substandard Housing: • Concentrated areas of poverty and poor housing in urban areas are called slums. • One-third of urban populations in developing regions are living in slums. • In the United States, slums that are occupied primarily by African Americans are called ghettos, and those occupied primarily by Latinos are called barrios.

22. Consequences of Poverty and Economic InequalityHousing Problems • Homelessness: • Many factors contribute to homelessness. According to a survey of mayors in major U.S. cities, the primary cause of homelessness is unemployment, followed by lack of affordable housing. • Homeless individuals live on the street or outdoors; others live in homeless shelters or makeshift dwellings.

23. Homelessness: More than 70,000 people in the United States alone are homeless each night. Consequences of Poverty and Economic InequalityHousing Problems

24. Consequences of Poverty and Economic InequalityHousing Problems • Homelessness: • Due to the recent rise in unemployment and foreclosures, more women, men, and children have been pushed into homelessness. • The number of homeless nationwide is estimated to be more than one million. • Over the course of a lifetime, an estimated 9 percent to 15 percent of the U.S. population becomes homeless. • Couch Homeless: Individuals who do not have a home of their own and who stay at the home of family or friends.

25. Alleviating PovertyPublic Assistance and Welfare Programs • Many public assistance programs are means-tested, households are not eligible unless income and/or assets fall within guidelines. • The United States has the highest degree of income inequality and the highest poverty rate of any industrialized nation. • Ending poverty begins with the recognition that doing so is a worthy and attainable goal

26. Alleviating PovertyPublic Assistance and Welfare Programs • The largest food assistance program in the United States is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) (formerly known as the Food StampProgram), followed by school meals and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). • The public housing program, initiated in 1937, provides federally subsidized housing that is owned and operated by local public housing authorities (PHAs). • Section 8 housing involves federal rent subsidies

27. Alleviating PovertyPublic Assistance and Welfare Programs • Alleviating Homelessness: Programs to temporarily alleviate homelessness include “homeless shelters.” • Medicaid: The largest U.S. public medical care assistance program is Medicaid, which provides medical services and hospital care for the poor through reimbursements to physicians and hospitals. • Educational Assistance: Educational assistance includes Head Start and Early Head Start programs and college assistance programs.