Relevance: Sociology: Paper I: Social Stratification & G.S paper I: Society and social issues: Poverty
What is Poverty?
Poverty is a social problem and it is one of the manifestations of inequality. The study of poverty is central to any examination of social equality, including an analysis of who is poor and the reasons for their poverty. Poverty refers to “A low standard of living that lasts long enough to undermine the health, morale, and self respect of an individual or group of individuals. A state in which resources, usually material but sometimes cultural, are lacking. Poverty is insufficient supply of those things which are requisite for an individual to maintain himself and those dependent upon him in health and vigour’.
Poverty is a social problem which is often expressed in terms of lack of material resources which one requires for a minimum standard of life. But, what are these minimum standards? There is no agreement upon this and hence, the definition of poverty has no consensus.
- According to Ruth Lister, in her Poverty, 2004- ‘Definition of poverty has important implicationsfor political, policy and academic discourse’. In India also, recent definitions of poverty from the government have risen heckles as critics argued that these definitions are exclusionary and don’t provide a measure of actual poverty.
- Another contention of the critics is that across the countries, poverty is invariably defined in terms of material well-being only. Hence, poverty is defined as a form of multiple deprivations. So, poverty is a multidimensional phenomenon and caused by a variety of factors and hence, its manifestation also differs from context to context.
- Poverty is an inter-related wave of economic, social, psychological, cultural and political factors, which influence the occurrence and persistence of poverty. Real poverty may not be apparent and apparent poverty may not be real.
How many types of poverty?
Absolute Poverty and Relative Poverty:
- The term poverty is relative to the general standard of living in the society, the distribution of wealth, the status system, and social expectations. It is common to distinguish between absolute and relative definitions of poverty.
- Absolute Poverty: Poverty defined in absolute terms refers to a state in which the individual lacks the resources necessary for subsistence.
- Relative Poverty: Relative definitions of poverty, frequently favoured by sociologists, refers to the individuals or groups with lack of resources when compared with that of other members of the society – in other words, their relative standard of living.
- Absolute poverty is often known as “subsistence poverty” for it is based on assessment of minimum subsistence requirements such as food, clothing, shelter, health care, etc. Subsistence definitions of poverty [or definitions of absolute poverty] are of considerable value in examining, Third World poverty.
What is cultural perspective on Poverty?
- The cultural perspective- The term Culture of Poverty was popularised in 1950s, by Oscar Lewis, in his study of Mexican cities. According to it, poverty is not a result of individual shortcomings, but an outcome of a larger social atmosphere in which children are socialised.
According to the cultural perspective on poverty, the lower class is seen as manifesting patterns of behaviour and values which are characteristically different from those of the dominant society and culture and it is similar across the countries, marked by features like, fatalism, instant gratification, feeling of dependency and helplessness. This culture, or sub-culture, as Lewis calls it, helps in perpetuating poverty.
- The poor are also part of stratification scheme in the society, in which they occupy the bottom of the pyramid. Different approaches define this stratification differently.
For example, functionalists like Herbert Gans, in his More Equality, 1973, argue that poverty persists because it is rewarding for a majority of section who want various kinds of services. Its existence ensures that all kinds of menial works also get done. It helps in running of various institutions like police, hospitals and asylums. Poor also provide a baseline of failure to the rest of society which works hard to avoid falling to that level.
However, non-functional view holds that some sections like older people, minority groups and females are more likely to witness poverty.
Marxists argue that poverty in society can only be understood in terms of the effects of a capitalist economy. According to them, the question Why Poverty?is same as asking Why Wealth? Poverty exists because it benefits the ruling class.
‘Poverty of women is often hidden behind the study of poverty as a household phenomenon’, according to Ruspini in his article Longitudinal Researchin Social Sciences,2000. It is well known that employment rates of women are lower than men and they often land into low paid jobs.
Why Situational Constraints Theory – an alternative to a culture of poverty?
Rather than seeing the behaviour of the poor as a response to established and internalized cultural patterns, many researchers view it as a reaction to ‘situational constraints’.
In other words the poor are constrained by the facts of their situation, by low income, unemployment and the like, to act the way they do, rather than being directed by a culture of poverty.
The situational constraints argument suggests that the poor would readily change their behaviour in response to new set of circumstances once the constraints of poverty were removed.
The situational constraints thesis also attacks the view that the poor are largely insulated from mainstream norms and values. It argues that the poor share the values of society as a whole, the only difference being that they are unable to translate many of those values into reality.
Again, the situational constraints argument suggests that once the constraints of poverty are removed, the poor will have no difficulty adopting mainstream behaviour patterns and seizing available opportunities.
C K Prahalad offers an interesting perspective on poverty in his Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid: Eradicating Poverty through Profits,2004
According to him – ‘poverty is not to be always looked at from a benevolent perspective’. Business firms can redesign their products and services to suit the masses and can add value to their lives as well as earn profit. New insights into challenges of fighting poverty have been provided by the recent inter-disciplinary research. For example, the World Bank, in a report published in 2013, held that climate change is likely to hinder future attempts to
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