sociology (poverty)

poverty

condition of deprivation due to economic circumstances that is severe enough that the individual cannot thrive in society

poverty line

federally defined income limit

cost of an economy diet for a family multiplied by 3

1960s- absolute measure of poverty

cost of living index

relative

poverty measurement

poverty rates by educational attainment in US 2020 trend

decreases in higher educational attainment

highest- less than hs

lowest- bachelor’s degree or higher

international comparison of poverty rates among OECD countries

United states is 3rd

ethnicity most likely to have hs diploma or equivalent

black, pacific islander, american indian/ alaska native

ethnicity most likely to be a hs dropout

hispanic

ethnicity most likely to have bachelor or higher

asian and white

in 2019 poverty rate by race and hispanic origin trend

highest- black and hispanic

lower- asian and non hispanic white

poverty in US

highest- DC, WV, KY, AL, MA, LA, AR, NM
least- UT, CO, MN, MD, NJ, NH, HI

absolute measures poverty using..

costs associated with goods needed to maintain life (housing, food, transpo)

• US federal property threshold

relative measure poverty based …

income distributions within a given society (median income)

income figure is split upper half and lower half (impoverished)

OECD poverty rates, cost of living index

poverty rates by age in 2015

highest- under 18

lower- 18- 64

lowest- 65 or older

children in poverty

% of kids in low income fams surpasses that of adults

2x as likely as adults 65 years and older to live in poor fams

percentage of children in low-income and poor fams by race/ ethnicity

highest- native american, latino, black

lower- asian and white (more low income than poor)

effects of poverty on children - health

less nutritious food

less access to medical care

effects of poverty on children - home environment

maternal mental health

parental substance abuse

adverse parenting strats

stress

cognitive stimulation

effects of poverty on children - neighborhood environment

environmental toxins

violent crime

substandard housing

disadvantaged neighborhoods

potential physical health outcomes for children in poverty (when born)

higher rates of infant and child mortality

low birth weight

growth stunting

lead poisoning

potential cognitive outcomes for children in poverty

developmental delays

increased risk of learning disabilities

potential emotional and behaviorial outcomes for children in poverty

higher risk of psychological disorders (ADHD or depression)

potential school achievement outcomes for children in poverty

grade repetition

more likely to dropout of hs (more likely to be incarcerated)

potential employment outcomes for children in poverty

less likely to be consistently employed as adults

culture of poverty

adopt certain practices that differ from middle class/ mainstream society to survive

• dependence

• cost sharing

• fatalism

• inability to delay gratification

poverty cycle starting with “child grows up in poverty”

1. child grows up in poverty

2. is significantly disadvantaged in education and skills

3. struggles to get a job

4. fail to escape the poverty cycle

5. family in poverty

structural factors that make it difficult to get out of poverty

deindustrialization

globalization

suburbanization

discrimination

government programs for the poor

medicaid

head start

national school lunch program

legal services for the poor

supplemental nutrition (SNAP)

poor ppl labeled as

lazy

criminal

welfare-dependent

morally flawed

gans arguement on the impoverished

behaviors are mostly poverty-related, not moral failures

most poor ppl follow mainstream norms

stereotype exaggerates reality

according to gans, which is NOT an example of how the poor benefit the nonpoor in society

providing american popular culture with heroes

the living wage calc, the following are considered typical expenses that compromise the living wage estimate (5)

child care

transportation

housing

food

medical

Once poor people are declared undeserving they also lose their political legitimacy and whatever little political influence they had before they were stigmatized. The political system is able to pay additional attention to the demands of the more affluent constituents. It can therefore shift to the 'right.'"

conservative power shifting

"Being too weak to object, the stigmatized poor can be accused of having caused social problems which they did not actually cause and can serve as cathartic objects on which better-off people can unload their own problems, as well as those of the economy, the polity, or of any other institutions, for the shortcomings of which the poor can be blamed."

scapegoating and displacement

"Undeservingness has given rise to policies and agencies which are manifestly set up to help the poor economically and otherwise to become deserving, but which actually prevent the undeserving poor from being freed of their stigma, and which also manage, unwittingly, to see to it that their children face the same obstacles."

reproduction of stigma and the stigmatized

"Various social forces combine to do away with some of the people who have become surplus labor and are no longer needed by the economy... The early departure of poor people from an economy and society which do not need them is useful for those who remain."

extermination of the surplus

"American popular culture shows that crime and other norm violations do not pay... Black and Hispanic drug dealers and gang leaders."

supplying popular cultural victims

"By stigmatizing people as undeserving, labelers protect themselves from the responsibility of having to associate with them, or even to treat them like moral equals, which reduces the risk of being hurt or angered by them."

risk reduction

The underclass "...are effectively banished from the labor market before entering it because employers imagine them to be poor workers simply because they are young, male, and Black."

economic banishment and the reserve army of labor

"Some of the responsibility for the existence of poverty, slum unemployment, poor schools, and the like is taken off the shoulders of elected and appointed officials who are supposed to deal with these problems."

institutional scapegoating

"Their mere presence creates jobs for the better off population, including professional ones (i.e. social workers, teachers, trainers, mentors, psychiatrists, doctors, "special" schools, drug treatment centers."

job creation

"Class hierarchy, for the existence of an undeserving class or stratum legitimates the deserving classes, if not necessarily all of their class-related behavior."

moral legitimation

"Norm violations and their punishments provide an opportunity for preserving and reaffirming the norms. If the undeserving poor can be imagined to be lazy, they help to reaffirm the protestant work ethic. If poor single-parent families are publicly condemned, the two-parent family is once more legitimated as ideal."

norm reinforcement

"'Underclass areas' can be torn down and their inhabitants moved to make room for more affluent residents or higher taxpayers."

spatial purification

"Although it is estimated that 80% of all illegal drugs are sold to Whites who are not poor, the sellers are often people banished from the formal labor market."

supplying illegal goods

conclusion on gans

“undeserving poor” survives bc it benefits the non-poor