Week 2: Analyzing Economic Inequalities & Understanding Poverty

A vocabulary flashcard deck covering central terminology and analytical frameworks from Week 2 on economic inequality, poverty definitions, structural versus individual factors, social welfare approaches, and economic benchmarks.

Poverty

Insufficient economic resources to meet basic needs and participate adequately in society.

Absolute Poverty

The condition of not having enough resources to meet fundamental human needs such as food, shelter, clean water, and basic healthcare.

Relative Poverty

The condition of having substantially fewer resources than what is typical within one's society.

Federal Poverty Guidelines / Poverty Threshold

A national measurement developed in the 1960s used to determine or inform eligibility for many public assistance programs and to estimate poverty in the United States.

Economic Inequality

The analysis of how income, wealth, opportunity, and resources are distributed across a population.

Income

Money received over time through wages, salaries, benefits, investments, and other sources.

Wealth

Accumulated assets minus debts, including home equity, savings, investments, and property.

Individual Explanations of Poverty

Explanations that focus on personal circumstances, behaviors, choices, education, credentials, employment status, health factors, and individual job or financial skills.

Relational / Family Explanations of Poverty

Explanations focusing on personal relationships, caregiving responsibilities, available family resources, social networks, and intergenerational support or debt.

Structural Explanations of Poverty

Explanations focusing on the larger economic, institutional, political, and social conditions—such as labor markets, housing costs, discrimination, healthcare access, and public policy—that shape available options.

Culture of Poverty Debate

The debate surrounding the argument that poverty persists through learned attitudes and behaviors, contrasted with criticism that this view blames individuals and misinterprets adaptations to unstable conditions as causes.

Charity

Immediate relief aimed at addressing urgent, immediate needs directly, such as providing groceries or holding a food drive.

Social Welfare

Organized programs and supports designed to assist individuals and families, such as SNAP or school meals.

Social Justice

Efforts and policies aimed at changing underlying conditions that produce economic insecurity, such as living wages, affordable housing development, healthcare access, and labor protections.

Official Poverty

A status defined by having an income level below the established federal poverty threshold.

Near Poverty

A status defining individuals or families living above the official federal poverty line who remain financially vulnerable.

Working Poor

Individuals who are actively employed but whose income remains insufficient to easily cover basic needs.

Economic Insecurity

The condition of lacking sufficient, stable resources to absorb unexpected financial disruptions.

Benefits Cliff

A situation where a small increase in wage earnings causes a reduction or loss of public assistance, leaving a household with fewer usable net resources in the short term.

Living Wage Calculator

An MIT-developed market-based measure estimating the local cost of basic necessities—such as housing, food, childcare, and healthcare—without public or private assistance.

Cost Burdened Households

Households that spend 30% or more of their total income on housing costs.

Severely Cost Burdened Households

Households that spend 50% or more of their total income on housing costs.