SOPY 3045 Social Research conceptualization

Name: Chan Chun Sum Brian(18672361)

Topic: Poverty

Introduction: different definitions of poverty

In nowadays, there are different definitions about poverty. Some

sociologists believed poverty had multidimensional definition. According to

sociologist, Chamber(2006)mentioned in UNDP report, poverty included

“four clusters”: income poverty, material lack or want, capability deprivation

and multidimensional view of deprivation. He argued that both four clusters

reflected the power and the development of the poverty. Besides, it also

mentioned that poverty had twelve dimensions, such as lack of info, lack of

education, poverty of time, physical ill-being and material poverties, etc.

Poverty was related to the change of well being lifestyle. He believed ill-

being life was the cause of poverty.

Another sociologist also defined poverty in UNDP report, Townsend(2006)

argued that poverty had the relationship with income in historical

perspective. He mentioned poverty condition was the income deprivation

and the connection of globalisation as there were two aspects of

deprivation, which was material and social aspects. For material aspects, it

included food, clothing, housing, environment or even work. For social

aspects, it included education opportunity, employment rights, recreation

and families activities. Both ideas affected the international policies for

hundred years.In addition, he also believed that the lack of resources and

services in low income countries, such as the developing countries in the

third world were labelled as extreme or severe absolute poverty. In fact,

physical needs included the needs for material goods. It was supported by

ILO as the family minimum consumptions and essential community

services. He also argued that in the third world had the measurement of

poverty, which was poverty line. He also mentioned the definition of poverty

in world bank was to measure each person income had not reach to US

dollar $370 was defined as poverty.

Other sociologist, Spicker(2008) believed that poverty had twelfth

definitions, the first definition was material concepts as he argued that the

lack of resources was the significant cause of poverty. In fact, he used Vic

George, Baratz and Grigsby words to discuss poverty was the lack of

mental well-being and the economic consumption. He argued that limited

resources related to economic circumstances. Besides, Spicker also

accounted for the social circumstances, which included social class,

dependency, exclusion, lack of basic security and lack of entitlement.

Poverty was related to moral judgement in society as he argued that there

were critics in defining poverty and moral position since poverty lead to the

morally unaccepted.

Alcock(2006)also argued that poverty was the key concern in society,

which became the social exclusion or even the income deprivation. He

believed poverty divided as absolute poverty and relative poverty. Absolute

poverty was defined as the need of sustain the life and became objective in

society. It also became life-threatening to citizens and was determined by

poverty line or even budget standards while relative poverty was defined as

the base of individual poor and group of poor people’s living standard

comparison. In addition, he also mentioned the relationship between

poverty and social divisions, such as gender, racism, age and disability.

Those divisions could be reflected as the definition of poverty as for

gender, it was related to employment and low-pay as poverty problem

defined as social exclusion in which there were income inequality.

Nevertheless, Alcock also defined poverty as the individual and household

perspectives, in which became the multi-dimensional approaches as he

argued that the absolute and relative low income of household were the

significant as global states researched poverty to find the measures to

tackle poverty. Besides, he also mentioned Townsend research in poverty,

which was the deprivation indicator method could relate to his definition of

poverty. He believed Townsend claims of poverty line was benefit levels.

Nevertheless, according to United Nations(2017) definition of poverty, it

was believed poverty was defined as absolute poverty and relative poverty.

Both terms defined poverty as the basic needs and economic status in

different nations respectively. In fact, it was also defined as “lack of basic

capacity to participate effectively in society”, or even related to “social

insecurity, powerlessness and exclusion of individuals, households and

communities”.(UN,2017)

Limitations and advantages of different definitions of poverty

I believed that the sociologists defined poverty clearly as they used

different perspectives, such as social positions, economic perspectives and

historical perspectives to explain what was poverty.

Comparing their definitions of poverty, I believe both sociologists

mentioned poverty was the lack of material concepts, which included

income poverty, change of well-being lifestyle and related to social policy.

Both Chamber, Spicker and Townsend argued poverty condition was lack

of resources, which reflected the realistic of poverty in global aspects.

However, they limited the definitions of poverty into the material concepts,

which couldn’t reflect the multi-dimensional view of poverty.

Besides, Alcock’s definition of poverty would explain more details on the

causes of poverty and the relationship between social divisions and

poverty, which had been determined that poverty was the social problem.

However, he limited the definitions of poverty and measures into the global

society, which didn’t reflect the poverty case of Hong Kong.

Conclusion: my definition of poverty

To conclude, I believe my definition of poverty is divided into three

characteristics, except the income deprivation,absolute poverty and relative

poverty that were mentioned by sociologists, there are another two

characteristics of poverty, such as the age stratification of poverty, includes

youth and child poverty, working poor and education poor. For youth and

child poverty, I believe both can define as they are borned in the place or

states where belows the poverty line, such as the developing countries.

Besides, for working poor and education poor, which relates to youth and

child poverty as it is true that teenagers and children who born in below

poverty line can’t afford the highest cost of education which causes their

education level is low, or even get the low-skilled job in workplace, such as

cleaning workers which they suffer the minimum wage welfare policy in

nowadays. Therefore, my definition of poverty is individual or groups both

lack of resources and other services from states. It is measured by poverty

line in which can determine whether his life is below poverty line. In fact, I

believe poverty can be solved by global organizations, local government

and citizens. For local government, it can implement some employment

policy to give more job opportunity to individuals or groups of poor people

for finding jobs. Besides, it can provides welfare policy to low-income

families to support their life expenditure. For global organizations and

citizens, they can through promoting activities such as charity to attract and

encourage more citizens to join this activities for lending their hand to

developing countries.

References

1. UNDP International Poverty Centre.(2006). Poverty in focus: What is

poverty? Concepts and measures. UNDP. Retrieved from

http://www.ipc-undp.org/pub/IPCPovertyInFocus9.pdf

2. UNESCO.(2017). Poverty. UN. Retrieved from

http://www.unesco.org/new/en/social-and-human-sciences/themes/int

ernational-migration/glossary/poverty/

3. Spicker, P. (2015, Jan 14). Definitions of poverty: twelve clusters of

meaning. Research gate net. Retrieved from

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Paul_Spicker/publication/265422

363_Definitions_of_poverty_twelve_clusters_of_meaning/links/
 54b63ff10cf26833efd3686f/Definitions-of-poverty-twelve-clusters-of-

meaning.pdf

4. Alcock, P. (2006).Understanding poverty.Britain: palgrave macmillan