Showing papers on "Poverty published in 1987"

The Truly Disadvantaged

Abstract: Renowned American sociologist William Julius Wilson takes a look at the social transformation of inner city ghettos, offering a sharp evaluation of the convergence of race and poverty. Rejecting both conservative and liberal interpretations of life in the inner city, Wilson offers essential information and a number of solutions to policymakers. The Truly Disadvantaged is a wide-ranging examination, looking at the relationship between race, employment, and education from the 1950s onwards, with surprising and provocative findings. This second edition also includes a new afterword from Wilson himself that brings the book up to date and offers fresh insight into its findings. “ The Truly Disadvantaged should spur critical thinking in many quarters about the causes and possible remedies for inner city poverty. As policymakers grapple with the problems of an enlarged underclass they—as well as community leaders and all concerned Americans of all races—would be advised to examine Mr. Wilson's incisive analysis.”—Robert Greenstein, New York Times Book Review

On the measurement of poverty

Abstract: Official statistics in the United States and the United Kingdom show a rise in poverty between the 1970's and the 1980's but scepticism has been expressed with regard to these findings. In particular, the methods employed in the measurement of poverty have been the subject of criticism. This paper re-examines three basic issues in measuring poverty: the choice of the poverty line, the index of poverty, and the relation between poverty and inequality. One general theme running through the paper is that there is a diversity of judgments which enter the measurement of poverty and that it is necessary to recognize these explicitly in the procedures adopted. There is likely to be disagreement about the choice of poverty line, affecting both its level and its structure. In this situation, we may only be able to make comparisons and not to measure differences, and the comparisons may lead only to a partial rather than a complete ordering. The first section of the paper discusses the stochastic dominance conditions which allow such comparisons, illustrating their application by reference to data for the United States. The choice of poverty measure has been the subject of an extensive literature and a variety of measures have been proposed. In the second section of the paper a different approach is suggested, considering a class of measures satisfying certain general properties and seeking conditions under which all members of the class (which includes many of those proposed) give the same ranking. Those sceptical about measures of poverty often assert that poverty and inequality are being confounded. The third section of the paper distinguishes four different viewpoints and relates them to theories of justice and views of social welfare.

Poverty and health prospective evidence from the alameda county study

Abstract: To examine the reasons for the association between socioeconomic status and poor health, the authors examined the nine-year mortality experience of a random sample of residents aged 35 and over in Oakland, California. Residents of a federally designated poverty area experienced higher age-, race-, and sex-adjusted mortality over the follow-up period compared with residents of nonpoverty areas (relative risk = 1.71, 95 per cent confidence interval 1.20-2.44). This increased risk of death persisted when there was multivariate adjustment for baseline health status, race, income, employment status, access to medical care, health insurance coverage, smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity, body mass index, sleep patterns, social isolation, marital status, depression, and personal uncertainty. These results support the hypothesis that properties of the sociophysical environment may be important contributors to the association between low socioeconomic status and excess mortality, and that this contribution is independent of individual behaviors.

Poverty and Health. A prospective evidence from the Alameda County Study

Abstract: To examine the reasons for the association between socioeconomic status and poor health, the authors examined the nine-year mortality experience of a random sample of residents aged 35 and over in Oakland, California. Residents of a federally designated poverty area experienced higher age-, race-, and sex-adjusted mortality over the follow-up period compared with residents of nonpoverty areas (relative risk = 1.71, 95 per cent confidence interval 1.20-2.44). This increased risk of death persisted when there was multivariate adjustment for baseline health status, race, income, employment status, access to medical care, health insurance coverage, smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity, body mass index, sleep patterns, social isolation, marital status, depression, and personal uncertainty. These results support the hypothesis that properties of the sociophysical environment may be important contributors to the association between low socioeconomic status and excess mortality, and that this contribution is independent of individual behaviors.

The African Poor: A History

Abstract: Preface 1. The comparative history of the poor 2. Christian Ethiopia 3. The Islamic tradition 4. Poverty and pastoralism 6. Yoruba and Igbo 7. Early European initiatives 8. Poverty in South Africa, 1886-1948 9. Rural poverty in colonial Africa 10. Urban poverty in tropical Africa 11. The care of the poor in colonial Africa 12. Leprosy 13. The growth of poverty in independent Africa 14. The transformation of poverty in southern Africa Notes Bibliography Index.

The State and Poverty in India

Abstract: This analysis of the role of government in eradicating India's rural poverty raises a whole series of crucial contemporary issues relating to the state, its degree of autonomy in the developing world and the problems of effecting genuine redistributive reform. The particular importance of the book is that it focuses attention on the nature of ruling political parties as an important factor influencing the success or failure of redistributive and welfare politics in a democratic capitalist setting. Dr Kohli compares in detail three state-level Indian governments of the late seventies: Communist-ruled West Bengal, Karnataka under the Congress Party, and Uttar Pradesh under the Janata Party. Comparing these in terms of their success in redistributing agricultural land and creating employment for the rural poor, the author argues cogently that well-organised, left-of-centre parties in government - like that in West Bengal - are the most effective in implementing reform.

The Perception of Poverty.

Abstract: The Poverty Concept. The Derivation of the Poverty Line. Determinants of Income. Determinants of Welfare Parameters. Determinants of Poverty. The Extent of Poverty. Description of the Data. Empirical Results: Differences in Welfare. Empirical Results: Determinants of Income. Empirical Results: Determinants of Welfare. Empirical Results: Poverty Lines and Poverty Determinants. Empirical Results: The Extent of Poverty. Conclusions. Bibliography. Index.

Problems in the Definition and Measurement of Poverty

Abstract: Three approaches to defining poverty levels are discussed—social consensus approaches, budget standard methods, and behavioural approaches. Each addresses different questions and none, of itself, has provided—nor, it is argued, could ever provide—an objective definition of poverty. The paper then raises problems that have been largely neglected in defining poverty. First, the treatment of time and home production: the time and ability of individuals to prepare food or to wash and feed without assistance, for example, vary greatly depending on circumstances and in turn affect income needs. Choices and constraints affecting the household formations in which people live and their budgeting behaviour are also important in assessing poverty. Individual variations in behaviour need to be explicitly recognised if practical definitions of poverty levels are to be found. Finally, the paper condemns discussions of poverty that are part of the problem rather than part of the solution.

Fighting Poverty: What Works and What Doesn't.

Abstract: Essays examine antipoverty policies of the last twenty years and discuss welfare, health care for the poor, job training, education programs, family structure, and civil rights.

The feminization of poverty

Abstract: With the worsening of the global economic crisis increasing proportions of the population in the dependent countries find themselves trapped in poverty. 75% of Perus population is considered poor since it receives less than 25% of the national income. When such large proportions of the population are poor the phenomenon of feminization of poverty must be defined. Feminization of poverty means that women suffer the consequences of poverty more than men and there are more poor women than men. Women are born with the unavoidable disadvantage of inferior status in the social order which makes them more vulnerable to any oppressive structure. The deeper poverty of women is not a new phenomenon; what is new is recognition and examination of the condition. Recently and especially with the impetus of the Decade for Women from 1975-85 primarily female researchers have been examining the lives of women. Statistics demonstrate that women are universally in disadvantaged conditions and that the "Second Sex" is the "Poor Sex" in all countries of the world and all existing economic systems. 50% of the worlds population is female but females do 60% of the hours of work receive 10% of world income and possess 1% of the worlds property. 7 out of 10 poor people in the world are women.

The Possibility of Politics: A Study in the Political Economy of the Welfare State

Abstract: In this study of the welfare state the author asks whether it works and, depending on the answer, goes on to consider what this says about the success of political reform. The basic concepts of poverty and economic efficiency are considered in the light of political science, sociology and economics. The methodology of income redistribution research is restated and reconsidered, and approaches which are often regarded as alternatives are examined. The author provides a framework for the analysis of public policy within the theory of rational action and analyzes this under six headings: legitimacy, governability, poverty, equality, efficiency and activity.

Crescimento da população idosa no Brasil: transformações e conseqüências na sociedade

Abstract: The social and economic transformation which has been occurring in the life of the elderly, and the increase of the Brazilian population aged 60 years or over is discussed. The migration process (in 1940 the rural population was 68.8% and in 1980, 32.4%) and the intense urbanisation in major Brazilian cities has been particularly evident for the elderly population, or for those growing older in these cities. This new social organization had increased the problems of loneliness and poverty among the elderly. Furthermore, as a consequence of the loss of social status which has reduced their participation in contemporary society, the elderly have been loosing the emotional suport within their own families. Traditionally, older people are viewed as an integral part of the family and enjoy high esteem and prestige. There are factors which play an important role in the family changes - these factors are the decrease in the number of children, their dispersion owing to migration and urbanisation, and the increase in the number of divorces between couples. The relatively longer life span of women has brought unique consequences such as a decrease of income, an increase in the number of widows and a longer period of chronic disease, as well as the changing role of women and their participation in the labour force which further diminish the chances of family support. This paper also discusses certain aspects related to the issues of work, retirement and social expenditure (dependency ratio).

A Class of Poverty Indices

Abstract: A review of a number of well-known poverty indices shows that two axiomatic requirements to a pover ty index are never satisfied simultaneously. The choice between these two axioms depends on the nature of the poverty line. A class of pov erty indices is developed as an application of the Dalton and Atkinso n inequality to poverty measurement. Almost all other poverty indices are seen to be a member of the class. The formulation of this class clarifies the basic problems involved in poverty measurement. Copyright 1987 by Economics Department of the University of Pennsylvania and the Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association.

Giving Back Control: Long-Term Poverty and Motivation

Abstract: Traditionally, the poverty policy debate has been dominated on one side by those who focus on restricted opportunity as a cause of persistent poverty and on the other side by those who blame the "deviant" attitudes and values of the poor themselves. As the debate has gone historically, any observed difference in attitudes (beliefs in personal efficacy, future orientation, passivity, etc.) has been taken as evidence in favor of the cultural, attitudinal model of the cause of poverty. The policy implications of the cultural models have usually fallen within the conservative social policy agenda. As a result, many have been reluctant to discuss the possible motivational deficits of the persistent poor that limit their ability to achieve self-sufficiency. As is argued here, out of fear of "blaming the victim," we have failed to recognize the full implications of victimization. This article seeks to develop a social-psychological framework for understanding attitudinal deficits produced by constrained opportun...

Chapter 13 Income maintenance and social insurance

Abstract: Publisher Summary Historically, income maintenance has taken the form of private charity or the poor law. These have been typically uneven in their impact, varying from locality to locality, and have been dependent on the generosity and caprices of donors or public relief officials. In the administration of state support, concern for the cost has been paramount, and there has been a lively sense of the possible disincentive to work. The main objective of income support is the relief of poverty. It has been an intermediate objective rather than an end in itself, for example, to avoid civil unrest. Today, there is considerable disagreement about the proper role of income maintenance, but it remains widely accepted that the abolition of poverty is a central objective. The second approach seeks to reduce the multiple values to a single indicator by taking total expenditure and comparing this with a target level of total outlay. The third approach takes total income as the variable to indicate poverty; and it is this approach that is most commonly employed in the studies of poverty. In considering these three approaches to the indicator of poverty, there are two different conceptions. The first, and perhaps the more usual, is concerned with the standard of living, and it points to the use of total expenditure or the consumption of specific commodities. The second is concerned with rights to a minimum level of resources or the opportunity to consume, even if not exercised.

Drought and hunger in Africa: denying famine a future.

Abstract: Preface Foreword Bradford Morse Part I. Physical and Social Setting: 1. Global climate change and variability: effects on drought and desertification in Africa Eugene M. Rasmusson 2. some aspects of meteorological drought in Ethiopia Workineh Degefu 3. Drought and economic development in sub-Saharan Africa Michael H. Glantz 4. African pastoralism and poverty: some implications for drought and famine Michael M. Horowitz and Peter D. Little 5. Part II. Internal-External Perspectives: 5. The decline of African agriculture: an internalist perspective Michael F. Lofchie 6. Internal factors that generate famine Robert J. Cummings 7. Towards a political economy of the African crisis: diplomacy, debates and dialectics Timothy M. Shaw 8. Linking and sinking: economic externalities and the persistence of destitution and famine in Africa Randall Baker Part III. Case Studies: 9. Drought, environment and food security: some reflections on peasants, pastoralists and commoditization in dryland West Africa Michael Watts 10. Drought, food and the social organization of small farmers in Zimbabwe Michael Bratton 11. The social impact of drought in Ethiopia: oxen, households, and some implications for rehabilitation James McCann 12. role of government in combatting food shortages: lessons from Kenya 1984-85 John M. Cohen and David B. Lewis 13. The social impacts of planned settlement in Burkina Faso Della E. McMillan 14. Evolution of food rationing systems with reference to African group farms in the context of drought William I. Torry 15. The role of non-government organizations in famine prevention Michael F. Scott Part IV. Lessons for the Future: 16. food self-sufficiency in Malawi: are successes transferable? J. Gus Liebenow 17. Famine relief policy in India: six lessons for Africa Michelle B. McAlpin 18. Famine and famine relief: viewing Africa in the 1980s from China in the 1920s Lillian M. Li 19. Denying famine a future: concluding remarks Rhys Payne, Lynette Rummel and Michael J. Glantz Index.

Consensual Approaches to the Definition of Poverty: Towards an Alternative Methodology

Abstract: ‘Consensual’ methods, which seek to establish poverty lines by reference to the views of society as a whole, are an important recent development. Three variants are recognised: those which require the public to estimate an adequate minimum income; those which ask people to specify a list of necessary items and those which ask what level of benefits the public is prepared to fund. This paper suggests that attempts to operationalise the consensual approach have been frustrated by their reliance on survey methodology. Some thoughts are offered on a possible methodology, based on the use of qualitative techniques, which would first explore consensus on the definition of poverty and then, if appropriate, seek directly to determine a socially approved budget standard.

Hunger, malnutrition, and poverty in the contemporary United States: Some observations on their social and cultural context

Abstract: (1987). Hunger, malnutrition, and poverty in the contemporary United States: Some observations on their social and cultural context. Food and Foodways: Vol. 2, No. 1, pp. 309-333.

Limits of Price Policy for Agriculture: Which Way for the World Bank?

Abstract: Book reviewed in this article: World Development Report 1986. World Bank Poverty and Hunger: Issues and Options for Food Security in Developing Countries. World Bank

Comparative analyses of nutritional effectiveness of food subsidies and other food-related interventions

Abstract: Malnutrition affects millions of people in developing countries; it affects preschool-aged children and pregnant and lactating women acutely In the long run, most policymakers would agree that the elimination of poverty is the most effective way of dealing with protein-calorie malnutrition In the short run, however, governments and international institutions have pursued a variety of intervention strategies in the hope of alleviating malnutrition

Consensual Approaches to Poverty Lines and Social Security

Abstract: The principal problematic issue in all poverty measures is the source and status of the standards of needs and deprivation. Rejection of minimum subsistence or quasi-absolute approaches to defining poverty, and acceptance of the social relativism of poverty, logically demand that the indicators of deprivation equally be derived from the society in question and not be prescribed for it by ‘experts’. The paper reviews the policy implications of the distinction between deprivation and poverty, and discusses two principal approaches to empirical methods of establishing ‘consensual’ measures of poverty: the income proxy method and the deprivation indicator method. The paper also distinguishes sociologically-based poverty lines from politically-based social security scales, outlining some important aspects of the theoretical and methodological relations between them.

Patterns of Development in Latin America: Poverty, Repression, and Economic Strategy

Abstract: In this major work an economist with long experience as an advisor in developing countries explores the conflict between market forces and political reform that has led straight into Latin America's most serious problems. John Sheahan addresses three central concerns: the persistence of poverty in Latin American countries despite rising national incomes, the connection between economic troubles and political repression, and the relationships between Latin America and the rest of the world in trade and finance, as well as overall dependence. His comprehensive explanation of why many Latin Americans identify open political systems with frustration and economic breakdown will interest not only economists but also a broad range of other social scientists. This is "political economy" in the classical sense of the word, establishing a clear connection between the political and economic realities of Latin America.

Class gender and the household: the developmental cycle in Southern Africa.

Abstract: This article evaluates the anthropological concept of "developmental cycle of domestic groups" circa 1949 as applied to the small nation-state around South Africa: Lesotho Botswana and the Bantustans. The areas are complicated by extreme diversity of social structure which survey data based on conceptual paradigms may not grasp to be a dynamic process. Lesotho is still an undeveloped subsistence peasant society. Migrant mine workers usually older men bought land with their wages. Younger men are squeezed out of restricted mine jobs and women obtain irregular low paid work. There is a small urban welfare class. In Botswana there is simultaneously in time and concurrently households migration to jobs in mines industry or urban civil service and investment in farmland. There are class strata in these "worker-peasant" households depending on income. Rapid restructuring of family life is stressful and devastating. Neither male or female-extended nor individual-lead family models should be considered typical since either or both spouses may at one time have migrated to find work. In The Bantustans the situation is bewilderingly complex. There is acute poverty malnutrition overcrowding utter dependence on wage earning in white South Africa or welfare. 3.5 million persons have been forcibly relocated in 20 years. New towns black-owned farms reservations squatter sites and refugee camps alternate with pockets of old established residents. Given the need for 3 generations of consistent data and stable classes any conceptual models will be difficult to test.