Social Theories of Poverty

Poverty remains as elusive a topic to define as it is to address. Theories abound about its causes. Economists may cite a lack of fiscal resources, and political scientists may suggest political under-representation. Then again, even within disciplines, there is very little uniformity in theoretical constructs concerning the roots of poverty. This paper takes a look at some of the sociological theories that have been offered pertaining to the causes and perpetuation of an issue that has vexed the international community for millennia.

Keywords Inequity; Poverty; Racism; Stratification; Suburbanization; Upward Mobility

Social Theories of Poverty

Stratification & Class in the U.S. > Social Theories of Poverty

Overview

In the world of art, one of the most familiar names is that of Spaniard Pablo Picasso. The man who introduced Cubism to the world, not to mention his blue period works and images of the Spanish Civil War, is an icon among art lovers and casual museum-goers alike. Amazingly, however, many visitors to his home in the south of France were surprised to find that he displayed none of his own works on his walls. When asked by one visitor if this dearth of Picasso works was due to the fact that he did not care for his own pieces, he replied, "I like them very much … It's just that I can't afford them" ("Bare necessity?," 2008).

While Picasso was burdened by economic hardship that precluded him from being able to afford his own works, a great many others are mired in an inability to pay for food, heat, and housing. Indeed, poverty is a condition suffered by hundreds of millions of people around the globe. Lacking access to even the most basic amenities, theirs is a day-to-day existence.

Poverty remains as elusive a topic to define as it is to address. Theories abound about its causes. Economists may cite a lack of fiscal resources, and political scientists may suggest political under-representation. Then again, even within disciplines, there is very little uniformity in theoretical constructs concerning the roots of poverty. This paper takes a look at some of the sociological theories that have been offered pertaining to the causes and perpetuation of an issue that has vexed the international community for millennia.

The Social Face of Poverty

According to the World Bank's 2022 Poverty and Shared Prosperity Report, an estimated 648 million people across the globe were living in extreme poverty, or on less than US$2.15 per day (World Bank, 2022). This US$2.15 standard for international poverty was updated in September 2022 from its previous US$1.90 standard. According to the World Bank's predictions, by 2030, nearly 7 percent of the globe may live below this poverty line. Living in this poverty level in the twenty-first century leads to an estimated 700 deaths of children daily and limits access to education. Virtually every nation (and indeed every international governmental organization) expresses concern about this issue, even if it does not identify it as a top priority. Still, in the modern world, most of the globe's population lives in nations in which income differentials are widening, signifying that antipoverty efforts have yet to have a significant impact (Shah, 2013).

Defining poverty has always been something of an arbitrary undertaking, relative to the field in which it is being studied. For the purposes of analyzing poverty from a sociological standpoint, for instance, poverty may be defined as the state in which an individual lacks the resources or capabilities to participate in and contribute to a society. This approach is distinctive from economic definitions, which center more on the individual's income and expenditures (such as the measurements of impoverishment employed by the World Bank) as the target for analysis. The sociological approach to examining the causes of poverty stem from a review of the external elements that affect the individual's status; poverty, therefore, is relative to the geographic location in which the individual lives as well as the context in which that individual lives within the society (Smeeding, 2002).

Sociological theories about poverty generally fall into two ideological frameworks. Liberal-leaning thinkers tend to view poverty as the product of systemic failure to provide the needed resources and tools for citizens to avoid falling into (or to reemerge from) poverty. Conservatives, on the other hand, see poverty as the result of individual choice or misstep, failing to take advantage of the resources and tools they need to get out of poverty.

Prejudice, Racism & Poverty

In the 1960s, President Lyndon Johnson declared a "war on poverty" shortly after assuming the presidency. Assembling the Kerner Commission, Johnson sent a team of experts to review what was a significant issue in the United States. Their first report focused not on a wide range of social groups suffering from poverty, but instead on a single social group—Blacks. The report assessed crime among Black communities and a legacy of discrimination rather than the overall economy or the other factors that can contribute to continued impoverishment ("Economic, social and family factors craft inner city hurdles," 2008). By doing so, critics have since argued, the Johnson administration missed an important opportunity to address a broad-reaching issue.

Poverty levels are much higher on average among Blacks and other minority groups than among Caucasians. In the United States, 19.5 percent of Black Americans, 21.1 percent of Hispanics, and 24.3 percent of American Indians lived below the poverty line in 2021; in comparison, only 11.6 percent of Whites, 8.2 percent of white non-Hispanic, and 8.1 percent of Asians were living in similar economic conditions.

Underlying Government Disparities?

The disparities among racial and ethnic groups living in poverty lead many scholars to assert that the government system in question distributes resources and services on an unequal basis. In fact, many conclude that undercurrents of racism lend to social stratification.

There is considerable evidence which supports such theories, spanning across a broad range of characteristics of poverty. One study of poverty in the United States suggests that monetary policy designed to bolster the labor markets fall short of protecting all social groups: An underlying theme of discrimination among policymakers leads to a lack of protections for various races, leaving them unprotected during times of economic downturn and likely to experience shorter tenures of employment (Rodgers, 2008). Another area of systemic inequality exists in housing disparities in the US—according to 2021 US census data, 74.4 percent of Whites were classified as homeowners as compared to 43.1 percent of Blacks and 48.4 percent of Hispanics (Callis & Kresin, 2013). One study revealed that three out of every four residents of neighborhoods of concentrated poverty were either Black or Hispanic (Little, 2008).

International Examples

The issue of race and poverty is not localized to the United States. In Europe, a steady increase in immigration has brought myriad low-income racial and ethnic groups into major urban centers. To some, blame for the impoverished economic and social status of these groups rests on their intransigence. In one editorial, the author lamented that "Europe's current social problems stem, in part, from an increasingly Islamicized immigrant population that is ambivalent about integrating fully into secular French, Dutch, or German culture" ("A cure for Europe's ills," 2002).

In what has long been considered the clearest example of racial disparity, South Africa has taken great strides to undo the inequities put into place during the apartheid era. Since that government gave way to a democratic regime led by Blacks in the early 1990s, there remains an overwhelming sense of inequity in income and labor markets. There is also a much lower rate of upward mobility among Blacks than Whites in the formerly segregated nation (Liebbrandt & Woolard, 2001).

Racism: A Cause of Poverty?

Is racism to blame for poverty in a multicultural/multiracial society? This question has been asked throughout modern history, with an equal number of reasonable studies exploring the issue on both sides. Certainly, the overwhelming majority of impoverished social groups in such systems around the world seem heavily populated by so-called minorities. In 1962, Michael Harrington suggested that long-standing structural and cultural racism in the United States played a role in stratifying society, with people of color and certain ethnicities on the lower end of the spectrum. In his seminal work, The Other America, he argued that racism has permeated society in such a way that poverty became something of a tradition, handed down from generation to generation (Wolf, 2007).

Then again, the fact that most industrialized nations are taking dramatic steps to undo the remnants of racism and ethnocentrism from their institutions and yet poverty rates have by and large only plateaued (in some locations, they continue to increase) suggests that there may be other factors at work. This paper next turns to a review of the heaviest geographic concentrations of poor in the world, offering evidence of other factors at play.

The Geography of Poverty

There is little argument that poverty occurs in every society, from underdeveloped nations to the wealthiest countries. Still, the study of poverty, at least from a sociological perspective, hinges on an important fact: Poverty usually can be tracked to a physical location or set thereof within a larger system.

The idea of geography as a major contributor to poverty (and for that matter, wealth) is not new. In the latter eighteenth century, Scottish economist Adam Smith postulated that the best way to develop a successful, healthy economy was to implement a free-market system. Smith's theory can be quickly supported, as nations of North America, western Europe, Australia, and East Asia, all free-market economies, are among the wealthiest in the world. In fact, of the top 1 percent of the wealthiest individuals in the world, half reside in the United States (Milanović, 2011). Conversely, those countries that have employed communist, totalitarian, or authoritarian regimes (such as those in the former Soviet Union, South Asia, and Africa) have, with few exceptions, experienced little to no growth (Global Policy Forum, 2006).

Of course, Adam Smith's argument about the free-market system is not the only factor determining wealth and poverty. He offered a second, lesser-known theory about the geographic elements that can contribute to a nation's wealth (or lack thereof). The physical geography of a country, he argued, can influence its economic performance. He further contended that those nations with navigable waterways and coastal regions as well as favorable climates tend to be the ones with greater wealth and economic prosperity.

Once again, there is verifiability to Smith's theories. Indeed, nations with coastal access tend to be wealthier than internally-located, landlocked countries, such as those found in sub-Saharan Africa, central Asia, and interior Latin America. One piece of evidence supporting this point is the fact that water-based transportation is far less expensive than overland and air transportation.

Similarly, the country's climate also plays a role. A lack of large quantities of fresh water, high average temperature, and the prevalence of naturally-occurring disease (such as malaria) seem to explain why the majority of wealthy nations are located in more temperate regions and why most poor national populations are located between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn (Sachs, Mellinger & Gallup, 2000). As one scholar succinctly concludes:

Certainly, the limitations of physical geography, such as climate and water access, contribute to poverty in a way that cannot be undone. Then again, populations gravitate to where the cost of living is low in addition to where employment may be found (even if that employment offers little in terms of financial compensation). Nowhere is this fact more evident than in the cities. Although many urban centers provide little more than squalid living conditions, migrants continue to flow into them in search of employment.

In the mid 2010s, the United Nations predicted that the world’s poorest countries will likely double in population between 2013 and 2050. Approximately 4.4 billion, or 56 percent, of the world’s inhabitants lived in urban areas in early 2023. This trend was expected to continue and urban populations were predicted to double by 2050. Interestingly, migration tapered off somewhat in the early twentieth century—the increase in population in urban centers appears to be attributed to a larger number of children being born into poverty.

There remains an ongoing discussion among sociologists about the degree to which geography and the social aspects of poverty are linked. However, as this paper has just shown, there is clearly a connection between the two.

Further Insights

Poverty in the Twenty-First Century

There are a number of factors that have affected the development and perpetuation of poverty around the globe. As discussed in this paper, geography certainly plays a role, as the vast majority of poor people live in areas underrepresented by strong economic institutions and short of critical natural resources. Racism and prejudice may also play a part, as historical practices of segregation and inequality have at least lent to the lack of access to programs and services for lower classes. There is yet another contributor to both the development and continuation of poverty, one that becomes more prevalent as the world becomes increasingly industrialized.

Technology has long been a staple of a successful economy and has concurrently been a roadblock to upward mobility for lower classes. For wealthier populations, technology such as computers, cellular telephones, energy-efficient manufacturing plants, and updated transportation systems have fostered increased productivity, greater employment potentials, and higher incomes. Conversely, those who lack such technological capabilities are likely destined to remain mired in underproductivity and a lack of income.

A 2008 study of the rural farmlands of India provides an example of this aspect of poverty. Lacking an infrastructure and network interconnectivity that bridges the distances between farms, a great many impoverished farm areas continue to show limited production. In many cases, farms lose their crops altogether because of arid and semiarid soil conditions—had these farms had access to scientific input modeling techniques, updated irrigation systems, and other cost-saving methodologies, they would likely see increases in positive developments (Diwakar et al., 2008).

Similarly, efforts to avail access to web technologies have fallen short in impoverished areas in the cities of industrialized nations. An analysis of the new internet access programs in the Georgia cities of Atlanta and LaGrange shows that many residents have taken advantage of community technology centers and at-home internet systems. However, those who take advantage may become more familiar with internet commerce and computer technology, but access to this technology has done little to stimulate upward mobility (Kvasny & Keil, 2008). In fact, in this case, increased access to technology could bring great opportunities for poor populations, but as in the case of India above, connecting the poor with such technology along with the ability to use it to reemerge from poverty remains a complex, difficult task.

William Wilson & Poverty

Conventional views of poverty often stay within general contexts. As shown in this paper thus far, some view poverty as a concept that is the product of external elements, such as the location in which one lives or access to certain resources. Others see a prejudicial element involved, that racial and other minority groups are, by virtue of the color of their skin or country of origin, bound to impoverishment.

Of course, such one-dimensional theoretical frameworks are limited because of their oversimplification. Incorporating the concepts of many of the singular theories into a broader, multidimensional approach, however, may give greater light as to the sociological causes of this oft-daunting issue.

In 1996, Harvard sociologist William J. Wilson offered a complex view of urban poverty. In one of his more seminal tomes, When Work Disappears: The World of the New Urban Poor, Wilson suggests that racism and geographical limitations can contribute to poverty. However, he proposes that joblessness in urban centers, and in particular, joblessness created by the loss of manufacturing posts and the "suburbanization" of America (the trend for corporations to move outside of urban centers where real estate and other resources are less expensive) play a much greater role in the development and perpetuation of poverty in American cities (Gergen, 1996).

The distinction he makes is important, one that he makes even more clear in one of the most impactful sociological studies on the subject, written nearly a decade before When Work Disappears. Indeed, in The Truly Disadvantaged, he casts no doubt that racism, which has permeated millennia of history, plays a role in modern incidences of poverty. However, in his estimation, contemporary racism is no longer a factor in contributing to urban poverty. In fact, he asserts, the efforts of affirmative action and similar policy responses to such racially-oriented concepts have proven at best ineffectual and, at worst, counterproductive in light of the fact that poverty lends itself more to the plight of the urban center rather than the plight of the social minority group (Burns, 1990).

Criticism

It comes as no surprise that Wilson's work, however pioneering in terms of viewing poverty from a wider perspective, would be met with criticism. There are those who see Wilson as disrespectful of the realities of racism and poverty, despite his clear acknowledgment of their prevalence in history. One work, however, suggests that Wilson's assertion that manufacturing jobs have been severely curtailed is somewhat incorrect, if not "defective" (Glazer, 1996). This study, by Roger Waldinger, asserts that although many cities have lost high-paying manufacturing jobs (an essential aspect of Wilson's theory), a great many lower-level jobs have in fact been retained in these urban centers. His argument, however, is that immigrants in these areas, flooding in over the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, have been able to secure many of the jobs that have been maintained. Blacks, on the other hand, have not obtained such positions. In short, Waldinger maintains, racism still has a hold on urban America and its impoverished population.

William Wilson understood that his complex views of poverty in urban areas would be received with more than a modicum of skepticism. Indeed, he said, "A lot of people are going to call me naïve" (Early, 1996). Still, Wilson offers a middle-ground approach to the sociological study of poverty. Rather than embrace a singular idea (such as racism, geography, and the realities of the post-industrial world), Wilson seems to connect all three—acknowledging racial/ethnic undertones, giving stronger emphasis on geographic influences, and appreciating the limited access to the same modern technologies that can help reverse poverty in the United States and around the globe.

Conclusion

Of the social sciences, sociology is one of the most multifarious of disciplines. This fact is reflective of the nature of sociology; for the study of social populations involves the analysis of political, economic, geographic, and cultural forces, which may complement or compete with others. Studying the social underpinnings of poverty, therefore, is as challenging an undertaking as defining poverty itself.

As this paper has shown, there are a wide range of forces at play that contribute to the causes and continuation of poverty. Racial or ethnic discrimination, geography, and technological access all likely bear some responsibility in varying degrees. William Wilson, controversy notwithstanding, at least acknowledges the complexities of the oft-vexing issue of poverty. Until each of the subcomponent contributors to poverty is linked and addressed, a universal solution of this global problem may continue to be generations away.

Terms & Concepts

Inequity: Unequal distribution of resources and services within a social system.

Poverty: State in which an individual lacks the resources or capabilities to participate in and contribute to a society.

Racism: Discrimination or prejudice based on race.

Stratification: Vertical segregation into classes within a social system

Suburbanization: Economic and social development of regions outside of urban centers.

Upward Mobility: Vertical movement from a lower to upper economic and/or social strata.

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Suggested Reading

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Healey, J. (2011). Poverty and social exclusion. Thirroul, N.S.W.: Spinney Press. Retrieved November 1, 2013, from EBSCO online database eBook Academic Collection (EBSCOhost). http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=e000xna&AN=364898&site=ehost-live

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