What is poverty? Who asks? Who answers?

2004

2013

Poverty is an undesirable and intolerable state of affairs which is considered as a social, economic, political or psychological problem. The word suggests that individuals or groups who are in poverty have to be helped to change their conditions. The reduction or eradication (if possible) of this poverty problem has now become the primary focus of the socio-economic development polices of developing world governments. There is therefore the need to have a yardstick to identify the poor, tools to measure the depth of their poverty which will then assist policy makers to assess their policy impact. This paper which forms part of a literature search and review of poverty for the author’s PhD Thesis attempts to do just that. It first puts poverty in context and considers it as the absence of well-being. It explains the phenomenon and thereafter provides analysis of a wide range of measurements both qualitative and quantitative. How to use these measurements are then explained.

https://www.ijhsr.org/IJHSR_Vol.7_Issue.5_May2017/IJHSR_Abstract.051.html, 2017

Objectives: There is no single "correct" definition of poverty. However, there is consensus that any definition of poverty needs to acknowledge particular social, economic and cultural contexts. Different meanings of poverty results in different policy implementations in the context of human poverty. There is also less agreement as to whether objective or subjective definitions and measurements of poverty are more valid. Participatory approaches however point to the need to let people define for themselves what it means to be poor and define the magnitude, causes and consequences of being poor. The major focus of this paper was to clarify, explain and define the concept of poverty. Methods: A concept analysis of poverty was done using the eight steps of Walker and Avant's strategic method. Initially 20 articles from 1995-2017 were reviewed. Seven articles were later dropped and thirteen articles were finally reviewed to deduce the definition of poverty. Results: The main antecedents of poverty identified in literature include ignorance, laziness, and lack of skill, lack of capital, dependency, poor infrastructure, unemployment, dishonesty and presence of diseases. Attributes of poverty identified in literature include lack of adequate income, ill-being, and lack of capability and functioning, lack of assets and material things, vulnerability, lack of education, social exclusion, and deprivation, powerless and voiceless. The resultant consequences of poverty were severe diseases, hunger, malnutrition, increased morbidity and mortality from illness, school dropping out, social discrimination, corruption, abuse and lack of general services. Empirical referents which are fundamental to poverty for future health and poverty research methodology in poverty eradication include Human Development Index (HDI) and Human Poverty Index(HPI). These indices are helpful in mapping poverty differences between countries and view poverty trends over time. Conclusion: The definition of poverty provided in this concept analysis will facilitate proper interpretation of the meaning of poverty and standardization of tools used to measure and monitor poverty. Poverty eradication purports to positively affect the economic growth of nations and hence improve the well-being of individuals.

2000

Oxford Development Studies, 2003

While there is worldwide agreement on poverty reduction as an overriding goal of development policy, there is little agreement on the definition of poverty. The paper reviews four approaches to the definition and measurement of poverty -the monetary, capability, social exclusion and participatory approaches. It points out the theoretical underpinnings of the various measures, and problems of operationalising them. It argues that each is a construction of reality, involving numerous judgements, which are often not transparent. The different methods have different implications for policy, and also, to the extent that they point to different people as being poor, for targeting. Empirical work in Peru and India shows that there is significant lack of overlap between the methods with, for example, nearly half the population identified as in poverty according to monetary poverty not in capability poverty, and conversely. This confirms similar findings elsewhere. Hence the definition of poverty does matter for poverty eradication strategies.

The emerging scope of international development has seen an increased focus since the Cold War, on poverty reduction across developing countries. With this, newly formed concepts of poverty have entered the discourse alongside attempts to produce statistical results using measurements of poverty, to contextualize new definitions, goals and designated outcomes. Conventional methods of poverty have thus arisen and produced varied methodologies, results and implications. This essay explores some of these main methods, analysing their weaknesses and resulting biases. Throughout the essay, a running critique will emphasise the foundational problem familiar to a range of development areas, indeed not just poverty reduction. Namely that analysts all too often assume, simplify and homogenise key concepts at the root of developmental issues, in particular poverty, those affected by poverty and its causes. A caution toward categorization will propose a lens of critique over many poverty measurements, suggesting that by creating simplistic structures of which to categorize people and poverty within, we risk reducing and homogenising complex, relative and rooted realities behind why poverty exists and who these people are. A critique within itself, this also sources the common problems found in our ability to measure poverty. These discourses surrounding poverty and its measurement are vital to development, as attempts to define and measure poverty have policy implications such as resource allocation, which can greatly affect people – from the marginalised to those inflicted by any form of inequality, communities, politics, local and global interests and likewise media portrayals.

2000

While there is worldwide agreement on poverty reduction as an overriding goal of development policy, there is little agreement on the definition of poverty. The paper reviews four approaches to the definition and measurement of poverty -the monetary, capability, social exclusion and participatory approaches. It points out the theoretical underpinnings of the various measures, and problems of operationalising them. It argues that each is a construction of reality, involving numerous judgements, which are often not transparent. The different methods have different implications for policy, and also, to the extent that they point to different people as being poor, for targeting. Empirical work in Peru and India shows that there is significant lack of overlap between the methods with, for example, nearly half the population identified as in poverty according to monetary poverty not in capability poverty, and conversely. This confirms similar findings elsewhere. Hence the definition of poverty does matter for poverty eradication strategies.

Journal of Social and Political Sciences, 2019

How we talk about poverty and low income is complicated by the competing methods for defining and measuring the phenomenon. In this article, I present a brief summary of the dominant methods currently in use by the governments of Canada and USA, and by the World Bank and large NGOs: absolute vs relative measures, low income cut-off (LICO), official poverty measure (OPM), global poverty line (GPL), human poverty index (HPI), and the multidimensional poverty index (MPI).

2012