Module 0.

5: Poverty

How should we define poverty?

Absolute and relative deprivation (Morgan 2014)
Absolute poverty - refers to a set standard which is the same in
all countries and which does not change over time. An incomerelated example would be living on less than $X per day.
Relative poverty - refers to a standard that is defined in terms of
the society in which an individual lives and which therefore differs
between countries and over time. An income-related example
would be living on less than X% of average UK income.

Human poverty index - an indication of the standard of living in a

country.
Individual vs. household (Maxwell1999)
Household level involves family factor, the person needs to
support the other members of family
Individual level involves only one person
Public or private (Maxwell 1999)
Consumption of private goods only or private goods plus
public goods

Maxwell (1999) pointed out that these factors can be fault line in
measuring poverty

Different measures can be employed to achieve different ends:

$1USD a day
Income measure (thin measure)
It has strengths in measurability and comparability

Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)

Qualitative measure (thick measure)
Detailed analysis
Others can be snapshot vs. timeline, and objective vs. subjective

There is a trade-off between measurability and complexity. Our choices of

definition and measures depend on our aims (Booth)
What questions are used to find out evidence and definitions
Why questions are used to find out explanations and theories

Poverty is multidimensional in causes and in aspect

Poverty causes poverty: feedback effect