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There is no specific definition of poverty, but it is a global problem experienced in every country. Although sociologists and scholars do not agree on the definition of poverty, they agree that it is a political question. Poverty is the state of lacking basic needs or the minimum socially acceptable resources (Danaan, 2018). Definitions have evolved to include the wealth gap between the rich and the poor, even when they can afford basic needs and live a minimal standard of living. This paper discusses various theories that explain the causes and reasons behind poverty alongside their suggested solutions.
The first theory focuses on individual psychology as an explanation for the source of poverty. The individual psychological theory asserts that people are poor because they have made poor choices or do not work hard. It also claims that the lack of intelligence, limiting genetic attributions, or punishment from the gods could cause poverty (Danaan, 2018). Neoclassical economists are credited for the theory because they argue that individual bad investment decisions reinforce poverty sources. Therefore, these theorists feel that poverty ravages communities whose people are not making enough efforts to improve their status or are engaged in counterproductive activities. They recommend resilience, skill acquisition, motivation, and hard work as solutions to this cause of poverty. A variation of this theory is the culture of poverty, which states that poverty is caused by certain community practices, including early marriages, frequent violence, lack of future planning, larger families, and extreme reliance on the supernatural (Danaan, 2018). Hence, the theory of individual psychology argues that everyone is responsible for their lack of resources.
Instead of focusing on the individual, the urban bias theory focuses on the location of residence. The theorist asserts that people in rural regions lack access to wealth-creating opportunities and remain poor, leading to rural poverty (Tickamyer & Latimer, 2019). Poverty-stricken areas, such as slums, rural villages, and places hit by disasters, lack the required economic activities to improve the employment and wealth status of the people (Danaan, 2018). Theorists recommend the establishment of industries that encourage wealth creation to attract investors in rural areas. Therefore, bias theory moves from the individual to the system in the locality and focuses on biased resource distribution.
The interactionist theory connects individuals and communities in the poverty description. It describes how poor people interact with the rich and the difficulties they experience in the process (Barkan, 2013). The theory assumes that rich people have significantly different lifestyles that the poor find challenging to adopt. For example, some movies show how people from poor backgrounds struggle to fit in when their school performance places them in elite schools. In Pretty Woman, Julia Roberts is a prostitute hired by a wealthy businessman for a party (Barkan, 2013). Roberts’s inability to behave ‘properly’ during the party with rich people and sophisticated social behavior expectations becomes the central comedy in the story. Interactionists focus on how poverty affects the social conduct of the poor; the effects are portrayed when they must interact with the wealthy class.
The institutional theory explains that institutions are the reason behind perpetual poverty. According to this theory, institutions are responsible for economic growth in every country (Goel & Karri, 2020). Therefore, it mainly applies to victims of historical injustices in community development, educational priority, and urban aid programs. Families living in areas sidelined by government institutions are more likely to experience the cycle of poverty. Similar to the vicious cycle of poverty, this theory treats society as the cause of poverty rather than individuals. Children born into poverty become the subjects of discrimination, low-quality education, low-paying jobs, and poor working conditions, all of which prevent them from creating wealth to escape poverty (Tickamyer & Latimer, 2019). Social exclusion of minority groups, such as indigenous communities, also contributes to the cycle of deprivation. Transparency in legal systems, property rights, legal enforcement, social inclusion, and affirmative action are suggested solutions to this kind of poverty.
The rational choice theory states that more redistribution of economic resources will increase incomes. Unevenly dispersed incomes cause growing poverty in communities (Van Aaken & Kurtz, 2019). According to the rational choice theory, countries with evenly distributed income levels have lower levels of poverty prevalence. In addition, redistributing incomes to make them comparable is a potential solution for nations with high poverty rates (Van Aaken & Kurtz, 2019). Individuals must be rationalists to maximize personal utility and encourage redistribution because the political system reacts to such players.
The evolutionary theory focuses on how poverty affects human behavior and economic decisions. Poverty results from capitalism, economic underdevelopment, political forces, welfare dependency, lack of human capital, poverty traps, and dysfunctional markets (May-Yazdi & BenDavid-Hadar, 2018). The theory posits that low-income families are likely to choose large families to increase productivity and income through child labor. On the other hand, rich people choose small families to avoid being drained out by supporting many dependents. Evolutionary theorists believe that most economic and social choices are determined by financial ability and resource availability.
The structuralist theory is social and political because it emphasizes government service distributions. When individuals gain access to resources, control, and maintain them, they have a high chance of succeeding against poverty (Tickamyer & Latimer, 2019). These necessary resources include capital, knowledge, technology, market, social relations, labor, identity, and authority. Their access is mainly controlled or determined by powers and rights in society. Most slums and rural areas severely lack access to resources, causing long-term poverty from one generation to another. Assets such as human, financial, social, natural, and informational capital are inadequate in rural villages. A possible solution to this problem would be government intervention by channeling resources to affected areas.
The functionalist theory argues that there is a system to allow people to overcome poverty easily, and stratification is inevitable and necessary. It argues that qualified but poor people do not face challenges and barriers in ascending the wealth hierarchy. The theorists support stratification as essential to society and causing stability (Barkan, 2013). The conflict theory argues that stratification continues to benefit the rich and increase their wealth at the cost of the poor. For example, the rich continually pay meager wages to their gardeners and nannies, making it impossible for these low-income earners to educate their children properly.
Poverty is a global issue that sociologists worldwide have tried to debate. Through the eight theories analyzed in this paper, poverty is multidimensional, with diverse causes and potential solutions. Each government is tasked with finding the most practical remedy to get its people out of poverty. The question remains whether such governments are interested or would gain from a population of all wealthy citizens.
References
Barkan, S. E. (2013). Social problems: Continuity and change. Boston, MA, USA: Flat World Knowledge, Incorporated.
Danaan, V. V. (2018). Analyzing poverty in Nigeria through theoretical lenses.Journal of Sustainable development, 11(1), 20-31. Web.
Goel, S., & Karri, R. (2020). Entrepreneurial aspirations and poverty reduction: the role of institutional context.Entrepreneurship & Regional Development, 32(1-2), 91-111. Web.
May-Yazdi, O., & BenDavid-Hadar, I. (2018). The relationships between income, academic education, and financial literacy: The case of the ultra-Orthodox in Israel.Education and Society, 36(2), 49-76. Web.
Tickamyer, A. R., & Latimer, M. (2019). A multi-level analysis of income sources of the poor and near-poor. In J. Singlemann (Ed.), Inequalities in labor market areas (pp. 83-106). Routledge.
Van Aaken, A., & Kurtz, J. (2019). Beyond rational choice: international trade law and the behavioral political economy of protectionism.Journal of International Economic Law, 22(4), 601-628. Web.
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