3. Poverty is the pronounced deprivation of well-being. It is not
being able to satisfy one's basic needs because one
possesses insufficient money to buy services or lacks the
access to services.
Absolute poverty refers to the state of severe deprivation
of basic human needs, which commonly includes
food, water, sanitation, clothing, shelter, healthcare,
education and information.
Relative poverty refers to as being below some relative
income threshold, where this threshold differs for each
society or country. One may be relatively poor, without being
in the state of absolute poverty; relative poverty is often
considered as an indirect measure of income inequality.
4. There are many theories theorists had came up with to
the cause of poverty. Some theorists have accused the
poor of having little concern for the future and
preferring to “live for the moment”; others have accused
them of engaging in self-defeating behaviour. Still other
theorists have characterized the poor as fatalists,
resigning themselves to a culture of poverty in which
nothing can be done to change their economic
outcomes. In this culture of poverty—which passes from
generation to generation—the poor feel negative,
inferior, passive, hopeless, and powerless.
5. The effects of poverty are serious. Children who grow up in poverty
suffer more persistent, frequent, and severe health problems than
children who grow up under better financial circumstances.
Many infants who were born in families originally suffering from
poverty have a low birth weight, which is related to many
preventable mental and physical disabilities. Not only are these poor
infants more vulnerable to diseases and illnesses, they have higher
possibility of dying before their first birthday.
Children raised in poverty tend to miss school more often because of
illness. These children also have a higher records of accidents than
others, due to the great possibility of having impaired vision and
hearing, iron deficiency anaemia, and higher levels of lead level in the
blood, which can impair brain functions.
6. Levels of stress in the family have also been shown to
increase with accordance to economic circumstances.
Studies during economic recessions show that job loss
and subsequent poverty are associated with violence in
families, including child and elder abuse. Poor families
experience more stress than middle-class families.
Besides financial uncertainty, these families are also
more likely to be exposed to series of negative events
and “bad luck”, including illness, depression, eviction,
job loss, criminal victimisation and family death. Parents
who experience hard economic times may become
excessively strict and erratic, issuing demands backed
by insults, threats, and corporal punishment.
7. The cycle of poverty has been defined as a phenomenon where poor
families become trapped in poverty for at least three generations. In
calculations of expected generation length and ancestor lifespan,
the lower median age of parents in these families is offset by the
shorter lifespans in many of these groups.
Such families have either limited or no resources. There are many
disadvantages that collectively work in a circular process making it
virtually impossible for individuals to break the cycle. This occurs
when poor people do not have the resources necessary to get out of
poverty, such as financial capital, education, or connections. In other
words, poverty-stricken individuals experience disadvantages as a
result of their poverty, which in turn increases their poverty. This
would mean that the poor remain poor throughout their lives. This
cycle has also been referred to as a "pattern" of behaviours and
situations which cannot easily be changed.
