Running head: POVERTY RESEARCH Page !1 of !

13

Poverty Research

Melissa Hanson: 000810735

Drake University

Research: COUN 201


Poverty Research Page !2 of !13

Abstract

Poverty seems to be the topic of conversation for most political, educational conversations,

and health conversations, yet little seems to changing for the people who experience poverty. It

has been called the silent killer, and has been a part of our world for as far back as anyone can

remember. Poverty effects the people who live in it physically, mentally, emotionally, and

financially. This essay gives a brief overview of poverty statistics and the reality of poverty in

America. Statistics show how complex and relative living in poverty is. Turning a blind eye

toward the staggering statistics of poverty is not going to better the situations of the people who

are living in poverty everyday.

Poverty Research Page !3 of !13

Poverty Statistics, Demographics, and Success Rates

As a country we have seen economic growth over the last 30 years, yet the United States

poverty rate has not decreased, it has actually continued to remain high (DeFina & Hannon,

2013). When looking at why, first we must look at how poverty is defined and measured in the

United States. DeFina and Hannon describe a predefined threshold for family incomes, and

when a person falls below the line, the entire family is considered poor (2013).

Based on the threshold, 14% of adults in the United States, 18-24 years in age, were living

in poverty in 2012. While the poverty rate for children was a bit higher, with 22% of children

living in poverty (ERIC, 2013). Another form of poverty would be the term, absolute poverty,

which is defined as the lack of basic needs being met over a period of time, which harm or

threaten your life (Salem Press Encyclopedia, 2015). In 2009, the World Bank measured absolute

poverty as making $1.25 a day (Salem Press Encyclopedia, 2015).

The absolute poverty rate is higher in the United States than in any other industrialized

nation (Komro, Flay, & Biglan, 2011). This fact could be looked at as a complete failure for the

wealth distribution in the United States of America. The top three percent of our nation holds

54.4% of the wealth. This is over double the amount of America’s poorest families, 90% of the

population (Komro, Flay, & Biglan, 2011). The biggest issue in United States poverty (Salem

Press Encyclopedia, 2015) comes from those American families who are working, but still living

in poverty. This is known as “working poor.” In 2011, 28% of working Americans earned

poverty-level wages (Economic Policy Institute, 2015).

Poverty Research Page !4 of !13

Sociological Aspects of Economically Disadvantages Communities.

Poverty has societal consequences and can not only leave a person in financial poverty, but

also a “poverty of spirt” (Bartle, 2013). A lot of times there are stereotypes and judgements that

are related to poverty. It is a learned behavior in our society and “the number one teacher about

poverty in America is media,” (Beegle, 2013). In American society poverty is seen from our

communities, schools, occupations, and neighbors as “less” human and shameful. Lustig and

Strauser state, “poor people are consigned to low social status, are looked down upon, and are

systematically rejected by society, community, friends, family, and professionals (p 196).

There are also many links that correlate with poverty and the environmental risk factors

that arise for those living there. Lustig and Strauser state,

“there is an increase likelihood that an individual will square a disability or chronic health

problem. For example, individuals who are poor often live in neighborhoods with high

crime, poor schools, and limited social networks” (p 198).

The link of poverty to risk environments is also seen in the lack of services including

education, health care, jobs, transportation, communications, sanitation, and decision making

ability (Bartle, 2013).

Psychological Aspects of Living in Poverty

Poverty has also been linked to mental instability in both children and adults (Santiago,

Kaltman, & Miranda, 2012). Yet the percentage of poor adults and children who receive mental

health services is low. Living in poverty also creates more stress, which can then lead to an

increased risk for psychological disorders. (Santiago, Kaltman, & Miranda, 2012).
Poverty Research Page !5 of !13

Studies have been done to support the increased negative effects of poverty in mental

health, which shows that persistent poverty was associated with stress, depression, and antisocial

behavior (Santiago, Kaltman, & Miranda, 2012).

When people live in poverty there are multiple risk for their health, but also their well

being. Komro, Flay, and Biglan state, “Poverty is a major risk factor for several mental,

emotional, and behavioral disorders, as well as for other developmental challenges and physical

health problems” (p 111). Poor children are often times exposed to more violence, divorce of

their parents, and frequent moving of homes, (Lustig & Strauser, 2007), all which would

contribute to instability and more mental health issues.

Education and Poverty

Poverty has a profound affect on the kind of education a student receives. Whether it is

from the type of education they receive or the supports that are given to students to help them be

successful in the school environment. There are staggering statistics about children living in

poverty and the education they are receiving. Studies have shown a correlation in a student’s

success rate within the education system and the level of poverty a student is living in (ERIC,

2013). This in turn, is a strong predictor of their adult careers and earnings (ERIC, 2013).

ERIC also stated that “Children growing up in poverty experience poorer health, higher

incidence of developmental delays, learning disabilities, and hunger compared to their peers,” (p

1). They also have a lower enrollment rate in both primary and secondary school (Adewale,

2011) which impacts the amount of education they are receiving. You can not receive

information when you are not present. Lustig & Strauser also discuss how the school systems in

low-income areas spend less money on each student, classrooms are noisier, and teachers are not
Poverty Research Page !6 of !13

as qualified, creating an education system that is far less superior than an education coming from

a middle income environment (2007).

However, the government is trying to help one of the issues children in poverty are facing,

hunger. The federally assisted meal program, National School Lunch & Breakfast Program,

provides students who qualify nutritional, low cost or free lunches to children everyday at

school. More than 21 million children qualified for the free or reduced meals in 2015 (Feeding

America, 2015). Feeding America has proposed a solution for how to continue to supplement

kids will meals during the weekends with a Back Pack Program, which has been running for the

last 15 years. It also has outreach programs including Kids Cafe which gives free food and

snacks to different after school organizations like Boys and Girls Club, churches, YMCA’s, or

public schools (Feeding America, 2015).

Health, Healthcare and Poverty

Statistics also show that being poor has a direct correlation on your access to health care or

insurance (Lustig & Strauser, 2007). The access to health care in poor neighborhoods is not

readily available so children in those areas are less likely to visit physicians, receive needed

medicine, or have the luxury of an emergency room visit (Lustig & Strauser, 2007). The health

services received are also inferior in quality, similar to the education system, (Lustig & Strauser,

2007).

While there are many flaws in our healthcare system, in 2010, President, Barack Obama,

passed a healthcare reform law, The Affordable Care Act, which provided more Americans with

access to affordable healthcare. Since 2010, 16.4 million uninsured individuals have gained

health care through the Affordable Care Act (US Department of Health & Human Services,
Poverty Research Page !7 of !13

2015). Obama is not the only president to try and mend poverty in America. President Franklin

D. Roosevelt developed social and work programs, including the Works Progress Administration,

which employed 8.5 million people (Salem Press Encyclopedia, 2015). Lyndon B Johnson also

saw the crisis in America in the 1960’s and implemented, The War on Poverty, which developed

welfare programs within the United States (Salem Press Encyclopedia, 2015).

We can not overlook the role race plays in health rates of poverty. African Americans, in

comparison to whites, have a higher rate in numerous life threatening diseases (Lustig &

Strauser, 2007). African Americans also have the highest poverty rate, 27.4%, among all racial

and ethnic groups in America (Economic Policy Institute, 2015).

Human Service Agencies Serving People Living in Poverty

The American Public Human Service Association (APHSA): Pathways is a organization

that is actively trying to improve outcomes for people who are living in poverty. Director of

Practice Innovation at APHSA, Phil Basso, talks about some of the action plans that Pathways

are using to improve the lives of people living in poverty include initiatives for: (a) Prevention,

(b) Early Intervention, (c) Bridge Supports, (d) Capacity-Building, (e) Sustainability, and (f)

Person-Centered Planning (Basso, 2013). These initiatives are being incorporated in local

communities, and hopefully will bridge some of the gaps that come along with poverty. 


Homeless shelters around the United States continue to offer services to homeless

Americans in America. Most homeless shelters are affiliated with churches, and after an

interview with Catholic Charities worker Adam Stone, presented a different side to the story. A

lot of times people working in Human Services Agencies are underpaid and overworked. They

are doing a job of compassion rooted in love and compassion for people living in poverty, yet
Poverty Research Page !8 of !13

Stone stated, “The people who work in those fields are burned out, and get compassion fatigue,

they are not sensitive to problems. They have heard that story 100 times, and their compassion

has faded,” (Stone, A., personal interview, October 9, 2015). How do we change that? People

living in poverty are dealing with issues that are huge, and most of the workers in human

services are not qualified to help people living in poverty deal with their issues and meet their

needs.

One thing Human Service Agencies can do, is connect people living in poverty with social

networks or supports within the community. About 50% of workers knew someone at their place

of employment when hired (Lustig & Strauser, 2007), which shows the importance of a strong

social network, especially when trying to find a job.

Employment Agencies Serving People Living in Poverty

There are programs out there, including ones offered from Pathways, that are helping low-

income adults learn skills they need for professional stability. Whether it is helping people

obtain a certificate, degree, qualification, or training they need for a future profession. Pathways’

mission is to help people in poverty find a job (Basso, 2013).

Unfortunately, poverty can be linked to a lack of services including education, health care,

jobs, transportation, communications, sanitation, and decision making ability (Bartle, 2013). We

also talked earlier about the judgements that come from poverty, and because there is such a

negative connotation that comes with being poor, it makes it very difficult for poor individuals to

successful find a job and escape poverty. Poor individuals have a one in three chance of escaping

poverty in any given year (McKernan, Ratcliffe, Cellini, 2009), and if they do get out of poverty

roughly half will become poor again within five years (McKernan, Ratcliffe, Cellini, 2009).
Poverty Research Page !9 of !13

Another thing that is not helping employment rates is the large amount of individuals in

prison that has rose during the last 30 years (DeFina & Hannon, 2013). Between 1975-2005 the

incarceration rate increased 342%, which has left the United States with the highest incarceration

rate in the world (DeFina & Hannon, 2013). There is the added benefit of once you have been

incarcerated you now have a lot of trouble finding a job, because of the stain on your record.

Successful Interventions for People and Families Living in Poverty

Dr. Donna Beegle talks about five successful research based theories to help people move

out of poverty. They include:

1. Strengths Perspective Approach: This includes understanding and promoting the belief that

everyone (adults and children) have strengths to offer. This in turn gives people living in

poverty empowerment (Beegle, 2012).

2. Resiliency Theory: Similar to a strengths based perspective in that you really, but really

focus on how people in poverty have developed resilience to get through (Beegle, 2012).

3. Asset Theory: Providing clients with both internal (conflict resolution skills, sense of

purpose) and external assets (services, opportunities, supports, and resources) to move them

forward to opportunities (Beegle, 2012).

4. Social Capital Theory: Introducing people to meaningful relationships with others who are

educated. Basically building a strong support network (Beegle, 2012).

5. Faulty Attribution Theory: Not making any assumptions or judgements about peoples

behavior and really attempt to find out the “why” that is making them act the way they do

(Beegle, 2012).
Poverty Research Page !10 of !13

Another way to escape poverty is receiving higher education (McKernan, Ratcliffe, Cellini,

2009) and surrounding yourself with supports of people who also have education.

President Obama has started the Promise Neighborhoods initiative, to promote child

educational and health outcomes (Komro, Flay, Biglan, 2011) in high risk neighborhoods like the

Bronx and Harlem. The model is the “Harlam Children’s Zone” which provides supports for

children and families within neighborhoods. It includes: “(a) parenting classes, (b) pre-

kindergarten programs; (c) charter schools; (d) after-school programs; (e) transition support to

college; (f) employment and technology center; (g) tenant block associations” (p 112-113).

The United Nations is also a huge resource of fighting poverty in the United States and

around the world.14 years ago the United Nations developed a program/vision called the

Millennium Declaration to save lives threatened by disease and hunger in the world. They are

fighting large obstacles including: finding solutions for disease like malaria and tuberculosis, as

well as improving drinking water, providing education for both boys and girls, fighting

undernutrition in children (United Nations, 2014).

Poverty Research Page !11 of !13

References

Adewale, T.M. (2011). Access to Education and Employment Opportunities: Implications for

poverty reduction. African higher education review (AHER), 4, 42-52


We Feed Children. (2015).

Bartle, P. (2007). Factors of poverty: The big five: Community empowerment collective.

Retrieved October 13, 2015 from http://cec.vcn.bc.ca/cmp/modules/emp-pov.htm

Basso, P. (2013). Local Agency and Community Strategies for Innovating Practice and Service.

Policy & Practice, 19-36.

Beegle, D. (2012). Educating students who live in poverty. [Handout]. Connecting People,

Communication Across Barriers, Tigard, OR

DaFina, R. & Hannon, L. (2013). The impact of mass incarceration on poverty. Crime &

delinquency. 59(4), 562-586. doi:10.1177/0011128708328864

Draine, J. (2013). Mental health, mental illness, poverty, justice, and social justice. American

journal of psychiatric rehabilitation, 4: 87-90, doi: 10.1090/15487768.2013.789684

Economic Policy Institute. (2015). Poverty. The state of working America. [Fact Sheet]

Retrieved October 13, 2008 from http://www.stateofworkingamerica.org/fact-sheets/

poverty/

ERIC. (2013). Child poverty in the U.S: What new census data tell us about our youngest

children. Center for law and social policy, inc. Washington D.C. Retrieved October 13,

2015 from: http://files.eric.ed.gov.cowles-proxy.drake.edu/fulltext/ED547127.pdf

Poverty Research Page !12 of !13

Feeding America. (2015). We feed children. Retrieved October 13, 2015 from: http://

www.feedingamerica.org/about-us/we-feed-children/

Institute for Policy Studies. (2015). Inequality. Retrieved October 13, 2015 from: http://

inequality.org/wealth-inequality/

Komro, K.A., Flay, B. R., & Biglan, A. (2011). Creating nurturing environments: A science-

based framework for promoting child health and development within high-poverty

neighborhoods. Clinical child & family psychology review, 14: 111-134, doi:10.1007/

s10567-011-0095-2

Lustig, D. C., & Strauser, D. (2007). Causal relationships between poverty and disability.

Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, 50(4), 194-202.

McKernan, S.M., Ratcliffe, C., Cellini, S.R. (2009). Transitioning In and Out of Poverty.

Understanding Poverty. [Fact Sheet, no.1]. The Urban Institute, Washington, DC.

Poverties. (2011). Relative vs. absolute poverty: Why and how do we measure poverty?

Retrieved October 12, 2015 from: http://www.poverties.org/absolute-poverty.html

Salem Press Encyclopedia. (2015). Poverty Overview. Salem Press.

Santiago, D.C., Kaltman, S., & Miranda, J. (2013). Poverty and mental health: how do low-

income adults and children fare in psychotherapy? Journal of clinical psychology. 69(2).

115-126.

Snowden, L.R. (2014). Poverty, safety net programs, and African American’s mental health.

American psychologyist. 69(8), 783-771.

Poverty Research Page !13 of !13

United Nations (2014). The Millennium Development Goals Report. New York. Retrieved

October 12, 2015 from http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/2014%20MDG%20report/

MDG%202014%20English%20web.pdf

US Department of Health & Human Services, (2015). The affordable care act is working. Health

care. Assistance secretary for public affairs. Retrieved on October 13, 2015 from: http://

www.hhs.gov/healthcare/facts-and-features/fact-sheets/aca-is-working/index.html.

World Bank Group. (2015). Working for a world free of poverty: Overview. Retrieved on

October 14, 2015 from: http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/overview