defining and measuring poverty

Question 1

What are the two main definitions of poverty?

Answer 1

1. Absoloute
2. Relative

Question 2

What is absoloute poverty?

Answer 2

Lacking the basic necessities to survive.

Question 3

What is relative poverty?

Answer 3

Lacking minimum necessities to partake in society.

Question 4

Who came up with the poverty map?

Answer 4

Charles Booth

Question 5

What did Charles Booth do in Inner London?

Answer 5

Booth conducted street surveys from 1889-1903.
He focused on Inner London (East London).
Booth found that 31% were living in poverty.
The results were based on an income level he had set to determine whether they were in absolute poverty or not.

Question 6

Give three issues with Charles Booth’s Poverty Map.

Answer 6

1. Biassed towards the rich as the language used in regards to the poor is rather derogatory and undermining.
2. The location is restricted as he looked at Inner London (a small area compared to the rest of London and other places).
3. Booth is basing his results purely on income and not considering other factors.

Question 7

What did Seebohm Rowntree do?

Answer 7

He conducted poverty surveys in York; 1904, 1941, 1951.
He sought to find whether citizens of York could purchase basic food items in order to survive.
As a result, he created a basket of goods as a measurement of absolute poverty.

Question 8

List the three measurements of absoloute poverty.

Answer 8

1. Basket of Goods (Rountree)
2. Budget Standards Approach (Bradshaw) - The minimum income required to buy the items needed to be healthy.
3. Poverty Line (EU) - Those above the poverty line meet the Budget Standards Measurement. Those below were in absolute poverty.

Question 9

What were the findings of Peter Townsend (1979)?

Answer 9

He identified issues with the use of the absolute poverty definition. He therefore found that poverty goes beyond ‘basic necessities’. This is because poverty is closely linked to inequality, rather than anything else.

Question 10

List the three measurements of relative poverty.

Answer 10

1. HBAI (Households Below Average Income) - Those below the 60% median income; mainly used to determine child poverty.
2. Deprivation Index (Townsend) - Those who meet the indicators of deprivation based on what is required to be a part of society at that time.
3. Consensual Approach - Those who could not meet 3/22 items listed on an agreed census on basic needs.