Policy Press
Ten Poverty and social harm: challenging discourses of risk, resilience and choice
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Abstract
This chapter explores the injurious nature of poverty as a condition and a generative context which determines the experience of related injury. Drawing on the social harm approach we seek to contextualise these injuries and to provide a counterpoint to dominant narratives of risk, resilience and choice that serve to individualise the harms of poverty. Using both quantitative and qualitative data from the PSE-UK study, four key findings emerge. First, poverty increases the risk of injuries in the home and at work, as well as the likelihood of being the victim of violence. Second, powerlessness is a key injury of poverty; the loss of control over key aspects of individuals’ lives is anxiety provoking – the PSE poor were three times more likely to report suffering from a mental illness than the non-poor. Third, the injuries of stigma and disrespect are daily features of life on a low income – the PSE poor were nearly eight and six times more likely to report instances of misrecognition due to class and disability. Finally poverty injuriously impacts relationships and the ability to participate socially; under financial constraint, PSE survey participants are more likely to relinquish friendships
Abstract
This chapter explores the injurious nature of poverty as a condition and a generative context which determines the experience of related injury. Drawing on the social harm approach we seek to contextualise these injuries and to provide a counterpoint to dominant narratives of risk, resilience and choice that serve to individualise the harms of poverty. Using both quantitative and qualitative data from the PSE-UK study, four key findings emerge. First, poverty increases the risk of injuries in the home and at work, as well as the likelihood of being the victim of violence. Second, powerlessness is a key injury of poverty; the loss of control over key aspects of individuals’ lives is anxiety provoking – the PSE poor were three times more likely to report suffering from a mental illness than the non-poor. Third, the injuries of stigma and disrespect are daily features of life on a low income – the PSE poor were nearly eight and six times more likely to report instances of misrecognition due to class and disability. Finally poverty injuriously impacts relationships and the ability to participate socially; under financial constraint, PSE survey participants are more likely to relinquish friendships
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- List of tables and figures iv
- Glossary viii
- Notes on contributors xii
- Acknowledgements xv
- Introduction 1
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Resources
- Fifty years of poverty in the UK 27
- Living standards in the UK 57
- Severe poverty and destitution 91
- Poverty, local services and austerity 113
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Participation
- Social participation and social support 137
- Employment, poverty and social exclusion 159
- Poverty, social exclusion and civic engagement 179
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Quality of life
- Poverty and health: thirty years of progress? 203
- Housing and the living environment 225
- Poverty and social harm: challenging discourses of risk, resilience and choice 245
- Financial inclusion, financial stress and debt 267
- The poverty of well-being 289
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Bringing it together
- The multidimensional analysis of social exclusion 311
- Conclusions and emerging themes 343
- Index 363
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- List of tables and figures iv
- Glossary viii
- Notes on contributors xii
- Acknowledgements xv
- Introduction 1
-
Resources
- Fifty years of poverty in the UK 27
- Living standards in the UK 57
- Severe poverty and destitution 91
- Poverty, local services and austerity 113
-
Participation
- Social participation and social support 137
- Employment, poverty and social exclusion 159
- Poverty, social exclusion and civic engagement 179
-
Quality of life
- Poverty and health: thirty years of progress? 203
- Housing and the living environment 225
- Poverty and social harm: challenging discourses of risk, resilience and choice 245
- Financial inclusion, financial stress and debt 267
- The poverty of well-being 289
-
Bringing it together
- The multidimensional analysis of social exclusion 311
- Conclusions and emerging themes 343
- Index 363
