POVERTY

Little research on poverty, especially in majority- world countries where it is associated with

    Exploding population
    Inadequate healthcare
    Mental health burden
    Illiteracy
    Corruption
    Social injustice

World Bank definition - < $1USD per day

2.8 billion (46%) @ < $2USD per day

The face of poverty differs by culture; therefore, the psychological experience of poverty must address the cultural context in which it occurs

Philippines – how people raised in poverty come to lead different lives (poor-poor, poor-rich)
    
    Experiences of poverty
    Perceived causes
    Coping
    Cultural characteristics (normative values)

Qualitative comparison – idiographic and emic

    Personal and social construction of the meaning of poverty
    Critical discussion of the social-historical context of privilege and oppression
    Method fits the tradition of trusting and respectful oral interaction

90-120 min interview; 3 main questions

    “How was your experience of poverty growing up?”
    “How is your experience of poverty now?”
    “What did you do to cope with poverty?”

Grounded-theory analysis

    Derive meaningful units, categories, and themes and compare their frequencies
    Integrate categories into a conceptual understanding of poverty and its process of change

Results – more similarities than differences

    Poor-poor and poor-rich

        Recalled early experiences of deprivation
 
        Attributed poverty to family circumstances (e.g., unemployment)

        Expressed negative emotion

        Coped by

            Offering and seeking support
            Marriage (timing, choice)
            Faith (trust in God to provide)

        Cultural characteristics

            Debt of gratitude
            Letting go (patience, surrender)
            Perseverance
            Reliance on others

    Poor-poor vs. poor-rich

        Less positive feelings
        Viewed themselves as less efficacious
        Relied more on their children
        Fewer ambitious dreams for themselves
        More personal and social attributions (e.g., low education, government corruption)
        Greater acceptance

Interpretation

    Lasting internalized sense of social class origins (deprivation experience and negative emotions)
    Fundamental attribution error (overestimation of dispositional causes vs. structural perpetuation of poverty)
    Coping of poor-poor protects them from disappointment and hurt (acceptance, less ambition, hope for children)
    Cultural values and beliefs used by poor-poor to survive and by poor-rich to distance from poverty
    Material success due to educational attainment and chance opportunities that permit emigration

DISCUSSION:

➢    Why have psychologists neglected the study of poverty and its eradication?
➢    In what ways do the findings for Filipinos validate or disconfirm your views of poverty generally?
➢    The author suggests that poor-rich serve as an inspiration to the poor-poor.  Do you believe their narrative offers hope for change?