CULTURE OF POVERTY THESIS
Sociologyindex, Sociology Books 2012, Low Class Culture Theory, Culture-of-poverty Thesis
The theory that certain groups and individuals tend to persist in a state of poverty because they have distinct beliefs, values and ways of behaving that are incompatible with economic success.
The thesis is controversial and is opposed by situational theory, which locates the genesis of poverty in economic and social structures of society rather than in the value orientations of individuals or groups.
It is similar to 'low class culture theory' where it has been argued by some that the lower class have developed and transmit to their children, a different set of cultural values and expectations. They also argue that this culture is a barrier to their success in society.
BOOKS ON CULTURE OF POVERTY THESIS:
Soulside
: Inquiries into Ghetto Culture and Community. - Ulf Hannerz
Originally published 35 years ago, Soulside became an urban anthropological classic. The
book helped to dispel many false impressions about ghetto life and questioned the idea,
precipitated in the influential Moynihan Report and in notions of a "culture of
poverty," that the poor had chosen to lead the lives they do. Raising central moral
and political questions about American society in a turbulent period, Soulside became an
example of public engagement in anthropology. In a new afterword, Ulf Hannerz discusses
the book's place in the debates of the time and its relevance to current arguments in
anthropology.
The
War Against the Poor: The Underclass and Antipoverty Policy - Herbert J.
Gans
For most of its history, America has been fighting a vicious war that cannot be won: a war
against its own poor. In this incisive new book, Herbert J. Gans probes the socioeconomic,
psychological, and political reasons why better-off Americans seek to indict millions of
poor citizens as members of an "undeserving underclass." Although he analyzes
the legitimate fears and hostility that generate this stigma, he mounts a compelling
argument that the "underclass" actually functions as a scapegoat for ills in
American society that have nothing to do with the behavior of the poor. Many of these ills
are economic, and as more jobs are "downsized," a number of the newly jobless
people will be driven into the ranks of the "underclass." The book ends with a
set of imaginative economic policy ideas for an America that may never again be able to
supply enough decent jobs for everyone.
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Through
My Own Eyes: Single Mothers and the Cultures of Poverty
Susan Holloway, Bruce Fuller, Marylee F. Rambaud, Costanza Eggers-Pierola
"Revealing, penetrating and sobering, Through My Own Eyes paints a poignant
portrait of real women's real lives. At one level, this sensitively written book packs
lessons about struggle and survival. At another level, it is a profound treatise about
culture, class, misdirected practice, and misconstrued policy. All who read it will face
themselves and their attitudes about poverty with new understanding. A triumph!"
--Sharon L. Kagan, Senior Research Scientist, Yale University.
The
Price of Poverty: Money, Work, and Culture in the Mexican-American Barrio
Daniel Dohan
Drawing on two years of ethnographic fieldwork in two impoverished California
communities--one made up of recent immigrants from Mexico, the other of U.S.-born Chicano
citizens--this book provides an invaluable comparative perspective on Latino poverty in
contemporary America. In northern California's high-tech Silicon Valley, author Daniel
Dohan shows how recent immigrants get by on low-wage babysitting and dish-cleaning jobs.
In the housing projects of Los Angeles, he documents how families and communities of
U.S.-born Mexican Americans manage the social and economic dislocations of persistent
poverty. Taking readers into worlds where public assistance, street crime, competition for
low-wage jobs, and family, pride, and cross-cultural experiences intermingle, The Price of
Poverty offers vivid portraits of everyday life in these Mexican American communities
while addressing urgent policy questions such as: What accounts for joblessness? How can
we make sense of crime in poor communities? Does welfare hurt or help?
Race,
Ethnicity, Gender, and Class : The Sociology of Group Conflict and Change
(Sage Masters in Modern Social Thought) - Joseph F. Healey
"The Healey book is the best undergraduate textbook, in my opinion, to focus on the
U.S. experience of peoplehood…"
- Dr. Gonzalo Santos, California State University at Bakersfield
"I continue to be very impressed with the conceptual material included in the text
related to prejudice, racism, assimilation, stratification and pluralism and their
relation to larger social change processes. Students benefits tremendously from learning
about the perspectives that relate to understanding race relations occurring at multiple
levels: family, small group, community, state and global."
- Carol Ward, Brigham Young University
The culture-of-poverty thesis and African Americans: the work of Gunnar Myrdal and other institutionalists.: An article from: Journal of Economic Issues
Social
Class, Poverty and Education (Missouri Symposia on Research and Education)