Warren, N. (2019). A Psychosocial and Human Rights Investigation into Poverty and Social Exclusion in the United Kingdom. University of Essex, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.5526/esj13
Abstract:
This essay will examine the issue of poverty in the United Kingdom (UK), drawing on its definition as a lack of adequate resources to provide the necessities of life. It will also address the issue of social exclusion, examining the experience as one that is made up of multiple deprivations, including poverty, exclusion from the labour market, services and social relations (Gordon, et al., 2000). It will use a psychosocial approach to investigate poverty and social exclusion in the UK, showing how they affect individuals on multiple levels, as well as negatively impacting society at large. It will demonstrate how poverty and social exclusion are human rights issues. Moreover, it will refute the prevalent discourse levelled at social security benefit recipients, that is to say, the claim that they are lazy or inherently lacking in some trait or quality (Froggett, 2002; Baillie, 2011; Van der Bom et al., 2017). My key argument is that it is social structures and political and economic institutions which create and maintain socioeconomic inequalities, perpetuating the status quo.