What Are The Two Famous Views About Poverty Given By Scientists?

Social scientists put forth a wide variety of proposals to cure a alleviate poverty. The different approaches often reflect differing views of the roots of poverty. Proponents of strong government action see poverty as the result of social and economic conditions over which the poor have little control. They stress malnutrition, poor schools, broken families, discrimination, lack of job opportunities, and a dangerous environment as central determinants of the fate of the poor. If you hold this view, you might well believe that government bears a responsibility to alleviate poverty, either by providing income to the poor or by correcting the conditions that produce poverty.


A second view holds that poverty grows out of maladaptive individual behavior, behavior that is the responsibility of individuals and is properly cured by the poor themselves. In early centuries, laissez faire apologists held that the poor were shiftless, lazy or drunk. Sometimes the government itself is blamed for breeding dependency upon a patchwork of government programs that squelch individual initiative. Critics who hold these views advocate that the government should cut back on welfare programs so that people will develop their own resources.