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A specialist in the areas of poverty, job satisfaction, class structure in the United States, inequality, and organization structure and behavior, Charles Hurst is a professor of sociology at The College of Wooster. Hurst received his bachelor's degree and his master's degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He also has a Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut, which he received in 1972. Before coming to Wooster, he taught sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Fox Valley and at Wisconsin State University in La Crosse. A member of the American Sociological Association, Hurst wrote Living Theory: An Application of Classical Social Theory to Contemporary Life. He has also written Social Inequality: Forms, Causes, and Consequences. In addition, he authored such articles as "Socio-economic Status and Health-Care Choice" in the Journal of Business Research, and he has reviewed articles in Contemporary Sociology, Social Forces, and American Sociological Review. |
Though significant strides have been made
in the war on poverty, the plight of the poor in America continues to be
a source of great concern. Charles Hurst, professor of sociology at The
College of Wooster, is an expert in poverty and other forms of social inequality,
and he examines those two topics in this column.
Who makes up the poor in America today? Contrary to popular belief, substance abusers and those with little or no incentive to work make up a very small percentage of America's poor. Many of those classified as living in poverty in the United States are employed, and many have a strong work ethic. Unfortunately, they lack the training or education to raise their standard of living. Most of the poor are individuals who we would consider deserving of help: almost 40 percent are children; others are elderly, disabled, or single parents. There is also a segment of America's poor who are not fully employable because of physical or mental limitations, which prevent them from being attractive to employers. Is the gap between the haves and the have-nots in this country widening or narrowing? There is an ever-widening gap between the rich and the poor in America - a pace that accelerated in the late 1980s and 1990s because of the tremendous growth in the stock market. Wealthy people, with a large portion of their wealth in investments, benefited greatly, but poor people, with virtually no investments, made little or no gains in the decade. Also, the wealthy are able to pass their fortune on to the next generation, but the poor have nothing to pass on. As a result, the class structure perpetuates itself. Sociologists refer to it as the sedimentation of wealth. Additional reasons for the widening economic gap include increased differences between the earnings of low-skilled and higher-skilled workers, and the shift in the economy from production of goods to services, which contain a greater variation in salaries and wages. Changes in the age composition of the population, declines in the power of unions, the advent of new technologies, corporate streamlining, and governmental policies, such as tax reform, have also contributed to the growing economic inequality we've experienced. What progress, if any, has been made in the past decade? The Reform Act of 1996 attempted to make people more self-sufficient, and the policy was pretty effective in reducing the size of the welfare rolls, but it does not tell the entire story of poverty in this country. Nor is simple reduction in the welfare rolls an adequate measure of the success of welfare reform. Viewing this as "success" can delude us into thinking that we have eliminated most poverty and disguise from us the continuing plight of those who remain poor. Many of those no longer on the rolls are performing low-wage jobs, which will not solve their poverty problem. My concern is for the fate of those who stopped receiving government assistance. We don't fully know what will happen to them or to their children. Another concern is that the reduction of the welfare rolls in the 1990s took place when the economy was very healthy. What happens now as companies begin to cut back and layoff workers? I think what we are finding is that many people are working at low-level jobs, and both they and their families are still living in poverty, even though they are off the welfare rolls. Why does the cycle of poverty continue? First, I should say that most poor are not chronically poor or on welfare for long periods. Most poverty is episodic, not continual, even though many people will experience poverty at some time during their lives. For the minority who are chronically poor, upward mobility is very difficult. Even when the poor do manage to move up, they are not likely to move very far above the poverty level. Chronic poverty - that which perpetuates itself over generations - often leads to a feeling of hopelessness and despair. People who have known nothing but poverty feel trapped and disillusioned by the knowledge that they cannot escape this vicious cycle. It's easy to say that such people should pick themselves up by their bootstraps and get back on their feet, but when that's all you've experienced, it's easier said than done. Poverty can have a corrosive psychological effect. Moreover, those who are in families that have been chronically poor are least likely to have the resources, social contacts, and credentials needed to lift succeeding generations out of poverty. At what levels does inequality exist in this country? Inequality exists in many different forms in the United States. If you look at race, for example, you will see that whites have 10 times the average wealth of blacks in this country. Part of this is due to the assets that have been passed down in white families over the years, and part of it is due to the discrimination that is still present in the workplace. Gender is another level at which inequality exists. Women still do not have the earning power that men do. A third area in which inequality exists is education. The gap between the educated and non-educated in this country is staggering and not getting any closer. A fourth area of inequality is labor. With the decline of unions, the voice of the working class has been weakened. Even body image is a basis for inequality. It is well documented that overweight and unattractive people are less likely to be hired than individuals with well-defined bodies and good looks. Finally, the recent publicized problems at many schools also suggest that the groups with which we associate are also socially ranked according to prestige. What can the average citizen do about inequality and poverty in America? Most of the forces which drive inequality are beyond the average individual's control. For example, a capitalistic economy depends in part on competition, and competition generally means there are winners and losers. But this does not mean that we can do nothing to minimize the inequities in our society. One of the best things an individual can do is to break down the stereotypes about others. Develop empathy for the less fortunate by reading about their plight and by becoming more active with agencies that assist the poor. Once you get to meet these people, you begin to realize that we are all in this together, and that makes it easier to reach out to someone in need. Another is to take the long view. While a favorable position in our system of inequality may benefit one in the short run, in the long run, extensive and unwarranted inequality saps motivation and weakens many individuals' commitment to society. Finally, pressing public officials and employers for changes that reduce inequities is also something we can all do. |
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| Last updated: January 10, 2006 · For more information, contact John Finn | ||
