3a. Social Inequality Flashcards
Define inequality:
Extreme differences between poverty and wealth due to a variety of factors eg. age, ethnicity, gender, religion and education.
Define spatial inequality:
The unequal distribution of factors such as income, education, or health across geographic space at any scale
Define quality of life:
The extent to which peoples needs and desires are met eg does everyone have equal rights
Define standard of living:
The ability to access services and goods.
Eg food, water, clothes, housing and personal mobility
Indicators determining standard of living and quality of living:
Social -
Political -
Economic -
Environmental -
Describe examples of social factors that influence SOI and QOL:
Fear of crime, standard of health, standard of education, percentage on free school meals
Describe examples of political factors that influence SOI and QOL:
Opportunities to vote across all elections
Describe examples of economic factors that influence SOI and QOL:
Level of income, access to leisure services, access to employment, % of lone-parent families
Describe examples of environmental factors that influence SOI and QOL:
Vandalism, evidence of litter, level of pollution, quality of housing
What is the difference between poverty and deprivation?
Poverty refers to not having enough money to support a decent standard of living
Deprivation refers to a general lack of resources and opportunities
What is the cycle of deprivation?
Poverty (low wages/unemployment) - Poor living conditions - ill-health - poor education - poor skills
How does the UK government measure levels of deprivation?
Index of Multiple Deprivation to assess relative levels
What 7 factors are used to give Index of Multiple Deprivation?
Income Employment Health Education Crime Access to housing and services Living environment
What ways can social inequality be measured?
Income Housing Education Health care Employment
Income: What is the World Bank’s Definition of poverty?
US$1.25/day purchasing power parity
Income: why use PPP?
Allows global comparisons to be made between countries as costs vary considerably from one country to another
Income: how many citizens in UK fall below poverty threshold?
13 million citizens including 3.5 million children
Income: what technique can be used to measure levels of inequality in incomes within a country?
Gini coefficient - a ratio with values between 0 and 1.0
The lower the value the more equal the distribution of income
Housing: what in particular is an important indication of social inequality?
Housing tenure = the system under which housing is occupied
Housing: types of housing tenure
Owner-occupied
Rent from private landlords or local authorities
Education: why can education be underestimated in LIDCs?
If only formal qualifications are included then LIDCs are perceived to have lower levels of education
BUT
Informal education can be achieved eg milking a cow, learning to cook
Education: what gives a good indication of inequality in education?
Literacy rates - a measure of the ability to read and write at a basic level
Health care: what measure can be used to demonstrate social inequality?
Number of doctors per 1000 people
Health care: what factors affect health?
Access to clean water Effective sanitation Quality and quantity of diet Air quality Social behaviour eg attitudes towards HIV
