3A) The distribution of resources, wealth and opportunities are not evenly spread within and between places Flashcards
What is social inequality
- when uneven opportunities or rewards exist for people within a society exist for people within a society and between people of different social status or position
- differences e.g. age exist in all societies
- spatial inequality- social differences vary from place to place
What is quality of life
the extent to which people’s needs and desires are met
What is standard of living
the ability to access services and goods- includes basics e.g. food
What two key factors are significant in determing standard of living and quality of life
- income
- wealth
- higher income tends to offer people greater choice in housing, education and diet but might not always lead to improved quality of life e.g. longer work hours
What is deprivation
- when social inequalities lead to great differences between groups of people
- lack of resources and opportunities
Physical indicators of quality of life and standard of living
- quality of housing
- number of heritage sites
- level of pollution
- graffiti
Economic indicators of quality of life and standard of living
- access to leisure/services
- income
- employment
Social indicators of quality of life and standard of living
- fear of crime
- access to state housing
- percentage of free school meas
- access to facilities
Political indicators of quality of life and standard of living
-opportunities to participate in community life and influence decisions
Briefly outline the cycle of multiple deprivation
- poverty (low wages of unemployment)
- poor living conditions (poor accommodation)
- ill health (stress and strain)
- poor education (old schools)
- poor skills (poor occupational skills)
The UK government uses an index of multiple deprivation to show levels of deprivation. What are the seven factors to give an overall measure
- income
- employment
- health
- education
- crime
- access to housing and services
- living environment
Advantages vs disadvantages of the Index of Multiple Deprivation
+identifies most deprived areas
+compare larges ares
-identifies deprived people
-compare with small areas in other UK countries
Example of inequality at the intra urban scale- Salisbury- Bermerton Heath
- 20% most deprived
- 10% most for lack of education
- 20% most for poor physical and mental health
- 50% least for access to housing and services
Example of inequality at the intra urban scale- Salisbury- St Francis
- 10% least deprived
- 10% least deprived health
- 10% least deprived for lack of education
- 20% most for access to housing and services
Example of inequality at a local scale- Toxteth
- 10% most deprived
- 20% most deprived for education
- 40% most deprived for crime
Example of inequality at a local scale- Lympstone
- 20% least deprived
- 40% least deprived for education
- 40% least deprived for crime
5 factors used to measure social inequality
- income
- housing
- educaiton
- healthcare
- employment
Factors used to measure social inequality- income- what is absolute poverty
US $1.25 a day purchasing power parity- a person cannot afford minimum amount of basic needs
Factors used to measure social inequality- income- what is purchasing power parit
the cost of obtaining a particular good or service that varies from one country to another
Factors used to measure social inequality- income- what is relative poverty
relates to the level of poverty to the distibution of income across the whole world
-UK- 13 million inhabitants in relative poverty
Factors used to measure social inequality- income- what is a gini co-efficient
a technique that measures levels of income inequality within countries
- lower the value the more equal the distribution
- high countries- Brazil, Chile, South Africa
- low countries- USA, UK, Italy
Factors used to measure social inequality- housing- what is housing tenture
an indicator in social inequality
Factors used to measure social inequality- housing- what are the 4 ways you can get a house
- borrowing money e.g. mortgage
- rent from private landlord
- rent from local authorities
- charities/housing associates providing subsidised accomodation
Factors used to measure social inequality- housing- what are squatter settlements
where people have no legal right to the land they occupy
Factors used to measure social inequality- education- what is the difference between formal and informal education
- formal is provided by schools, colleges, apprenticeships and unis
- informal can be gained by doing something in the home or workplace
Factors used to measure social inequality- education- why are literacy levels used to measure inequality
- they indicate inequality in education
- contrasts among countries in levels of literacy rates and gender equality
Factors used to measure social inequality- health care- what affects access to health care
social inequality, location, levels of poverty
Factors used to measure social inequality- health care- what influences poverty and ill health
number of health care professionals
Factors used to measure social inequality- health care- how do we measure health care inequality
number of doctors per 1000 people
Factors used to measure social inequality- health care- explain the UK post code health lottery
depending on where you live, the level of medical provision through the NHS vries
Factors used to measure social inequality- health care- what also influenced health
- access to clean water
- effective sanitation
- quality and quantity of diet
- type of housing
- air quality
Factors used to measure social inequality- housing
- regular income has an impact on the standard of living anf the quality of life
- someone may be in employment but recieve low wages e.g. in ACs
- in urban areas- people work in the informal sector
- social inequality exists at all scales- individual’s life chances related to where they live
How can the Human Development Index be used to measure social inequality
it is based on three things- income adjusted, life expectancy, education. It ranges from 1 to 0 and highlights the inequalities theat exist between countries
Factors explaining spatial variations in social inequality- wealth
- globally low incomes are linked to ill health, lower education level and poor access to services
- lack of formal qualifications and low skills sets are major obstacles to raising income nd therefore reducing social inequality
- cost of living is important
- disposable income-key factor- the amount left over after tge essentials of life have been bought
Factors explaining spatial variations in social inequality- health
- sub standard housing, poor diet, unhealthy lifestyles and additional stresses living in poverty take their toll on human health
- the distribution of health care services is uneven
- groups such as the elderly have limited mobility which restricts access to health care
- rural reas- facilities dispersed so access hard
Factors explaining spatial variations in social inequality- education
- achieving universal access was one of the MDGs- most governments invest in this to improve quality of life
- illiteracy excludes people from accessing training and skills
- access hardest for rural dwellers of LIDCs e.g. central African countries
Factors explaining spatial variations in social inequality- housing
- the smaller the income of a household, the less choice of housing they have
- poor quality housing and overcrowded conditions create ill health- occurs when demand exceeds supply. LIDCs and EDCs- many live in slum housing e.g. Mumbai
- homelessness is a growing problem in ACs- additional problem when house prices rise at a faster rate than wages. This can lead to a shortage of affordable housing ay the lower end of the market
- rural areas- increases in 2nd home ownership have priced many locals out of the market
Factors explaining spatial variations in social inequality- access to services
- global scale- inequalities between societies in ACs, EDCs and LIDCS. One measure of access to medical services is the number of doctors per 1000 people- norway there are 4.1, Brazil there are 1.9
- national scale- inequalities between regions. People living in core regions where wealth is high, tend to have good access to services. Those in peripheral regions suffer from limited access e.g. Cornwall
- access to services influenced by- number of services, how easy it is to get to service, social and economic factors
