Discuss the "culture of poverty" and "underclass". Explain how these concepts place children and adults "at-risk"

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

• Sociologist Oscar Lewis coined the phrase "culture of poverty" to describe this condition. Apathy, cynicism, helplessness, and mistrust of social institutions such as schools, government agencies, and the police mark the culture of poverty.
• This mistrust prevents members of the lower class from taking advantage of the meager opportunities available to them. Lewis's work was the first of a group that described the plight of at-risk children and adults.
• Economic disparity will continually haunt members of the underclass and their children over the course of their lifespan. Even if they value education and other middle-class norms, their desperate life circumstances (e.g., high unemployment and nontraditional family structures) may prevent them from developing the skills, habits, and lifestyles that lead first to educational success and later to success in the workplace.
• Their ability to maintain social ties in the neighborhood become weak and attenuated, further weakening a neighborhood's cohesiveness and its ability to regulate the behavior of its citizens.
• Student responses will vary, but should include a discussion on "at-risk"