Understanding Society

This poignant book examines poverty, wealth and inequality in the UK, and provides insight into its history, its present-day forms and possible routes to its eradication. The book demonstrates how poverty, wealth and inequality are constructed in the UK, noting that it is not an innate part of the human experience, but a phenomenon which is constructed by economic and social circumstances. Using work ranging from Malthus' interrogation of the 'natural right of the poor to full support in [...] society' to more contemporary approaches, including Thomas Picketty's Capitalism in the Twenty First Century, the authors examine various forms of poverty, wealth and inequality in the UK, using the UK Household Longitudinal Study, Understanding Society, dataset to ground their findings in quantitative evidence. The book concludes with an assessment of what is required to potentially end poverty in the UK, and a call to apply evidence-based research to the reshaping of social policy in the UK. This book is an excellent resource for students, policy makers and lecturers seeking a greater understanding of poverty, wealth and inequality in the UK. It will be of particular interest to those working in or studying the fields of human geography, economics and social policy.

Carlo J. Morelli is Senior Lecturer in Economics at the University of Dundee Business School, UK. Paul T. Seaman was a Lecturer in Economics at the University of Dundee Business School, UK.

1.Introduction: Understanding Society: Poverty, wealth and inequality in the UK. 2.Understanding Society: Subjectivity, datasets and methodological approaches. 3.Extreme Poverty: A structural inequality? 4.The top 10%: Income and Wealth Inequality. 5.Inequality and Devolution. Localised solutions to poverty and inequality. 6.Child Poverty: creating intergenerational poverty. 7.Conclusion: An evidence-based policy agenda for ending poverty