Social Economic Status

Due April 24th Economic factors – from the amount of money coming in to the day-to-day management of finances and major purchasing decisions – affect virtually every aspect of family life. When a family doesn’t know how it will pay this month’s rent or where its next meal is coming from or whether there will be a warm place to sleep that night, that family will have a difficult time being comfortable, happy, and satisfied. When economic foundations are weak, the emotional bonds that tie a family together can easily crumble. Some of the most devastating effects of poverty are felt by the youngest members of society. Experiences with poverty early in life are likely to lead to a series of other disadvantages and eventually culminate in long-term economic and social disadvantages. The current modifications to the welfare system are not likely to improve and may even worsen the economic circumstances or life chances of these children. Meanwhile, wealth has become increasingly concentrated at the opposite end of the economic spectrum. As the rich get richer, the poorer segments of the population suffer. Even many middle-class people in the United States are experiencing a decline in their standard of living. In our strongly individualistic and capitalistic culture, it will be difficult to alter the attitudes and policies regarding income distribution. What we may be coming to see is, however, that the indirect costs of poverty (unemployment, nonmarital and early pregnancy, crime, lack of education, and so on) are much greater than are the direct costs of implementing programs to help low-income poverty-level families. In thinking about this, consider the following: • What do you think are the most important ways in which social class influences family life, especially for families raising children, in the United States? • How would you characterize your own social class background? Describe the way you think your class background influenced your childhood. How would your life have been different if you had been born into a different social class? • What do you think our society’s response to economically disadvantaged families should be? Should we limit government programs to help the poor to force them to become financially independent, or should we expand these programs to help these families? Are these the only two choices? This homework assignment should be typed and doubled-spaced. It should be about 4-5 pages in length and no longer than 5 pages.