Outline and Evaluate Research Into the Breakdown of Relationships Free Essays

Outline and evaluate research into the breakdown of romantic relationships. (24 marks) One piece of research into the breakdown of romantic relationships conducted by Thibaut and Kelly, can explain why a relationship may breakdown using the Social Exchange Theory. A relationship may breakdown due to the ‘profits’ and ‘losses’ in the relationship, one of the participants in the relationship may compare the current relationship to a previous one and realise they are not getting what they should be out of it. We will write a custom essay sample on Outline and Evaluate Research Into the Breakdown of Relationships or any similar topic only for you Order Now However, Hatfield’s Equity Theory suggests that individuals in a relationship are not trying to maximise the benefits and minimise the costs, but the happiest individuals were the ones where the rewards for both parties were equal. Therefore, a relationship may not breakdown because a person is under-benefitting but because there is an imbalance in the rewards. This research is supported by further research carried out by Hatfield which shows that the happiest newlyweds were the ones who felt like they both inputted equally into the relationship and had equal rewards. The ones under-benefitted had feelings of anger, resentment and deprivation, and those over benefitted felt guilty and uncomfortable. However, this may not mean that a relationship will break down. Karney and Bradbury (1995) found that marital unhappiness did not strong predict a future divorce. A problem with both of the theories is that they cannot explain why people stay in unhappy relationships, where the costs are clearly outweighing the benefits, or where the rewards are unequal. For example in an abusive relationship, many partners stay in the relationship even though they are not having any benefits from it. Another criticism of the social exchange theory is that they imply that people are extremely selfish and underestimates the role of altruism. There are also problems when trying to quantify the costs and benefits in a relationship. A problem with the equity theory is that there are strong individual differences as to how much equity people expect from a marriage or romantic relationship. These two theories focus on individualist cultures, where there is an emphasis on personal freedom. They may not apply to collectivist cultures where there is an emphasis more on what is best for society. Another researcher, Duck (1992) looked at findings from several longitudinal studies into the breakdown of relationships. He found that there are many predisposing factors that could influence the dissolution of a relationship. These factors can either be internal; which is where the risk lies in the partners background and personality, or external where it is events outside the relationship that may threaten it. Graziano et al (1996) supports the fact that personality has shown to be an important factor in the breakdown of relationships and says that individuals who are high in agreeableness (co-operative, supportive and non-confrontational) tend to be in relationships which last longer and there is less conflict. They also believe that relationships where one of both of the couple is high in neuroticism are more likely to end in a divorce. Duck’s predisposing factors do offer reasonable explanations for why some marriages may fail. However only some of the marriages that meet most of all of the criteria will actually end in a divorce, many divorces will involve couples that do not meet any of the criteria. This then suggests that the predisposing factors oversimplify the complex behaviour. This would make the theory reductionist and therefore is not good in explaining the breakdown of relationships. Another problem with the research is that a lot of it can be troubled by various factors such as individual differences with the individuals involved in the relationships. Many of the couples interviewed were often white and middle class, this is culturally biased and therefore means that the results found from the studies cannot be generalised to the cultures of the rest of the world. The data gathered from the research is often mainly retrospective self-report, this is bad because the retrospective means looking back after the event has happened and therefore may be unreliable as it relies on the memory of the individuals meaning that it is not reliable, the self-reports also may lack in validity because it is possible for the participants to lie. How to cite Outline and Evaluate Research Into the Breakdown of Relationships, Essays

Someone who disappointed me Essay Example For Students

Someone who disappointed me Essay Lily and I grew up together. I remember the first time we met In a kindergarten and became friends at once. There were no secrets between us and she was the first one I would always turn to whenever I was in trouble. She was always supportive and helped me In whatever way she could. I reciprocated In the same manner. Things were as good as one could wish until one day, which changed my attitude towards her and left a dent in my heart. It was our fall day for the submission of the assignment our professor had given to us. I worked hard to complete the assignment in time and had to put in extra efforts at night so as to complete it. Next morning my mom came to wake me up for the university and found out that I had a fever. I felt weak and there was no way I could go to the university, but I was worried about the assignment I had to submit, as I could lose a year because of that. My mom suggested that I could give my assignment to Lily and she could give It to the professor. Lily was right In time Like everyday. She was a bit worried seeing me In such a bad state. I handed my assignment to her. I had to stay home for 2 days before I was strong enough to go back to university. I was waiting for Lily to come. It was getting late and she didnt appear, so I called her to find out where she was. Her mom told me that she had already left. I was a little disappointed; however my dad drove me to the university. As soon as I arrived, I saw Lily giggling and chatting with some girls, and to my surprise she was chatting with the girls whom we used to avoid talking to because of heir bad nature. I took my seat quietly and we did not speaks word. The lesson began and the professor came in with already checked assignments. Everyone was tense and I was confident that, as usual, I got a high grade. I got my paper back and the professor was a little angry with me. To my great astonishment I had failed the assignment. I could not believe It, I was almost all In tears. I kept sulking and didnt understand why I got such a low grade. I had been preparing that assignment throughout the previous month by putting in all the details I could. I was waiting for the professor to complete the distribution of papers. Then she announced that Lily topped the group with the highest grade. I could see how happy she was and at the same time I felt so miserable. However I tried to calm down and congratulated her. She was a little indifferent to me and acted as if she had won a Noble Prize. When the lesson was over I went up to the professor so as to find out why exactly I got such a low grade. The professor knew I was a brilliant student and that I always topped the class; forever she was very disappointed at the way I had written the assignment. She started reading the assignment to me. Somehow the words sounded unfamiliar to what I had written. I was confused. I asked the professor to stop reading and I name was clearly written on it. It was very obvious that someone had changed the paper. I guessed who it could be, but somehow I tried to assure myself that I was wrong . 1 told the professor to give me some time to find out what was wrong. She was even surprised herself that all of a sudden my handwriting had changed so much. I went up to Lily and asked her to show me her assignment. .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16 , .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16 .postImageUrl , .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16 , .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16:hover , .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16:visited , .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16:active { border:0!important; } .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16:active , .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16 .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u0394c14115865b196e191e49913e9f16:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: operations management Essay SummaryShe was reluctant to give it to me, and I had no option but to grab it from her hands. There it was: word for word my assignment with Lilys name written at the top. My disappointment had no limits; I asked her why she had done it. She was unmoved and indifferent; she did not even have enough audacity to say sorry. I could obviously see that she had changed: she was no longer the friend I had known for years. I took my paper and went to the professor so as to show it to her and explained the whole situation to her. She also recalled that it was Lily who handed her two papers. She understood the whole situation and called Lily. Lily admitted that she had changed the papers since she had not completed the assignment in time. Moreover: she confessed that she was also a bit Jealous that I always got higher grades than her. I could not believe that she would ever think like that. I was really disappointed that I lost a friend that day, but all that was a good lesson for me : it made me think and re-evaluate my criteria of calling someone a real friend .

Characteristics of main personalities of the play A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams Essay Example

Characteristics of main personalities of the play A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams Essay Tennessee Williams is one of the most provocative and widely respected playwrights in the modern theatre. His strengths in playwriting were in his bright and vivid characterizations and brilliant dialogues. A Streetcar Named Desire (original name was The Poker Night) is one of the most remarkable plays of our time. It has gathered the wide audience in contemporary dramatic literature. In the first year of its presentation in New York, the play received the Pulitzer Prize, The Donaldson Award and The New York Drama Critics Awards. The play has been produced in many countries throughout the world and has been made in to the popular movie with amazing Vivien Leigh and Marlon Brando. Many of the major themes of A Streetcar Named Desire are embodied in the history and culture of New Orleans. The lively setting of the French Quarter, with its streetcars, bars, entertainment, and jazz and blues music, provides a rich background for the emotional events of the play; the setting also draws symbolic attention to changes which were taking place in American society, especially in the South during the post-World war II years. The characters of the play are also very realistic and specific, I think that everyone of them deserves special note. Blanche DuBois is a complex individual who provokes strong reactions from the other characters. We know that she has been a schoolteacher in Mississippi but was asked to leave her job because of an obscure story with a student, that she was once a Southern belle from a wealthy family, and that she has a failed marriage and doubtful past which she has left behind. At once strong in her desires and determined in her claims on the men who are around her, and yet weak and forever looking for someone to take care of her, she gives off a series of conflicting signals. She is neurotic, psychologically deceived about her beauty and attractiveness, and perhaps also an alcoholic. In the opening scene where elegant and beautifully dressed woman who appears leads us to expect quite a different character to emerge than the fragile woman running from her past who begins to display her neuroses and obsessions during the following acts. We will write a custom essay sample on Characteristics of main personalities of the play A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Characteristics of main personalities of the play A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Characteristics of main personalities of the play A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The division between emotional surface and depth is brought out throughout the play in the way that Blanche cant face up to her past, but only reveals glimpses of it through her neurotic behavior and occasional comments. Blanche is also really self-centered. As a guest in a small apartment, her behavior seems very irritating. Not only must Blanches presence disrupt Stanley and Stellas sexual intimacy, but it also spoils the routine of their everyday life. The fact that she freely (and dishonestly) drinks Stanleys whisky and that she sends the pregnant Stella off to get a drink for her emphasizes a selfish nature. But despite all of her disadvantages, Blanche comes across as a sympathetic character. Williams himself commented that . . . when I think about her, Blanche seems like the youth of our hearts which has to be put away for worldly considerations: poetry, music, the early soft feelings that we cant afford to live with under a naked light bulb which is now. Much of Stanleys character is seen through his relationship with Blanche. Her response to Stanleys strong presence suggests that he is some kind of an animal. In earlier versions of the play, Stanley had a gentler, ineffectual side, but in the final writing of A Streetcar Williams made him Blanches complete opposite angry, animalistic, and reliant on his basic instincts. These qualities are seen most clearly in Blanches comment to Stanley that youre simple, straightforward and honest, a little bit on the primitive side I should think. To interest you a woman would have to . . .. The sentence is finished off for her by Stanley, but what we suspect she would have said is what she later says to Stella: that the only way to live with a man like Stanley is to go to bed with him. For Blanche, Stanleys sexual appeal and his primitive nature are closely bound up together. Stanleys actions are what would now be described as macho. But not only is he violent in his masculinity, he also appears to lack any sense of moral order: his rape of Blanche does not strike him as betraying any moral principles. It is simply the outcome of their strained relationship. At the same time Stanley represents the new social order of modern America as a contrast to the decayed gentility of Blanches Southern manners. This is also seen in the fact that Williams makes him an immigrant who is proud to be part of the new society of a multi-cultural America: I am not a Polack. People from Poland are Poles, not Polacks. But what I am is one hundred percent American . . . so dont ever call me a Polack. Stella appears to be a simple character, but is actually more intriguing than her role as sister and wife to the plays two main protagonists would suggest. She acts as a background for both characters, allowing their selfishness and emotional failings to be emphasized. In relation to Stanley, Stella is sensitive and loving, practical and sometimes independent. She clearly loves Stanley, despite his many failings and his violence towards her, and she is willing to accept his temper as part of the passion they feel for each other: But there are things that happen between a man and a woman in the dark that sort of make everything else seem unimportant. Like many other people in society, Stella continues to function in her daily life despite considerable incident. Blanche pays attention to this stoical aspect of Stellas character when she comments: I never had your beautiful self-control. Stellas decision symbolizes a greater choice facing American society. She rejects Blanches strategy of living in a glamorous past and chooses instead the rational, practical, sometimes flawed world which her marriage to Stanley represents. By the way, Eunice and Steve, who live upstairs from Stanley and Stella, are a vision of what Stanley and Stella could become. Eunice is overweight and run down from too many pregnancies while Steve is not particularly understanding or supportive of his wife. Domestic violence appears to be routine in their marriage. Despite their failings, however, Steve and Eunice are not negative characters, but quite the contrary they are hospitable and neighborly. Mitch is also one of the main characters of the play. He is gentle and discreet while Stanley is rude and sexually forward. Blanche is aware of his kindness and even comments on it, saying, I thanked God for you, because you seemed to be gentle. Mitchs actions reveal him as a deluded and rather pathetic man who has not fully got to know how relationships work. Although Mitch may be upstaged by his more powerful friend, his actions bring about the destructive ending of the play. For now, I tried to observe all the main characters of a play and describe their personal qualities. Some of them (such as Blanche and Stanley) are versatile and presented deeper and fuller than the others, but still every person represents his own individuality and original principles, views, character traits and emotions. Taken together they depict complicated and detailed portrait of a relevant society of New Orleans with all its values and vices.

Events that Sparked the American Revolution essays

Events that Sparked the American Revolution essays The reasons the colonists rebelled against the British in 1776 were many. Unfair taxations, violations of human rights, changes in the British military policies, and a long legacy of both religious and political ideas prompted the colonists to break away from British rule and declare their independence. Taxation was clearly one of the major factors that led to the colonists rebellion. In 1763, George Grenville became the prime minister of England. While in office, he noticed that England was spending four times more in the colonies than it collected from them. Also, England was in debt due to the French and Indian war. He felt taxes should be collected from the colonists. He passed the Sugar Act in 1764, which put a tax on foreign sugar and molasses. He also set up the Stamp Act in 1765 that required the colonists to purchase stamps for anything written or printed on paper. The Townshend Acts also put a tax on glass, lead, tea, paper, and dyes. The colonists were not pleased with these new taxes. Before, the British policy was one of salutary neglect, which meant that they left the colonies alone and did not interfere with their affairs. Now, not only were the colonists being taxed but they were also not fairly represented in Parliament. Colonists declared, No taxation without representation. The British argued that they were given virtual representation in the government, which did not sit well with the colonists. Some merchants even boycotted British goods to show their opposition to the new taxes. Protest groups, such as the Sons of Liberty were formed. In order to stop the Tea Act, which had made the British East India Tea Company a monopoly, the Sons of Liberty went aboard the British ships and dumped 90,000 lbs of tea into the water. In response to this bold act, the British passed the Coercive Acts, which were renamed the Intolerable Acts. These acts closed the port of Boston until the tea that was lost was...

The effectiveness of anti-social behavioural orders Essay

The effectiveness of anti-social behavioural orders - Essay Example The paper shall also address the concerns and challenges that ASBOs presents to law enforcement professionals and looks at possible improvements, if any that could be made to improve the effectiveness of these orders. As a prelude to the analysis, it may be imperative to understand the nature and scope of ASBOs. Introduced under the Crime and Disorder Act, 1998, ASBOs are designed to deal with anti-social behaviour perpetrated by individuals aged 10 years or above. An application for an ASBO may be made where it is alleged that a person or persons have acted "in a manner that caused or was likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress to one or more persons not of the same household"4 and includes a range of behaviour that put people in fear of crime. According to the U.K. Home Office, anti-social behaviour includes a range of problems, some examples5 being: An ASBO is essentially a civil order; however breach of the order re... The misuse of fireworks An ASBO is essentially a civil order; however breach of the order results in criminal proceedings and sanctions, including fine and imprisonment up to five years for adults. ASBOs are available to police and local authorities, as well as registered social landlords and British Transport Police (introduced by Police Reform Act, 2002) but not to members of the general public. Thus, police and local authorities can apply to a magistrates' court for an order to prohibit an individual from causing harassment, alarm or distress in a particular area. The ASBOs are community-based orders involving local people in the collection of evidence and in helping to monitor breaches. Lindsay Clarke explains that since ASBOs are accorded civil status, enabling both hearsay as well as professional witness evidence in ASBO applications, makes them more effective in protecting both the victims of anti-social behaviour as well as those reporting the behaviour.6 It is significant to note that while ASBOs were introduced as a fulfilment of the New Labour's undertaking in their 1997 election manifesto to create "community safety orders [that] will deal with threatening and disruptive criminal neighbours,"7 prior to it injunctions were used to deal with such behaviour8 under such legislations as Protection from Harassment Act 1997, Housing Act 1996, Environmental Protection Act 1990. The ASBOs are not intended to replace any existing legislation; they are seen as complementary measures available to the police and the local authority to combat anti-social behaviour. ASBOs essentially operate on the on the same principle as an injunction - prohibiting the offender from specific anti-social acts or entering defined areas through civil

Pathophysiology Of The Bubonic Plague Term Paper

Pathophysiology Of The Bubonic Plague - Term Paper Example Of these the most common form in bubonic plague (WHO, 2011) and this will be discussed in this essay. Pathogenesis Yersinia pestis is an anerobic facultative gram-negative intracellular bacillus (Dufel, 2009). The organism is mainly transmitted from host to human beings through bite of a vector. The host is usually rodent and vector is flea. Other sources of transmission are close contact with body fluids or tissues contaminated or infected with the organism and inhalation of aerosolized bacteria. There are more than 200 different rodents and these serve as hosts. the vector flea is Xenopsylla cheopis (Dufel, 2009). So far, about 30 different species of flea have been identified (Dufel, 2009). Other carriers of plague causing bacillus include human lice and ticks. there are certain rodents that are resistant to infection like deer mice and wood rates. These however form an enzootic stage in which the bacillus survives long-term. Sometimes, the fleas transfer the pathogenic bacteria t o animals that are susceptible to the disease like ground squirrels. Whenever large number of host animals die, the hungry fleas search new sources of food. This is the epizootic stage and this stage helps spread of organisms to newer territory. When human beings are infected from wild animals, a sylvtic stage occurs. Most carnivores are resistant to the disease, but they can act as transfer vectors. Birds, reptiles, hoofed animals and fish are resistant to the disease (Dufel, 2009). Virulent plague-causing organism survive in soil, grains, animal carcasses, flea feces, dried sputum and buried bodies (Ayyadurai et al, 2008). 80- 85 percent cases are bubonic form (Dufel, 2009). Bubonic plague is caused by deposition of the bacillus in the skin because of the bite of flea. The bacillus proliferates in the esophagus of the flea, preventing the entry of food into the stomach, This causes starvation and to overcome this, the flea starts sucking blood. In the process of swallowing, recoil ing of the distended bacillus-packed esophagus occurs, thus depositing bacillus into the skin of the victim. The bacillus then invades the lymphoid tissue near the site of bite, producing bubos which are nothing but lymph nodes that have become necrotic, inflamed and hemorrhagic due to pathophysiology of the disease. Untreated bubonic plague can eventually lead to bacteremia and septicaemia. The bacillus has the capacity to seed every organ, including the liver, lungs, spleen, kidneys and even the meninges. The most virulent form of plague is the pneumonic plague. This occurs when the bacilli get deposited in the vasculature. In this condition, there occurs early dissemination and no bubo formation is seen. Such a pathology is seen when the bite occurs in regions of high vascularity like tonsils, pharynx and oral mucosa (Dufel, 2009). Epidemiology The disease is endemic in several countries in the world like Africa, Asia, the Americas and the former Soviet Union. According to WHO (2 011), " in 2003, 9 countries reported 2118 cases and 182 deaths. 98.7% of those cases and 98.9% of those deaths were reported from Africa." The distribution of plague endemicity depends on the geographical distribution of the natural foci of infection, the small animals and fleas (WHO, 2011). Bubonic plague has occurred as several epidemics in the world. The first recorded epidemic was during the 6th century in the

Marxist Framework of Poverty in the UK

Marxist Framework of Poverty in the UK Poverty is generally understood to mean a condition in which people are deprived in some way, such that they lack the basic requirements for sustaining well-being, and ultimately, life. These basic requirements are understood as such things as food, water, shelter (as may be understood, for example, in a developing country context) or access to education or political power (as might be understood, for example, in the context of a developed nation). Poverty is an absolute within itself, as people are termed to be in poverty, but poverty can also be understood in relative terms, when, for example, poverty of different resources is considered: poverty of education is obviously not as fundamental a level of poverty as poverty of food, for example, as, obviously, without food, a person would die, but a person can manage to live without education, even if this would mean a life of continuing poverty, through lack of opportunity. Poverty can be measured in many different ways, and indeed, there are many indicators of poverty, which are used to assess year-on-year changes in poverty. Obviously, as with definitions of poverty, measurements of poverty are relative, with different measures being used in developed vs. developing nations, for example, or between nations of the developed, or developing, world. In general, one overall measure of poverty which has gained ground in recent years is the income inequality scale, which shows that income inequality has, recently, worldwide, become less of a problem, with the world becoming more equitable in terms of income levels across the world’s nations. This does not belittle the problems of poverty, however, as poverty is still a major issue that the world has yet to deal with in a satisfactory manner. As with the definitions and measurement of poverty, the causes of poverty are many and varied, with environmental and geographical factors creating poverty in many developing countries, and with disease and lack of natural resources also causing poverty in these regions. Indeed, it is difficult to attribute one cause to poverty in any situation, especially poverty in developing countries. In developed nations, however, poverty is perhaps best understood as a product of society’s failure to act to avoid the situation, and, as such, policies are in place to prevent poverty in these situations[1]. It is a moot point, however, amongst politicians, social workers and philanthropists as to how far policies can actually prevent poverty, and, indeed, some people suggest that current policies do not go far enough to act to prevent poverty. The effects of poverty are, again, many and varied, with poverty leading, ultimately, to death, in many developing nations, and with poverty leading to lack of opportunity and social exclusion in developed nations. In developed nations, policies are in place to avoid such poverty, such as subsidised housing, education and health care[2], although these are not always effective, as we have seen, leading to undesirable effects, such as crime (Jones, 2001; Muncie, 2004). It is hypothesised, for example, that in extreme poverty situations, people turn to crime in order to provide basic necessities, and this has been supported by much original research on the subject (see Muncie, 2004). The next section of the paper will look at levels of poverty in the UK, and following this, the paper will then proceed to assess poverty in the UK from a Marxist viewpoint. Poverty in the UK is still at shockingly high levels, with the problem seeming, on the face of it, to be mainly caused by low pay levels; indeed, it is suggested by recent research that in low-income households, both members of the family need to work in order for the family to earn enough to cover basic expenses[3], and that, of these low income families, many are at a disadvantage in terms of receiving health care and the achievement of minimum educational standards. It seems, also, that this trend, rather than decreasing, is actually increasing, with the number of families claiming children’s tax credits increasing year-on-year and the proportion of workers classed as ‘low paid’ increasing year-on-year[4]. It is shocking, therefore, to see that much of the UK, and a large proportion of the children living in the UK, live in poverty. This is despite the fact that policies have been in place for many decades to try to curtail, and avoid altogether, the issue of poverty. As we have seen, however, these policies are often not effective, and can take years to come to fruition, by which time a new generation of infants have grown up in poverty, leading to what is known as ‘the poverty trap’. We have seen, therefore, how successive UK governments have attempted to deal with the issue of poverty: by creating policies to deal with each ‘strand’ of poverty individually, and not attacking the whole problem of poverty as a whole. This leads on to thinking about how Marxists understand poverty, which is essentially in a more holistic, if idealistic, manner. Marxists do not make any distinction between class, poverty and disadvantage; for Marxists, members of any class, they argue, can fall into poverty through unemployment, for example, and that, as such, ‘the poor’ can be best be viewed as part of a continuum from those in society who have a lot of material wealth to those who do not. This definition using the idea of a continuum, however, stands in direct contrast to the situation of class inequality which, obviously, Marxists attempt to fight against by their calls for equality in society, for all. Perhaps the issue of poverty can be best understood in terms of the dependency theory of Marxists: this theory suggest, essentially, that lifting the poor out of poverty is not enough, they need to be given tools to be able to sustain themselves out of poverty. True Marxists would add that this can never be achieved under a capitalist system, as this system is built to achieve successes at the expense of the failure of others; as such, poverty is a consequence of the capitalist system, and something which Marxists fight against, in their search for equality, or, rather, in terms of poverty, in their quest for a situation in which underdevelopment is not an option. Assessing poverty in terms of a purely socio-political approach as we have done, and then within the framework of Marxism as we have also attempted, provides two different frameworks with which to understand the issue of poverty. One framework aims to treat poverty as something that can be solved by implementing policies and by watching those policies take effect, the other attempts to understand poverty as a societal achievement, which can only be solved by changing the very foundations of society. Social workers are some of societies most valuable professionals, who, in concert with families, teachers, and the police can put children, and families, back on track before they reach an irreversible moment in which damage has been done which cannot be corrected. Children are valuable members of society, and it is the responsibility of all society to look after them: perhaps this is what Marx was implying when he talked of societal equality. Children deserve equality of opportunity, in terms of access to basic requirements, and, above these, to health care and education and information provision. Without these basic requirements, without basic care, children live in poverty. It is a travesty that in this day and age there are many children who live in poverty in the UK, but with the approach outlined here applied on a daily basis by social workers, it is hoped that poverty will soon be a thing of the past, at least in the UK. References Best, S. (2005) Understanding Social Divisions, London, Sage Cree, V. E. (2000) Sociology for Social Workers and Probation Officers, London, Routledge. Dominelli, L. (1997) Sociology for Social Work, London, MacMillan Glennerster, H. et al. (2004). One hundred years of poverty and policy. Joseph Rowntree Foundation. Iceland, J. (2003). Poverty in America. A Handbook of the University of California Press. Jones, S. (2001) Criminology, Trowbridge, Cromwell Press Layder, D. (2005) Understanding Social Theory, London, Sage Muncie, J. (2004) Youth and Crime, 2nd edition, London, Sage, Ritzer, G. (2000) Sociological Theory, London, McGraw-Hill 1 Footnotes [1] A recent book by Glennerster et al. (2004) entitled One hundred years of poverty and policy, provides a review of the effects and ramifications of policy on poverty in the UK. [2] Although the nation that sees itself as ‘the most developed’ on Earth, the United States, offers none of these poverty-reducing schemes, and indeed, poverty in the United States is on the increase, and reaches disturbingly high levels. See Iceland (2003) for further details. [3] See the report Monitoring Poverty and Social Exclusion in the UK, 2006 by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. [4] Again, according to the report Monitoring Poverty and Social Exclusion in the UK, 2006 by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.