Child poverty in the international context

Poverty crosses geographic and demographic boundaries affecting children in developing and developed countries. The percentage of children living in poverty as identified by child poverty rates varies from about 5% - 7% in... [ view full abstract ]

Poverty crosses geographic and demographic boundaries affecting children in developing and developed countries. The percentage of children living in poverty as identified by child poverty rates varies from about 5% - 7% in Northern European countries to 10.9% in Australia, 12.1% in the UK, 15.9% in Italy and 13% in the USA (UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre, 2012).
There is increasing awareness of the impact of poverty and social disadvantage and the need to respond to the poorest groups who are the most difficult to reach, and who are the focus of child welfare services. Poverty is the result of many overlapping dimensions of deprivation and non-fulfilment of children’s rights making its influence felt in every aspect of a child’s life. Apart from the harm done to children through a lack resources for full social participation, their education, health and general wellbeing are seriously compromised. Poverty affects children’s mental and physical health, their access to education and their adult outcomes.
The impact of poverty is experienced in different and unique ways in the life course, particular groups being disproportionally affected by poverty and disadvantage. The experience of, and exposure to poverty is perceived to be dynamic with consequences for children likely to be influenced by timing, developmental stage and context including family, school and neighbourhood. Impoverished environments experienced by children affect developmental outcomes and have a continuing impact on later years. The vulnerabilities of youth in the transition to adulthood arising from economic disadvantage and family stress are well documented. In out of home care many youth are forced to transition out of care without adequate supports.
The dynamic interplay between poverty and maltreatment and the over representation of socioeconomically disadvantaged families in child protection and out of home care systems, and the role of stress factors in parenting in impoverished families is also recognised.
This presentation will examine trends in relation to the extent and intensity of child poverty in the international context. It will highlight the development of comprehensive approaches to define, identify and measure poverty that go beyond financial deprivation, and capture direct and indirect effects of child poverty. Three composite methods to measure child poverty will be presented to illustrate the multiple aspects of deprivation and wellbeing captured in the assessment of poverty. Trends from research that explore the associations between child poverty, education, health and wellbeing will be discussed.