US Poverty Studies and Poverty Measurement:The past twenty-five years

This paper discusses the contribution made by American social scientists to thestudy of poverty in the past twenty five years. It has three parts. The firstconcentrates on the measurement of poverty and the fact that the US povertyline remained unchanged in that period despite its increasingly importantdeficiencies. Proposals to produce a revised poverty line and an Annual PovertyReport are advanced. The second part traces the change of emphasis in USwriting about poverty both in terms of academic emphasis and prescription. Thefinal part considers the policy impact of American work on poverty policybeyond America.[...]