Poverty Assignment
Kristen Stankiewicz
Dr. Malott
Diverse Populations
12 September 2012
POVERTY ASSIGNMENT
1. According to Sapolsky, poverty and illness is a cycle in which they both affect each other. There are many aspects of poverty that lead to illness, such as limited access to healthy water, food, healthcare, and most importantly, healthy living conditions. A healthy living condition includes having a clean place to live, feeling trust and efficacy within the community, and overall having the feeling and belief that they are living in healthy conditions. Sapolsky notes that it is psychologically knowing and believing that there is no hope and that one is in a position of weakness is what leads the poor to illness. Beyond doctors and medicine, if someone is in what they perceive to be a hopeless, bad condition, then they will subsequently become ill, which is not helped by the poor living conditions they are exposed to.
2. We can mainly help the morale of clients in poverty, and give them the hope and understanding so that even if not physically in a good, healthy place, they can at least be at peace within themselves and can be emotionally healthy. We can offer social support so that they feel cared for, valuable, and respected. Healthcare and adequate housing would be ideal, but clients need to feel empowered and good within themselves for any real change or progress to occur.
3. I definitely want to focus on helping those that I work with become empowered and give them hope and tools to come out of the cycle of poverty. Our group has chosen to focus on two main chapters which have to do with helping children. Because children are the future of the world, helping them gain an understanding for the world around them and how social structures work, while also helping to provide them with an education is important and I hope to do just that. I don’t want to feel like I didn’t do anything to really help, so by making sure that I can try to get the message across to these
Dr. Malott
Diverse Populations
12 September 2012
POVERTY ASSIGNMENT
1. According to Sapolsky, poverty and illness is a cycle in which they both affect each other. There are many aspects of poverty that lead to illness, such as limited access to healthy water, food, healthcare, and most importantly, healthy living conditions. A healthy living condition includes having a clean place to live, feeling trust and efficacy within the community, and overall having the feeling and belief that they are living in healthy conditions. Sapolsky notes that it is psychologically knowing and believing that there is no hope and that one is in a position of weakness is what leads the poor to illness. Beyond doctors and medicine, if someone is in what they perceive to be a hopeless, bad condition, then they will subsequently become ill, which is not helped by the poor living conditions they are exposed to.
2. We can mainly help the morale of clients in poverty, and give them the hope and understanding so that even if not physically in a good, healthy place, they can at least be at peace within themselves and can be emotionally healthy. We can offer social support so that they feel cared for, valuable, and respected. Healthcare and adequate housing would be ideal, but clients need to feel empowered and good within themselves for any real change or progress to occur.
3. I definitely want to focus on helping those that I work with become empowered and give them hope and tools to come out of the cycle of poverty. Our group has chosen to focus on two main chapters which have to do with helping children. Because children are the future of the world, helping them gain an understanding for the world around them and how social structures work, while also helping to provide them with an education is important and I hope to do just that. I don’t want to feel like I didn’t do anything to really help, so by making sure that I can try to get the message across to these