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The Concentration Of Poverty And Poverty

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Some problems associated with living in a neighborhood with a high percentage of the population living in poverty include increased crime rates, poor education, health problems and psychological distress. The concentration of people in high poverty neighborhoods magnifies the problems faced by the poor. This is because it leads to the concentration of the ills associated with poverty. Children in these neighborhood do not only lack basic needs but are also exposed to an hostile environment that holds numerous temptations and does not provide positive motivation (McConville & Ong, 2003). In addition, because schools are distributed geographically, children from high poverty neighborhoods attend the same schools and this result in low performance. This concentration also intensify the shift of the middle and higher income families away from these neighborhoods thus creating a gap between social needs and the financial base necessary to address these issues. The concentration of poverty is important because it has an impact on the distribution of income which might undermines the social fabric and may restrict opportunities for others (Jargowsky, 2003).
There are arguments that individuals may benefit from living in poor neighborhoods. This is because they are able to share coping strategies as well as well as benefit from geographically based networks that provide support to people living in poor neighborhoods. The coping strategies employed include reducing expenses,

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