Towards New Indicators of Disadvantage: Deprivation and Social Exclusion in Australia

Abstract

Concern over the reliability of conventional poverty studies has focused attention on the need to demonstrate that those identified as poor are actually experiencing hardship. This paper takes a step in this direction by examining poverty using a living standards approach derived from the literature on deprivation and social exclusion. Deprivation – defined as an enforced lack of socially perceived necessities – has emerged as a way of identifying who is missing out on what the community regards as the necessities (or essentials) of life. Social exclusion – which exists when individuals do not participate in key activities in society – has opened up new areas of inquiry relating to a lack of connectedness between individuals, the communities in which they live, and key economic and social processes. The findings indicate that many Australians face deprivation and exclusion in numerous aspects of their lives, and that those defined as poor in income terms are different from those who are deprived or excluded. The low overlap between the three indicators implies that they all have a role to play in documenting the extent of social disadvantage and helping to identify the factors that contribute to its various manifestations.

Social Exclusion/Inclusion for Urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People

“…These central aspects of social exclusion are particularly salient for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Consistently identified in the literature as over-represented on measures social exclusion (see Brotherhood of St Laurence, 2015;Saunders, Naidoo, & Griffiths, 2007) there is, however, little literature that specifically addresses the Aboriginal dimensions of social exclusion or social inclusion. What literature does exist, such as the Overcoming Indigenous Disadvantage Key Indicators (Steering Committee for the Review of Government Service Provision, 2014) report from the Productivity Commission tend to explore social exclusion as a set of measures rather than as a concept that has structural foundations.…”

“…The validity of Hunter's (2009) arguments are borne out by research indicating that the pattern of social exclusion for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people differs to that of other disadvantaged groups. For example, Saunders et al (2007) in their examination of the extent of social exclusion find their Indigenous sample, drawn from the city of Sydney, less negatively affected by indicators of social disengagement relating to contact with others and participation in community activities. Indeed, on these indicators, the Indigenous outcomes were higher than the national figure.…”

Understanding the persistence of inequality in higher education: evidence from Australia

“…However, the issue of how to accurately define a low-SES student in an administrative context is the subject of ongoing debate (Lim and Gemici 2011;Saunders et al 2007;Scutella et al 2009). …”

“I can’t do this, it’s too much”: building social inclusion in cancer diagnosis and treatment experiences of Aboriginal people, their carers and health workers

“…Social exclusion accounts not only for income poverty but also broader factors such as access to resources and services, social relationships, and social and economic participation. Notably, social exclusion focuses on the factors that accompany or lead to poverty, including homelessness, poor health, resource-poor social networks, discrimination and disability (Arthurson and Jacobs 2004;Saunders, Naidoo et al 2008). Further, social exclusion can be considered a dynamic and inter-relating process, rather than as a situation represented by discrete measures or indicators (Hunter and Jordan 2010).…”