There are many different views of poverty based on expert views as well as ordinary people. By experts poverty is seen in relation to the standards of living of other individuals in society. Ordinary individuals see poverty as the amount of money that an individuals receives as income and how much they consume. According to Townsend (cited by Shaw, 1988:27), poverty can be defined objectively and applied consistently only in terms of the concept of relative deprivation. Townsend provides a gloss on the concept of relative deprivation, for he informs us that:  Individuals, families and groups in the population can be said to be in poverty when they lack the resources to obtain the types of diet, participate in the activities and have the living conditions and amenities which are customary, or at least widely encouraged or approved, in the societies to which they belong. Usually poverty can be determined through a poverty line. Once the minimum amount of money needed to provide the basics has been determined then if any individual falls below the amount needed they can be seen as living under the poverty line. Those who live under poverty do not have access the the basics needed to survive such as food, water, shelter and access to basic healthcare. This definition of poverty looks at poverty directly rather than using something such as income level to describe poverty. Anyone who is deprived of the basic needs to survive live under poverty. It is not only material deprivation but also deprivation socially that show poverty. Once individuals cannot fulfil a social role in their society such as attending functions and social activities, they can be seen as living under poverty.

Reference list:

Shaw, B. 1988. Poverty: Absolute or Relative? Journal of Applied Philosophy . 1(5): 27.