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This introductory article outlines emerging findings on deprivation of socially perceived necessities over the 1999–2012 period in Britain. By drawing on comparable surveys conducted in 1999 and 2012 it is possible to examine trends over this period in public attitudes to the necessities of life and the extent of deprivation. These data suggest that public perceptions of what constitute minimally adequate living standards have become less generous over this period. At the same time, comparing the same items in 1999 and 2012 suggests that deprivation of necessities has become more widespread among adults in Britain.

In recent years the apparent decline in civic and political engagement across western societies has attracted growing attention among academics, policy makers and social commentators. The condition of young people's political consciousness and attitudes to political engagement has attracted especial attention. Trends in the reproduction of social capital have been proposed as a key driver of declining political engagement and civic mindedness in western democracies. Drawing upon data from the UK General Household Survey, this article explores the relationship between social capital and civic action among young British citizens at the beginning of the 21st century. In particular the following questions are addressed: how important is social capital in explaining the level and type of young people's civic action? Are certain forms of social capital more important than others in explaining patterns of civic action? Is the relationship between social capital and civic action dependent upon individuals' position in the life cycle?

This paper presents a narrative review of empirical evidence looking at connections between poverty and DVA. The findings presented includes social survey and qualitative evidence from the UK, and elsewhere where relevant, and is drawn from more than 80 research studies. The material was collated and supplemented by further secondary analysis of data collected as part of the 2012 UK Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey. Our review suggests that women experiencing poverty in the UK are more vulnerable to DVA, and this conclusion is consistent with wider international evidence. However, while associations clearly exist between poverty and DVA vulnerability, potential causal mechanisms are poorly understood and this reflects the limitations of existing data in this area. This paper highlights the need for further research exploring financial abuse within DVA relationships and post-separation financial abuse and poverty. Caution is needed in interpreting this relationship and drawing inferences for policy and practice. DVA is endemic throughout society in rich and poor countries, and interventions targeted at specific populations (including poverty) on their own are likely to be inadequate in the absence of a wider understanding of the social drivers of violence against women associated with patriarchal norms and practices in particular contexts.

In this paper, we seek to illustrate the potential theoretical and methodological contributions that video research methods can make in advancing social-scientific understanding and informing public debates on social problems. We do so by presenting findings on the experience and impacts of poverty and exclusion based upon the video 'testimony' with 33 people experiencing low income in one relatively remote rural area, the County of Herefordshire. Based on these data and subsequent follow-up qualitative work, this study highlights the personal impacts of disadvantage associated with a denial of rights, assault on dignity, and processes of stigmatisation and disempowerment. In doing so it demonstrates the potential of video data both as an emerging social research practice in its own right and as a vehicle for giving voice to marginalised groups within wider public debates and policy development.

Despite considerable policy interest, how the public understand and respond to the concept of social exclusion is not well understood within academic social research. Involving the public in such debates is important in establishing the political acceptability of social scientific concepts and in ensuring that operational definitions and measures faithfully reflect lived experiences. This paper draws on qualitative development work preparatory to the 2012 UK Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey in examining public understandings of what it means to experience social exclusion in the UK today. Our findings demonstrate the feasibility and desirability of including the public in policy debates in this area.

Despite considerable policy interest, how the public understand and respond to the concept of social exclusion is not well understood within academic social research. Involving the public in such debates is important in establishing the political acceptability of social scientific concepts and in ensuring that operational definitions and measures faithfully reflect lived experiences. This paper draws on qualitative development work preparatory to the 2012 UK Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey in examining public understandings of what it means to experience social exclusion in the UK today. Our findings demonstrate the feasibility and desirability of including the public in policy debates in this area.

AbstractIn recent decades, consensual approaches to poverty measurement have been widely adopted in large-scale survey research both in the UK and internationally. However, while ascertaining the extent of public agreement on the 'necessities of life' has been central to this approach, long-standing critiques have questioned the nature of public consensus on poverty derived using survey methods. By drawing on new primary research preparatory to the2012 UK Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey, we consider the contribution of qualitative methods in understanding public views on necessities and discuss their implications for survey-based poverty measurement. Our findings raise some important conceptual and measurement issues for consensual poverty measures within large-scale social surveys. Firstly, our research suggests that public understandings of the term 'necessity' are diverse and may not always be consistent with researchers' interpretations or with wider usage of this term within consensual poverty measurement. Secondly, a better understanding of the considerations which inform survey respondents' deliberations is needed. Thirdly, our findings have important implications for how we should interpret the concept of 'consensus' within the context of consensual poverty surveys, and emphasise the need for the application of more deliberative methods in determining public views on the 'necessities of life'.

Much has been written that details the decline in living standards following the 'credit crunch' in the UK. It remains that we understand to a lesser degree the lived reality of poverty through the Great Recession and into the era of austerity. This article draws on testimonies of 62 participants from low income households conducted in three different areas of the UK during 2012-13 to document the pressures that this period brought to bear on these households. According to these testimonies, the experience of poverty intensified in key respects: first, participants reported feeling, more than ever before, that they were 'existing, rather than living' due to the meagre budgets they were forced to live on; second, the precarious nature of work and social security contributed to a sense of insecurity that was all pervasive in our participants' lives; third, due to the pejorative political rhetoric and media coverage of poverty, our participants felt that their lives were placed under increased scrutiny which deleteriously impacted their wider relationships and sense of belonging. Our analysis demonstrates the profound consequences for those living on low incomes of the continued shift to residual forms of state welfare and the increased reliance on the 'Big Society' as a means to deal with the pressures identified in this article.

Much has been written that details the decline in living standards following the 'credit crunch' in the UK. It remains that we understand to a lesser degree the lived reality of poverty through the Great Recession and into the era of austerity. This article draws on testimonies of 62 participants from low income households conducted in three different areas of the UK during 2012–13 to document the pressures that this period brought to bear on these households. According to these testimonies, the experience of poverty intensified in key respects: first, participants reported feeling, more than ever before, that they were 'existing, rather than living' due to the meagre budgets they were forced to live on; second, the precarious nature of work and social security contributed to a sense of insecurity that was all pervasive in our participants' lives; third, due to the pejorative political rhetoric and media coverage of poverty, our participants felt that their lives were placed under increased scrutiny which deleteriously impacted their wider relationships and sense of belonging. Our analysis demonstrates the profound consequences for those living on low incomes of the continued shift to residual forms of state welfare and the increased reliance on the 'Big Society' as a means to deal with the pressures identified in this article.