Effects of Poverty on Youth Free Essay Example, 1250 words

It was seen that a number of factors caused differential in IQ between children of those above poverty and those belonging to below the poverty line (Bellary, 2001). The main cause of differential in IQ was lead absorption, ear problems, anemia and low birth weight. All these are caused due to poverty in the family. According to Stern and Danziger (1990) there is a relationship among family income, child development and family structure. It was found that by keeping the socio-economic status constant, single-parent family can have a small negative effect on IQ of a youth. Hence single or teen parenthood effects the development of youth (Ravallion, 2010). It is also seen Youth who are raised by single parents complete one year less schooling than that of youth who have two-parents. Klebanov, Brooks-Gunn and Duncan (1994) did a detailed research on effects of persistent poverty on youth development. They found out that youth whose families are persistently in poor have lower IQ and ex hibit behavioral problems more than youth who experience transitory poverty. These effects are observed when other factors like maternal schooling, family structure are included into the study. We will write a custom essay sample on Effects of Poverty on Youth or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now Test was also conducted on the effect of youth development on neighborhood characteristics. It was seen that youth with a higher concentration of rich neighbors has a good development than those of youth who have poor neighbors (Shah, 2013). Chase-Lansdale, Michael and Desai (1990) studied the way home environment have effects on development of youth. Cognitive development of youth was measured along with the income level of the family. It was seen that if a child was poor and the average income of the family was low, it affected the cognitive development of the youth. Maternal employment also had an effect on them. If the income of the family is earned by a mother it has an adverse effect on the development of youth because of her inability to play a pivotal role in the development of youth (Bradbury, Jenkins and Micklewright, 2001). Discussion Youth gets affected due to poverty in their family. It refers to development of interdependent skills of cognitive language, sensorimotor and social emotional functioning. The entire above thing depends on the physical well being of the Youth. Many like family context and the social network helps in the process. Youth should be given proper education to move out of poverty line. They should have educational achievement under their belt and have completed their formal schooling.