Researching Poverty and Austerity

Poverty is a complex global challenge rooted in intertwined social, economic and political factors, which excludes people from participating fully in normalised social and market-based activities. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated poverty-related issues such as food insecurity, and growing numbers of people are having to rely on welfare assistance. This pandemic, coupled with austerity measures implemented across many European countries over the past years, has impacted negatively on towns, cities, regions and countries, leaving places and communities depleted. This edited volume curates a collection of relevant research addressing the challenges of poverty and the political-economic measures that perpetuate it. It adopts a cross-disciplinary approach to covering relevant theories, methodologies and policy-oriented research, highlighting the interlinkages between poverty and austerity that have resulted since the 2008 financial crisis. In particular, the book focuses on food insecurity as one of the most extreme manifestations of poverty but also addresses interconnected issues such as unemployment, homelessness and poor health. The contributors primarily utilise diverse qualitative methods that give voice to lived experiences of poverty while also considering quantitative approaches that are essential for measuring food insecurity and modelling the impacts of austerity. The book will be of significant interest to anyone researching poverty and austerity with an interest in social policy, human and cultural geography, marketing and consumer culture, economic policy, public health and sustainability.

Caroline Moraes is Professor of Marketing and Consumer Research, University of Bristol Business School. Morven G. McEachern is Professor of Sustainability and Marketing Ethics, University of Chester. Deirdre O'Loughlin is Professor of Marketing, Kemmy Business School, University of Limerick.

1. Poverty and Austerity: An Introduction Caroline Moraes, Morven G. McEachern and Deirdre O'Loughlin Part I: Theorising Poverty and Austerity 2. Austerity, Poverty and Inequality: A Political Economy Perspective Suzanne J. Konzelmann 3. Theorising Resilience in Times of Austerity Deirdre O'Loughlin, Isabelle Szmigin, Morven G. McEachern, Kalipso Karantinou, Belem Barbosa, Grigorios Lamprinakos and María Eugenia Fernández-Moya 4. Reflecting on Paraliminality as a Theoretical Lens to Understand Experiences of Food Insecurity Caroline Moraes, Morven McEachern, Lisa Scullion and Andrea Gibbons 5. Poverty, Modern Slavery, and Caste-based Biopolitics Rohit Varman Part II: Methodologies and Methods for Researching Poverty and Austerity 6. Using Cultural Animation as a Research Method to Explore Poverty and Exclusion: An Example of Working with Food Bank Users in the UK Emma Surman and Mihaela Kelemen 7. Using Photography to Unpick the Everyday Impact of Social Policy Kathryn Machray and Joanne Neary 8. The Challenges of Measuring Food Insecurity Among Children and Adolescents in High-Income Countries Magaly Aceves-Martins and Aixa Aleman-Diaz Part III: Researching Poverty for Policymaking 9. Austerity Models and their Impact on Markets: The Case of Ireland Stephen Kinsella 10. Thirty Years of "Emergency" Food Aid in the US and Canada: Findings From Comparative Research to Inform UK Efforts to Tackle Food Poverty and the Need for Food Banks Charlie Spring 11. Influencing Policy and Practice Through Social Science Research Evidence Lisa Scullion, Dave Beck, Katy Jones, Catherine Connors, Philip Martin, Andrea Gibbons and Celia Hynes 12. Poverty and Austerity: A Succinct Summary and Conclusions Deirdre O'Loughlin, Morven G. McEachern and Caroline Moraes