Social inclusion of the poor: Concept for reaffirmation of social work

Abstract

There is no universal definition of poverty, but there universal the poverty problem. It is present throughout human history and is present in all contemporary societies. An integral part of poverty in contemporary developed societies are different forms of social exclusion. Social exclusion, as a consequence of material deprivation (poverty in the strict sense) becomes a factor in the survival and deepening poverty. That is why the concept of social exclusion, adequate analytical tool for understanding the problems of poverty. Analogously, the concept of social inclusion is a suitable instrument for combating this problem. This concept is particularly important in societies that do not have the ability to fast economic prosperity overcome poverty. In such societies, social work is facing new challenges. These challenges are an opportunity for the reaffirmation of social work and taking a respectable role in the overall reaction to the social problem of poverty. Accepting the modern definition of poverty through the concept of social inclusion is particularly important for social work, whose epistemological and pragmatic polyvalence corresponds with multidimensional character of poverty.