Determining Dimensions of Poverty Applicable in China: A Qualitative Study in Guizhou

Abstract

While China has succeeded in dramatically reducing income poverty, it is increasingly recognized that poverty is multidimensional. Moreover, all countries are expected under the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals to halve poverty in all its dimension by 2030 “according to national definitions”. However, there is little agreement, either in China or elsewhere, as to what the dimensions should be. Therefore, qualitative research was undertaken in Guizhou in 2019 to identify the dimensions of poverty through discussion with people with direct experience of poverty. Forty-two people participated in one of five extended creativity groups that met for up to 12 hours over two days. One group comprised people on middle incomes, the others, people in poverty, a substantial minority of whom were functionally illiterate. Eight dimensions of poverty were identified in addition to low income and poverty duration: lacking decent work; material deprivation; physical suffering; emotional suffering; social abuse and exclusion; institutional injustice; powerlessness; and struggle and resistance. If replication confirms these dimensions, indicators should be developed to enable multidimensional poverty to be adequately measured and anti-poverty policies better evaluated.

Keywords:

• China
• “extended creativity groups”
• multi-dimensional
• qualitative
• poverty

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the contributions of BAI Hefei, LI Zixing, LÜ Yueqin, TIAN Feiling, WANG Jielu, and ZHANG Bingyi in fieldwork. We also appreciate the time and openness of the group participants. The research is sponsored by the 111 project scholarship offered through Guizhou Normal University, and partially sponsored by the Chinese Academy of Science and Technology for Development.

Notes

1 It is consistent with previous research findings in Guizhou, see Yang 2015.

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by: 1. China 111 Project: The Overseas Expertise Introduction Center for South China Karst Eco-environment Discipline Innovation (D17016)]; 2. (2016YFC0502607) [A project of National Key Research and Development Program of China in the 13th Five-year Plan Period: Ecological Industry Model and Integrated Technology Demonstration of the Karst Plateau-Gorge Rocky Desertification Control (2016YFC0502607)].