Towards New Indicators of Disadvantage Project: Deprivation in Australia

Forms of Disadvantage

Poverty is one of the most basic and enduring causes of disadvantage. Those living in poverty have an inadequate standard of living, face an increased risk of poor health, and experience low self-esteem and social isolation.
Children, in particular, often carry the negative effects that result from childhood poverty into their adult lives.
Studies of Australian poverty have concentrated on comparing people's incomes with poverty lines. By focusing on income alone, poverty research has failed to connect with the actual living standards experienced by those in poverty.

The Left Out and Missing Out project, draws on the concepts of deprivation (‘missing out’) and social exclusion (‘left out’) that relate directly to people’s living standards. The findings complement poverty studies in ways that enrich our understanding of the nature and extent of social disadvantage.
The basic premise underlying the research is that the measurement of poverty and other forms of disadvantage must be grounded in the actual living standards and experiences of people in poverty.
The research is based on a unique partnership between academic researchers and community sector researchers and practitioners that combines technical expertise with the practical know-how of those working at the coalface of poverty relief.
The partnership has allowed the research to draw on the first-hand knowledge of low-income Australians and been guided by their insights into the meaning and experience of poverty.

The research was conducted in two stages:

In Stage I, focus groups were held which discussed how low-income families and community sector agency staff experience poverty and exclusion, and what they regard as essential to achieve a decent standard of living.
Stage II involved two overlapping surveys. The main Community Understanding of Poverty and Social Exclusion (CUPSE) survey was completed by over 2,700 adult Australians drawn at random from the federal electoral roll. Around 700 clients of community sector welfare services also completed a shortened version of the same survey.
This report describes and analyses the findings from the two surveys conducted in Stage II of the research. They are referred to throughout the report as the community and client surveys, respectively.
The two surveys produced information about people’s circumstances and attitudes that form the basis of the new indicators of disadvantage. The responses also allow the situation of different groups in the community to be compared.