Reframing Poverty Perceptions Exercise → Breaking the Myths: Understanding the Truth About Poverty
Before reframing poverty perceptions, please refer to the Reflecting on Poverty Perceptions Exercise → Check Your Lens: A Self-Reflection on Poverty Perception document.
Typical Statements About Poverty & Economic Struggles
"If people in poverty just worked harder, they could get out of it."
Reframing: Hard work alone does not eliminate systemic barriers like wage disparities, lack of generational wealth, housing discrimination, and limited access to education. Many individuals work multiple jobs and still struggle to afford basic necessities due to low wages and high living costs.
"Government assistance should only be temporary—people need to take responsibility for their own lives."
Reframing: This assumes poverty is an individual failure rather than recognizing systemic economic structures that keep people from escaping poverty. Many assistance programs are designed with unrealistic time limits that fail to consider long-term barriers such as job accessibility, debt, childcare, and financial trauma.
"If someone is struggling financially, they must not be making good choices."
Reframing: Poverty is often about lack of options, not poor choices. Individuals living in survival mode make financial decisions based on immediate needs, not long-term financial growth. Financial trauma and stress impact decision-making abilities, making it difficult to plan for the future.
"Some people just don’t want to work."
Reframing: This ignores that many low-income individuals work essential but underpaid jobs and that unemployment is often due to systemic factors, such as lack of access to childcare, transportation, or discrimination in hiring.
"I’ve worked hard for what I have—others should be able to do the same."
Reframing: While personal effort is valuable, this statement ignores the role of privilege, generational wealth, and systemic barriers. Not everyone starts from the same place or has the same opportunities to succeed.
"If people in poverty learned how to budget properly, they wouldn’t struggle as much."
Reframing: Budgeting is not the issue—lack of resources is. Budgeting cannot fix low wages, rising housing costs, medical debt, and systemic financial exclusion. Teaching financial education without addressing systemic economic injustice places blame on individuals rather than fixing the systems that keep them in poverty.
"If you give people too much help, they will become dependent."
Reframing: This is a myth rooted in anti-poor narratives. Research shows that people who receive adequate, sustained support are more likely to achieve financial stability. Providing assistance does not create dependency; rather, unstable, conditional support creates insecurity and prevents long-term success.
"We need more financial education programs—if people just understood money better, they wouldn’t be in poverty."
Reframing: Financial education alone does not fix poverty. The issue isn’t knowledge—it’s financial trauma, systemic inequities, and policies that limit access to wealth-building opportunities.
"If someone is homeless, they probably made bad life choices."
Reframing: Homelessness is often the result of affordable housing shortages, low wages, domestic violence, and systemic barriers, not personal failure. Punitive policies, criminalization, and lack of social safety nets make it harder for unhoused individuals to recover.
"Poverty has nothing to do with race—anyone can succeed if they work hard enough."
Reframing: Racial disparities in wealth, education, and employment are well-documented. The racial wealth gap exists because of historical discrimination, redlining, wage disparities, and exclusion from generational wealth-building opportunities. Ignoring this fact perpetuates economic injustice.
"Minimum wage jobs aren’t meant to be careers—people need to get higher-paying jobs."
Reframing: Many essential jobs are low-wage jobs, yet they sustain our economy. Service workers, healthcare aides, and childcare providers often earn below living wages, making it impossible to survive without additional assistance. Wages should reflect the real cost of living.
"People in poverty should be more grateful for the help they receive."
Reframing: This assumes that help is a privilege, not a right. Support systems exist because poverty is systemic, not personal failure. People do not need to be “grateful” for basic human dignity and economic justice.
"People struggling financially should stop spending money on unnecessary things like expensive phones, nails, or designer clothes."
Reframing: People in poverty deserve joy, self-expression, and small luxuries too. This mindset assumes that every dollar spent must be “justified” when, in reality, no one questions wealthier people’s spending habits.
"If they didn’t apply for a program, they must not really need it."
Reframing: Many people don’t apply for assistance due to complicated processes, stigma, or past experiences of rejection. Programs should focus on outreach, accessibility, and reducing barriers to participation.
"If someone keeps making bad financial decisions, there’s only so much help we can give them."
Reframing: Financial trauma impacts decision-making. Instead of blaming individuals, we should address the systemic and psychological reasons behind their choices.
Institutional Bias: Reframing Poverty Perceptions
"We require extensive paperwork for individuals to prove they need assistance."
Reframing: This reflects punitive, distrust-based systems that assume people will exploit resources rather than recognizing that excessive documentation excludes those in need.
"If someone misses a deadline, they are automatically removed from services."
Reframing: People in crisis often struggle with deadlines due to stress, transportation issues, or lack of digital access. Grace periods and proactive outreach create better outcomes.
"We assume that if someone doesn’t attend a meeting or respond quickly, they must not be serious about getting help."
Reframing: Many individuals in poverty face barriers like unstable work schedules, lack of childcare, and digital divides. Assuming disengagement ignores real obstacles.
"Our policies are primarily focused on accountability and compliance rather than support and flexibility."
Reframing: Punitive policies push people away. Programs should prioritize support, relationship-building, and accessibility rather than bureaucratic control.
"Our leadership team does not reflect the demographics or lived experiences of the people we serve."
Reframing: Representation matters. Decision-makers who lack lived experience with poverty often create policies that are detached from real community needs.
Final Reflection Questions
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What insights did you gain from this reframing poverty perceptions exercise?
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What perceptions or assumptions do you need to unlearn?
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How can you shift your workplace or institution from punitive to supportive practices?
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What commitments can you make to advocating for economic justice?
Transforming the way we understand poverty starts with challenging our own assumptions and perceptions. Let’s move beyond blame and toward systemic, trauma-informed solutions.
The goal of this exercise is not judgment—it’s self-awareness. When we acknowledge and challenge these perspectives, we take the first step toward creating more equitable, effective solutions for people in poverty.
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