Originally published under title: Poverty and policy in Canada.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Pt. 1. Defining and measuring poverty in Canada. Poverty and the modern welfare state -- Canadian perspectives on poverty -- Who is poor in Canada? -- Making sense of poverty: social inequality and social exclusion. Pt. 2. The experience of poverty. Pathways to poverty -- The lived experience of poverty -- Interactions with the social assistance and health care systems. Pt. 3. Poverty, health, and quality of life. Poverty and health -- Poverty and health: mechanisms and pathways -- Poverty and quality of life. Pt. 4. Politics, public policy, and poverty. The politics of poverty -- Canadian public policy and poverty in international perspective -- Anti-poverty strategies and programs -- Poverty and the future of the Canadian welfare state.

"This book is unlike any other. Poverty in Canada provides a unique, interdisciplinary perspective on poverty and its importance to the health and quality of life of Canadians. This volume considers a range of issues that will be of great interest to a variety of audiences - those studying or working in Community and Developmental Psychology, Education, Health Promotion, Health Studies and Health Sciences, Medicine and Nursing, Political Science and Policy Studies, Public Health, Social Work, and Sociology, as well as the general public.