A social issue is a problem that affects many people within a society. It is a group of common problems in present-day society and ones that many people strive to solve. It is often the consequence of factors extending beyond an individual's control. Social issues are the source of conflicting opinions on the grounds of what is perceived as morally correct or incorrect personal life or interpersonal social life decisions. Social issues are distinguished from economic issues; however, some issues have both social and economic aspects. Some issues do not fall into either category, such as warfare.
Housing project in Bremen-Vahr in the 1960s, back then most tenants living in housing-projects were two-parent families with at least one parent working. In many housing projects, the composition of tenants has changed since then and now many tenant-families are headed by a single female or an unemployed male.
Poverty is a state or condition in which one lacks the financial resources and essentials for a certain standard of living. Poverty can have diverse environmental, legal, social, economic, and political causes and effects. When evaluating poverty in statistics or economics there are two main measures: absolute poverty compares income against the amount needed to meet basic personal needs, such as food, clothing, and shelter; relative poverty measures when a person cannot meet a minimum level of living standards, compared to others in the same time and place. The definition of relative poverty varies from one country to another, or from one society to another.
Children of the Depression-era migrant workers, Arizona, United States, 1937
An early morning outside the Opera Tavern in Stockholm, with beggars waiting for scraps from the previous day. Sweden, 1868.
Worlds regions by total wealth (in trillions USD), 2018
A Somali boy receiving treatment for malnourishment at a health facility
