Missing links in the Study of Puerto Rican Poverty in the United States. Occasional Paper # 30

This paper proposed some limitations on "quantitative-only" research focusing on Puerto Rican poverty in the United States. An overreliance on quantitative data may not allow for a full understanding and awareness of the nature and maintenance of poverty in Puerto Rican communities in the United States. An understanding of Puerto Rican poverty in urban America today requires a broad range of tools and methodological approaches. There are at least three potential research tools that should not be overlooked in the study of Puerto Rican poverty. These tools include social history and the role of power and politics, comparative frameworks, and using "community" as the unit of analysis rather than solely the individual or the family as the unit of analysis. Using these kinds of tools can provide a better understanding of the nature of Puerto Rican poverty and the responses that might be appropriate for this continuing issue. In the case of Puerto Ricans, cultural patterns and behaviors are generally approached as pathological by many researchers. There is a wide gulf between the policy discussions of researchers focusing on poverty in the United States and the concerns and insights offered by poor people regarding their own status. The expansion of involvement of the people themselves will help in the development of new and creative models for overcoming the limitations of current research paradigms. (SLD)