Poverty reduces brainpower needed for navigating other areas of life (2013)
Poverty can also be a trap because the simple solution (just giving someone money to alleviate poverty) isn&#x27;t the same as earned success.<p>When you feel like you&#x27;ve earned money through hard work and you feel like you&#x27;re a contributor and needed and respected by your peers it brings a significant amount of satisfaction and happiness in life, which in turn drives you to be more productive and alters the way you think about your resources.<p>When you&#x27;re given wealth, you don&#x27;t feel like you&#x27;ve earned it, you have no buy-in, and you feel like a burden to those around you. You can see the difference starkly with those who earn wealth and those who inherit it. All to often the next generation squanders it.<p>I think we should give money to those in need, in fact I think it&#x27;s a moral imperative. But I also think it&#x27;s important to remember the more complex human psychology behind the scenes. In addition to satisfying basic needs how can we get this person a meaningful way to contribute and feel like they&#x27;re earning what they&#x27;re given in the future. How can we plug them into a community that can sustain them through tough times, and likewise that they can support?<p>Consider <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;streetsteam.org&#x2F;model" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;streetsteam.org&#x2F;model</a> which supplies the homeless with work cleaning city streets:<p>&gt; We believe that treating people with dignity and empowering them to be a part of the solution to their struggles is a major factor in their ultimate success.