Interpersonal ViolenceĮxposure to violence transcends age and SES, affecting all levels of income, education and occupation. Behavioral and other social science professionals possess the tools necessary to study and identify strategies that could alleviate these disparities at both individual and societal levels. Society benefits from an increased focus on the foundations of socioeconomic inequities and efforts to reduce the deep gaps in socioeconomic status in the United States and abroad. Inequities in health distribution, resource distribution, and quality of life are increasing in the United States and globally. Low SES and its correlates, such as lower educational achievement, poverty and poor health, ultimately affect our society as a whole. SES affects overall human functioning, including our physical and mental health.
Thus, SES is relevant to all realms of behavioral and social science, including research, practice, education and advocacy. Further, SES is a consistent and reliable predictor of a vast array of outcomes across the life span, including physical and psychological health. Poverty, specifically, is not a single factor but rather is characterized by multiple physical and psychosocial stressors.
Socioeconomic status can encompass quality of life attributes as well as the opportunities and privileges afforded to people within society. Socioeconomic status (SES) encompasses not just income but also educational attainment, financial security and subjective perceptions of social status and social class.