Introduction

Abstract

It is contended that the US must adopt a novel approach to resolving poverty & to designing poverty policies. The conventional position that identifies income & labor markets as the principal determinants of poverty is rejected. Rather, it is claimed that three additional factors require consideration: (1) the ability of families to acquire financial assets; (2) the function financial assets play in increasing standards of living & employment opportunities; & (3) the potential benefits of creating social policy based on financial assets. Summaries of articles that address the issues of asset ownership in the US, poor people's capacity to accumulate assets, & the establishment of policy designed to encourage poor people to accumulate assets are presented. It is concluded that asset ownership significantly augments the psychological well-being of poor individuals & that emphasizing asset-based policy will introduce more families into the nation's financial mainstream. J. W. Parker