Poverty During Childhood and Its Implications for School Psychologists

Poverty can have long-term consequences on cognitive and physical development such as poor nutrition, sub-standard educational opportunities, and exposure to high-stress environments over long periods of time. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the issue of poverty across the globe and raised concerns about long-term consequences as the world population has found itself facing unprecedented health, economic, education, and social crises. An essential element for poverty eradication is setting up dedicated interventions to reach those in need of assistance, for this reason, leaders of 189 countries met at the United Nations (UN) to sign the historic Millennium Declaration in which they committed to achieving eight measurable development goals that were targeted to support quality of life in the poorest countries. An essential element for poverty eradication is setting up dedicated interventions to reach those in need of assistance. For this reason, school psychologists should possess a strong understanding of how their unique skill set can advance advocacy, research, and training related to helping children living in poverty and, potentially, lessen the scourge of poverty in the future.