Psychologist logo
Poverty

The psychological impact of inequality

A themed trawl of the archive…

29 April 2019

Inequality in terms of wealth, health, gender, sexuality, race and education all have psychological impacts. We bring you our own articles on the topic, and our favourites from the web.

From The Psychologist and Research Digest

Conversations on class

The psychology of social class inequalities in the classroom

…plus more on Matthew Easterbrook's work.

From poverty to flourishing

Towards a new normal, and beyond

Debunking the natural order of things
Prof Gail Kinman reports from a keynote by Professor Kate Pickett, and you can read more from her here; inequality was a theme throughout our coverage of the 2019 Annual Conference, which you can find here

'We cannot continue to be part of environments that perpetuate inequality'
Anne Templeton on inclusive supervision environments.

Really 'doing better' on racism
Craig Harper and Harry Purser

Standing against racism

'Living wages are crucial now more than ever'

Building a fairer future - Professor Sir Michael Marmot's transformation seminar

What are the barriers to our profession, and how do we remove them?

How do we 'other'?
Peter Hegarty on asymmetries of reasoning for lay and professional psychologists alike.

Gender equality in academic science
Our journalist Ella Rhodes summarises a report identifying why women are underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and maths.

Failing boys, failing psychology
Marc Smith

Neoliberal austerity and unemployment
David Fryer and Rose Stambe examine the psychological impact of unemployment. Plus find much more on austerity in our archive.

‘We are not at a place of full acceptance or equality for trans people yet’
Robin Dundas on the marginalisation of trans individuals.

Lean in – but how?
Michelle K. Ryan and Teri A. Kirby on why ‘Lean In’, a strategy for women designed to increase workplace gender equality, is both an underrated and overrated phenomenon.

Inequality and the next generation
Gary Thomas explains how the gradient of difference can impact upon identity in the classroom.

In death we are all equal?
Ella Rhodes on LGBT-phobia among healthcare professionals.

Same-sex marriage and equality
Sue Wilkinson and Celia Kitzinger on psychology’s role in the introduction of equal marriage, from 2005 – 9 years before same-sex marriage became legal in the UK.

Reversing the social curse
Jolanda Jetten on the negative effects of disadvantage and discrimination.

Equality for sale?
Madeleine Pownall ponders the capitalisation of social change.

Women scientists in psychology – time for action
Fionnuala Murphy and colleagues

Are mental health services inherently feminised?
Linda Morison and colleagues investigate

The unheard victims
Michelle Lowe and Bob Balfour look at service provision for male sexual abuse survivors

Male suicide - a range of perspectives and resources

What are the barriers to our profession, and how can we remove them?

The rules of unruliness
The classic studies suggest we live in an inherently unequal world, but Reicher has an alternative view

Our turbulent minds 
Peter Kinderman touches on the impact of inequalities in this public lecture

Class is written into our psychology

Poverty shapes how children think about themselves 

Elsewhere

BPS and equality
BPS History of Psychology Centre. Sophie O’Reilly, BPS Assistant Archivist, on the BPS’s role in promoting equalities.

Why people prefer unequal societies
The Guardian. Christina Starmans, Mark Sheskin and Paul Bloom consider why people prefer unequal societies when asked about the ideal distribution of wealth.

The psychology of inequality
The New Yorker. Elizabeth Kolbert on how damaging it can be to feel poor (even when you’re not).

The psychological effects of inequality
The Guardian Science Weekly podcast. Richard Lea speaks to psychologists about the consequences of wealth inequality.