This paper examines how the concept of social exclusion has evolved in
the academic and policy debate in Australia in the last five years or so.
It does not attempt to do this comprehensively, but illustrates some of
the most important developments, in the process reflecting on some of
the issues raised in earlier Australian contribution to the social
exclusion literature. The paper is organised around three principal
themes: concepts; measurement; and policy. One of the most attractive
features of social exclusion is that it broadens the conventional
framework that identifies poverty as a lack of resources relative to
needs. In this respect, exclusion can be seen as extending other attempts
to broader the resource notion of income poverty, specifically those
associated with Townsend’s notion of relative deprivation Sen’s more
recent ideas of functioning and capability. A range of issues raised in
recent debate over the measurement of poverty and in related
developments are then reviewed to illustrate the potential advantages of
adopting a framework focused around the idea of social exclusion and
how different dimensions of exclusion can be identified and quantified.
Finally, evidence and experience from the UK and EC are used to show
how an exclusion approach can help to promote, not replace, the need
for additional work on poverty as conventionally defined and analysed.
The paper concludes by arguing that researchers need to think more
strategically about how research on exclusion and poverty can exert
influence on those setting the policy agenda.