This UN Development Programme report from 2011 looks at the vicious cycle of poverty from the perspective of those who experience it firsthand. The report presents findings from surveys in six countries and provides an overview of social exclusion in the region and recommended actions. The report also introduces a way to measure the extent to which people are excluded from economic life, social services, and social networks and civic participation.

The report captures the complexity of social exclusion through a multidimensional Social Exclusion Index, a measure that is based on 24 types of deprivations. The Index is used to quantify and compare social exclusion in six countries in the region— ranging from Serbia to Tajikistan, with their different levels of development. The threshold at which the number of deprivations amounts to social exclusion is a matter of definition, but the report shows that the levels are significant in all the countries under any plausible threshold. More important, through ample analysis and numerous examples, the report illustrates how social exclusion occurs, and how it can be countered through deliberate, inclusive policies.

Original source: http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/beyond-transition