Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book identifies sociability as being central to the understanding of urban poverty conditions. Poverty was also associated by many authors to individual attributes and behaviors, at least since the conservative culture of poverty' debate. Within this same micro-level tradition, the field has more recently become dominated by a literature focused on individual attributes, decisions, strategies and behavior. It shows their relevance and to analyze how they operate in the production and reproduction of poverty. The results allow you to sustain the centrality of networks and of sociability for the reproduction of social inequalities and of urban poverty conditions in the city. Although referring to the city of So Paulo, the results bring important new elements to the discussions of the issue in other urban and metropolitan realities.