The sociological research on poverty, the theoretical and empirical knowledge accumulated contributes to identifying and interpreting poverty phenomena and - as a server of social policy – it takes an active role in actions implemented for the moderation of destitution, also in the elaboration, introduction of diverse social, social policy projects, and impact studies. In these fields the science of sociology mostly exploits functionalist and conflict-paradigms. Hereunder, the focus falls on these paradigms, the relevant theory of „poverty culture” by Lewis, the category of underclass, the mechanisms of social seclusion and the model of life cycle are also mentioned.