Poverty is directly related to the family as a unit of living and is closely associated with the functions of production and consumption of the family. The functioning of the family is dependent on its structure. We have what is called a condition of poverty when the function of production in the family is not given full play. This occurs when the family income is very low, which results in the function of comsumption being checked by the lack of.adequate income, i. e. the desires of the family members are not sufficiently satisfied.<BR>According to my studies, a low-income is caused mostly by earning power and results, in many cases, from the lack of a perfect supporter in the family. Thus we have the malfunctioning of the family unit. Poverty is a phenomenon of social maladjustment and mulfunctioning of the family unit. It is therefore closely connected with family disorganization. <BR>Before describing the patterns of family disorganization, we must first analyse the organized family unit, for the former is a co-ordinate concept as compared with the latter. <BR>The conditions of the organized family unit have been induced for the purpose of this study as follows : <BR>(1) to consist of father, mather and children <BR>(2) to include not more than 3 or 4 children <BR>(3) to have all members healthy <BR>(4) to have a harmonious interrelationship <BR>(5) to be in a state of social adjustment to society <BR>In this abstract, the family unit which meets the five abovementioned requirements is considered as the organized or normal family unit. (1) and (2), above, are associated with the composition of the family, (3) with the physiological conditions of the family members, (4) and (5) with the content of the family. Therefore, the disorganized or abnormal family unit can be defined in a manner corresponding to those conditions of the organized or normal family unit. <BR>I divide the types of the disorganized family unit into three groups : disorganized as to form, disorganized internally, and disorganized both internally and as to form. I have named the first of these, “the broken family, ” and have subdivided it into two sub-groups : (a) the family composition is broken, (b) one or more member is invalid. The second group is “the discordant family, ” and also is divided into two sub-groups : (a) internally discordant, (b) externally discordant. And the third is “the disrupted family.” <BR>The observed patterns of the disorganized family unit are as follows <BR>A mother and children-no father <BR>B father and children-no mother <BR>C all old persons (or old persons only) <BR>D all children <BR>E both parents but too many children <BR>F one or more invalid members <BR>G seriously disrupted family <BR>H under-privileged family <BR>I multiple combinations of the above <BR>The correlation of the organized (normal) family unit and the disorganized (abnormal) family unit is as in following diagram.<BR>Thus we can measure the standard of (family) living first to observe the form of the family and to analyse the harmonizing conditions of it, and then to see the job of the master of the family and to study his income. Those families on public relief which are employed have such jobs as day laborer, laborer in small factories or shops, odd job man, entertainer, home worker, peddler, second-hand dealer, masseur, carpenter or domitory nurse.