Final answer:
David Shipler's research in 'The Working Poor' reveals the struggles of living on minimum wage and the difficulties faced by low-income workers in America. Similar to Barbara Ehrenreich's work in 'Nickel and Dimed,' Shipler's narrative exposes the reality of working poverty, drawing on both personal experiences and academic studies to underscore this critical social issue.
Step-by-step explanation:
David Shipler's research and argument in The Working Poor expose the hardships faced by poor working people in America and he illustrates the problem of accepting opinions as facts. Shipler's investigative approach is akin to that of Barbara Ehrenreich, who immersively researched her book Nickel and Dimed by working in low-wage jobs. Both authors aim to shed light on the challenges of living on minimum wage, the struggle to make ends meet, and the often-invisible plight of the working poor.
Similar to Ehrenreich's discoveries, Shipler witnessed the harsh reality that surviving on a minimum wage is nearly impossible. He detailed the sacrifices and the measures people resort to, including holding multiple jobs, experiencing inconsistent housing, and facing health care deficiencies. Shipler's work adds to the conversation about working poverty by integrating factual research with powerful storytelling methods, thereby capturing the attention and empathy of the reader.
This approach to social research reflects a broader academic interest in understanding the nuanced experiences of working poverty, as shown in the cross-national analysis conducted by Brady, Fullerton, and Cross. Descriptions of people who live by what they earn reveal how a paycheck can be insufficient to cover basic necessities like housing, as depicted in Matthew Desmond's Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City.