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Poverty measurement
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05/09/2013
‘China effect’ on global inequality
Trends in China are the dominant factor in global inequality trends since the late 1980s, according to a study by academics at the Center for Global Development in Washington (USA). The paper proposes an alternative approach to measuring global inequality based on consumption patterns, which suggests that progress in reducing inequality has been slower than sometimes portrayed.
Category: Reports -
22/08/2013
Redistribution impact – income definition ‘key’
The redistributive effect of tax and benefit systems depends heavily on the way in which income is defined, says a new working paper from the Institute for Social and Economic Research.
The paper examines how the distribution of income in three European countries (the UK, Belgium and Greece) changes when the standard definition of disposable income is replaced by a wider definition. The latter takes into account three 'I's – indirect taxes, imputed rent on owner-occupied housing, and in-kind benefits.Category: Reports -
12/07/2013
Measuring multi-dimensional poverty
A new method for measuring multi-dimensional poverty is rigorous, easy to unpack and use for policy, and also flexible enough for different contexts, according to a research centre at Oxford University which has pioneered the approach.
The Alkire Foster (or 'AF') method counts the overlapping or simultaneous deprivations that a person or household experiences in different indicators. People are identified as multi-dimensionally poor if the weighted sum of their deprivations is greater than or equal to a chosen poverty cut-off point. Having identified who is poor, the method then summarises information to show the deprivations experienced by those in poverty as a proportion of all possible deprivations in society.
Category: Reports -
20/06/2013
Can relative poverty be abolished?
The idea that if poverty is relative it will always be with us is a common misconception, argues John Veit-Wilson. 'Relative poverty' can be abolished if no one has fewer resources than needed to achieve that society’s minimum standards.
Category: Articles -
10/06/2013
Absolute poverty in America higher than in 1969
Despite using a 40-year old absolute standard, child poverty in the US has increased dramatically from 14% to 22% as Salvatore Babones reports here.
Category: Articles -
29/05/2013
Global poverty estimates – problems and solutions
Counting the number of people living in poverty worldwide is difficult, says a new paper, but there are a number of things that can be done to improve the quality of data.
The paper comes from an independent organisation focusing on the analysis and use of data for the elimination of absolute poverty. It explains how global poverty numbers are obtained; explores weaknesses in the data; and describes the underlying constraints on improving data. It concludes by looking at solutions to these problems, as well as changes in the scope of, and demand for, poverty data.Category: Reports -
27/05/2013
Distributional impact of public services in Europe
Estimates of poverty for particular household types are significantly altered when account is taken of the distributional impact of public services, according to a new working paper prepared by Eurostat, the European Commission's statistical body.
The paper examines the impact of including the value of public healthcare, long-term care, education and childcare in estimates of income inequality and financial poverty in 23 European countries.Category: Reports -
24/05/2013
Comparing poverty exposure in Europe
Some 'encouraging' results have been reported from attempts to compare people's exposure to poverty across different European countries, says a paper from Eurostat, the European Commission's statistical body.
The paper describes methodological work aimed at matching expenditure data (from the Household Budget Survey – HBS) with income and material deprivation data (from the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions – EU-SILC). It attempts to do this using 2005 data for the UK.Category: Reports -
20/05/2013
Small-area measures of income poverty
Some of the difficulties of measuring poverty at the small-area level have been highlighted in a new paper from the LSE's Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion. The paper's author cautiously suggests a system of proxies based on benefits data as the most promising way forward.
The paper is the latest from the 'Social Policy in a Cold Climate' research programme, examining the effects of the major economic and political changes in the UK since 2007 – particularly on the distribution of wealth, poverty, inequality and spatial difference.Category: Reports -
22/04/2013
‘Risk of confusion’ over child poverty measurement
Coalition proposals to change the way child poverty is measured risk creating confusion, the independent Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission has warned.
The government-appointed body was responding to a consultation document in which ministers proposed moving away from measuring child poverty purely by reference to income.Category: Reports
