On the Measurement of the Income Poverty Rate: the Equivalence Scale across Europe
The methodology used to determine the at-risk-of-poverty rate commonly applied in the European context is often criticised for arbitrary steps in its construction. This study questions the first step – the equivalence scale applied to transform the disposable income of households of different sizes...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Czech Statistical Office
2019-12-01
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| Series: | Statistika: Statistics and Economy Journal |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.czso.cz/documents/10180/88506452/32019719q4_383_mysikova_analyses.pdf/dbb49c82-8789-46be-8f40-e0de659dea35?version=1.0 |
| _version_ | 1818081307275558912 |
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| author | Martina Mysíková Tomáš Želinský |
| author_facet | Martina Mysíková Tomáš Želinský |
| author_sort | Martina Mysíková |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The methodology used to determine the at-risk-of-poverty rate commonly applied in the European context is often criticised for arbitrary steps in its construction. This study questions the first step – the equivalence scale applied to transform the disposable income of households of different sizes into comparable units. First, we hypothesise that economies of scale are lower in Central-Eastern European countries than in their Western counterparts. We assess the hypothesis using a simple descriptive analysis of the structure of household consumption expenditures based on Household Budget Survey data. Second, we demonstrate the sensitivity of the at-risk-of-poverty rate to an equivalence scale based on the Statistics on Income and Living Conditions data. We identify three different groups of countries according to the sensitivity of the income poverty rate to the relative adult and child household member weights assigned by the equivalence scale. The study contributes to the discussion on defining accurate, country-specific equivalence scales. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-10T19:04:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-74f98bf2dd5e4db88c46983778e53917 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0322-788X 1804-8765 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-10T19:04:07Z |
| publishDate | 2019-12-01 |
| publisher | Czech Statistical Office |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Statistika: Statistics and Economy Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-74f98bf2dd5e4db88c46983778e539172022-12-22T01:36:56ZengCzech Statistical OfficeStatistika: Statistics and Economy Journal0322-788X1804-87652019-12-01994383397On the Measurement of the Income Poverty Rate: the Equivalence Scale across EuropeMartina Mysíková0Tomáš Želinský1Institute of Sociology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech RepublicInstitute of Sociology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech RepublicThe methodology used to determine the at-risk-of-poverty rate commonly applied in the European context is often criticised for arbitrary steps in its construction. This study questions the first step – the equivalence scale applied to transform the disposable income of households of different sizes into comparable units. First, we hypothesise that economies of scale are lower in Central-Eastern European countries than in their Western counterparts. We assess the hypothesis using a simple descriptive analysis of the structure of household consumption expenditures based on Household Budget Survey data. Second, we demonstrate the sensitivity of the at-risk-of-poverty rate to an equivalence scale based on the Statistics on Income and Living Conditions data. We identify three different groups of countries according to the sensitivity of the income poverty rate to the relative adult and child household member weights assigned by the equivalence scale. The study contributes to the discussion on defining accurate, country-specific equivalence scales.https://www.czso.cz/documents/10180/88506452/32019719q4_383_mysikova_analyses.pdf/dbb49c82-8789-46be-8f40-e0de659dea35?version=1.0central-eastern europeequivalence scaleincome poverty ratesensitivitywestern europe |
| spellingShingle | Martina Mysíková Tomáš Želinský On the Measurement of the Income Poverty Rate: the Equivalence Scale across Europe Statistika: Statistics and Economy Journal central-eastern europe equivalence scale income poverty rate sensitivity western europe |
| title | On the Measurement of the Income Poverty Rate: the Equivalence Scale across Europe |
| title_full | On the Measurement of the Income Poverty Rate: the Equivalence Scale across Europe |
| title_fullStr | On the Measurement of the Income Poverty Rate: the Equivalence Scale across Europe |
| title_full_unstemmed | On the Measurement of the Income Poverty Rate: the Equivalence Scale across Europe |
| title_short | On the Measurement of the Income Poverty Rate: the Equivalence Scale across Europe |
| title_sort | on the measurement of the income poverty rate the equivalence scale across europe |
| topic | central-eastern europe equivalence scale income poverty rate sensitivity western europe |
| url | https://www.czso.cz/documents/10180/88506452/32019719q4_383_mysikova_analyses.pdf/dbb49c82-8789-46be-8f40-e0de659dea35?version=1.0 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT martinamysikova onthemeasurementoftheincomepovertyratetheequivalencescaleacrosseurope AT tomaszelinsky onthemeasurementoftheincomepovertyratetheequivalencescaleacrosseurope |