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Survey Instruments and the Reports of Consumption Expenditures: Evidence from the Consumer Expenditure Surveys

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  • Battistin, Erich
  • Padula, Mario

Abstract

This paper provides evidence on the relevance of the collection mode for the analysis of consumption data for the United States using complementary data sets from the Consumer Expenditure Surveys (CEX). We first show that population figures from consumption reports obtained with diaries markedly differ from those obtained using recall data. We then exploit multiple measurements of food expenditure available in the CEX to identify the effects of the collection mode on important features of the distribution of consumption (not just its mean). Finally, we show how to purge the expenditure measurements from most of the effects of the collection mode and thus obtain an improved measure of consumption that combines information from multiple reports in the CEX. The paper concludes by suggesting some guidelines for empirical research that have important implications for the measurement of inequality and well being.

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Bibliographic Info

Paper provided by C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers in its series CEPR Discussion Papers with number 8051.

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Date of creation: Oct 2010
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Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:8051

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Related research

Keywords: Consumption; Data Collection Methods; Rank Invariance;

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References

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  1. Firpo, Sergio Pinheiro & Ridder, Geert, 2010. "Bounds on functionals of the distribution treatment effects," Textos para discussão 201, Escola de Economia de São Paulo, Getulio Vargas Foundation (Brazil).
  2. Hong, Han & Tamer, Elie, 2003. "A simple estimator for nonlinear error in variable models," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 117(1), pages 1-19, November.
  3. Bruce D. Meyer & James X. Sullivan, 2009. "Five Decades of Consumption and Income Poverty," NBER Working Papers 14827, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
  4. Erich Battistin, 2002. "Errors in Survey Reports of Consumption Expenditures," 10th International Conference on Panel Data, Berlin, July 5-6, 2002 C4-2, International Conferences on Panel Data.
  5. Richard Blundell & Luigi Pistaferri & Ian Preston, 2004. "Consumption inequality and partial insurance," IFS Working Papers W04/28, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
  6. Kerwin Kofi Charles & Sheldon Danziger & Geng Li & Robert F. Schoeni, 2006. "Studying consumption with the Panel Study of Income Dynamics: comparisons with the Consumer Expenditure Survey and an application to the intergenerational transmission of well-being," Finance and Economics Discussion Series 2007-16, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
  7. Ernst R. Berndt & Charles R. Hulten, 2007. "Hard-to-Measure Goods and Services: Essays in Honor of Zvi Griliches," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number bern07-1, October.
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Cited by:
  1. Giacomo De Giorgi & Luca Gambetti, 2012. "The Effects of Government Spending on the Distribution of Consumption," UFAE and IAE Working Papers 905.12, Unitat de Fonaments de l'Anàlisi Econòmica (UAB) and Institut d'Anàlisi Econòmica (CSIC).
  2. Thomas F. Crossley & Joachim K. Winter, 2012. "Asking Households about Expenditures: What Have We Learned?," NBER Chapters, in: Improving the Measurement of Consumer Expenditures National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
  3. Giacomo De Giorgi & Luca Gambetti, 2012. "Consumption Heterogenity Over the Business Cycle," UFAE and IAE Working Papers 904.12, Unitat de Fonaments de l'Anàlisi Econòmica (UAB) and Institut d'Anàlisi Econòmica (CSIC).
  4. Rodolfo G. Campos & Ilina Reggio & Dionisio García-Píriz, 2012. "Micro vs. macro consumption data : the cyclical properties of the consumer expenditure survey," Economics Working Papers we1220, Universidad Carlos III, Departamento de Economía.
  5. Rodolfo G. Campos & Ilina Reggio, 2012. "Measurement error and imputation of consumption in survey data," Economics Working Papers we1219, Universidad Carlos III, Departamento de Economía.

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