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Being Poor, Feeling Poorer: Combining objective and subjective measures of welfare in Albania

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  • Gero Carletto

    (Agricultural and Development Economics Division, Food and Agriculture Organization)

  • Alberto Zezza

    (Agricultural and Development Economics Division, Food and Agriculture Organization)

Abstract

As shown empirically for many transition economies, even small changes in assumptions on economies of size and adult equivalence scales are likely to produce significant changes in the analysis of poverty and its distribution across households and individuals. Since such exercises are then used to orient and prioritize policy actions (e.g. the targeting of scarce social assistance resources) it is important to refine our understanding of the extent to which poverty measures and the resulting profiles are sensitive to specific assumptions. In this paper we investigate how combining objective and subjective measures of welfare can provide insights that are helpful in addressing these questions, particularly with respect to the presence of economies of scale in consumption.

Suggested Citation

  • Gero Carletto & Alberto Zezza, 2004. "Being Poor, Feeling Poorer: Combining objective and subjective measures of welfare in Albania," Working Papers 04-12, Agricultural and Development Economics Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO - ESA).
    • Handle: RePEc:fao:wpaper:0412
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Carlo Azzarri & Gero Carletto & Benjamin Davis & Alberto Zezza, 2006. "Monitoring Poverty Without Consumption Data : An Application Using the Albania Panel Survey," Eastern European Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 44(1), pages 59-82, February.
    2. Posel, Dorrit & Rogan, Michael, 2014. "Measured as poor versus feeling poor: Comparing objective and subjective poverty rates in South Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series 133, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    3. Kafle, Kashi & Winter-Nelson, Alex & Goldsmith, Peter, 2016. "Does 25 cents more per day make a difference? The impact of livestock transfer and development in rural Zambia," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 62-72.
    4. Chenhong Peng & Paul S. F. Yip & Yik Wa Law, 2020. "What Factors Beyond Economic Poverty Lead People in High-income Societies to Feel Poor? Evidence from Hong Kong," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 152(3), pages 991-1027, December.
    5. Olivia Bertelli, 2019. "Food security measures in Sub-Saharan Africa. A validation of the LSMS-ISA scale," Post-Print hal-02455184, HAL.
    6. Ravallion, Martin & Himelein, Kristen & Beegle, Kathleen, 2013. "Can subjective questions on economic welfare be trusted ? evidence for three developing countries," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6726, The World Bank.
    7. Migotto, Mauro & Davis, Benjamin & Carletto, Calogero & Beegle, Kathleen, 2005. "Measuring food security using respondents' perception of food consumption adequacy," ESA Working Papers 289068, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Agricultural Development Economics Division (ESA).
    8. Zsoka Koczan, 2022. "Perceptions of economic well‐being in the Western Balkans," Economics of Transition and Institutional Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(4), pages 845-867, October.
    9. Martin Ravallion & Kristen Himelein & Kathleen Beegle, 2016. "Can Subjective Questions on Economic Welfare Be Trusted?," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 64(4), pages 697-726.
    10. Renuka Mahadevan & Vincent Hoang, 2016. "Is There a Link Between Poverty and Food Security?," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 128(1), pages 179-199, August.
    11. Zsoka Koczan, 2016. "Being Poor, Feeling Poorer: Inequality, Poverty and Poverty Perceptions in the Western Balkans," IMF Working Papers 2016/031, International Monetary Fund.
    12. Ravallion, Martin, 2012. "Poor, or just feeling poor ? on using subjective data in measuring poverty," Policy Research Working Paper Series 5968, The World Bank.
    13. M. Grazia Pittau & Roberto Zelli, 2023. "Anchoring Measurement of the Middle‐Income Class to Subjective Evaluation," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 69(1), pages 60-75, March.
    14. Santos Bila & Mduduzi Biyase, 2022. "Determinants of Subjective Poverty in Rural and Urban Areas of South Africa," Economics Working Papers edwrg-02-2022, College of Business and Economics, University of Johannesburg, South Africa, revised 2022.
    15. Labeaga, José M. & Molina, José Alberto & Navarro, María, 2011. "Deprivation using satisfaction measures in Spain: An evaluation of unemployment benefits," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 287-310, March.
    16. Dorrit Posel & Michael Rogan, 2014. "Measured as Poor Versus Feeling Poor: Comparing Objective and Subjective Poverty Rates in South Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2014-133, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    17. Pudney, Stephen & Francavilla, Francesca, 2006. "Income mis-measurement and the estimation of poverty rates: an analysis of income poverty in Albania," ISER Working Paper Series 2006-35, Institute for Social and Economic Research.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Albania; Development policies; Economic development; Economic dualism; Economic systems; Income; Informal sector; Living standards; Mathematical models; Poverty; Rural development; Social change; Social conditions; Social policies; Social welfare; Socioec;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being
    • I32 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty
    • O52 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Europe
    • D60 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - General

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