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Counting Heads or Counting Televisions: Can Asset-based Measures of Welfare Assist Policy-makers in Russia?

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  • Martin Wall
  • Deborah Johnston

Abstract

There has been a vigorous debate about poverty measurement in Russia, where both the poverty line and poverty data have been subject to criticism. We outline some of the issues raised and discuss the use of an alternative welfare measure based on household assets. Asset indices have mostly been constructed for low-income countries, supported by two arguments: first, the asset index appears to have a number of empirical advantages in terms of data collection; and second, it may be better at capturing long-term welfare than either income or expenditure data. We show that the asset index approach is useful in Russia, and may present policy-makers with a superior means of determining household welfare. However, our discussion raises a number of methodological issues that must be confronted by those constructing asset indices.

Suggested Citation

  • Martin Wall & Deborah Johnston, 2008. "Counting Heads or Counting Televisions: Can Asset-based Measures of Welfare Assist Policy-makers in Russia?," Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 9(1), pages 131-147.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:jhudca:v:9:y:2008:i:1:p:131-147
    DOI: 10.1080/14649880701811468
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    Cited by:

    1. Gimpelson, V. & Chernina, E., 2020. "How we perceive our place in income distribution and how the perceptions deviate from reality," Journal of the New Economic Association, New Economic Association, vol. 46(2), pages 30-56.
    2. Garbero, Alessandra & Songsermsawas, Tisorn, 2017. "How Much have Agricultural Projects Contributed to Economic Mobility and Food Security in China?," 2017 Annual Meeting, July 30-August 1, Chicago, Illinois 258097, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    3. Kseniya Abanokova & Hai-Anh H. Dang, 2023. "Poverty in Russia: a bird’s-eye view of trends and dynamics in the past quarter of a century," Chapters, in: Jacques Silber (ed.), Research Handbook on Measuring Poverty and Deprivation, chapter 58, pages 627-635, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    4. Rodrigo LOVATON DAVILA & Aine Seitz MCCARTHY & Dorothy GONDWE & Phatta KIRDRUAND & Uttan SHARMA, 2022. "Water, Walls, and Bicycles: Wealth Index Composition Using Census Microdata," JODE - Journal of Demographic Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 88(1), pages 79-120, March.
    5. Luc Christiaensen & Peter Lanjouw & Jill Luoto & David Stifel, 2012. "Small area estimation-based prediction methods to track poverty: validation and applications," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 10(2), pages 267-297, June.
    6. Mausumi Mahapatro & Deborah Johnston, 2020. "Imperfection Measures and the Production of Poverty: A Case Study of the Use of the Asset Index in Bangladesh," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 152(2), pages 513-531, November.
    7. Francesco Burchi, 2009. "On the Contribution of Mother’s Education to Children’s Nutritional Capabilities in Mozambique," Departmental Working Papers of Economics - University 'Roma Tre' 0101, Department of Economics - University Roma Tre.
    8. Garbero, A., 2016. "IFAD RESEARCH SERIES 7 - Measuring IFAD’s impact: background paper to the IFAD9 Impact Assessment Initiative," IFAD Research Series 280045, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
    9. Sara Stevano & Deborah Johnston & Emmanuel Codjoe, 2018. "Urban food security in the context of inequality and dietary change: a study of school children in Accra," Working Papers 20181804, Department of Accounting, Economics and Finance, Bristol Business School, University of the West of England, Bristol.

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    Keywords

    Asset index; Poverty; Russia;
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