Measuring Living Standards with Proxy Variables

• Published in: Demography Vol. 37; no. 2; pp. 155 - 174
• Main Authors: Montgomery, Mark R., Gragnolati, Michele, Burke, Kathleen A., Paredes, Edmundo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Population Association of America 01-05-2000; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adult; Adult education; Child; Comparative studies; Consumption; Data collection; Demographics; Demography; Developing Countries; Developing Countries - statistics & numerical data; Educational Status; Expenditures; Female; Fertility; Forecasts; Household expenditure; Households; Humans; Hypotheses; Income; Income - statistics & numerical data; Infant; Infant Mortality; LDCs; Measurement; Measurement and Error; Methodological Problems; Methodology; Methodology (Data Analysis); Models, Statistical; Mortality; Payments; Polls & surveys; Population studies; Proxies; Proxy reporting; Proxy statements; Quality of Life; Regression analysis; Standard of Living; Statistical analysis; Surveys; Variables; Womens education; Zero
• ISSN: 0070-3370; 1533-7790
• DOI: 10.2307/2648118

Very few demographic surveys in developing countries have gathered information on household incomes or consumption expenditures. Researchers interested in living standards therefore have had little alternative but to rely on simple proxy indicators. The properties of these proxies have not been analyzed systematically. We ask what hypotheses can be tested using proxies, and compare these indicators with consumption expenditures per adult, our preferred measure of living standards. We find that the proxies employed in much demographic research are very weak predictors of consumption per adult. Nevertheless, hypothesis tests based on proxies are likely to be powerful enough to warrant consideration.