Vulnerability to poverty in Italy

Amendola, Nicola and rossi, mariacristina and Vecchi, Giovanni (2012): Vulnerability to poverty in Italy.

Abstract

The article empirically analyses the phenomenon of vulnerability to poverty – meant as an individual’s likelihood of becoming poor in the future. On the basis of studies conducted by the Italian Institute of Statistics on the consumption of Italian households in the years 1985-2001 and whose data have been rearranged in a pseudo-panel form, the article estimates the incidence of vulnerability to poverty at national and regional level. We find that potential poverty concerns an unexpectedly high percentage of the population – even as much as 50% in some years. Regional differences are broad, persistent and on the rise: moving from north to south, the risk of becoming poor in the future triples. Vulnerability analysis turns out to be a useful tool which should complement the traditional analysis of poverty.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: poverty; vulnerability; living conditions; wellbeing
• Subjects: D - Microeconomics > D1 - Household Behavior and Family Economics > D12 - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis; I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I3 - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty; I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I3 - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty > I38 - Government Policy ; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs; C - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods > C2 - Single Equation Models ; Single Variables > C21 - Cross-Sectional Models ; Spatial Models ; Treatment Effect Models ; Quantile Regressions; I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I3 - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty > I32 - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty

References

Amendola, N., Brandolini A. and Vecchi G. (2011), “Disuguaglianza”, in G. Vecchi, In ricchezza e in povertà. Il benessere degli italiani dall’Unità a oggi. Bologna: Il Mulino.

Atkinson, A.B. (1998), Poverty in Europe, Oxford, Blackwell

Alwang, J., Siegel P.B and Jørgensen S.L (2001), “Vulnerability: A View from Different Disciplines”, World Bank Social Protection Discussion Paper, no. 115.

Bourgignon F., Chor-ching Goh and Dae Il Kim (2004), “Estimating individual vulnerability to poverty with pseudo-panel data”, World Bank Policy Research Working Paper, no. 3375.

Chaudhuri, S. (2003), “Assessing Household Vulnerability to Poverty: Concepts, Empirical Methods, and Illustrative Examples”, Columbia University, mimeo.

Christiaensen, L. J. and Subbarao, K. (2005) “Towards an understanding of household vulnerability in rural Kenya”, Journal of African Economies, 14(4), pp. 520–558.

Commissione d’indagine sulla povertà e sull’emarginazione (1997), La spesa pubblica per l’assistenza in Italia. Roma: Presidenza del Consiglio dei Ministri, Dipartimento per l’informazione e l’editoria.

Conte L., Vecchi G. and Rossi M. (2011), Vulnerabilità, in G. Vecchi, In ricchezza e in povertà. Il benessere degli italiani dall’Unità a oggi. Il Mulino.

Dercon, S. (2007), Insurance Against Poverty. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Devicienti F., Gualtieri V. and Rossi M. (2010) "The Dynamics and Persistence of Poverty: Evidence from Italy," Carlo Alberto Notebooks, 173.

Diamond P., (1981), Mobility Costs, Frictional Unemployment and Efficiency, Journal of Political Economy, 89(4), pp.798-812.

European Commission (2010), Europe 2020. A strategy for Smart, Sustainable and Inclusive Growth, Communication from the Commission, Brussels

Hoddinott, J. and Quisumbing A. (2003a), “Methods for microeconometric risk and vulnerability assessments”, World Bank Social Protection Discussion Papers, no. 324.

Hoddinott, J. and Quisumbing A. (2003b), “Data sources for microeconometric risk and vulnerability assessments”, World Bank Social Protection Discussion Papers

ISTAT (2011), “La povertà in Italia, anno 2010”, Comunicato stampa

Jenkins, S., Brandolini, A., Mickelwright, J. and Nolan, B. (2011), “The great recession and the distribution of household income”, Fondazione Rodolfo De Benedetti

Ligon, E. and Schecther L. (2003), “Measuring Vulnerability”, Economic Journal, 113, 486: 95-110.

Piraino, P. (2007), “Comparable Estimate of Intergenerational Income Mobility in Italy”, The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, Vol 7, Issue 2, 1-25

Zamagni, V. (1993) The economic history of Italy 1860-1990, Oxford Clarendon Press

Zhang, Y. and Wan G. (2009), “How Precisely Can We Estimate Vulnerability to Poverty?”, Oxford Development Studies, 37, 3: 277-87.