"Past research has found that subjective questions about an individuals' economic status do not correspond closely to measures of economic welfare based on household income or consumption. Survey respondents undoubtedly hold diverse ideas about what it means to be "poor" or "rich." Further, this...

There has been a growing interest in what have come to be termed "multidimensional indices of poverty." Advocates for these new indices correctly point out that command over market goods is not all that matters to peoples' well-being, and that other factors need to be considered when quantifying...

The authors report new estimates of measures of absolute poverty for the developing world over 1981-2004. A clear trend decline in the percentage of people who are absolutely poor is evident, although with uneven progress across regions. They find more mixed success in reducing the total number...