Many measurement concepts of equal living conditions fail to meet central scientific requirements. A comparison and assessment of the equivalence of living conditions has therefore been difficult up to now. This paper presents a newly developed measurement concept that addresses the most...

Avoiding the greatest plague of all : Plato and Aristotle -- Societal responsibility and the undeserving poor : John Locke -- The noble poor : Jean Jacques Rousseau and Adam Smith -- Empirical influences and the complexities of poverty : Alexis de Tocqueville and John Stuart Mill -- Poverty as a...