The Analysis of Household Surveys: A Microeconometric Approach to Development Policy

Angus Deaton

World Bank Publications, 1997 - Business & Economics - 479 pages

Over the past 15 years, the availability of cheap and convenient microcomputers has changed the collection methods and analysis of household survey data in developing countries, making the data available within months, rather than years. Simultaneously, analysts have become more interested in exploring ways in which such data may be used to inform and improve the steps involved in policymaking. This book reviews the analysis of household survey data, including the construction of household surveys, the econometric tools that are the most useful for such analysis, and a range of problems in development policy for which the econometric analysis of household surveys is useful and informative. The author's approach remains close to the data, relying on transparent econometric and graphical techniques to present the data so that policy and academic debates are clearly informed.

Contents

• The design and content of household surveys: 7
• 11 Survey design: 9
• Survey frames and coverage: 10
• Strata and clusters: 12
• Unequal selection probabilities weights and inflation factors: 15
• Sample design in theory and practice: 17
• Panel data: 18
• 12 The content and quality of survey data: 22
• Individuals and households: 23
• Reporting periods: 24
• Measuring consumption: 26
• Measuring income: 29
• 13 The Living Standards Surveys: 32
• Design features of LSMS surveys: 34
• What have we learned?: 35
• 14 Descriptive statistics from survey data: 40
• the sampling variance of the mean: 43
• Using weights or inflation factors: 44
• sampling variation of probabilityweighted estimates: 49
• Twostage sampling and clusters: 51
• A superpopulation approach to clustering: 56
• Illustrative calculations for Pakistan: 57
• The bootstrap: 58
• 15 Guide to further reading: 61
• Econometric issues for survey data: 63
• 21 Survey design and regressions: 66
• Recommendations for practice: 71
• 22 The econometrics of clustered samples: 73
• Estimating regressions from clustered samples: 74
• 23 Heteroskedasticity and quantile regressions: 78
• Heteroskedasticity in regression analysis: 79
• Quantile regressions: 80
• calculating quantile regressions: 83
• Heteroskedasticity and limited dependent variable models: 85
• Robust estimation of censored regression models: 89
• Radical approaches to censored regressions: 91
• 24 Structure and regression in nonexperimental data: 92
• Simultaneity feedback and unobserved heterogeneity: 93
• Example 2 Farm size and farm productivity: 95
• Example 3 The evaluation of projects: 97
• nutrition and productivity: 98
• Measurement error: 99
• Selectivity issues: 101
• 25 Panel data: 105
• difference and withinestimation: 106
• Panel data and measurement error: 108
• Lagged dependent variables and exogeneity in panel data: 110
• 26 Instrumental variables: 111
• Policy evaluation and natural experiments: 112
• Econometric issues for instrumental variables: 115
• 27 Using a time series of cross sections: 116
• an example: 117
• Cohort data versus panel data: 120
• Panel data from successive cross sections: 121
• Decompositions by age cohort and year: 123
• 28 Two issues in statistical inference: 127
• the delta method: 128
• Sample size and hypothesis tests: 129
• 29 Guide to further reading: 131
• 3 Welfare poverty and distribution: 133
• 31 Living standards inequality and poverty: 134
• Inequality and social welfare: 136
• Measures of inequality: 138
• Poverty and social welfare: 140
• The construction of poverty lines: 141
• Measures of poverty: 144
• The choice of the individual welfare measure: 148
• Example 1 Inequality and poverty over time in Cote dlvoire: 151
• Example 2 Inequality and poverty by race in South Africa: 156
• inequality: 157
• Lorenz curves and inequality in South Africa and Cote dIvoire: 160
• Stochastic dominance: 162
• poverty: 164
• 32 Nonparametric methods for estimating density functions: 169
• histograms: 170
• kernel estimators: 171
• examples: 175
• Extensions and alternatives: 176
• examples: 180
• 33 Analyzing the distributional effects of policy: 182
• theory: 183
• the production and consumption of rice: 187
• Nonparametric regression analysis: 191
• Nonparametric regressions for rice in Thailand: 194
• locally weighted regression: 197
• The distributional effects of the social pension in South Africa: 200
• 34 Guide to further reading: 202
• Nutrition children and intrahousehold allocation: 204
• 41 The demand for food and nutrition: 206
• Nutrition and productivity: 210
• background: 211
• Evidence from India and Pakistan: 213
• Regression functions and regression slopes for Maharashtra: 216
• Allowing for household structure: 219
• The effect of measurement errors: 221
• 42 Intrahousehold allocation and gender bias: 223
• Gender bias in intrahousehold allocation: 224
• A theoretical digression: 225
• Adults children and gender: 229
• Empirical evidence from India: 231
• methodology: 234
• standard errors for outlayequivalent ratios: 235
• results: 237
• Cote dlvoire Thailand Bangladesh Pakistan and Taiwan China: 238
• theory and practice: 241
• Equivalence scales welfare and poverty: 243
• The relevance of household expenditure data: 244
• Costofliving indices consumers surplus and utility theory: 245
• calculating the welfare effects of price: 246
• Equivalence scales the cost of children and utility theory: 247
• The underidentification of equivalence scales: 248
• Engels method: 251
• Rothbarths method: 255
• Other models of equivalence scales: 260
• Economies of scale within the household: 262
• Utility theory and the identification of economies of scale: 268
• 44 Guide to further reading: 269
• Looking at price and tax reform: 271
• 51 The theory of price and tax reform for developing countries: 273
• Generalizations using shadow prices: 277
• Evaluation of nonbehavioral terms: 278
• Alternative approaches to measuring behavioral responses: 279
• 52 The analysis of spatial price variation: 283
• Unit values and the choice of quality: 288
• Measurement error in unit values: 292
• 53 Modeling the choice of quality and quantity: 293
• A strippeddown model of demand and unit values: 294
• Modeling quality: 296
• Estimating the strippeddown model: 299
• An example from Cote dlvoire: 302
• Functional form: 303
• crossprice effects: 306
• estimation: 311
• completing the system: 314
• 54 Empirical results for India and Pakistan: 315
• the secondstage estimates for Pakistan: 317
• Maharashtra: 320
• 55 Looking at price and tax reform: 323
• Shadow taxes and subsidies in Pakistan: 324
• Shadow taxes and subsidies in India: 325
• Adapting the price reform formulas: 326
• Equity and efficiency in price reform in Pakistan: 328
• Equity and efficiency in price reform in India: 330
• parametric and nonparametric analysis: 332
• 57 Guide to further reading: 334
• Saving and consumption: 335
• 61 Lifecycle interpretations of saving: 337
• Age profiles of consumption: 339
• Consumption and saving by cohorts: 342
• Estimating a lifecycle model for Taiwan China: 345
• 62 Shortterm consumption smoothing and permanent income: 350
• Saving and weather variability: 351
• Saving as a predictor of income change?: 354
• 63 Models of saving for poor households: 357
• the permanent income and lifecycle models: 359
• precautionary saving: 361
• Restrictions on borrowing: 363
• Borrowing restrictions and the empirical evidence: 369
• 64 Social insurance and consumption: 372
• Consumption insurance in theory: 375
• Empirical evidence on consumption insurance: 376
• 65 Saving consumption and inequality: 383
• empirical evidence: 386
• Aging and inequality: 390
• a tentative review: 393
• Motives consequences and policy: 394
• Saving and growth: 395
• Determinants of saving: 397
• 67 Guide to further reading: 399
• Code appendix: 401
• Bibliography: 439
• Subject index: 463
• Author index: 474

Popular passages

Page 61 - ... is beyond the scope of this book. The interested reader is referred to the literature (46,47) for relatively easy treatments of these subjects.

Page 113 - No fewer than three hundred thousand people of both sexes, of every age and occupation, and of every rank and station, from gentlefolks down to the very poor, were divided into two groups without their choice, and, in most cases, without their knowledge; one group being supplied with water containing the sewage of London, and, amongst it, whatever might have come from the cholera patients, the other group having water quite free from such impurity.

Page 113 - In the subdistricts enumerated in the above table as being supplied by both Companies, the mixing of the supply is of the most intimate kind. The pipes of each Company go down all the streets, and into nearly all the courts and alleys. A few houses are supplied by one Company and a few by the other, according to the decision of the owner or occupier at that time when the Water Companies were in active competition. In many cases a single house has a supply different from that on either side.

Page 451 - The Permanent Income Hypothesis and Consumption Durability: Analysis Based on Japanese Panel Data.

Page 142 - Rs. 20 per capita per month at 1960-61 prices (excluding expenditure on health and education both of which were expected to be provided by the state according to the Constitution and in the light of its other commitments).

Page 6 - Some of the work reported here was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIAID/ AI38396) and from the United States Department of Agriculture (NRI/ 1999-02295) (to BAW).

Page 140 - The coefficient of variation is the standard deviation divided by the mean.

Bibliographic information

• Title: The Analysis of Household Surveys: A Microeconometric Approach to Development Policy; A World Bank pulication; World Bank Series; World Bank e-Library
• Author: Angus Deaton
• Edition: illustrated, reprint
• Publisher: World Bank Publications, 1997
• ISBN: 0801852544, 9780801852541
• Length: 479 pages
• Subjects: Business & Economics / Economics / Macroeconomics; Business & Economics / Economics / Microeconomics; Business & Economics / International / General