A NEW INDEX OF POVERTY PERSISTENCE

Abstract

This paper proposes a new indicator of poverty persistence based on a synthesis of the temporal sequences of the years spent in poverty and non poverty, taking into account the order in which poverty spells follow each other. The index is a measure with cardinal properties and it allows not only the ranking of the individuals according to the duration of their poverty experience but also to measure the distance between any two individuals in the population. The index can be built up at individual level and it is also possible to have an aggregated index at any territorial level. Micro data from a longitudinal survey are needed.