Measures of Material Hardship
Content
The Value of Hardship Measures
Defining and Measuring Hardship
Material Hardship Indexes
Measuring Hardship Using the SIPP
Unanswered Questions for Future Research
Information on the Supplemental Poverty Measure - A Summary of 2013 Current Population Survey Data
The brief summarizes findings from the Census Bureau’s Supplemental Poverty Measure report for 2013. The brief highlights SPM levels for the most recent year, changes from the previous year and historical trends. SPM estimates are compared to estimates of the official poverty measure. The brief also presents the anti-poverty effects of select s
ib_spm.pdf
PDF Supplemental Poverty Measure Brief: 2009-2012
This brief summarizes data released by the Census Bureau on the research supplemental poverty measure. Cited statistics include poverty rates from 2009-2012 using both the official poverty measure and the supplemental poverty measure; the anti-poverty effectiveness of select social safety net programs for all persons and children 0-17; changes in
ib_supplepoverty.pdf
America's Children in Poverty: A New Look at Who's Poor Under the Supplemental Poverty Measure
This research brief examines child poverty in 2010 using both the official poverty measure that the Census Bureau has been using since the 1960s and the more recent Research Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM).
rb_amerchildpoverty.pdf
Information on Research Supplemental Poverty Measure. A Summary of 2012 Current Population Survey Data
This ASPE Issue Brief provides information on the research Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) calculated by the Census Bureau. In 2011, 16.1 percent of the U.S. population was poor using the SPM, representing 49.7 million individuals. This compares to 15.1 percent of the U.S. population, or 46.6 million individuals, under the official measure. Bot
ib.pdf
Assets, Poverty, and Public Policy: Challenges in Definition and Measurement
This report reviews the definitions and measures of assets and asset poverty in existing theoretical and empirical studies and suggests ways to make them more relevant for future research and policy development. In doing so, the report establishes a conceptual foundation for an emerging field of inquiry that focuses on the role of assets in social
report.pdf
Effects of Holding Assets on Social and Economic Outcomes of Families: A Review of Theory and Evidence
This report provides a conceptual framework on the effects of asset holding and reviews the empirical literature based on this framework. The report distills the main findings on how assets influence economic, social, psychological, and child well-being and provides empirical support for the benefits of asset building. [39 PDF pages]
report.pdf
Measures of Material Hardship
This report summarizes what is known about the measurement of material hardship and its application to research with low-income families with children. It discusses challenges in defining and measuring material hardship, reviews how such measures have been in recent research, and presents analyses of data from the Survey of Income and Program Part
report.pdf
Assets, Poverty, and Public Policy: Challenges in Definition and Measurement
Poor Finances: Assets and Low-Income Households
Assets, Poverty, and Public Policy: Challenges in Definition and Measurement
December 2008
By: Yunju Nam, Jin Huang, and Michael Sherraden Center for Social Development Washington University in Saint Louis
report.pdf
Effects of Holding Assets on Social and Economic Outcomes of Families: A Review of Theory and Evidence
Poor Finances: Assets and Low-Income Households
The Effects of Holding Assets on Social and Economic Outcomes of Families: A Review of Theory and Evidence
November 2008
By: Robert Lerman and Signe-Mary McKernan The Urban Institute
report.pdf
America's Children in Poverty: A New Look at Who's Poor Under the Supplemental Poverty Measure. References
Miriam King, Steven Ruggles, J. Trent Alexander, Sarah Flood, Katie Genadek, Matthew B. Schroeder, Brandon Trampe, and Rebecca Vick (2010). Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Current Population Survey: Version 3.0. [Machine-readable database]. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota.
Short, Kathleen S. (2012). The Research Supplemental
America's Children in Poverty: A New Look at Who's Poor Under the Supplemental Poverty Measure. Table A-4. Statistics on Other Characteristics in Calendar Year 2010
Any Health Coverage
82.9%
88.7%
83.8%
84.9%
83.1%
Sample Size
N = 7,666
N = 4,286
N = 1,828
N = 11,952
N = 9,494
Private Health Coverage
16.7%
15.9%
51.4%
16.4%
22.9%
Public Health Coverage
70.5%
80.0%
40.4%
America's Children in Poverty: A New Look at Who's Poor Under the Supplemental Poverty Measure. Table A-3. Statistics on Expenditures in Calendar Year 2010
Description
Core Poor
Lifted Out
Thrown In
OPM Poor
SPM Poor
Sample Size
N = 7,666
N = 4,286
N = 1,828
N = 11,952
N = 9,494
Mean MOOP
$1,782
$1,268
$9,237
$1,594
$3,070
Median MOOP
$385
$423
$4,750
America's Children in Poverty: A New Look at Who's Poor Under the Supplemental Poverty Measure. Table A-2. Statistics on Safety Net Benefits in Calendar Year 2010
Description
Core Poor
Lifted Out
Thrown In
OPM Poor
SPM Poor
Sample Size
N = 7,666
N = 4,286
N = 1,828
N = 11,952
N = 9,494
Any SNAP
51.7%
67.7%
13.9%
56.9%
45.0%
Mean SNAP
$2,429
$3,561
$324
2797
America's Children in Poverty: A New Look at Who's Poor Under the Supplemental Poverty Measure. Table A-1. Statistics on Resources in Calendar Year 2010
Description
Core Poor
Lifted Out
Thrown In
OPM Poor
SPM Poor
Sample Size
N = 7,666
N = 4,286
N = 1,828
N = 11,952
N = 9,494
Mean SPM Wage/Sal
$7,115
$20,693
$26,697
$11,774
$10,672
Median SPM Wage/Sal
$3,000
$17,160
America's Children in Poverty: A New Look at Who's Poor Under the Supplemental Poverty Measure. Data Appendix and Tables
The data analyzed in this brief come from the 2011 Annual Social and Economic Supplement to the Current Population Survey, which collects information on income during the 2010 calendar year. The data were downloaded from the University of Minnesota Population Center’s Integrated Public Use Microdata Series (IPUMS) CPS database. The IPUMS CPS fil
America's Children in Poverty: A New Look at Who's Poor Under the Supplemental Poverty Measure. Conclusion
The methodological innovations in the SPM allow an opportunity to examine the contours of child poverty under different definitions of the concept of resource poverty.
America's Children in Poverty: A New Look at Who's Poor Under the Supplemental Poverty Measure. The “Thrown-In”
The smallest of the three groups of children is the 2.4 million children who are found to be poor under the SPM but not the OPM, or those who are “thrown in” to poverty under the SPM. Like the lifted-out group, these children are in families that are fairly well-connected to the labor market. Fully 87.4 percent of these “thrown-in” childre
America's Children in Poverty: A New Look at Who's Poor Under the Supplemental Poverty Measure. The “Lifted Out”
Children who are officially poor but are not classified as poor under the SPM differ from the core poor in three primary ways; their families: 1) have substantially more cash and other income resources (i.e., they are much closer to the official poverty threshold), 2) are more likely to be receiving assistance from safety net programs, and 3) rece
