Weighting deprivations using subjective well-being: An application to the multidimensional child poverty index in Vietnam

Although multidimensional approaches to child poverty have received growing attention in Vietnam, proper investigation of how to assign weights to different dimensions when constructing single aggregation indices has not been done. Using Young Lives data, this study attempts to fill this gap by examining a weight estimation method which takes children’s perspectives into account. This approach consists of computing analytical weights from estimated parameters of a subjective well-being regression model, where children’s subjective well-being is explained by their outcomes/achievement in dimensions included in multidimensional poverty indices. This means that the resulting weights reflect the value judgements of children about what a good life is and that they are not based on a normative approach. Estimation results indicate that the revealed preferences of children change over time and vary across sub-groups of children. More importantly, this paper demonstrates that children do not give the same value to all dimensions, contrary to the assumptions underlying the most common approach to the calculation of weights that gives equal weight to each dimension. Children attach more importance to deprivations that impact their well-being immediately, such as deprivations in shelter and in water and sanitation, than to deprivations that may affect their well-being negatively in the long term, although some groups of children attach most importance to the dimension of education

Beyond Solidarity and Accumulation Networks in Urban Informal African Economies

This paper examines the role and nature of entrepreneurs’ social networks in the urban informal economy of Bobo-Dioulasso (Burkina Faso). Using an original dataset, the configuration of social networks is described based on three salient dimensions: tie content, member attributes and network structure. Multidimensional analysis allows for the simultaneous consideration of all three dimensions. Our findings suggest that network configurations at play extend well beyond the standard distinction between solidarity and accumulation networks. The complex networks highlighted by this study are consistent with rapid social changes in contemporary urban Africa. They can also significantly enhance the outcomes of small businesses