The Socioeconomic Consequences of Privatization: An Empirical Analysis for Europe

This paper analyses the dynamics of poverty in Italy and compares it with that in France, Spain and the UK. For this purpose, we use transition matrices of entry and exit poverty rates and quantify true state dependence through econometric techniques. The analysis exploits the longitudinal component of EU-SILC for the period 2009–2012. Estimation of dynamic random effects probit models shows that, in all countries, after controlling for individual heterogeneity and initial conditions, there is evidence of true state dependence. In comparative terms, when not accounting for regional disparities within countries, the degree of poverty persistence is highest in Italy and lowest in the UK. If regional effects are considered, the degree of poverty persistence in Italy is of the same order of magnitude as in France and Spain, but higher than in the UK. Our findings suggest that unlike other countries, in Italy regional disparities play an important role in explaining poverty state dependence.     

An Empirical Approach to the Poverty Indicators Based on Revealed Parameters: The Case of Spain

This article investigates the issue of measuring the proportion of the population affected by the phenomenon of poverty in Spain on the basis of the relationship between the severe material deprivation rate and the at-risk-of-poverty rate by regions. The current definitions of equivalence units and equivalent income were analysed and an innovation to allow the introduction of a parametric model, based on the revealed annual consumption of the main different type of households and on the regional purchase power parities, was subsequently proposed. In the case of Spain it was discovered empirically that the equivalence units are not constant, as maintained until now, but that they vary over time. An improvement between the relations of the two rates was obtained by means of the application of these revealed scales. The regional composition was also improved. The results could serve as a base for future studies to provide more detailed information about the breakdown of the relative poverty within each country and, thereby, to meet the relevant information requests, at national and international level, to support the implementation of public policies in this area.     

Using Linked Longitudinal Administrative Data to Identify Social Disadvantage

Social Indicators Research - Administrative data are widely used to construct indicators of social disadvantage, such as Free School Meals eligibility and Indices of Multiple Deprivation, for...     

市场转型、社会资本与城市居民的贫困缓解：以广州和兰州的贫困居民为例

使用广州和兰州的实证数据,在对贫困居民的社会资本测量的基础上,对贫困居民所拥有的各种资本包括社会资本、人力资本和传统体制资本与贫困居民的贫困缓解关系进行探讨。结果表明,个体的社会资本对居民的贫困缓解具有显著意义,但是人力资本、体制资本对个体生活机遇建构无显著意义。文后对市场转型论进行回应,并对城市贫困居民主要资本类型作用的制度环境进行了解释与讨论。     

计划生育政策对社会保险支出的影响--基于中国省际面板数据的实证研究

本文研究了实施计划生育政策与社会保险支出水平之间的关系。利用30个省市2005—2013年的面板数据,运用广义线性模型修正异方差与自相关后,发现：在全国层面,计划生育政策无论与总社会保险支出,还是与分类的养老保险支出、医疗保险支出、工伤保险支出、生育保险支出之间,都存在显著的负向关系。从分省数据看,实施计划生育政策越严格的地区,养老保险支出与医疗保险支出水平就越低。     

The Social Consequences of Insecure Jobs

Forms of insecure employment have been increasing all over Europe in recent decades. These developments have been welcomed by those who argued that these types of flexible employment would not only foster employment but could also help women, in particular, to positively combine work and family life. This vision was questioned by others who argued that flexible employment could have negative consequences for both occupational prospects and private and family life since it is often associated with greater insecurity and poorer working conditions. Relatively little research has been dedicated to the “social consequences” of insecure employment and its specific implications for work-life reconciliation issues. This paper contributes to this topic by linking research that addresses work-life conflict to the wider body of work dealing with job insecurity. It investigates the consequences of certain employment contracts on private and family life, taking into account information on current family life, future family plans and general well-being. It provides a series of test relating to the extent to which negative consequences in these areas might be attributable to the type of employment contract and how these vary between European countries. Analysis using ESS data from 2004 for western European countries confirms that insecure employment is accompanied by more problematic “social and family” situations. These negative consequences are partly shaped by the specific context provided by the country in question.

家庭收入是否影响子女教育水平——基于CHNS数据的实证研究

教育是低收入家庭子女改变自身社会地位的重要途径。基于CHNS的数据,本文分别使用OLS、2SLS计量经济方法,分析了家庭收入对子女教育水平的影响。OLS结果显示,家庭收入对子女教育水平的影响为正且显著,使用工具变量对家庭收入的内生性进行控制后（2SLS）,家庭收入对子女教育水平的影响依旧为正。分样本的估计结果表明,家庭收入对女儿的影响程度大于其对儿子的影响程度。将家庭收入从低到高依次划分为五个等级的细分样本估计结果显示,随着收入等级的提高,家庭收入对子女教育水平的影响程度呈现出“倒U形”。     

教育扩张下教育收益率变化的实证分析

文章利用中国健康与营养调查数据分析中国高等教育扩张过程中居民工资收入的变化规律,重点分析高等教育收益率的变化情况,以反映在长期内高等教育扩张的工资(收入)效应.考虑劳动力市场分割等因素,明瑟人力资本方程的回归结果显示,随着市场化程度的提高和高等教育的扩张,高等教育的教育收益率经历了1991～2000年的快速增长之后,2004～2006年增长势头减缓,甚至出现停止增长的迹象.说明近年教育扩张对高等教育的教育回报有明显的压缩效应,高等教育扩张所引发的工资效应正在逐步显露出来.同时,中国劳动力市场开始出现高学历对低学历的替代效应.     

Erratum to: Child at Risk of Poverty or Social Exclusion: Comparative View Between Spain and Portugal in the European Context

The aim of this study is to investigate the relations between identity statuses and the perceived quality of life in adolescents aged 16–19. The research methods include the Ego Identity Process Questionnaire to assess identity status of a sample covering 233 participants (148 girls, 85 boys), and the Youth Quality of Life Instrument to assess their subjective quality of life. Diffused identity is linked to the lowest level of subjective quality of life, whereas foreclosed identity to the highest. Five patterns of the connection between identity dimensions and perceived quality of life have been distinguished through cluster analysis. The results indicate that different patterns of identity processes in adolescents coexist with different levels of quality of life.     

不同家庭结构中的老年人主观生活评价分析——基于贵阳市调查数据的实证检验

利用贵阳市调查数据,对不同家庭结构中的老年人生活状况和生活满意度进行分析。文章假定:主干家庭中的老年人生活状况及满意度高于核心家庭,而核心家庭高于夫妇家庭和单身家庭。即:主干家庭>核心家庭>夫妇家庭>单身家庭(">"表示优于)。并从老年人对其生活状况(包括经济状况、生活照料、精神慰藉)和生活满意度的主观感受和评价来考察这一假定。结果发现:夫妇家庭中的老年人主观生活状况及满意度最高,单身老年人次之。新的次序变为:夫妇家庭>单身家庭>主干家庭>核心家庭。文章对此进行了解释。分析还发现,生活自由度可能是影响老年人主观生活评价的一个重要指标。     

Growth Effects of Religion Dependent Social Capital: An Empirical Evidence

Social Indicators Research - There is an imperceptible laxity in literature in finding socio economic effects of social capital by integrating role of religion. However, international surveys data...     

婚姻对个体精神健康的影响——基于中国健康与养老追踪调查的实证分析

文章利用中国健康与养老追踪调查数据实证研究发现,已婚者比离婚、丧偶和未婚者的抑郁水平更低;从未结婚者抑郁程度最高,离婚者抑郁程度次之,再次是丧偶者的抑郁程度;并且婚姻对男性精神健康保护效应大于女性.分居会降低个体精神健康水平,这种作用对农村男性更加显著,说明婚姻对精神健康的保护效应受到婚姻质量的影响.婚姻匹配方式会显著影响女性精神健康:女性与受教育程度相当或者低于自己的男性结婚,其抑郁水平会增加,在农村地区尤为明显.高质量的婚姻对个体精神健康具有保护效应,家庭和婚姻能有效改善个体精神健康.     

经济增长、收入分配与减贫进程间的动态联系——来自中国农村的经验分析

文章以贫困的收入增长偏弹性和贫困的收入分配偏弹性的性质为基础,构建了一个分析经济增长、收入分配和减贫进程之间关系的统一框架。文章着重探讨了在经济发展的不同时期,收入水平和收入不平等的初始值对经济增长的减贫能力,以及收入不平等的贫困效应的影响,并以中国农村为例,来实证检验它们之间的定性、定量关系及政策含义。     

香港人在上海的社会融合—个案实证研究

本文通过对18名在沪香港人的个案访谈实证研究。探讨了香港人在上海的社会融合情况,主要从经济、生活、心理和文化几方面展开,同时对香港人在上海发展面临的机遇和挑战以及上海存在的优点和不足等进行了分析和思考。研究中。许多香港人表达了对上海生活的满意,但同时认为上海在政府管理体制、工作理念和个人素养等方面与香港存在一定差距．需要上海在未来的建设中加以关注和改进。     

First Order Dominance Techniques and Multidimensional Poverty Indices: An Empirical Comparison of Different Approaches

In this empirically driven paper we compare the performance of two techniques in the literature of poverty measurement with ordinal data: multidimensional poverty indices and first order dominance techniques (FOD). Combining multiple scenario simulated data with observed data from 48 Demographic and Health Surveys around the developing world, our empirical findings suggest that the FOD approach can be implemented as a useful robustness check for ordinal poverty indices like the multidimensional poverty index (MPI; the United Nations Development Program’s flagship poverty indicator) to distinguish between those country comparisons that are sensitive to alternative specifications of basic measurement assumptions and those which are not. To the extent that the FOD approach is able to uncover the socio-economic gradient that exists between countries, it can be proposed as a viable complement to the MPI with the advantage of not having to rely on many of the normatively binding assumptions that underpin the construction of the index.     

Multidimensional Analysis of Water Poverty in MENA Region: An Empirical Comparison with Physical Indicators

It is not easy to determine whether water is really scarce in the physical sense or whether it is available, but people cannot get access to it, or use it better. This paper reviews selected physical water scarcity indicators, and criticisms made against them on several grounds. Under the premise that the water scarcity issue is inherently multidimensional, a composite Water Poverty Index has been developed, to complement the traditional physical water indicators. In this paper we propose some technical refinements based on principal component analysis, in order to improve the method of calculation of the index. Using the proposed methodology, the present paper assesses the applicability of the index for the MENA region, by comparing the situation of oil-rich and water-poor countries (Gulf States) with that of lower-income yet water-rich countries (Horn of Africa states).     

Social Capital and Undeclared Work: An Empirical Analysis in Italy from 1998 to 2008

Social Indicators Research - The issue of irregular work has been well known in Italy since the early seventies. Undeclared work is a particular facet of shadow economy where employers evade tax...     

Social Exclusion and Quality of Life: An Empirical Study from Turkey

We examine the perception of social exclusion and quality of life and their interactions among a group of Turkish citizens. For this purpose we used the social exclusion scale developed by Jehoel-Gijsbers and Vrooman and the WHOQOL-BREF scale. The study group consists of 2,493 participants who are residents of a city in Turkey. Our study was based on self reporting and voluntary participation. We used SEM (Structural Equation Modeling) for the analysis. We observed significant paths among several dimensions of quality of life and social exclusion. We found that the material deprivation dimension of social exclusion has a direct and negative impact on the environment and social relationships domains of quality of life. The material deprivation dimension explains 36% of the variation in the environment and 16% of the variation in social relationship domains of quality of life. This finding indicates that the material deprivation and social participation play an important role in the perception of environmental and psychological life quality. Physical health, social relationships, and environmental domains of life quality are important in the social participation dimension of perceived social exclusion.     

社会资本与身心健康--概念辨析基础上的关系再检验

社会资本与健康研究领域存在核心概念界定不清与理论解释欠缺两大不足。文章在社会网络的视角下对社会资本、社会凝聚和社会支持三个相互杂糅的概念进行辨析区分,并在此基础上以调查数据实证检验了社会资本对身心健康的作用效果与影响机制。结果显示,在控制社会凝聚和社会支持作用的条件下,社会资本依然对自评健康和心理健康存在显著的独立影响,但其对两种健康在影响因素和影响方向上呈现一些差异。其中,网络规模和网络顶端对自评健康和心理健康都具有显著的正向作用,而心理健康同时还受到网络差异的负向影响。从这个角度而言,社会资本对个体身心健康的影响并不必然是积极正向的。     

人力资本与亲贫式增长——基于省际面板数据实证研究

通过面板数据模型,对2001—2009年我国人力资本与亲贫式增长论题进行实证研究,结果表明:在总体上,人力资本具有较强的减贫效应,但存在区域差异。具体而言,东部地区的人力资本减贫效应大于中西部地区。因此,基于区域视角,通过发展教育促进贫困人口的人力资本积累,增加其就业机会,提高其收入水平,达到脱贫的目的。