U.S. Census Bureau

Amartya Sen has written extensively of how poverty should be viewed as the deprivation of basic capabilities rather than merely the lowness of income. While researchers have generally assumed that more severe experiences of income poverty are more strongly associated with other—perhaps intrinsically more important—material well-being outcomes, this paper is one of the first to empirically examine the extent of these relationships. Using data from a longitudinal household survey, we find that families experiencing deeper income shortfalls (poverty gaps), longer durations of poverty, more poverty spells, and more recent spells are indeed more likely to experience food insecurity, have difficulty meeting basic needs, and be less likely to possess consumer durables. While the income poverty indicators also had a significant association with the other three well-being measures considered—housing problems, neighborhood problems, and fear of crime—these associations were not as strong, as the latter are likely more affected by other factors such as assets and location of residence. Our findings therefore suggest that various measures of well-being should not be considered monolithically either conceptually or even from a policy perspective, where, for example, income transfers would likely have different effects on different dimensions of well-being