La pauvreté en France et au Québec : une comparaison à l’aide de l’indice multidimensionnel de pauvreté-richesse

Abstract

This article defines a multidimensional poverty indicator which makes it possible to compare, over time and between two countries, the consumption patterns and lifestyle of populations who live in severe or partial poverty. This indicator integrates a purely financial dimension of poverty into a behavioural dimension that is measured by the share of food expense. There are many similar characteristics between the behaviours of French and Québec households. The transversal evolution of budgetary coefficients of goods and services thus reflects the growing mercantilism marking our two societies. Several interesting contradictions between the transversal and temporal evolutions can be observed in two important items - clothing and housing. Moreover, based on the observation of different households in the same period, the evolution of consumption cannot always be forecast without bias. The economic crisis and then the boom period have affected households in a different way during their life cycles, thus intensifying the differences between generations. Lastly, the evolution of consumption patterns during the life cycle is slower for poor households which are thus affected by a degree of inertia in their consumption, making it more difficult for them to move closer to the consumption patterns of more privileged socio-economic classes. The middle class, for its part, is characterized by a strong dynamic of consumption.