Where Exactly Does the Sexist Bias in the Official Measurement of Monetary Poverty in Europe Come From?

Abstract

This article aims to round out the well-established criticism in feminist research whereby measuring income poverty at household level tends to underestimate poverty among women. It demonstrates that while this indicator is underpinned by a conceptual bias that could be qualified as sexist, this is not only because of measurement at the household level, but rather the manner in which this is measured and because it is the only independent item of individual income factored into the measurement of poverty risk. A number of suggestions for improvements are made although, without more detailed research in liaison with Eurostat or national statistical institutes, it will be difficult to make progress in this area. JEL classification: D31, D13, B54