THE MEASUREMENT AND ANALYSIS OF POVERTY AND INEQUALITY - AN APPLICATION TO SPANISH CONURBATIONS

Poverty as a multidimensional phenomenon can be approached from differ ent points of view In this paper we study poverty in large towns in Sp ain taking into consideration three different definitions: a) relative monetary poverty, or scarcity of resources as compared with populatio n averages, b) poverty measured through physical indicators, i.e. depr ivation of certain goods, and c) subjective poverty. This last one app ears to be related to inequality, which is also considered and analyze d. The source of statistical information used is the Spanish Household Budget Survey of 1990-91. Possibilities and drawbacks of this survey in the analysis of poverty and inequality are also reviewed.