Want to Define Poverty? Consider More Than Just Income, Study Says

We're used to thinking about poverty as a measure of income: poor people make very little money, and as a result, they're unable to afford to buy the basics like food, housing, and health care. The U.S. Census Bureau decides each year what the income threshold is going to be to define the federal poverty line; in 2016, that threshold is around $16,000 per year for a family of two, and a little over $24,000 for a family of four.

But is income the only data point we should collect when we're trying to learn about poverty in America? Other countries like Bhutan, Colombia, Chile, Malaysia and Mexico all measure poverty with a multidimensional index — Mexico, for instance, looks at income alongside education, housing, health, social cohesion, and access to food. But every country is different, and a multidimensional poverty index should look different in a country where living in a house without electricity, a permanent floor or sanitation facilities isn't all that uncommon, compared to the United States, where many people in poverty have those things that in other places might be considered luxuries.

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