Summary:
This paper deals with item nonresponse on income questions in panel surveys and with longitudinal and cross–sectional imputation strategies to cope with this phenomenon. Using data from the German SOEP, we compare income inequality and mobility indicators based only on truly observed information to those derived from observed and imputed observations. First, we find a positive correlation between inequality and imputation. Secondly, income mobility appears to be significantly understated using observed information only. Finally, longitudinal analyses provide evidence for a positive inter–temporal correlation between item nonresponse and any kind of subsequent nonresponse.
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* We are grateful to two anonymous referees and to Jan Goebel for very helpful comments and suggestions on an earlier draft of this paper. The paper also benefited from discussions with seminar participants at the ‘Workshop on Item Nonresponse and Data Quality in Large Social Surveys’, Basel/CH, October 9–11, 2003.
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Frick, J.R., Grabka*, M.M. Item nonresponse on income questions in panel surveys: Incidence, imputation and the impact on inequality and mobility. Allgemeines Statistisches Arch 89, 49– 61 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s101820500191
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s101820500191