Variation in Multidimensional Poverty Across Socio-Demographic Cohorts

Abstract

We estimate the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI), headcount ratio, and average deprivation intensity values for a variety of socio-demographic cohorts. More specifically, through an examination of data from the 2008–2018 American Community Surveys, we detail multidimensional poverty incidence and intensity for several categories that identify individuals by gender, age, race, ethnicity, nativity, level of educational attainment, marital status, and labor market status. We first discuss MPI values and variation in related measures both within categories and across cohorts. This is followed by a comparison of the distribution of individuals across four groups: those who are neither multidimensionally poor nor vulnerable to multidimensional poverty, those who are vulnerable to multidimensional poverty, those experiencing moderate multidimensional poverty, and those who are severely multidimensionally poor. We conclude with a review of deprivation frequency values at the dimension and indicator levels of detail.