Page 13 - Contributed Paper Session (CPS) - Volume 2

CPS1407 D.Dilshanie Deepawansa et al.
Keywords
Fuzzy sets; Multidimensional approach; Poverty; Deprivation; Social
Dimensions JEL Classification C43, I31, I32

1. Introduction
Measuring poverty in its many dimensions of has become the standard
approach to quantifying the prevalence of poverty. This follows the emergence
of a general consensus that income or consumption-based criteria cannot
capture the phenomenon of poverty in all its complexity, as well as scholarly
efforts to develop measures more reflective of what poverty actually is (Sen,
1983,1992, 1997; Baulch,1996; Tsui, 2002; Bourguignon & Chakravarty, 2003;
Alkire & Foster, 2007); Asselin (2009); Alkire, et al. (2015). However, there is still
no consensus about which dimensions should be included in a more
comprehensive measure of poverty. While the majority of empirical studies
continue to look at material deprivation, it is nevertheless widely recognized
that non-material deprivation pertaining to the lack of dignity, autonomy and
self-respect are critical aspects of poverty that need investigation (Baulch,
1996). Deprivation in social capital is yet another important characteristic of
poverty and vulnerability (Grootaert 1999; Woolcock 2001; Narayan 2002) and
access to it is regarded as one of the conditioning factors necessary for
individuals and households to overcome poverty.
This research adds to this literature by exploring non-material deprivation
in poverty along the three dimensions of social capital, dignity and autonomy.
Specifically, it explores the extent to which people are deprived in these three
dimensions and investigates how deprivation along with these dimensions are
correlated with material deprivation and consumption poverty. The analytical
strategy involves applying a new analytical method developed by Deepawansa
et al. (2018) that combines the Fuzzy Sets Method (Cerioli & Zani, 1990) and
the Counting Method (Alkire & Foster, 2007). Named the ‘Synthesis Method’,
we apply it to primary sample survey data collected from Sri Lanka’s Uva
Province, where consumption poverty is most prevalent. The analysis found
that social deprivation is strongly correlated with material deprivation but
weak ly correlated with household income and expenditure.
In what follows, we first describe the data and methodology used in the
analysis. Section 3 presents the research findings while section 4 discusses the
results and concludes.

2. Methodology and Data

2.1 Methodology
The relationship between social dimensions of deprivation and poverty can
be investigated by computing relevant indices. To do so, this study deploys a

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