Deprivation Pattern in the USA

The paper proposes a relative and multidimensional measure of deprivation in a dynamic context. The aim is to overcome the limits of traditional measures of deprivation based on poverty lines, exclusively estimated on the basis of monetary variables such as income or consumption expenditure, by utilising all of the available information on actual living conditions; such variables as housing conditions, financial supports, health and job conditions will then be taken into account. Moreover, the analysis also considers the dynamic aspect of the phenomenon, in order to distinguish between transitory and permanent deprivation, and to identify those people who are chronically deprived, and who, if one assumes they are incapable of improving their conditions, should represent the first target of socio-economic policies.