The SSL ‘Book of the Month’ feature highlights a book in our collection that has been chosen by one of our Subject Consultants. This may be a recent addition to our stock or an existing item that we would like to share with you.
Measuring poverty around the world
by Anthony B. Atkinson
Princeton University Press, 2019
eBook available here
September’s book of the month was selected by John Southall, Bodleian Data Librarian and Subject Consultant for Economics and Sociology.
Why was it chosen?
It was chosen because of the way it shows the importance of evidence, data and measurement in properly understanding Poverty as a concern of the Social Sciences.
Book Overview
The final book from a pioneer in the study of poverty and inequality offers an inspiring analysis of a central question: What is poverty and how much of it is there around the globe?
The persistence of poverty – in rich and poor countries alike – is one of the most serious problems facing us in the 21st Century. Better measurement of poverty is essential for raising awareness, motivating action, designing good policy, gauging progress, and holding political leaders accountable. To help make this possible, Atkinson provides a critically important examination of how poverty is – and should be – measured. Bringing together evidence about the nature and extent of poverty across the world and including case studies of sixty countries, Atkinson addresses both financial poverty and other indicators of deprivation. He starts from first principles about the meaning of poverty, translates these into concrete measures, and analyses the data to which the measures can be applied. Crucially, he integrates international organizations’ measurements of poverty with countries’ own national analyses.
Reviews
“In a rapidly changing world, with ever mounting global problems, researchers would do well to follow Atkinson’s socially conscious, ethically informed, and policy relevant approach to research and problem solving.”
Brian Colgan, Erasmus Journal for Philosophy and Economics.
“To assure that progress against poverty is maintained and hopefully accelerated, the type of intellectually honest, scholarly yet socially committed, research exemplified by Tony Atkinson throughout his career will be needed in spades.”
Martin Ravallion, Journal of Economic Inequality.
How can I access it?
An eBook of this title is available via SOLO. Oxford University staff and students can access it remotely by logging into SOLO with their SSO.
A print copy is also available on our open shelves at HC79.P6.ATK 2019
What would your SSL Book of the Month be? Do you have a favourite book in our collection? If so, we would love to know what it is. Add a comment below or email us.