Indonesian Living Standards over 50 Years: A Multidimensional Analysis

Date

2020

Authors

Hill, Hal

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Wiley

Abstract

There is a continuing debate on the measurement of living standards, especially in developing countries. The proliferation of social indicators in recent decades, motivated by both philosophical and pragmatic empirical considerations, has been illuminating. However, it has also led to some confusion: which indicator or set of indicators should be used? The most widely used indicator continues to be headcount poverty, or some refined variant of it. However, what of the many other indicators and, importantly, do they portray a similar picture? We illustrate these issues with reference to the Indonesian experience over several decades. Indonesia has experienced moderately fast economic growth since the late 1960s and, as a consequence, headcount poverty has fallen rapidly. Most other social indicators have also improved. However, the rate of progress has varied, from similarly rapid improvement to stagnation and in one instance, environmental amenities, to regression.

Description

Keywords

living standards, Indonesia, education, wages, environment, regional development

Citation

Source

Asian Economic Journal

Type

Journal article

Book Title

Entity type

Access Statement

License Rights

Restricted until

2099-12-31