Evaluation is not aggregation: assesing material deprivation through partial order theory
In this presentation, we outline a new methodology for assessing multidimensional material deprivation, based on partial order theory. The methodology is designed to deal with binary variables; it avoids any form of aggregation between non numerical variables and allows for taking into account, in purely ordinal terms, exogenous judgments about the relative relevance of deprivation dimensions. The methodology, thus, overcomes many of the epistemological, conceptual and technical drawbacks affecting “classical” assessment procedures that, implicitly or not, rely on aggregative and compensative approaches.
