Isolation and Subjective Welfare : Evidence from South Asia
Using detailed geographical and household survey data from Nepal, this article investigates the relationship between isolation and subjective welfare. This is achieved by examining how distance to markets and proximity to large urban centers are as...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Policy Research Working Paper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2012
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2008/02/9036699/isolation-subjective-welfare-evidence-south-asia http://hdl.handle.net/10986/6573 |
| Summary: | Using detailed geographical and
household survey data from Nepal, this article investigates
the relationship between isolation and subjective welfare.
This is achieved by examining how distance to markets and
proximity to large urban centers are associated with
responses to questions about income and consumption
adequacy. Results show that isolation is associated with a
significant reduction in subjective assessments of income
and consumption adequacy, even after controlling for
consumption expenditures and other factors. The reduction in
subjective welfare associated with isolation is much larger
for households that are already relatively close to markets.
These findings suggest that welfare assessments based on
monetary income and consumption may seriously underestimate
the subjective welfare cost of isolation, and hence will
tend to bias downward the assessment of benefits to
isolation-reducing investments such as roads and
communication infrastructure. |
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