Some approaches to measuring the middle class are based on an arbitrary definition such as income quartiles or the poverty line. Foster and Wolfson have recently developed a methodology without arbitrariness. We apply this tool and a complementary method–the relative distribution approach–to...

There is a wide debate worldwide, and particularly in Latin America with respect to citizen insecurity and the proliferation of more punitive claims from the society itself. In this article we analyze the attitude of the citizens belonging to the countries of the Latin American South Cone...

This paper quantifies the distributional and poverty effects of trade liberalization in Brazil using household survey data. We estimate the consumption and labor impact of Mercosur trade reform following the methodology suggested by Porto (J Int Econ 70:140–160, <CitationRef CitationID="CR17">2006</CitationRef>) and Nicita (J Dev Econ...</citationref>

It is disputed whether trade liberalisation processes are sufficient for reducing poverty and inequality. We explore how ‘gains from trade’ have been distributed in the two minor trade partners of Mercosur, Uruguay and Paraguay, by analysing the impact of trade liberalisation on poverty and...

In this work we quantify the impact of trade liberalization in the global beef markets over labor income, employment and poverty levels in Uruguay. The adjustment of local beef prices after an external shock to the worldwide price levels is imperfect. Estimations indicate that 76% of a certain...

In this study we use data on subjective well being and migration in Cuenca, one of the Ecuador's largest cities. We examine the impact of migration on the happiness of the family left behind. We use the propensity score matching estimator to take into account the endogeneity of migration. Our...

Although trade integration has potential benefits for developing countries, it is disputed whether trade liberalization processes are, per se, sufficient for poverty reduction and inequality abatement. Abundant work has analyzed the link between tariff reduction, poverty levels and inequality in...

There is an increasing literature that discusses how to measure the middle class. Some approaches are based on an arbitrary deÖnition such as income quartiles or the poverty line. Recently, Foster and Wolfson developed a methodology which lacks of arbitrariness that enables us to compare the...

This paper quantifies the distributional and poverty effects of national and external trade reform in Brazil using household survey data. We estimate the consumption and labor impact of the Mercosur trade reform following the methodology suggested by Porto (2006). In order to analyze the impact...

In this study we use data on subjective well being and migration in Cuenca, one of the Ecuador's largest cities. We examine the impact of migration on the happiness of the family left behind. We use the propensity score matching estimator to take into account the endogeneity of migration. Our...