Session 2 : incorporating Well-Being into the SNA (II) From a system of national accounts to a process of national wellbeing accounting Paul Allin and David J. Hand, Imperial College London, UK Accounting for Care: a Reseach and Survey Design Agenda, Nancy Folbre, University of Massachussets, Amherst The unpaid activities and Well-Being: the measurement issues, Challenges and Limitations Harpreet Kaur and Anupama Uppal, Punjabi University Discussant : Fabrice Lenglart, Insee
Transcript
Session 2 : incorporating Well-Being into the SNA (II)
From a system of national accounts to a process of national wellbeing accounting
Paul Allin and David J. Hand, Imperial College London, UK
Accounting for Care: a Reseach and Survey Design Agenda, Nancy Folbre, University of Massachussets, Amherst
The unpaid activities and Well-Being: the measurement issues, Challenges and Limitations
Harpreet Kaur and Anupama Uppal, Punjabi University
Discussant : Fabrice Lenglart, Insee
From a system of national accounts to a process of national wellbeing accounting
Paul Allin and David J. Hand, Imperial College London, UK
• The issue: to go ‘Beyond GDP’, both in measurement and in policy terms
• Proliferation of indicators and accounts but significant measurement challenges
• More critical than measurement is whether the new measures will actually be used
• Propose dynamic and multi-staged approach for developing SNA into process for accounting for national wellbeing, embracing the production and the use of measures
From a system of national accounts to a process of national wellbeing accounting Paul Allin and David J. Hand, Imperial College London, UK
Overview
• GDP has been widely used as a totemic symbol, both by supporters and by opponents
• Debate interweaves a number of measurement issues (including unmet needs) with how economic, social and environmental policy and operational decisions are made using available measures, or could be made with new measures
• Take it as axiomatic that the SNA should embrace the wider measures and call for broader system around SNA, including satellite accounting and SEEA, to be integrated and developed holistically
• Conclude that a fuller understanding of user requirements for ‘beyond GDP’ is needed
From a system of national accounts to a process of national wellbeing accounting Paul Allin and David J. Hand, Imperial College London, UK
Going ‘Beyond GDP’: W(h)ither SNA?
• Meeting the Stiglitz et al recommendationsneed for distributions as well as aggregatesmeasuring non-paid workmeasuring natural, human and social capital
• Integrating non-market social and environmental stocks, costs and benefits with existing national accounts data eg monetarising by proxy or by Wellbeing Valuation approach?
… or more pragmatic approach eg parsimonious dashboard?
… or shifting to subjective wellbeing, as the basis for national wellbeing accounts not considered suitable ?
From a system of national accounts to a process of national wellbeing accounting Paul Allin and David J. Hand, Imperial College London, UK
Measurement challenges
1. The ‘do-nothing’ option (as far as wider measures of wellbeing go) beyond SNA updates within its existing scope and coverage
2. Address the classical GDP recommendations of Stiglitz, but not embrace the full remit of measuring national wellbeing in its widest sense
more focus on HH sector, distributional national accounts
3. Full evolution from SNA into a process for national wellbeing accounting, to address all the Stiglitz recommendations
• Statistical offices should publish a single set of national wellbeing accounts that are accepted for use
• User requirements need to be joined up: eliminating poverty, ensuring green growth or sustainable development
• The issue of cross-national comparability needs special attention
From a system of national accounts to a process of national wellbeing accounting Paul Allin and David J. Hand, Imperial College London, UK
Options for SNA
• SNA should not be ‘producer-driven’ but ‘user-driven’ OK• Address all the Stiglitz recommandations… OK… but they cannot all fit into a united national well-being
account framework (and the Stiglitz report says so!)
• 1st part of the Stiglitz report : – core SNA is ok (GDP is measuring what it should measure)– more focus should be give to HH account– DINA– Take into account non-paid work (at least in additional tables)This can be fully integrated in SNA (equivalent of option 2)Note only DINA but also SAM : HH accounts by categories (gender,
age, socio-economic classification, types of families, rural/urban…)
From a system of national accounts to a process of national wellbeing accounting Paul Allin and David J. Hand, Imperial College London, UK
Discussion
• 2nd part of the Stiglitz report : Well-being in intrinsically multidimensional Material living standardsEducationHealthPersonal activities including workPolitical voice and governanceSocial connections and relationshipsEnvironmentInsecurity, an economic as well as a physical nature
+ Subjective well-being
Develop satellite accounts on some (not all) of these dimensions (eg health, material living standards…), that would include both NA figures taken from SNA central framework and other types of data (in particular HH and individual survey results, presented by appropriate and internationally standardised categories – the same categories to be chosen in SAM)
From a system of national accounts to a process of national wellbeing accounting Paul Allin and David J. Hand, Imperial College London, UK
Discussion
• 3rd part of the Stiglitz report : sustainability
Dashboard of indicators, that could be interpretable as variations of some underlying ‘stocks’Monetary index of sustainability not a priorityPhysical indicators for environmental pressureseg Carbon footprint of input-output and supply-use tables can be developed in coherence with the core SNA To do so, a strong international statistical coordination and cooperation is crucial: otherwise no carbon footprint of imports/exports hence no carbon footprint of final demandIntroduction of Nature as a new ‘agent’ in SNA, with a capital transfer from Nature to Economy in order to ‘re-balance’ the gap between production (usual valuation) and consumption (new valuation that includes hidden costs due to environment depletion)
From a system of national accounts to a process of national wellbeing accounting Paul Allin and David J. Hand, Imperial College London, UK
Discussion
Accounting for Care: a Reseach and Survey Design Agenda, Nancy Folbre, University of Massachussets, Amherst
Accounting for Care: A research and Survey Design AgendaNancy Folbre, University of Massachussetts, Amherst
Overview• In the core SNA framework, unpaid activities
are hardly taken into the ‘production frontier’• However, families make important
contributions to output• Measurement and valuation of non-market
work• Measurement and valuation of intra-family
transfers
Accounting for Care: A research and Survey Design AgendaNancy Folbre, University of Massachussetts, Amherst
Measurement and valuation of non-market work• Long standing debates :
– Feminist activism 19th century, in UK and US: recognising the economic value of women’s family work
– NBER 1921: 31% of GNI in 1909, 25% in 1918– Nordhaus Tobin 1972 “is growth obsolete?”
Link between omission of non-market work and omissions of other non-market processes such as natural ressource depletion
– Opportunity cost vs replacement costs– Development of time use surveys– Restriction of women’s employment: a guarantee for an
inexpensive albeit exploitative supply of family care?– Equalizing effect on distribution of income and consumption in
level. And in evolution?– Payoff to public investment underestimated if family care is not
factored in
Accounting for Care: A research and Survey Design AgendaNancy Folbre, University of Massachussetts, Amherst
Measurement and valuation of intra-family transfers• The issue: taking into account transfers of resources other than time to
dependent family members• Reluctance to view family as important site of production• Non-market work does not provide merely satisfaction or utility for those
who perform it: it generates goods and services consumed by other family members
• Married homemakers enjoy a share of their husband’s market income in return for their work (no altruism)
• Income that women bring into the family more spent on children• Income transfers from government to HH are excluded from GDP:
debatable ?(payments for care services provided by the market enter GDP, even if
financed by government…)
Accounting for Care: A research and Survey Design AgendaNancy Folbre, University of Massachussetts, Amherst
Measurement of individual incomeYi = wmiMi + Ki +whiHi + Fi + Gi + Ei
wmi: market wage
Mi: market work
whi: shadow wage of non-market work
Hi: non-market work
Ki: personal capital income
Fi : net transfers from family members (direct and in-kind)
Gi : net transfers from government (direct and in-kind)
Ei: net transfers from unpriced environmental assets and services
‘Over time, increase in wmiMi + Ki partially countervailed by whiHi and increase in Gi partially countervailed by Fi ‘
Accounting for Care: A research and Survey Design AgendaNancy Folbre, University of Massachussetts, Amherst
A Research and Survey Design Agenda• Going from a measure of individual extended income to a measure of
extended outputIntra-family input-output tables ?Production of human capital (ie capabilities)?Tentative measurement of inputs into human capital ?• Enhancing Time Use SurveysCapturing supervisory care for childrenCollect data for more than one person per HH• Measuring intra-HH transfers• Designing a single instrument assessing time use, HH assets, consumption
expenditures and government in-kind servicesRespondents should be paid• Difficulty of measurement no excuse : imputations on heroic assumptions
already in the core SNA framework !
‘Intra-family transfers should be taken into account because they reveal own-account production’ Really ?
Can we take into account all intra-family transfers ?If we really wanted to, then the statistical unit of interest in the HH sector should not be HH, but individualsObstacles :
– some consumptions of goods or services cannot be easily attributed to a given individual (rent, car, washing machine, internet access)
– some assets and liabilities can be detained by HH only, not individuals
Should we ?‘Beckerian’ vision of family, where every decision is based on a purely individual utilitarian visionMarried homemakers enjoy a share of their husband’s market income in return for their work (no altruism) : really ? No clear evidence in the French TUS that includes a module on decision-making within the family Symptomatic example : a unique survey covering time use, consumption, assets, gov transfers in kind, that would anyhow be feasible : all is a matter of price ! Really, have you ever tried ?
Accounting for Care: A research and Survey Design AgendaNancy Folbre, University of Massachussetts, Amherst
Discussion
Increase in Gi partially countervailed by Fi
Let’s take the example of child/elder careToday, in core accounts: - no care production- if government help: D7 increase of B6 and B8 for HH but no increase of production
Alternative accounting:- Care production for own account: P1 and P3 of HH (and within the HH, an intra-family transfer in kind D7 = gift of love)
increase of B6 and P3, neutral for B8-If government helps: P31 for gov, no intra-family transfer in kind anymore, no P3 of HH anymore, increase of B8
double increase of B7 and increase of P4 ? More preferable to stick to D7
Accounting for Care: A research and Survey Design AgendaNancy Folbre, University of Massachussetts, Amherst
Discussion
The unpaid activities and Well-Being: the measurement issues, Challenges and Limitations
Harpreet Kaur and Anupama Uppal, Punjabi University
The unpaid activities and Well-Being: the measurement issues, Challenges and Limitations
Harpreet Kaur and Anupama Uppal, Punjabi University
Overview• In the core SNA framework, unpaid activities are hardly
included within the production boundary (exceptions : goods produced for self-use and imputed rents)
• This leads to an underestimation of production, as most of domestic work is not taken into account
• This problem is all the more important in developing countries, such as India, where women participation to the labour market remains quite low
• The paper delivers valuations of domestic activities, by using a time use survey conducted in Punjab State. The results are presented by gender, by location of residence (rural vs urban) and by social group (general categories vs marginalised sections)
The unpaid activities and Well-Being: the measurement issues, Challenges and Limitations
Harpreet Kaur and Anupama Uppal, Punjabi University
Data base and methodology• Labour force participation vs work force participation :
Survey on “employment and unemployment situation in india 2011-2012
• Time Use Survey, selection of 3 districts of Punjab on basis of agro-climatic conditions. 300 households interviewed (multi stage random sampling with one village and one city selected in each district)
• Value of extended SNA activities = average time spent for activity X wage rate X nb of persons
• Calculating a well-being index for men and women, combining ranks for level of education attainment, personal income and inverse of work intensity
The unpaid activities and Well-Being: the measurement issues, Challenges and Limitations
Harpreet Kaur and Anupama Uppal, Punjabi University
Results• Labour force participation vs work force participation
The unpaid activities and Well-Being: the measurement issues, Challenges and Limitations Harpreet Kaur and Anupama Uppal, Punjabi University
Discussion• Very interesting paper, presenting empirical results
• 300 HH interviewed. Is it sufficient?• Is imputed income generated by domestic work included in the
income dimension of the well-being index? It would be interesting to compare the results under the alternative hypothesis.
• Are individuals weighted in the well-being index calculations ?
• Taking into account domestic activities increases GDP by 25% to 33%. This order of magnitude seems to be the same in a lot of studies, conducted in OECD countries.
