Theoretical Model and Research Questions

Abstract

The overarching objectives of this volume is to assess the contribution of a triangular approach to measuring low levels of economic quality of life in view of a more nuanced profiling of economic vulnerability in wealthy countries like Switzerland, and as part of this endeavor, to evaluate the added value of distinguishing between two types of subjective measures. Our research objective of systematically comparing measures of economic vulnerability with regard to their ability to target the most vulnerable is thus a well-established practice in the field of poverty research. What distinguishes our theoretical model is that the focus is on the idea of ‘measurement angles’ as opposed to different concepts of economic vulnerability/poverty. While it would be legitimate to argue that each measurement angle represents a different concept, especially when addressing it from various disciplinary perspectives, we are suggesting that these measures represent dimensions of the same phenomenon that encompasses material as well as psychological aspects that are relevant to the experience of low levels of economic quality of life. This triangular approach has, to our knowledge, not yet been applied to the study of poverty nor economic vulnerability, neither has the integration of measurement angles into one single indicator, as we will do by means of the Vulnerability Typology.