Multidimensional well-being deprivation among Italian youth

Abstract

The aim of this work is to examine the deprivation of young people (18-34) living in Italy along several dimensions of well-being. We use the Alkire-Foster (A-F) methodology, which relies on a dual-cut off method of identification to calculate a multidimensional deprivation indicator with several desirable characteristics, including decomposability. The identification of dimensions and indicators is grounded on the framework implemented by Istat to measure Equitable and sustainable well-being (BES framework, from the Italian acronym). Since the A-F methodology requires data for all indicators at the individual level, we use the multipurpose households’ survey on Aspects of Daily Life yearly conducted by Istat, covering a wide range of BES dimensions and indicators. We identify five dimensions (Health, Work and education, Subjective well-being, Social cohesion, and Living context). From the results, we can draw conclusions on the trend, the dimensions and the population groups contributing the most to well-being deprivation. Those living in the south show the highest levels of deprivation, especially in the Work and education dimension. The dimension contributing the most to youth well-being deprivation is Social cohesion. Special attention should be devoted to the Health dimension: its contribution to the overall level of multidimensional deprivation is relatively higher in the northern regions, and this dimension is the only one that shows a steady worsening over time.