WHAT WE TALK ABOUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT MEASUREMENT IN POVERTY RESEARCH

It is hardly contentious to assert that measuring concepts is an important aspect of scientific and practical research. However, there seems to be some degree of confusion nowadays regarding what is meant by measurement in poverty research. It is obvious from these exchanges that different notions of central terms in the debate are being held (reliability, validity, measurement error, measurement model) to the detriment of common understanding. To move the literature forward, this paper falls back on the epistemology of measurement to bridge the apparent conceptual gap in the debate. This article invites more discussion and constructive exchange of views regarding the meaning of measurement in poverty research and how to assess the relative success of different efforts.