The living standards of U.S. households are traditionally measured by income.
This report takes a different approach.
Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP)
It measures living standards in terms of extended measures of well-being of households tracked in the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) to help deepen our knowledge about household conditions in ways not captured by money alone.
Some aspects of well-being, such as fear of crime or quality of local public services, may be only loosely connected with money. Other measures are more closely related to income but can also be effected by factors such as the cost of living, age, disability status, and sudden changes in circumstances.
Extended measures of well-being provide a more complete and detailed picture of household living conditions in the United States than income alone provides.
Well-being Metrics
The U.S. Census Bureau tracks extended measures of well-being in the SIPP.2. The SIPP's "Extended Measures of Well-Being" topical module, on which this report is based, covers five broad domains:(1) appliances and electronic goods, such as possession of refrigerators, landline and cellular telephones, and computers;
(2) housing conditions, including level of satisfaction with overall home repair, adequate living space, and sufficient privacy;
(3) neighborhood conditions and community services, such as: road conditions and the presence of abandoned buildings; satisfactory police, fire, and medical services; and attitudes towards local schools;
(4) meeting basic needs, including the ability to pay bills in full, to avoid eviction, and to have sufficient food; and
(5) the expectation of help,
should need arise, from friends, family,
and the community.
For this report, extended measures of well-being are used to describe living conditions in the United States for the time period 1992-2003.