POVERTY RISK CALCULATOR DESIGNED FOR AMERICANS

During the presidential campaign conducted by Donald Trump last fall, millions of Americans were attracted by his message with an objective of restoring jobs and decreasing economic insecurity.

In this relation, two experts on economic hardship- Mark Rank and Thomas Hirschl have now come up with a new poverty risk calculator which can determine an American’s expected poverty risk on the basis of his/her education level, race, gender, age and marital status.

For constructing this tool, they used numerous case records obtained from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics- a longitudinal ongoing study of Americans started in 1968. The tool estimates the percent of Americans who will get poor in the forthcoming 5, 10 or 15 years. Approximately $24,000 was assigned as the poverty line for a family of four.

The working principle behind the poverty risk calculator is same as that of heart disease calculators found across the net. "In this era of 'alternative facts' and 'fake news,' it is even more important for Americans to be able to use solid research in helping to guide their futures. For the first time, individuals can now estimate their potential risk of poverty” said Rank. 

Content: www.sciencedaily.com