Measuring Mobility in Wealth: Some Estimates From a South Indian Village

This paper examines a dynamic aspect of the distribution of wealth, namely mobility in terms of ownership of wealth at the household level. The investigation was motivated by a concern with changes in the long run well-being of individuals. The matrix approach is identified as suitable for obtaining a good descriptive characterization of mobility. Matrix-based measures are outlined and a supplementary distance measure is proposed, one that discriminates between mobility of the rich and poor. Matrices are constructed for a south Indian village based on panel data spanning an eight year period. Empirical estimates of mobility measures that show restricted mobility in the village are used to illustrate some implication of mobility analysis for development policy.