Table 2.
Household variables included in the Household Wealth Index (HWI), their respective scoring factors, and the percentage of households in each wealth category owning items, western Panamá
| Variable | Scoring factor* | Lowest (lower 40%) | Middle (middle 40%) | Highest (upper 20%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aqueduct | 0.3911 | 2% | 41% | 90% |
| Latrine | 0.4114 | 2% | 29% | 92% |
| Radio | 0.1595 | 71% | 82% | 98% |
| Cell phone | 0.2948 | 2% | 7% | 42% |
| Bicycle | 0.1358 | 1% | 2% | 6% |
| Hoe | −0.1156 | 38% | 50% | 17% |
| Sewing machine | 0.1802 | 38% | 59% | 71% |
| Stove | 0.3888 | 0% | 7% | 43% |
| No walls | −0.2779 | 40% | 4% | 0% |
| Solid walls | 0.298 | 5% | 59% | 71% |
| Dirt floor | −0.429 | 100% | 98% | 54% |
| HWI | ||||
| Mean (SE) | −0.36 (0.02) | 0.25 (0.02) | 1.27 (0.18) | |
| Range | −0.82 to −0.089 | −0.087 to 0.67 | 0.69–2.26 |
*
Scoring factors were determined by using the variable coefficients from the first component of a Principle Component Analysis that explained 26% of the variability in the 11 variables.