貧窮測量是針對各種家庭、人口、地區等等進行經濟福祉的比較，其目的是將焦點集中在社會處境較差的人群身上，重視他們的經濟福祉。另外，從公共政策的觀點來看，政策與制度的施行需要評估成果，而貧窮測量的主要目的是讓我們評估政策與制度的效果，去確認人群的最基本經濟需求是否達到滿足。近二十年來官方公佈的官訂貧窮率均不及百分之一，許多學者認為過於嚴苛。本文嘗試模擬各種預算標準法，尋求合宜的貧窮門檻，並討論對於貧窮人口組成的影響。經過本文的模擬設定，貧民率約在3.37% 至4.86% 之間，其貧戶率約在4.39% 至5.76% 之間。進一步分析發現，女性家戶長離婚或寡居者、女性家戶長屬於六十歲以上老人家戶者、女性家戶長屬於單身家戶者、戶長年齡二十歲以下與六十歲以上小戶量 (單身或雙人) 家戶者，在各項貧窮定義下較易落入貧窮。 Poverty measurements are ways to assess the relative economic well-being of different household types, subpopulations and geographic regions of a society. The main objective of this study is to seek ways to correct potential biases against the welfare benefit of the disadvantaged groups. In addition, it is very crucial to assess the effectiveness of the public policies and the relevant institutions. In the meantime, it is also necessary to investigate whether the objectives of public policies have been achieved. The poverty measurements formulated in this study will enable us to assess the effectiveness of public policies and institutions and help us determine whether the basic economic needs are met of various households, subpopulations and regions. In the past twenty years, official poverty rates were all below one percentage point. A substantial body of poverty research considered the poverty thresholds too stringent. The present paper is an attempt to use various estimates to simulate more appropriate poverty thresholds and to explore their effects on the composition of poverty population. In this study, the results of various simulated poverty thresholds show that individual level of poverty rates falls somewhere between 3.37% and 4.86%; while household level of poverty rates lies around 4.39% and 5.76%. Further analyses indicate that female-headed households, of which householders are divorced/windowed or sixty years older; and that households headed by persons less than twenty years or over sixty years or single person, are more likely to fall below poverty thresholds under all measures.
