Sponsored by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the Consumer Expenditure Surveys (CE) are the most detailed source of expenditure data collected directly from households by the Federal government.  In addition, information on income, assets and liabilities, and demographics are collected from a large, nationally representative sample of consumers.  The result is a unique and rich source of data of interest to researchers, educators, advocates, policymakers, and others in a variety of fields.  Moreover, these data, both tabular and at the household level (i.e., microdata), are publicly available for free download.

The goal of the session is to introduce attendees regardless of their career stage (undergraduate to experienced professional) to a new data set, and to CE staff who can assist them in use of these data. The data are useful to those interested in consumer economics generally, and/or in financial planning and related topics.

This session features a panel of presenters, all of whom are early in their careers. For most or all, the CE data compose the first major data set with which they have worked professionally. Five are from the CE program, while one is a professor of economics who is not affiliated with the BLS.

Every day, consumers interact with products that are necessary or make life function in more accessible and interesting ways - whether that’s the toys our children play with, the roads we drive on, or the smoke detectors that keep us safe. Consumers expect products to work as intended and to be tested to be safe and reliable. What most people may not realize is that many of the products and services they interact with are produced, and in some cases, regulated by safety standards. Standards play a vital role in setting product performance requirements, consumer warnings and messaging, and testing and certification protocols. Additionally, consumers, academics and others may be unaware of the standards development process in the United States and that they can participate in, and have a voice in, the development and implementation of the safety standards that impact their everyday lives.

This session aims to explore multidimensional poverty as a framework to capture the diverse and complex aspects of poverty in developed country contexts. Moving beyond traditional income-based measures, this session underscores the need for innovative indicators that reflect diverse dimensions of poverty encompassing education, health, digital access, social connectedness, and more. Papers in this session address the relationship between multidimensional poverty and depressive symptoms, systematic review of multidimensional poverty in developed countries, and comparative analysis of multidimensional poverty in the US and South Korea. Through critical evaluations of existing literature and the development of nuanced, actionable indicators, this session seeks to contribute to the relevant research and inform policy responses aimed at addressing the multifaceted nature of poverty in higher-income settings.