Item nonresponse on income questions in panel surveys: Incidence, imputation and the impact on inequality and mobility

0502 economics and business 05 social sciences 8. Economic growth 1. No poverty 0506 political science
DOI: 10.1007/s101820500191 Publication Date: 2005-03-07T09:23:31Z
ABSTRACT
This paper deals with item nonresponse on income questions in panel surveys and with longitudinal and cross–sectional imputation strategies to cope with this phenomenon. Using data from the German SOEP, we compare income inequality and mobility indicators based only on truly observed information to those derived from observed and imputed observations. First, we find a positive correlation between inequality and imputation. Secondly, income mobility appears to be significantly understated using observed information only. Finally, longitudinal analyses provide evidence for a positive inter–temporal correlation between item nonresponse and any kind of subsequent nonresponse.
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