How the Development Economics Research Group (DECRG) Supports the LSMS

DECRG, the Development Economics Research Group of the World Bank, is involved in many activities including several which support the LSMS. (For general information on DECRG, see the Department's home page.) The emphasis put on the various lines of action in support of the LSMS changes over time, as do the specific activities carried out under each.

Assistance in Implementing New Surveys. DECRG assists in implementing new surveys. For more information on how surveys are typically administered, financed and implemented, see the section on A Guide to Living Standards Surveys and Their Data Sets.  In a few cases, divisional staff or consultants spend several months working on a single country to help develop the project and to provide technical assistance themselves. With increasing frequency, DECRG helps to identify suitable independent consultants, to write their terms of reference and to review their work, but does not actually provide large quantities of technical assistance itself. This greater reliance on individuals outside of DECRG reflects the increased demand for LSMS surveys beyond what DECRG can provide. For more information on the types of services which DECRG does provide, see the section on Information for Managers of New Surveys.

Management, Documentation and Dissemination of Existing Data Sets to Researchers. DECRG archives and disseminates data from LSMS surveys to eligible users. Dissemination of existing data sets continues at a rapid rate. Clients are mostly researchers from the World Bank and academia, with a lesser proportion of World Bank operations staff. Data are also available from the institutions that carried out the field work. These agencies service most in-country requests for data. Since June 1993 DRG has devoted significant resources to improve survey documentation in order to reduce start up costs to new users, safeguard and rebuild institutional memory with regards to these surveys, and to reduce the unit costs to the division of disseminating the data sets. An example of the improved documentation and dissemination can be found in the section describing Household Survey Data and Supporting Documentation.

Training and Preparation of Written Pedagogic Materials. Periodically the division produces written materials on the lessons from LSMS implementation experience. LSMS Working Paper 126 " A Manual for Planning and Implementing the Living Standards Measurement Study Survey" is a comprehensive manual on how to implement an LSMS survey from beginning to end.  It is available in English, Russian and  in Spanish.  The  Designing Household Survey Questionnaires for Developing Countries: Lessons from 15 Years of the Living Standards Measurement Study covers key topics in the design of household surveys, with many suggestions for customizing surveys to local circumstances and improving data quality. Detailed draft questionnaires are provided in written and electronic format to help users customize their surveys.  For instructions on other materials that can be used to implement household surveys, again see the section on Information for Managers of New Surveys.

Publications. DECRG supports the LSMS Working Paper Series which has published papers on issues relevant to the collection or analysis of multi-topic household surveys. Some papers focus on the methodology of data collection or statistical analysis, others focus on the description or analysis of household behavior or the effects of government policies. DECRG and the Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Network jointly support Poverty Lines which is a brief, two-page newsletter which summarizes research on poverty. Many of the issues covered will come from the LSMS Working Papers, but not all working papers will have a corresponding issue of Poverty Lines.

Research on Survey Methodology. DECRG periodically sponsors research on survey methodology. The experiments have been identified as those that: (i) will improve the measurement of core indicators in LSMS surveys; (ii) develop methods for expanding the areas of policy that the LSMS surveys can cover; and (iii) will improve the quality of the data that is generated either substantively or by improving its accuracy, relevance, timeliness.    

Revised 08/16/06