Living Standards Measurement Survey 2012 - Albania

Abstract
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The Living Standards Measurement Survey (LSMS) is a multi-purpose household survey conducted to measure living conditions and poverty situation, and to help policymakers in monitoring and developing social programs.

LSMS has been carried out in Albania in the context of continuing monitoring of poverty and the creation of policy evaluation system in the framework of the National Strategy for Development and Integration (previously the National Strategy for Economic and Social Development).

The first Albania LSMS was conducted in 2002, followed by 2003, 2004, 2005, 2008 and 2012 surveys. In 2012, 6,671 households participated in the survey.

Geographic coverage
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National

Analysis unit
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- Households
- Individuals

Kind of data
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Sample survey data [ssd]

Sampling procedure
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The survey includes a sample of 6,671 households that constitute the survey units. The sample is chosen randomly by two rounds of selection. The sample frame was provided from Population and Housing Census done on October 2011. In the first round, 834 Primary Selection Units (PSUs) have been chosen randomly to represent the whole territory of the country. Then, 8 households for each PSU were chosen to be interviewed in the second round through a procedure of systematic sample. To handle cases of non response or no contact other 4 households for each PSU were chosen as substitutes that ensured the target of 6,671 completed questionnaires near the households.

The methodology of the 2012 LSMS has been kept similar with the surveys conducted in the previous years. However, the geographic domains of analysis have been expanded to include the 12 individual prefectures of Albania, by urban and rural strata, compared to four geographic regions (Central, Coastal, Mountain and Tirana) by urban and rural strata defined previously as domains for the survey. This required a considerable increase in the sample size from 3,600 to 6,671 households making possible to calculate indicators of living standard for 24 strata and even for the four main areas of the country in order to compare the regional results to those from the 2002, 2005 and 2008 surveys and study the regional trends for various indicators.

Mode of data collection
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Face-to-face [f2f]

Research instrument
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The questionnaire was divided in two sections, and was administered to households in two visits, one section per visit. During the second visit the interviewer would also collect additional information of use for the eventual tracking of the household in the next waves of the panel.

The Booklet for Recording Daily Household Consumption was left with the household by the interviewer during the first visit for the household to compile, and collected during the second visit. Upon collection, interviewers took care of checking the entries (also with the help of a checklist provided at the end of the booklet) and correct them as appropriate with the help of the most knowledgeable person in the household.

A specific column was provided for the household to record the reference period for any purchases of food. The checklist was compiled by the interviewer, with the help of the most knowledgeable person in the household, upon collection of the diary. Interviewers were instructed to check, for 14 main food staples, whether any consumption of the item had been recorded in the diary. Whenever an item had not been recorded the interviewer would ask the respondent to report whether the item (a) had not been used in the 14-day period, or (b) had been consumed but the household had forgotten to record its consumption, or else (c) had been consumed by the household drawing on stocks purchased or produced outside the 14-day period. If the inclusion of an item had simply been forgotten the interviewer would then fill the appropriate section of the diary by asking the household to recall the details of that consumption. If the household reported consuming an item purchased before the beginning of the 14-day period, then information on the frequency of purchase, quantity, unit of measure and value of the purchase were recorded in the columns provided to this end in the checklist.

摘要
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生活标准测量调查（LSMS）是一项多目的的家庭调查，旨在衡量生活条件和贫困状况，并协助政策制定者监控和制定社会项目。
LSMS在阿尔巴尼亚的背景下实施，目的是持续监测贫困状况，并在国家发展战略与一体化（此前为国家经济与社会发展战略）框架内构建政策评估体系。
首次阿尔巴尼亚LSMS调查于2002年进行，随后是2003年、2004年、2005年、2008年和2012年的调查。2012年，共有6,671个家庭参与了调查。
地理覆盖范围
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全国
分析单位
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- 家庭
- 个人
数据类型
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样本调查数据 [ssd]
抽样程序
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调查包含6,671个家庭的样本，这些家庭构成调查单位。样本通过两轮随机选择确定。抽样框架由2011年10月进行的人口和住房普查提供。在第一轮中，随机选择了834个一级抽样单位（PSU），以代表整个国家的领土。然后，通过系统抽样方法在第二轮中为每个PSU选择了8个家庭进行访谈。为了处理非响应或无法联系的情况，为每个PSU额外选择了4个家庭作为替代，以确保接近6,671份完成的问卷目标。
2012年LSMS的方法与之前年份进行的调查相似。然而，分析的地域范围已扩展至包括阿尔巴尼亚的12个单独的省份，按城市和农村层进行划分，与之前定义的调查领域四个地理区域（中部、沿海、山区和地拉那）按城市和农村层划分相比。
这要求样本量从3,600户增加到6,671户，使得能够计算24个层级的居住标准指标，甚至对于国家的四个主要地区，以便将区域结果与2002年、2005年和2008年的调查结果进行比较，并研究各种指标的区域趋势。
数据收集方式
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面对面 [f2f]
研究工具
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问卷分为两部分，在两次访问中分别对家庭进行分发。在第二次访问期间，调查员还会收集对家庭在下一轮面板调查中跟踪有用的额外信息。
《每日家庭消费记录手册》在第一次访问时由调查员留给家庭，由家庭编制，并在第二次访问时收集。收集时，调查员会仔细检查记录（也借助手册末尾提供的清单），并根据家庭中最有知识的人的帮助进行适当的更正。
为家庭记录任何食物购买的参考期间提供了特定的栏目。清单由调查员编制，在日记收集时，在有知识家庭成员的帮助下完成。调查员被指示检查14种主要主食是否在日记中有记录。如果某项商品没有记录，调查员会询问受访者该商品（a）在14天期间是否未使用，或（b）已消费但家庭忘记记录其消费，或（c）家庭通过在14天期间外购买或生产的库存消费。如果仅仅是忘记记录某项商品，调查员会填写日记中相应的部分，询问家庭回忆该消费的细节。如果家庭报告在14天开始之前购买了商品，那么会记录在清单中为此目的提供的栏目中的购买频率、数量、计量单位和购买价值。