Summarizing Data using Partially Ordered Set Theory: An Application to Fiscal Frameworks in 97 Countries

Julia Bachtrögler (), Harald Badinger, Aurélien Fichet de Clairfontaine and Wolf Heinrich Reuter

No 181, Department of Economics Working Paper Series from WU Vienna University of Economics and Business

Abstract: The widespread use of composite indices has often been motivated by their practicality to quantify qualitative data in an easy and intuitive way. At the same time, this approach has been challenged due to the subjective and partly ad hoc nature of computation, aggregation and weighting techniques as well as the handling of missing data. Partially ordered set (POSET) theory offers an alternative approach for summarizing qualitative data in terms of quantitative indices, which relies on a computation scheme that fully exploits the available information and does not require the subjective assignment of weights. The present paper makes the case for an increased use of POSET theory in the social sciences and provides a comparison of POSET indices and composite indices (from previous studies) measuring the 'stringency' of fiscal frameworks using data from the OECD Budget Practices and Procedures survey (2007/08). (authors' abstract)

Keywords: Partially Ordered Set Theory; Composite Indices; Index Functions; Fiscal Frameworks; Fiscal Rules; Budgetary Procedures (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014-08
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

Downloads: (external link)
https://epub.wu.ac.at/4283/ original version (application/pdf)
Our link check indicates that this URL is bad, the error code is: 403 Forbidden (https://epub.wu.ac.at/4283/ [308 PERMANENT REDIRECT]--> https://epub.wu.ac.at/id/eprint/4283 [302 FOUND]--> https://research.wu.ac.at/en/publications/280ab65c-7f62-4b70-a3d1-680941d4ca99)

Related works:
Working Paper: Summarizing Data using Partially Ordered Set Theory: An Application to Fiscal Frameworks in 97 Countries (2014)
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:wiw:wus005:4283

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Department of Economics Working Paper Series from WU Vienna University of Economics and Business Welthandelsplatz 1, 1020 Vienna, Austria.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by WU Library ().