Households as Corporate Firms
An Analysis of Household Finance Using Integrated Household Surveys and Corporate Financial Accounting

This investigation proposes a conceptual framework for measurement necessary for an analysis of household finance and economic development.

Krislert Samphantharak (Author), Robert M. Townsend (Author)

9780521195829, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 14 December 2009

214 pages, 2 b/w illus. 25 tables
23.5 x 15.9 x 1.6 cm, 0.42 kg

'A wealth of new insights is brought to thinking about the financial health of individuals and households. Ideas from financial economics are integrated with the economics of household behavior to develop a powerful framework for better understanding household decision-making and financial well-being. The framework also points to important ways to improve measurement in household surveys. A must-read for anyone interested in development.' Duncan Thomas, Duke University

This investigation proposes a conceptual framework for measurement necessary for an analysis of household finance and economic development. The authors build on and, where appropriate, modify corporate financial accounts to create balance sheets, income statements, and statements of cash flows for households in developing countries, using an integrated household survey. The authors also illustrate how to apply the accounts to an analysis of household finance that includes productivity of household enterprises, capital structure, liquidity, financing, and portfolio management. The conceptualization of this analysis has important implications for measurement, questionnaire design, the modeling of household decisions, and the analysis of panel data.

Part I. Households as Corporate Firms: 1. Introduction
2. Conceptual framework
Part II. Household Financial Accounting: 3. Household surveys
4. Constructing household financial statements from a household survey
Part III. Household Finance: 5. Financial analysis
6. An application: liquidity constraints, kinship networks, and the financing of household investment
7. Discussion: measurement and modeling.

Subject Areas: Corporate finance [KFFH], Finance [KFF], Political economy [KCP], Economic theory & philosophy [KCA], Economics, finance, business & management [K]