Assessing the Level of Consumption by Children in Households
Authors: Kuznetsov K. V. 
Published: September 2023

In the context of changing the demographic structure of the population (population aging) in order to determine the demand for goods and services and predict key socio-economic indexes, consumption age indexes are of practical interest for research. A feature of collecting information on the level of consumption is the conduct of surveys for the household as a whole, and not for a specific member of the household. At the same time, it should be noted that throughout the life cycle of a person, the level and structure of consumption differ. Methods for assessing the level of consumption in households of different generations are of greatest interest on the part of researchers. Current trends in developing and developed countries are characterized by a move away from multi-generational living. Thus, estimates of the level of consumption by children in households with parents are of practical interest.

The purpose of the study. At present, there are no unequivocal recommendations on how to estimate the calculation of children’s consumption in households. At the same time, the available methods have been subjected to various criticisms from economists. It should be noted that most of the research on this topic was carried out at the end of the 20th century. At the same time, it is necessary to take into account possible cross-country features of consumption financing: the availability and development of medicine and education. If social services are available and provided at the expense of the state in a country, then the level of consumption by children will be lower. If the household finances the social sphere, the level of consumption by children in households will be higher. Thus, it is of practical interest to assess the level of consumption by children in Russian households.

Materials and methods. Based on data from the Household Budget Survey (HBS) for 2020 conducted by Rosstat, households consisting of two adults and two adults with one child are selected. With the help of classical methods of statistical analysis, the construction of age profiles of consumption for each group of households is carried out. Based on the share of expenditures on food in the household and the scale effect of their consumption, the paper constructs age estimates for the redistribution of the level of consumption depending on the age of children. In addition, the sample size allows us to test the hypothesis about the age of birth of the child and the level of consumption.

Results. The study made it possible to assess the differences in the level of consumption by children depending on the age at which a child was born. The average age of a child’s birth determines his/her further level of consumption throughout adulthood. Consumption is lowest among children who are born when parents are less than 26 years old. The obtained redistribution coefficients for ages under 15 are higher than in the estimates proposed by R. Lee, E. Mason, and Deaton, that confirms the possible consumption patterns of Russian households.

Conclusion. This article draws two key conclusions. The age at which a child is born determines his/her level of future consumption: the birth of a child under the age of 24 indicates a relatively low level of consumption throughout their adulthood. The estimates obtained for the level of consumption by children depending on their age indicate higher consumption up to 14 years of age than in foreign methods that can be explained by the socio-economic characteristics of Russian households.