The simple illustrations above demonstrate the relationship between key elements of the framework used in this paper to measure empowerment. In the following sections, we unpack these elements into measurable indicators.

# 1.1 Agency

How can agency—the capacity to make meaningful choice—be measured? In the fivecountry study, and increasingly in other project monitoring systems, _asset endowments_ are used as indicators of agency. These assets can be psychological, informational, organizational, material, social, financial, or human.

Some assets are easier to measure than others. For example, it is easier to quantify human assets (such as skills or literacy) than psychological assets (such as the capacity to envision) or social assets (such as social capital).<sup>9</sup> The indicators drawn from country experience and discussed later in this paper demonstrate that quantifying all types of assets is manageable; however, collecting certain types of data requires a mixed-methods approach.

Understanding the complex interaction among assets also presents challenges. The endowment of a single asset, such as ownership of land, can affect a person’s ability to make meaningful choices. In addition, as box 1 shows, an actor’s or group’s command over one asset can affect the endowment of another asset. For example, education (a human asset) often gives an actor greater access to information (itself an asset) and at times improves his/her capacity to envision alternative options (a psychological asset). In this case, all three assets contribute to an actor’s capacity to make meaningful choices. Therefore, data have to be gathered on a range of assets, and analysis can, if relevant, test for the effects of one asset on another as well as for their effects on empowerment outcomes.

## **Box 1.  The Effect of Education on Other Assets**

The Institute for Adult Education (INEA) in Mexico provides literacy training and basic education to young disadvantaged adults who have not attended or have dropped out of the formal school system. Student testimony indicates that enrollment in INEA programs has not only improved their education levels but has also provided them with other skills and assets. Students mention, for example, that being able to read and write has enhanced their levels of self-confidence and that, as a result, they are less hesitant to voice opinions and speak in public.

INEA courses also provide students with access to information. Women learn, for example, that domestic violence is an infringement of their rights and that they are entitled to seek help or redress. Coupled with increased self-confidence, an empowered INEA student might to take action to stop abuse. Providing a platform of interaction, INEA schools also contribute to a community’s level of social capital. Studying together, students learn to trust each other and develop friendships and networks of support.

_Source:_ Heinsohn 2004.

> 9 Alkire (2004) surveys a series of subjective measures of agency; that is, measures that capture people’s self-evaluation of whether or not they are free to act as agents. There is also a rich literature available on measuring social capital (see <u>www.worldbank.org/socialcapital). The tools these literatures describe</u> illustrate the practical difficulties of measurement.

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