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This research note briefly describes the levels of measurement of variables and their applications in the quantitative analysis of survey data. It first presents the concept of the measurement of variables. Second, the four levels of measurements, namely, nominal, ordinal, interval, and ratio, with examples are offered. Then, the application of these measurement levels to the statistical analysis of data at the univariate (descriptive statistics), bivariate, and multivariate (e.g., binary logistic and multiple linear regression) levels are discussed. This note is expected to be useful to the beginning (naïve) scholars for real-world application of statistical tools to analyze survey data.

Food security is a global challenge. This paper examines the regional variation in household food security in Nepal. Specifically, I examine the variation in household level food security with particular reference to newly formed provinces constructed as per the new constitution (2015) of the country, three ecological regions and rural-urban locations of households. I use the nationally representative data from 2011 Nepal Demographic Health Survey to investigate the issue. Using both descriptive as well as multivariate analysis, evidences show that there is regional variation in overall food security in Nepal. Findings show that food security is a problem of rural households. Moreover, food security status of households also significantly varied by province. Households living in Karnali and Far-west provinces (province 6 and 7) located in the western part of Nepal are more food insecure as compared to those living in other provinces. Food security status of households also varied by domains of food security. While anxiety about food supply was an issue for households in the mountains and the hills, food security in terms of quality was equally important in all three ecological regions. However, interestingly, quantity of intake was not a major issue in all the three ecological regions. All three domains were important for households that live in rural areas as well as those living in provinces other than those in Karnali and Far-west provinces. These findings provide a macro level snap shot of food security situation of Nepal and are deemed important for the newly formed federal and provincial governments for food policy framing. Further investigation at the micro-level is necessary for more concrete policies.

Food security is a global challenge. This paper examines the regional variation in household food security in Nepal. Specifically, I examine the variation in household level food security with particular reference to newly formed provinces constructed as per the new constitution (2015) of the country, three ecological regions and rural-urban locations of households. I use the nationally representative data from 2011 Nepal Demographic Health Survey to investigate the issue. Using both descriptive as well as multivariate analysis, evidences show that there is regional variation in overall food security in Nepal. Findings show that food security is a problem of rural households. Moreover, food security status of households also significantly varied by province. Households living in Karnali and Far-west provinces (province 6 and 7) located in the western part of Nepal are more food insecure as compared to those living in other provinces. Food security status of households also varied by domains of food security. While anxiety about food supply was an issue for households in the mountains and the hills, food security in terms of quality was equally important in all three ecological regions. However, interestingly, quantity of intake was not a major issue in all the three ecological regions. All three domains were important for households that live in rural areas as well as those living in provinces other than those in Karnali and Far-west provinces. These findings provide a macro level snap shot of food security situation of Nepal and are deemed important for the newly formed federal and provincial governments for food policy framing. Further investigation at the micro-level is necessary for more concrete policies.

Studies on migration in Nepal primarily focused on the causes of migration, in general. While a few studies examined the remittances received or sent by migrants, there is little information about the variation in remittances received by households by migrant's destination. Thus, this exploratory study attempts to answer: Does the extent to which households receive remittances vary by migrant's destination? Using the data collected in 2013 from the western Chitwan Valley of Nepal, the findings from multivariate analysis reveal that net of controls, both the receipt (whether a household received any remittance or not) as well as the amount of remittances received by a household varied by migrant's destination. Evidence suggests that households are less likely to receive remittances from migrants working in India (a country of low earning potential) as compared to those working in Nepal. On the other hand, households received significantly more amount of remittances from migrants working in countries with high earning potentials (such as Middle East, East or South East Asia, and America, Australia and Europe) as compared to the domestic migrants who were working inside of Nepal but outside of Chitwan. Adjusting for other factors, the largest amount of remittances was received from migrants working in the East or South East Asian countries (e.g. South Korea, Malaysia, Japan) followed by those in America, Australia, and Europe and the Middle East. The insights gained from this exploratory study are discussed.

AbstractWe investigate the impact of household use of labor‐saving farm technologies on first‐time out‐migration after the household agriculture and consumption survey was conducted in 1996. Building on the labor substitution framework, we hypothesize that household use of labor‐saving technologies (e.g., tractors, farm implements, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides) increases individual out‐migration. To estimate the effects of the use of labor‐saving farm technologies on out‐migration, we use uniquely detailed panel data from the rapidly changing rural agrarian, migrant‐sending setting of Nepal. The results of our multilevel, discrete‐time, event history models suggest that net of other known factors associated with out‐migration, household use of farm technology—particularly the use of tractors—significantly increases out‐migration.

AbstractUsing longitudinal panel data from the Western Chitwan Valley of Nepal, this study examines the impact of the use of modern farm technologies on fertility transition—specifically, the number of births in a farm household. Previous explanations for the slow pace of fertility transition in rural agricultural settings often argued that the demand for farm labor is the primary driver of high fertility. If this argument holds true, the use of modern farm technologies that are designed to carry out labor‐intensive farm activities ought to substitute for farm labor and discourage births in farm families. However, little empirical evidence is available on the potential influence of the use of modern farm technologies on the fertility transition. To fill this gap, the panel data examined in this study provide an unusual opportunity to test this long‐standing, but unexplored, argument. The results demonstrate that the use of modern farm technologies, particularly the use of a tractor and other modern farm implements, reduce subsequent births in farm households. This offers important insight for understanding the fertility transition in Nepal, a setting that is experiencing high population growth and rapidly changing farming practices.

Significance: Wounds sustained in a combat trauma often result in a composite tissue loss. Combat injuries, due to high energy transfer to tissues, lead to trauma at multiple anatomical sites. An early wound cover is associated with lower rate of infections and a faster wound healing. The concept of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) in the management of combat-related wounds has evolved from the civilian trauma and the wounds from nontraumatic etiologies.

Abstract
How do we know whether a refugee household is self-reliant if this is not measured? Although self-reliance has been promoted as a critical assistance strategy for refugees in recent years, there have been limited attempts to rigorously measure the concept. This field report introduces a new measurement tool to assess the movement toward self-reliance among refugee households. The development and utility of a tool to measure self-reliance are described using the pilot studies conducted in Ecuador, Egypt and Lebanon over a 9- to 18-month period. This report utilized unique panel data from 167 refugee households in Egypt and 94 households in Ecuador. The panel data was collected at two points in time (baseline and endline) using paper and pencil or Open Data Kit forms on tablets during face-to-face interviews. This panel group was used to perform the change analysis to examine the movement of households along a self-reliance continuum. Findings show that, overall, 59.8% of households in Ecuador and 64.7% of households in Egypt moved upward in composite score in self-reliance while less than 30% of households regressed in both countries. Further examination is needed to refine and evaluate the tool. The results provide an important starting point and insights into measuring self-reliance using simple indicators and an opportunity to reframe assistance around self-reliance, neither of which had previously been a focus of refugee assistance or relevant literature. It is believed that this methodology will be of use to academics and practitioners seeking to study refugee self-reliance around the world.

This paper examines the reliability and stability of developmental idealism (DI) measures in Nepal. DI is a set of cultural schemas that contains beliefs and values favoring modern societies and families over traditional ones and that views modern families as causes and effects of modern societies. It also views the world as dynamic, with change from traditionality toward modernity. Earlier studies have shown that DI has been disseminated widely internationally, but provide little evidence concerning whether individual views of DI can be reliably measured or the extent to which such views are stable across time. We estimate the reliability and stability of DI measures using panel data collected in Nepal. Our results indicate substantial reliability, equal or nearly equal to the reliability of standard value and belief items measured in general American surveys. There is also considerable stability of DI views across our study interval from 2008 to 2011.