Pomiar poziomu życia ludności – dylematy doboru wskaźników

Purpose – The aim of the article is to present and analyse the indicators used in measuring and assessing the population’s standard of living. Research method – Formal and statistical analysis of the nature of indicators used in research on the standard of living; evaluation of the criteria for their selection. Results – Population’s standard of living is a multitier and multi-disciplinary category. It covers phenomena pertaining to such fields as economy, education, culture, health protection, public safety, communication, and ecology. Research on the standard of living should necessarily rely on the indica-tors referring to all these areas; it should also endeavour to aggregate them within a single indicator that could be used in assessing the population’s overall standard of living. If such research is to comply withscientific principles, the indicators used therein should have appropriate features, and their selectionmust be based on strictly defined criteria and procedures. The article discusses the characteristics of such indicators and estimates the criteria for their selection and aggregation. Originality /value /implications /recommendation – The article draws on the author's extensive experien-ce in research on the population’s standard of living. It attempts at organizing the criteria and methodsof selecting the so-called partial indicators used in the current studies of the different areas of social life considered within the research on the population’s standard of living, and at transforming them into a single aggregate indicator.