A Critical Assessment of the UNDP’s Gender Inequality Index
批判性评估联合国开发计划署2010年提出的性别不平等指数，指出其函数形式复杂、指标混合导致解释困难且对低收入国家不利，并提出一个更简单的替代指数。
This study critically reviews the Gender Inequality Index (GII), the new gender-related index proposed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in the 2010 Human Development Report, arguing that its particular construction limits its usefulness and appropriateness as a global gender inequality index. In particular, the functional form of the index is excessively and unnecessarily confusing. Moreover, the inclusion of indicators that compare the relative performance of women vis-à-vis men, together with absolute women-specific indicators, obscures even more the interpretation of an already complicated index and penalizes the performance of low-income countries. In order to overcome some of the identified limitations, this contribution defines a new composite index of gender inequality that incorporates the GII variables but uses a much simpler functional form. The results suggest that great caution should be exercised when interpreting and using the values of the GII.