World-Economic Trends in the Distribution of Income, 1965-1992

This article assesses trends in world income inequality between 1965 and 1992. The study first decomposes Theil's T to show that between-country inequality is the most significant component of overall world income inequality, which facilitates fruther research, as between-country longitudinal d...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American journal of sociology 1997-01, Vol.102 (4), p.1000-1039
Main Authors: Korzeniewicz, Roberto Patricio, Moran, Timothy Patrick
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Censuses
Countries
Cross-national analysis
Economic growth rate
Economic sociology
Economic trends
Economics
Foreign Affairs
Gini coefficient
Income (1965-92)
Income Distribution
Income Inequality
Income measurement
Income shares
National income
Population distributions
Population growth
Sociology
Sociology of economy and development
Trends
World Economy
World population
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:This article assesses trends in world income inequality between 1965 and 1992. The study first decomposes Theil's T to show that between-country inequality is the most significant component of overall world income inequality, which facilitates fruther research, as between-country longitudinal data are more easily available than national income distribution data. Next, the study uses a larger set of nations and finds a signigicant increase in world income inequality as measured by both Gini and Theil coefficients, particularly during the 1980s. The findings are robust even after controlling for differential rates of population growth or using alternative sources of data. By indentifying these trends, the article is able to explain past discrepancies and recent shifts in the relevant empirical and theoretical literature.
ISSN:0002-9602
1537-5390
DOI:10.1086/231038