Income Inequality in Europe Since the Crisis

Economic inequalities are engendered by a complex process, characterised by several steps and involving the interaction of several factors. The best indicator of individual economic well-being is disposable equivalised income. Evidence shows that welfare states retain a crucial function in Europe and that they have been central in limiting the detrimental effects of the financial crisis on disposable income distribution.     

Wealth and Income Inequality: An Economic and Ethical Analysis

I perform an economic and ethical analysis on wealth and income inequality. Economists have performed many statistical studies that reveal a number of, often contradictory, findings in connection with the distribution of wealth and income. Hence, the statistical findings leave us with no better knowledge of the effects that inequality has on economic progress. At the same time, the existing theoretical results have not provided us with a definitive answer concerning the effects of inequality on progress. By gaining knowledge of the nature of inequality, and bringing basic economic principles to bear on the subject, we can come to an understanding of what the causal relationship is between inequality and economic progress. Furthermore, I apply a new theory of ethics – rational egoism – to assess economic inequality. I show that, in the right context, economic inequality is both economically and morally desirable.     

对外贸易与收入不平等——基于我国的经验研究

本文采用我国1985-2005年的时间序列数据,就对外贸易与收入不平等的关系进行了实证研究。发现对外贸易与收入不平等是一种倒"U"形的关系。1985-2004年对外贸易拉大了我国的收入不平等,之后则缩小了收入不平等。在此基础上,分析了对外贸易与收入不平等成倒"U"形关系的成因,并就今后发展对外贸易与缩小收入不平等提出了相关建议。     

Keeping Up With the Joneses: Analyzing the Effect of Income Inequality on Consumer Borrowing

Household debt relative to disposable income increased from 60% in 1980 to 104% at the end of 2003. ‘Buying on credit’ has become so popular that an increasing number of firms generate more profit from financing than from selling their products. In this paper, we show that rising income inequality has substantially contributed to increased consumer borrowing. Income inequality affects all components of total household debt, but the impact is strongest on non-revolving debt (installment loans), which is used to finance the purchase of consumer durables. We argue and provide evidence that the income inequality effect on consumer borrowing is a result of conspicuous consumption. Rising income inequality has forced households with smaller income gains to use debt to keep up their consumption level relative to households with larger income gains.JEL Classification: D12, G29, J31, M30     

Do Not Overlook the Mature Market for Professional Services!

No abstract available for this article.     

城市正规就业与非正规就业收入差距及影响因素贡献——基于收入不平等的分解

本文使用CHNS 1997-2006的调查数据实证研究了城镇正规就业与非正规就业之间的收入差距及影响因素。收入不平等分解结果表明,正规就业与非正规就业之间存在显著的工资收入差距,但随着经济发展和劳动力市场供求的转变,两类就业者由于就业类别差异导致的"收入差异"呈缩减的趋势;受教育水平和工作经验等人力资本特征是两类就业者决定工资的主要影响因素,也是他们之间工资收入差距变化的主要贡献因素。     

减少收入不平等：来自教育和人力资本的理论、经验和启示

理论和实践经验证明 ,以教育为主的人力资本投资可以缩小收入分配差距 ,从而实现兼顾公平的经济增长。经济发展过程中并不必然伴随收入差距扩大的“库兹涅茨效应” ,上世纪亚洲一些新兴国家的经济发展历程证明了这一点。中国当前的收入不平等可以部分归因于教育发展和人力资本存量的相对滞后 ,需要通过加强人力资本投资来缩小收入分配差距。     

减少收入不平等:来自教育和人力资本的理论、经验和启示

理论和实践经验证明,以教育为主的人力资本投资可以缩小收入分配差距,从而实现兼顾公平的经济增长.经济发展过程中并不必然伴随收入差距扩大的库兹涅茨效应,上世纪亚洲一些新兴国家的经济发展历程证明了这一点.中国当前的收入不平等可以部分归因于教育发展和人力资本存量的相对滞后,需要通过加强人力资本投资来缩小收入分配差距.     

同龄收入不均等与财政再分配贡献——基于个税和转移支付的实证分析

测算个税-转移支付体系在减少不平等中的效应及效率,从而保证财政工具有助于缩小收入分配差距、缓解相对贫困,是实现共同富裕的重要一环.本文基于2016年中国家庭追踪调查(CFPS)数据,构造了一种基于年龄调整的基尼系数测度同龄收入不均等,采用"匿名"与"非匿名"评价指标测度了个税、社保缴费和转移支付在再分配中的垂直效应、再排序效应和收入变动轨迹,并通过模拟最优分配方式测算支出效率及配置效率.结果 显示,基于年龄调整的基尼系数测算的收入不平等比基于传统基尼系数测算的收入不平等下降了2％;个税-转移支付体系整体的收入再分配效应达到4.9％左右,而2019年新个税的边际贡献率小于旧个税;转移支付具有显著的减贫效应,保证了相对贫困群体的向上流动;个税和转移支付的支出效率分别为71.27％和45.55％,配置效率分别为70.45％和46.84％.本文认为,政府应重视同龄收入差距过大问题,保障初次分配公平,在设计再分配政策时注重完善个税综合税制,优化财政支出结构,提高社会保障分配的公平性.     

The Morality of Everyday Activities: Not the Right,But the Good Thing To Do

This article attempts to understand and develop the morality of everyday activities in organizations. Aristotle’s concept of phronesis, practical wisdom, is utilized to describe the morality of the everyday work activities at two call centres of an Australian insurance company. The ethnographic data suggests that ethical judgements at the lower level of the organization are practical rather than theoretical; emergent rather than static; ambiguous rather than clear-cut; and particular rather than universal. Ethical codes are of limited value here and it is argued that by developing phronesis members of the organization can improve their capacity to deal with this ethical complexity.     

我国收入分配差距及个人所得税调节作用的实证分析

本文通过计算我国城镇居民税前收入、税后收入和税收收入的基尼系数，计算各个收入阶层的平均税率及建立计量经济模型等多角度分析了个人所得税对城镇居民收入分配差距的调节作用。最后得出结论：目前我国收入分配差距仍呈扩大趋势，但没达到两极分化的程度，2002年以来个人所得税逐渐发挥对收入分配差距的调节作用。对高收入阶层课以重税，同时增加低收入阶层的可支配收入，是改善目前收入分配不平等状况行之有效的措施，税收政策和其他社会保障的收入分配政策相结合，可以对缩小收入分配差距，建立社会主义和谐社会起到更大的作用。     

Income Per Capita Inequality in China: The Role of Economic Geography and Spatial Interactions

(1241) Laura Hering and Sandra Poncet This paper contributes to the analysis of growing income inequality in China. We apply a structural model of economic geography to data on per capita income over 190 Chinese cities between 1995 and 2002, and evaluate the extent to which market proximity and spatial dependence can explain the growing income inequality between Chinese cities. The econometric specification explicitly incorporates spatial dependence in the form of spatially‐lagged per capita income. We show that the geography of market access and spatial dependence are significantly correlated with per capita income in China. Market access is particularly important in cities with smaller migration inflows, which is consistent with NEG theory, whereas spatially‐lagged per capita income matters more in cities with greater immigration. We conclude that the positive impact of spatially‐lagged income partly results from labour mobility between neighbours, so that spatial dependence reflects the influence of migration, knowledge transfers and increasing competition between cities.     

Why People Do Not Always Follow the Doctor's Orders: The Role of Hope and Perceived Control

The lack of adherence to medical advice is a widely recognized health care concern with important implications for consumer well‐being. This study advances a model for better understanding adherence behaviors by incorporating the positive emotion of hope and consumer perceptions of control. Empirical testing of the model in the context of type 2 diabetes, a lifestyle‐changing chronic illness, shows that hope generates more patient adherence. Furthermore, individuals have higher hope when they believe they are capable of performing the actions their treatment requires, and/or that their health outcomes are under their physician's control. The results indicate that health care providers can play an important role in encouraging adherence behaviors by cultivating hope and customizing their interactions with patients. Interventions aimed at increasing patient self‐efficacy or promoting patients' beliefs that health outcomes are under their physician's control are two routes to building hope. Health initiatives aimed at increasing diabetes treatment adherence should consider alternatives beyond asking patients to “take control” of their diabetes.     

Corruption: Where to Draw the Line?

Just what is corruption, and what should, or can, be done about it? The author is Head of the Management Centre at South Bank University, London.     

资本回报率、人力资本投资与收入不平等——基于Galor-Zeira模型的扩展

资本回报率下降对人力资本投资、收入不平等程度有较大影响。本文将可变资本回报率加入Galor-Zeira模型,理论推导发现:收入不平等陷阱并非不可逾越的障碍。当技能劳动力工资高于受教育固定成本时,随着资本回报率下降,接受教育的遗赠临界水平将降低,更多家庭将发现投资人力资本是有利的,稳态的技能劳动力比例将提高。在当前资本回报率下降的大背景下,提高技能劳动力工资、降低受教育成本、对教育贷款实施财政减免优惠、为农村中等教育支出减负和提升农村教育质量、倡导节俭和重视遗赠的文化氛围在长期都有助于提高技能劳动力比重以及缓和收入不平等。     

贸易开放、出口商品结构与收入不平等——基于南北贸易模型的经验分析

本文通过构建一个南北贸易模型的分析框架,分析贸易开放对收入差距影响的作用机制,提出了出口商品结构变动影响收入差距的相关假说,并进行了实证检验。实证检验与理论假说基本一致:南北贸易引发的技术追赶对促进南方沿海出口商品结构的优化作用要显著大于内陆地区;出口商品结构优化能显著扩大内陆地区城镇居民收入差距,而对沿海地区城镇居民收入差距的影响不显著;出口商品结构优化总体上拉动了全国层面的城镇居民收入水平,但其对沿海和内陆地区城镇居民收入水平的拉动作用存在明显区别,出口商品结构优化显著提高了沿海地区城镇居民收入水平,但其对内陆地区城镇居民收入水平的拉动作用不显著,出口商品结构优化对不同地区城镇居民收入水平影响强度上的差别是导致我国地区间收入差距的一个重要因素。     

对外开放与发展中国家的收入不平等:基于亚洲和拉美国家的比较研究

本文基于要素禀赋理论,在将劳动力划分为低、中、高技能三类的基础上,选取亚洲和拉丁美洲部分发展中国家1960-2005年的数据,建立非平衡面板模型,分析两地区的开放对国内收入分配的影响。实证结果表明,亚洲和拉丁美洲发展中国家的对外开放确实对国内收入不平等起到推动作用。目前的开放有利于中等技能劳动力相对丰裕的发展中国家,而不利于低技能劳动力相对丰裕的国家。总体的贸易依存度对拉美不平等的推动作用更大,但外资对亚洲不平等的推动作用更大;制造业出口倾向于扩大拉美国家的收入差距而缩小亚洲国家的收入差距。