基于收入分布的收入差距扩大成因的分解

本文采用核平滑化的半参方法估计了1987年、1996年、2004年我国城市居民收入分布曲线,并且基于收入分布又进一步分解了导致城市居民收入差距扩大的主要原因。收入差距扩大的成因可以分为两类:一是劳动者的劳动力特点的普遍变化,如劳动者教育水平的提高,行业、职业分布的变化;二是对劳动力特点回报率的变化,如教育回报率的提高,各行业、职业回报率差异的扩大等。本文发现后者是导致收入差距扩大的主要原因。

Decomposition of Rising Income Inequality based on the Distributions

This study adopts the semi-parametric Kernel Density Smoothing technique to estimate the income distribution of Chinese urban employees for 1987,1996,and 2004. Using the income inequality decomposition method based on income distributions,we examine the causes of rising income inequality. There are two major causes:one is the changes in employees' labor market characteristics,such as the increase in the education level and the change in industry and occupation distributions; the other is the changes in the returns to these characteristics,such as the increase in the return to education,and the increased disparity in the returns to different industries and occupations. We find that the latter is the major cause of the rising income inequality in urban China.