Income Inequality 11

Question 1

Issues with quality of data (4)

Answer 1

1) select extreme examples of countries to illustrate a point; 2) if the data source is not biased, then is the explanation substantive?; 3) cultural differences; 4) the whole analysis by Wilkinson & Pickett (2010) is one of correlational data and correlations are not causations

Question 2

Select extreme examples of countries to illustrate a point

Answer 2

That is, choose equal countries with good outcomes [like Norway and Sweden] and compare them to unequal countries with poor outcomes [like USA and UK].

Question 3

Issues with this

Answer 3

While this is the best way to get strong statistical significance, it still highlights the point that OECD [Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development] countries do vary on income equality and health and social predictors

Question 4

If the data source is not biased, then is the explanation substantive?

Answer 4

Wilkinson & Pickett [2010] used explanations associated with psychological factors [stress and social breakdown] however there may be wider community/national factor

Question 5

Examples of wider community/national factors

Answer 5

1) Nations with low income inequality are less ethnically diverse [e.g Sweden, Norway, Japan versus USA, UK, Australia] - and thus high migration may explain why there is income inequality and psychosocial problems [Sweden is struggling now with a wave of migrants]; 2) Nations that have high income inequality have statistically more poor people who are in turn going to experience more ill-health and more social ills [crime, drug addiction, poor diet, etc].

Question 6

But if this was true…

Answer 6

If this is true, then by inference, the rich people in these countries should be immune from any ill-effects of income inequity However, the statistics quoted also seem to indicate that the rich people in these nations [high income inequality] also have poorer health than the rich people in more economically equal countries

Question 7

This is especially true when…

Answer 7

when crime, drugs etc. are part of the health index

Question 8

Cultural differences

Answer 8

While these nations vary on income inequality, they also vary on cultural dimensions – which have been shown to impact on health

Question 9

Hofstede’s Cultural values

Answer 9

power-distance (deference to authority); uncertainty-avoidance; individualism; masculinity; long-term orientation (future focus)

Question 10

Evidence

Answer 10

cultural dimensions by health indicators

Question 11

Higher power distance and mortality

Answer 11

higher rates of infections and parasitic diseases; lower rates of cancers, cardiovascular diseases

Question 12

Higher uncertainty avoidance

Answer 12

high rates of heart disease

Question 13

Higher individualism

Answer 13

high rates of cancers and heart disease; low rates of infections and parasitic diseases, cerebrovascular diseases

Question 14

Higher masculinity

Answer 14

high rates of cerebrovascular diseases

Question 15

What cultural values do nations with high income inequality have

Answer 15

overall, nations with high income inequality have high power distance, low uncertainty avoidance, individualistic, high masculinity and long term orientation.