Income Inequality 4 Flashcards
Life expectancy and gross national income
people in rich nations (USA, Norway) do not live the longest (Japan and Sweden); life expectancy is not related to gross national income
Life expectancy and gross national income graph
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Life expectancy and income inequality
countries that have income inequality, have lower life expectancy
Life expectancy and income inequality graph
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Explaining the impact of income inequality
Statistics indicate that within nations that are more equal in income - life expectancy is improved across all income levels [the richest citizens] not just the lower income bracket [in the poorest 20%]
What factors are associated with life expectancy
There are many factors associated with life expectancy, including health and social determinants,
Wilkinson & Pickett (2010)
Wilkinson & Pickett (2010) reported on income inequality and a number of these “indicators”
Major problems with Wilkinson & Pickett’s big data analysis (3)
1) level of analysis; 2) type of analysis; 3) type of explanation
Level of analysis
descriptive only hence correlation data only
Type of analysis
inductive reasoning; propose explanations but never evaluate them
Type of explanation
surface relationships; need to develop theories that explain the data and develop deductive research that test hypotheses generated by these theories
What did Layte (2011) do
developed three theories; however, only used regressions [correlations] to evaluate these
Layte (2011)’s three theories
social capital theory [“people are important”]; status hierarchy theory [“us and them”]; neo-materialist theory [“social [ecology) environment matters”]
Social capital theory
Social community factors directly determine [cause] of the individual experience
According to social capital theory, income inequality (4)
1) increases status differences; 2) lowers levels of civic participation and social mixing; 3) lowers inter-personal trust and reciprocation; 4) negative impact on health
