The causes and consequences of increasing inequality / edited by Finis Welch.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Welch, Finis, 1938-2020.

Series:

Bush School series in the economics of public policy ; v. 2.

The Bush School series in the economics of public policy ; v. 2

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Income distribution--United States.

Income distribution.

United States.

Physical Description:

vi, 379 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Chicago : University of Chicago Press, 2001.

Summary:

Although the economic boom of the 1990s helped the poor, the gap between the poor and the wealthy in the United States has continued to increase. Ample evidence exists to validate perceived trends in wage, income, and overall wealth disparity, but there is little agreement on the causes of such inequality and what might be done to alleviate it.

This volume draws together a panel of distinguished scholars who address these issues. Their findings are surprising, suggesting that factors such as trade imbalances, immigration rates, and differences in educational resources do not account for recent increases in the inequality of wealth and earnings. Rather, the contributors maintain that these discrepancies can be attributed to workplace demand for high-skilled labor. They also insist that further research must examine the organization of industry in order to better understand the concurrent devaluation of manual labor.

Addressing a topic that is of considerable public interest, this collection helps move the issue of increasing economic inequality in America to the center of the public policy arena.

Contents:

1. Trends in Wage Inequality in the United States / Donald R. Deere 9

2. Decreasing (and Then Increasing) Inequality in America: A Tale of Two Half-Centuries / Claudia Goldin, Lawrence F. Katz 37

3. Why Is Wealth Inequality Rising? / James P. Smith 83

4. Earnings Inequality in International Perspective / Franco Peracchi 117

5. Mobility within and between Generations / Gary Solon 153

6. Schooling, Inequality, and the Impact of Government / Eric A. Hanushek, Julie A. Somers 169

7. Government Policy and Wage Inequality: Regulation, Incentives, and Opportunities / Marvin H. Kosters 201

8. Trade, Immigration, and Wage Distribution / William Cline 241

9. Industrial Change and the Demand for Skill / Kevin Murphy, Finis Welch 263

10. Inequalities in Income and Inequalities in Health / Angus Deaton 285

11. IQ, Success in Life, and Inequality: The Ambiguous Merits of Meritocracy / Charles Murray 315

12. Wage Differentials in the 1990s: Is the Glass Half-Full or Half-Empty? / Kevin Murphy, Finis Welch 341.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

ISBN:

0226893014

OCLC:

45243242