February, 2007

How Should Changes in Inequality Be Measured and Assessed?

by Mark A. Thoma
The Conversation
February 26th, 2007

I am pleased to see that Alan Reynolds is finally taking a closer look at some of the evidence that works against his claim that inequality has been stagnant in recent decades, though he predictably dismisses it. I will not convince him the evidence is valid, and he most certainly has not convinced me that [...]

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Mean vs. Median Income

I opened the discussion by presenting evidence suggesting little change since 1986-88 in the inequality in disposable income or consumption “among the U.S. population as a whole” (as opposed to, say, the 99.99th percentile doing better than the 99th percentile). One unique piece of that evidence — comparing growth of median income by quintile and [...]

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