A collection of twenty-three studies that explore the latest
developments in the analysis of income and wealth distribution and
mobility.
Economic research is increasingly focused on inequality in the
distribution of personal resources and outcomes. One aspect of
inequality is mobility: are individuals locked into their respective
places in this distribution? To what extent do circumstances change,
either over the lifecycle or across generations? Research not only
measures inequality and mobility, but also analyzes the historical,
economic, and social determinants of these outcomes and the effect of
public policies. This volume explores the latest developments in the
analysis of income and wealth distribution and mobility. The collection
of twenty-three studies is divided into five sections. The first
examines observed patterns of income inequality and shifts in the
distribution of earnings and in other factors that contribute to it. The
next examines wealth inequality, including a substantial discussion of
the difficulties of defining and measuring wealth. The third section
presents new evidence on the intergenerational transmission of
inequality and the mechanisms that underlie it. The next section
considers the impact of various policy interventions that are directed
at reducing inequality. The final section addresses the challenges of
combining household-level data, potentially from multiple sources such
as surveys and administrative records, and aggregate data to study
inequality, and explores ways to make survey data more comparable with
national income accounts data.
