Income inequality and well-being in the U.S.: evidence of geographic-scale- and measure-dependence

Ifcher, John; Zarghamee, Homa; Graham, Carol

doi:10.1007/s10888-018-9404-z

Cited by 13 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 52 publications

(49 reference statements)

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“…American states set their own tax policies. Measuring income inequality at the state level is a common practice for studying various outcomes, including life satisfaction (Ahn et al 2016; Ifcher, Zarghamee, and Graham 2019). However, happiness is an individual property that varies from person to person, and one’s relative position in an inequality system via social comparison should not be ignored.…”

Section: Findings and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Income Inequality, Social Comparison, and Happiness in the United States

Liao

2021

Socius

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Using social comparison theory, I investigate the relation between experienced happiness and income inequality. In the analysis, I study happiness effects of the individual-level within-gender-ethnicity comparison-based Gini index conditional on a state’s overall inequality, using a linked set of the March 2013 Current Population Survey and the 2013 American Time Use Survey data while controlling major potential confounders. The findings suggest that individuals who are positioned to conduct both upward and downward comparison would feel happier in states where overall income inequality is high. In states where inequality is not high, however, such effects are not present because social comparison becomes less meaningful when one’s position is not as clearly definable. Therefore, social comparison matters where inequality persists: One’s comparison with all similar others’ in the income distribution in a social environment determines the effect of one’s income on happiness, with the comparison target being the same gender-ethnic group.

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Section: Findings and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Income Inequality, Social Comparison, and Happiness in the United States

Liao

2021

Socius

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“…Thus, it is important that researchers consider what level of inequality they are interested in examining and operationalize their measures accordingly. This operationalization of the level of analysis, we argue, has important theoretical and empirical implications that researchers assessing perceptions of inequality need to consider (e.g., Ifcher, Zarghamee, & Graham, 2019;Newman, Shah, & Lauterbach, 2018;Xu & Garand, 2010).…”

Section: What Level Of Analysis?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Inequality in Researchers’ Minds: Four Guiding Questions for Studying Subjective Perceptions of Economic Inequality

Jachimowicz¹,

Davidai²,

Goya‐Tocchetto³

et al. 2020

Preprint

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The extent of inequality that people perceive in the world is often a stronger predictor of individual and societal outcomes than the level of inequality that actually exists. It is therefore imperative for researchers to theoretically conceptualize and empirically operationalize perceived inequality in a coherent and consistent manner. However, the lack of consensus on what constitutes perceived inequality can lead researchers to use the same words to study different phenomena. What seem like minor methodological decisions made in the study of inequality can substantially influence the outcomes and conclusions that researchers dra from their work. In this review, we draw on a wide range of interdisciplinary work, including from social and cognitive psychology, economics, political science, and sociology, to unpack the assumptions researchers often make. We develop the four questions framework which illustrates the important theoretical and empirical decisions researchers are recommended to address when studying perceived inequality: (1) What kind of inequality? (2) What level of analysis? (3) What part of the distribution? and (4) What comparison group? We posit that this framework provides the conceptual clarity necessary for understanding when, how, and why perceptions of inequality affect individuals and societies.

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“…Prior research finds inconsistent effects on the outcomes of higher economic inequality. While initial studies found a negative effect of economic inequality on subjective well-being [4][5][6] , subsequent work did not corroborate these results [7][8][9] , with a recent metaanalysis finding no statistically significant relationship between economic inequality and subjective well-being 10 . Similarly, while initial studies found that higher economic inequality is associated with worse health outcomes 11,12 , subsequent research has not found consistent support 13,14 .…”

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confidence: 90%

Higher Economic Inequality Intensifies the Poor’s Financial Hardship by Fraying the Community Buffer

Jachimowicz¹,

Lukas²,

Smerdon³

et al. 2019

Preprint

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The current research investigates whether higher economic inequality disproportionately intensifies the financial hardship of low-income individuals. We propose that higher economic inequality increases financial hardship for low-income individuals by reducing their ability to rely on their community as a buffer against financial difficulties. This may occur—in part—because a frayed community buffer reduces low-income individuals’ propensity to seek informal financial support from others. We provide empirical support across eight studies (N = 1,029,900) from the U.S., Australia, and rural Uganda, through correlational and experimental data, and an instrumental variable analysis. On average across our studies, a one SD increase in economic inequality is associated with an increase of financial hardship amongst low-income individuals of .10 SDs. We discuss the implications of these results for policy aimed to help the poor buffer against the adverse effects higher economic inequality imposes on them.

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Income inequality and well-being in the U.S.: evidence of geographic-scale- and measure-dependence

Cited by 13 publications

References 52 publications

Income Inequality, Social Comparison, and Happiness in the United States

Income Inequality, Social Comparison, and Happiness in the United States

Inequality in Researchers’ Minds: Four Guiding Questions for Studying Subjective Perceptions of Economic Inequality

Higher Economic Inequality Intensifies the Poor’s Financial Hardship by Fraying the Community Buffer

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