User menu

Accès à distance ? S'identifier sur le proxy UCLouvain

Wellbeing inequality and preference heterogeneity

Primary tabs

Decancq, Koen [Universiteit Antwerpen, London School of Economics, CORE, UCL] Fleurbaey, Marc [Princeton University] Schokkaert, Erik [KU Leuven and CORE, UCL]

Standard measures of multidimensional inequality (implicitly) assume common preferences for all individuals, and hence are not sensitive to preference heterogeneity among members of society. In this paper, we measure the inequality of the distribution of equivalent incomes, which is a preference-sensitive multidimensional wellbeing measure. To quantify the contribution of preference heterogeneity to wellbeing inequality, we use a decomposition method that calculates wellbeing inequality in different counterfactual distributions. We focus on four sources of wellbeing inequality: the correlation between outcomes and preferences, the preference heterogeneity, the correlation between the outcome dimensions, and the inequality within each of the outcome dimensions. We find that preference heterogeneity accounts for a considerable part of overall wellbeing inequality in Russia for the period 1995-2005.

Document type Article de périodique (Journal article) – Article de recherche
Access type Accès interdit
Publication date 2017
Language Anglais
Journal information "Economica" - Vol. 84, p. 210-238 (2017)
Peer reviewed yes
Publisher Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd. ((United Kingdom) Chichester)
issn 0013-0427
e-issn 1468-0335
Publication status Publié
Affiliation UCL - SSH/LIDAM/CORE - Center for operations research and econometrics
Links
  1. Aaberge, Handbook of Income Distribution, 2, 141 (2015)
  2. Arnold, Inequalities: Theory of Majorization and Its Applications (2011)
  3. Atkinson A. B., Bourguignon F., The Comparison of Multi-Dimensioned Distributions of Economic Status, 10.2307/2297269
  4. Beegle Kathleen, Himelein Kristen, Ravallion Martin, Frame-of-reference bias in subjective welfare, 10.1016/j.jebo.2011.07.020
  5. Bosmans Kristof, Decancq Koen, Ooghe Erwin, What do normative indices of multidimensional inequality really measure?, 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2015.03.003
  6. Bourguignon, Handbook of Income Inequality Measurement, 477 (1999)
  7. Box, Journal of the Royal Statistical Society, Series B (Methodological), 26, 211 (1964)
  8. Chakravarty, Oxford Handbook on Well-being and Public Policy, 246 (2016)
  9. Cowell Frank, Measuring Inequality, ISBN:9780199594030, 10.1093/acprof:osobl/9780199594030.001.0001
  10. Cowell, Economic Journal, 105, 421 (1995)
  11. Dardanoni, Research on Economic Inequality, 6, 201 (1996)
  12. Lasso de la Vega Casilda, Urrutia Ana, de Sarachu Amaia, Characterizing multidimensional inequality measures which fulfil the Pigou–Dalton bundle principle, 10.1007/s00355-010-0443-z
  13. Decancq Koen, Copula-based measurement of dependence between dimensions of well-being, 10.1093/oep/gpt038
  14. Decancq, Economica, 79, 721 (2012)
  15. Decancq Koen, Fleurbaey Marc, Schokkaert Erik, Happiness, Equivalent Incomes and Respect for Individual Preferences, 10.1111/ecca.12152
  16. Decancq, Handbook of Income Distribution, 2, 67 (2015b)
  17. Dutta Indranil, Foster James, Inequality of Happiness in the U.S.: 1972-2010, 10.1111/j.1475-4991.2012.00527.x
  18. Dutta Indranil, Pattanaik Prasanta K., Xu Yongsheng, On Measuring Deprivation and the Standard of Living in a Multidimensional Framework on the Basis of Aggregate Data, 10.1111/1468-0335.t01-1-00279
  19. Ferrer-i-Carbonell, Economic Journal,, 114, 641 (2004)
  20. Fleurbaey Marc, Blanchet Didier, Beyond GDP : Measuring Welfare and Assessing Sustainability, ISBN:9780199767199, 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199767199.001.0001
  21. Fleurbaey Marc, Maniquet Francois, A Theory of Fairness and Social Welfare, ISBN:9780511851971, 10.1017/cbo9780511851971
  22. Fleurbaey, American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, 5, 180 (2013)
  23. Fleurbaey Marc, Trannoy Alain, The impossibility of a Paretian egalitarian, 10.1007/s00355-003-0258-2
  24. Frijters Paul, Geishecker Ingo, Haisken-DeNew John P., Shields Michael A., Can the Large Swings in Russian Life Satisfaction be Explained by Ups and Downs in Real Incomes?, 10.1111/j.1467-9442.2006.00459.x
  25. Frijters Paul, Haisken-DeNew John P., Shields Michael A., Investigating the Patterns and Determinants of Life Satisfaction in Germany Following Reunification, 10.2307/3558991
  26. Gajdos Thibault, Weymark John A., Multidimensional generalized Gini indices, 10.1007/s00199-004-0529-x
  27. Jones Andrew M., Schurer Stefanie, How does heterogeneity shape the socioeconomic gradient in health satisfaction?, 10.1002/jae.1134
  28. Kolm Serge-Christophe, Multidimensional Egalitarianisms, 10.2307/1883135
  29. Layard R., Mayraz G., Nickell S., The marginal utility of income, 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2008.01.007
  30. Maasoumi Esfandiar, The Measurement and Decomposition of Multi-Dimensional Inequality, 10.2307/1912849
  31. Maasoumi Esfandiar, Jeong Jin Ho, The trend and the measurement of world inequality over extended periods of accounting, 10.1016/0165-1765(85)90040-0
  32. Ravallion Martin, Himelein Kristen, Beegle Kathleen, Can Subjective Questions on Economic Welfare Be Trusted?, 10.1086/686793
  33. Scanlon T. M., Preference and Urgency, 10.2307/2024630
  34. Sen, Commodities and Capabilities (1985)
  35. Stiglitz , J.E. Sen , A. Fitoussi , J.-P. 2009 Report by the commission on the measurement of economic performance and social progress
  36. Trannoy, Inequality and Economic Integration, 284 (2006)
  37. Tsui Kai-yuen, Multidimensional inequality and multidimensional generalized entropy measures: An axiomatic derivation, 10.1007/s003550050136
  38. Weymark, Inequality and Economic Integration (2006)
Bibliographic reference Decancq, Koen ; Fleurbaey, Marc ; Schokkaert, Erik. Wellbeing inequality and preference heterogeneity. In: Economica, Vol. 84, p. 210-238 (2017)
Permanent URL http://hdl.handle.net/2078.1/184358