Volunteering and Income Inequality: Cross-National Relationships

Wilkinson and Pickett, in their 2009 book The Spirit Level, found that, in rich countries, income inequality was negatively associated with a range of indicators of well-being, but they did not consider the relationship with volunteering. This paper seeks to fill that gap. Using existing data sources, it shows that, among European countries, higher levels of volunteering are associated with lower levels of income inequality. The relationship is particularly strong for regular and sport-related volunteering. The basic Spirit Level thesis is therefore confirmed as applicable to volunteering. However, while the thesis involves just one theoretical explanation for the income inequality/well-being relationship, namely status anxiety, in the case of volunteering, other variables are also found to be at play, including government social spending, available leisure time and geo-historical traditions. It is concluded that, while high levels of volunteering, as a form of social capital, can be seen as one of a number of features of more equal societies, disentangling cause and effect may require a more holistic approach to understanding its contribution to the generation and sustaining of social well-being.     

The Role of Migrant Remittances in Development: Evidence from Mediterranean Countries

Given the persistent problems in the balance of trade in LDCs, the limited effect of foreign aid, and the difficulties of borrowing, the often huge amounts of migrant remittances can substitute for the inadequacies of these forms of foreign exchange. As market flows of foreign exchange, remittances have complex positive and negative effects on development. In this paper, I deal with this role of migrant remittances in the theoretical framework of development economics, as related to the importance of foreign exchange as an indispensable factor of growth and structural change in LDCs. Various channels transmitting the impact of remittances on development are investigated based on the experience of countries from both sides of the Mediterranean basin.     

Labor Migration,Remittances and Household Income: A Comparison between Filipino and Filipina Overseas Workers1

The major purpose of the research is to examine gender differences in patterns of labor market activity, economic behavior and economic outcomes among labor migrants. While focusing on Filipina and Filipino overseas workers, the article addresses the following questions: whether and to what extent earnings and remittances of overseas workers differ by gender; and whether and to what extent the gender of overseas workers differentially affects household income in the Philippines. Data for the analysis were obtained from the Survey of Households and Children of Overseas Workers (a representative sample of households drawn in 1999–2000 from four major “labor sending” areas in the Philippines). The analysis focuses on 1,128 households with overseas workers. The findings reveal that men and women are likely to take different jobs and to migrate to different destinations. The analysis also reveals that many more women were unemployed prior to migration and that the earnings of women are, on average, lower than those of men, even after controlling for variations in occupational distributions, country of destination, and sociodemographic attributes. Contrary to popular belief, men send more money back home than do women, even when taking into consideration earnings differentials between the genders. Further analysis demonstrates that income of households with men working overseas is significantly higher than income of households with women working overseas and that this difference can be fully attributed to the earnings disparities and to differences in amount of remittances sent home by overseas workers. The results suggest that gender inequal‐     

Income Inequality and Economic Convergence in Turkey

Even though the convergence of regional per capita incomes has been a highly debated issue internationally, empirical evidence regarding Turkey is both limited and contradictory. This paper is an attempt to investigate regional income inequality and convergence dynamics in Turkish gross domestic product. First, the Theil coefficient of concentration index has been employed in order to analyze the dispersion aspects of the convergence process which shows a procyclical character. Then, we investigate the convergence dynamics, taking regional interdependencies into account. Empirical results indicate that there is convergence at the national level. Moreover, the spatial error model is preferred by the model selection criteria, indicating that the typical least-squares regional convergence model is misspecified.     

Trade and Wage Inequality in Developing Countries

In this article we provide a theoretical analysis of the possible impact of trade and fragmentation on the skilled–unskilled wage gap in a small developing economy. In particular, we illustrate the possibility of a decline in the relative wage of the unskilled labor following an improvement in the terms of trade. (JEL F1 , F11 , F12 )     

Determinants of Bank Performance in Transition Countries: A Data Envelopment Analysis

We analyze what drives bank efficiency in the transition countries of Central Europe and compare the results with those for the United States. This paper is one of the few that use data envelopment analysis for the computation of efficiency scores in transition countries, and, to our knowledge, it is the first to explore systematically how different specifications of data envelopment analysis affect the results. Our findings corroborate the common wisdom that foreign-owned banks operating in transition countries are more efficient than domestic banks. While in the United States large banks are in general more efficient, the result for transition countries depends on the design of data envelopment analysis.     

Income Inequality,Globalization, and the Welfare State: Evidence from 23 Industrial Countries, 1990–2009

The debate regarding the welfare state–weakening effect and the income inequality‐increasing effect of globalization remains a contentious issue among stratification scholars. For some, globalization increases income inequality, while for others, globalization has no, or a negligible, effect on income inequality. This study brings new evidence to bear on this debate by separately investigating effects of multiple indicators of globalization (international trade, foreign direct investment [FDI] and immigration), and of welfare state generosity (government social‐protection spending) on (1) income inequality before taxes and transfers and (2) income inequality after taxes and transfers, using data from 23 Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development (OECD) countries over 1990–2009. First, results show a positive effect of international trade, a negative effect of immigration, but no effect of FDI and government social‐protection spending on income inequality before taxes and transfers. Second, results show no effect of the globalization indicators but a negative effect of government social‐protection spending on income inequality after taxes and transfers. These findings suggest that (1) globalization has inequality‐increasing effects depending on measures of income inequality; (2) the welfare state, in many OECD countries, continues to shape income distribution; and (3) in contrast with the popular narrative, immigration may decrease income inequality.     

The Effect of World Economy on Income Inequality: A Reassessment*

The research on the world systems model of income distribution has been marked by some conflicting reports on whether or not periphery status is significantly related to inequality. Writers such as Rubinson argue for the salience of the world-systems model, while authors such as Weede claim that it is insignificant if we include a correctly specified control for level of development. This confusion is based, in part, on a debate over how periphery status should be measured. Previous work has often used measures of questionable validity, such as foreign trade, as a percent of GDP. The present investigation develops a conceptualization of dependency on the world market based on the concentration of export receiving nations. A multiple regression analysis of data from forty-three nations indicates that the index of periphery status does influence indicators of inequality. However, the parabolic model of level of development tends to explain more of the variance in inequality than the world-systems factor. Finally, a control for political democracy gave no support for the political paradigm on inequality.     

Regional Well-Being and its Inequality in the OECD Member Countries

This paper analyses the inequality between the regions of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) member countries by using stochastic multi-objective acceptability analysis and the associated multivariate Gini index. By considering a large number of possible combinations of weights, the distribution of the potential rankings for each region is used to measure multidimensional inequality both within and between countries. Our results show that beyond the expected two clubs of rich and poor countries, a third group of countries emerges that belongs neither to the top nor to the bottom of the ranking, an outcome that can be attributed to the presence of significant economic differences among regions within those countries. Most of the inequality lies between countries, but regional well-being also significantly varies within the same countries and we find an inverse U-shape connection between regional well-being and its inequality within the OECD member countries.

     

Income Inequality and Chronic Health Conditions: A Multilevel Analysis of the U.S. States

Recently, scholarly work has examined the effect of rising income inequality on health outcomes. However, this work is somewhat inconclusive. The mechanisms that could produce such an association are still being sorted out. Much of this work focuses on mortality outcomes with little attention to how this process operates for actual health conditions, including chronic health problems—arguably the main public health concerns of the developed world. In a series of multilevel binary logistic regression models using data from the 2005 and 2007 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, we examine the association between state-level income inequality, poverty, and social welfare measures on spending and policy to examine the association between these factors for three chronic health outcomes: diabetes, hypertension, and coronary heart disease. We find that income inequality is conditionally positively related only to the diagnosis of diabetes and hypertension, and only in 2007. However, absolute poverty is related to the outcome across all three dependent variables. Certain social welfare measures attenuate the effects of both income inequality and absolute poverty, suggesting that some policies reduce this association.     

Testing the Determinants of Income Distribution in Major League Baseball

Using data from U.S. Major League Baseball, this article compares parametric and nonparametric Gini coefficients for each team and year. We employ a panel-data model to investigate the time-series and cross-sectional factors affecting the Gini coefficients and the parameters of the preselected distribution. We find that much of within-team income distribution is determined by time-related variables, with the 1994 MLB strike having an especially strong effect. A team's market potential does not seem to affect its salary distribution, but the average age of the players on a team's roster does. Furthermore, inequality first increases with team payroll, then decreases before increasing again.     

Global Centrality and Income Inequality in U.S. Metropolitan Areas: A Test of Two Hypotheses

This article provides a quantitative assessment of two global city hypotheses: Sassen’s polarization and Hamnett’s professionalization claims. We conduct our analysis by using a continuous measure of global city status developed by researchers at the Global and World Cities Research Network (GaWC) and examining its correlation with the Gini index of household income inequality with relevant controls across a large sample of U.S. metropolitan areas in 2008. We examine industrial employment distribution as a causal pathway by which global city formation may influence urban income structures, as per Sassen and Hamnett’s original hypotheses. Results show that global city status is consistently associated with higher levels of inequality, but neither theorist’s claims about causal mechanisms are supported. This begs the question: What explains the correlation? We suggest an alternative hypothesis relating global city status to the distribution of educational credentialing.     

Main Determinants of Foreign Direct Investment in the Southeast European Countries

The growth of foreign direct investments (FDI) in the world has been significant in recent years. Between 1990 and 2000 worldwide FDI inflows increased more than five times, and since 2000 they have declined. During the period of FDI expansion, growth was especially strong from 1997 onward. However, most of the FDI transactions were between the developed countries. The distribution of FDI is unequal and less-developing countries face difficulties in attracting FDI. Despite the fact that FDI is increasingly important to developing countries, over the past few years the share of the developing countries in worldwide FDI inflows has been declining. The paper analyses geographical and sector distribution of FDI in the Southeast European countries (SEEC) and compares its amount with that in Central East European countries. According to economic theory, FDI towards developing countries flows for labor-intensive and low-technology production, while towards developed states, it flows for high-technology production. Identification of determining factors of FDI is a complex problem which depends on several characteristics specific for each country, sectors, and companies. All those factors could be grouped in three broad categories: economic policy of host country, economic performance, and attractiveness of national economy. On the desegregated level, FDI depends on size and growth potential of a national economy, natural resources endowments and quality of workforce, openness to international trade and access to international markets, and quality of physical, financial, and technological infrastructure. An important question is how SEEC can attract more foreign investment. To find the answer, this paper uses data on FDI inflows to SEEC to determine the main host country determinants of FDI and provides regression-based estimation of determinants of FDI. Using a sample of SEEC and panel data techniques, the determinants of FDI in this part of Europe are investigated. The paper researches the relationship between FDI, GDP, GDP per capita, number of inhabitants, trade openness, inflation, external debt, and information and communication technology sectors. For SEEC, FDI inflows are largely dependent on the completion of the privatization process and in this paper we include the level of private sector and privatization as explanatory variables. Our findings suggest that certain variables such as privatization and trade regime, as well as the density of infrastructure, appear to be robust under different specifications. A positive significance of the agglomeration factor is also observed, confirming the relevant theoretical propositions. However, certain differential variables, such as the privatization, could not be fully captured due to the statistical homogeneity of the sample.     

National Income, Inequality and Global Patterns of Cigarette Use

Declining tobacco use in high-income nations and rising tobacco use in low- and middle-income nations raises questions about the sources of worldwide patterns of smoking. Theories posit a curvilinear influence of national income based on the balance of affordability and health-cost effects. In addition, however, economic inequality, gender inequality and government policies may moderate the rise and fall in smoking prevalence with national income. This study tests these arguments using aggregate data for 145 nations and measures of smoking prevalence circa 2000. The results show nonlinear effects of national income for males that take the form of an inverted U, but show linear effects for females. They also show non-additive effects of economic inequality for males that moderate both the rise and decline of smoking with national income and non-additive effects of gender equality for females that moderate the positive effect of national income.     

A New Kuznetsian Dynamic: The Knowledge Economy and Income Inequality in the United States, 1917–2008

The rise of the knowledge economy resulted in higher levels of income inequality in the United States and forced many to question the Kuznets Inverted‐U hypothesis. However, this study argues that the establishment of a knowledge economy does not negate the importance of employment shifts for income inequality. Instead, the expansion of knowledge employment alters the major sectors that are responsible for the overall distribution of income. To this end, this article presents the key argument that the current service–knowledge transition impacts income inequality trends, of today, in a way that is similar to the agricultural–industrial transition, of the past. According to the autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity regressions, the agricultural–industrial transition returns stronger associations with income inequality in the United States before 1950. The agricultural–industrial transition's impact diminishes thereafter as the service–knowledge transition shares a more robust association with income inequality after 1980.     

The Acculturation of Canadian Immigrants: Determinants of Ethnic Identification with the Host Society*

En utilisant le Canada comme exemple, nous tentons de déterminer jusquà quel point les immigrants adoptent l'identitée ethnique de leur pays d'accueil, empruntant ou non une identité ethnique d'assimilés ou d'intégrés. Nous portons une attention particulière à l'impact de I'intégration économique, du nombre d'années écoulées depuis lémigration, de l'origine ethnique et de l'appartenance à une minorité visible sur l'identité ethnique. Étonnamment, nos résultats démontrent que les indicateurs du succès économique tels que le statut professionnel, l'emploi et les revenus antérieurs n'ont aucune influence sur léventualité que les immigrants endossent ou non l'identité de leur société d'accueil. L'analyse statistique de cet article s'appuie sur la documentation actuelle sur l'acculturation. Using Canada as an example, we examine the extent to which immigrants take on the ethnic identity of their host country, thus displaying either an assimilated, integrated, or neither assimilated nor integrated ethnic identity. We pay particular attention to the impact of economic integration, years since migration, ethnic origin and visible minority status on ethnic identity. Surprisingly, our findings reveal that indicators of economic success such as employment status, occupation and prior earnings do not have an impact on whether immigrants will assume the identity of their host society. The statistical analysis for this paper is situated within the existing acculturation literature.     

Determinants of International Migration Flows to and from Industrialized Countries: A Panel Data Approach Beyond Gravity1

We quantified determinants of international migratory inflows to 17 Western countries and outflows from 13 of these countries between 1950 and 2007 in 77,658 observations from multiple sources using panel-data analysis techniques. To construct a quantitative model that could be useful for demographic projection, we analyzed the logarithm of the number of migrants (inflows and outflows separately) as dependent variables in relation to demographic, geographic, and social independent variables. The independent variables most influential on log inflows were demographic [log population of origin and destination and log infant mortality rate (IMR) of origin and destination] and geographic (log distance between capitals and log land area of the destination). Social and historical determinants were less influential. For log outflows from the 13 countries, the most influential independent variables were log population of origin and destination, log IMR of destination, and log distance between capitals. A young age structure in the destination was associated with lower inflows while a young age structure in the origin was associated with higher inflows. Urbanization in destination and origin increased international migration. IMR affected inflows and outflows significantly but oppositely. Being landlocked, having a common border, having the same official language, sharing a minority language, and colonial links also had statistically significant but quantitatively smaller effects on international migration. Comparisons of models with different assumed correlation structures of residuals indicated that independence was the best assumption, supporting the use of ordinary-least-squares estimation techniques to obtain point estimates of coefficients.     

Residence and Income Inequality: Effects on Mortality Among U.S. Counties

Abstract Despite lower average incomes, greater percentages living in poverty, lower levels of health insurance, less preventive health care, and poorer health status, nonmetropolitan residents have been found to experience lower mortality than their metropolitan counterparts. Several pathways through which residence influences mortality have been proposed. The objective of this study is to examine the effects of income inequality on residential differentials in mortality. Using data from the Compressed Mortality File for counties in the coterminous United States for 1990, we estimate weighted least squares models of total mortality for 3,067 counties, and separately for metropolitan and nonmetropolitan counties. Mortality is lower in nonmetropolitan counties than in metropolitan counties, once rates are standardized for age, sex, and race. Moreover, income inequality exerts stronger effects in nonmetro counties, an effect that persists when per capita income, median household size, and racial composition are controlled. The percentage of the population that is black exerts an independent effect on mortality in both metro and non‐metro counties.