Wealth Gap Research Articles

The Racial Wealth Gap in South Africa and the United States

ABSTRACT We present evidence on the Black–White Racial Wealth Gap in South Africa and compare it to the well-known patterns of the same gap in the United States. We find that the patterns in the overall racial wealth gap are similar between the two countries. In South Africa, the typical Black household owns 5 per cent of the wealth held by the typical White household. In the US, the typical Black household owns 6 per cent of the wealth held by the typical White household. In both countries, a racial wealth gap exists at different levels of education and income. The fact that the racial wealth gap in the US is similar to that of a country that recently emerged from apartheid is a sobering indictment. Conversely, the US presents a grim outlook of the future course of the racial wealth gap in South Africa, especially in the absence of economic redress. The similarities in the evidence between the two countries points to the potential utility of using the Identity Group Stratification framework for understanding racial wealth dynamics in South Africa, an approach that is absent in the literature.

The City of Boys: An ethnographic survey into the experiences of apprentices and urbanization of Onitsha City, Nigeria

This research critically examines the post-civil war Igba-boi apprenticeship system, unveiling its pivotal role in shaping Onitsha into a thriving urban economic hub through robust human capital development. The apprenticeship system forged between a trader-mentor and a mentee over a specific timeframe act as a conduit for passing on trade expertise. The symbolically rich mentorship process propels the mentee into independent entrepreneurship, with a conscious obligation to perpetuate the trade cycle by mentoring others, often recruited from rural areas, thereby initiating widespread urban migration in Onitsha city. By the post-Nigeria-Biafra War era, resonating mentor-mentee collaborations propelled Onitsha into an epicenter of urban politics and human capital development, answering the call of war starvation melted as an indemnity on the Igbo people by the Nigerian government. Employing go-along ethnographic and quantitative historical methods, the study draws from primary and secondary data sources, utilizing pseudonyms for anonymity. By adopting Innovation Diffusion Theory and Agency Theory as analytical frameworks, this research offers a fresh perspective on the Igba-boi system as an ‘unseen’ infrastructure for connecting the wealth gap. It explores communication channels, adoption rates, and economic impacts of innovative practices in Onitsha's economic development. Notable economic impacts include increased business efficiency, productivity, and market reach. Additionally, the study delves into urbanization dynamics, cultural influences, feedback mechanisms, and the long-term sustainability of innovations within the Igba-boi system. By synthesizing Innovation Diffusion Theory and Agency Theory, this research significantly contributes to the discourse on urbanization and economic development, presenting the Igba-boi system as a potent catalyst for inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable urban growth in alignment with the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Minority Student Perceptions of the Impact of Financial Cost of Pharmacy School and Career Choice at a Historically Black College and University (HBCU)

ObjectiveOne of the barriers that might prevent an underrepresented minority (URM) individual from pursuing a professional career in the United States is finances. The high disproportionate burden of student debt among URM students further perpetuates the racial wealth gap. Therefore, this study sought to evaluate the extent to which URM students’ personal finance perceptions, and current and projected student loan indebtedness affect postgraduation career intentions. MethodsA cross-sectional analysis was conducted using data from four cohorts of pharmacy students using a survey from November 2, 2022, to February 1, 2023. The financial perception survey included subscales namely personal finance self-efficacy, debt influence and pressure, and risk mitigation and retirement. Descriptive statistics, simple logistic regression, and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted. ResultsIn total, 93 students completed the survey and had a mean age of 28.1 ± 5.3 years. Seventy-one percent of the respondents were female, and 67.7 % had completed a 4-year bachelor's degree. There was a significant association between age and the intention to pursue postgraduate training as well as a significant association between risk mitigation and retirement perceptions and intention to pursue postgraduate training after adjusting for other factors. ConclusionAmong students from largely minority backgrounds, age, and confidence in their ability to make wise investment decisions for retirement are associated with a greater likelihood of pursuing postgraduate training opportunities.

Does Tourism Reduce Income Inequality Empirical Evidence for Turkiye

Income inequality poses a significant risk to societal harmony. While tourism presents numerous economic prospects, the ongoing discussion regarding its impact on income inequality persists. Assessing the potential of leveraging the growth in the tourism industry to address income disparities will have significant ramifications for Turkiye, a prominent player in the tourism sector. Hence, this study examines the influence of tourism on the disparity of wealth in Turkiye spanning the years 1995 to 2020. The RALS-EG method is used to examine this impact. According to the information obtained, while an increase in the GDP variable increases income inequality, an increase in the FDI variable leads to a decrease in income inequality. The tourism variable, which is the main subject of the study, has a negative sign and a 1 unit increase in tourism causes a 0.03% decrease in income inequality.

Mazamisa’s Dialectica-Reconciliae and Mosala’s Materialistic Reading of the Text: An Experimental Exploration of Luke 12:13-21

This article explores the interpretive dimensions of Luke 12:13-21 within the landscape of the first-century world and how it relates to the democratic South African context. The question that drives this reading is two-fold: (1) How would this parable be understood by the early Jesus movement in the first-century Mediterranean context? In the light of socio-economic, religious, and political context of the day? What did they hear from what Jesus said through this parable? (2) similarly, what are we hearing from this same parable in today’s society, in the light of our own socio-economic, religious and political landscape? I suggest analysing this parable through Mazamisa’s dialectica reconciliae and Mosala’s historical-materialistic lenses, which might reveal profound insights into the nation’s post-1994 journey of reconstruction and development of South Africa and the liberation of the black child, in a government led by another black child. The passage’s warnings against materialism and its call to be ‘rich towards God’ resonate with South Africa’s pursuit of social justice and equitable wealth distribution. It mirrors concerns over land reform and responsible inheritance, aligning with the principles of Ubuntu that emphasize collective well-being. The text’s emphasis on spiritual values contributes to discussions on fostering a cohesive national identity amid religious diversity. It underscores the importance of transparent governance and accountability, addressing wealth disparities, and confronting poverty. This exploration offers a compelling synthesis, suggesting how Luke 12:13-21 can guide South Africa in forging a just, inclusive, and spiritually grounded democratic society.Contribution: This study explores the interpretive dimensions of Luke 12:13-21 within the context of the first-century world and its relevance to South Africa, offering profound insights into post-1994 reconstruction and development, social justice, equitable wealth distribution, collective well-being, national identity, wealth disparities, and poverty, ultimately guiding South Africa towards a just, inclusive, and spiritually grounded democratic society.

Preparing Teachers to Re-Build Democratic Communities and Disappearing Middle Class to Reverse Global Inequality: A Typology Applying Bourdieusian ‘Taste’ and Dewey-Inspired Tools to Transform World Making

‘Double structuring’ of objective economic wealth and subjective perception of wealth through language and culture produce a common world of divisions in the classroom from ‘bad taste’ to ‘good taste’. Teachers’ language and culture of instruction and ‘good taste’ perpetuate systemic injustice with unconscious bias. The tool ‘A Blueprint for Character Development for Evolution (ABCDE) offers five steps to prepare teachers to recognize bias and reverse it with a Typology Applying Bourdieusian ‘Taste’ for Making Worlds. A—Ask questions about instructional Language and Culture and Community Languages and Cultures; B—Critique Typology of Taste: C—Develop statistical models with measures to monitor and evaluate incremental progress towards synthesizing/unifying different classroom languages and cultures into one democratic language and culture whilst honouring each; D—Create evidence-informed, logical and ethical qualitative pathways to re-building a democratic community/disappearing middle class; E—Identify a principle of unity that reverses local inequality, and through powerful Higher Education networks, mainstream it to reverse global inequality. A Professional Educators and Administrators Committee for Empowerment (PEACE) offers a systemic multi-level communication infrastructure to enable feedback loops from communities to policy makers to measure inequality and report narrowing income and wealth gaps to reverse the sharpest increase between 2019 and 2020 in global inequality since World War II.

Balancing the scales: How housing supply regulation shapes household wealth inequality in China

Given its significant implications for the economy and society, this paper investigates the impact of housing supply regulation on household wealth inequality. Utilizing data from the China Household Finance Survey and land transaction records spanning from 2013 to 2019, we employ recentered influence function regression and two-way fixed effects models to analyze the effect of unexpected housing supply shocks on the wealth gap among households. Our findings reveal that positive unexpected housing supply shocks are crucial in reducing household wealth inequality. This reduction is attributed to the heterogeneous impacts of housing supply regulation on different wealth groups. By deregulating the housing supply, the upward trend in housing prices has slowed, which in turn makes homeownership more accessible and facilitates wealth accumulation for households that fall within the 20 % and 80 % wealth quantiles. Conversely, deregulation has a negative impact on property values for households in the 80–100 % wealth quantile, thus mitigating their overall wealth growth. Overall, this study emphasizes the significant role of housing supply regulation in shaping wealth inequality in China.

Research on the mechanism involved in urban social inclusiveness and resident entrepreneurship: Evidence from China

During the urbanization process in China, issues such as the widening wealth gap, class stratification, and social exclusion influenced residents' decisions to pursue entrepreneurship. Inclusiveness is an inevitable trend in new urbanization, and it is also a key factor in promoting residents' entrepreneurship and stimulating the potential for social innovation. Based on three key principles, “fairness, openness, and sharing, “ this paper assesses the relationship, and the internal mechanism driving the relationship, between urban social inclusiveness and resident entrepreneurship. This includes constructing an urban social inclusiveness index, and analyzing data from the 2018 China General Social Survey (CGSS). The key results indicate that urban social inclusiveness has a significant positive effect on resident entrepreneurship. The mechanism analysis shows that urban social inclusiveness can improve the probability of residents being entrepreneurial, by improving risk attitude, promoting class mobility, and expanding social networks. Heterogeneity analysis shows that urban social inclusiveness has a significant impact on the entrepreneurial of local residents, and low-class and high-class residents; urban social inclusiveness has no significant impact on the entrepreneurial choice of transient residents and middle-class residents. Besides, urban social inclusiveness plays a more significant role in promoting residents' choice of survival entrepreneurship, compared with opportunistic entrepreneurship.

Present Challenges in Indian Politics: An Overview

Indian politics faces a myriad of challenges in the contemporary era, which significantly impact the world's largest democracy. This overview highlights key issues that challenge the political landscape of India. Corruption remains a persistent issue, eroding public trust and hindering development. Political polarization is on the rise, fueled by religious and ideological differences, endangering social harmony. Economic inequality persists, with a vast wealth gap affecting millions. Regionalism continues to strain federal relations, posing threats to national unity. Inadequate governance and bureaucratic inefficiencies hinder progress, while populism often takes precedence over pragmatic policymaking. Electoral reforms are needed to address issues like money power and criminalization in politics. These challenges, while daunting, also present opportunities for India to strengthen its democratic institutions, foster inclusivity, and embark on a path of sustainable development. Solving these challenges will be pivotal in ensuring a brighter future for Indian politics and the nation as a whole.

Walking on eggshells: elementary school teacher alienation in parent-teacher relationships in China

ABSTRACT Conflicts in the parent-teacher relationships have become conspicuous and inevitable, deteriorating the supposedly mutually beneficial relationship. To understand teachers’ negative experiences in such relationships and underlying reasons, this study, based on alienation theory and its latter extensions, collected and analysed eight teachers’ in-depth interviews and 47 pieces of school-life observation records in a Chinese elementary school. The findings revealed that although elementary school teachers adopted different strategies to handle parent-teacher relationships, each experienced at least one dimension of alienation (powerlessness, meaninglessness, isolation, or self-estrangement). Especially, they felt “double powerlessness”: loss of control in relationships with both the school and parents. To be specific, the major sources of double powerlessness are the big gaps in educational attainment, wealth, and social connections between teachers and parents. However, teachers can still be partially empowered by their identity, colleagues, and even educational bureaucracy to resist alienation.

United States Healthcare System

United States Healthcare System

Your Home Made Perfect

This paper investigates a new, popular, award-winning reality television show, Your Home Made Perfect. Drawing on insights from Sara Ahmed’s work on the promise of happiness, our thematic analysis of nineteen episodes of Your Home shows how architectural entertainment is uniquely positioned through its use of Virtual Reality (VR) technology to circulate happiness and uplifting emotions and to critique the power imbalances of architect-client relationships. The paper argues how Your Home foregrounds happy emotions to the re-design of homes, where emotions are mobilized through design visualizations that turn both home and architects into “happy objects.” Moreover, through “happy objects,” this property television show seeks to deflect anxieties of housing precarity and growing wealth disparity. Finally, the paper reveals how architectural TV entertainment reinforces regressive ideas of identity and home ownership.

Monetary Policy and the Evolution of Wealth Disparity: An Assessment Using US Survey of Consumer Finance Data

Monetary Policy and the Evolution of Wealth Disparity: An Assessment Using US Survey of Consumer Finance Data

Role of Development Banking in Economic Growth in Kenya

Purpose: This study delineates the impact of development banking on Kenya's economic growth. The current study adopted a quantitative and exploratory research design.
 Materials and Methods: The study used a quantitative research design. Secondary data was utilized in this study. The data was collected from the financial statements of development banks in Kenya. The target population was 6 development banks in Kenya. The study then progressed to more complex regression analysis, where financial performance ratios and percentages for predictor factors formed the basis of the analysis. The study focused on 6 development financial institutions operating in Kenya.
 Findings: The findings (β=0.1153, p=0.0056), reveal that development banking had a positive and significant effect on economic growth. This infers that an improvement in development banking by one unit would lead to an improvement in economic growth by 0.115 units. The investigation substantiates a tangible and statistically significant correlation between the maturation of the development banking sector and the economic growth spectrum in Kenya.
 Implications to Theory, Practice and Policy: Policymakers in Kenya should work to maintain a stable regulatory system that enhances the role of the banking system in stimulating economic growth. The study emphasizes the need for a stable regulatory environment and well-considered interest rate policies to mitigate adverse economic impacts. Additionally, the study advocates for a pro-poor banking approach to reduce wealth disparities and boost economic growth through improved savings and customer deposits in banks. the banks.

Disability and the widening gap in mid-life wealth accumulation: A longitudinal examination

Research suggests that persons living with a disability are disadvantaged in terms of employment outcomes and experience greater economic vulnerability. Despite our understanding of wealth inequality in later life as the result of an accumulative process of resource acquisition that occurs across the life course, conclusions about economic inequality associated with disability are mainly based on cross-sectional research or very short-term panel studies. In this paper, we examine the extent to which work disability in mid-life creates a cumulative disadvantage in wealth accumulation that grows with age. Using long-term longitudinal data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID), we follow respondents from their 40 s into their 60 s to understand the relationship between work disability and wealth accumulation over time. Growth curve models include two specifications of trajectories of household wealth accumulation; as a function of time-varying work disability and also as a function of cumulative exposure to work disability in mid-life. Although both specifications indicate a disability penalty to wealth accumulation, the cumulative exposure model shows that initial wealth disparities associated with disability grow substantially with age, resulting in a widening gap in household wealth at the threshold of traditional retirement age for those with histories of temporary or persistent work disability in midlife.

GEOWEALTH-US: Spatial wealth inequality data for the United States, 1960–2020

Wealth inequality has been sharply rising in the United States and across many other high-income countries. Due to a lack of data, we know little about how this trend has unfolded across locations within countries. Examining the subnational geography of wealth is crucial because, from one generation to the next, it shapes the distribution of opportunity, disadvantage, and power across individuals and communities. By employing machine-learning-based imputation to link national historical surveys conducted by the U.S. Federal Reserve to population survey microdata, the data presented in this article addresses this gap. The Geographic Wealth Inequality Database (“GEOWEALTH-US”) provides the first estimates of the level and distribution of wealth at various geographical scales within the United States from 1960 to 2020. The GEOWEALTH-US database enables new lines of investigation into the contribution of spatial wealth disparities to major societal challenges including wealth concentration, income inequality, social mobility, housing unaffordability, and political polarization.

Assessing Regional Inequalities in Kazakhstan through Well-Being

Growing disparities in wealth, well-being, and access to services in Kazakhstan have raised serious concerns among policymakers, especially since the January 2022 protests. This paper evaluates these regional inequalities and presents the findings from Kazakhstan’s inaugural well-being survey. The survey, based on global best practices, involves 4,032 face-to-face interviews with a diverse sample across all 20 regions, ensuring representation. The resulting indices—the Subjective Well-Being Index and the Regional Well-Being Index—highlight both within-region and between-region disparities. Notably, the indices reveal significant variations in well-being, with certain regions reporting notably lower satisfaction levels across dimensions like trust in institutions, satisfaction with financial and housing conditions, health care and education quality, and personal security perceptions.

Stock market and inequality distributions – Evidence from the BRICS and G7 countries

By examining the effects of three stock market indicators (market accessibility, efficiency, and stability) on income and wealth inequality in the BRICS and G7 countries, this study enriches lacking literature on income and wealth inequality, particularly for the BRICS countries. We apply the Autoregressive Distributed Lag–Mixed Data Sampling (ADL-MIDAS) model. We find that only enhancements in market stability reduce income inequality in the BRICS and G7 countries. Additionally, we find that while expansions of market accessibility contribute to narrowing wealth inequality, improvements in market stability widen the wealth disparity in the BRICS countries. Limited effects of the stock market indicators on wealth distribution are observed in the G7 countries.

Debt‐based welfare: Debt‐to‐asset relationships across Black and White households in the United States

AbstractUnder neoliberal social provision, debt has become a primary tool for US households to pursue economic mobility and manage risk. Borrowing supports financial and non‐financial investments that, in theory, should lead to lifetime income and asset gains from which debt can be repaid. Many scholars argue, however, that reliance on credit as a welfare tool significantly increases inequality, particularly along racial lines. In this paper, I examine this process of debt‐financed asset accumulation by analyzing racial disparities in the relationship between household debt and assets. Using Survey of Consumer Finances data, I examine disparities in assets held at given debt levels across Black and White households. Results indicate that at equal debt levels, Black households' assets are between 30% and 80% lower than those of comparable White households. This suggests that White households benefit considerably more from social policies that center borrowing as a mechanism of social provision. This likely contributes to the persistence of the racial wealth gap. Racial disparities in access to credit, to homeownership, and to non‐market financial transfers like inheritances partly explain White households' higher returns, but racial gaps remain even when accounting for these factors.

Mediating effects of hypertension in association between household wealth disparities and diabetes among women of reproductive age: analysis of eight countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

Diabetes prevalence appears to be increasing in low- and middle-income countries, yet little is known about how hypertension status mediates the association between household wealth and diabetes. This study examined the mediation effects of hypertension in associations between household wealth and diabetes in eight sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries. This is a cross-sectional study of 71577 women from recent Demographic and Health Surveys for eight SSA countries. Sample-weighted logistic regression and causal mediation analyses were conducted. Of the 71577 women, 1.1% (782) reported ever being diagnosed with diabetes. Women with diabetes were more likely to have hypertension compared with those without diabetes (54.9% vs 9.9%). The odds of diabetes were significantly higher among women with hypertension (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 5.71 [95% confidence interval {CI} 4.62 to 7.05]) and women from rich households (adjusted OR 1.65 [95% CI 1.23 to 2.22]) compared with their respective counterparts. Hypertension status mediated 27.4% of the association between household wealth and diabetes status. Hypertension status partly contributes to the associations between household wealth disparities and diabetes status among women in the selected countries. Further research and targeted interventions are needed to explore specific mechanisms and confounding factors related to household wealth disparities, hypertension status and diabetes prevalence in this population.