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Equality of Opportunity: Definitions and Testable Conditions with an Application to Income in France

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Author Info
Arnaud Lefranc () (THEMA, IDEP, UniversitŽ de Cergy-Pontoise)
Nicolas Pistolesi () (THEMA, UniversitŽ de Cergy-Pontoise)
Alain Trannoy () (EHESS, Greqam-Idep)

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Abstract

We offer a model of equality of opportunity that encompasses different conceptions expressed in the public and philosophical debates. In addition to circumstances whose effect on outcome should be compensated and effort which represents a legitimate source of inequality, we introduce a third factor, luck, that captures the non-responsibility factors whose impact on outcome should be even-handed for equality of opportunity to be satisfied. Then, we analyse how the various definitions of equality of opportunity can be empirically identified, given data limitations and provide testable conditions. Definitions and conditions resort to standard stochastic dominance tools. Lastly, we develop an empirical analysis of equality of opportunity for income acquisition in France over the period 1979-2000 which reveals that the degree of inequality of opportunity tends to decrease and that the degree of risk of income distributions, conditional on social origin, appears very similar across all groups of social origins.Classification-JEL:D63, J62, C14

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Paper provided by Institut d'economie publique (IDEP), Marseille, France in its series IDEP Working Papers with number 0609.

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Length: 51 pages
Date of creation: 27 Sep 2006
Date of revision: 27 Sep 2006
Handle: RePEc:iep:wpidep:0609

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Keywords: Equality of opportunity; Income distribution; Luck; Stochastic dominance.;

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  6. Kodde, David A & Palm, Franz C, 1986. "Wald Criteria for Jointly Testing Equality and Inequality Restriction s," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 54(5), pages 1243-48, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  26. François Bourguignon & Francisco H. G. Ferreira & Marta Menendez, 2003. "Inequality of Outcomes and Inequality of Opportunities in Brasil," DELTA Working Papers 2003-24, DELTA (Ecole normale supérieure). [Downloadable!]
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  27. Dr. Peter Kenning & Hilke Plassmann, 2004. "NeuroEconomics," Experimental 0412005, EconWPA. [Downloadable!]
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  30. Gabriela Schütz & Heinrich W. Ursprung & Ludger Woessmann, 2005. "Education Policy and Equality of Opportunity," IZA Discussion Papers 1906, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
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  31. Valentino Dardanoni & Antonio Forcina, 1999. "Inference for Lorenz curve orderings," Econometrics Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 2(1), pages 49-75.
  32. Checchi, Daniele & Ichino, Andrea & Rustichini, Aldo, 1999. "More equal but less mobile?: Education financing and intergenerational mobility in Italy and in the US," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(3), pages 351-393, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Jacques Silber & Olivier Giovannoni & Amedeo Spadaro, 2007. "Inequality of Life Chances and the Measurement of Social Immobility," Economics Working Paper Archive wp_513, Levy Economics Institute, The. [Downloadable!]
  2. Claudia Biancotti & Giovanni D'Alessio, 2008. "Values, inequality and happiness," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 669, Bank of Italy, Economic Research Department. [Downloadable!]
  3. Juan Rodríguez, 2008. "Partial equality-of-opportunity orderings," Social Choice and Welfare, Springer, vol. 31(3), pages 435-456, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Aitor Calo, 2009. "Equality of opportunity and optimal effort decision under uncertainty," Working Papers. Serie AD 2009-12, Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Económicas, S.A. (Ivie). [Downloadable!]
  5. Laura Serlenga & Vito Peragine, 2007. "Higher education and equality of opportunity in Italy," Working Papers 79, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality. [Downloadable!]
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  6. Brigitte Dormont & Anne-Laure Samson, 2007. "Restrictions on the number of physicians and Intergenerational Inequalities : Experience, Time and Vintage effects in GPs’ earnings," Health, Econometrics and Data Group (HEDG) Working Papers 07/11, HEDG, c/o Department of Economics, University of York. [Downloadable!]
  7. Juan Gabriel Rodríguez, 2007. "Partial and complete equality-of-opportunity orderings," Working Papers 70, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality. [Downloadable!]
  8. Gustavo A. Marrero & Juan G. Rodríguez, 2009. "Inequality of Opportunity and Growth," Working Papers 2009-24, FEDEA. [Downloadable!]
  9. Claudia Biancotti & Giovanni D'Alessio, 2007. "Inequality and Happiness," Working Papers 75, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
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