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Inequality and Happiness

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Author Info
Claudia Biancotti () (Bank of Italy, Economics and Financial Statistics Department)
Giovanni D'Alessio (Bank of Italy, Economics and Financial Statistics Department)

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Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between inequality and happiness through the lens of heterogeneous values, beliefs and inclinations. Drawing upon opinion data from the European Social Survey for twenty-three countries, we find that individual views on a wide range of themes can be effectively summarized by two orthogonal dimensions: moderation and inclusiveness. The former is defined as a tendency to take mild stands on issues rather than extreme ones; the latter is defined as the degree of support for a social model that grants equal rights and opportunities to everyone who willingly subscribes to a shared set of rules, regardless of background and circumstances. These traits matter when it comes to how inequality affects subjective well-being; specifically, those who are either more moderate or more inclusive than their average compatriot tend to dislike inequality. With reference to moderation, inequality aversion can be read in terms of a desire for stability: people who are reluctant to take strong stands probably dislike conflict, tension and unrest, which normally accompany inequalities. With reference to inclusiveness, the main element at play is likely to be distress accruing to a perception of unfairness.

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Publisher Info
Paper provided by ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality in its series Working Papers with number 75.

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Length: 41 pages
Date of creation: 2007
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Handle: RePEc:inq:inqwps:ecineq2007-75

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Related research
Keywords: Happiness; inequality; heterogeneity;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement

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References listed on IDEAS
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(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. Valter Di Giacinto & Marcello Pagnini, 2008. "Agglomeration within and between regions: Two econometric based indicators," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 674, Bank of Italy, Economic Research Department. [Downloadable!]
  2. Eugenio Gaiotti, 2008. "Has globalisation changed the Phillips curve? Firm-level evidence on the effect of activity on prices," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 676, Bank of Italy, Economic Research Department. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  3. Riccardo Bonci & Francesco Columba, 2008. "Monetary Policy Effects: New Evidence from the Italian Flow of Funds," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 678, Bank of Italy, Economic Research Department. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  4. Marco Cucculelli & Giacinto Micucci, 2008. "Family Succession and Firm Performance: Evidence from Italian Family Firms," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 680, Bank of Italy, Economic Research Department. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  5. Russell Smyth & Xiaolei Qian, 2008. "Inequality and Happiness in Urban China," Economics Bulletin, Economics Bulletin, vol. 4(24), pages 1-10. [Downloadable!]
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