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The Rich And The Poor In A Simple Model Of Growth And Distribution

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  • Borissov, Kirill

Abstract

We consider a model of economic growth with altruistic agents who care about their consumption and the disposable income of their offspring. The agents' consumption and the offspring's disposable income are subject to positional concerns. We show that, if the measure of consumption-related positional concerns is sufficiently low and/or the measure of offspring-related positional concerns is sufficiently high, then there is a unique steady-state equilibrium, which is characterized by perfect income and wealth equality, and all intertemporal equilibira converge to it. Otherwise, in steady-state equilibria, the population splits into two classes, the rich and the poor; under this scenario, in any intertemporal equilibrium, all capital is eventually owned by the households that were the wealthiest from the outset and all other households become poor.

Suggested Citation

  • Borissov, Kirill, 2016. "The Rich And The Poor In A Simple Model Of Growth And Distribution," Macroeconomic Dynamics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 20(7), pages 1934-1952, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:macdyn:v:20:y:2016:i:07:p:1934-1952_00
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    Cited by:

    1. Borissov, Kirill & Hashimzade, Nigar, 2022. "Fiscal policy and inequality in a model with endogenous positional concerns," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    2. Kirill Borissov & Andrei Kalk, 2024. "Social security, bequests, and social comparisons," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 26(3), June.
    3. Borissov, Kirill & Kalk, Andrei, 2020. "Public debt, positional concerns, and wealth inequality," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 170(C), pages 96-111.
    4. Kirill Borissov & Mikhail Pakhnin & Ronald Wendner, 2024. "Present-Biased Envy, Inequality, and Growth," CESifo Working Paper Series 11090, CESifo.
    5. Borissov, K. & Pakhnin, M., 2018. "A Division of Society into the Rich and the Poor: Some Approaches to Modeling," Journal of the New Economic Association, New Economic Association, vol. 40(4), pages 32-59.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • O41 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - One, Two, and Multisector Growth Models
    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making

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