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Measuring Inequality: Pareto's Ambiguous Contribution

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  • Terenzio Maccabelli

Abstract

Pareto was probably the first economist to suggest a way of measuring the inequality of incomes. But the interpretation of his index α came to be an object of contrasting judgments. This paper offers a reconstruction of the debate that involved Pareto's index, aimed at clarifying his thought on the question. The thesis is that Pareto has not made any contribution to the criteria for measuring inequality and, as such, has to be evaluated using other parameters.

Suggested Citation

  • Terenzio Maccabelli, 2009. "Measuring Inequality: Pareto's Ambiguous Contribution," History of Political Economy, Duke University Press, vol. 41(1), pages 183-208, Spring.
    • Handle: RePEc:hop:hopeec:v:41:y:2009:i:1:p:183-208
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    Cited by:

    1. Vladimir Hlasny, 2021. "Parametric representation of the top of income distributions: Options, historical evidence, and model selection," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(4), pages 1217-1256, September.
    2. Nicolas Brisset & Benoît Walraevens, 2021. "From capital to property: History and justice in the work of Thomas Piketty [Du capital à la propriété: Histoire et justice dans le travail de Thomas Piketty]," Post-Print hal-03250042, HAL.
    3. Frank A. Cowell & Philippe Kerm, 2015. "Wealth Inequality: A Survey," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(4), pages 671-710, September.
    4. Kozuharov, Saso & Petkovski, Vladimir, 2018. "The Impact Of Social Transfers On Inequality Measured By Gini Index: The Example Of Macedonia," UTMS Journal of Economics, University of Tourism and Management, Skopje, Macedonia, vol. 9(1), pages 49-61.

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    Keywords

    Pareto; inequality;

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