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The Measure of a Nation

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  • Richard Reeves

Abstract

We need more—and better—data on social mobility in the United States. Normative questions must be answered first. We have to know why we care about a particular pattern of mobility to know how to set about measuring it. The distinction between relative and absolute mobility is a case in point. Do we care most about whether people are better off than their parents, or about how much movement there is up and down the income ladder? Technical difficulties abound for the measurement of mobility. It is important not to lose sight of the motivation for the exercise: measuring how far the inequality patterns of one generation are impressed upon the next, understanding these replication processes empirically, and weakening them. America has a historic commitment to the ideal of equality of opportunity. Data on mobility, then, comprise the measure of the nation.

Suggested Citation

  • Richard Reeves, 2015. "The Measure of a Nation," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 657(1), pages 22-26, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:anname:v:657:y:2015:i:1:p:22-26
    DOI: 10.1177/0002716214546998
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Michael Hout, 2015. "A Summary of What We Know about Social Mobility," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 657(1), pages 27-36, January.
    2. Miles Corak, 2013. "Income Inequality, Equality of Opportunity, and Intergenerational Mobility," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 27(3), pages 79-102, Summer.
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