Transcript Income per head and life
Inequality: the enemy between us?
Richard Wilkinson Emeritus Professor of Social Epidemiology
Income per head and life-expectancy: rich & poor countries
Source: Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level (2009)
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
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Life expectancy in rich countries is no longer related to National Income per head
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
Life expectancy is strongly related to income within rich countries 80 79 78 77 76 75 74 73 72 71 70 Richest Poorest Local Neighbourhoods (in England & Wales)
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
Inequality...
How much richer are the richest 20% in each country than the poorest 20%?
Income gaps
How many times richer are the richest fifth than the poorest fifth?
3.4
3.7 3.9
4.0
4.3
4.6 4.8
5.2 5.3
5.6 5.6 5.6 5.7
6.1 6.2
6.7 6.8 6.8
7.0
7.2
8.0
8.5
9.7
J a p a n F in la n d N o rw a y S w e d e n D e n m a rk B e lg iu m A u s tr ia G e rm a n y N e th e rl a n d s S p a in F ra n c e C a n a d a S w izt e rl a n d Ir e la n d G re e c e It a ly Is ra N e e l w Z e a la n d A u s tr a li a UK P o rt u g a l U S A S in g a p o re
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
Health and social problems with social gradients and internationally comparable data
• • • • • • • • • •
Life expectancy Math & Literacy Infant mortality Homicides Imprisonment Teenage births Trust Obesity Mental illness – incl. drug & alcohol addiction Social mobility
Health and social problems are worse in more unequal countries
• • • • • • • • • •
Index of: Life expectancy Math & Literacy Infant mortality Homicides Imprisonment Teenage births Trust Obesity Mental illness – incl. drug & alcohol addiction Social mobility
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
Neither health nor social problems are related to national income per head
• • • • • • • • • •
Index of: Life expectancy Math & Literacy Infant mortality Homicides Imprisonment Teenage births Trust Obesity Mental illness – incl. drug & alcohol addiction Social mobility
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
Child well-being is better in more equal countries
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
Child Wellbeing is not related to National Income per head
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
People in more unequal countries trust each other less
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
People in more unequal states of the USA trust each other less
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
Mental illness is more common in more unequal societies
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
Infant Mortality Rates are Higher in More Unequal Countries
Source: Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level (2009)
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
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120 90 60 180 Homicide rates are higher in more unequal US states and Canadian provinces USA states Canadian provinces 150 30 0 Low High Income Inequality
Daly M, Wilson M, Vasdev S. Income inequality and homicide rates in Canada and the United States.
Can J Crim
2001; 43: 219-36.
Imprisonment rates are higher in more unequal countries
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
Teenage Birth Rates are Higher in More Unequal Rich Countries
Source: Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level (2009)
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
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Social mobility is lower in more unequal countries
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
In summary... bigger income gaps lead to deteriorations in:-
Health Social Relations
• • • • •
Child conflict
Homicide Imprisonment
Social capital
Trust
Exceptions: suicide?
• • • • •
Drug abuse
Infant mortality Life expectancy Mental illness
Obesity Human Capital
• • • • •
Child wellbeing
High school drop outs Math & literacy scores
Social mobility
Teenage births
Indicator Correlations: different measures and settings Child wellbeing Trust Life expectancy Infant mortality Obesity Mental illness Education score Teen birth rate Homicides Imprisonment Social mobility Index
r
UN 20:20 International OECD Gini
p r p
-071 -0.66
<0.01
<0.01
-0.68
-0.66
0.01
0.03
-0.44
0.42
0.57
0.73
0.04
0.04
<0.01
<0.01
-0.27
0.54
0.41
0.32
0.24
0.01
0.06
0.30
-0.45
0.73
0.47
0.75
0.93
0.87
0.04
<0.01
0.02
<0.01
<0.01
<0.01
-0.46
0.64
0.44
0.51
0.83
0.75
0.05
<0.01
0.04
0.02
<0.01
<0.01
US 50 States Census Gini -
r
-0.70
-0.45
0.43
0.47
0.18
-0.47
0.46
0.42
0.48
0.59
p
<0.01
<0.01
<0.01
<0.01
0.12
.01
<0.01
<0.01
<0.01
<0.01
Lag times: marginal impact of a 0.01-unit increase in the Gini on individual mortality risk over time Lag time - Years
Zheng H. Social Science & Medicine 2012; 75: 36-45.
Health and social problems are worse in more unequal countries
• • • • • • • • • •
Index of: Life expectancy Math & Literacy Infant mortality Homicides Imprisonment Teenage births Trust Obesity Mental illness – incl. drug & alcohol addiction Social mobility
Wilkinson & Pickett, The Spirit Level
www.equalitytrust.org.uk
The benefits of greater equality are not confined to the poor but extend to all social classes Infant mortality by class: Sweden compared with England & Wales 15 England & Wales Sweden 10 5 0 Single mothers Low Father's occupational class High Leon, D. A., D. Vagero, et al. (1992). "Social class differences in infant mortality in Sweden: comparison with England and Wales." Brit Med J 305(6855): 687-91.
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Literacy Scores of 16-25 year olds by Parents' Education
0.5
Sweden
0
Canada
-0.5
-1
United States
-1.5
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
Parents' Education (years)
14 15 16 17
Source: Willms JD. 1997. Data from OECD Programme for International Student Assessment.
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These relationships reflect deep-seated social processes. What are they?
How do they work?
Income differences increase social class differentiation Bigger income differences:-
• • •
Class becomes more important The social pyramid is higher and more hierarchical The quality of social relations deteriorates
More inequality
Valued or Devalued?
• More superiority and inferiority • More status competition and consumerism • More status insecurity • More worry about how we are seen and judged • More “social evaluation anxiety” (threats to self-esteem & social status, fear of negative judgements
Even low levels of stress raise death rates
Russ TC, Stamatakis E, Hamer M, Starr JM, Kivimäki M, Batty GD. Association between psychological distress and mortality: pooled analysis of 10 prospective cohort studies. BMJ 2012; 345: e4933.
Psychosocial risk factors for ill health
Low social status
Weak social connections
Stress in early life (pre- and postnatally)
30
0.8
0.6
1 What kind of stressful tasks raise stress hormones most?
0.4
0.2
0
Tasks with ‘social evaluative threat’ (uncontrollable) Other tasks
Dickerson SS, Kemeny ME. Acute stressors and cortisol responses. Psychological Bulletin 2004; 130(3): 355-91.
Self enhancement increases in more unequal societies
Loughnan S, et al. Economic Inequality is linked to biased self-perception. Psychological Science, 2011; 22: 1254
Rising narcissism among American college students (meta-analysis of 85 samples 1979-2006)
Twenge JM, Konrath S, Foster JD, Campbell WK, Bushman BJ. Egos inflating over time. J Personality 2008; 76(4): 875-901.
Rising income inequality in Britain 1979-2011 Cribb J, Joyce R, Phillips D. Living standards, poverty and inequality in the UK: 2012. Institute for Fiscal Studies, London 2012
What can be done?
Income differences before tax
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Stronger Trade Unions
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Increase company democracy employee ownership etc
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Promote more directors from within companies Taxes & benefits
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Stop tax avoidance
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End tax havens
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Make taxation progressive again
Sustainability needs greater equality
Changing ratio of CEO pay to average pay of production & non-supervisory workers in top 350 US companies
Between 1979-2007 the income of the: Top 0.1% increased by 362% Top 1% increased by 156% Bottom 90% increased by17%
Mishel L, Sabadish N. Economic Policy Institute Brief #331. Washington, May 2012
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Pay differentials Pay ratios in public sector usually between 1:10 and 1:20
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Average for FTSE 100 companies 1:300
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78% of public think the pay gap is too large, but only 27% support higher welfare benefits. (Brit Soc Atts Survey)
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Greater London Assembly committed (16 th June 2010) to pay differences of 1:20, with a long term goal of 1:10.
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Hutton Report suggested public sector 1:20
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Brit Soc Atts Survey: Appropriate pay for unskilled worker: £16,000, for CEO of large company: £100,000. i.e. ratio of less than 1:7
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Fairness Commissions have recommended Living Wage
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Referendum in Switzerland (Nov 2013) limiting pay differentials to 1:12
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WageMark – a new standard (like Fair Trade) to be launched for companies with pay differences less than 1:8
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Mondragon Cooperatives between 1:3 and 1:9. Ave 1:5
For more information: … a book and a website… http://www.equalitytrust.org.uk
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