Rebecca Thiel, Lorenzo Ambrosini, Katarina Rosén
Advanced Visualization Design / Linköping University
Is inequality really unequal?
What’s actually behind inequality in the United States?
With a population of 328 million people and consisting of 50 states, the USA is a diverse country and, according to the statistic, an economic unequal country. The economic inequality in the USA has risen the past decades and while some might not see it as a problem, it can have far-reaching consequences. Economic inequality is measured by the Gini index, which show how the income of the population is distributed.
But does the Gini index tell us everything? Is there other aspects of inequality the index is not telling us?
The Gini Index
The Gini coefficient is a measurement of economic inequality that is used to compare the income distribution between different countries. The measurement is based on the Lorenz curve, which shows how the income is distributed in a certain population. The Gini coefficient reaches between zero (0) and hundred percent (1), were 0 is equal and 1 are unequal.
In the US, there are some differences between the states, with an average value of the Gini Index of 0.452. There is a trend towards higher and more unequal income in areas along the coast, where most of the larger cities are located. Whereas other areas in the north of the country have a lower Gini index and is economically more equal.
Social issues related to Gini Index
As might be expected, the inequality in the distribution of income is the result of different socio-economic problems in different states. When we put the Gini index in relation to unemployment rate, citizenship and share of population without a high school degree a pattern appears. This suggest a connection between these three factors and income inequality within a state. The three graphs below show that in states with higher unemployment, higher percentage of non-citizens and a lower share of population with a high school degree the Gini index is higher. This correlation can seem to be as expected as they in different ways are connected to the distribution of populations’ income.
However, when we put the Gini index in relation to the gender gap in income between men and women another pattern appears.
As can be seen from the graph above, the difference of income between men and women is higher in states that have a lower Gini Index. Contrary to popular belief, a lower general economical inequality does not correspond to a lower inequality in earnings between men and women.
What could be the reason behind this?
It seems that the poorest states have a more distributed wealth, although it is lower, but they are still bound to a tradition in which the disparity between men and women is strongly present. On the other hand, it can be observed that the most dynamic cities on the coasts favor a more fair environment between genders, but generate more inequality between rich and poor people.
Sources
FiveThirtyEight, 2017. Higher Rates Of Hate Crimes Are Tied To Income Inequality [https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/higher-rates-of-hate-crimes-are-tied-to-income-inequality/].
United States Census Bureau, 2020. Gini Index of Income Inequality [https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=gini%20index&g=0100000US.04000.001&tid=ACSDT5Y2015.B19083&moe=false&tp=false&hidePreview=false]
United States Census Bureau, 2012. Educational Attainment in the United States: 2009 [https://www.census.gov/prod/2012pubs/p20-566.pdf]
Kaiser Family Foundation, 2020. Population Distribution by Citizenship Status [https://www.kff.org/other/state-indicator/distribution-by-citizenship-status/?dataView=0¤tTimeframe=4&sortModel=%7B%22colId%22:%22Location%22,%22sort%22:%22asc%22%7D]
Kaiser Family Foundation, 2020. Unemployment Rate (Seasonally Adjusted)[https://www.kff.org/other/state-indicator/unemployment-rate/?currentTimeframe=14&sortModel=%7B%22colId%22:%22Location%22,%22sort%22:%22asc%22%7D]
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016. Women earn 88 percent as much as men in Hawaii, among the highest in 2015. [https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2016/women-earn-88-percent-as-much-as-men-in-hawaii-among-the-highest-in-2015.htm]
