Institutions are important for proper economic performance, but are replaceable by trust or other social norms. We show that when proper institutions and trust are missing, integrity of the individuals can replace them. We construct a model of a transactions-based economy with contracts...

Institutions are important for proper economic performance, but are replaceable by trust or other social norms. We show that when proper institutions and trust are missing, integrity of the individuals can replace them. We construct a model of a transactions-based economy with contracts...

Several recent studies have investigated whether the size distribution of income in the United States follows a random walk meaning that it has a unit root, with mixed results. In this paper, we investigate the same issue using Canadian national and provincial income inequality data. The...

In this article we provide an overview of the Gini decomposition and the generalized entropy inequality measures, a free access to their computation, an application on French wages, and a different way than Dagum to demonstrate that the Gini index is a more convenient measure than those issued...

In a paper on the measurement of the flatness of an income distribution Berrebi and Silber (1989) showed how it was possible to derive from the Gini index a measure of the degree of Kurtosis of a distribution whose definition made it quite similar to the more famous Pearson measure of Kurtosis....

In this article, polarization measurement is presented as a useful tool for characterizing the net transfers of income between individuals caused by a tax reform. The bipolarization measure, which considers just two poles and involves the disappearance of the middle class, may complement...

I compare personal and household income taxation and study the effects of tax progression under the two systems. Potential reforms of the Italian tax system are simulated, endogenizing labor supply reactions. Results show that, with respect to a number of indicators, the choice of the tax unit...

Income inequality typically declines with the length of time taken into account for measurement. This note derives an exact analytical relationship between the accounting period and inequality as measured by the Gini index. The formal relationship is similar to the decomposition of the...

This paper considers welfare effects of entry when the incumbent firm behaves like a Stackelberg leader in the product market. In contrast to the existing literature, we show that entry may increase welfare for any cost asymmetries between the firms. Using a general demand function we show the...

Using panel data, poverty in Argentina is decomposed into transient and chronic components. Overall poverty has increased in large part due to higher chronic poverty. While many household characteristics have similar impacts on both chronic and transient poverty, there are differences....