Consumption Inequality

Orazio P. Attanasio and Luigi Pistaferri

Journal of Economic Perspectives, 2016, vol. 30, issue 2, 3-28

Abstract: In this essay, we discuss the importance of consumption inequality in the debate concerning the measurement of disparities in economic well-being. We summarize the advantages and disadvantages of using consumption as opposed to income for measuring trends in economic well-being. We critically evaluate the available evidence on these trends, and in particular discuss how the literature has evolved in its assessment of whether consumption inequality has grown as much as or less than income inequality. We provide some novel evidence on three relatively unexplored themes: inequality in different spending components, inequality in leisure time, and intergenerational consumption mobility.

JEL-codes: D12 D31 D63 E21 I31 J62 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
Note: DOI: 10.1257/jep.30.2.3
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (287)

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