Week 15 – Final Week of Class Review for Final Exam – Overview of main concepts

For the last week of class we will be going over main concepts and data trends covered throughout the semester. The readings for this week are:

  1. Neckerman, Kathryn M., and Florencia Torche. 2007. “Inequality: Causes and Consequences.” Annual Review of Sociology 33(1):335–57.
  2. Firebaugh, Glenn. 2000. “The Trend in Between-Nation Income Inequality.” Annual Review of Sociology 26(1):323–39.

I recommend you finish the readings before carefully going over my PowerPoint presentation with voiceover where I explain important ideas and concepts covered in the readings. I also update the data discussed in the papers with more recent figures.

Throughout this course we’ve focused our discussions inequality trends and patterns around the world, whilst trying to understand its causes and consequences. I would like us to finish the course by thinking about possible solutions. With that in mind, watch the video below, where Arjun Jayadev and Branko Milanovic “discuss possible policy solutions to inequality, including opening borders and raising taxes on capital gains”

Lecture Post Questions:

Please note that this lecture post is worth double and are now due on Monday

On the comments section below, address the following questions (answers should be at least 100 words in length and posted by Monday – This is how participation points are assessed. Please save your comments in a safe document before attempting to post it.

  1. From  my PowerPoint presentation, what isn’t clear? Any thoughts or comments you would like to share?
  2. From the readings, any concepts or ideas that are not clear?
  3. Based on the the video, what are the main takeaways? Do you have any solutions you would add?
  4. What is the most important thing you think you’ve learned throughout the semester?

Week 13 – Comparing Group Inequality Between Countries – Race

 

Our discussion this week is based on the Introduction of Ellis Monk’s PhD dissertation:

Monk, Ellis P. 2013. “Color, Bodily Capital, and Ethnoracial Division in the U.S. and Brazil.” [Introduction pp.1 – 22]

I recommend you finish the readings before carefully going over my PowerPoint presentation with voiceover where I explain important ideas and concepts covered in the readings.

Watch the video below on race relations in Brazil.

Watch the video below as it directly relates to this week’s reading.

Lecture Posts Questions:

Please note that this and future lecture posts will be worth double and are now due on Monday

On the comments section below, address the following questions (answers should be at least 100 words in length and posted by Monday – This is how participation points are assessed. Please save your comments in a safe document before attempting to post it.

  1. From  my PowerPoint presentation, what isn’t clear? Any thoughts or comments you would like to share?
  2. From Ellis Monk’s reading, what are the main takeaways?
  3. From the reading, is everything clear? Do you have any questions?
  4. Based on the first video from Vox on race relations in Brazil, what are the main takeaways? Do you have any questions?
  5. How does the second video relate to this week’s reading? Did you find any of this surprising? In your opinion, how are racial categories in Brazil different or similar to that of other countries you know?
  6. Any general thoughts, comments or questions you would like to share?

Week 12 – Inequality Between Countries Immigration, Gender and Race

Our discussion is based on this week’s readings:

  1. Hoffman, Kelly, and Miguel Angel Centeno. 2003. “The Lopsided Continent: Inequality in Latin America.” Annual Review of Sociology 29(1):363–90.
  2. Parreñas, Rhacel. S. 2000. Migrant Filipina Domestic Workers And The International Division Of Reproductive Labor. Gender & Society, 14(4), 560–580.

I recommend you finish the readings before carefully going over my PowerPoint presentation with voiceover where I explain important ideas and concepts covered in the readings. I also discuss more recent data on topics discussed in the papers that you might find interesting.

Watch the trailer for the documentary The Care Chain of Love. You can find the entire documentary HERE

Watch this longer 5-minute video of the documentary above

Since 1994 with the genocide against the Tutsi, Rwanda saw an increased and continued convergence in gender equality. In 2020 it ranked 9th amongst countries in the world in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index. This index measures gender equality based on four main areas: 1) Economic participation and opportunity; 2) Educational attainment; 3) Health and survival; 4) Political Empowerment. You can find the entire 2020 report HERE

We’ve studied in this course how malign factors such as wars can affect overall levels of economic inequality in a country, but we haven’t investigated how these factors can also affect between-group inequalities. With this in mind, watch the video below on gender equality in Rwanda:

Lecture Posts Questions:

Please note that this and future lecture posts will be worth double and are now due on Monday

On the comments section below, address the following questions (answers should be at least 100 words in length and posted by Monday – This is how participation points are assessed. Please save your comments in a safe document before attempting to post it.

  1. From  my PowerPoint presentation, what isn’t clear? Any thoughts or comments you would like to share?
  2. From the Hoffman and Centeno (2003) reading, what are the main takeaways?
  3. From Parreñas (2000) reading and the videos of the film, what are the main takeaways?
  4. Based on the video on gender equality in Rwanda, how does this relate to other malign factors and inequality reduction that we’ve studied in class?
  5. Any general thoughts, comments or questions you would like to share?

Week 11 – Causes of Divergent Development Between Countries: An Institutional Approach

Our discussion is based on this week’s readings:

  1. Hillmann, Henning. 2013. “Economic Institutions and the State: Insights from Economic History.” Annual Review of Sociology 39(1):251–73.
  2. Acemoglu, Johnson and Robinson. 2001. The colonial origins of comparative development: An empirical investigation. American Economic Review 91:1369-1401

I recommend you finish the readings before carefully going over my PowerPoint presentation with voiceover where I explain important ideas and concepts covered in the readings. I also present data from other papers that you might find interesting.

Watch James Robinson’s TEDx talk where he discusses “Why do some states enjoy wealth, security, health and nutrition while others face poverty, unemployment, lack of health care and safety?”

Lecture Posts Questions:

On the comments section below, address the following questions (answers should be at least 100 words in length and posted by Sunday – This is how participation points are assessed. Please save your comments in a safe document before attempting to post it.

  1. From my PowerPoint presentation, what isn’t clear? Any thoughts or comments you would like to share?
  2. From the readings, what isn’t clear? What surprised you the most? Any thoughts you would like to share?
  3. What are the main takeaways from James Robinson’s TEDx talk?

 

Week 10 – Top Incomes – A brief overview of main topics

This week we are discussing trends in top incomes shares and what makes the rich rich.

Our discussion is based on this week’s readings:

  1. Medeiros, Marcelo., & de Souza, Pedro. H. F. 2015. The rich, the affluent and the top incomes. Current Sociology, 63(6), 869–895.
  2. Piketty, Thomas. 2014 Capital in the Twenty-First Century. [Introduction]

I recommend you finish the readings before carefully going over my PowerPoint presentation with voiceover where I explain important ideas and concepts covered in the readings. I also present data from other papers that you might find interesting.

Watch this 6 minute video where Emmanuel Saez talks about the rising income inequality:

Before watching Piketty’s Ted Talk, have a look at this brief 3 minute summary of his book:

Watch Piketty’s Ted Talk, where he explains his main hypothesis:

Lecture Posts Questions:

On the comments section below, address the following questions (answers should be at least 100 words in length and posted by Sunday – This is how participation points are assessed. Please save your comments in a safe document before attempting to post it.

  1. From my PowerPoint presentation, what isn’t clear? Any thoughts or comments you would like to share?
  2. From the Medeiros and Souza (2015) reading, what isn’t clear? What would you like to ask the authors? Any thoughts you would like to share?
  3. From the introduction to Piketty’s book what isn’t clear? Any thoughts you would like to share?
  4. After watching  Saez’s video, what are the main takeaways?
  5. What are the main takeaways from Piketty’s Ted Talk? Why do you think this book was of so much interest to so many people?

 

Week 7 – Understanding Historical Trends in Within Country Income Inequality

This week we are discussing historical trends in within country income inequality.

Our discussion is based on this week’s reading: Milanovic, Branko. 2016. Global Inequality – A New Approach for the Age of Globalization. [Chapter 2 – pp. 46 – 117]

Carefully go over my PowerPoint presentation with voiceover where I explain important ideas and concepts covered in the readings.

Watch the video below that explains what are Malthusian Cycles

Watch the video below where Lawrence Katz discusses the race between education and technology

 

Lecture Posts Questions:

On the comments section below, address the following questions (answers should be at least 100 words in length and posted by Sunday – This is how participation points are assessed. Please save your comments in a safe document before attempting to post it.

  1. From my PowerPoint presentation, what isn’t clear? Any thoughts or comments you would like to share?
  2. From the reading what is not clear?
  3. After watching the video on Malthus, in your own words, explain what are Malthusian Cycles
  4. After watching Katz’s video, in your own words, explain what is the race between education and technology

 

Week 6 – Income Inequality Among Citizens in the World

Hi all,

This week we are discussing income inequality among citizens in the world. We are reading: Milanovic, Branko. 2010. The Haves and the Have-Nots: A brief and idiosyncratic history of global inequality [Chapter 3 AND Vignettes 3.1 – 3.9]

Go over my PowerPoint presentation with voiceover, where I clarify certain aspects of the reading.

Watch the first lecture in the Institute for New Economic Thinking’s “Inequality 101” series, where Arjun Jayadev explains the vital importance of understanding inequality in today’s world.

Lecture Posts Questions:

On the comments section below, address the following questions (answers should be at least 100 words in length and posted by Sunday – This is how participation points are assessed. Please save your comments in a safe document before attempting to post it.

  1. From my PowerPoint presentation, what isn’t clear? Any thoughts or comments you would like to share?
  2. From the reading what is not clear?
  3. Given Arjun Jayadev’s lecture, what are the main takeaways? What didn’t you understand?

Week 5 – Income Inequality Between Countries

Lecture Post Week 5 – Income Inequality Between Countries

This week we are discussing Income Inequality Within a Country. The reading for the week is:

Milanovic, Branko. 2010. The Haves and the Have-Nots: A brief and idiosyncratic history of global inequality [Chapter 2 AND Vignettes 2.1 – 2.7]

Carefully listen to my PowerPoint Presentation, where I clarify important aspects and concepts in the reading.

Where are you in the US and Global Income distribution? You can find out HERE

You can reproduce the chart on Global versus National Income distribution for any country you like using this interactive chart at the end of the post on this site

Watch this 3min video on Karl Marx

 

Watch Branko Milanovic’s Lecture, where he discusses inequality between countries

 

Lecture Posts Questions:

On the comments section below, address the following questions (answers should be at least 100 words in length and posted by Sunday – This is how participation points are assessed. Please save your comments in a safe document before attempting to post it.

  1. From my PowerPoint presentation, what isn’t clear?
  2. From the reading what is not clear?
  3. Given Milanovic’s lecture, what are the main takeaways? What didn’t you understand?

Week 4 – Income Inequality Within a Country

Lecture Post Week 4 – Income Inequality Within a Country

This week we are discussing Income Inequality Within a Country. The reading for the week is:

Milanovic, Branko. 2010. The Haves and the Have-Nots: A brief and idiosyncratic history of global inequality [Chapter 1: Essay I – Unequal People AND Vignettes 1.1 – 1.10]

Carefully listen to my PowerPoint Presentation, where I clarify important aspects and concepts in the reading.

Watch this 3min video on the Industrial Revolution

 

Watch this video that explains John Rawls’ Theory of Justice

 

This week there are various learning outcomes for you to check. Be sure you understood:

  • Why the Gini measured from disposable and gross income is different from each other
  • Why the Gini measured from income and consumption data is different from each other
  • Why researchers were so concerned about the functional distribution of income
  • What is the Kuznets Curve
  • What is the Social Welfare Function and the issue in comparing individual welfare (utility) functions
  • What is diminishing marginal utility
  • What is John Rawls’ veil of ignorance

Lecture Posts Questions:

On the comments section below, address the following questions (answers should be at least 100 words in length and posted by Sunday – This is how participation points are assessed. Please save your comments in a safe document before attempting to post it.

  1. From my PowerPoint presentation, what isn’t clear?
  2. From the reading what is not clear?
  3. Given the video on the Industrial Revolution, describe the main characteristics of society before and after the Industrial Revolution
  4. Given the video on John Rawls, what is the veil of ignorance?
  5. Write down the country or describe the society you would like to be born in if you had no information regarding your family background or ascriptive characteristics (race, sex, gender, sexual orientation, religion, disability, etc). Why?

Week 2 – How to Measure Inequality and Why Measurement Matters

Hi everyone,

This week we are discussing How to measure Inequality and Why Measurement Matters. The two readings for the week are:

1) Ravallion, Martin. The Debate on Globalization, Poverty and Inequality – Why Measurement Matters

2) Milanovic, Branko. 2016. Global Inequality – A New Approach for the Age of Globalization. [Introduction and Chapter 1 – pp. 1 – 45]

Before starting the readings, I recommend you careful study my PowerPoint presentation with voiceover (to see the presentation properly – listen to my explanations and see the annotations –  you have to go to Slide Show mode).

After you’ve seen my Presentation, watch the video below. They nicely describe the Pen Parade using Total Household Income data from the 2012 Current Population Survey (CPS).

In the PowerPoint presentation I introduced you to the concept of Purchasing Power Parity (PPP). Unlike simply considering the exchange rate for different currencies, PPP allows us to compare countries with very different income levels, taking into account the fact that with same dollar amount you can by more of certain goods in one country than the other. The Big Mac Index is a very simplified version of what the PPP does. Have a look at the video below. (On a side note, the Wikipedia Page (Wikipedia: Unusual Articles) they mention in the video is really pretty cool – the day I discovered this I spent weeks reading various random articles from there)

 

In our second reading for this week by Branko Milanovic, you are finally being introduced to the famous “Elephant Curve”. Be sure to watch the video carefully, it quickly and very nicely summarizes the main takeaways from this Graph.

 

Below we have a new analysis of the “Elephant Curve” Comparing Income Growth in 2008 to that between 2013 – 2014. Read Milanovic’s explanation in this brief magazine article that just came out:

This week there are various learning outcomes for you to check. Be sure you understood what is:

  • Purchasing Power Parity (PPP)
  • The difference between absolute and relative poverty measures
  • The difference between absolute and relative inequality measures
  • Pen Parade
  • Quantile Curve
  • Lorenz Curve
  • Gini Coefficient

Lecture Posts Questions:

On the comments section below, address the following questions (answers should be at least 100 words in length and posted by Sunday – This is how participation points are assessed. Please save your comments in a safe document before attempting to post it.

  1. From my PowerPoint presentation, what isn’t clear?
  2. Given the Information in the first video, what are the main aspects of the US Pen Parade in 2012?
  3. After Watching the video on the elephant Curve and reading Milanovic’s Magazine article published this week, answer what are the largest changes in World Income growth given the new elephant curve?