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POVERTY AND INCOME INEQUALITY IN PUERTO RICO, 1969–89: TRENDS AND SOURCES
Author(s) -
Sotomayor Orlando J.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
review of income and wealth
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.024
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1475-4991
pISSN - 0034-6586
DOI - 10.1111/j.1475-4991.1996.tb00145.x
Subject(s) - economics , income distribution , poverty , income inequality metrics , economic inequality , gini coefficient , distribution (mathematics) , inequality , unearned income , demographic economics , total personal income , development economics , labour economics , gross income , economic growth , public economics , mathematics , mathematical analysis , tax reform , state income tax
The paper examines Puerto Rican trends in income distribution during the 1970s and 1980s, then attempts to ascertain the source of the changes in income inequality through a decomposition of the Gini coefficient by factor income source. The study finds that poverty and inequality declined unambiguously during the twenty‐year period. The source of the fall in income concentration was found to have been tied, not to changes in the distribution or share of earned income, but to that of unearned income, particularly transfers. These appear to have also accounted for the decline in poverty.